Nevermind that I don{t have ready access to TV, but I feel like Chinese government needs some time to reflect...

[Already, China and the Olympic organizers have also had to deal with criticism over China’s continuing relationship with Sudan. China buys the majority of Sudan’s oil and has supplied most of the weapons in the bloody conflict in Darfur. Hollywood director Steven Spielberg quit his role as the artistic adviser to the opening and closing ceremonies because of China’s involvement with Sudan. [

When in Easter Island, we went swimming in the Pacific. We stayed in the kiddie pool because the waves are so rough. We  were having a good time, and suddenly I see a look of shock on JC's face. I start to freak out a bit.. worried that something was wrong.

"I dropped my wedding band"

It's lost, I thought.
"Babe, no worries. We'll just have to get anther one."

"No, just stand right here... and I'll get a mask and snorkel to find it"

"JC, seriously, don't bother, you might get hurt." The rock beach with its unrelenting waves could cause a twisted ankle or two.

"Just stand here. I'll find it." Being new to marriage, I did understand when to step aside to let the husbands pursue their missions, no matter how much the odds are stacked against them. Besides, it was our travel jewelry. Matching, undertated white gold bands that haven't left our person since the beginning of our trip.

He was back, after negotiating with the Dive shop the price of borrowing just a mask in search of a lost wedding band. The heartless dive owners charged him 5,000 Chilean Pesos. $2.00USD. still a rip, when it costs $20,000 pesos to rent the whole kit for the day. JC hopped back into the water and dove again and again. The water, still, measured about 4.5 feet... deeper when the waves came crashing in. After continuously searching for close to an hour, our companions and I were already chalking the ring as lost to the ocean.We were all getting out of the water, and pleading for JC to come back in. 15 more minutes was the counter plea.

Fine.

As I got out of the water,and filmed the last footage of teh alcove beach of Easter Island, JC bolted out of the water.

"I got it!!!!"

His wedding band was recovered from the mighty ocean. The creaters of the Moai were able to overcome tens of thousands of miles to find this island, and JC was able to recover his wedding band.

Yes, I love him.
      
Rapa Nui from Paulaboo on Vimeo.

wikipedia Iguazu Fall
Upon seeing Iguaçu, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly exclaimed "Poor Niagara!"^[1] Vastly larger than North America's Niagara Falls, Iguaçu is rivalled only by Southern Africa's Victoria Falls which separates Zambia and Zimbabwe

We've only used Spot twice. We'll start using it more, since it's pretty cool.

Wanted to convey our coordinates.
Latitude:-25.5446
Longitude:-54.58
Nearest Location: Foz do Igua*u, Brazil
Distance: 1 km(s)
Time:03/18/2008 00:33:50 (GMT)
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=-25.5446,-54.58&ie=UTF8&z=12&om=1

Easter is rolling around, and South American countries are largely Catholic in their religious leanings. Everywhere we go, there are these wrapped egges hanging in the supermarkets. Yummy!

And the best one of them all?  KINDER EGG! I bought one, and I'm savoring every bit of the chocolate egg!

3/15

We're waiting for the bus to take us to Iguazu Falls. After checking out the falls from the Brazilian side, we're going to eventually figure out how we're going to get to Bolivia.

This round the world traveling is hard work. Each time we get to a city, we need to scope out the accommodations. Then we need to get our bearings around the town. After we're done with the touristy stuff, we have to start our planning again. I miss having an organized dresser, instead of living out of my bag. Having a steady nightstand is also big. When spending time with someone, 24/7 patience is key. JC and I get cranky sometimes. I especially need to work on my mood.

The packs are shedding weight. Firstly because we lost a few things. I lost my hoodie in Santiago, and in my obsession, bought it again off of ebay. It's probably on its way to my house in New York. A lotta good that will do me. As for other clothing, I went browsing for jeans in Brazil. It's easier for me to find a cut, but the last thing I want to do is add more weight to my pack. At our last stop, we got rid of a combination lock and the Brazil guidebook that we borrowed from a past hostel. And, to confirm, the Lonely Planet guidebook is USELESS in Brazil. Completely useless in Sao Paolo.

