Hotel Plaza Porto Alegre

... first purchased his BMW bike, he had to take it to the registrar of motor vehicles to have it registered in his name. He flicked the side stand down with his boot, but unbeknown to him, it had retracted. He said this is the only time in his life, he was very happy to be such a large man. Using all his strength, he managed to stop the bike from falling completely and doing a lot of damage to the new car next to it. The car only sustained a minor scratch ...

... it would have cost more.

After we left the Hypomoto Motorcycle Shop. The driver of the taxi which took us back to the hotel took us on a loop via the airport, which brought the meter up to R$25 and we were a long way from the hotel yet. We then noticed that there was no ID in the taxi. We realized we were being taken for a ride. Des pulled the driver up on the meter reading, shook his finger at him and raised his voice. There was an obvious communication ...

... Also, a few people asked me about the blackout which left half of the country without power for a few hours. I learned that apparently, Rio Grande do Sul has its own power production and is off the power grid that was affected by the blackout. So I was completely unaware about it until I heard from my friends back home!

There is no wi-fi here so I´m using my host´s computer. So pictures will follow...

Partindo para Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul. Foi um tempo muito bom que tive com Marcio e Viviane. Um casal muito abençoado que mora em Porto Alegre. Tive a oportunidade de conhacer um pouco Porto Alegre e a cidade de Farroupilhas.
Aproveitei para ir na unviersidade do Rio Grande do Sul encontrar com os estudantes do movimento Alfa e Omega (um ministério da Cruzada Estudantil e Profissional para ...

Well, I've officially left Porto Alegre, and it's definitely my favourite Brazilian city. I wish I'd taken pictures, but my camera is toast. I loved how integrated, with the modern city life, the Gaucho culture was. I went to a Gaucho rodeo/festival one day, completely by accident, but it turned out to be one of the coolest experiences. Guacho families come from all over, and set up this village of homes and shops, and people are welcome to wander the streets. There's meat cooking ...

... chimarrao, but I don't feel bogged down, like I usually do when I'm surrounded by people everywhere. There's space to move, and to breath. The city has one of the highest standards of living in Brazil, and it shows. People are very stylish, but it doesn't seem vain, or extreme. There is tons of awesome shopping, and there are parks and trees everywhere. The city is well worn, but it doesn't seem dirty, or grungy, and it doesn't smell. It's a very ...

... fans, cruising the city with a friend native to Porto Alegre, eating traditional Brazilian foods and meeting some amazing and crazy characters, it is fair to say that we had an awesome time in Porto Alegre. Brazil was never on our itinerary until later on in our adventure, but meeting and making friends with a Brazilian girl from Porto Alegre changed all that. We met Bruna at a hostel in Buenos Aires a few weeks earlier and briefly mentioned the possibility of making a detour ...

... and also one of the best. Our second day in Brasil we started classes at the UFRGS in Porto Alegre (Universidad Federal do Rio Grande do Sur). It is an absolutely beautiful campus that actually reminds me of UCLA . The weather was hot and sunny and the campus was full of students visiting, drinking mate, laying out in the grass, lunching...there must have been some studying going on but it was well hidden. Everyone speaking beautiful Portuguese and, as per usual, we attracted a ...

... naprd, coz me mrzi ne uplne malo. Kdyz uz se s nekym domluvim, tak spis anglicky nez spanelsky (Nicmene vytrvala na ne vsude spanelsky mluvim:-) ------- Maly afterparty update z Porto Alegre. Krome english speakera, kterej me na akci zval, uz tam moc dalsich speakeru nebylo, resp. jeden dalsi, kterej zrovna prisel dost pozde (ale zas vydrzel jako posledni, to se musi nechat). A ten muj speaker tam mel svou polovicku, kdybyste ho snad ...

... Me and my family got there pretty early and had plenty of time before my flight. But I don't know if it is only because I was tired for not sleeping or only because I am plain stupid, but the point is that I was already comfortably sitting in the boarding area when I suddenly listen in the sound system: "Mr. Fábio Wagner, please come immediately to gate 8"!! Oh, good Lord, I was waiting in the wrong gate and complaining that the flight was late. Well ...