Line at the bank waiting to use an ATM

I spend a lot of my time in Brazil waiting in line.  It's incredible, really, when I think about how many minutes a day I spend standing or sitting until it's my turn to buy food, copy papers, send mail, take out cash etc.  Yesterday I waited over an hour to send some postcards and today I am at the university teaching and running errands.  Let me share an average day with you so you can get idea of how often (and how long) Brazilians have to wait in line.

The line of students waiting to get food at lunch at the university

7:30am Wait in line to get on the bus.  Bus is full.  Wait in line for the next bus.
7:45am Manage to get on next bus and wait in line standing inside the bus to pay my fare.
8:30-11:30 English class at UFPA
12:00 Wait in line for 1 hour to get lunch ticket for university cafeteria
1:00 With ticket in hand, get in another line for 30 minutes to pick up food
2:00 After lunch, wait in line to use a computer to print a copy of the bill I have to pay
2:10 After printing bill, wait in line to pay for the paper that I printed
2:30 Head to the bank and wait in line for 30 minutes to use an ATM to take out cash to pay the bill
3:00 Wait in line for 5 minutes to get a paper number to give money to an agent to pay the bill
3:05 Wait in a chair for 30 minutes until my number is called to pay the bill.
3:45 Work in the computer lab for awhile until it's time to wait for a bus to go home, wait to pay the bus fare and then wait in traffic if it's anywhere in between 5-7pm.
5:50 Arrive early for my doctor's appointment and wait 1 hour and 20 minutes to see the doctor.
7:20 Home - no more lines!

A great idea when there are no numbers to keep track of where you are in line

There are a few things that keep me from going insane while waiting in line.  Sometimes I try and talk to people around me to practice Portuguese and meet new students.  But most of the time I read books on my Nook.  I have gotten through an astonishing number of books this year because of this and it has helped a lot with my mental and emotional state when at times I feel like I am just a tiny part in a system of never-ending inefficiency. If you are looking for a few good end-of-summer reads, here are my suggestions:

*The Good House - Ann Leary

(* my favorites)

Happy reading and I hope you can enjoy it without waiting in line!

1 Comment

1. Linde on August 15, 2014 at 8:30 AM

   I like the "shoe line!" And thanks for the reading list!