I asked my new friend here in Sao Paulo, fearless Courtney Fretz, to blog about her experience driving here so far.  Here is her guest blog:

A typical day of driving in Sao Paulo with the other 7million cars (a record hit in May!):

Step 1: load all valuables in the trunk of the car to discourage would-be opportunists from doing a wealth exchange with you while stopped in traffic. Valuables can go in the backseat if you have blacked-windows or bullet-proof doors, but for the rest of us, the trunk is recommended. Next, mentally prepare for the experience ahead with traffic - either a battle or liberating video game depending on your point of view - and take to the streets.

I enjoy the drive to work - the rules of the road are more or less a free-for-all. Do you want to make a right-turn from the far left lane (3 lanes away)? No problem. Do you want merge across 3 lanes to move faster? No problem. My favorites are the people who wave their hand out the driver-side window indicating that they are coming into your lane. It's not a request. They are kindly advising you if you don't give-way they will hit you, and it would probably be your fault. Compared to driving in the US, aspects of this experience can be liberating; no hard-and-fast rules limiting your movements, if you get lost its not a problem to make sudden turns from distant lanes, and the traffic moves so slowly that its hard to get in accident at 5mph.

But like any video game there are foes looking to end your game. The motorbikes 'legally' get their own space between the traffic lanes. When in moving traffic, its necessary to stay exactly in your lane and only change lanes when you've checked both sides to ensure you're not going to add to Sao Paulo's traffic mortality rate. However, motorcyclists are kind enough to honk continuously alerting you to their presence. When stopped at lights or in traffic you also must create lanes between traffic lanes, and if you don't give them room, they WILL kick your car. The buses operate by the "I'm bigger and therefore you must yield to me" school of thought; this is not a joke, they do not look before they merge / turn / swerve. (Fortunately, given the aforementioned rule about merging any time or place, you can merge out of the bus' way relatively easily.)

Potentially the biggest barrier to surviving Sao Paulo driving is yourself. The Brazilian concept of 'tranquilo', similar to 'Island Time' in the Caribbean or 'Mañana', is very useful to adopt when driving. You never know how long it will take to go from point A to point B - doesn't matter what time, what day, what season, or what route. It's a surprise every time you depart. As long as you keep the attitude that you'll arrive when you arrive, there is no reason to get stressed (which probably affects general Brazilian attitudes about meeting times in general).

So when my GPS asks me every night, sitting in traffic, if I want to "change to pedestrian mode," I can only laugh and turn my music up (but not too loud to drown out the motorcycle horns).

I've finished the Clean Program (by Dr. Alejandro Junger), and the results are fantastic!  In just over 3 weeks I went from sluggish, chubby, bloated, and tired to energetic, light, happy, and clear.  My Portuguese improved, my driving improved, my skin improved...

Watch the video to learn more about Luis' and my experience on this program and how I plan to maintain my returned sense of well-being.

My journey from teacher to student has been bumpy to say the least.  But I have finally completely accepted my current role as student and am embracing it fully.  I am at peace.  If the opportunity comes for me to teach Nia or Zumba, I’ll gladly do it.  If it doesn’t, I’m glad as well.  I see my teachers dealing with the same situations that I once dealt with – low student turnout, low student motivation, low motivation as a teacher, the huge commitment of time and energy it takes to be a teacher of anything, if you want to do it with excellence.  This reminds me to be grateful to be a student.

So, I write this letter from a place of love and respect, and as a now observer who has been in the teacher’s shoes….

Please remember that this class is about us, the students, and not you.  Not how great your moves are, or what mood you are in today, or how good you look.  Know that I want to feel successful and good about myself, so please break things down for me and don't go too fast.  Please refrain from watching yourself in the mirror excessively, which kills my connection to you.  Please respect my body’s way, and don’t expect it to perform as you think it should or want it to.  Please follow the formula of the program you are trained in because it was probably developed that way for a reason.  Please don’t touch me without my permission, and without telling me why. Please respect my ears and don’t turn the music up so loud. And if you really want me to keep coming, learn my name.  Take a moment to talk to me and welcome me and I will want to come back.  And if you want me to bring my friends, create a community. In the end, I am coming for more than just a workout – I want to belong.

