Day 1 of Curitiba: January 8th
When I woke up this morning, I had felt like I had punched myself in the eye in my sleep. After packing, getting on the plane, and arriving to our destination in Curitiba, I noticed that the surroundings were much more relaxed than that of Rio, but I could not stop the pain in my eyes. I told Tait about how I was feeling, saying that I needed to get to a doctor immediately. I called my mom, embarrassed about this incident, and began to cry from the amount of pain I was feeling. We arrived at the hotel, and there was a conflict in the rooming situation. Because I had been feeling so badly, I didn't care who I roomed with, but Anna stayed my roommate throughout the trip. Once that was figured out, we went up to our room to unload, and I contacted Tait to be taken to the hospital.
The original hospital we walked to was a cardiac hospital, so we were unable to get service. It was hard to communicate with the secretaries at the hospital, considering they only spoke Portuguese, but luckily a stranger began to help translate for us. He took us to the other side of the hospital to see where we could receive care, and we ended up going to an optometrist's office in the middle of the city. This office was not crowded at all, and was very clean. Although the secretary did not speak English, the doctor did fluently, and I was able to receive treatment pretty much immediately. My diagnosis was pink eye in both eyes, which was probably caused from my swim in the waters of Copacabana beach. My travel insurance was not accepted for my treatment, so it ended up costing around 700 reals for my appointment and medication, which were eye drops.
When I returned to the hotel, my eyes have swollen to the point where I could not recognize myself. All I could do was sleep, so I missed the presentations from that night and ate whatever snacks I had in my bag for dinner. I fell asleep after calling my mom, and hoped that this would improve overnight.
The original hospital we walked to was a cardiac hospital, so we were unable to get service. It was hard to communicate with the secretaries at the hospital, considering they only spoke Portuguese, but luckily a stranger began to help translate for us. He took us to the other side of the hospital to see where we could receive care, and we ended up going to an optometrist's office in the middle of the city. This office was not crowded at all, and was very clean. Although the secretary did not speak English, the doctor did fluently, and I was able to receive treatment pretty much immediately. My diagnosis was pink eye in both eyes, which was probably caused from my swim in the waters of Copacabana beach. My travel insurance was not accepted for my treatment, so it ended up costing around 700 reals for my appointment and medication, which were eye drops.
When I returned to the hotel, my eyes have swollen to the point where I could not recognize myself. All I could do was sleep, so I missed the presentations from that night and ate whatever snacks I had in my bag for dinner. I fell asleep after calling my mom, and hoped that this would improve overnight.
Day 2 of Curitiba: January 9th
Waking up this morning was pretty gross. I looked like a monster as I rubbed off all the mucous from my eyes. However, I did not want to miss out on the trip, so I got ready and joined the rest of the group at breakfast. Until my eyes recovered, I decided to wear my sunglasses, so I would not feel uncomfortable with people staring at my face. However, I was given nothing but positive thoughts and care from this group, which was extremely comforting. It felt as if this event drew me closer than I had been to the people in this group, which I would like to thank everyone for being so amazing to me during that time. Everyone else today was getting their laundry done before the meetings, so I was able to witness how the Curitiba residents took laundry to almost dry cleaners to clean their clothing. Americans are used to having a laundry mat nearby or even in their own homes, as a sign of wealth. But, in striving to be more environmentally conscience, people of this city take their laundry to one place, where they hand wash the clothes to be picked up by the end of the day.
Today we had two meetings, one at the Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba (IPPUC), and the other at the Curitiba Environmental Agency. The first meeting, at the IPPUC, discussed the city's planning history. As as part of Parana State, Curitiba and 24 other cities make up their metropolitan area, which means they have access to investments from government programs. However, this was not always the case. The state of Parana became independent in 1853, and Curitiba became its capital city. The first plan for the city was developed by French engineer Pierre Taulois. The first Master plan was the Agache Plan, in 1943. This plan had a radial and perimetral development for their population of 127k. There were different functional centers for all of the different services needed in a city. As the population grew, to its boom in the 1960s, a new plan for the city was needed. The IPPUC was formed December 1, 1965, in response to these concerns. The development of the city was transit oriented, with the density increasing as the city moved closer to the center. The transit mainly used for the city is the bus system, called the Bus Rapid Transport, or BRT, which acts similarly to the NYC subway system. Another line was added in 2007 in order to increase the efficiency of the system.
In the continuation of this presentation, our representative discussed the new Master plan that was developed in 2014. While a lot of themes from previous plans were kept the same, this master plan hoped to further centralize the city, as well as provide east-west connections between the edges. There were new ideas added, such as the addition of bikeways and a bike sharing program to go into effect in March 2017. They also discussed the addition of subways to the BRT system, and the pros and cons of this system.
