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WHITBY FREE PRESS, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 13, 1980, PAGE 7 A girls tnip to Brazil the experience of a lifetime By S. GREENAWAY« Free Press Staff The largest soccer field in t.he world, Rio de Janiero, four hours of school six days a week and an average tem- perature of 68 degrees during the wlnter are definately not to be found anywhere in this country. Elizabeth Brown, 18, of Brooklin recently returned from a one year exehange program trip to Brazil with these and rnany more stories to tell. Brown left last August 18 to live with Brazilian familles for one whole year as part of The Rotary Club of Whitby's student exchange program. Living in Sao Jose do Rico Preto in the state of Sao Paulo she stayed with three different families over the course of the 12 months. "'There were two girls who had been to Brazil before that I talked to before leaving," said Brown. "'They told me a bit of what to expect so it wasn't a complete cultural shock for me."e Sao Jose do Rico Preto is one of the largest cities in the state of Sao Paulo, located 7 hours into the în,- terior and not unlike many of Canada's cities of the same size, said Brown. Originally she had applied to go to Sweden but the booking for than country was already full and she en- ded up very much south of the border. Since it was a student ex- change program, Brown went to school with her new found brothers and sisters. " While there I just studied Portugeuse. I really just went to school to make con- tact with the other studen- ta."p Sehool in Sao Jose do Rico Preto starts every rnorning at 7 a.rn. and runs until il a.rn. six days a week. There was only one classroom where Brown went and not many text books. "One thing I really liked was the idea where the really young went to school with the older students," she said. "Lt was a nice at- mosphere. " Schooling however was not ail that Brown did during her stay. She travelled alot, going to Brazillia (the capital city of Brazil), Rio de Janiero and to the sea. "The place I liked the most was Uba Tuba. My second family had a beach house there and we spent Easter at it." The big celebration in Brazil is Carnival which t akces- place during "The people down there are really warm. 1 had 13 brothers and sisters and al three of my familles lived on the same block so I was in touch with ail of them con- stantly for the entire year. " «'Lt took me a while to get used to Portugeuse, but by Christmas time I could un- derstand most of what was being said around me." The favorite past time for men down there is soccer. While ther she travelled to Maracana to watch the Rio championship in the largest soccer stadium in the world. It seats 125,000 people. Brown described soccer as more than just a past time. "The social structure is very distinguished in Brazil and the football games are a common focus for them. " She enjoyed her share of playing soccer even though is was only with boys. 11 t is kind of frowned upon for a girl to play any sport in Brazil, so I didn't really play as much sports as I like." Girls instead turn towards ballet. Brown said that fashion plays an important role in Brazilian society. "«Everything is really bright, super bright and they are really concious of what they wear. " As the old saying goes, 'al good things must corne to an end', as did this journey and Brown, although glad to be back with family and frien- ds, really misses her second home. "L'hI go back for sur(- because there are so many people down there 1 want to keep in contact with." she said. "You get accustomed to the lifestyle really fast. Their whole attitude to life is really relaxed. They are al hard workers in Brazil but when it cornes to recreation time they truely know how to relax. " Elizabeth Brown, 18, of Broolin sports the Bo Derek look imported all the way from Brazil. Brown, a student of Anderson Collegiate in Whitby, recently returned frorn a one year exchange program to the South 0r American country. Free press Photo by Stephen Greenaway f i i ~i1~ ~i I -~ ta z:. Eiixabeth. r j AUGUST SALE 0F DINETTE SUITES SOLID PINE TRESTLE TABLE & 4 CHAIRS Seat covering in 100% nylon upholstery. Natural finish. August Speclal $448,00 clearing at great savings. S IP4 sevxee also 309 Brock St. S. Whitby Shopping Plaza Establlshed 1952 WHITBY 668-2081 "OtiR AIM IS TO SATISFY" STORE LOCATION DENTURE THERAPY CLINIC HARWOOD PLACE MALL 683u6074 Roy MacCauley's .5.....&.5....... Stainod & tacquored Furnituro. Fînshed rame Stained & Laquered Furniture. Fnished complote wîth 14 year lop seam mattress, hoater bookcase frame, complote with 14 year lap liner, tnlock. pedostat shoot. Choce of stainS seam mattrosos. 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