Ana_Bueno Aires

It's Sunday morning and we're getting ready to enjoy our last day in the city. We leave tomorrow morning to Ushuaia, all the way south of Argentina. We're actually flying so we'll be there in 4 hours instead of traveling 3 days by bus. I heard it's going to be really cold. We'll see.

Bueno Aires is beautiful. It's a bigger city than I thought. I can see why people say has a European feel. It has a lot of European buildings, especially the government buildings. Although certain part reminds of New York. There is a street that totally reminded me of New York in smaller scale. Full of stores along the side, narrow streets, big advertisements everywhere and crowded with peoplepassing by.

On Friday night we had the opportunity to see a Tango show. The authentic stuff. It was amazing. Here at the hostel the claimed it was a good show and not so touristy. I'm glad we went. The theater was beautiful gold finishes along the side, elegant velvet red seats and curtains. When the show started it felt like I was in a fantasy. I said to myself "I'm here in Argentina watching tango." I loved it. They moved so beautiful and elegant. The show lasted two hours, which was nice. It took you through the different styles of Tango which I love them all. Both the men and the women dancing were gorgeous. It was so pleasant to see beautiful women move so gracefully. I love Tango.


On Saturday we walked everywhere. We decided we wanted to get lost in the city. We headed to Recolecta which is a very yuppy neighborhood. Along the way we stopped at Plaza San Martin, which had a nice peaceful park in the middle of the city. Sitting there we saw the two professional dog walkers. We had read about it on the guide. It was cool to see. One man had like 9 big dogs and the other woman had like 7 smaller ones. Don't ask me the breeds. Not sure. You know me and name of stuff.
Then in front of there was a couple that could not stop making out. It was hilarious. The park was full of people including kids and this couple didn't care. Tim kept saying "let's make out like them," playing around.

After walking for a while we got to the Recolecta. Very nice. We walked around the market area. Every Saturday vendors gathered around the plaza to sell their goodies. There was tons of stuff. Nothing really caught my eye. Plus I'm with the mind set how much do I really want it. Because I have to either stuff it in my backpack or send it home. It was so hot but on the shade there was some breeze.
We stopped by the famous cemetery in the neighborhood. I read in the book it was the most touristy attraction in Buenos Aires. After walking in we saw why. This cemetery has most of the important people from the 1900's. Tim was fascinated by the big temples. It looked like mini-houses. It was huge and the work in all of them was very ornate and elaborate. We even saw were Evita Peron was buried. It was a erie feeling walking around. A place full of dead people and to know it was tourist attraction.

We wanted to relax after and we ended going to the movies. It was a huge theater. It probably had like 300 hundred seats. You can tell it was an old theater converted to a movie theater. We saw Narnia in Spanish. I most say Tim is doing an excellent job learning Spanish. We're practicing constantly. I speak to him in Spanish and we now can have conversations. It's so cool that he is making an effort to speak it. His accent is great. Go Tim.

Then came dinner time. Yummy Argentinean steak and glass of red wine. It was very nice. The service sucked the food was good. I was a happy camper.

Before the night ended we met a really nice couple from Australia Adam and Kirsten. We talked for hours. At the end of the night we exchange emails. The live in Melbourne and told us we were there to email them for sure.

That's it for now. Chao Bacalao.
Ana

Tim_Day 9-10 (Buenos Aires)

Day 9 Continued
We settled in yesterday morning and the place seemed really nice. Clean and well taken care of. Little did we know that this place was a club with rooms to sleep in. Every night they have the techno music and beer in the large common room. Was pretty cool till you go to sleep and the bass is shaking the bed. Fortunately we got the room right above the roof of the ¨club¨. Good shit. Earplugs did help but they play the music till about 5 in the morning. I guess that´s what we get for paying 7 US dollars for the room.

After arriving in the morning we settled and took off to see parts of the town before we had to check in. We were really tired from the bus ride the night before so we were a little like zombies walking around the streets in the heat. Buenos Aires is a huge city with people living and working in it. Reminds me a little of NY. We walked and rested till we officially check into the room at 1:00.

