first experiences in rio

it is grey here.. and unfortunately... my mood and energy seems to reflect this weather... occasionally raining.. with spurts of sunshine here and there....

yesterday i went to the beach with some bread and mortadela.... i spent a cloudy day in the sand... taking in the sun which came out once or twice...as the waves crashed violently around me...

with the same intensity and desperation as the kids... flies swarmed around my grocery bags... very forceful and insistent... trapping themselves in the plastic.. and crawling all over my sandals...

i was looking for the group of kids i encountered the night before....

as i was making my usually way down to copacabana around 9pm.... i saw two skinny boys in dirty oversized shirts and shorts... on the other side of the street... being "harassed" by the police.... my eyes moved over to the line of other thin bodies walking together with no real sense of direction... every time they paused for a minute... they were shooed down the street... roaming.... a group of roughly 12... ages ranging from 7 to 18 (guessing... because their rotting teeth.. and meager bodies and stunted height...don't show the truth).... all with water bottles which contained a small amount of clear liquid.... what i realized was the "super" glue they were all constantly breathing in.... the smell was so strong that at first thought it was a very strong form of alcohol that they were drinking... but as they spoke to me... fumes blowing into my face.. they came close to me... and i could feel my heart beating faster.. and the effect of the chemical on my body.. and brain... which made me realize the massive damage that was being done to these little bodies....right before my very eyes.... they are breathing in this horrid drug day in and day out.... and there was nothing i could do about it... i just watched.... and observed... and spoke to them.... and gave them attention...

they all started calling me "tia" (aunt)..... as we ate sandwiches together... (they kept asking if i had bought this to give..... they wanted to know if i had clothes to give.... i don't blame them as they were huddled in blankets... in shorts and t-shirts ... rio is not warm at night during the winter...).... we drank coke, which a nearby store owner donated... to the feast....

the police drove by... slowly... and kept moving...

i later found out that the first boy i offered sandwiches to was originally from salvador.... was born there by the "farol da barra" (barra light house)... and moved to rio about three years ago.. after the death of his mother and father.... i didn't ask for details immediately... but when i asked about other family members... he just said he has absolutely no one... just the kids around him.... all high... and getting higher...

it was an intense and personal experience i hadn't had to this date... and know will see more of...

as i observed more kids... i became aware of the constant existence of the bottle in their hands...

two boys "fighting" in the middle of the street....breathing in... fighting... laughing... trying to throw each other into the street... and laughing more... then getting more violent.... i didn't know if i should approach them... you never know what will happen when you get into someone's face in the middle of their high... the might get caught off guard in a negative way... and become violent... this is something that i need to be more aware of... because every kid i've seen here so far... has been on the glue... everyone....

actually not everyone... yesterday i had my first glimpse of the stronger side of the streets as well... the men and boys who rule and rob... the bosses which have the kids working for them... and deal with the money and drugs that are constantly changing hands...

more on those experiences later...