With love,
Your student

In this episode (I am a reality show now!), I share what my transition week on the Clean program was like - minus my 2-day hiatus for my friend Deb’s visit. So far, I feel great – not really hungry, and definitely lighter.  This week I begin the REAL Clean – 2 liquid meals that are easy to digest and one solid meal per day.  See the video for more details...

Besides getting a new haircut here in Sao Paulo (which was an adventure in itself), I have recently also started driving.  My time with Roberto, my driver, has sadly come to an end, and now I must fend for myself. Luckily I took that defensive driving course right after I arrived...

Okay…this has got to stop.  So I’ve decided to regain my center by doing a cleanse.  And since my husband is tired of feeling tired as well, he has agreed to do it with me.  Which is revolutionary – he must really feel like crap.

After much research for a program we both can do, I’ve settled on Clean.  Book by Dr. Alejandro Junger.  What I like about the program is that it combines western medicine with eastern philosophy.  The goal of the program is to not only de-toxify the body, but also to re-populate the intestinal flora through pro-biotics.  In addition, he includes activities designed to de-toxify the mind as well. The book was fascinating to me, and the testimonials are pretty convincing. 

This week, I’m preparing for the cleanse by cleaning up my diet to prepare my body and ease it into the more highly detoxing phase.  I really like that Dr. Junger not only eliminates the most common toxins to the body (caffeine, alcohol, gluten, sugar), but also highly acidic foods that destroy intestinal flora (oranges, orange juice, cooked tomatoes).  This follows a more Ayurvedic approach to eating. There are other activities that allow the detoxification to occur more thoroughly which I won’t mention and probably won’t do and if I do I probably won’t blog about, but basically the program includes lots of juicing and raw foods but includes lean animal protein (there’s no way my husband will go without that.)

I am taking pictures before and after and will blog about my experience. But my starting point?  Just watch the video above for a litany of symptoms I am experiencing.

My intention in doing this program is to reclaim my sense of peace and my life. I envision looking and feeling younger, and having more control of how I spend my time. I envision a greater level of self-care that supports my wellness and fills up my cup so that I can once again support others in joy. I envision vibrant energy, mental clarity, and a return to an abiding sense of peace.

Today I begin the journey to a new me….

My first week here in Sao Paulo, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to substitute for my Zumba teacher here.  She went to Chile for the weekend, and I got to teach her morning and evening classes at her gym.  The experience, not only teaching my first Zumba class in Brazil, but my first Zumba class EVER, was great.  It re-kindled in me the passion to teach. Her students had a great time, and so did I. With this clarity, I then began trying to locate a place to teach Nia and Zumba.

Being the forever-optimist, I hoped that my sunny attitude, experience, and enthusiasm would land me a teaching gig.  Or at least a demo class to prove myself.  I sent emails to the contacts I’d been connected with at gyms, dance schools, and yoga studios. I offered to teach a free demo class. Each time I pressed “Send” I felt optimistic, knowing I had acted boldly towards my desire, not letting obstacles stop me.

That was almost a month ago.  I’ve had only one reply, a kinder version of brushing me off, if my Portuguese is right. Never mind the details of what happened and why, the point is that I realized that I am a little fish in a BIG BIG pond.  No one seems to care that I have unique skills that I am eager to share.  My friend here tells me that underneath the warm reception that Brazilians give, there is a sense of mis-trust of others.  Maybe a fear of being taken advantage of.  I am not willing to conclude this yet, however my experience so far has been humbling and disappointing in this respect.

The good news is that I have received multitudes of support from my Nia students back home. I just finished my last note of gratitude of the many that were given to me at my going away party in a beautiful, handmade gratitude bowl.  I will now start to refill that bowl by noting things I am grateful for each day. I have also received amazing words of wisdom from fellow teachers who have walked the path I now am on, which have enlightened me and lifted me up.  I have begun deepening my own practice of Nia, for myself, which has been both a challenge and a gift. 

So far, Sao Paulo has been a place where ironies and absurdities happily co-exist together.  For instance, I find it ironic that on the surface the people here are overtly friendly, giving you kisses the first time they meet you, inviting you to coffee or lunch, and then they never follow through.  After a few weeks of this, I have learned not to have any expectations based on what someone here tells me.  I believe their intentions are good, but their follow through? Not so much.  

