In Brazil, if someone does not know English very well, their fall back phrase is "the book is on the table." Because não falo o português muito bem, I use a parallel phrase. If I can't quickly respond to something a Brazilian says to me, I reply O livro está na mesa. (Portuguese for the book is on the table.) I was solo (my regular set of friends were unavailable) for lunch today and ended up eating with Joyce, a Curitibana, a local woman. Our conversation was pleasant but halting. Phrases like Tudo bem? What do you study? Está Satisfeito? were tossed around. Despite these simple phrases, my Portuguese has improved, honest. Otherwise, I've been noticing that Curitiba has some sleek, cool looking buildings-almost like as if they were gargantuan electronic components for a computer or circuit board. Maybe I'll try to get some pictures up later to illustrate what I mean.