Post-Vacation Blues

When I was on vacation last week I tried to take solace in the fact that going back home meant I could catch up on my favorite TV shows. I thought, “The first thing I’ll do is have a good old-fashioned TV binge for 4-6 hours. Then I’ll feel better about being home.” I thought the plan was fail-safe. My mom’s and my vacation was pretty media-free. When we were in Cape Town I would surf the eight (yes, eight) television channels available in our room at the B&B we were staying at. I usually watched news reports or South African soap operas. The strange thing was any single broadcast could switch languages at any given moment since there are 11 official languages in South Africa. Many of the soap opera dialogues would have one sentence in English, and then the character would switch languages for a few words or a sentence, and then back to English, and then back to the other language for a stint. There were always English subtitles for the scripted dramas but not for the newscasts. The radio stations were even harder to follow. I want to say that the majority of the talk radio we listened to was in English and Afrikaans but the FM DJs were all over the map. I definitely missed the effortlessness of enjoying American media.

One night I struck gold and found “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” at its halfway point. Immersing my mind in a plot made forcing myself to stay awake until 10 pm a lot easier. (Prior to that night my mom and I had gotten into the habit of going to sleep at 9 pm!) Once we left Cape Town for the safari portion of our trip we were media-free. It was that true “vacation” mode that adults love and children find boring. When the time came to leave South Africa altogether it was super sad. (I’m not trying to get you to feel sorry for me but I know you know how I felt!) Again I thought, “All that TV waiting for me on my DVR will make me feel better.” That was until I found out my flight from Johannesburg to Atlanta was 17 hours long. S-e-v-e-n-t-e-e-n hours. I didn’t even know flights could be that long. After doing some time zone calculations and potential jet lag estimations I came up with a plan: I had to force myself to stay awake for the first six hours of the flight (until 2 am South Africa time), then sleep for 8-9 hours, then wake up in time for breakfast. The trick to staying was watching three movies (“Jurassic Park,” “Megamind,” and “Little Shop of Horrors”) on the personal Delta monitor in front of my seat. Cue media burnout! I fell asleep halfway through the last movie but I woke up in time to catch breakfast and “The Nightmare Before Christmas.”

During my layover in Atlanta on Sunday morning I wrote in my journal for at least two hours and then another hour on the flight. When my pen ran out of ink I took a gander at the screen in front of me and found (much to my surprise) that the movies were free. (The movies on my SLC-JFK flight were not free.) This meant I could watch yet another movie so I picked “Up.” That’s right folks, I watched five movies in less than 24 hours. I don’t think I’ve done that since my post-finals celebrations during college. You would think that by now my brain would be sludge and my ear buds would be permanently imbedded into my ears and I couldn’t possibly stand the thought of watching another minute of movies or TV but… I did. Sure, I enjoyed passing the time on the planes but the mere thought of being able to sit on my own couch (with my legs stretched out!!) was intoxicating. Plus I had to make myself stay awake until at least 9 pm and there was no way I could do that without some help.

I got home at 1:30 and (you’ll be proud of me) I just dropped my stuff, grabbed a new pen and finished my journal entry. Seriously. It only took me an hour to wrap it up. Only then did I allow myself to sort laundry, take a shower, eat some food and turn on the TV. I think I watched four shows in total zombie mode (with frequent laundry breaks) and just as I was fading out (I think around 6 pm) my friend came over and I was able to stay awake until 9. It was a total battle but it paid off. I fell asleep immediately (despite a few “Nightmare Before Christmas” songs still ringing through my head) and I didn’t wake up until 8 the next morning. Jet lag be gone!

Yesterday was my first day back at work and it went well. Last night I went Christmas tree shopping with my friends. However somewhere along the way I dug my heels into the ground and really started resisting this whole idea of Thanksgiving passing and November ending and December, Christmas, and New Year’s suddenly being upon me. Traveling below the equator during the holiday season definitely makes for an uneasy transition coming home. (“What do you mean it’s Christmas time? Where is spring and the lions and elephants and baby impalas?! And why is it so freaking cold outside?”) I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve considered running away from home and becoming a ranger at a game reserve like the one my mom and I stayed at. (“If I’m still single when I turn 40…”) I could learn Afrikaans and an African dialect or two, right? Right.

