A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Grab a cup of coffee or tea, and prop your feet up for a short tour of Cecilia and Will's neighborhood.

A stop at Mega Matte for Acai with Banana and Granola
for lunch after C's appointment with Patricia--the OB.
It was the Gringa's first Acai, and I loved it.

Bright Stucco with Clay Tile Roof

Portuguese Architecture on a Shady Street

MMMMM . . .

Graceful Wrought Iron

Sidewalks are made of chunks of granite.
I was fascinated with all the patterns.

Reflections of Portuguese Heritage

A Soft Treasure

Coral Beauty

Delicate

Old/New Apartment Buildings
share shady side streets.

Granite Textures Underfoot

Cecilia and Will
February 2, 2012
Just ahead is a favorite cafe/bakery--Beira Mar.

Green Tile Apartment

More Sidewalk Graphics

One block from W and C's apartment
is a Flower Stand.
This is the overflow from the cart!

Que Lindo!
Rosas Vermelhas, Laranjas, e Amarelas

Tropical Tile

Captive Ginger

Concrete and Stucco Mural decorates yet another apartment building.

Tall Palms dwarf and shade a tile-roofed home.

Ta-Daaa!

In front of a Travel Agency,
this chicken in a bikini has her camera ready!

Street vendor shows Cecilia and Will some linens from Northern Brazil.

Cecilia admires the lacework.

Welcome

Pretty Tropical Colors

Typical front yard--wrought iron, trees, flowers.
Typical, but not boring!

Fan Palms took my breath away.

Amazing!

Our favorite store, Oficina de Minas--
Will designed their website in exchange for furniture.

Terra Cotta tiles top a stucco wall.

A Study in Texture and Color

More Color and Texture!

I'm fascinated by yet another granite sidewalk pattern.

GUAVA
Have you ever seen such a heavenly color?

Curtains

3 O'Clock Sun

Patterned tile walls are everywhere.

Yellow Shrimp Plant

Bromeliads on a Tree Stump

Greens and More Greens

Tropical Stop Sign
Who can pass this by without a picture?

Across from the beach on Praia de Icarai,
the sidewalks have a wave pattern.

More Graphics Underfoot

Black and white granite waves create an optical illusion.
The sidewalk is perfectly flat and broad.

From the apartment window,
11 stories up

Wish you were here?
Wish you were here . . .
with love from the Gringa

Roomies

I want to introduce you to my roommates, Jewel and Q.

Here's Jewel visiting in my room yesterday morning.

This is Q, making a rare appearance during the day.

Jewel and Q were Los Angeles litter mates, sisters adopted by co-workers Will and Cecilia.  Q, whose real name is Q. C. (short for Quality Control), was named and raised by Will in his minimally furnished bachelor pad in Culver City.

Q helps Will at work on his computer.

Q is possibly the only cat in the history of mankind to play fetch with any piece of crinkly paper or plastic she can find.  And she not only retrieves the treasure when Will throws it, but also actually brings it to him to initiate a game, like a Lab with a tennis ball!  We have video evidence.

Cecilia's Jewel was named for the white diamond on her chest,

and found her home in C's apartment, complete with decorative pillows in all shades of red and yellow.  Jewel is a lover, not a huntress.  She loves Cecilia's lap, and will climb up to perch around C's neck and shoulder like one of those fox stoles that were all the rage in the '30's and '40's.

Sisters became roommates again in LA when Cecilia and Will's relationship bloomed.  Though Q protests the presence of pretty pillows by marking (yes, peeing on) every one of them, the two kitties have a solid place in the hearts of their people.  They've moved from California to Texas in a small cage in the back seat of a Chevy Aveo, shredding a pot plant in protest (and the back of Will's neck) as he drove east on I10.  They've moved from Texas to Brazil, strangely quiet and continent in carriers under the passenger seats of a Delta 767.  And here they are in their newest abode.

Two weeks after I arrived, Jewel finally decided my lap was okay.

Since Cecilia no longer has a lap, the Gringa's will do.

Jewel likes the morning sunshine in my bedroom.

Just soaking it in, before the day gets too hot.

Jewel, beside my bed.

Jewel's not really a skunk,

but she's pretty pesky when I'm trying to do my Bible Study.

Reading about the Galatians . . .

. . . and pondering what she's just learned.

Neither cat showed her face when I arrived.  Both stayed in their favorite spots during the day:  Q in Will's closet, and Jewel under the bed--both in my room.  My roomies were ghosts.  Skulking eyes peered from under the couch, or a slinking figure passed through the kitchen to food, water, and litter box on the back balcony.  A slow blink from across the room or a rub around my legs were the first hints that they might actually accept me.  Now Jewel and I are fast friends.

Q is still standing off, but not too long ago she decided to be the Heidi Klum of felines.  She held court in the living room, begging for the paparazzi.

Some beauty sleep before the session.

Hair and make-up

"Yes, my eyes are the same color as my sofa."

"And my distinct stripe blends beautifully with the sun."

"This is where I like to stay at night--
right next to the floor lamp that attracts those little flittering insects."

On the hunt, Q and her laser-eyed 'wing kitty' Jewel.

Q

Posin'

"Jewel and I know something's going on around here.
We've been kicked out of our bedroom.
And even though we stand at the door and cry all night,
our people won't let us in.
And what's up with that little bed?!
Jewel found out the hard way that it wasn't for her . . .
even though it's just the right size and very comfortable."

Which Cheek? What Hand?

Before arriving in Brazil, I forgot to get the lowdown on the proper way to meet and greet. I'm a hugger. Some people like a firm handshake and a square look in the eye. My brother says that the Swiss like to kiss one another on first one cheek, then the other, then back to the first. To keep you from awkward moments when you come to Brazil, here's the Female-to-Female or Female-to-Male drill.

**Extend your right hand and grasp the right hand of the one you are meeting. Air kiss first the right cheek and then the left. The first time you meet someone, the best greeting is "Prazer" or "Muito Prazer." This generally translates "Pleasure to meet you," or "Very nice to meet you." When you depart from this first meeting, repeat from **.

At other times, greeting people you've already met is fairly easy if (1)you get the hand grasp/two air kiss choreography down, and (2) you can say the word "Tudo" (TO do). "Tudo" is short for "Tudo Bom" which means "Everything is good?" or "Everything is good." Of course, there's also "Tudo Bem," which means "Everything is well? or "Everything is well." So "Tudo" can be a question, "Is everything okay?" or a statement affirming that everything is okay.

When parting company with acquaintances, follow the hand grasp/two air kiss choreography along with a comment like "Bom Dia" BOn DGEE ah ("Have a good morning!") or "Boa Tarde" BO ah TAR dgeh ("Have a good afternoon!") or "Boa Noite" BO ah NOY cheh (you fill in this blank . . .)

Warning! For Male-to-Male greetings, don't even think about the air kisses. Males generally extend and grasp right hands and draw close enough for a hearty, firm mutual pat (or two) on the back with the left hands when meeting and departing. Men are so much less complicated, right?

One insight I've learned to appreciate about the air kiss routine: it's not a superficial or artificial display. Hugging someone Texas-style after walking 6 city blocks in the 2 PM summer heat in a strapless dress can be embarrassing. The huggee is left with another person's sweat all over her hands and arms. Then, what's that person to do? Stand there with wet hands and forearms and try not to have a disgusting look on her face? Wipe said hands on her own clothes? Pull out a hankie for a wipe down? You get the picture. Better for everyone to lightly touch cheeks and save the sweaty embraces for Jiu Jitsu class.