Brazil

Yes, Brazil. The countdown has long since begun where I will board an airplane for Rio de Janeiro. I leave Vancouver on March 17th at 11:10 am and won't be in Rio until 11:00 a.m. the next morning. We have a few hours in Chicago at O'Hare airport and then a few hours in Sao Paolo before flying to Rio.

After that, we (my mother and I) will be rushed off to an island just south of Rio called Ilha Grande, a wildlife conservation-like island where for a week (18-24) we will be at a health resort called Koru Retreat. Once there, we will be participating in ocean kayaking, 4-6 hour long hikes through the rainforest, swimming in the heated pool (and in the ocean), getting daily shiatsu massages, yoga on the beach, and tailored Brazilian cuisine helped to "detoxify" our bodies from chemicals and so on. It's also been suggested that a week at this resort will kill your bad habits so, while I don't believe it wholeheartedly, maybe it will work with my smoking. Two weeks of not smoking (since my mother doesn't know I smoke) might be just what I need to kick it. Also, when Marlene my coworker retires in 8.2 weeks I probably won't be smoking any more since I will have no one to smoke with.

Carrying on however, after the resort is finished on 24 March, we will be going back into Rio de Janeiro and spending 6 days there. While there we will be doing a full day tour including a stop at Sugar Loaf Mountain to see the Christ statue, a seaside restaurant for lunch (lunch included), and many other sights. Another tour we are going to go on is a 4 hour tour through the rainforest in a Jeep where we'll see also sorts of water falls (including Monkey falls and some others) so I'll be able to get some really great pictures.

It's going to be an amazing trip. Next year, mom and I plan on going to Egypt or Hawaii; we haven't decided on where. You'll note that my dad and sister are excluded from these. Dad is scared of traveling (even just across the border to get gas) and my sister, while I love her to death, is too immature and prone to throwing tantrums when things don't go exactly as she wants. I am however planning on taking her to Japan (if she wants to go) when she's a bit older. Maybe a year after her high school graduation; so 2009-ish.

We'll see how it goes. At any rate - 9 days left!