We messed around till the night time when we went to one of the local tango shows. It was really fun to see the dancers. Was a nice theater and we had really good seats. Ana will elaborate on it in her sections I´m sure.

Sleep good despite the music and heat.

Day 10
Woke up early and had breakfast. I´m getting used to having only bread for breakfast since that seems to be the only free meal they give in these places.

We took off to an area of town that had a crafts market on the weekend. It was ok. Hot while we were walking around. We ended up going to the cities cemetery where there were allot of very famous people buried. The tombs were amazing and I now understand why they say this is the most famous tourist attraction in the city. Hopefully later we will upload some photos of it. It´s a bit hard to upload photos so be patient. At the cemetary we saw the tomb where Avita was buried with other family members. Very weird and crazy experience. Definetly highlight of the city for me. Very unusual.

In the evening me and Ana went to a movie. 3 american dollars to see Naurnia. I expected to go to a theater with about 10 seats and a tv. But to my suprise we walked into one the largest theaters I´ve ever been in. It was massive. At least 500 seats with an Imax size screen. Was really funny. It was an old opera theater that was renovated to be a movie theater. There were about 10 people watching the movie. Too funny.

After dinner we treated ourselves to a nice steak dinner with wine. Was good and the price was right at 14 dollars for both of us. We were a little buzzed from the tall glass of wine they gave us and walked down to the central park to chill by that large sphere you always see in the images of the city. Not sure what it represents. Probably independance icon. Anyway the night was nice till some Christian group came with a microphone and started yelling in spanish at all the poeple. Was annoying since I don´t understand the music.

We did meet a nice couple from Australia and talked with them till about 1 in the morning. Was a good time. Sleep ok that night but not to good.

t*

Tim & Ana_First Pictures

Here are a group of photos we´ve taken on our trip so far. They include Rio and Iguazu Falls. We even have a photo of a rare and endangered species of mullet only found in Argentina. We also got some shots of the easy to find hot women and men in Rio. Enjoy.

t & a

Tim_Buenos Aires (Day

Day 9
Were here in Buenos Aires. Seems like a really nice city. Large with allot of European inspired architecture. The bus ride yesterday was good. Parts of it sucked like the leg room. Being a large white giant in this country kind of sucks that way. But I dealt with it.

The damn radio was right over our head and they keep blasting there favorite Spanish songs. It was a 6" speaker blasting loud enough to distort it and it was about 2 feet from my head. Fuckers. I woke up at about 3 last night and that thing was blasting again. I told the driver to turn that shit down. Luckily he didn´t understand English and I just smiled and used my hand to show him how to turn it down. Good stuff.

I'm studying my Spanish books on the trips as well. I´m working to have a simple handle on the language within the next few months. Ana´s helping me allot.

Well we´ve got a full day ahead of us exploring Buenos Aires. It`s early in the morning and we have the full day ahead of us. I saw a Mc Donalds´s on the way coming in so I will be eating there today. So far there has been no accesAmericanrican food and I´m pretty much guaranteed it will be that way for a while after this trip since we are headed to the bottom of the country next. Not as civilized as these large cities.

More to come.

t*

Ana_Iguazu Falls

Day 7
It was full day of adventure. We woke early to have breakfast (toast with butter) and catched the 8:10am bus to the Iguazu National Park. I had an idea how impressive the falls were going to be. From hearing stories and reading other people's experiences.

We took a tour that included a 5 mile ride on a 4 x 4 truck through the jungle, a ride in a small boat to view the falls and we can walk the rest of the park. The ride on the boat was the coolest. You couldn't see anything when you boarded once we started heading to the falls it was like a movie scene, so sureal and amazing. The falls were so wide and abundant. I didn´t know were to look. I felt like a kid - excited and suprised. Then it came the part that we got wet. Not wet, drenched. They took us under one drop that is safe to go under. I felt the big splash couldn't see a thing. But it was way cool. The boat was full of Argentinians and they told us if we made noise they'll take us under again. So we participated by sayin "otra, otra, otra..." After a second time then they started saying "una mas, y no jodemos mas." I've never heard that expression. But I started saying it too, which it translates to "one more time and we'll stop nagging." And we did get one more time under the falls. So fun.

