Rio again

I clearly have not mastered the ability to put up weblinks...anyway, I just wanted you to check out a website for the island but you can search it, if interested.

I settled into my little studio flat, I have already picked my local coffee place - funny name: Caffeina - that sells great capuccino and delicious cakes. I also started taking Portuguese classes, has already helped a lot because my very friendly and pretty young teacher, Tula, has shed light on a number of mysteries that have been troubling me. She is about two weeks older than me and I already know many intimate details about her private life - Brazilians have this habit of sharing such information within 10 minutes of meeting someone. Accordingly, one of the first words that I have learnt is "sexual desire", which she evidently does not feel anymore for her 50 year-old, separated, American husband. She is really cute though, and learning Portuguese is a good pastime, plus something that I can add to my CV! Even though I do not like to think of myself that way, I am somewhat like those American Harvard people who live their lives through their resumes...I feel like that I will have something to show for at the end of my slacking time. I could probably even open up an "Interests" section and add trekking and scuba-diving to it.

Rio seems different now to the way it was a month ago, mostly because the "cold" weather has hit (it is only 25 degrees) and the beaches are kind of empty. I, for one, do not mind it because it is a welcome relief from the constant, humid heat of the northeast. I still love this place though, I think I could spend months and months here. Last night I went out with Amber, an American girl who has been living here for almost two years, and her friends to various places, including an African university party and a house party at a beautiful house in a very nice area of Rio. The party was fun, they had lots of drinks and good music and the crowd consisted mostly of trendy, young, well-to-do Brazilians and a couple of anglo-saxons who live here. It was fun, and my temporary Swedish roommate, a pretty blonde with a nose almost as long as mine, whom I had met at the airport when I arrived and offered her my couch for two nights, was sorry that she did not come with us.

It is kind of a shame that I lost my Olinda post - I had met some interesting characters there, some of whom now keep emailing me with various offers. One offer that you might want to think about is for the rental of a cheap apartment during Carnival time next year. Carbival in Olinda is supposedly much more fun than Rio and much safer than Salvador and the flat houses about 10 people...any takers?