All Good Things Must End!

Tonight, as Sierra prepares for bed, we are thankful for five weeks of vacation together. It has been filled with relaxing, sleeping in, lounging by the pool, venturing on short trips, and much laughter. For the first time in her school career, she is proclaiming, "NO! I don't want to go back to school yet!" I thought these things didn't start until children turned at least 10 years old. I am sadly mistaken. I don't believe it to be the result of not enjoying or liking school. See her here with her classmates. She's in the front second from the right.

And she LOVES her teacher, Ms. Eleanor.
I think it is more a factor of having truly enjoyed this vacation. She made friends with a very nice girl who lives downstairs from us--Luisa. Luisa attends the British school though. She doesn't go to Escola Americana. I think that if Luisa attended EA, Sierra and Luisa both would be looking forward to going back to classes together in the morning. Sierra has also forged friendships with many of the other children who live in our condominium, which has factored into her true enjoyment during vacation. All I can offer her is, "All Good Things Must End." And we have so many future adventures to look forward to, we must get started now.

My View

Again, my friend Tammy started this blog cycle of posting the view from your front door. I have to alter the directions a little though because the direct view from my front door is the front door of the apartment across the hall and the elevator door--not very exciting. Instead, this is the view from my veranda, which is like a backdoor. No one can complain about a view of the ocean.

5 Weird Things

My friend Tammy is a list lover. It was Tammy who originally introduced me to the list of threes I posted a couple of weeks ago. Well, once again, I have been tagged with 5 Weird Things. As Tammy said, there's nothing like a little self-revelation to make an interesting post. Here's how it works...I disclose 5 weird things about me and then I'm supposed to tag 5 people to reveal their 5 weird things. I'm going to be soft and omit the tagging of 5 others, but feel free to comment here on any of my 5 weird things listed.

1. I have to smell my food before eating it. This goes for EVERYTHING! Breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Main dish, side dish, salad, dessert. Even if it's something I've eaten many times throughout my life. I always smell before eating the first bite.

2. I don't like to mix salty with sweet in a main dish. I love the salted nut roll candy bar or mixing candy corn with salted peanuts. But no way will I eat pizza with pineapple on it or chicken seasoned with cinnamon. Sweet does not belong in my main course. I don't even like sweet flavored salad dressings. It is quite possible that I am really missing out on a fantastic flavor, but for now, I'll just have to take every body else's word for it. I'm not trying it.

3. I LOVE to burp! I know, weird, but true. I think it feels good. It ranks right up there with a really good sneeze, but belching takes the cake, especially after a good swallow of Coke. I secretly wish I lived in a culture where a good hearty burp at the end of a meal is a compliment.

4. I can't stand feet. They're ugly, smelly, dirty and basically disgusting. The only feet I have ever liked were Sierra's when she was an infant, but once she started walking and her feet got bigger they lost their appeal. I don't even like my own feet.

5. I need order but not necessarily organization. A place for everything and everything in its place is my motto. I get really irritated when I go to get something in its "spot" and it's not there because someone has "put it away." But to me, it was in its spot and all ready put away.

Well, there's my weirdness or quirkiness as some may say. Thanks Tammy!

I am officially spoiled!!!

