![\"Costumes](\"http:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/favo1.jpg\" "\\"Costumes")
<\/a><\/p>\nAs I scanned the rows of dancers, I couldn\u2019t help but notice the euphoric look on the face of one of our sections\u2019 organizers, Wesley. He had worked all year to bring everything together, and it was an honor and utmost pleasure to share with him and others in the celebration of Acari<\/a>. If its topic wasn\u2019t already clear, the first line of the song settled any doubts: \u201cMeu lugar, minha vida \u00e9 meu lugar.<\/em>\u201d \u2028\u2028(“My place, my life is my place.”)<\/p>\n Acari was founded on the site of a former sugar plantation in 1945 and is home to 30,000 people living in 8,500 homes. The United Nations has previously cited it for having the lowest Human Development Index figures in Rio. But Acari is rich in social activism and cultural groups, including music and poetry education projects. The poet and educator Deley de Acari<\/a>, well-known across the city, plays an active role in the life of the community.<\/p>\n Still, Rio\u2019s city government did not include Acari on the list of favelas that it recommended for tourists to visit during Carnival because it does not have a Pacifying Police Unit (UPP)<\/a>. \u2028\u2028Fiften samba schools, including our school G.R.E.S Favo de Acari, gathered along the Estrada Intendente Magalh\u00e3es in Madureira, the North Zone\u2019s analog site to Centro’s famous Sambodromo. In addition to thousands of paraders (eight thousand for Acari alone), several thousand revelers of all ages gathered alongside to support their school or simply to celebrate. Bleachers and judges\u2019 booths lined the center of the long avenue, while surrounding it were food and drink stands providing a less crowded and raucous view of the main attraction.<\/p>\n The atmosphere was buzzing. This was my first Carnaval, and when asked later what it was like to parade in Madureira, “it felt different” was all I could come up with. Maybe it\u2019s because I didn\u2019t feel the need to combat the sweaty crowds with caipirinhas, or because I could count the number of foreigners I saw on one hand, or because it was free and lacked corporate presence. Maybe I\u2019m romanticizing just because I had a really good time\u2026 but it\u2019s doubtful.\u00a0Instead, I credit community leaders and members who embraced me with open arms. It was only natural to reciprocate. I just hope the judges used a different standard for the gringos, or at least heavily weighted enthusiasm.<\/p>\n![\"Wesley,](\"http:\/\/www.rioonwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/favo2.jpg\" "\\"Wesley,")
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