Happy 4th of July!

Pictures from my Brazil 4th of July cake! The woman who makes these amazing cakes at the hotel made this for me. I asked her to use raisins, but she had the great idea to dye the gelatin blue to get the background on the flag! It was a wonderful, wonderful cake!

She even went out to the Internet and found a picture of the American flag so she could make the cake in the right way! 

Torneio do Costelao (Tournament of Ribs)

This blog is a few weeks late! But, it was quite an experience worth sharing. Warning......these photos could be shocking to some viewers!!! (Heh, heh)


Most of you know that I'm not a fan of red meat and try not to eat it out of protest to the fast food industry in the US (I won't pontificate about the ills of the fast food industry here). Well, since I've been in Brazil many times the only options are red meat/beef when you go to a churrasco or grill out at someone's house. I don't want to be rude or a picky eater, so when in Rome...you do like the Romans!


A word about the beef here: It's very lean. The fat is normally limited to the outer portion of the meat. The cows are all grass fed and presumably without hormones. So, it's a much healthier animal to consume compared to how it's cultivated in the US.


Well, I've turned into the biggest meat/beef lover known to man! I CRAVE eating beef every day and this tournament was quite a hoot considering that 1 month prior I would have rather starved than touch a piece of beef!!!


Now, onto my story about the Torneio do Costelao (Tournament of Ribs)....I got invited by some guys on my team to this "country club" where they were having a competition for which team can make the best ribs. It sounded like a neat cultural experience so I went with two friends (Brazilians).


Basically, the "teams" are composed of mainly men who camp, have horses and get together to share their love of gaucho culture. It's similar to a fraternity. They wear the authentic clothing of a gaucho (like a cowboy) as well.


The tournament was composed of approximately 4 to 5 different teams. Each team grills a HUGE, HUGE rack of beef ribs on the churrasceria (actual grill used) for hours. One team started at 7 am so the ribs would be ready for judging by 2 pm! The teams compete on the quality and taste of the ribs, the presentation to the judges, and the decorations of their team. The winner gets a trophy and of course bragging rights.


The people who attend the tournament (people like myself) also get to eat the ribs after the judging has taken place. MMMMMMMMMMMMM..........You eat meat, salad, bread and of course consume your beverage of choice. It's a very social event. It was a lot of fun and I got to see how some guys from my team celebrate their culture and heritage and enjoy some REALLY good ribs!!!!!!!


So...here are some photos from the event!!!!!!

Five Weeks in Horizontina...

So, I've been in Horizontina, Brazil now for 5 weeks! It really has flown by and so much has happened in such a small amount of time.  I've started to establish some routines and form some sort of new life here....

I'm still living in the Hotel Ouro Verde, which is a basic hotel, but comfortable. I'm making friends with all of the staff and even got in good with the woman who does all the baking of these WONDERFUL breakfast cakes! She told me I can request anything I want and she'll make it for me (at least that's the translation I made up in my head). They  have Internet (although spotty at times), a daily breakfast (lots of fresh mango!), clean my room daily and do my laundry. 

I have my air shipment which has everything I sent in one piece! I was so happy to get my Kashi granola bars and even a can of tuna. I was so happy to see my yoga mat and my 5 lb weights, too!!! Not to mention some books and DVD's (Thank GOODNESS for Sex & the City!)

My diet consists of:

Fresh fruits

Cakes & Sweets

Beef, beef and more beef (Brazilian style)

Rice and beans

Salad

Pizza

There is a lot of buffets here in Brazil. I think another word to describe Brazil would be buffet. Brazil and buffet have 6 letters each. Coincidence????????

I've found a coffee shop here. Well, it's the ONLY coffee shop. It's in the back of a grocery store, but they have an espresso machine and while it's no Starbucks, Coffee Hound or Living Room, it fills the need to hang out someplace and drink coffee...and eat....Here is a picture of it. It is called Zelandia. 

I'm making some friends, but slowly. It's tough to start over with making new friends. I spend time with the Americans here, but am also trying to meet some Brazilians. I like the people here so much. They are so warm, welcoming and open to new people. They always welcome me into their homes and I appreciate that so much. 