We spent last weekend in Ilha Grande (http://br.ilhagrande.com/sys/) with our friends Mara and Rodrigo. I thought Paraty was beautiful. Wow!! Ilha Grande is breath taking. These first two pictures were taken from one of the many boats we took over the course of 3 days. Ilha Grande is another place where it is common to island hop and enjoy the paradise-like beaches. This particular vacation spot is only about 12 years old, which may be the reason I didn't even know it existed 12 years ago when I was in Brazil the first time. The history is that it used to house a state prison. The prison workers were the only people who lived on the island, and the prisoners did manual labor around the island to lesson their sentence, for every three days of work they were forgiven one day from their sentence. Since the island was, and still largely is, undeveloped, we aren't quite sure what kind of work they actually did. There are no motorized vehicles on the island and even the trash has to be sent by boat back to the mainland. In 1994, there was an escape by helicopter of one inmate and after that the prison closed. The escapee was recaptured, but not until 10 years after his escape. Once the prison was closed, the island opened to tourism and is now one of the most popular vacation spots in all of Brazil. The Brazilian government is working on passing a law limiting the number of tourists on the island at one time and that law will also enforce a tourist tax that will be mandatory for all visitors to the island. It is actually a great idea in effort to preserve the ecological beauty of the place.
To get there, we headed to Mangaratiba (about an hour and a half outside of the city) on an interstate bus from Rio early Friday morning, hopped a Ferry in Mangaratiba to the island. We checked into the Pousada, changed into swimwear and hopped a Schooner in the main part of the island to the other side of the island to go to Lopes Mendes beach. The water was unbelievably clean and an amazing aqua marine color and very very salty. We spent the entire afternoon swimming, walking, laying in the sun, playing frescoball (like beach paddle ball) and relaxing before taking the short, 15 minute hike back to the dock to catch the Schooner back to the main part of the island where our pousada was located.

Here is a picture of Sierra and Joe jumping waves at Praia de Lopes Mendes. It was a great chance for Sierra to do some real swimming in the Atlantic. The shoreline in Rio is really rough and most days we spend at the beach the waves are far too strong for her to really swim...it's just too dangerous, I feel like they're too strong for me most days. We have spent most of the sunny January days at our pool because of this, so it was a great day at the beach for Sierra. She didn't want to leave this beach.

Here's a picture of all three of us at Praia de Lopes Mendes.

During the second day in Ilha Grande, we took a Schooner for 5 hours, stopping at a few different dive spots and beaches and then for lunch on the beach at another location. The entire day was beautiful. Although the water was extremely cold, the weather was beautiful, so a quick 40 min. swim was a great way to cool off while snorkeling a little and watching the fish. It is very common everywhere in Brazil to find a street vender selling just about anything. In the middle of a traffic jam, you'll find people with cold drinks and snacks ready to sell at your car window. What was surprising and hilarious was the coconut vender canoeing around one of the popular Schooner stops.

Here you can see him pulling in between two of the anchored boats looking for sales.

I sadly returned to work today. I have very little room to complain after the very relaxing holiday I just had. Today Joe helped me to organize and count numerous novels that belong to the English department while Sierra played on barbie.com on my classroom computer. Tomorrow I will head to school alone to create a spreadsheet to inventory what we counted today. Wednesday I have an inservice on bullying prevention and all staff officially return Thursday. We teach for approximately 3 weeks and then we have another week long holiday for Carnaval! Life is good!! I'll leave with this last picture that Joe and Rodrigo say needs to become an advertising billboard in Brazil for the domestic beer company--Skol...

View from the veranda of our room in Parati!

Our Brazilian summer holiday began with a lot of work on my master's thesis (now almost complete) and a little respite, and it appears to be ending full of travel. I return to work this coming Monday, January 22, 3 days earlier than required, for some extra, self-induced work with countless novels which are scattered throughout the middle school at EARJ in need of serious organizing. I am a little saddened after being spoiled with a month long vacation. But not before we do some traveling to a couple of local favorite spots.

We returned tonight from 3 days in Parati, a small port city (actually the 2nd port of Brazil) between Rio and Sao Paulo. It was a little slice of heaven! When we first arrived and checked into our room, we enjoyed the view, the flowers, the birds singing, the hummingbirds feeding on the flowers right next to us and we were amazed that an environment minus traffic, children filling the air with the sounds of city play, and honking horns actually still exists--we've adjusted to our noisy urban life and the silence was ironically loud those first 30 minutes. Afterward, we ventured into the historic downtown of Parati for some shopping and browsing.


This first shot is entering the historical part of the city from our pousada's side of town.





Sierra enjoyed the open air shopping market where the locals have their businesses. She LOVES every dress, shirt, short, pant, shoe she looks at.
You can see her negotiating with me here to just "experimenta Mae" (try mom).




