The former leftist president of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, is once again in power after defeating Jair Bolsonaro in the election on Sunday, Oct. 30. Lula received 50.9 percent of the votes. Bolsonaro's...

The Polish and Belarusian border conflict On Thursday, Nov. 18, border officials in Bruzhi, Belarus cleared the encampments of thousands of migrants trying to cross through the main entrance into Poland....

In June, I went with American and Brazilian friends to the small town of Pedro II for a music festival. There were several groups of journalists roaming around doing interviews, which we Americans -...

My first time almost being assaulted, I was in Rio. I was strolling along Copacabana beach deep in conversation with my friend Nick when a man approached us. He asked if we spoke English. Used to getting...

Brazil has a strict limit on political campaign seasons. Unlike in the United States, politicians here have three short months to drum up support. Now that we're now less than a month away from federal...

Every day, from 11 to 1, a huge number of students wait in line for lunch at UFPI's main cafeteria. Although the food is never anything special - usually it's rice, beans, salad and some part of a chicken...

During Holy Week, I got to explore parts of Maranhão, the colorful state to the west of Piauí. Lençois Maranheses "This better be stupid beautiful," Mike said as we bumped along the road to...

How do you like your beer?  Here's how people in Teresina prefer it: Like a wedding dress  (Como vestido de noiva) Like a concrete worker's leg  (Como canela de pedrero) Like a seal's rear-end...

Hearing first-hand stories about how famous adults acted as children and teenagers is always fun. I recently got such an account about a former Brazilian president. Let me explain. On the way from João...

A few weeks ago, I set out to travel to four cities in the Northeast of Brazil. João Pessoa and Olinda were the third and fourth stops. João Pessoa was a bit quiet after Recife, but we were there...