Days 5 and 6: Jeopardy Music
Not much to report from yesterday and today, but I wanted to update anyway since I’m not sure what my wifi situation is going to be moving forward. Yesterday our field trip was cancelled since the roads were bad due to rain, so I just got to bum around the hotel for a bit and rest. I was disappointed to miss it, but as I was reminded I am going to be seeing plenty of cattle over the next week, so I’m not worried. I did go on an adventure to a Brazilian laundromat, which was about as exciting as you can imagine. Today we are traveling all day and not doing much in between. I am writing from Cuiabá where I am waiting for my plane to Brasilia, and then heading to Marabá in Pará to begin part two of the trip. Just did my expense reports. Very exciting stuff.
The team retreat is now officially over, and there’s only a few of us going on the extended trip to Pará - a couple of experts based up there, a new hire, another comms person and me. I think five or six of us total. The conditions in Pará are very different then they are where I have been in the Cerrado, given that it’s the Amazon and all. Not only is it humid and rainy, but much less developed - dirt roads, questionable access to air conditioning and wifi and hot water, etc. Nothing I haven’t handled before in Ecuador, though. I’m going to try and write blog posts every day even if I can’t post, and try to get them up if I can.
From here on out my schedule gets much more mysterious to me, but it looks like we’ll be spending a lot of time driving around southern Pará visiting various farms outside of the different cities. I’m looking forward to getting some more time with my colleagues in a smaller setting and picking their brains about how I can assist with communications on this level — they are the ones who are experts in what this audience needs and wants, so I just want to be able to give them resources and a platform if needed.
I can’t believe that I still have over a week left here! I don’t feel totally burnt out and exhausted yet, which I was worried might happen. I’m just really excited to see what the Brazilian Amazon will be like compared to the Ecuadorian Amazon I was in almost ten years ago. Hopefully I will be able to check in again soon.