I just finished reading my first ever smutty romance novel, "The Dangerouse Debutante." Admittedly, it was very entertaining. Now I get to shed that book too. I wonder if anyone in this terminal will pick it up. I'll probably bring it to the hostel and swap it for another book.

One more hour to go. The departure time was 1800 hours, at 6:00pm, and NOT 1600 hours. The Sao Paolo bus terminal is my favorite by far. It's well lit, connected to the metro, and plenty of shopping. Almost bought a pair of Brazilian jeans, but these sweats from Target Argentina are doing me just fine.

As for our experiences in Sao Paolo... you have to have a local take you around. (Especially since the guidebook is shit) We stayed in Liberdade, the Asian neighborhood and had a blast. My mild homesickness was cured by a wonderful spread of sushi and plenty of Asian foods. I bought a few red bean cakes and I'm super happy about. Of course, when you're waiting at a terminal for 4 hours, you can sometimes resort to eating out of boredom.

Brazil can honestly hold its own as a first world country. And it's absolutely true, that Rio is like LA and Sao Paolo is like NY. We took the trains every where, but were a little lost as to where to go. The LP book kept pointing out builidings as points of interest. Grr. Buildings are interesting to a point.

Ahead of us, we're looking at a 16 hour bus ride. It would be an nightmare if we were in the states, but South America has these cool sleeper buses that fully recline. Hopping on the bus at 6:00 will get is into Iguazu at about 10:00am. We get to save on a nights lodging that way. And after all the junk that we ate, I don't think we're looking to eat anything again. Hopefully there will be wifi access at the hostel we booked. Hopefully this will post soon.

"screwy us system makes slave to employer for doctor rights :/" JR

200,000 people live in Rocinha Favela (favela translates to slum)

To start, we had to take motorcycles to the top of the hill. That was a thrill ride as we weaved through traffic and came within a hairs width of trucks, pedestrians and other motorcyclists. See the reporter interviewing one of the motorcylclists taking us on our tour.


The electricity is tapped. There are no taxes or utility bills to pay since the government does not provide that infrastructure.

On top of the houses are vats that collect water.

We bought a painting from an artist

... and the most delicious sweetbreads. Lenny Kravitz was there weeks before, and had a bun named after him.

Our tour was great, in that the $ goes to funding a daycare center. They also  encourage the children to make handicrafts to sell instead of panhandling. We learned a lot about the history of the dwelling and were provided with contact information to send donations. Because we walked throgh the streets, and interacted with the people, I didn't feel like we were ogling, instead, we were just interacting with people... and reinforcing our social obligation to lighten the hardships of others.

I sorta think its weird that a city is named after a month...

City Trekking 03 05

View from the helipad

JC prays for some clarity

Ipanema, HStern, Sugarloaf

Ipanema Beach

JC working out on the beach

The beatiful views

Welcome to HStern in Thai

Had to sneak a picture of the jewels

Off to Sugar Loaf cable cars... After you take the HStern tour, they give you a souvenir of 3 rough stones. (we left teh stone at the hostel because we didn't want to carry it) They also provide plenty of refreshments and a free cab ride to your hotel. Since it was still early, we had the car service take us to Sugar Loaf. Brilliant!

What a view!

Lapa Steps

Lapa Artist behind the steps - We told him we collected tiles, and he gave us one!

Okies... I've spent enough time at the computer. Time to wander around Sao Paolo.

I love Rio...

It's more expensive than BA, but there's so much to do.
3/07 Christ the Redeemer in the fog
3/08 Ipanema, hStern, Sugar Loaf
3/09 Flamengo Soccer Game
3/10 Lapa Steps
3/11 Favela tour
3/12 Ipanema

Pics will be uploaded laters... but friends can check out the ones I've uploaded to the site!