AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Tropical music plays,Sertanejoon occasion, and some Brazilian funk along with it. Creating an upbeat environment with groups of friends dancing, street performers, and Xavier looks really happy to be here. I’m glad to be with him while watching him bask in his native country’s surroundings.
I already love Brazilians, not because Xavier is one of them. Despite that, they are the kindest and most passionate people I have encountered in my years of travel. While we were looking for an open spot on the beach that wasn’t too close to the ocean, a family was barbecuing and asked if we wanted any of the food they were making. Keep in mind they were offering it for free. At first, I thought they were selling it. But no, they were asking us out of the friendly will of their heart.
It made me realize that good people truly exist.
Xavier is a big celebrity here; people ask him for a picture every five minutes. He takes a picture with every person who asks. A group of girls started screaming when they saw him, running up to him just to have a conversation. I can tell he likes the attention while caring about his fans wholeheartedly.
“Mano, aqui.” Xavier is waving his arm right next to me, trying to get a vendor’s attention.
“Sim, estou atendendo a seus pedidos.”
Xavier smiles at him in response.
“Quanto?” He asks how much it is; that much I can understand.
He spews off a number. I don’t know how much exactly. Xavier takes out his wallet and pays the nice man.
“Doce ou azedo?” He riffles through his bag.
“Doce,” Xavier replies.
“Seu Xavier, o piloto de Fórmula 1, certo?” the man asks him while handing him a package that says Globo on it and a drink.
“Sim.” He grabs the package and soft drink from him and then smiles.
“Assisto à Fórmula 1 desde que era pequeno e sempre esperei pelo próximo Ayrton Senna. Obrigado por deixar o Brasil orgulhoso!” The man looks like he’s thanking him for something as he puts his hand on his arm in recognition.
The man soon walks away, and Xavier looks teary-eyed.
“What’s wrong? Did he say something mean?” The vendor was speaking too fast for me to understand even if Spanish is somewhat similar to Portuguese.
“The opposite actually.” The biggest smile I’ve seen from him yet spreads across his face as he opens up the bag.
“What did he say?” I’m interested.
“He compared me to Ayrton Senna in a way and then thanked me for making Brazil proud again.” He says it under his breath, not wanting to brag.
“That’s amazing!”
“It’s a little surreal. When I come to Brazil, I don’t really go out and when it’s my home Grand Prix, I can’t meet as many people as I want to. Sports in Brazil is a religion. I mean, the fact that I make them proud in that aspect makes me overjoyed to beBrasileiro. Not to mention he just compared me to my hero.”
I think I see a tear roll down his face. But it quickly disappears as he looks at me.
“You don’t just make Brazil proud. You make me, Ale, Luca, and all your fans out there proud,” I tell him.
“Thank you.”
After a sweet and earnest exchange, he opens up the package he bought.
“Are you ready for a Brazilian delicacy?”
“Give me your worst.” I smirk, and he rolls his eyes at my comment.
Xavier pulls out a white piece of food that resembles a donut. It’s covered in white powder. As he hands it to me, I realize it’s dense.
“What is it?” I ask, curious if it’s a donut or something completely contrasting its appearance.
“It’s Polvilho or its traditional name is Avoador, but it’s mostly called Globo because of the bakery that was contracted to make them inBotafogo. It’s made of flour, water, coconut, eggs, milk, salt, and sugar. I got you the sweet one, but there’s also a salty one.”
