The Moon Surrounded by Two Planets

As promised, some pictures.
Burning leaves after raking them, the sunset over my school, me, looking out in Maputo, the moon surrounded by two planets, and my host family (not in that order).

Peanut Surprise (January 3, 2009)

January 3rd consisted of a lot. For example, reading, and a chocolate taste test. Let me share with you my summary of various popular delicious chocolatey treats. The following excerpt is directly copied from my little journal:

“03 Jan 09
Taste Test
1) Butterfinger – Crispety, crunchety, peanut buttery. Too sweet.
2) Twix – Caramel’s good, but sticky. Wafer not too much flavor.
3) Milky Way – Creamy. Like toffee, full flavor remains in mouth.
4) 3 Musketeers – Sweet, sweet, sweet. A creamy (?) paste surrounded in chocolate. Not very pleasant.
5) Babe Ruth – Peanut surprise. Good all-around chocolate and peanut flavor. Sweet as well.
6) Snickers – Good peanut flavor. Not too sweet. Not sticky. Pretty good.
7) Milky Way Midnight – Caramel surrounded in chocolate. Boring flavor. Sticky, too sweet.

All-in-all favorite: Snickers.

Thanks, Russell (+ dad) for bringing it.”

Russell is my roommate. Condolences go out to him for him now missing 8 pieces of chocolate. 7 for the taste test + one final Snickers. Also, writing this blog entry made me want both a Snickers and a Butterfinger, not in that order. Updated total: 10.

Fresh New View (January 2, 2009)

Every night not plagued by clouds, I gaze directly upwards at the Milky Way. It coincides with Orion’s Belt (which is the only constellation I know, thanks to Men in Black), and it’s beautiful. First of all, the stars in this part of the world are beyond words, glistening proudly seeming non-affected by light pollution. I don’t remember them being so brilliant when in the Sahara Desert in Morocco. To be able to see these stars for the next 2 years (with a potential 3rd) fills me with sheer excitement!

I first saw the Milky Way on Christmas Eve’s eve. The visiting PCVs and I were just staring northward at the fresh new view we hadn’t yet seen in our lifetimes when I noticed there was a distinct arc of brightness. I asked, and Abby, a volunteer also living in my province, pointed out that what I saw was in fact the Milky Way. We all, then, stared in amazement at the ‘Way, something we had heard about in school for years, but only then were seeing for the first time. That night, we also saw about 6 shooting stars, including one huge one that left a long streak in the sky for about 5 seconds.

I was going for a jog on the evening of December 29th and, after greeting about a dozen locals, I found myself in the middle of a field amongst a great 360-degree view: to my back was a clear blue sky, to my left a fantastic sunset shining brilliant hues of vermillion and peach, to my right a beautiful array of clouds, both white and ones reflecting shades of the sunset, and to my front a huge approaching thunderstorm. Looking ahead I saw ominously dark clouds, the outline of the rain falling in the distance below those clouds, and lightning that would flash about 5 times in rapid succession in the one place and with the same shape.

With these spectacular views, as well as spending both Christmas and New Years at the beach, it’s a great reassurance that Peace Corps was a good decision.

Francesinha, the 5 best in the Porto area

The Francesinha is a Portuguese dish with alternating layers of different types of meat (steak, ham, sausage ...), encased by bread on the bottom and top, egg on top of the bread, melted cheese covering the entire sandwich, fries served on the side, everything covered with a delicious sauce (made from beer, port wine, tomato sauce, milk, etc...), and cooked to perfection, all flavors being absorbed into an entire Francesinha experience.

Porto is the home of the Francesinha. Below are my Top 5 places to get a Francesinha in it's home.

1. Requinte

Requinte is synonymous with francesinha. You go there to get a francesinha, and to get a francesinha you go there. The melted cheese is served right to you, directly from the oven, and makes your mouth water between bites. Despite not being extremely spicy while served (as younger kids/Abbey may not like it as much), for an extra € 0.80, you can get one of the tastiest spicy sauces, ideal for bringing out even more flavor. When the waiter takes your order, he doesn't ask "what do you want;" he asks "how many francesinhas do you want?" Do they serve anything other than francesinha at this place? No idea.

Flavor: 10
Wait: 10 (1 minute, tops)
Atmosphere: 7 (small, but fun atmosphere)
Location: 5 (Matosinhos, far away, in a small building)
Price/Value: (€8) / 10

2. Capa Negra

A chique restaurant, it's prices are high, but for good reason; this is a delicious Francesinha. Some people regard this as the best, however, I feel the atmosphere is slightly edged out by Requinte since, given the pricier menu, it's more chique and thus more serious; however, large groups of families all dine together here. The wait is average for a restaurant of this caliber (15 minutes).

