The wonders of Brazilian University life

So I've been in Rio close to 10 weeks - it's nearing on the longest time that I've spent away from home. Time is starting to fly by - the Brazilian way of life is becoming more familiar and I'm slowly getting to grips with everything here. I thought I'd write a bit on Uni life here, as it is seemingly full of surprises...

I am studying a pretty diverse set of modules - Portuguese Language, Ancient Rome History & Culture, Urban Geography and Brazilian Culture. The highlight for me has been the Urban Geography module. As in most of my classes apart from Portuguese language, I'm virtually the only gringo, and I still find it very hard to understand what's going on without having someone explain to me directly. Thrown into the deep end after only joining the class three weeks into term, I was told that I was to partake in a presentation on Lapa, a nightspot in the north of the city. It turned out that one of the Brazilian girls in my group had already decided that I was to act as a homeless person, playing a peripheral but fun role in which I managed to get a 9/10 for - which ranks as my best ever grade at University level (!). Another interesting note from this class was the exam we had the other week - bizarrely, it was to be done in pairs. I hadn't really revised for it, and my partner Felipe barely knew what day of the week it was. However, the extremely relaxed and lenient nature of Brazil meant that we were able to copy the girls next to us, with the teacher just laughing at our apparent audacity. Again, I managed to get a 9/10 for this. So, is taking part in a comical play followed by a botched exam the apex of 15 years of education and a £20,000 debt? This coupled with the fact that in one of my other modules (Ancient Rome) I grade myself on my progress brings into question the integrity of the Brazilian university system. It's all in good spirit though - and being part of another culture and way of doing things is what it's all about I guess.

Thats all for now. I fly to Joao Pessoa on a 12 day holiday on Wednesday, staying with friends there for a while before embarking on a mammouth 40 hour bus journey back to Rio, via Salvador and any other places that take my interest...

Jack