I'll write more soon....Mollie

A Big Accomplishment Today! And Some Good News!

I had a pretty big accomplishment today at work!

I have several weekly meetings on various projects with people from other departments. Normally, a person from my team goes with me to the meeting since I am still working on mastering the language. I had a meeting that started at 2 pm and I decided at the last minute to go to the meeting on my own, without any help, and give it a try.  I told this guy on my team and he said if I needed help to just call him. 

So, I went to the meeting, which started 15 minutes late (typical in Brazil). I survived, however, the next 45 minutes in Portuguese and a little English!!! I actually understood most of what was said....well, ok, about 70% and even threw out a few comments to add to the meeting. They are still pretty cavemanish, but at least I did it!!!! I even got assigned a few action items! Whoo-hoo!!!

A little bit of other good news for me:

1. I think I've got a house lined up now! It's a pretty house with a fireplace and a lot of space. It's owned by a John Deere guy who moved away. I saw him earlier this week and I think we made a deal!
2. My air shipment (16 cubic feet) of my STUFF from the US is supposed to arrive in Horizontina on Monday!!!! I can't wait to get some different clothes, my momma's handmade quilts and my KASHI granola bars!!!!!!!!
3. I got some intercompany mail today from my buddy, Russ!! I love to get mail down here.....I have some issues of Runner's World to read! YEAH!!!!!

Here is my address:

Mollie Wolf - Horizontina Pouch

One John Deere Place

Moline, IL   61265

If you send me something through intercompany mail, just put:

Mollie Wolf - Horizontina Pouch

DMAT/Supply Management

That's all for today!!!!

Just Another Sunday in Brazil...

So...what's a girl to do on a Sunday in Horizontina, population 18,000?? You do what any self-respecting "gaucho" (kind of like a cowboy) would do--go to a churrasco!!

I started the day off with an easy run with a new friend, Marcio. He is working for Deere on a special project from Sao Paulo and we decided to go for a run together. Let me tell you...running at 9 am on a Sunday and conversing in Portuguese is no easy feat! But, I did it....it went something like this:

" Um, (pant, pant, pant) como vai sua (pant, pant, pant) noite ontem?" (which basically means...How goes your night yesterday? (Let me just tell you that it's not grammatically correct....). I'm sure as painful it was for me try to converse in Portuguese, it was even more painful for my new running partner to try to decode what I just said. 

Anyway, after that, I figured I was off the hook the rest of the day for Portuguese and could waste my day away thinking and speaking in English. Well, I got invited to a churrasco in some town close by. I decided to go for it, because I needed to get my fix of freshly barbecued MEAT!!! It meant having to spend the afternoon in Portuguese, but I figured I needed to practice. 

I went with Marcio and his friend Marcia (female) and Enio (male) to this town close by called Santo Antonio. We entered this huge hall filled with about 400 people at these long tables with chairs. Everyone was eating family style and really enjoying themselves. I met Marcia's family and her 9 year old niece. Her niece, Anna Carolina, was pretty interested in me because I was from the US. It was so sweet!!!! I showed her an American Dollar and she got a kick out of it. I never thought someone would be so interested in the US Dollar! After the lunch, there was a some music and some traditional gaucho dancing (see videos). It was fun and a great cultural experience!!

After the lunch and dancing, we drove to the town called Doctor Mauricio Cardoso. Yes, this is really the name of a town. He was someone who did a lot for this town so they named the town after him. See the attached picture to prove that is the name of the town! We went to the Uruguay River, which is right on the Argentina/Brazil border! It's a pretty big river, maybe about the size of the Mississippi or a little smaller. It was very tranquil and peaceful. The car we had got a flat tire (the second one I've had in Brazil) . After a quick tire change, we were on our way back to Horizontina. We stopped in Horizontina at Zelandia, a small coffee/bakery/grocery store in town. We had some coffee and a small snack and that was about it for the day!

It was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed meeting some new people!!

Thanks for the Awesome Going Away Parties!!!