Similarly, the absurdities of life here leave me mostly laughing and sometimes frustrated.  If we begin the process of my permanent visa here in Brazil, it will take 18 months for me to get it.  If we begin it in the U.S., it will take 2 months for me to get it.  Good for me – that means I’ll be returning to the U.S. sooner than expected to get my visa!  To be able to drive a company car here, I have to take and pass a defensive driving course that is only offered in Portuguese. I went to the course this week, and I felt I only understood about 50% of what was said. Fortunately I somehow still passed the practical exam, which means I technically am able to drive now.

Bureaucracy is entrenched in society here – for instance, you can do nothing without your Brazilian social security number (which I don’t have yet).  I can’t use a credit card, can’t write checks, etc., until I receive it, which due to the bureaucracy, may be many months.  This bureaucracy essentially means that nothing is easy or fast here.  I mean nothing. Whatever you want to do, the answer you get is, “It’s complicated. It takes time.”  There is a process, and I can guarantee you there are many people whose jobs depend on this process and therefore it’s not going to change.

Luckily, except for wanting to teach Nia and Zumba here, I am not really in a hurry for anything. My husband and I were here for a week before we jointly decided to surrender to the machine rather than fight it.  Tired of feeling frustrated and getting nowhere, we decided to make caipirinhas instead and sit on the terrace, picturing where our swimming pool will be someday.  Hopefully before we leave…

I realized the other day that I have been living with 3 pairs of shoes since we arrived in Sao Paulo two weeks ago (my Choo Uggs don’t count, because they are un-wearable in the heat!).  And one pair is house slippers.  Honestly I can’t remember what life was like with all my shoes, so many choices.  I don’t think I am unhappy, although there have been a couple of times that I have wished for more choices.  How surprising, to see that although I love my stuff, I am not unhappy without it.  At this point, what I miss most is: my Tempurpedic bed, my Ruval sheets, my pillows, and my Senseo coffee maker.  Other than that, there is definitely something to be said for less stuff. 

I have broken down and purchased a couple of things that I just could not wait for in our shipment – a yoga mat (almost $70 here!) and a bottle opener (can’t live without beer!).  And waiting for our shipment has definitely been a spiritual lesson for both my husband and I.  We have finally decided to surrender to the Brazilian timeline, which is at least twice as long as what we were told our shipments would take.  We have an air shipment somewhere in Brazilian customs that theoretically would have been delivered almost a week ago, was supposed to tide us over until our container arrived by sea, and we have no idea when it will be released.  That’s where the rest of my shoes are…

I have been on a surprising journey of self discovery recently in being a student rather than a teacher.  I have been on an odyssey of experiences, exposing myself to a variety of things in my excitement to be a student.  I have danced Nia, Zumba, Body Balance, Flirty Girl Fitness, and more, exposing myself to a variety of programs and teachers. I noticed that more often than not, I end up feeling disappointed at the end of these experiences, with a few exceptions.  And I know that even if I could, I would not return.

Recently at my Zumba certification training, I experienced an exceptional master class that was led by the trainer (Barb Klontz).  I never felt the movements were too pounding or too fast, which I had previously experienced with Zumba.  I had a blast.  Her personality and mastery of music and moves made it a great experience and a great workout.  Then I could really see why people love Zumba so (which frankly has eluded me to some degree). I realized in that moment how excellence is a strong value for me.  It drives me in my own teaching and life, and I saw then that I also expect it from other teachers.  This was an aha moment for me – to see why I often feel disappointed in less-than-excellent experiences. 

This was somewhat surprising for me to realize.  I feel very supportive of other teachers and compassionate for what it takes to learn to teach.  But that’s the difference I think. There’s teaching a class and there’s creating an experience.   The Zumba training briefly advocates creating an experience for people, a place where they forget themselves, but in my experience many teachers are simply teaching a class.  For me this difference is elevating to excellence.  I always approach whatever I share as a chance to change someone’s life through an experience, and I now realize I want, even maybe expect that as a student. And that if I am going to devote my time to taking a class, I want to BE MOVED, not just MOVE….

I recently read an article on Oprah.com about going for excellence, and how it is achieved.  It said the way to excellence is through feedback, through seeking it out and incorporating it into our endeavors.  It also says that excellence is achieved through practice.  I know that I am blessed to have more time than most teachers to devote to practicing what I teach, and for that I am grateful. If you are intrigued by what it takes to propel yourself to excellence, you can read the article here.