Brazil Blog: Day 6

Boa Noite (goodnight) from our sixth day in Brazil and our final day in Sao Paulo as we travel to Rio De Janeiro tomorrow afternoon. As everyone is becoming more comfortable with the language and culture of Brazil, our team is beginning to digest the countless lessons for which this trip was intended. We are not only uncovering these precious lessons between the white lines of the futebol field, but also in the Brazilian favelas (impoverished areas), a local community center for underprivileged children and even an upper class social club placed within the boundaries of the worlds third largest city, Sao Paulo.

After departing from Santos yesterday morning, we took a visit to a community center outside of Sao Paulo called Gol De Letra. The children who attend this center come from the most unfortunate social, economic and family circumstances in their particular area. As public school is only offered for half of the day in Brazil, Gol De Letra is intended to provide a stable support system for the other half of the day to children who do not receive such support at home. Our time there was spent distributing clothes and soccer gear, taking memorable pictures, playing soccer and basketball with the children and watching Austin da Luz compete in a juggling contest with a young child. After witnessing the nearly insurmountable challenges many children in Brazil face, we left with a feeling of gratitude and appreciation for our lives at Wake Forest University.

Yesterday concluded with a 7v7 game and a quality pizza dinner at the social club Esporte de Pinheiras. In stark contrast with Gol De Letra, Pinheiras is home to many of Sao Paulo's wealthiest people. Therefore, visiting both places in succession exposed our team to the large amount of inequality present in Brazil.

Back at the peaceful Santa Filomena resort, we woke up this morning focused and ready for our soccer lesson of the day with a match against one of Brazil's most decorated clubs, Sao Paulo Futebol Club (SPFC). After learning much from our match against Santos FC two days prior, we entered the match confident we could perform at a higher level and earn a win. Unfortunately, we once again found ourselves trailing after conceding a goal three minutes into the match. However, this goal was followed by a strong reaction by the team as we controlled play for the remainder of the half and entered the locker room tied at one. Twelve minutes into the second half we found ourselves trailing again, but once again the team responded in a positive manner. The game ended in a draw at two with freshman Danny Wenzel scoring the equalizer in the 78th minute. In addition to earning a better result compared to the match against Santos FC, our team is pleased with the way our play has improved throughout this trip.

With each new lesson this trip offers, our team is continuing to grow while we attempt to reach new heights. As we pack our bags in Sao Paulo, we are confident the lessons we have learned will serve us well during our time in Rio De Janeiro as we will take on the world's most successful U-20 national team in Brazil. Undoubtedly, this trip has met and exceeded our expectations as we are gaining invaluable lessons which we hope will lead to another successful season in 2008.

On behalf of the team, I would like to extend a special thank you to all of those who made this unforgettable experience possible for our team. I can assure you that we are making the most of this trip and thoroughly cherishing every moment. Finally, thank you to everyone who has patiently followed our progress by way of this blog.

Tchau,
Sam Cronin

Coach Lowery Reports on Day 5