Brazil-Porto Alegre

A EL MISSION

We stopped briefly in Campinas and Q's Brazilian companion met us at the airport.
Of course, I didn't meet him because, by some phenomenon unknown to me, I somehow managed to fall asleep on an airport chair and was out like a burnt light bulb. Q had to abandon me to meet up with his old comp and he barely got me up and walking in time to stumble onto the next plane. (Seriously- did he slip me a few Ambien or something?) The kid I suppose.

THE MISSION OFFICE: The Porto Alegre mission office is on the same grounds as the stake center and institute building. As soon as we landed and checked in to the Sheraton, we took a taxi here to see if the mission assistants could help us out with some current information (Q's mission was 8-10 years ago). We were lucky to skee-dattle. It was Christmas Eve so we caught them just before they left for a dinner appointment.

This assistant was awesome. He only had a little bit to go so he declined our offer to call his mom to tell her how wonderful he was. They helped us learn about a new chapel in Ipenema and talked us out of going to a really dangerous area a day away (Thank you thank you thank you- that was one less sweltering, smelly bus ride).

We found some french fries in a nearby food court later that evening!!!!
This was our entire meal.

CHRISTMAS EVE: Late that night we splurged
on a Christmas Eve room service dinner of pasta and
pop mixed with grape juice from a corner market nearby.

CHRISTMAS MORNING: We packed one present each to open in Brazil. The boxes were a bit mangled but we both agreed it was worth it. We had to put the opened presents (2 shirts) in zip lock bags to try and prevent the smells of Brazil from permanently penetrating our new duds. Thanks G & G Metcalf!

After presents we packed up our duffel bags and stored them with the front desk so we could back pack to Caca Pava in the Mountains for the next day & 1/2. The last picture is the view of Porto Alegre from our hotel room window. It's basically skyscrapers in every direction as far as you can see. With no highways, I am still wondering how anyone ever gets anywhere!

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

You MUST read this book. I didn't set it down until I was forced to abandon it because the darn thing ran out of pages before I ran out of interest! Snap.

Go HERE to read all about it (my book blog that no one reads but me, but I don't mind because I finally have a way to organize the library inside my head).

Juliet is SO Alana!!!!

-n

P.S. We've somehow managed to paint a room in our new apartment lime green. How on earth did that happen? And worse yet, how does one manage the will to live with it since the will to repaint it is non-existent?

Brazil-Iguazu

We flew from the Amazon (via Campinas where Q met up with his Brazilian companion) to Iguazu falls.
Our only regret was that we got there late and left early. This place is AMAZING!

Q and I splurged two nights on a posh Oriental Express hotel and it was worth every penny. We got free flip flops, luxurious robes, and our only real food of the trip. We got there at night and wondered why there weren't any curtains on the windows. When we woke up the next morning, we figured it out- the Hotel Cataras is the only structure set right on the edge of the falls and cut into the tropical rain forest. The rain forest is an impenetrable wall that clings right up to the hotel. In fact, there aren't any paths into the rain forest because it is so thick.

Our hotel is steps away from the falls so we hiked down to see them. Breathtaking. These make Niagara look like a trickle of tap water. This (above) is only the very beginning.

There were some rambunctious raccoon cubs on the falls trail.
By this time Q's Portuguese was in full force but these vicious little guys weren't listening.

There were also millions of butterflies of every size, shape, and color. They flew all over and landed on us the entire time we were at Iguazu. Man I look sweaty. It's HOT.

The further we went along the falls, the wetter we got. This is on the way to a walk-out bridge that is built over the falls (freaky).

NEXT:

We took a tour to the bottom of the falls where we hopped on a raft that took us up and into the falls as far as we could get.


The boat drove right under some of the falls and it was awesome.

Right before we hiked the trail to the boat, a 15 foot snake was sun tanning on it. I was SO depressed we missed it. Spotted lots of HUGE spiders though.
Say hello to Argentina!

Back at our hotel we relaxed and soaked up as much 5-star perfectness as possible before our early fight to Porto Alegre the next morning.
Oh that we could have delayed our flight to eat that continental breakfast again.

This is the one place we would go back to if visiting South America again. It was a good respite for our digestive systems before we headed into the ugness of the rest of the trip food.
When backpacking Brazil at 3 months prego- go 5-star... go 5-star.

NEW BLOG

I'm super excited about my new book blog:

(click pick for link)

Of course, now my personal blog is looking quite shabby so you'll have to excuse the ugliness as I take some time to re-vamp thee ole' Hadley Enterprises. I think that's why I haven't been blogging as of late-this blog needs a face lift!

In the meantime, you can check out my fave book picks at my new site. Keep in mind it's brand spankin' new so it'll be a bit before I have a good solid recommendation list. None-the-less, there must always be a place to start.

I've started this book blog at the request of some students, parents of students, and friends who want to keep a reading club going after I quit my job in May. So here goes. You can submit a review to the TWAB blog too if you want.

Now, if you love to read [even 1/2 as much as I do]- you can head on over to TWAB for some suggestions. In the meantime, survive this ugly blog until I find time to clean her up.

Brazil-AMAZON

Long overdue are some South American posts... so here goes:

Q and I flew to Sao Paulo via Mexica City and stayed the night. The first 24 hours were a huge culture shock for both of us and Q was a bit overwhelmed by the language, but a long talk with the taxi cab driver on the way back from a super mall helped him kick into Portuguese mode. I was dumbfounded that I have a husband who speaks another language! It was crazy to hear Q just rattle off lengua nueva because I had never ever heard him speak Portuguese before and it has been 7 years! The next morning we flew to the Amazon and stayed the night in Manaus at the Tropical before crossing the Rio Negra into the jungle where we stayed at the Tiwa Jungle lodge for 2 nights.