After the clothing run, she managed to talk me into the purchase of one dress, and she realized the rest of the shopping would be all fun and games, donning this rather large straw hat at the next store!!

During the second day in Parati, we spent 5 hours on a Schooner with about 45 other "tourists". Here we are in our very attractive snorkeling masks getting ready to jump in and see all the fish which were fed rice by the captain upon anchoring. I'm not sure if the rice was to draw them toward the boat for our viewing pleasure or to fill them up to keep them from nibbling on our toes, either way it was amazing to put your head under the water and see the ocean life! Throughout the day we were lucky enough to see: 4 lizards on a rock, 1 sea turtle, 1 baby sea turtle, 2 starfish, a few eel looking fish and countless other striped and colorful fish.
Here's a more flattering picture of Sierra and I on the boat--minus the snorkeling gear. The woman to our left sat near us the entire day, is from Brasilia, and kindly spoke slowly in Portuguese for me in order to actually have a conversation! She was very kind. At one point, Sierra had gone below the boat to use the bathroom and the woman noticed she was not around. We had just left one of our island stops and she, in a very concerned tone, asked, "Onde e sou filha?" Where is your daughter? I said, "AH, Ela e no o banheiro" She is in the bathroom. She woman, relieved, sighed and said, "Eu estou 'worried' porque nos fomos do ilhe e nao vi ela." I was worried because we just left the island and I didn't see her. I thought it was very kind of her to actually be concerned.

The ocean/mountain picture is taken looking toward Parati. What beatiful natural wonders the mountains and the sea and the landscapes produce. I'm really starting to enjoy photography thanks to the multitude of interesting images I am surrounded by so frequently.

The other major attraction during our three days in Parati were the street performers who totally enticed Sierra's attention. Throughout the day, you can turn any random corner and find a "statue" standing perfectly still. Until, a passerby drops a coin into the urn placed at their feet and then almost robotically, they begin to move. Some shake or kiss the hand of the generous passerby, others hand tokens, jewels or fortunes, all of them completely capture Sierra's attention. Here are two whom she "paid" and received a fortune and jewel as well as a picture moment. What's funny is she told me after the photo with the white "statue" that her left hand, which is behind her back, actually has her fingers crossed for good luck because even though she knows they are "just real people" under all that make-up, they're "still freaky".

Before catching the interstate bus back to Rio this afternoon, we enjoyed a horse and buggy ride through the historical part of Parati. Sierra sat in the front next to the driver and as you can see from the smile on her face was in heaven!!!
Friday will bring another quick trip for us as we venture to Ilhe Grande, an island off the coast of Rio. We were supposed to go a couple of weeks ago with some friends and had to reschedule the trip. Despite the forcasted rain, we are making plans to go this weekend. One last hoorah before heading back to reality of working every day. That's ok....I'm starting to enjoy this easy life of holiday, sleeping in, travel and lounging a little too much. Any longer without working and I might get too used to it!!!

This afternoon we headed into Leblon and Ipenema. Kind of a routine weekend walk. We were heading toward H. Stern and other jewelry stores for some window shopping, but I suspected they were all closed as it was a Sunday afternoon. Instead, we casually passed countless boutiques and sidewalk venders and simply enjoyed the walk, ending at a favorite boteca--Sindicato de Chopp--for lunch/dinner. As we were eating, a large party gathered at the table near us, and the waiters brought over this 3 liters Beer vat. We of course stared in disbelief, laughed in amusement and got up to take a picture! We don't know the man posing here with the beer, but he was kind enough to comply.
We are heading in the morning to Paraty, a small port city between Rio and Sao Paulo, for a few days. Staying at what is called a Pousada (very similar to a Bed and Breakfast). www.pousadamorrodoforte.com.br
We are looking forward to the quiet of a more rural setting for a day or two and the adventure that taking the interstate bus and navigating our way around an unfamiliar place will of course bring. And, I'm told they have a Havaianas store in Paraty bigger than Buzios!!

Havaianas

(better known to most Americans as the standard flip flop)
Flip flop: reminds how many of us of Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville, right? "I blew out my flip flop, stepped on a pop top..."