I wanted to tell you all how much I truly was touched by the wonderful going away parties I had in Moline. The farewell party at Trattoria Tiramisu was so much fun! The food and wine were absolutely divine (thank you so much Vonda & Karen!!). 

It was wonderful to spend time with co-workers, friends and friends have become my family. All of the cards made me feel so special and I have read them several times...sometimes a few tears are shed only because I miss you all very much and miss spending time with you. 

Thank you for the wonderful gifts! I've been watching some of the movies (Stripes - Thanks Bowers, Jeff, Russ, Deb, Andrea, etc...) and started a few books. 

I am attaching a few photos from the parties.....I have lots of great memories!

Love,

Mollie

My First Few Weeks in Horizontina....The Cliff Notes

Hello friends & family - 

First, I am sorry it's taken me so long to get this blog up and running! I encountered some computer issues with my personal laptop after my first week here and just recently got it fixed! 

My first few weeks have been filled with a lot of ups, downs and at times a little of both at the same time! 

Overall, this has been a good experience so far....

In summary, I have:

1. Had a lot of meat and churrascos (barbeque)...beef, beef, and more beef
2. Got food poisoning once which resulted in a major cultural decision - do I take the invitation to stay at the house of my boss's boss or not? 
3. Lost about 5 pounds (no complaints there & unrelated to food poisoning!)
4. Speak like a portuguese caveman  (Me want drink water.)
5. Joined a "gym" (I use that term loosely.....)
6. Navigated around lots of pot holes, pedestrians, bicyclists and motorcyclists 
7. Attended two baby showers for two American women living here (hope it's not something in the water!!)
8. Had my first massage for 1 hour & it cost.....R$28 or $18.00 in US dollars  :-) 
9. Made some new friends
10. Realized I REALLY, REALLY miss my US friends & family -- A LOT!!!! 

I had this AWESOME welcome party the night I arrived in Horizontina (May 21). A fellow ex-pat organized the dinner at her house with some Brazilians. It was a churrasco (Brazilian equivalent of a US barbeque...but way better!) with lots of meat and other good food. Some photos are attached of the event...which was in her backyard & catered by one of the local restaurants. 

I will elaborate a little on some of the items from above. 

#2 - Food poisoning - I went to Porto Alegre for a business trip because there was a meeting with our Director who was visiting from the US. I was asked to give a presentation (thank God it was in English!). That morning I didn't feel that good, but figured I was just nervous. In the meeting was our Director, my boss, his boss, and other managers. Throughout the whole morning, I didn't feel that great. I gave my presentation around 1 pm and it went fine! After the presentation, we took a break and that's when things got worse. I was definitely sick! UGH!! I didn't want anyone to know because I was so embarrassed about getting sick. Every John Deere factory has a medical office, so I was wise enough to remember that and headed there to lay down for a bit. Well, I had to explain in Portuguese what was wrong. Thank goodness hand gestures are universal because, at that point, I had not learned the words for "vomit" or "diarrhea". They gave me some medicine for my stomach and I rested for a bit. I finally gave in after 2 hours and asked them to track down my boss because I felt so bad. He came to visit me in the nurse's office. He told me I needed to stay the night (I was supposed to return to Horizontina). I reluctantly agreed. A little while later, my boss's boss called to invite me to stay the night at his house with his family so they could look after me. I had NO idea what to do! This wasn't really something that wouldn't happen in the US. Here I was...I was sick...having to communicate in Portuguese...and make a major cultural decision! I didn't know my boss's boss that well yet and I was being invited to his house! Well, I remembered from my cultural training that Brazilians don't like people to be alone - they are very family/community oriented people. So, I figured the best thing to do given I was pretty sick, was to take the offer and stay at his house for the night. In the end, it was a good idea because his wife (who was SOOO kind) took good care of me! I can laugh about it now, but at the time it was definitely not fun. Of course, I didn't want people to really know, but the next day, practically everyone knew about it. Oh well......:-) 

For now, that's the start of my Brazilian adventure...

I will start blogging on a more regular basis!

Peace Out Y'all! 

Mollie