Salvador and drive...

2/18 –
the flight from Miami was a sardine can hotel. We were so lucky bcuz we met a great geneticist, Paolo from Framingham, who sat with us the whole way and had traded seats with a huge man who would have stayed in our 3rd seat. Paulo . Paulo had just gotten a new job in Camridge with some genetic company and was celebrating by coming to carnaval – his family being from Salvador and having grown up traveling back and forth. If I had known it was carnaval, I would have picked another time to travel! What a mob… It’s like the inauguration. Bands people, cars everywhere!
Alisson picked us up from the airport (the connection through Bruno from Melrose who I met from Craigslist!) and drove us to the beautiful hotel very close by on the beach!
I emailed fernanda and quickly crashed while zak (who slept on the overnight) played his DS and toys… Fernanda showed up 5 hours later! It took her 1 hour to get to us through all the traffic. Zak swam with her in the pool and we had a great feast on the beach. That night, a friend of hers came over with her daughter nina and we got some Acai, (from the deathwish ice cream place) and went to her beautiful house near our hotel. Her husband is a percussionist with Asa de Aguia and Marivaldo, fernanda’s husband, was playing for Daniella Mercury. Nanda herself is great friends with Ivette Sangalo’s sister… These are all HUGE stars in Brazil on the scale of Christine Agularis or Madonna…. Very funny to see “my nanda from NYC” surrounded by such fame!
2/19/09
Our Trip began with Alisson and his driver Marivaldo picking us up and taking us though Salvador toward our destination. Salvador was PACKED with all the stages ready for the evening’s festivities. “Trio Electricos” all over the place – stages with famous bands and singers to play for the audience… I was so happy to get out! I am now writing from the comfortable VW which is driving us toward Piracanga with a driver and a policeman..? Zak wants to know why we need a policeman. So do I – or maybe I don’t!
2/20 and 21
Marivaldo became very flustered at the end of the 4.5 hr drive (but wouldn’t call Gabriel, the owner of the place - ???) … finally, we couldn’t get thru an extremely flooded dirt road and he called… Gabriel and his daughter came to pick us up in a “snorkel equipped” truck! With his daughter Psorria…
getting accustom to piracanga…

So for the past 2 days, we're getting used to the people, the kids (Fred - Gabriels adopted son from Itacare lives next door - he's 8). The ocean's like bathwater with crashing breathtaking and terrifying waves - the river which flows in front of the ocean is filled with mangrove brown but is delicious - a bit cooler than the ocean.... We're eating 3 vegetarian meals and sleeping in our outdoor bed (1 of 3 -). Sunday, we will go to town, Itacare' for Carnaval. The kids will march with "George" of Casa Da Boneca! the place I want Zak to drum...