Well to Brazilians, it is not the flip flop that holds popular trivial attention. Instead, it is the Havaiana!! I realized yesterday late in the night that for the last three weeks I have had nothing on my feet except havaianas...for the entire 20 days...with the exception of about 3 or 4 hours Monday night when we went for Sushi in celebration of my birthday and I dressed up and wore heels. However, my friend Mara still wore havaianas to the restaurant with her very cute, strapless sundress.

It made me wonder: What is proper havaiana etiquette?

#1: the beach--kind of a no brainer, I know, but I feel it needs to be mentioned that indeed Havaianas suit the beach well. They slip off easily once you reach the sand, or you can keep them on comfortably while walking through the sand on the days that the sun is scorching hot sand and the sand is unbearably hot to walk on with bare feet, and they allow for the remaining remnants of sand to dry and fall off on the walk after the beach at the end of the day without having to go barefoot on the boardwalk.

#2: around the house--in MN, especially in the winter, it is common for visitors to bring along their "house shoes" during a visit. People hanging out at home, watching TV can often be found wearing their "house shoes". Many times homeowners have extra "guest" pairs of "house shoes". The purpose of the "house shoe" I believe is warmth more than comfort during those colder months. In Brazil, it is the havaiana that replaces the traditional "house shoe". Some have a specific pair of havaianas they ONLY wear in their house. I always have havaianas on at home, but it is not always the same pair. They keep my feet clean. Once I forgot to change my shoes when leaving for work and ended up wearing my havaianas all day at school, thankfully, they matched my outfit!

#3: riding a bike--I can hear my mother's voice in my head every time I see a biker passing on their bike, wearing havaianas "Put on tennis shoes! You can't ride a bike in flip flops." As much as I don't like to contradict my mother, it is possible to safely ride a bike in havaianas, and I see it several times a day.

#4: running errands--if one were to sit at a sidewalk, boteca and observe the passersby, keeping tallies of how many people are wearing havaianas vs. how many are not, the results are phenomenal. People seemingly grocery shopping, wearing havaianas, people seemingly heading to the dry cleaners, wearing havaianas, people seemingly heading to the bakery for breakfast, wearing havaianas. It's amazing! I started thinking, Wow, this is bigger than Nike. I want to meet the person responsible for inventing havaianas. He/she is brilliant.

#5: work--the pool guy (of course I know) but also, the water delivery guy, the guys who clean the streets, the venders at market, the flower vender, the retail employees, the cashiers at the bakery. As a matter of fact, the only on the job situations that didn't involve havaianas to date are our doormen and the policia militar--they don't wear havaianas, they wear boots and drink beer (this is a topic worthy of its own posting and will come at a later date).

#6: fashion statement for every ocassion--this is my favorite, as just last week Joe said, "Oh, hon, you need a pair of brown havaianas to go with that dress." It is a must to have white havaianas for New Year's Eve in Rio as well. It is true, not only are they extremely comfortable and durable and did I mention under $5 (US dollars) a pair, they come in EVERY color you could imagine, and recently, they're adding patterns. Buzios has an entire store, about the size of a typical Dominos take out restaurant in the states, of ONLY havaianas, floor to ceiling, wall to wall, men's, women's, children's..havaianas havaianas havaianas! Remember earlier, I mentioned Mara wearing havaianas with her cute, strapless sundress to dinner the other night with havaianas. Her havaianas were the same rose color of her dress--matchy matchy! And it is an absolute fashion MUST that at the very least your havaianas match your bikini. I have two bikinis (well, I really have 5, but only 2 of them are the Brazilian style, which could possibly be another post topic--The Brazilian Bikini, anyway). I have one bikini that is mostly blue and of course I have a matching pair of blue havaianas for when I wear that suit, and I have another that is mostly green, so I have a matching pair of green havaianas for when I wear that suit.

