With examples of baroque architecture, numerous bars and historical sites acknowledged by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) dotting its landscape, the city of Belo Horizonte represents an area of cultural and industrial significance. However, for Fernanda Duarte, a PhD candidate in communication, rhetoric and digital media, the city of the “beautiful horizon” represents something more.
For her, the southeastern Brazilian city is home.
More than 30 N.C. State students and scholars call Brazil their home. On March 27 in Caldwell lounge, about 15 of them showcased aspects of their culture for an audience of more than 50 students, professors and community members at an event sponsored by the Office of International Services. The Cultural Showcase featured presentations about Brazilian history, information about different regions of Brazil, a Samba class and samples of Brazilian food.
Hannah Namkung, a senior in business administration, attended the Brazilian Cultural Showcase after hearing about the event from an OIS newsletter.
“I like the idea of getting to meet new people, and I always wanted to travel, so this was a kind of cheaper way for me to get to know the people,” Namkung said. “I just love learning about different places and different cultures, and it’s important because of business and because of globalization. But even beyond business, it’s important to learn to respect the background of other people.”
As more and more Brazilian students come to N.C. State to study, Duarte said current Brazilian students hope to establish a way to help incoming Brazilians succeed at the University.
“When I got here I was really surprised. I confess, I had never heard of Raleigh before besides what I had watched in Gilmore Girls,” Duarte said. “When I came here, I was really concerned because Raleigh is ten times smaller than my city … but when I came here, I was surprised to see a very lively cultural scene and a lot of diversity. The Triangle area is very blessed with different cultures and different languages and different people and different religions, so I was very surprised by that and I was very happy with that.”
Duarte said the adaptation to American culture wasn’t easy, but she received a lot of help from faculty, other Brazilian students and the Brazilian Association of the Triangle to overcome struggles, including problems with English and differences in culture.
“Portuguese is a Latin-based language, so it has nothing to do with English, an Anglo-Saxon language,” Duarte said. “There are also some differences in cultural norms, such as in the way we show affection. [Brazilians] tend to be more open and more expressive about our affections. However, people in the U.S. and the North, in general, tend to be more reserved about things such as touching and expressing emotions.”
Renata Barbosa, a senior in business administration, helped organize the showcase but said she is also working to create a constitution for the creation of a Brazilian Students Association.
“When one of the speakers was talking about Brazil, I almost cried because I’ve been a little isolated from Brazilian culture because I just have a lot of American friends and I’m really Americanized …. When she spoke, it really reminded me of home and how I miss it a lot,” Barbosa said.
Barbosa said she hopes she and a few other organizers can establish the Brazilian Students Association in the fall and that it will be a place where Brazilians can help each other with everything from the enrollment process to dealing with homesickness.
Duarte said she is looking forward to seeing what other Brazilians can do to help the Brazilian community at N.C. State.
“I feel very well-adapted here, but it’s not about replacing home,” Duarte said. “There are just some things that come with ease at home. When you are home and you recognize the smells and the sounds, the sense of comfort is different. During stressful times, it’s nice to know that there is a community out there that can understand you just by looking into your eyes.”