We took our time walking around the park. The falls have 275 drops. It's so wide, you can view the falls from many different angles. The coolest view is from "La Garganta del Diablo" (Devil's Throat), from the name you know is powerful. You had to take a train and walk about on a bridge to get there. WOW. You're there and you can't see the bottom. There are few drops that form a semi-circle. The sound is so loud and all you can see is mist. Depending on the wind you feel some mist splashing softly on you. It was peaceful at the same time. Incredible. We were there for about 6 hours. It's that big.


Day 8
Woke up early again. Destination: Iguazu Falls from the Brazil side. Again, didn't quite understand the difference between the Argentinian side and the Brazilian side. Going in there I got it. On the Brazilian side you see the overview. You can appreciated the falls from faraway and see the whole picture. You can see the deep green forrest around it. It's more of the panoramic view. We saw it in an hour or so. On the Argentinian side you saw it from up close.

After the walk we went to see the Itaipu Hydroelectric Power Plant. It's consider one of the modern 7 wonders of the world. Pretty impressive. I'm not very technical. I'm sure Tim'd explained more in his blog. I think is a guy thing.

Tomorrow we're headed to Buenos Aires. It's a 20 hour bus ride. We leave in the morning and we'll get there Friday morning. I'm pretty tired right now that I'm sure I'll sleep very well on the bus.

Tim_Day 7- 8 (Iguazy Falls)

Day 7
We woke up early and headed out to see the falls. We bought the more expensive package to ride the boat up the falls. It was well worth it. In the begining we take and old 4x4 truck down to the boat launch on the river. The forest here is thick and heavy jungle. So dense I can´t imagine ever trying to cross it on foot. I bet if you walked a mile in one day that would be an acomplishment.

Right as we got to the boat Ana was using the camera like a japanese tourist clicking at everything. Of course right before we got on the boat to see the falls the battery went dead. Luckily one of the poeple next to use gave us batteries and we were on our way.

We were in a pretty powerful boat working up the strong stream. Was really cool. Then as we turned a corner there was the first glimpse of the falls. They were massive and incredible. Pushing throught the thick jungle. It felt like we were in some jurasic park movie or maybe an indiana jones movie. Really took my breath away.

The driver took us up to the first set of medium sized falls and told us to put all our valuables in the waterproof bags. Then he took us right into the lighers part of the falls. It was incredible to be that close to those falls. It soaked us and was really fun. After that he went to the large falls that were about 30 feet in diameter at the top and put us into that one as well. Was really a rush and we got completely drencghed. Good times.

They let us off and we walked around. We were on the Argentinian side. They had a huge system of bridges that took you to each part of the falls. We spent about 2 hours doing that then took a small trian to see the largest falls called the devil´s throat. You get off the train and walk on a small bridge for about .25 miles and get to the end. Standing on the edge of that bridge was to 20 experinces in my life. The falls went all the way around a huge u shaped bowl and at the bottom where all the water hit was completely white from the mist. It was so magical. The wind blew a sligt breeze onto our faces and covered us with a light mist. The feeling I keep having was I when I die I want some of my ashes let go here. Definetly one of the most beautiful places on earth I´ve been to. Was wonderful to experince that with Ana.

We finally finshed off the park and headed out. We got on a bus headed back to the hostel right before the rain came pouring down. I love the rain here. Makes the jungle smell so good. Nothing like being crammed in an old bus with locals crusing down the street in pouring rain.

The falls took most of the day and in the evening we put on our rain gear (along with the great rain pants my mom made for me and Ana) and ran some erronds.

Day 8
Woke up early again and headed out on our second trip. This time we would see the Brazilian side of the falls and the large damn they built down river of the falls.