Flavor: 10
Wait: 7 (15 minutes)
Atmosphere: 6 (serious, but families eat together)
Location: 9 (Not too far away from downtown)
Price/Value: (€10) / 9

3. Piolho

A student bar, this has the most my preferred atmosphere for a good Francesinha. It's loud and busy, up to 2 football matches being watched at all times on the 2 huge flat screen TVs, but always prompt service with a smile. This is a pretty good francesinha, and the sauce is spicier than the average. The meat selection could be better, but with competitive prices and good times, this is a good francesinha experience.

Flavor: 8
Wait: 7 (15 minutes)
Atmosphere: 10
Location: 10 (Very central!)
Price/Value: (€7) / 8

4. Verso em Pedra (trans: "Other side is rock" ...kinda...)

This restaurant has a big sign in front: "FRANCESINHA." This is a nice place and also has a great atmosphere. Everything is extremely positive about this location, but I found the sauce to be quite weak.

Flavor: 7
Wait: 7 (15 minutes)
Atmosphere: 8 (Fun, loud, well-lived, birthday party-friendly)
Location: 10 (Right next to downtown)
Price/Value: (€10) / 7

5. Art's Kafé

I have an extremely partial opinion of Art's Kafé, as it's directly next to my house. I know all the waiters, it's pretty tasty, always hot with great fries, and I go with my roommates.

Flavor: 7
Wait: 5 (20 minutes)
Atmosphere: 4 (Too new to have a fun atmosphere)
Location: 8 (Pretty close to downtown)
Price/Value: (€7) / 7

Enjoy!

Informing about Peace Corps Health Forms

The application process for the Peace Corps is by no means easy, especially when applying from overseas.

Having written the two essays talking about why I would be a great Peace Corps applicant, updated my resume, got my fingerprints in the US consulate in London while being a tourist there (story below), and had the 2-hour overseas interview with my recruiter, she nominated me for service teaching science to high school kids in sub-Saharan Africa. I'll only find out where I'll spend my 27 months of service 6 weeks to 2 months before I'm supposed to go there.

The post-nomination steps involve getting a medical checkup. It's just like a regular checkup, but, given that I'm a recent college student overseas, it's quite difficult. As a college student, I got many injections/etc at UMBC for various reasons (e.g. my visa for Portugal). The record of these immunizations were not sent two my regular doctor/pediatrician. Furthermore, when I went to Brasil, I received many injections, and records of those are in yet a 3rd place! I need to consolidate all of those records to find out what further injections I need for the Peace Corps application.

Once that's done, I will also need to go to a private dentist for xRays for my teeth.

Keep in mind that Portugal, like all of the EU, has Universal Health Care. Meaning, that if I wanted something done about 6 months from now, it would be free. However, given that this is time-sensitive, I need to get a private practice (a.k.a. expensive) to do these checks. Money is Not the important thing, obviously, but does play its part in this current step.

Once all that goes through (basically the final step!!), it will be reviewed, and, on or before July 18th, I will be presented with an invitation for service, that invitation coming along with placement, country, housing family, job, etc!!

- -

P.S. London Consulate story: After walking through the gate for the London Consulate on Thursday November 1st, I waited in line, passed through the security check points, and made it through one of the doors. As always happens in large places, the place where you go "isn't where you need to be," and are redirected somewhere. When you get to that place, "it's actually in a different place where you need to be." Having originally gone to the door on the left side of the building, then the right, then the center, I found out that, "as it turns out, the place you originally went was the correct place." Now approaching a furious rage, I went to that place and leveled with the people there. Actually! As it turns out, they were Brasilian! Hearing within a second of them talking to each other (based on their accent), I broke the ice and we immediately started talking to each other in Portuguese! Now impressed and comfortable around me, they called some administrator in the consulate, who came down.

How is it that you made it through all security check points of the most secure consulate in the world without an appointment or knowing anyone?

What can I say? I guess I'm a smooth-talker.

I explained my situation: how I live in Porto, but all finger prints for Peace Corps need to be done in a consulate. I can't get my finger prints in Portugal (Lisbon) because I live on the other side of the country and need to work. Now in London as a tourist for 5 days, I need to get my finger prints. I told her this as she told me that the London consulate only gives finger prints for passports and not for Peace Corps (ARG!). Now keeping a level head and speaking calmly, making jokes as well, she decided to help me out (yay!). We walked back to the right side of the building, and I joked about one of the guards. She laughed. She also told me how impressed she was that I got through all of the security check points of the most secure consulate in the world (the US Consulate in London) without an appointment or knowing anyone there. "What can I say? I guess I'm a smooth-talker." Having arrived at the other side of the building, I was given the name of the person who would take my finger prints (yay!) and set my appointment for the following day, Friday November 2nd (WHEW!). Had I gone to the consulate on Friday, I would have been completely SOL, but yay that it all worked out perfectly.