June 12, 2010

Dear Family,

Time is flying! How ya' all doing? This morning I bought bread for the first time! Well, the first time from the bread guy that bikes around our neighborhood honking his duck like horn. Also trucks with propane gas drive thru the neighborhood, since most people don't have cars... most people don't even know how to drive! That is weird to me.. HA! Also most of the neighborhood roads in this area are dirt (or mud when it rains). Not fun at all when it rains. You have to try your best to not step in a puddle or step into a pit of brown!

Pretty much nightly I have drunks come up and try to preach to me. hahah "no thanks, your breath smells". The other day I saw a bum sleeping in a pile of 5 dogs!!

Here they call kites 'pipas' and they fly them TOTALLY different They don't need to much wind when they fly them. I don't think there is a way to explain..... I'll have to show you when I get home. Because so many people fly them here lines break and fall down a lot, and end up slitting motorcyclist throat nearly killing them. So they are actually prohibited, but cops don't go around enforcing it.

Right now I am sitting on a mattress in a friends door way as the sun falls behind the palms and hills. The temperature is already dropping. There are sounds of playful birds, neighborhood kids with pipas, dogs barking in the distance and a car passing here or there.

The world cup is coming up, our President loves soccer, so everyone was expecting to be able to watch the games, but to help us in our mission he asked us to make more commitments to not watch the games. It is not hard for me, but for every Brazilian it is going to be super tough!

I love you all very much!