Thewaybackhome

Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph of a train interior. On the left, we see people sitting on benches, some wearing hats and others in formal clothing. In the center, there is a carpeted corridor with closed doors. On the right, more people are seated, some talking and others looking straight ahead. Everyone appears to be occupied with papers in their hands.

First published in 1899, Machado de Assis's classic “Dom Casmurro” begins by offering hints of the everyday challenges faced by suburban residents on their way back home. “One night not long ago, coming from downtown to Engenho Novo, I ran into a young man from this neighborhood on the Central train” are the words that open Machado's work. After the exhausting day, one finally boards the transportation running alongside the railway line toward the suburbs. The long trip from downtown to the north and west zones offered enough time for encounters, conversations, and even courtships.

Imagine a journey that continues through the old Freguesia de Nossa Senhora da Conceição do Engenho Novo — lands that once belonged to the Companhia de Jesus —, crossing the property of Comendador Augusto Duque-Estrada Meyer, Todos os Santos, and part of the workshops of Engenho de Dentro, Piedade and Encantado. Following the street that honors the famous physician whose name replaced that of the old Muriquipari road, Dr. Clarimundo de Melo, all the way to the final destination at the point of the street immortalized with the name of the symbolist poet, Cruz e Souza.

Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph of a railway station. On the left side, we see train tracks, with a concrete and stone wall in front. In the center, there is a small structure with a sloped roof and the sign "PACIENCIA" at the top. On the right, people are standing near a large concrete column with graffiti. In the background, we see trees and a white structure.

Breathing in the suburban air, one takes a breath to carry on further into the neighborhood. Right at the first bar, among the seven or more that follow it up to the final destination, a quick stop and a glass of beer to greet friends and take in more news together.

Continuing on, now walking at a more leisurely pace, celebrating the weekend to the beat of the samba heard emanating from the tambourine of a circle just formed at the door of another bar. Along the way, one dodges the children playing tag and kicking a ball, dribbling past their opponents through the big potholes in the pavement and the old trees of that street - always watched closely by their parents and grandparents, who observe every bit of night-time movement leaning against the low walls. Some water their plants and take the chance to wash and cool down their sidewalks, trying to send away the heat that stubbornly lingers where, later on, they'll settle into chairs to chat.

Image description: This is a black-and-white photograph. In the image, we see a man sitting on the ground, wearing a straw hat and a long-sleeved shirt. He is holding an electric cable with his right hand. Beside him, there is a table with a bucket and an object hanging from it. In the background, we see a white van parked and a road sign. There is also a child walking down the street, behind the man. The scene appears to be taking place in an urban location, possibly near a road or a residential area.

One more break prompted by the smell of the little barbecue made to order to trick the stomach and ease the hunger until the home-cooked meal, after two or three more cold ones at the buddy's bar, just a few steps from home.

This may be the itinerary of a kind of suburban "odyssey" experienced across generations by many residents of the old rural parishes.