Soccer Camp - August 23 to 27

We had one week to adjust to being home, and then Seth started a week at soccer camp...or as he said "futebal."  He was on the same team as his little buddy Kalvin.  This was great for him because on the first day or two he had some trepidation about me leaving (which, from my understanding, is healthy attachment...for all those Maples folks out there :).  The third day he said, "You can leave and come back like you did yesterday."  Although I tried not to be, I know I was the over anxious mom who told Kristi (Kal's mom) a million times to phone me if Seth needed me for anything.  Maybe my attachment is unhealthy!  What am I going to do when I drop him off at kindergarten...or leave Seth and Hazel for ten days when we go to Europe!  I assume I'll get over it....

When We Got Home

what we found on our front door :)

Happy to see their cousins again!

At the Abbotsford Air Show on August 14, less than two days after returning home.  It was hotter than almost the whole time we spent in Brazil.  Of course Shaun thought it was more important to take pictures of planes flying than people.

One of many pictures of the planes

Recife Zoo

Vivende Oriente

We tried to relax at a pousada in Sao Jose that we stayed in two years ago when we were in Brazil.  However, it rained both days and the day it was somewhat sunny in the afternoon we forced ourselves into the pool.  The pousada had all their rooms open into a pool/restaurant area so we thought we could put the kids to sleep and eat right outside their door.  One of the nights we were there, we put all the kids to bed and laid down in the dark room with them "until they fell asleep."  We were probably asleep before them and slept through the night.  So much for alone time :)  But it is a beautiful place, right on the beach, with good food and a delicious gourmet breakfast included.  Here's a few pictures of the place.

The Road to Recife

On the drive between Maragogi and Recife you come across a little rainforest.  Here are some road signs you would never see in Canada.

Beware of sloths?  I could never figure out if they unexpectedly have a habit of falling on your car as you drive?  Or maybe they are aggressive animals.  I just remember reading they sleep around 20 hours a day and are awake at night, so I'm not really certain how dangerous they really are.

Any guesses as to what this is?  We know there were crocoldiles in the area but to me it never looked like a crocodile.  And if it is a lizard, are you supposed to avoid running it over?

The drive to Recife is a drive through miles and miles of sugar cane.  Depending on what time of year you are there, you can often see fields burning.  This is how they harvest, first by burning to get rid of dead leaves and poisonous snakes, and then cutting the fields with machetes.

In Brazil there are speed limit signs everywhere...that no one follows.  We have even seen cars passing police cars on the highway.  The only time anyone slows down is when they have these photo radar traps, usually in a town, and usually for 40km/hr.  Here is one in the middle of the rainforest for 60 km/hr.

Sign about preserving the rain forest

Just Because I Love this Picture

I think it's probably because I like the yellow in the background.  This was taken at Julius and Karen's on Seth's birthday. 

Churrascaria

The week before we left Brazil, we did a couple of neat things, so I'm going to publish a few more pictures about our time there, before updating you on this past month since we've been home.  The day before Mom and Dad Raap left, we went with the missionaries and their wives out for supper at a Churrascaria.  This is a spectacular restaurant where waiters walk around with skewers of every type of meat imaginable, stopping at each person's plate to ask if they want a sliver of whatever they have.  This includes bacon-wrapped chicken, steak, lamb, chicken hearts, turkey, goat, pork, different livers, just about any type of meat you can imagine.  There is also a salad bar on the side to make you feel like you are making healthy choices.  I filled my plate up with salad and then gave up eating it when the meat started coming by.  I mean really, what is the better deal, right?  My dutchness told me I could get plant leaves to eat anytime.  So we ate a lot of meat...kind of an understatement...but it was YUMMY!

The seriousness of getting the perfect cut of meat

Coffee is always espresso-type served in little mini cups.  That feminine hand on the left is Julius.