As I prepare to leave Recife :'( já estou com saudades, I’m already missing this place. This song, “Último Regresso,” was one of the first frevo de bloco songs that I heard when I got here back in January. I was at the Bloco da Saudade prévia and I remember not understanding anything except for the last line, which everyone screamed, “…dizendo bem, que o Recife tem, o carnaval melhor do meu Brasil!”
It has been an incredible six months. I have to thank the Fulbright Scholar Program and Fulbright Brasil Commission for this opportunity to learn another culture, another dance, another city, and another language. This work has been intense and exhilarating, and although my body is exhausted (so much dancing!), I feel intellectually and emotionally refreshed. I’m looking forward to presenting my work and writing about my research findings.
I’m grateful to have met so many welcoming people who have been so generous with their time, sharing their passion for frevo by teaching me and speaking with me. I’m especially appreciative of the dancers, scholars, historians, choreographers, and performers who took the time to sit down for an interview with me, some for more than three hours! They are Alisson Lima, Lucélia Albuquerque, Eduardo Araújo, Ferreirinha, Valéria Vicente, Bruna Renata, Júnior Viégas, Laércio Olímpio, Fabinho Soares, Edson Vogue, Wilson Aguiar, and Otávio Bastos.
Até a próxima, Recife! 😀