Today we had two meetings, one at the Instituto de Pesquisa e Planejamento Urbano de Curitiba (IPPUC), and the other at the Curitiba Environmental Agency. The first meeting, at the IPPUC, discussed the city's planning history. As as part of Parana State, Curitiba and 24 other cities make up their metropolitan area, which means they have access to investments from government programs. However, this was not always the case. The state of Parana became independent in 1853, and Curitiba became its capital city. The first plan for the city was developed by French engineer Pierre Taulois. The first Master plan was the Agache Plan, in 1943. This plan had a radial and perimetral development for their population of 127k. There were different functional centers for all of the different services needed in a city. As the population grew, to its boom in the 1960s, a new plan for the city was needed. The IPPUC was formed December 1, 1965, in response to these concerns. The development of the city was transit oriented, with the density increasing as the city moved closer to the center. The transit mainly used for the city is the bus system, called the Bus Rapid Transport, or BRT, which acts similarly to the NYC subway system. Another line was added in 2007 in order to increase the efficiency of the system.
In the continuation of this presentation, our representative discussed the new Master plan that was developed in 2014. While a lot of themes from previous plans were kept the same, this master plan hoped to further centralize the city, as well as provide east-west connections between the edges. There were new ideas added, such as the addition of bikeways and a bike sharing program to go into effect in March 2017. They also discussed the addition of subways to the BRT system, and the pros and cons of this system.
The second presentation was done by Carlos in the Curitiba Environmental Agency. Carlos was an eclectic man, who dressed as if he had just gotten off the Tour de France. During our presentation, we toured the agency, and he described the different ways the building itself reused natural products from the area. Since almost all of the materials were found on the site where the agency was built, the costs of the framework was practically nothing. After our presentation in the main building, we moved to another classroom where we learned about the different sustainable programs in Curitiba. Much of these programs were talked about in the videos we were assigned before our trip. After Carlos had his presentations, we travelled to Barigui Park where we spotted capybaras and ate ice pops and acai bowls.
Taking a taxi back to the hotel, we decided that we were going to go out to celebrate the birthdays of Erika and Andy. We ended up at one of the malls in Curitiba, and ate at a steakhouse, Andy's treat. We got lost on the way back, and did not return back to the hotel until very late at night. Overall, it was a very long day, and I was relieved to hit the bed for a good night's rest.
Taking a taxi back to the hotel, we decided that we were going to go out to celebrate the birthdays of Erika and Andy. We ended up at one of the malls in Curitiba, and ate at a steakhouse, Andy's treat. We got lost on the way back, and did not return back to the hotel until very late at night. Overall, it was a very long day, and I was relieved to hit the bed for a good night's rest.
Day 3 of Curitiba: January 10th
Today we had one presentation at the center of transportation for the city. On our walk over to the Curitiba Integrated Transport Network, called RIT, we were stopped by a pickpocket. Thankfully, Tait had noticed that we were being followed, and threatened him with his signature phrase "I punch to kill". Although it was a scary experience, it was also eye-opening to the true issues that were found in the city that the government liked to hide. When I had first began reading about the city of Curitiba, I mainly heard about the beauties in sustainability for the area. Even when I researched it, there were no studies done in Curitiba about the homeless population in the city. However, throughout my time in Brazil, I saw more homeless men, women, and children in the center of Curitiba than in all of the other cities I had visited, Rio included. This is truly a sign of how the government just completely disregards these people to make Curitiba seem like a pristine city.
In the presentation today, we learned about all of the different transportation networks Curitiba has to offer. These networks mainly consist of buses, as there are 1.5 k buses per day running to facilitate its 1.8 million residents. From a survey collected in 2012, about 45% of people use the buses, 25% use cars, and 20% walk. The company who runs this system is the URBS, which stands for Urbanização de Curitiba S.A., a consortia of private companies. Aside from the companies that run the transportation system, the meeting also discussed the many different lines, new projects, and services that are offered through the company.
The lines we discussed during the meeting consisted of the BRT, which are the Bus Rapid Transport lines, the grey direct lines, the green inter-districts lines, the orange feeder lines, the yellow trunk and conventional lines, the white downtown lines, and the tourism line. These lines are all color-coded so a rider can get on the correct bus and know exactly which stops it will make. In order to ride, riders pay a fee of 3.70 reias on weekdays and 2.50 reias on Sundays, but about 2 million people ride the buses for free or with a discount. New projects are currently in place in making the transportation more energy efficient, including 100% soybean fueled buses, hybrid buses, and a new Green line which will connect the east and west sides of the city.
After listening to the short presentation (and receiving gift bags!) we walked to the operational control center for the buses. This center consisted of about 5 rows of computers and a projector with people monitoring the streets of the city. There are cameras set up at each intersection, controlling traffic to ensure that everyone will be able to safely and promptly get to their destinations. I found it interesting how much of an interactive system this all was, that it was constantly changing depending on the days, with updates found on their website.
