This is the much delayed history of my Brazilian vacation. Grant asked me what I was going to say when I got home so I am including him in this e-mail so he will know.

I drove down the Fort Collins and spent the night with Bonnie on Sunday the 24th. She and Don Bailey did a tag-team to get me to the airport on Monday. The three of us had a nice lunch and conversation in Denver before I left. I don't get to see either one of them as much as I would like so I enjoyed my send off.

Bonnie took me to the airport about three hours early because we didn't no how long security would take. As it turned out, I had more than enough time and waited about two hours for the plane which gave me plenty of time to begin reading one of the two books I brought along.

The flight down was uneventful, just long. Flying time to Sao Paulo is about 12 hours. I changed planes in Houston for the long leg of the journey. Did not have congenial seatmates so kept myself busy watching movies, reading, or sleeping.

I arrived in Sao Paulo about 9:30am on the 26th. Had an enormously long line to have my passport checked. Because I spoke no Portuguese, I just got in this long line and hoped I ended up where I was supposed to. It took about an hour to get through but I had plenty of time because my flight to Sao Jose do Rio Preto left at about 10:30 that night.

I had envisioned maybe taking a tour during that time but the confusion I encountered just getting to the TAM ticket counter made me much less adventuresome. I fellow in a white uniform offered to take my bags. When we got the counter, I offered him one reale as a tip. He told me know that wasn't enough. I thought he had nerve, but then offered him two reales. He again said that wasn't enough...(boy, are these guys nervy or what!!) I was totally confused then. He showed me a card written in Portuguese which made no sense to me. Luckily the ticket agent spoke enough English to explain that these guys were paid a set rate by bag, and I owed him three reales. I had a twenty; he made change; we both smiled, shook hands and thanked the ticket agent vociferously. After that, I decided I would stay put for the remaining time and try to become invisible. This was hard because I had on my Nebraska red and stood out like a sore thumb.

At the airport I sample some Brazilian food, finished reading my book (John Grisham's The Testament which is about Brazil, napped, and visited with a woman from South Africa who lives in Brazil and whose brother had been a Rotary exchange student in Kearney, NE---small world. Got the Rio Preto about 12:30am, exhausted but glad to finally arrive. Was greeted by Grant, his host mother, Nadir, and brother, Gustavo. Gustavo speaks some English and is going to be an exchange student in New York state next year. I was also greeted by Grant's new hairdo which I was not very complimentary about. Grant hasn't had a haircut since he got to Brazil (I'm afraid I didn't behave very nicely about his hair the whole time; however, in his defense several of my co-workers have told me, after seeing pictures, that his hair either looks good or doesn't look that bad. I guess I am the one with the problem and not him!)

Nadir took me to my hotel and I got registered. Grant and I spent several hours talking until I couldn't stay awake any longer. He spent the night at the hotel and we finally woke up about 2:00 the next afternoon. I was severely jet-lagged. We left the hotel and were going to catch a bus to his house but Grant's patience hasn't improved in Brazil. He doesn't like to wait so we ended up walking the whole way which was a considerable distance---several miles at least. By the time we got there I was so sweaty and not adjusted to the climate that Nadir (pronounced Nad-jir) asked me if I wanted a shower. I spent the day at his house and met his other brother, Guillairme (not sure of the spelling) and his father, Carlos. We walked to where Guillairme practices football (soccer) and went to the market which is open air to get food for supper (dinner) that night.

Grant's host family is very nice. I liked them a lot. Nadir is a wonderfully warm person. I enjoyed visiting with her even with the language barrier. The boys are great and Carlos has a wonderful sense of humor. Grant is in good hands.

They live in a nice home. All the homes seem to be surrounded by walls. They don't have yards. Grant's home has a roofed patio area in the back, and this is also where Nadir hangs her laundry. They don't use clothes dryers. I think because of the heat and humidity they create as well as the power usage. The floors were tile and reminded me of the kind of homes I have seen around Harlingen, Texas. It was a comfortable, middle-class home.

Cars are parked in a kind of carport area. There is an automatic door opener which raises a gate to drive into this area. There is another locked gate which you enter if you are on foot.

Grant's first host family live in a very wealthy area in Rio Preto. Their home is in what we would call in the United States a gated community. The whole housing area is surrounded by walls, and you must pass a security area to get in. These homes are gorgeous. I was worried about the area where Grant was living when he first got there. He is not much for description so I wasn't sure about his home. I didn't need to worry. Grant's first father is a doctor and his mother owns and runs three parking areas. They have a son who is on a Rotary exchange in Colorado this year. They may come here to visit. If they do, I would like to go see them.

I was very fond of his first mother. She is a warm woman. She is from Spain but has lived most of her life in Brazil. Francisco, his father, was also very welcoming. He was curious about the United States, especially our politics. Most Brazilians don't care much for George W. but really liked Bill Clinton. They wanted my opinion, and as a Democrat I tended to agree with them. They can't understand why the Clinton's are not popular in the United States. When Francisco suggested that Hillary may one day be President, I said no I didn't think she ever would be because she was too hated.

They are also curious about our country since Sept. 11. They do not like what happened to us and feel it is evil. I told them that since 9/11 George W. had rallied the country and had strong support for his policies. They seem to be worried that we don't get too carried away with our war and want us only to go after the guilty parties. I was asked if I hated Afghanistan. I said no that I felt sorry for Afghanistan, but I did hate al Quada. This is what they feel too.

I met several of Grant's friends as well as many of the exchange students. Two of his good Brazilian friends, Tomas and Mateos, were great fun. We visited Tomas home and met his family. His mother is a history teacher. We had a lot in common but couldn't communicate very well so had the boys translate. Tomas had some frustration because he had learned his English from American movies and was trying to speak English without using the rich vocabulary of profanity which he had learned through the movies. It was pretty funny. Mateos also preferred not to use English because he said his wasn't good enough for me. He learned his English by listening to American music. It was through Mateos that we spent a day in Sao Paulo before I went back.

Brazil is a lush, beautiful country. Right now I am tired of writing so will finish this another time. This trip was a great experience. Just see where Grant is and meeting the people he knows made the trip worthwhile.

More later...love, Bev