Monday, February 28, 2011

I'm back in the city of Rio..with it’s crazy, constant traffic, havaianas, barely there clothing, amazing food and constant partying!! Man I love this city! This time around I’ll be here for more than just a month; I’ll be here for seven!
Maybe I should start from the beginning…I AM A BRASILIAN!! As in I was born here, both my parents are Brasilian and although I became a naturalized American citizen and grew up in the states, my first love and first passport belong to Brasil! I moved to the states when I was four with my mom after my parents divorced and have been there ever since. I always came back every year or every other year to visit family, but never for this long.
I'm already on Day 5 and I feel like I’ve done so much!! The short version is I’ve visited some of my family, studied Portuguese and maps of the city because shortly I’ll be driving, I’ve visited the Institute that my grandparents work at twice and taken many pictures for my Grandmother’s presentation, sweated liters of water because it is so freakin hot and taken two COLD showers a day because again it is so freakin hot, gone Marianna’s 95th birthday party, ridden in several taxis and buses, eaten a lot of amazing fresh fruit and meat, driven through two police raids, seen way to many people living and sleeping on the streets, kissed the cheeks of many people that I know and don’t know (Brasilians greet people with a kiss on both cheeks), seen Bruce Willis everywhere because he is on billboards and commercials for an English school here, realized I left my toothbrush and all my contacts in the states, jaywalked, taken the metro, ate at the kilo place (the amount you pay is based on the weight of your food), attended church and went to two different Carnival block parties and danced in the street!!
So..I guess you can say I’ve been enjoying myself so far!! And for those of you who know me, I haven’t eaten a single kids meal here!! I already have many pictures to show but I have to leave and pick up my Vovo (Grandmother) from choir practice so I will do when tomorrow sometime. I miss you and love you all soooo much!! Kisses!!