Days 32-35 New Years and Itapary by Carolyn Sauck

Trip Start Nov 28, 2007

Trip End Feb 15, 2008

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Flag of Brazil Sao Luis, Brazil
Thursday, January 3, 2008

On the 29th, the whole family took off from Belem to São Luis to spend New Year's on the beach in Itapary. My family isn't rich by any means, but we are very blessed with land. My great great great great great (etc...) received the lands on the coast of the island of São Luis from a prince of the Portuguese royal family, and it has been handed down from generation to generation. My mother's generation secured what was left of the land (after squatters claimed over 80% of the original property under Brazil's "if you use the land, you can keep the land" law), and parcelled it up between her siblings and cousins. Each one ended up with a lot of roughly 40 m by 100 m, and the family often returns to the property for holidays and special occasions. My mom's lot is on a bluff about 50 ft from the beach, with a nice hidden trail to the beach.

Mom and Dad's future retirement home

Itapary beach from the bluff

Trail down to beach

Itapary beach

Carolyn enjoying a fresh starfruit

We arrived after nightfall on the 29th, and while I was eager to explore the property and to see the progress made on my parents' retirement home, Erin was too afraid of snakes and other creepy crawlers to explore at night, so we saved the full tour until the morning. We spent the next couple of days enjoying my cousin's company, playing on the beach, eating and sleeping... It's a rough life.

Hit in the head by a babacu (tiny coconut)

Cousins walking on the beach

Toad trying to break in to Cantinho do Vovo

We took a few trips down the beach to Hicham's family's beach house, which is coincidentaly only about a 40 minute walk down the beach from ours. Hicham is my sister's husband. He has a very loving and welcoming family that hosted us 3 times at their beach house in Caura (one of which was for a wonderful New Year's Eve breakfast). Thank you Dona Olga!

Road to Caura from Itapary

For New Year's, we gathered at my mother's cousin Celso's house for champagne, dinner, and fireworks celebration. People dress in specific colors for New Year's Eve, depending on what they want for the next year. White is the most common for peace, green for hope, yellow for money, etc... We had many champagne toasts and enjoyed the night under a billion bright stars, feeling the warm ocean breeze.

Mom, Dad, Erin and I at New Years

Erin at New Years

WMU Geophysics professor or clown?

He thought it was funny too :)

The Sauck/Cutrim Girls/Wolverines

Happy New Years!

Carolyn and Cousin Rodrigo

Erin & Carolyn at New Years

Cousin Fafa and other cousin Rodrigo

Carolyn and Cousin Malila

After midnight, we ate the customary lentil soup to bring in the mulah in 2008... For those of you who didn't know about this tradition, sorry 'boutcha, cause it has to be the first thing you eat in the new year to work.

Happy New Year to Everybody!

Erin would like to add as a side note:

1) Molly Kuzma, you're pregnant?! And Kristen had a baby?! Congratulations!
2) Happy retirement Dick Holmes! Hope you enjoy you enjoy doing a whole lot of nothing!