Far removed from the big city, the town of Capão has its own unique identity. The town is made up of foreigners and passing tourists and backpackers combined with native Brazilians, making this a special place. For example, my host father is French, but lived in Spain, Argentina, Australia, and the UK and his “wife” is Brazilian. In my house, four languages are spoken: English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French , which is usually used when the father is angry with his daughter. This complete mixture of languages in one small house is just one example of the “crazy talk” that I hear on a daily basis. Although hearing four distinct languages, only half of which I can understand is a bit louco, it is not the strangest thing I listen to regularly.
Here in Vale do Capão, we have already heard all types of “crazy talk.”
One of my first exposures to the alternative beliefs was at home when I discovered my family’s religion, which is a word that must be used loosely. I found out that my host family along with many others in the area believe that on December 21 those of us who are ready will ascend to the next dimension. A biologist from California attempted to convince us of this but after speaking about Illuminati coming from a different galaxy and interbreeding with humans after the sinking of Atlantis, lost us all. This concept in itself requires hundreds of pages to fully explain, but in short, those who have pure enough spirits will pass. I have actively tried to understand this theory, but it has to been difficult to cast it off as just another doomsday scare. I have challenged myself to keep my ears open in order to learn how I can improve my life, and honestly, there is a lot to learn.
To put this all in perspective, I’m in a place where the circus serves as the town’s main attraction and dreads are the hair style of choice. Most aspects of life are lived alternatively from the school to the household. Capão is truly its own Brazil; one of the many that exists. From pemaculture to the Rastafarian beliefs, there is a wide variety of views and beliefs, all of which offers new knowledge on how to improve humanity.
