A new era in the US....um epoca nova os Estados Unidos

I thought I'd write a little bit about the impression here in Brazil and news coverage of the inauguration of Barack H. Obama, our 44th President of the United States. 

First, having to watch the inauguration from afar was a little bit sad. There is a real sense of hope and optimism in the US about our new president and the change which he will help lead. I think all of us Americans will help do the change, he will just lead us through it! I don't have TV in my house so I watched an Oprah special at Jen/Josh's house and it was really great to see how truly excited a lot of Americans are!

Second, a lot of people here are very interested in the US and Americans.  A lot of people ask me about the presidency, the election, what Barack can do for our country and people, and the world. They are very interested in what change he will bring for the world!

Third, people here are equally as excited as Americans about his position as President of the US! People here have a VERY, VERY  positive impression of him....he is smart, intelligent, honest, trustworthy and calm. He is a calm, but steady leader! He resonates well with the rest of the world, or at least here in Brazil!

I am VERY proud to be an American and have had all the opportunities in my life that I've worked for...a great job, a chance to live abroad, an excellent education, etc. Now, with this new era of leadership in our country I can be very proud to also say that Barack Obama is MY President!!!!

Vida de Horizontina....Life in Horizontina

I haven't been up to too many exciting things lately, but I thought I'd post what my life has been like lately. It seems this is becoming the rhythm of my life here and I am enjoying it. I also enjoy all the unexpected things that happen...well, kind of!! 

Two weekends ago:

• Friday night - Churrasco/Barbeque with some Americans visiting...then movie with Alina
  
• Saturday - Churrasco for lunch......then another churrasco at night with some friends until 2 am
  
• Sunday - LAID AROUND AND DID NOTHING!!! WHOO-HOOO!!
  

During the week and this weekend:

• Trip to supplier
  
• Run with the girls (did I mention I am training for a half marathon???)
  
• Swim at the pool - There is a "country club" that I joined which has a huge, 25m swimming pool. It is in the country and it's a club, but not exactly a country club. You can have a barbeque there, play tennis, and swim. No golf course and no stuffy people! I swam for the first time here and LOVED it!!!!
  
• Friday night - Had the house fumigated for bugs (EW!)...stayed at Jen/Josh's house and ate pizza - THANK YOU!!!!! 
  
• Saturday - relaxed at the pool..then went to a club in Tres de Maio with some friends until 3 am
  
• Sunday - churrasco, of course
  

So, as you can see I have a lot of churrascos here and spend a fair amount of time with friends - Brazilians and Americans. I really like this mix because it helps me to improve my portuguese and to know more people!

Um abraco.....Mollie

Road Trip!!!! Salto de Yucuma

Deise, Cristiano and I decided to take an impromptu road trip to Falls de Iguacu. But, it would have taken us 6 hours by car, so we opted to go to Salto de Yucuma which is about 2 hours away. 

It's a huge waterfall that is about 1 mile in length and probably about 150 feet wide. To get there, you drive 1 1/2 hours, then the last 30 miles are on cobblestone and dirt roads! It was insane! I guess they don't want many tourists to see it. 

It was beautiful and we had a fun time! I am constantly reminded how great a country Brazil is. 

Drinking Chimmaron - Brazilian Tea/Mate

My friends from the US, Cristiano and Deise, are here in Brazil. They are Brazilians living in the US and became very close friends of mine. I met them while I lived in the US and now they are here visiting for a few weeks. 

They are "gauchos", which is similar to a Texan cowboy. They have some special words they use and some traditions unique to their culture. One of them is drinking chimmaron, which is a tea or mate. You put the tea or mate into this cup, called a "cuia" and then drink the tea/mate through a "bomba" or pump. The pump actually is like a straw, but it filters the loose tea out. You pour hot water over the tea and drink!

It is a sign of friendship to share with other people and it's very common to see people EVERYWHERE with their cuia!! There are also special stores where you can buy accessories and unique cuias. I have two, both were gifts from John Deere. 

They showed me how to prepare it and here is my first time drinking it in my house!!!

Me drinking chimmaron from my John Deere cuia

Two friends...Deise/Mollie

Cristiano preparing the drink

La Cucaracha, La Cucaracha....I hope they don't stay long!

(Music..) "La cucaracha, la cucaracha, I hope to see you go. La cucaracha, la cucaracha, please don't bug me anymore!"

So, I've got some new "amigos".  Because it's so warm here in the summer, the insects/bugs like to find a cool place indoors to take shelter. Now, why they decide to pick my house, I have no idea!! First, if you don't know, I HATE bugs!! Especially ones that fly! I have a big fear of bees, wasps and any other sort of bug with wings. Even butterflies freak me out until I realize it's just a butterfly. 

Well, the bugs, including cockroaches, find my house to be the "coolest" house on the block! Lahdie-freakin'-da! The other night, I found one in my living room. He, of course, didn't survive long. Ew!!!!

Then, I while I was reading in bed and just about ready to shut off the light, I heard something FLY over my head and I saw it land on my bathroom door! It was A HUGE, BLACK COCKROACH!!! And, it had WINGS!!!!! Oh my Gawd!!! I jumped out of bed, shreaked, got the biggest shoe I could find and smashed the bugger dead! Humph! Take that!!!

I realized that he came through my air conditioning unit! I only have one A/C unit in my house and it's in my bedroom. Somehow, he got into the A/C unit and decided to hang out in my room! Worse, is that the A/C unit is right about my bed and over my head. 

After I killed the bugger, I was really freaked out that more would be coming through the A/C unit and I would wake up with a room full of black cockroaches on my walls. Like some scene from some horror film. I couldn't sleep for 1 hour. 

I asked some people here and they said it's normal and not to worry! 

Well, I guess that's Brazil for you.....

Um abraco....Mollie

Feliz Ano Novo 2009! Happy New Year 2009! Rio de Janeiro

We got into some nightclub and I was excited. 

Eating a coconut on Copacabana Beach

New Year's Eve! On the beach

On top of Sugar Loaf w/ Ernie and Faye

Sugar Loaf w/ Copacabana Beach in the background

I spent my new year's in Rio de Janeiro with my friend Fernanda and her family. Fernanda and I worked together in the US and she is a super sweet person! She was kind enough to let me stay with her and her family in Rio and give me the VIP tour of her city. Oh, and her husband Ernie came along..he was the photographer! He's great!!

Here are some pics. Stories to come later.....

Christmas in San Diego

My beautiful sister!

Traditioal Wolf Christmas Cookies

Decorating the cookies - Em and John

Me cooking the stuffed shells - I saved Christmas!

Me and my Bugg!!!

My Christmas at home was wonderful!! I spent time with my family, which strangely, they didn't annoy me so much. Guess I missed them a lot. 

We made our traditional Christmas cookies, hung out on my dad's boat, and I hung out with my best friend, Julie and her son. We went to the zoo as well.  I also had the chance to see some of my friends from high school! It was neat to hear what everyone is up to and meet some of their kids! They are all doing amazing things with their lives! Impressive!! 

I even made Christmas Eve dinner. I like to say that I saved Christmas because the dish my mom usually makes (stuffed shells) didn't have a key ingredient in any stores (the stuffed shells themselves). I suggested we just make them on our own! After all my baking in Horizontina, I thought making homemade stuffed shells would be quite simple. And...I was right! Here are photos of me cooking! 

Merry Christmas. 

Um Abraco....Mollie