(ABOVE): LEAVING THE TROPICAL HOTEL (the one with the zoo)
The beach of the Rio Negra, awaiting our boat ride into the jungle.
This was positively the hottest most humid moment of my life.
A bit of me literally melted off and I had to leave it on the dock.

(ABOVE): ADVENTURES IN THE AMAZON
We went parana fishing with stick polls but only managed to catch these poisonous catfish.
Q learned how to set a jaguar trap from a native in the jungle.
We caught alligators in the marshes of the Rio Negra.

(ABOVE): THE TIWA
Our jungle lodge- little huts built on stilts in the river.
Just off our deck is out 3 foot pet alligator.
We named him Carl.

(ABOVE): TO THE MEETING OF THE WATERS
We hopped a small boat to ride to the Meeting of the Waters.
This is where the Amazon River is formed from two rivers that don't mix.
Sewage pipes along the bank just empty into the river.

(BELOW): NATIVE AMAZON VILLAGE

(ABOVE): We played with this sloth, tried on the gear, and learned about rubber trees.

(ABOVE): The river floods up this high every year so all their huts are built on stilts.
The village is very smelly.

Q was stung by some massive flying rodent... at least that's what it looked like.
He became woozy, dizzy, and sick soon after.
The wound bled and swelled to the size of a tennis ball.
He still has a puffy scar two months later.

(ABOVE): Our boat broke down on the way back and we were stranded in the Amazon.
These big boats are how natives travel the Amazon.
They set up hundreds of hammocks to sleep in and sit on during the long ride.
Our boat had to let Q and I off on a random shore so we could catch our plane on time.

Pigs Fly

It's true. We're going to have a kid.

This is Kari and me- we're due a day apart.

I'll let you know how it goes.

TWILIGHT, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO MY WIFE?

Stole it off Amy's blog. Laughed my pants off... because of course, it's true. Watch it, it's hilarious!!!! Go SGU bands.

DON'T TOUCH WET HALL PASSES!!!!! Lesson Learned!

So this kid, who asked to be called "Doug" though why I am acquiescing I know not- surely he doesn't deserve anonymity after today's incident, leaves class with one of his hall passes. The procedure is that they return the pass to me when they come back so I can throw it away (unused hall passes are worth extra credit). So when he returns "Doug" hands me the hall pass and I take it before I realize it's wet.

"Why is this wet, Doug?" I ask, the thing is dripping as I hold it up in front of a hyper and much derailed class of middle school students.

"Uh... well, it was all wet in the bathroom," is all Doug responds.

I chuck the thing and manage to pull the rest of the class back into a debate about whether or not students' licenses should be revoked if they fail classes. Only after we've hit a few more persuasive topics does the truth come out. AND THE WRETCHED TRUTH IS THIS:

"Doug" dropped the pass in the TOILET!!! BEFORE he flushed!!!!!!!!!!

I just have one question: WHO ON EARTH FISHES OUT A HALL PASS?!

"You said to bring it back," was all Doug could answer when I asked why on God's green earth he didn't just flush.

Needless to say, I left the class alone for a good solid 7 minutes of scrub time in the faculty room.

Wo the perils of Middle School Language Arts.

I quit

Yesterday I officially quit my job. I thought it would feel all-empowering but it really just felt like I was swimming the wrong way in a sea of fish.

Question of Yesterday: Honestly, should I really be quitting my job in the middle of a recession? You know, the one I went back to five years of school to get another degree for?

Answer Today: Resounding yes. I feel confirmed that this was the right thing for me for now. I won't be able to stay away forever, but for now- I need my life back.

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In other news: Quinn has parasites.

It has been pretty bad. Neither of us is 100% since returning from South America but I think I've been spared the worst of it and am nearly normal. Q on the other hand is not. We had to get him to a few doctors and get lab work at the hospital. Hopefully he will get rid of his nasty little anti-friends soon.

I haven't posted any Brazil pics because I haven't been able to look at them without thinking about beans and rice and warm coke and then my stomach starts cramping up. It's like I'm one of Pavlov's dogs or something. I'll get on it this weekend... along with finally unpacking my bag (that happens to smell like a heard of dead elephants). I think my gag reflex is finally in check enough to deal with at least looking at my bag with a thick strip of vics vapor rub smeared under my nose.

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In the meantime:

I am "obsessed" (to quote Stephanie Meyers) with these Hunger Games books! I have even dreamt about Peeta. Why oh why do I have to wait until August for #3? Seriously, YA is THEE BEST!!! My students have created a waiting list for these at our school and I'd like to think it's because I can't stop talking about them in class. The only thing I could do to try and get over them was to read something else so I finished the Ember series (HUGE dissapointment), am nearly done with The Mayflower (just so I can still call myself a real adult), and heaven praise the Lord if I ever see "The End" of Brisingr. Seriously Christopher P, do we really need 17 pages describing how a sword is forged? Next stop: Enders Game. Wow- Prime time must really be lagging if I've upped my weekly book quote to around 10. It's like I'm doing my lit degree again. See... this is why I need to quit my job- think of how many book I'll be able to read come June!!!