Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Two awards we'll be applying for this year:

Samba Dancer of the Year: Z Baby

I swear she picked up some moves from the dancers in the parades at the Sambódromo! And I'm not even close to kidding. She's had some seriously fancy footwork and booty-shaking going on ever since Sunday night. And apparently she partook in some other Carnaval festivities without me - she got hiccups for the first time (that I could feel) on Saturday and they have continued on and off since then . . .

Trooper of the Year: Yours Truly

Not to brag, but I did manage to stay at the Sambódromo from 9:00 pm until 5:00 am in all of my 33-weeks-pregnant glory. Our tickets were in the general seating area (arquibancadas, setor 5), meaning concrete bleachers, and we spent the first three parades without a place to sit. Which means that I had to stand until after 1:30 in the morning. After that, some people in front of us left and we were able to score enough room to sit down when I needed to. It was quite hot and humid and we were surrounded by lots and lots of sweaty people. (Have I mentioned my incredibly heightened sense of smell since being prego?) Furthermore, I would like to add that when we had to wait in a poorly managed line for over an hour for a taxi, from 5:00 - 6:00 am, I was the one who kept having to encourage Eric to relax and just chill out. (Well, except for the one incident involving the middle-aged Brasilian woman who cut in front of a bunch of people in line and kept trying to push her way in front of me . . . I did sort of lose my patience with her and share a piece of my mind . . . but hey, a hot, sticky, sleep-deprived pregnant woman with slightly swollen ankles and a full bladder can only handle so much, you know?)

But in all seriousness, we had an awesome Carnaval. I am incredibly exhausted still, but it was a great time! Look for lots of pictures coming tomorrow.

5 comments:

Ray Adkins said...

Emily,

You might find this useful:

http://guiadobebe.uol.com.br/gestantes/pernas_e_pes_inchados.htm

Emily said...

Thank Ray! That's a great article. And just as I suspected, I should be getting regular massages. ;)

lovelydharma said...

Good lord! No one let you sit down?!!! They must have been New Yorkers (and I say that being one - I can't tell you how many times on the subway I saw healthy young men not give up their seats to pregnant women.) But Brazilians always seem much more accommodating -- especially given this is such a fertile country. I read recently that Brazilian women give birth on average to 1.8 children a year. Hugh? How is that statistic possible?

But seriously three hours before getting a seat. That's just all kinds of torture. I probably would have just sat on someone.

Congratulations on your fortitude!

Rogério Penna said...

"I read recently that Brazilian women give birth on average to 1.8 children a year. Hugh? How is that statistic possible?"

You got the statistics all wrong. :)
Thats the brazilian FERTILITY RATE

Wikipedia
"Total Fertility Rate of a population is the average number of children that would be born to a woman over her lifetime if (1) she were to experience the exact current age-specific fertility rates (ASFRs) through her lifetime, and (2) she were to survive from birth through the end of her reproductive life. It is obtained by summing the single-year age-specific rates at a given time."


So you see, brazilian women give birth on average to 1.8 children during their ENTIRE LIFETIME, not each year :)

Here is a list of countries and territories by their Fertility Rate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_and_territories_by_fertility_rate

Rogério Penna said...

Btw, the total fertility rate for Brazil is not 1.8, but 2.2, slightly over the replacement level (2.0, which means a woman will generate two children, replacing the couple when they die and keeping population levels stable)

USA is at 2.1 if I am not mistaken. Most of Europe is around 1.5 (below replacement level, which means their population is getting older and decreasing) and China is at 0.41 (in a few provinces), meaning severe population decline in the future.


As for the 1.8 figure for Brazil, thats the Total Fertility Rate of Belo Horizonte. Some other capitals also have low fertility rates.

Also, Brazil´s fertility rate is EXPECTED to fall to around 1.8 by 2020.

Thanks for the patience to read this ;)