Me and Ana were both tired this morning. It was also raining hard in the morning. We´ve been pushing pretty hard and seeing allot. It takes allot of energy to plan and figure out all we are doing. I think the next few days we will try to slow it down and vacation a little. Knowing us though we´ll keep moving. Relaxing is the plan at least for right now.

We took a tour bus to the Brazilian side. Was kind of funny being in a large group with all the old people from the hotels. We had the sticker of the company on our shirts and all. Damn we looked like tourist. Anyways we took the bust to the other side of the falls. It was nice to see the falls from this side. Not as powerful or emotional because I felt so far away but no the less it was breath taking. We walked in the rain for 1.5 hours looking at the falls from the trail. Our rain gear came in really handy this morning.

After the falls we went to have lunch. Lunch that was included in the price?. I thought they were going to give us some bread with jam since that was the same breckfast we got for free at the hostel were staying at. Damn nothing like 3 peices of old bread to fill you up in the morning. But to our surprise they took us to a really nice buffet. Maybe hanging with the old people on the tour buses wouldn´t be so bad? Anyways we ate like pigs. Argentina from what I can tell survives on meat. They have incredible amounts of beef, and chicken, and saugage at most resturants. Man the meat was great. I´ve been trying to eat safe the last week but I threw that out the door at this place. It´s worth the diarehea.

After lunch we went to the damn. Was amazing as well. It´s one of the 7 man made wonders of the world. Impressive. It took 25 years nad 35,000 employess to build. What a monster. They create enought electricity to power 90% or Paruguay and 25% of Brazils power. This damn creates the most power of any hydroelectric plant in the world. I´m glad we got to see it.

We´ll that´s it for now. Were off to go get some groceries and tonight I will a couple tall cans of local beer. Tomorrow we have a 16 hour bus ride to Buenus Aires. Yeaaah my ass can´t wait. Man I can feel my old parachuting but accident when I side for that long. That´s another story though.

t*

Ana_First Days in Rio

Wow...I can´t believe it has been 6 days already. Here are some of my toughts from the past few days. BTW - couldn't find the spelling check in this computer. Oops.

Day 1 and 2
We landed in Rio on Thursday, Jan. 18. The flight was longer than I thought. I took us 2 1/2 hours to get to Houston and from Houston it was a 9 hour flight to Sao Paulo and then half and hour to Rio. By the time we landed I was super happy and worried, because we had to find our way to the hostel. We took two buses down to get to the hostel. Asking for help was interesting. I was better off speaking Spanish than English. Hardly anyone spoke a little bit of English. After a 35 minute ride we made it to Santa Teresa. To get to hostel we had to climb what it seemed 5 stories of steep stairs with our backpacks. I was sweating like crazy. It was pretty hot but not humid like Miami. The receptionist greeted us with- Hi. Do you have a reservation? She immediately showed us our room which had two bunk beds. There was other backpackers hanging out in the living room. It felt really weird to be sharing a place with other people. I felt a bit crowded. We were shown the rest of the hostel which included hot showers, a kitchen, a washing machine, a pool and our own lockers. After a few minutes I decided I needed a cold shower. Tim took a nap. After few hours of just hanging out and taking in the fact we were in another country it was dinner time. Before that someone enter our room saying "Hi, I'm your roomate," he is name is Casper from Demark. I will never forget his face. He was so friendly and had a huge smile and he was the first traveler that we met.

We ended eating at a local restaurant up the street. On our way up we saw an old tram. It was crowded with people. It looked like fun since it was going up hill. We ate at this small place that served food from the northeast of Brazil. The food-interesting even though it was rice and beans with some yams and fried yuca.

We went back to the hostel to hang out by the pool. There we met the other guests which included 4 guys from Argentina and 2 from Madison, Wisconsin. Really nice people. The 2 from Madison, Wisconsin (Mark and Dave) engaged in conversation right away. It was so nice to see people that have travel all over the world. After an hour or so we were offered the brazilian drink "caiprinha" (not sure about the spelling)it consist of lime, sugar, and cassasha (which is like white rum). It was really good. Soon after we went to bed.

Day 3
We wake up had breakfast. It was included in the price. Very basic - ham, cheese, toast, coffee and juice. After we headed to the famous beach Ipanema. We took the local bus. Felt pretty confident to take the bus. Of course we look like tourist even if we did everything we could to hide. Although we were told I was better off speaking Spanish than English. So I'd randomly speak Sanish to Tim and he'd just nod "si". The beach was hot and crowded. There were beach umbrellas everywhere. You couldn't see people just tons of colorful umbrellas and vendors walking around in the sand. We decided to be one of the locals and rent a beach umbrella with two chairs. It was so noisy with the vendors screaming all the time what they were selling, from shrimp-kabbobs, to coktails, to sunblock, to fried cheese and so on. At first we were looking for the view of thongs, we didn't see that many suprisingly. We did see a lot of what Tim called "cheek hugger" which is the brazilian bikini, not quite as exposed as the thong. It was just great to people watch and chill.

Hardly anyone goes in the water. I couldn't understand how is that possible since it was so hot and after a while you want to just go in. Of course, me the tourist had to experiment. I approach the water and soon learned why the locals don't go in - water is freezing (comparable to California water) and the waves are really strong. It pushes you in when it crashes. So the locals just splash themselves with some water at the shore. I did the same. Enough to cool off. Only the brave ones go in.

Five hours passed and we decided it was time to go. We had some lunch and then headed towards the famous Christ figure - Cristo Corcovado. The lunch was much better rice and beans with some steak (kinda like lomo in Panama. It was 40 minute bus ride and then we had to take a tram up to the statue. The ride up was very steep and beautiful scenery. Lush green everywhere. Scary at one point, steep and a thought came through my mind "what if this thing brakes and we start rolling down the tracks." Optimistic Tim said "just jump out the window, there a tons of bushes you can land on" hahahaha funny. Nothing happen. We made it to the top, we were so high up. The figure itself was impressive. Bigger than I thought it would be. It was probably 200 ft. high. The view to the city was spectaculary. You pretty much saw the entire city.

We headed back to the hostel. We got off at a different stop from before. Trying to find our way was interesting. We were lost for few minutes. Thanks to a nice local that told us we were going the wrong way. He was so nice and kept repeating himself in Portuguese to make sure I understood and I'd repeated back in Spanish. We stopped at another local place to grab a bite to eat. We had a hamburger. It tasted so good.

We got to the hostel. I realize I had burned the top of my feet were the sand didn't cover. Oops. It was pretty painful. Took a cold shower again, forget the hot showers even though we had that option at the hostel. It's way to hot outside.
Regroup for a few hours. We were told we had to checkout the night scene nearby at Lapa. I'm glad we did. Every friday night there is a street party. Tons of locals hang out in the streets just drinking and chatting as well as in the local bars and clubs. We didn't see that many tourist mainly locals, which nice to see. I was looking for samba music. Suprisingly, we only found one place playing samba at the time we went. It was so nice to see the locals dance and enjoy the music. We kept walking and watching people for 3 hours. Before heading back I heard salsa music playing at a loca bar. I told Tim we had to check it out we did. It was packed. We stayed outside to hear the music and of course I was dancing like crazy and even had some locals following the basic steps. It made my night, a piece of home.

Day 4
Slept in late. Missed the hostel's breakfast. We figured out the next couple of days. We didn't feel like doing much other than relax and take it easy. We decided to skip Sao Paulo. Talking with the locals and other travelers that have been there they're not very impressed. They said it's a big city and a bit more expensive than Rio. So after hearing all that and mapping the rest of our trip in South America we decided to head straight to the Iguazu Falls in the border of Brazil and Rio de Janeiro. We heard it was better to see them from the Argentian side. Total bus ride 22 hours. Long I know. Oh well. Part of the adventure.

That night we didn't want to get to crazy. We attempted to go see the samba school practicing for the carnaval which is at the end of February. We couldn't figure it out, it was happening or not. We didn't hear the music playing loud so we came back to the hostel around 1 am.

Day 5 and 6
We woke up early in the morning at 7:30am. Our idea was to get early to the bus station to take the bus. By the time we checkout and called the taxi it was 9am. We got there no problem. We got there early for to find out the next bus left at 2pm. So five hours of wait. Oh boy, what a day. So we waited 5 hours to get in a bus ride for 22 hours. Doesn't sound like fun. As we waited we met a nice local that just approach and started talking us. He knew we spoke english. He asked us "where are you
going?" He name is Jamie. He told us his life story in twenty minutes. He lived in the US for 8 years. He is now a local police in Rio. He even asked us if we got robbed. Thankfully we didn't. He was so nice that even gave us his number next time we were in Rio to call him and he we'll take us out.

We got in the bus that ac and had reclined seats. The ride wasn't bad at all. The view was beautiful. Everything so green. There were several beautiful cities along the way. We did drive along Sao Paulo. Tall buildings everywhere. We stopped like 10 times, 3 times to eat. The bus had a bathroom on the back, btw a local had to explain to me how to turn on the light. Embarrasing. You had to close the door all the way and lock it for the lights to go on. Suprisingly, I slept like for 8 hours. We didn't get in the town until 2pm. So it did take 24 hours with all the stops.
On the bus there were other backpackers coming to the same place. I talk to one that spoke spanish. Lucky for us he is from Argentina and he was headed back home. He helped us take the bus and transfer to the Argentinian side at Puerto Igauzu. It's a little more complicated because it there is buses going to Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay. After an hour we made to the other side. We followed the other group of backpackers to the hostel they were going. We didn't have a reservation but they had room for us.

We jumped into the pool and relax for an hour or so. No it's night time. The town is quaint and quite. Although I'm allergic to something. I didn't stop sneezing during dinner. I had to get some local drugs that didn't put me to sleep. Tomorrow we'll do the tour around the fall. We plan to stay here until Thursday morning. Our next destination is Buenos Aires. Can't wait for a nice steak.mmmmmm.

That's it for right now. Argentina is 5 hours ahead of California and 2 hours from Miami. We'll post pictures in the next few days. Mind you we didn't take that many in Rio for the fear of looking too much like a tourist and having our new camera stolen in our first destiantion. No worries boys I did get a shot at the beach of the nice view. hahaha. If you know what I mean. =)
Ana

Tim_Days 1-6 (First Part Trip)

Were 5 days into our trip and everything has been great. Ana is adjusting to life on the road very quickly and I´m even remembering all the tricks of the trade as well. The simple things like wearing flip flops in the shower and brushing your teeth without using water. I think we´ll be able to handle this lifestyle for another year. I wasn´t 100% sure we could but I have allot more confidence now. Here are some highlights over the last few days.


Day 1:
My parents dropped me and Ana off at the airport. Always tough to leave the US and my family/friends. I got that weird empty feeling in my stomach. So much ahead of us and so much changing. I was glad to have Ana with me. My parents have dropped me off on so many trips before and I can´t think of one that I´ve had someone with me. I´m really enjoying being married and having someone with me. Makes life feel more complete and easy.

I hugged my mom at the airport and told her "we had to go the world was waiting". I said it joking but was some truth in it. We hit the plane and did the 12.5 hour ride to Rio. Always fun. I ate some peanuts and drank some orange juice. I slept a little on and off. Dreaming of all the hot Brazillian women in thongs I would be seeing.

Day 2:
Arrived in Rio and stepped outside into the oven. Hot as hell but I was expecting that. Humidy was high as well. We fumbled around and eventually took 2 buses to get to our first hostle. Ana did great navigating us around the city using her spanish and cute smile to communicate with people. She was kind of shy at first but she´s over that now and talking away with complete strangers with ease. The hostel was really nice. We settled in and went up the hill to eat. The city is massive which was suprising to me. Tons of people and buildings. We ate at a little place. I had rice and beans with a little meat. I´m sure that will be one of my staples on this trip. We sleep the night in the hot room with no sheets. I slept pretty good but Ana didn´nt sleep great.

Day 3:
Woke up took a shower to cool down and ate some breckfast. We headed out to see the women... I mean the bitches... no the beaches in Rio. We did the bus thing again. Usually 3 world buses. Not to bad but they drive like crazy. You need to hold on for your life as they take those buses into a 3G turn to make the light. It´s fun though.

We made it to Epanema beach which the locals said was cooler than Copacapana and hung out there for 4 hours under and umbrella. Both me and Ana ended up with seriously burned feet and Ana burned her shoulder as well. I was too busy watching all the hot thongs walk by to care about my feet. Man do the women have nice butts in Rio. Sorry mom but it´s true. Don´t take dad there.

The beaches were crazy and venders would pass you about every 10 seconds selling things from shrimp to fried cheese. They would carry a little metal stove with coles in it down the beach and cook the cheese right there for you. The beaches were really nice and backdropped by the beautiful mountains you see in the images of Rio. Really round and tall. Very nice. The water was very cold and no one really swims in it unless you are a good swimmer or surfer/boogie border. The waves were actually really intimidating. Large sets were brecking right on shore and the faces were about 10 feet. Some guys were getting worked.


After burning out feet in the sun at Empanema we went and caught the bus to see the large christ figure on the hill. That was really cool and the statue was actually bigger than I expected. I usually expect the things in real life to be about 50% the size you think they should be. But this sculpture was really large. The tram that takes you to the to of the hill is interesting as well and the jungle on the hillside is very dense and green. The view on the top of the hill is amazing. You are really high up and can see all of the massive city of Rio.

In the evening we rested a little and drank a couple caipirhna´s. Then headed out on the town. We went to a local area next to the old aqueduct. Basically it was a huge area where people party. Was a little schechy. People drunk all over and the streets and the buildings were rough and filled with graffeti. But somehow I felt at ease. Although everyone was drinking they seemed really laid back and not bothered by having us there. There was different kinds of music in different areas and we wandered around for a while drinking some more and enjoying the people, the parties
and the music. There are moments were I wonder how I can feel so connected to a atmosphere so foreign to me. Was a good night. We walked back to the hostle which was about 20 miles straight uphill. Ana was feeling a little nervous in the dark streets so here 20 mph pace had me sweating like a donkey by the time we got to our room. We sleep till 11:00 the next day.

Day 4
We woke up late and missed the free breckfast. We pretty much chilled out the whole day. We walked up the hill and got food from the market to cook dinner. Was a really good meal and helped my stomach fell a little better. Since getting to Rio my stomach has been off. The plumming is working fine I just feel like I want to throw up off an on during the day. Not sure what it is but it kind of sucks.

During the evening we went down to the city to see a samba concert Ana wanted to see. We ended up hanging out with a couple really cool older guys that were traveling in Brazil also from the US. The concert didn´t really happen and we walked home around 12:00 since we had to wake up early the next day to catch a bus. Ana again ran all the way back to the hostle. When she doesn´t feel safe on the dark streets she thinks she´s Carl Luis. Again by the time we got to the room I was sweating like a TJ Zebra.

Day 5
We woke up early and showered with cold water to cool off. The shower is the only time of day I feel at peace with the atmosphere. Otherwise I´m too hot. We took a taxi to the bus station to go to see the Iguacio Falls. I´m glad we got to the bus station early. We only had to wait 4.5 hours at the station for out 22 hour bus ride to leave. Man that was fun. Ana did great and was very patient. We met some really nice people at the station. Finally we got aboard our shinny new air conditioned bus and took off.

Day 6
Considering it´s a bus me and Ana sleep really well. I was a little cold but not bad. We took some dramamine and that helped the sleeping. Also late in the night on one of the stops I ate a large bag of fried onion rings. Similar to the "Funions" in the US. I´m not sure if it was that or the pills or maybe just time but my stomach is starting to feel better. Maybe that large meet on a stick thing I ate that one night we were parting in Rio passed through? I was a little worried about that one. Not a smart eating choice but damn it looks good all sizzling on the little cart.