#7: Havaiana style: since the onset of the havaiana craze, the people at havaiana have adapted the traditional flip flop style to include additional styles; including but not limited to, havaiana heels, havaianas with slingbacks, havaianas with a little Brazilian flag on the strap, and havaianas that wrap around your foot (see purple havaianas shown). I wake each day wondering what new style these creative imaginations will come up with next.

It amazes and impresses me when something hits the market that becomes such a commonly used item. We could probably go back through the last 100 years and find a number of such things; the television, the cassette tape then the compact disc, the microwave, the vcr then the dvd, the computer desktop and laptop...the list is infinite. Just as in the United States it is nearly impossible to find a home without at least one television set in 2007, I dare say it is nearly impossible to find a home in Brasil without at least one pair of havaianas!!

I've attached their webpage here if you're interested in seeing more havaiana styles and if you're looking for locating havaianas in your hometown, google havaianas. You'll be amazed what you find. But, could the lyrics to Margaritaville be slightly altered to: I blew out my havaiana, I stepped on a Fanta. I guess we may never know.

http://www.havaianas.com.br/

Today was my birthday! It was a wonderful day. I woke at exactly the time I was born 34, yes, 34 years ago today--9:25ish. I know, I said exactly but you understand...
Sierra and Joe had business up their sleeves from the minute I awoke. Soon, I was presented with a glowing cake--do you have any idea how hot 34 burning candles on a cake actually is? Unfortunately, the cake, however beautiful, was not delicious. I think they used mayonaisse to make the frosting. Let me tell you, it's not recommended. After the burning cake, thankfully we left for cafe de manha, brazilian style, at a local bakery and cafe. It was very nice.

The rest of the day was spent relaxing, waiting for a new mattress, that never arrived, and preparing for dinner with friends. Dinner was wonderful. Surrounded by good company, good wine, and great food.

Hello! The first week of 2007 has been one of relaxation and respite. My sleep pattern is completely thrown off, up all night wanting to sleep all day.

Thursday we went to the Lagoa and just enjoyed being outside and surrounded by grass.

Sierra skipping rocks in the Lagoa.
A lone fisherman, paddling out to "work".

Cocovado overlooking the Lagoa. We just walked for awhile on the Lagoa Thursday and enjoyed the cooler weather, as it's been rainy off and on since New Year's Eve.
The Christmas tree in the Lagoa was put up the week after Thanksgiving. We had gone to a little sidewalk restaurant that night to watch the lighting of the tree and the fireworks that followed. They light the tree each night now, and it's really more beautiful at night with the lights on, but we haven't made it to the Lagoa to actually take a night shot yet, so this picture taken during the day will have to do.

Sierra is off from school until January 30 and enjoying sleeping in, staying up late, renting movies, playing with friends, and essentially living without a schedule. I will return to work a few day earlier, January 22, to do some book clean up and then attend a workshop before teacher work days in preparation for semester 2.

WOW!!!!

That's the only way to describe our first New Year's Eve in Rio!! It was amazing! Sierra took a short nap before leaving the house last night around 9 p.m. All of us dressed in white, as the custom goes here in Rio. We headed to our friends' (Mara and Rodrigo) house for a bite to eat and cocktails before heading to Ipenema for midnight celebrations and The Black Eyed Peas!! We returned home sometime after 4 a.m. took showers, ate pizza, and went to bed!!! (sometime right before 5 a.m.) The pictures are better for sharing the experience this time... Mara preparing to serve desert.The "girls" before leaving for the beach.Joining the crowds on the beach for midnight toasts.A New Year's toast.

The 3 of us after midnight, listening to The Black Eyed Peas!!

The crowd to the stage.

Mara, Tati, Rodrigo's Mom, and Me enjoying the night!!!

Singing and dancing and smiling and sooo happy!
Bathrooms were hard to find and harder to get to. At one point in the night Sierra and I both had to use the restroom in an amazing way. So she and I, with Joe's escort, ventured through the crowds. On the way back, The Black Eyed Peas began singing "Where is the Love" (my favorite of their songs). I danced through the street, with strangers, the whole song, on the way to meet up with our friends. It was unbelievable!

Showered, fed and ready for bed!!!