There is a history of activism amongst the women of Prainha do Canto Verde. It was women who first raised their voices against the developer who was illegally trying to take over Prainha do Canto Verde. Theirs were the first steps in the long fight that culminated in the creation of the Extractive Reserve (also […]
More adventures of the Women’s group. Read More »
English, Prainha do Canto Verde, Women's Group
When I first came to Prainha over twenty years ago, it was still relatively common to see women working on pieces of labirinto embroidery — a form of drawn thread work with a strong presence in North East Brazil, particularly in Ceará. The income the women gained from this work helped sustain families who otherwise
Labirinto — Threads of a Living Tradition Read More »
Artesanal, English, Prainha do Canto Verde
For several years, we’ve been planting trees on a small plot, which is split between flat ground and a steep, challenging slope. At the top, the wind is often fierce and the sand is very dry, so most things struggle to grow, and while a couple of trees have survived, they remain stunted and wind
Welcome to the new site, I hope you like it and will stick around for a look at what I’ve created.
It’s been a busy year, I became a
The Women’s group Encounter and a welcome to the new site Read More »
English, Prainha do Canto Verde, Women's Group
Originally written in April 2010. Papangus exist in other places in Brazil, but the date at which they make their appearance varies, as may their significance. In Canto Verde the Papangus come at Easter, rejoicing in their role of making Judas suffer for his betrayal of Jesus. The origin of the Papangus is fairly obscure,
The Easter Papangus Read More »
Archive, English, Prainha do Canto Verde
Last year I wrote about going to the event Povos do Mar / Peoples of the Sea, hosted by SESC and held at their *Ecological hotel, Iparana, Fortaleza. This year I was lucky enough to be able to go again. Paulo Leitão and Talitta Albuquerque from SESC, had once again done a fantastic job of bringing
Povos do Mar 2019. Read More »
Archive, English
Originally written November 2020. Yesterday Neu went down to the beach early in the morning and then came back to wake me up. A fisherman had found a newborn manatee, Trichechus manatus,(known here as Peixe boi) that had washed up on the beach. It had been brought to a quiet area of the beach, where
A newborn Manatee stranded on the beach Read More »
Archive, English, Prainha do Canto Verde
In the middle of 2019, Neu decided that his jangada (a traditional raft-like sailboat) was simply too heavy for him to operate. The fistula in his arm that he uses for dialysis needs to be cared for and that means not using too much force with that arm, he hoped that a new, lighter jangada,
Sailing the new boat home. Read More »
Archive, English, Prainha do Canto Verde
This piece was written in 2012. Since Neu started attending the Pronefron clinic for peritoneal dialysis, we have been asked by numerous professionals how we discovered that Neu had kidney failure and what his symptoms had been. The truth is that Neu didn’t really have any specific symptoms and that’s the trouble with kidney disease,
CKD, The silent killer. Read More »
Archive, English
It may seem strange to begin a tale of romance talking about capoeira (Brazilian “martial art”, a form of fight / dance) but if it hadn’t been for capoeira and more specifically for the Amazonas School of Capoeira* with whom I trained, then this romance would never have happened. I was 38 when I discovered
An unexpected Brazilian, English Romance. Read More »
English, Uncategorized