Tonight after I got home from work I knew the solution to feeling better would be to get some stuff done. I had to complete a new round of grocery shopping and I’m proud to say that every purchased item made it onto its allocated cabinet or refrigerator shelf. When the sense of accomplishment wasn’t quite satisfying enough I decided to load the dishwasher for good measure. After sitting on the couch and staring at the TV for a few minutes I knew there was really only one solution: chocolate.

Snickers Peanut Butter Squared is the official sponsor of my battle against these post-vacation blues.

Thank you to the creator of Snickers, and airplanes, and passports, and paychecks, and paid time off and lions and elephants and baby impalas. You make life bearable, meaningful, and unforgettable.

Thanksgiving in Rio (2009)

Friday, November 27^th, 2009

Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

Yesterday I woke up and it was Thanksgiving! Jane and I had a jam-packed schedule. We ate breakfast and then took our first metro trip to Rua Urugaiana. We were very careful when we were walking through the market and shops. Jane took a couple pictures and that was all we dared. We bought some cute magnets and I bought a R10 shirt that said “Ipanema” and had a cool design on the front.

After that we headed to the Cinelandia Station. I wanted to show Jane the Teatro Municipal but it seemed to be under heavy renovation and wasn’t too exciting. Luckily we found a stand selling the tamale-like thing that I remember from my mission. We got it and Jane liked it a lot.

We took a few pictures and jumped back on the metro and rode to Catete. It was a bit surreal coming out of the station and seeing the all-too-familiar Rua do Catete. We went right into the Palacio do Catete and were told that there were three musicians from West Virginia upstairs doing a free classical concert. We watched a little bit but it was so HOT in the room and we had to get out of there. I don’t even know how the musicians could stand it. Okay they were probably miserable but how did they manage to play??? (Bassoon, Flute & Piano.)

We walked around the Palace (where the President of Brazil used to live) and took a bunch of pictures. I wanted to go to the art museum next but was discouraged when I didn’t see any signs for the display. Instead we went into a gallery display and then down the hallway to the art store. Jane saw some stuff she really liked (a painting and a purse) and ended up buying a table runner for her mom. On the way back down the hallway I realized there was a pay phone right there in the quietest place imaginable. I called Mariangela in Itaborai and she answered. She told me she had been worried about me because I hadn’t called sooner. Of course I felt bad but I had technically called the day before but with no luck. Anyway I told her it would be very difficult for us to get to Itaborai but she said she could meet us at Praca XV (the ferry station) on Saturday morning. We decided to meet sometime between 10 and 10:30 (Jane and I will have to wait at a ticket station. I really hope this will work out!)

After I talked to Mariangela we walked out and on a whim I turned back and asked if there was an art museum upstairs. We were told that the entrance to the museum was the next door over. We walked through the door and I immediately recognized the display. It was exciting! We walked through and I told Jane what I could about Baianas and Gauchos which wasn’t much. We had a fun time in there (except for the part where I got major chills in the Macumba section). We talked to one of the workers and he said he preferred to sit and wait for visitors in the Carnaval section instead of the Macumba section. I can totally understand why! (I should also mention the adorable middle-aged worker who turned on the mechanical miniature displays “just for us.” He was so cute!)

After we went through the museum we walked outside and found a street vendor selling these cool sculpture pieces made out of aluminum and wire. (I had seen a similar set of pieces as a missionary on the same street but I knew they’d be impossible to take home with me.) I talked to the guy for quite a while. He was from the Nordeste and he had a dream to ride his bike to the United States. He got as far as Panama! That is just amazing. He is now a big time surfer and we talked about the mad waves at Itacoatiara. He told me he plans to go back home sometime soon because people from his region are not “very well accepted” here. Sad. I ended up buying his surfer piece and it was only R15. I couldn’t resist at that price! I’m pretty sure I’m going to give it to Naomi and Pehr. I just hope their son doesn’t poke his eye out!

We walked on to Rua Dois de Dezembro and took a picture in the lobby of the old mission office. (The headquarters of the mission is now in Vitoria, ES.) We walked to Largo do Machado and I was a little sad we weren’t hungry enough to eat at Parme. (I’m glad I had gotten to eat some banana pizza the night before!) I was also sad that I’d had no luck getting a hold of the lady Eliana and Victoria are living with or Dora who had Ana’s new home address. I wasn’t sure at that point how any of the visits were going to work out.

After we took some time walking around Largo do Machado we went into the metro entrance. Then it hit me that I wasn’t ready to leave. That place really felt like home to me and it was hard enough leaving it the first time. I pulled myself together (tears were falling and Jane said we could go sit on a bench for a while but I decided we should go). She remarked, “It’s hard, not knowing when you’ll come back.” So true. We went down the escalator and I got some concerned looks from people coming up the other escalator but it was all good.

