Learning about my Brazilian Host Family

Sasha Cooke is one of Greenheart Travel’s Teach in a Homestay Teacher in Brazil. Staying for two months, Sasha is placed in Pindamonhangaba, Brazil. When Sasha first arrived in  “Pinda” (for short), she didn’t really know what to expect.

She shares that:

I’m loving learning the language, seeing new places, and meeting new people! My host family consists of my host mom Rose, her sister and her grandmother. But also in the nearby town of Taubaté lives Rose’s brother Tennyson and his wife, Maria Antonieta. Plus the extended family is always running in and out of the homes, and I even met one of Rose’s granddaughters Marina.

“My host family is wonderful (and very big), and I have had the chance to teach English to most of them. It can be challenging when they feel embarrassed to speak, but I am doing my best to encourage them by making lots of shameless mistakes in Portuguese!”

Sasha goes on to explain that she spanned multiple generations in one family from age 22 to 85! Of course with this many different people and past experiences, Sasha has learned a lot  and teaching English to people with different jobs, interests and hobbies was a challenge, especially when she had limited Portuguese language.

Read more about Sasha’s adventures in Brazil on her blog here.