Time: Tuesday, November 2, 2011
In Portuguese, the word “saudade” is unique in that there is no direct equivalent of this word in English. However, the renowned, extremely accurate Wikipedia attempts to explain saudade in the following way:
“Saudade describes a deep emotional state of nostalgic longing for something or someone that one loves and which is apart. It often carries a repressed knowledge that the object of longing might never return.”
As I spend my last afternoon in São Paulo packing for my bittersweet return trip home to the United States (and trying to figure out how I can smuggle back four bottles of cachaça) – I am starting to understand what this saudade feeling is all about.
I am going to miss Brazil.
But, before I leave, here are some final, brief reflections from my some travels around this ridiculous country: