amazing weekend :)

okay, so i did have a rather silly but informative blog prepared to instruct you in the ways of brazilian driving habits and catching public transport in BH, but then i got to do something interesting, so i will save the driving blog for another rainy day, when there is nothing else to tell you about.

okay, so on the weekend, i was invited to go with joannas family to their country house at cantos das aguas, a kind of holiday park, where you buy a block/ house, and can go there whenever you want. as you can imagine, only the more wealthy people have these kinds of homes away from home. it is so amazing because it is literally like a national park with little (or huge) houses nestled in amongst the trees.

the park is closed to anyone who doesnt live there or who is visiting someone living there. you have to go through a security gate and swipe a card to get through. 

cantos das aguas is about 40 mins out of BH and is situated in a big valley sort of thing, surrounded by mountains. in the middle, at the bottom of the valley, there is a massive lake. the name cantos das aguas translates to the voices of the water. why? because there are 3 waterfalls in the park that you can swim in and that are easy to walk to! 

on sunday, we went for a walk with joannas dad, around the park. oh my god, my legs are still sore hahaha. her dad is a marathon runner and pretty much powered up all the hills that are like this steep / hahahaha joanna and i were pretty much dying trying to keep up. 

we spent 3 hours walking around the park and swimming in the waterfalls, it was amazing!

it was sooo nice to just sit in the spa at their home, chat in english and portuguese, and to admire the view and the peace and quiet of the country. i realised that i actually walked on grass with no shoes on for the first time here. it is such a little thing, but after being able to just go out and walk around the paddocks at home with bare feet, it was very strange to walk on grass for the first time in over a month. 

overall it was a fantastic weekend. i had so much fun and learnt so much :)

um, yeah, so school is good, still struggling to find things to keep me from falling asleep in class, but i have found that writing in lots of postcards helps relieve the boredom a bit. hahaha, the language is slowly moving along, but i will get there eventually. hahaha.

okie dokie, well im off to rotary tonight, so gotta have a shower and look respectable lol.

tchau, ate mais tarde :)

beijos, em