Backtracking to Friday

Ok, so Friday we took our midterm in class. It went fairly well and I did decent on it, so that´s good. After the midterm, we all decided to enjoy our last week-end in Floripa, so we walked to the bus stop and attempted to get to the dunes near the Lagoa and the beach to go sand boarding. After about an hour of waiting at the bus stop and our bus never showing up, we just randomly hopped on a bus that did come by, which ended up taking us in the complete opposite direction of Lagoa. So we had to get off at another random stop and then hop on another bus (this time, it was the correct one, yay!) So we made it to the trinidade (bus terminal) at Lagoa and hopped on another bus to take us even further to the dunes. We finally made it!

Once we arrived, we purchased our snow/sand boards ($10 per hour- very cheap!) and hit the dunes. Literally... I ate it pretty bad a few times, but not before I got in a couple of really good rides. The dunes were beautiful. I felt like I was in the Saharra, but I was on an island in Brasil. Once you climbed to the top of the dunes, you had an awesome view of the Atlantic Ocean and all kinds of vegetation that grows in the sand. I´ve never seen anything like it, but it was beautiful.

So after our hour was up, we tried to de-sand ourselves and proceeded back to the bus stop to head home. We waited for a while, it was starting to get dark and then finally, the bus showed up. Once we got on the bus, it was horribly crowded with people coming back from the beach and what not. There were plenty of people with surfboards on board and there was sand everywhere. It was very reminiscent to home and it made me miss the beach and the summer time. Sand boarding was a blast and I really enjoy taking the bus. The bus drivers here are insane! I´ve come across a couple of crazy bus drivers on the LB Transit back home, but nothing like they are here. Lots of times I close my eyes and try not to watch what´s going on out the window. I guess drivers have to be agressive here,and honestly, who would be stupid enough to play chicken with a bus?

So after getting home and showering, we all went up to the Lagoa to take our friend Murilo out for his birthday. That was a lot of fun. It´s cool to compare the differences between here and home and here, as far as going out is concerned, is so much more fun! Brasilians go out really late. We didn´t even get out until like 11:30 or midnight and didn´t get back to the hotel until around 5:30. I´m going to be really sad when I get back home and everything closes at 2:00. I wish that the mentality in the states was different. Think of how much money clubs and bars could make if they were open later than 2. Honestly. Brasilians have the right idea!

Sand boarding pictures to be up soon soon!