So it's been a while. I have been pretty swamped with work, deadlines impending and presentations looming, but I have some pretty awesome pics and updates from my past few weeks.
Lets go way back to 3 weeks ago--- 4th of July. Yes I missed the 4th of July, and to be honest, I have been in the US 1 time over the past 4 years on this day. What is the worst part of it all, is that I loooove the 4th of July more than most holidays. Why you may ask? No pressure to give presents, and it revolves around good food and drink. What makes it better than Thanksgiving is that it is hot and there are fireworks (although pumpkin pie is a close second). Luckily, Margaret was around so we celebrated with some pizza and champagne. Not completely American, but nonetheless delicious!
The next day we went to Campos do Jordao. This is a small Swiss inspired village, approximately 3 hours from Sao Paulo. We spent the day here with some friends of Margaret's eating chocolate, enjoying a free symphony, and admiring the gorgeous view from one of the hills above the city.
The architecture is German vernacular inspired throughout the town, and besides the fact that everything is in Portuguese, you would never guess that you would be in Brazil--- it's very reminiscent of what I imagine Switzerland (and from what Margaret told me!) is like. Everyone was dressed in winter coats (although it was about 75 degrees during the day), chocolate and cheese shops were around every corner, and over sized Jackie O sunglasses paired with knee high boots were all the rage. This town is known for being a chic getaway for Paulistas to enjoy the "cold" winter climate away from the city. Believe me Brazilians, you do not know cold. This isn't even close to cold! If we had this "cold" during the winter in the Northeast area, I think that either we would be running around in shorts and tee shirts, or ducking for cover because the world would be coming to an end. Regardless of this small detail, I soaked in the culture and I think I literally ate my weight in chocolate and cheese. I almost thought that I wouldn't be able to eat it again for a long time (haha yeah right!!).
One of the best parts of the day was enjoying the view from the top of one of the hills above the city. We took a teleferico to get to the top. When I think about teleferico, I think about some sort of glass enclosed elevator type thing to take you to the top of the hill. Ok think sky coaster, that is probably the equivalent to a teleferico right? Wrong. It was a ski lift. I don't ski, and have a minor fear of heights, so the "teleferico" (ski lift) put me a little bit uneasy. You could fall off into the brush below, tumbling down the hill, into the busy street, to an untimely end. There was very little room for error in slamming the bar down to lock you in. Luckily, I executed this with ease and lived to tell the tale. Beware of the word teleferico, it can mean many things! It was fun and we got some great shots from the top of the hill.
Below: Margaret on the "teleferico" (ski lift)
Below: View from the top
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