Our day did not begin early - we slept in. Last night we got to bed at 12 or so Brazilian time. I slept until 10:30 am! Maybe having little sleep all week long had something to do with that.
First walk of the day was to the Bakery for breakfast. The weather is mild and sunny and it is so relaxing to be here. We walked a few blocks to the Bakery and as you walk in there is a case with very yummy looking treats. We sit in the cafe side - outside on the patio. We have omelets and french bread. Several people come to the cafe with their small dogs - they step over the short wall and bring their dog to sit at their feet while they eat. We can hear piano music from time to time. Everyone is relaxing enjoying the meal and being with their friends. We are so happy to be with Tele - especially since we would have no idea what to order without him! Following breakfast we walk a few short blocks to Tele´s office. It is a nice room, mimimal of course, perfect for his architecture business. Then we go back to his home. They live in a building with 15 floors and 2 homes on each floor. The view is wonderful in the day and the night.
Second walk of the day is to the park where they have an open air market. We are looking for a baseball cap for John since he forgot his in the van back in St. Louis. We enjoy the walk and see different styles of buildings and homes. There are many flowering trees even though it is winter here. Our favorite is Quaresmeira. There are also lots of resturants and small snack shops. The market however, is closing by the time that we get there and there are no hats for sale. We walk back towards home and stop at a little bar. Tele and John enjoy a cold beer and I enjoy a lime fruit bar. There is a group around the corner who have had many beers and they cheerfully yell at their friends who drive by.
Third walk of the day is to dinner. Now you should know that I took an nap from 4 - 6 pm!LOL. We watched a soccer game (Brazil won! and beat Chile) and then took our walk for dinner. We walked by the church that was having services, with the doors open and we saw the beautiful sanctuary from the street. Dinner was at Romanos, an Italian resturant. They even supplied a menu in English. Waiters with black pants and white shirts. Wonderful food topped by our dessert of Papaya cream. We talked about the places we visited in our last visit and places we would like to visit in the future. We found that years ago in Brazil there were Colonels just like years ago in the Deep South in the USA.
Sunday, July 1, 2007
Great to be here!
After a short flight to Atlanta and then an 8.5 hour flight to Sao Paolo, we are here! The flight was interesting because it during the day and we saw the Bahamas, Haiti, Santa Domingo and other islands. The flight over Brazil was surprising because for so much of it, it was just green forests, no towns, no mountains, no farms. We did see a very very wide river that had to be the Amazon. Amazing.
Later there were some fires that we suspected were to clear land of the forest. They were small crescents of flames. We saw the lights of Brasilia and the pattern in which the city was designed. Later Tele told us that is the outline of an airplane.
We had our first experience with the warm welcoming Brazilian spirit at customs. The agent asked if it was our first trip to Brazil (it is our second) and asked if we knew any Portuguese (not much at all). He hoped that we would have a good visit with his country. If there was a competition I would expect Brazil to win for having the best hosts!
The airport at Sao Paolo was very busy. When we left the area with our suitcases and went to where everyone was waiting, we could hear cheers (yea!) and sighs (ohhh). They were waiting for friends and big groups and had a kind of cheering section going on. Tele told us that a boyfriend/girlfriend meeting with a big kiss drew a big cheer. Outside there were lots of buses and many cars. There are PanAmerican games in Rio and many groups were flying into Sao Paolo and taking buses to Rio.
Tele drove us to their home in Campinas and we chatted the whole way - about one hour. Maria, Francisco, and baby Clara are in St. Rita.
Later there were some fires that we suspected were to clear land of the forest. They were small crescents of flames. We saw the lights of Brasilia and the pattern in which the city was designed. Later Tele told us that is the outline of an airplane.
We had our first experience with the warm welcoming Brazilian spirit at customs. The agent asked if it was our first trip to Brazil (it is our second) and asked if we knew any Portuguese (not much at all). He hoped that we would have a good visit with his country. If there was a competition I would expect Brazil to win for having the best hosts!
The airport at Sao Paolo was very busy. When we left the area with our suitcases and went to where everyone was waiting, we could hear cheers (yea!) and sighs (ohhh). They were waiting for friends and big groups and had a kind of cheering section going on. Tele told us that a boyfriend/girlfriend meeting with a big kiss drew a big cheer. Outside there were lots of buses and many cars. There are PanAmerican games in Rio and many groups were flying into Sao Paolo and taking buses to Rio.
Tele drove us to their home in Campinas and we chatted the whole way - about one hour. Maria, Francisco, and baby Clara are in St. Rita.
Wednesday, June 13, 2007
View of Santa Rita from "3 antennas"
View of Santa Rita from the mountain that used to be called "3 antennas" - now (2003) there are 7. I will let you know how many there are now in 2007!
Coffee plants and the countryside
This photo is from our trip in 2003 and shows the mountains and coffee plants.
We have our visas!
We are getting ready to travel to Santa Rita do Sapucaí, a small city in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. Population = 127,946. This is the family home of our former exchange student. We visited there briefly in 2003 when he graduated from the university. We had a wonderful trip and vacationed in Rio, Sao Paola, Ihla Bella, Paraty, and Campinas. Our previous trip was for his graduation and I still need to figure out what to do with my travel journal and lots of pictures and video!
My hope is that I can use this blog to chronicle this trip - but I am uncertain of internet access in Santa Rita. There is a large university located there that has an emphasis on technology, so I will keep my fingers crossed!
My hope is that I can use this blog to chronicle this trip - but I am uncertain of internet access in Santa Rita. There is a large university located there that has an emphasis on technology, so I will keep my fingers crossed!
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