Brazil Day 4 - Journey to Itabirito

Early in the morning, it was time to say goodbye as we met again at the Instituto DOS Meninos Cantores de Petrópolis (the school) at 9 AM and had to part ways with our first host families. At the school, we sang once more with some choir members “The Lord bless you and keep you,” took a final group photo, and after farewell words from Rose de Mello, we set off for Itabirito.

The bus ride there took approximately 7 hours (the longest of this trip) and was only interrupted by a short and a longer restroom break.

Upon our arrival in Itabirito, we were joyfully welcomed; from the bus, we could already see the choir members of the Canarinhos de Itabirito and their choir director Eric Lana and team waving at us, many holding homemade posters high. After getting off, they greeted each of us individually with a long chain of handshakes. :) Then we received a tour of the local station complex, consisting of several buildings with shops selling local crafts and a food wagon.

In this wagon, among other things, Pasteis de Angú are made, traditional dumplings from the state of Minas Gerais. They were originally made by slaves from leftovers, consist of cornmeal and are filled with banana flowers and meat. Today they are considered an intangible cultural heritage and exist in up to one hundred different varieties. We got to try these during a small snack, with fillings ranging from vegan to meat. There, each of us also received a bag from the Canarinhos filled with stickers, flyers, and puzzles. Slightly strengthened, we were then assigned to our second host families and set off with them to our home for the next two nights.

At 8:30 PM, we met again at the Canarinhos school, where we had dinner together in the cafeteria. There were different types of pasta and sauces, salads, and several regional desserts. In the background, a three-member “guitar orchestra” played, some even performing on one guitar with six hands, presenting Brazilian pieces. The evening concluded with a ten-member recorder ensemble. After dinner, we were again picked up by our host families and spent the rest of the evening with them.