Brazil

Have I ever mentioned how much I love the sun and the heat?

:-)

Kerry and I arrived last night after a pretty long, but thankfully uneventful trip. I think it was about 26 hours door-to-door so were feeling a little rotten by the time we arrived. The flights went smoothly and I managed to score an upgrade on the Toronto-Sao Paulo flight, finally getting the chance to experience the "pod" (lie-flat bed). Yes, I know, life is tough :-) I made the mistake of eating dinner before boarding so I honestly wasn't a snitch hungry by the time the meal was served. But, of course I couldn't pass up the Bay of Fundy salmon with saffron mashed potatoes, cheese platter, ...I will stop there because just typing it is making me hungry again. Once we got to Sao Paulo we had to catch a bus to switch airports and we were actually glad that we had a 7 hour layover because by the time we sorted out Kerry's missing bike and checked in at the domestic airport, we only had about an hour to spare. Once we got to our hotel in Balneario Cambriou, we went out for a run along the beach path and a quick swim in the hotel pool (which is 20m long...a very nice surprise). This is a crazy tourist town this time of year and reminds me a lot of Copacabana Beach in Rio. There are TONS of little dogs here. Honestly, I know I am crazy about dogs and make a point to look for them, but I don't even have to try here. I opened the curtains this morning and what did I see right away? A poodle. I was out for a run this morning and what did I see? About 10 poodles, including two wearing shorts/diapers (I think that's what they were...) Anyway, it's great here and I couldn't ask for better weather. It was 28 degrees at 9am this morning while I was running and the ocean is probably about the same temperature. Heaven for me!

We were given our race suits this morning and much to our surprise, they fit fairly well. And the butt is not total Brazilian-style. In other words, the wedgie only happens when I bend over, so I should be OK until I reach for my shoes in T2.

Here are some photos from earlier today. The three of us are having a great time and I am very glad that we all get along so well because we are sleeping in very close quarters. We each have our own bed but they are literally 2 inches apart and it is difficult to move around the room with the bikes, boxes and gear.

I am the wizard.

No-eyed deliciousness.

Dulce de Leche Churro. Yum.

Our hotel. I have yet to find the casino. Or, is cassino something else in Portugese?

Merry Christmas.