This couple asked me to take a pic of them, because they wanted to have a souvenir of their visit. I told them I was not a professional photographer, I was just a tourist like them, but they seemed not to care about that. After I took the pic they gave me their address and asked me how much it would cost. How much should I pay them for giving me the pleasure (honor?) of portraiting such decent, nice, lovely people?
Há pratos, mas falta apetite.
Há alianças, mas falta reciprocidade
Pelo menos desde há 300 anos.
Há o leque – onde os rubores?
Há espadas – onde há ira
E o alaúde nem tange hora gris.
Por falta de eternidade juntaram
Dez mil coisas velhas.
Um guarda musgoso cochila docemente
Com os bigodes caindo sobre a vitrine.
Metais, barro, pluma de ave
Triunfam silenciosamente no tempo.
Apenas um alfinete de galhofeira do Egito
Ri zombeteiro.
A coroa deixou passar a cabeça.
A mão perdeu a luva.
A bota direita prevaleceu sobre a perna.
Quanto a mim, vivo, acreditem por favor.
Minha corrida com o vestido continua
E que resistência tem ele!
E como ele gostaria de sobreviver
(Wislawa Szymborska, "Museu")
"Toda a História é remorso" (Carlos Drummond de Andrade)
De madrugada matam os bois
que comemos ao amanhecer.
No entanto, eles tinham seus projetos:
comer a erva da manhã
mascar o azul do entardecer
e cercados de aves e borboletas
ir adubando o dia por nascer.
(Affonso Romano de Sant'Anna, "Os bois")
(...)
mais além do céu de Brasília
traço do arquiteto
gosto tanto dela assim (...)
se eu tivesse mais alma pra dar
eu daria, isto pra mim é viver.
(Caetano Veloso + Djavan, "Linha do Equador")
The two hemi-spheres are the Plenaria of the Senate and the Federal Chamber.
The hemi-shpere looking down is the Senate, and the other one is the Chamber. Why that? According to Niemeyer, the Senate is by nature more conservative, whereas the Chamber is more opened to the popular clamor; so, the Senate was built more hermetic, and the Chamber more opened. Also, because the Senate and the Chamber have complementary functions, they were also shaped in a complementary way (each House could be stacked on top of the other).
The two buildings in between the hemi-spheres are called Annex I and this is where part of the administrative staff of the Congress is located. These are the two tallest buildings in the Federal District.
If the doors of this building were locked it would become the prision with the most dangerous criminals in this country. About 1/3 of deputies and senators are under investigation. The other 2/3 aren't - yet.