We went down to board in the Zona Sul direction but sat for a bit to make a plan. We decided to go to Botafogo and find Botafogo Praia Shopping to search for a new blue Brasil jersey for my sister (which she had asked for over email). We found the mall without a problem but had no luck finding the jersey. The only women’s jerseys were yellow. We went up to all three above-ground floors and then decided to see what was in the basement. Turned out it was Lojas Americanas. I bought a box of Garoto chocolates for Jane and me to share. We went all the way back to the food court and planned our next move.

Jane had a brilliant idea. It was only about 4:30 and instead of sitting around in the mall and then taking a taxi to the sweet restaurant where we were going for Thanksgiving dinner, we could go home and shower and put on nice clothes and then go to the restaurant. It worked out great.

We changed into our Sunday outfits and just took Morgan’s camera in her pocket so I wouldn’t have to carry around my camera case or a plastic bag. We caught a taxi and did what I had been hoping to do for 3.33 years: return to Marius Desgustare. (I had gone with my sister, brother-in-law and father for dinner on our last night in Rio in 2006 but we didn’t take a camera!) I can’t exactly explain what a tragedy that was except to say we have been kicking ourselves for the last three years.

When we first got to the restaurant Jane had no idea what she was in for. It’s the most crazy yet wonderfully decorated restaurant EVER. Sooooo unique. We took tons of pictures and all of the guys working there were incredibly nice. The price had definitely gone up a bit (R92/churrasco de carne w/buffet and dessert buffet included) but it was AMAZING. A dinner like that could easily run for $100 in the US. The food was all so beautiful and Jane and I were two of the first people there for dinner. Gorgeous! We took tons of pics before we actually got food. I think we stayed in the restaurant for at least an hour and a half and Jane discovered her love for Brigadeiro which is good because it’s somewhat easy to make at home. We caught a taxi back to our street after taking more pictures outside.

We got out and went back to the street fair and as soon as we walked up to Thiago’s booth he pulled out the two paintings he had shown us on his cell phone. They were MUCH bigger than I had expected (though I must say - incredibly awesome) and I wasn’t sure if I could afford one since dinner had been so much more expensive than I had thought. LUCKILY Thiago said they were only R60 and if I wanted one of the other larger ones he could do one for R70, but no lower. I ended up picking the one of the Santa Tereza cable car because that was a place I had actually been to and was very fond of.

I couldn’t manage to leave the fair without buying another small painting (one of Pao de Acucar). We passed by the hostel to get Ivanilde’s umbrella which we had forgotten to give back to her the night before. We decided to walk to her house (it was already 9ish) and I figured it wouldn’t take too long. However, we got to talking about the visits I’d been unable to coordinate and she picked up the phone and called Dora. I talked to Dora too and she said, “Que saudades!” and I was sad I hadn’t kept in contact with anyone and I just figured they’d forget about me soon enough.

Dora didn’t end up having Ana’s address but she said she’d call Ilta. In the meantime we called Maria Elena (who had already hung up on me twice that day) and woke her up. Oops! She must have been ticked because when Ivanilde passed the phone to me and I asked about Eliana she just kept saying, “I don’t know.” I passed the phone back to Ivanilde and shrugged my shoulders. Dora called back and said she couldn’t get a hold of Ana. Ivanilde was gracious enough to call Ana’s cell (very expensive) and it worked! I got to talk to Ana after an unacceptable amount of time. I have no excuse for this. She didn’t seem to be mad at me which was a blessing. I told her that Dora suggested we all meet at Ilta’s house on Saturday and Ana said most likely that would work for her. Luckily she has a cell phone now so I can get a hold of her as long as I have a phone card.

The only bad thing is that by this time it was already 10:40 and I was worried about getting home okay. Ivanilde walked us to the elevator and said, “Say a prayer so you get home safe.” I said I would say one in the elevator but when the door opened the answer to our prayer was standing inside. Her name was Jade. I told her where we were going and asked her if she wanted to walk with us. She said she would. She’s a hairstylist and she showed us her salon by the beach. It was such a good thing she was with us – there was hardly anyone out and that’s very unsafe in Rio. We made it back safely and the whole way there she told us tips for how to be a street-smart tourist. She even walked three blocks out her way in order to leave us on our front step. What an angel!