More pictures

The school I teach at, Get It Inglês e Espanhol.

CELIN where I take Portuguese classes.


The beach in Florianopolis





I'm happy we're finally there

Attempted blown kiss














Forro dance club, Florianopolis (l-r Julia, Rachel, Hannah, and Matt)

Felipe and Vanessa show us what's up

Rabbits- for my little sister

Yes, I know I need some makeup- this was us at Passeio Publico, the nearby zoological park

Me with one of the cute little animals





Our apartment building

Our humble dwellings (this is actually a flattering shot of the place, it actually looks a bit like a concentration camp with the high walls, glass spikes and barbed wire to keep us safe and sound)

Museum that once was a house

Probably taken last February

Capyboeras

just giant rats, really

But you can see they still show love









These are all Sao Paulo







Mountain in Rio from flight in

Sorry for the lack of order, I didn't realize I had these shots.

1 month left

So, these are pretty much the important pictures I've got right now. I think I will try to post more pictures than writing from now on since I've written quite alot.

I'm now teaching English 5 days a week, 14 hours a week. It's still fun, and I still look forward to going to class. I will see if I can get some pictures of my place of work and students soon.

If I don't write before, then the next pictures will be of Salvador (not El Salvador), Brazil's first capital in the North. For anyone who has seen the film Woman on Top with Penelope Cruz, the part of Brazil featured was Salvador. It is also in the Brazillian film Cidade Baixa. From what I saw, it appears to be a very beautiful place with alot of beaches and historical sites.

After that, we will have a few more pictures of Sao Paulo and then, finally Rio de Janiero. Everyone here says it's dangerous, but I have a strong-looking man with me, so I think I'll be okay. I have wanted to see Rio for a long time, (well, just since 2003 when I saw Snoop Dogg and Pharrell's video "Beautiful" which was filmed in Rio).

I can see that I have had alot of hits from Washington DC and London. I don't know exactly who is visiting, but I am guessing it is family. In that case, hi to all of my English and American family, and thank you for visiting my blog! It's great to see that you are all interested in what I'm up to and it makes me excited to take pictures :-).

Just 1.5 months left!

It just dawned on me today that I only have 1 month and 3 weeks left in Brazil, only 1 month two weeks left in Curitiba with language classes (both taught and taken!). I now teach 4 days a week, 2 classes Saturday, one private class 3 times a week, and 2 conversation classes on Mondays and Thursdays (if anyone shows up). Unfortunately, in Brazil they only pay you once a month, but still I am learning alot from the experience.

Last week Zack and I just got back from Florianopolis. I had alot of fun, more than I expected, actually, and even got to go forro dancing. I got to speak to alot of people, revisit some I hadn't seen in a while, and meet some interesting new ones. I even had a brush with death-almost. Apparently when we went dancing, our driver was insane and took us up 45 degree hills in a van. I always wondered how anyone could drive up roads that steep. Now I know, and I never want to experience it again! The police even stopped us at the top to ask what we were doing and told us it wasn't safe. Then there was the fun part of getting down. That was almost as exciting as going up. I will try to get a photo.

Soccer Pictures and What's New

Here are some soccer pictures from one of the games before. They are from both our cameras, so that's why there's alot, but I think they are good. Nothing much new going on here, I am nearly done with this semester of classes and hopefully will be starting an an 8 week Western Civ II class after these end. I wanted to do 3 or 4, but out of the ones available online, only Western Civ wasn't full. I can see it as a blessing, though, because it gives me more time to enjoy the last few weeks of Brazil and settle back home without having to worry so much about being near a computer.

Portuguese classes are still going well. I went to one of the Friday events last week and learned how to dance forro (pronounced fo-ho). It was alot easier than I thought, and hopefully, I'll be able to go with some people on the weekends. It's a really simple dance, but it looked like you could do some really cool and complicated stuff with it (sort of like swing, tango, etc.). So, yes, anyone reading this who wants to go, come find me!

In one week, it will be Zack's and my "anniversary". We will have been together 3 years. Wow! Hopefully, we can go to Ilha do Mel, an island off the coast of Paranagua, for a day or two. There is a really cool looking old train that takes people to the coast and I'm dying to go. I've heard some bad things about the bugs, but as it is cooling off, maybe that won't be a problem.

Later in May we will be going to Florianopolis again, this time for a conference that Zack must go to for school. I have no idea what I'll do there, but I'm going to go so I can see everyone again, speak Portuguese, and go to the beach. I will rarely ever turn down a trip to the beach. Though I was born in London, I am really a costal person by nature.