Foiled by the weather!

Oi!

So foiled again!

I will not be arriving in Brazil tomorrow, as it stands my flight leaves on Monday! How did this happen, well... It was a dark and stormy night. Hahahaha just kidding.

There was, however, a lot of really nasty thunderstorms over Detroit and that was where my flight was headed. After getting onto the runway and then having to come off because of a grounding restriction, we all waited in the terminal before reboarding the plane. Not long afterwards we were told to exit the plane again because the grounding was in place again. Shortly after that I was informed that the flight had been cancelled. After a long (and I mean long) discussion with the attendant I was informed that the soonest they could get me off the ground was Monday. I was also informed that a flight may open up before that and I should call Delta for updates. I also was informed that my suitcases had decided to go to Detroit without me. I'm not entirely sure how that happened but I have been told that I will get them back, they do know where they are.

Despite all of the problems that I ran into this first attempt to leave I still can't wait to arrive in Brazil. What caused this whole fiasco was a bunch of ill-timed thunderstorms and I am fine, so I can't really complain.

It looks like the Adirondacks will have to put up with me for a little while longer and I just hope my next try to get on a plane will be better than this one!

Tchau!
Kiki

Rerouted!

Oi! My flight got cancelled because of the weather in Detroit. As far as I know I will be flying to Rio de janeiro and getting in later than expected. I can't wait to get there! Tchau! Kiki

In the airport!

Oi! Hey everyone! I am waiting for my plane to come in at the moment but I am so excited! I can't wait to get to Sao Luis! Tchau! Kiki

I am leaving on a jet plane!

Ola!

So, I have my official departure date (the 27th of July), my official arrival date (28th of July) and my flight plan (Albany to Detroit to Sao Paulo to Sao Luis)! Yea!!!!! I also, early this morning, presented my PowerPoint to the members of my Rotary Club.

I am almost ready to go and for those of you who want to know, the answer is no, I haven't started packing yet. :)

Beijos!
Kiki

Skype

Ola! Tudo bom?

So, a few days ago I managed to contact my first host family via Skype. It was really cool! I found that I can understand a lot more than I thought but I have yet to master the art of forming sentences in Portuguese. My host sister, Juliane, speaks English really well so we communicated alright. I am really looking forward to meeting my host family in Brazil!

Beijos!
Kiki

Final Countdown:
Days till arrival in Brazil: 47

Rotary Orientation Part II

So all of the rules have been told to the exchange students and now we can really start to get ready. Of all of the students, I am leaving the earliest, which is kind of scary but cool. I am really looking forward to my exchange year, if only because I have no idea what is coming in it.

I really hope that when I come back a) I can still speak English and b) am fluent in Brazilian Portuguese. I can't wait.

Kirsten

Final Countdown:
Days till arrival in Brazil: 61

São Luís

Bom dia! Tudo Bom?

I finally got the letter from Rotary saying where in Brazil I was going! I am going to a city in northern Brazil called São Luís. The state, Maranhão, is home to some of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Map of Brazil, São Luís is at the top right of Brazil

The city is two degrees south of the equator but it is awesome. I really can't wait to go to Brazil. It will be so amazing. Am I nervous? Of course I am! Will I be homesick? I expect I will be but the overall effect this will have upon my life far outweighs the bad stuff. I mean, regular life is full of ups and downs, so I assuming life in Brazil will be that way too.

Another thing I found out is that I will be arriving (not leaving home but arriving in Brazil) on the 26th of July! That is not that far away and I still have so much stuff I have to do. But I can get it done. I kind of have to.

Tchau!
Eu adoro voces.
Kiki