This forum was the second for me, first was in 2002, went there in both years with Grupo Interagir, the youth organization I mentioned above. The first year was the first for all of us, we had no idea of what was waiting for us, not a clue, just that catchy phrase “Another World is Possible”, that was all we need to drop all our previous attachments and jump into the unknown, for about a week.
In January 2002 I was 21 years old, living in the capital of Brazil, and working the average of 10 hours a day. The opportunity to go there was unique and couldn’t be spared, took my yearly month of vacations, packed and jumped into a plane with my friends. Arriving there was nice, we have rented this small apartment a bit far from downtown, but it was ok, a bit of comfort is always good, living together with all your friends is always good, for about a week.
The World Social Forum began, and when it begins its like you’re hurled to a different world, I have now idea of how many languages I heard on my first hours there, how could I , I was barely understanding my own. My mind wasn’t working properly, too much information to process, such a new experience, all this people walking around, should I meet all of them? Rather impossible that was. You must carefully choose who to meet, not the informal way I mean, but where to go. There are hundreds of workshops, speeches, panels, conferences, expositions, performances and lunch brakes happening all at once. You have to opt, and that’s one thing you can’t avoid there.
One of the forum sites was good, a big private university, with many buildings, classrooms and lawns, the last had proved to be a pleasing and disputed space for relaxing in-between activities. Nice first impression, I thought with myself. Thinking that the sort of urban academic atmosphere was ideal for such thing, when you’re talking about the another world possible, I said to myself.
The second site was, well, different. The Intercontinental Youth Encampment is where the real anthropologic experience is. Young people from all around the world moved to a park with little infrastructure, some mud, a few swamps and lots of good vibrations, for about a week.
I’m trying to remember what I did back there in January 2002, the world social forum was such a strong experience, how could I forget what I learnt there? I didn’t. The experience is so burnt down into my brain that I can’t distinguish what I always knew from what I learnt there. Confusing, eh? Yes, that the feeling you get at the world social forum. Lots to do, lots to see, flavors to taste and scents to smell. Its just too much in such a small period. I wasn’t sure if another world was possible, but I sure lived in another world, for about a week. The world social forum in 2002 began and ended with the same weather, sunny and hot. Porto Alegre is a good city, metropolitan, not as Sao Paulo or Toronto, but in its very own way. For me Porto Alegre began its existence that summer, the experiences I had there made it real.
After a week there I was ready to leave. Overwhelmed with the crazy amount of information available, a living internet I could say. When at the world social forum you just have to pick a subject and look it up on the program newspaper, as thick as two Sunday editions together, and you would find someone eager to talk and share experiences about that subject. Or you could just wander around, walking thru the self-organized small islands of people expressing themselves. Anyway, I was ready to leave, and so I did.
Two years and 10 months later I didn’t know much about the next edition of the world social forum. Work had pulled me out of that entire world, the experiences were buried deep in my memories, every once in a while I would have a flashback and remember the feelings I had that summer. Surprisingly, I realized I could have it all again. The year of 2005 was just a couple of months away, and Porto Alegre would once again become the world capital of diversity and dreams.
Caught up in the swirl of life, it wasn’t just about a week before the V World Social Forum that I made the final decision to be there again. Once more I was jumping in the unknown, you really never know what to expect. The world social forum is shape-less, almost abstract, it never happens the way it was supposed to, or the way you wanted it to.
Grupo Interagir was highly mobilized. I’m living in Rio de Janeiro, 1700 km away from Interagir and the rest of its members. I thought the world social forum would be, at least, a good opportunity to meet the new members, much younger than I, baring 24 full years of existence.
Arriving at Porto Alegre brought a whole lot of memories back. I was really amazed to see how I could remembers the streets, the accent, and the thrill of being at that city, for the world social forum, for about a week.
I arrived early, before anyone else of my organization, with no place to stay the only and desired choice was the Intercontinental Youth Encampment. I got there late on the afternoon, it looked much like the fist camp I saw, only bigger and with outdoors showers. Got my badge and went to find a spot to set up my tent. Paying the full fee to stay there wasn’t a problem, even if I was staying there for just one night. It didn’t took me much time to find a good spot, soon my tent was up and I was ready to make new friends. Accidentally, but very fortunately, one of my neighbors was a good old friend from Brasilia, really nice to meet him again, even if just briefly. My other neighbors were a very diverse group. Its fun to see how you can bond to entirely strangers and share feelings and ideas, all in just a few minutes. I wasn’t alone anymore.
The first night started smooth, went to a party with my new best friends. Music, dance, beer, laugh, looks and thoughts. Hidden and open dialogs, things may not always be what it looks to be. The first night is confusing. Again decisions must be made, really, its never easy. The first night brought it all up again, I was at world social forum. Being my self is easy, hard is to stay the same.
Good Morning, sunny, windy and warm. Exited, my old best friends are arriving. Today I leave the camp and move to an apartment, a bit of comfort is always good.
While in bed I’m still confused, last night’s decision weren’t made yet. I better get up, have to pick up one of my old best friends at the central station, we would be together again, for about a week.
Every one is arriving and I’m packing my tent, leaving the camp with all the decisions made and ready to meet the new members of Interagir. This year we come in 12, I haven’t meet many of them yet, but I’m sure we will be best friends in about a week. Somehow we’re all together now, don’t remember exactly how it happened, don’t even remember heaving breakfast, I’m sure I ate something. Its evening and we’re all at the apartment. Feels good to be home, that’s how I’d call that place for the next days, for about a week.
On the fist day its all different, we don’t have that urban academic atmosphere anymore, its spread all around the city, at the park, the docks, somewhere near a mall. My guts say I will be walking a lot during the forum. It doesn’t matter, I’m not in the real world anymore, I’m living the another possible world. First morning, first afternoon first evening, can’t describe it all, thousands of people walking down Porto Alegre avenues, music, flags, laughs, it was easy to feel happy there. The atmosphere was contagious, I have no idea of how many kilometers we walked, the important is that I wasn’t walking alone. We walked all the way to the city’s outdoors amphitheatre, Pôr-do-Sol or sunset as you’d say. There a big music concert was waiting for us, in completely disregard to the exhaustion we felt after the walk, it doesn’t matter, we can try a bit harder, but maybe not for long, for about a week.
The following days are just the same, same feelings everyday. The sun is up until 9pm every day, how did that happen? Guess its customary at this another world. Workshops after workshops, my organization alone is presenting three. The sun burns our skin on the long walks from K to A, those rooms are really hot. I saw my old camp neighbors a few times, things changed, but not much. Meeting people is always a trill, an anthropological experience, a friend would say. If you don’t have friends you can’t say we, just I, and I’m tired of saying that. We must go on. Again the next few days aren’t full of surprises, not that they were boring, no. The forum is a learning journey, and I apologize for borrowing the term a friends project, the opportunity to learn are endless, for about a week.
Ok, its time to go. I’m really lucky to be part of Grupo Interagir, we are such a diverse group, such a creative group, such a fun and caring group. That’s why its hard to say goodbye, even if its more like a ‘see you soon’. Its never easy, after all, we’re leaving the small world created to last for about a week. We begin to leave, one by one, or in pairs, we leave, and soon I’m alone again. Another night is required for me, can’t leave right now. No, I really want to leave, just can’t find transportation. 150.000 people got in, 150.000 must get out, you can imagine the chaos.
So I left, and got back to my old home. Is another world possible? It always is. A better world hopefully, and with some luck it will last for more than just about a week.
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