Back From Rio de Janiero

So mom and Thomas and I headed to Rio de Janiero for our 4-day break.  We couldn't come to Brazil and not see Rio, could we?  So we forged out against our N. American neuroses (ooh... favelas... danger... drugs... City of God...) and discovered for ourselves one of the most beautiful cities in the world.  It's late here, so I am going to be pithy with only our highlights and lowlights of the adventure.  You can decided which are which.

Megan's Highlights and Lowlights, in no particular order:

*Visiting BIBI juices four times in three days, and getting multiple juices each time: acai, goiba, morango, manga, abacaxi, carambola, cupuacu, amora, acerola, and others I'm forgetting right now.

*Monkey at the Jardim Botanico!

*Most colorful and artful grafitti I've ever seen... covers almost every surface in the city.

*Air conditioning, no dogs barking and a curious lack of mosquitoes.

*Diana (one of our classmates) and her parents' generosity of living quarters, time, knowledge and English-speaking skills during our visit.

*The view from the Christ the Redeemer hill

*The best brand name ever: Personal VIP.  It's toilet paper.  So awesome.

*Ipanema and Thomas's laughs every time the waves hit his feet.

*Ocean

*Sun

*Sunburn

*The neeeeeeeeeevvvvvveeeeeeeerrrrrrrrrr-eeeeennnnnnnnnnnnnddddddddinnnnnnnnnggggg bus ride back to Barao Geraldo.

*Taxi ride through St. Theresa neighborhood... it felt a lot like San Francisco, just a little more down on its luck.  I want to stay here on my next visit.

*First taxi driver in Rio ran off with mom's money.  Seriously not cool.  You've got some bad karma now, fella.

*Caipirinha, how I love thee.

Thomas's Highlights, in no particular order:

*Monkey

*Helicopter

*Water

*Sand

*Juice

*Pretty Ladies who smile and blow kisses at me everywhere we go.

Okay, to sleep now.  Our new class starts tomorrow and we've been warned that we will hurt.

boa noite,

Megan