Okay, there's been some call for pictures of the living room and the world's smallest kitchen. I have included pictures of the satellite kitchen, because neither the living room nor the kitchen would be complete without it.  Please note that I have a double-decker dish rack, without wish drying dishes would be nearly impossible. Enjoy!
And here we ( Read more... )

I am imagining legions of you asking me, what does your bedroom look like? what is the view like out your window, to the left, to the right, and down? These questions answered.

pieza
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mmmm. The luxury of a three-day weekend is upon me. Enjoyed in my city. Well, my adopted city anyway. This has been a very gringo weekend, and it's been really fun. I think when I first got here I was afraid of only having gringo friends and I pulled away from gringos. But now that I have been here longer, and I can pick and choose who are my ( Read more... )

My two extra days in Rio came and went very quickly, despite the massive lack of sleep. I took the nicest bus in the world yesterday from Rio to SP, then the metro and a quick walk, and am now safely ensconced in Clarabr´s lovely apartment. We have been talking up a storm and generally catching up. I am so much more relaxed and happy now than I was ( Read more... )

Are you on vacation? This is the question that haunts me, after Joo speeek Eenglish? Are you on vacation? I could be in the middle of buying enough food for a six course meal, and people will hear my accent, and ask if I'm on vacation. Or yesterday, in the taxi on the way back from Sodimac (Home Depot), with a six-foot-high shelf and 20 kilos of ( Read more... )

( find photos here! )

In the fascinating realm of the color of this pale girl´s skin, I want it to be known that although I am still ghostly in comparison to every Brazilian and every other traveller I see (must be the number sixty sunscreen and the beach umbrella), I managed to de-sockline myself yesterday. Truly amazing ( Read more... )

So the joke is that every single time I go to the doctor, they promise me the moon, a new unguent that will magically reduce the swelling in my shoulder joint, coupled with the latest generation of NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti inflammatory drugs, like ibuprofen). Deflamat and meloxicam. I´m happy to accept both remedies, but it´s just comical. ( Read more... )

When I travelled in Central America, in late 1992 to early 1993 (the wisdom of this surely debateable, as there were not one, but two civil wars brewing at the time), I was constantly on the move. Over the course of six months, I probably stayed in one place for an average of a day and a half, with occasional stays of a week here or there. For the ( Read more... )

The search for the mythical empanada begins with a twinge of emptiness in your belly. The emptiness grows into hunger, and the vision of the perfect empanada dances merrily in your head. It's flavorful, as big as your head (weighs at least half a kilo), and is cheap, hopefully between 300 and 350 pesos- or just a little more than 50 cents. The ( Read more... )