Oi! Estamos no Brazil!

It's been a long night/day of traveling, but we landed safely and are already having a LOT of fun.
It seems like every time we go on a trip, the days leading up to our departure are crazy. running from one errand or appointment to the next, this past week was no exception. Grant likes to describe this feeling as "having to run from an exploding building" :) Relief finally hit me while sitting on the plane next to my sweet heart, realizing that we would be spending two whole weeks together with no interruptions or distractions. I really love him, but more importantly, i really Iike him. We make good travel companions.

We first flew to Detroit (seems a little counterproductive, but whatever) and then from there took the 11 hour flight into Sao Paulo. What a long flight. I don't know how people travel around the world and not go crazy. The seat was fine, we had purchased an economy comfort seat so I had lots of leg room. But having to sit for so long and trying to get any sleep for longer that 30 minutes was impossible. We made the most of it and enjoyed the three complimentary movies that played while we sat. Our favorite ( or should i say, the most entertaining) was the odd life of Timothy green. What a weird movie. It was so off the wall it helped alleviate some of the tediousness (I think I just made up a word) of the trip. Our favorite quote was" if he can have leaves growing on his legs, then we can make a pencil out of leaves." we couldn't help but bust out laughing, I think that will become our new motto of the trip.

The first glimpse of Brazil that I caught was from the cabin window on our descent into Sao Paulo. It was so beautiful! Imagine lush amazon-like mountains that surround thousands of high rises and homes. I was surprised to see how clear the border of the city was. There was no gradual urbanization, just a clear cut line of jungle vs. population overload. It is really fun to hear so much Portuguese, it is a very beautiful langugae. Grant and I joked that it is kinda like being in the Disney area around all the tourists who speak different languages, only there are more here. I can't wait to see more of the city.

We had a super long layover, eight hours to be exact. While our initial thought before the trip was to leave the airport during the layover and maybe visit on the of the temples here, we decided against it because we felt so dead. I guess a slow transition into a foreign country is better than just cramming a bunch of stuff in. It has been nice to get used to the language, the culture, as well as catch up on some sleep while waiting for our next flight into Porto Alegre.

We don't have a ton of set plans this trip, just a list of things we want to see:

-the town of Gramado (a German village in the heart of Rio Grande do Sul.)
-Centro mercado, Porto Alegre, like a huge farmers market
-See the cherry blossoms in Porto Alegre.
-Spend time with Luciano, one of the people that Grant worked with in his mission, and learn from his wife how to cook amazing food!
-Visit Torres beach
-Visit some of the old churches
Hike to a beautiful waterfall in Canela


We really want to relax and enjoy this vacation, tourism at a slower place. We want to experience real life, not just be in a tour group. It may be an interesting learning experience, but it will also be a great adventure. Hey if Timothy Green can have leaves growing out of his legs, anything is possible. :)

Tchau!