The picture is of our apartment. It is kind of a purple/blue.
Sunday Mornings in Brazil are the best. You hardly hear a sound. Then the church bells ring at 7:30. They don't just ring once. It is almost like the old movies where the little boy is holding on to the rope and going up and down with the bell.
When you go to a register to pay your bill at a restaurant and you are paying cash you won't believe what they do!!! Let's say If it is $11.09 they will just take $11.00 instead of dealing with the change. Those of you that have ever had to balance a register know how this would drive owner's crazy. I always went looney when my day did not balance.
The smell of burning sugar cane is constant this time of the year in Campinas. It can be so strong you feel like you are going to suffocate or it can be a distant whiff. If you shut your windows the smell is already in the apartment so it does no good. I can say that the doctor's benefit from the smoke and the ash. People are sick everywhere probably from allergies.
John and Ben have survived 10 days together without killing each other. John got to see his doctor's and he got good reports, stay at the Sandy & Hank Angell's and enjoy their company and visit the plant and see friends there. The trip to Long Beach was a good one. He now has two new roommates Bob and Jessica and so far so good. They have been to Disneyland. They are now working on getting a driver's license, car tags, etc. John loves Jessica. He said she has a great head on her shoulders and will be a good encourager for Ben. Pray for Ben and the job situation. It is very expensive to live there. With the job he now has he will not survive.
The Fore Family has moved to their new home in Northern Brazil. How I will miss their precious faces stopping by to see me and John!!! They will be working as Baptist Missionaries in Sao Luis where it is VERY hot year round.
Mary Cavese took me to the downtown of Campinas called Centro. It was a long walk but we saw so many things. The biggest thing was the huge white Catholic Church. It is at the endof one of the main streets so you can see it forever. It looms and as you get closer it gets even bigger. I would easily say it seats 1,000 people. The stained glass windows are so beautiful of the many stages of Jesus' life. The ceiling is majestic. We were there around 1:00 in the afternoon and there was probably 200 people in the church praying or reading or just meditating. It was a very calming place. Then we walked for hours just looking in windows and even venturing into some of the shops. It was a wonderful day.
We were talking with Joe and Mary on one of our trips about how many things you can purchase at a red light. You can buy candy, flowers, feather dusters, steering wheel covers, bicycle tires, cell phone chargers, rags to clean with, and most recently bra's. At Christmas you can buy Santa Claus and at Easter bouncing wind-up chickens. No need to go to a mall. You can watch a mime, watch a juggler, receive a flyer from someone on stilts or have your windshields cleaned. These expect tips or payment.
I found out this week that The Last Straw in Wichita Falls is moving to a new location in August. It will be odd having the store in a new place after so many years but more space will be nice. John and I celebrated 29 years of marriage on Sunday. John Basel is in his element flying in the United States for a month. Pray for his safety. So far Meredith is doing pretty good after one week. I am glad she has a job to keep her busy.
The World Cup of Soccer is around the corner. To understand how seriously the Brazilian people take their soccer you need to MULTIPLY by 1,000 the excitement of the Super Bowl, The Rose Bowl, the Master's and The Daytona 500 combined. They are planning on having tv's in every area of the city that has a spot. I'm sure the work will come to a stop when Brazil's team is playing. It is an obsession. Our Portuguese Teacher, Pierre, has worked himself into a frenzy over the World Cup. He has bought a huge TV. We don't plan on lessons on those important days. I have NEVER seen anything like this.
I miss everyone. Thank you for getting me through this journey. Love, Kathy