Anyways after a total of 24 hours on the bus we made it to the city were in now. Tomorrow we will take a boat in the morning to see the falls. Should be really amazing and I´m looking forward to it.

Me and Ana just ate dinner and a large flock of about 500 small birds started flying over. Right as I was saying "We better move or were going to get shit on" a bird hit me. Nice timing that little sucker. Wasn´t bad but was pretty funny. Ana alergies were acting up so bad she didn´t even see it hit me. She must have sneezed about 600,000 times at dinner. Was funny because she had to wipe here nose on these napkins they have down here. They look like normal napkins but feel like wax paper. They pretty much suck also. Ana was blowing here nose in wax paper while I was getting crapped on. What great stuff. Well I´m signing out for now from the little internet cafe across the street from where we ate. It just stopped raining and the air outside smells like plans and a red clay earthy smell. Really nice.

t*

Ana_Leaving Tomorrow

WOW...tomorrow is the beginning of the adventure. I have some many thoughts crossing my mind right now. I have a big knot on my shoulders. I feel a little sick to my stomach. Our bags at are packed. The only thing missing is my passport. I've to pick it up tomorrow morning at the Brazilian Consulate. Fun. Long story short because of the change of name at the last minute and the high travel season in Brazil, the visas take exactly 10 business days to process. I was lucky that they made an exception for me to get it in 9 days at 9am. =) Our flight leave from LAX at 2:40pm and we'll arrive in Rio the following day at 12:30 pm Brazilian time. Brazil is 6 hours ahead from California.

We have the reservation for our first hostel adventure. It's located in one of the oldest neighborhoods in Rio. It's suppose to be artsy. =) I'm excited. At this point I just want to get there and relax.
* Ana

_______________________________________________________


Hola a todos que estan leyendo estas cortas lineas. Estoy super emocionada y cansada al mismo tiempo. Ya tenemos todo empacado. Si Dios quiere salimos manana a la 2:40 de la tarde. Llegaremos a Rio de Janeiro el jueves al mediodia hora de Brazil. De Miami a Brazil hay tres horas de diferencia. Gracias por todos lo que me llamaron o escribieron hoy para desearnos buen viaje. Saludos. * Annie

Tim_Leaving Tomorrow

It's the night before we leave. What does it feel like the night before leaving on our trip? Actually I'm feeling really tired and not very excited about the trip right now. I'm so sick of taking care of details that it's taken all the fun out of things. I didn't do a good job of using my time so I ended up packing all the way till late in the night tonight. Kind of sucks but what can I say.

I'm looking forward to getting on the plane tomorrow though. All though it seems like work I know that things will start to change for me because there is nothing I can do about the things I missed or forgot back in civilization. That idea actually sounds nice.

Me and Ana have been working hard over the last few days to get things complete for the trip. We've been cat fighting as well. I must admit I've been a little bit of a dick. When I'm overloaded I tend to take all the work on myself and blame others for not helping me. I was doing that with Ana. I'll make up with her. She knows me.

Was pretty funny though. One fight I shut the door in the car and she was so pissed she pushed the back of my car down with her hands. Was pretty funny. Man she can be hot tempered chili pepper sometimes. I love that about her. Drives me crazy but it's also what I need to keep me in line.

I'm off to go to 7-11 and get a slurpee. One of the last. I've been saying that for about a month but tonight it's for real.

Signing off. Roger. Over and Out.

Tim

Ana_Count Down

Count down...
I can't believe we're a less than a week away from taking the trip of life time. I'm super nervous. My mind is telling "YOU' RE NUTS," my last day at work was this past Wednesday, Tim's last day is today, we don't have a home and all the money we have it's in our savings account. =)Crazy thought.
There is a part of me that is so intrigue by the adventure and the unknown. I've read other blogs of people that have travel the world for a year and have shared their experiences but still not sure what to expect. I'm excited that our first destination is South America. I always had a fascination for that area. I can't wait. Rio de Janeiro here we come...
* A