Os bichos

Quasi-prophetically, my father, who just happened to watch "Brazil's Deadliest Animals" shortly before my departure, warned me to stay as far away from the Amazon and the swarms of killer beasts that live there as humanly possible. While the Amazon is (literally) thousands of miles away and I have (so far) successfully avoided dying of animal-related causes, I have had some encounters with the local fauna worth writing home about.

The walk from the internet cafe where I procrastinate to the room in the apartment where I'm staying (and procrastinating) takes a total of two minutes. And yet, somehow, that two minute period was like a safari in miniature tonight. Dangling from the fence on the corner was a white caterpillar/larva thing. It was at least four inches long, and definitely as thick as my index finger. I assume it was some kind of moth larva, but I can't be sure, and, since my camera died, I have no photographic evidence. Just imagine something like this.

Then, as I turned away from the caterpillar, I see a bat swoop by. To put it delicately, I sort of freaked the fuck out. Not out of fear, but with childish excitement. Without going into the embarrassing details of my past, there was a period in my life when I was mildly obsessed with bats (they're the only mammals that can fly!!!)--so much so that I considered being chiropterist (look it up). I'd always be on the look out for bats whenever I was out at night, but every time I thought I saw one, my mom, intent on crushing my dreams, usually just said, "A bat? I think it was a pigeon." Once, I saw a bat trapped in the corner of a building at a zoo, but it was tiny and rather disappointing as far as bats go. So imagine my surprise tonight when a bat--bigger than a pigeon, smaller than a seagull--flies overhead. It was pretty damn cool.

There was also the cockroach that was chilling in my bathroom. After a minor skirmish, it was flushed down the toilet. No word yet as to whether or not that was against the bizarre Brazilian flushing rules.

Other animal related points of interest:
-All the birds here (with the exception of the hordes of pigeons) are really pretty!
-In Paraty, the packs of stray dogs that roamed the street begging for scraps and generally just following us around town were actually pretty cute--as was the Portuguese term for them: viralatas, literally "can turner," in reference to their upturning trash cans looking for food.
-In Rio, I have seen more lapdogs than I thought possible; most have pretty stylish haircuts, but I wonder how some of the furrier ones survive the Brazilian summer. Also, I saw a dog wearing shoes. Yes, a dog (i.e. an animal) wearing shoes (i.e. human footwear).
-I am fairly certain there is some form of rodent that lives in the attic over my bedroom. I hear strange scuttling noises, day and night. At first I was kind of freaked out; now, as long as it doesn't gnaw my face off as I sleep, I'm cool.