In the presentation today, we learned about all of the different transportation networks Curitiba has to offer. These networks mainly consist of buses, as there are 1.5 k buses per day running to facilitate its 1.8 million residents. From a survey collected in 2012, about 45% of people use the buses, 25% use cars, and 20% walk. The company who runs this system is the URBS, which stands for Urbanização de Curitiba S.A., a consortia of private companies. Aside from the companies that run the transportation system, the meeting also discussed the many different lines, new projects, and services that are offered through the company.
The lines we discussed during the meeting consisted of the BRT, which are the Bus Rapid Transport lines, the grey direct lines, the green inter-districts lines, the orange feeder lines, the yellow trunk and conventional lines, the white downtown lines, and the tourism line. These lines are all color-coded so a rider can get on the correct bus and know exactly which stops it will make. In order to ride, riders pay a fee of 3.70 reias on weekdays and 2.50 reias on Sundays, but about 2 million people ride the buses for free or with a discount. New projects are currently in place in making the transportation more energy efficient, including 100% soybean fueled buses, hybrid buses, and a new Green line which will connect the east and west sides of the city.
After listening to the short presentation (and receiving gift bags!) we walked to the operational control center for the buses. This center consisted of about 5 rows of computers and a projector with people monitoring the streets of the city. There are cameras set up at each intersection, controlling traffic to ensure that everyone will be able to safely and promptly get to their destinations. I found it interesting how much of an interactive system this all was, that it was constantly changing depending on the days, with updates found on their website.
When we finished at the URBS center, we walked back to the hotel, where we rested, ate, and got ready for the second part of the day, riding on the tourism line. The tourism line stopped at all of the parks in the city, as well as the main attractions for the city. We made two main stops on this ride, the Botanical Gardens, and the Wire Opera House. After researching about these two locations in my presentation with Erika about the parks of Curitiba, it was really cool to see how they looked in person. The Botanical Garden was just as beautiful as I had imagined it to be, however I was unable to explore the backside of the garden, which is mainly used for researchers. Inside the structure, all of the native plants of Brazil grew there, with signs naming each one using their common names and taxonomy. Aside from the inside though, there wasn't really much else to explore from this area, and the heat of the day took away from the excitement I had about visiting this location. The second location, the Wire Opera House, I had similar thoughts. The Opera House was much bigger and more secluded than I had expected from the advertising from the Curitiba government pages, but there was not much else to do other than chill and take pictures. I was more excited about spotting the wildlife beneath us, such as the birds, and visiting the gift shops across the street. However, they were great spots of the culture found in the city, and I hope to be able to attend an show at the opera house in my life. We took the tourist bus back to the hotel at the end of the day, grabbed dinner in the lobby, and prepared for the next day.
Day 4 of Curitiba: January 11th
When I woke up this morning, I had felt a ton better than I had on my first day in this city. My eyes were finally clearing up, and I began to feel completely comfortable in wearing my regular glasses again, which was great considering today was the day we were meeting up with the city's planning officials. Since it was a fancy occasion, we all dressed up in dresses and shirts and pants. I dressed in my favorite flowery top and a nice pair of jeans with my hiking shoes. These details about how I am dressed are very important, as they describe pretty much everything I learned from this meeting. I was very upset about this meeting, as we were not encouraged as students to partake in any sort of discussion. Instead, we were used for publicity to make it seem like Curitiba was making a big step in globalization of their ideas.
The meetings discussed two of their very basic plans for the city, since the city officials had just been brought into the office from January 1st. One plan was a city hall center with representatives from all of the different sectors of the city, and one was a plan to gentrify Curitiba. Throughout the meeting, they continued to throw in facts about how they have universities in the city, should strive to make the city a better place, and to "think big but move in small steps". Throughout the meeting, I felt as though they had more slides with inspirational quotes in them than actual planning, and it made me feel as though they were not looking out for Curitiba's best sustainable interest. When asked about the homeless population, they had stated that they did not think it was an issue, and that "current programs are in place to deal with them". This is all said, even though they had stated they will kick out 40,000 residents to install newer, more expensive housing and businesses in the area. In my opinion, the presenters either wanted to cover up the existing issues of the city, or simply did not care about them. The one benefit of this meeting was the fact that we were able to see Carlos again, which he was again dressed as if he had just completed a triathlon!
The meetings discussed two of their very basic plans for the city, since the city officials had just been brought into the office from January 1st. One plan was a city hall center with representatives from all of the different sectors of the city, and one was a plan to gentrify Curitiba. Throughout the meeting, they continued to throw in facts about how they have universities in the city, should strive to make the city a better place, and to "think big but move in small steps". Throughout the meeting, I felt as though they had more slides with inspirational quotes in them than actual planning, and it made me feel as though they were not looking out for Curitiba's best sustainable interest. When asked about the homeless population, they had stated that they did not think it was an issue, and that "current programs are in place to deal with them". This is all said, even though they had stated they will kick out 40,000 residents to install newer, more expensive housing and businesses in the area. In my opinion, the presenters either wanted to cover up the existing issues of the city, or simply did not care about them. The one benefit of this meeting was the fact that we were able to see Carlos again, which he was again dressed as if he had just completed a triathlon!
When we finished this meeting, we travelled to go see another cultural spot of Curitiba, the Oscar Niemeyer Museum. Oscar Niemeyer was an extremely well-known architect of his time, and he is responsible for the design of this museum, as well as other well known churches and establishments in South America. Inside the museum were collections of all different artwork from photography, paintings, sculptures, etc. Although it did not have to deal with any sort of environmental topic, it was important to know more about the history and culture of the city through the art found there. We went back to the hotel after our tour was finished, ate, and presented our last two presentations of the trip. Erika and I presented on the parks in Curitiba, and Anna and Tyler presented on the sustainable parts of the city.
Day 5 of Curitiba: January 12th
The last day in this city was perhaps my favorite day of all! After waking up super early and packing up our things for the flight the next morning, we went out to a bus that took us to the URBS center, which also has a train station. After waiting for our train to come, we boarded the train to the little town of Morrettes. Along the ride, we passed through a good three hours of the Atlantic Forest. We all put down our windows and breathed in the fresh air, while taking pictures and eating snacks provided to us. The views were amazing, and it was awesome how high up we got to be on our little train. At one point, we were surrounded by the clouds from a mountain, and my ears would often pop throughout the ride. Some of the group members began to dance when the train was stopped for a duration of time to no music, which encouraged a few boys from the front of the car to begin to chant "No Music" and serenade us with American songs. Overall, the ride was super fun, and I couldn't wait for what Morrettes had in store for us.
When we arrived at the town of Morrettes, we were brought to an authentic Brazilian restuarant for lunch, and encouraged to eat until we couldn't anymore. Served at this lunch was all fresh fruits and fruit juices, a steak in gravy dish, fried fish, rice, and a type of cornmeal-like spice the native Brazilians used in their foods. I ate about three platefuls of food, and I loved all of it. One of the servers was named Emanuel, who seemed like a really interesting guy, but he did not stay at our table for long. He recommended that we try the ice cream at the store down the street from the restaurant, since it had ginger ice cream (I ended up trying the pineapple ice cream). After eating, a few students and I began to explore the streets, talking to the vendors in the area about our travels. It felt like a really really safe city, since it mainly consisted of tourists and stray dogs, all of whom were adorable.
When we arrived at the town of Morrettes, we were brought to an authentic Brazilian restuarant for lunch, and encouraged to eat until we couldn't anymore. Served at this lunch was all fresh fruits and fruit juices, a steak in gravy dish, fried fish, rice, and a type of cornmeal-like spice the native Brazilians used in their foods. I ate about three platefuls of food, and I loved all of it. One of the servers was named Emanuel, who seemed like a really interesting guy, but he did not stay at our table for long. He recommended that we try the ice cream at the store down the street from the restaurant, since it had ginger ice cream (I ended up trying the pineapple ice cream). After eating, a few students and I began to explore the streets, talking to the vendors in the area about our travels. It felt like a really really safe city, since it mainly consisted of tourists and stray dogs, all of whom were adorable.
Once we finished exploring the little town, we boarded a bus that would take us back to the hotel. Along the way, it had mae two stops. The first stop was at a little church with a seaport view. That port was originally a very popular port for imports and trading, but is now deserted. The church was very pretty though, and had a little gift shop next door for the incoming tourists. The second stop was a food market, which had all of the different types of fruit found in Brazil, as well as snacks and handmade crafts. There was a sugarcane juicer, which a bunch of people ended up trying, but I did not, since I was still full from lunch. It was interesting how the shop was all open, with no doors around.
In order to fill the bucket list for Curitiba, we boarded one of the famous bi-articulated buses for a little ride at the end of the day. Although we just made a round trip to a random area in the city, it was really cool to be able to say that I experienced everything I had done so much research on before this trip. Also, we boarded at a rush hour time, so there were many people packed on to this bus, but some students still used the bars as a jungle-gym in the bus. That night, I ate dinner at the hotel, and got a good night's rest knowing the next day would consist of heading to our last city, Iguacu.
In order to fill the bucket list for Curitiba, we boarded one of the famous bi-articulated buses for a little ride at the end of the day. Although we just made a round trip to a random area in the city, it was really cool to be able to say that I experienced everything I had done so much research on before this trip. Also, we boarded at a rush hour time, so there were many people packed on to this bus, but some students still used the bars as a jungle-gym in the bus. That night, I ate dinner at the hotel, and got a good night's rest knowing the next day would consist of heading to our last city, Iguacu.