Checked In: Restaurante Aprazível

This weekend I decided I wanted to check out one of the many great restaurants in Santa Teresa, this cool artsy neighborhood that sits on Santa Teresa hill and leads eventually into Lapa. It's the Hackney of Rio and people always talk about the modern Brazilian restaurants up there. We invited our friends Sheena and Sandro to join us and they recommended we check out Restaurante Aprazível, which was amazing. 

After an interesting and thrilling taxi journey to the top of Santa Teresa, I was excited to finally reach the restaurant elevator doors. The restaurant itself is a series of large Amazonian houses connected by little paths, all nestled within the surrounding forest. 

Most of the rooms are open-air which is lovely, but I also liked the cozy feel of the indoor restaurant too. It had warm lighting, interesting framed art and a rockin' wine cellar.

We sat outdoors in the main restaurant, but we discovered a great bar area below with a more relaxed vibe and spectacular views of the city.

I started off with a spicy watermelon martini, but Hub went ahead and ordered the Pedro Ximenez Falernia '13, which was a lovely and easy drinking white. We ordered the couvert bread basket and it came with candied egglplant and a deliciously tangy vinaigrette with baby white clams. So good.

Normally, Brazilian restaurants serve large portions and often they are meant to share. Not here. This restaurant is a little on the pricey side and so we decided to share three mains and an appetizer, which worked out well. For dinner we ordered the Marsanne Reserva De Lucca '10, which was from Uruguay and the sommelier described as very aromatic. I'm a sucker for "aromatic" whites and this one was really special. It tasted so different and unique and I really couldn't make it out, but I loved it. 

the excitement

Retumbão: tapioca couscous with seafood, brazil nuts and acai sauce

Polvo Carnaval: grilled octopus tentacles

Delicious Cabrito: grilled goat marinated in red wine with taro root puree

Galinhada Caipira: chicken risotto with grilled plantain

The food was amazing and although I didn't try the goat or the chicken rice, I did nibble at the veggies around them which were tasty. After dinner we moved onto desserts and lucky me, Hub felt lenient and let me order the least sugary dessert. 

Gioaba do Paradiso: guava, passionfruit and lemon sorbet

Baião de dois: tapioca ice cream with rich acai sauce

Sheena & Sandro tucking in

My date & me

It was such a wonderful evening and I can't wait to come back with my Mom and Step-dad over the World Cup. Such a special place and not to be missed if you're ever in Rio. 

New Hair, New Outlook

Before I lopped off my hair, I thought of Frida Kahlo's Self Portrait with Cropped Hair.

I thought the end of Hub's project would bring peace and relaxation to our home, but instead it stirred up some serious questions about living in Rio. Such as how much longer are we going to stay here? Are we going to stay here until the Olympics in 2016? Do we want to stay in Rio permanently?

I know this is the experience of a lifetime, but moving here was harder than I had imagined. I had this preconceived notion that it would be love at first site and that I would transform into a Carioca overnight. It's particularly hard because I know how much Hub loves it here and how excited he was to get me down here. And although we are on this journey together, are experiences couldn't be anymore different. What's already familiar to him, is new to me. He's revelling in working in Rio, whereas I'm struggling with not working. And for a Capricorn that's hard.

Sure it was a delight at first, like an extended holiday in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. But after awhile not working starts taking it's toll. I can feel it chipping away at my motivation and productivity which is an uncomfortable feeling. A fear that I could get used to this, doing nothing. Hub hates when I say that I do nothing. Even though I write to you dear diary and I help with SCWC sometimes, I do feel like I do nothing. When people ask "so what do you do" I feel embarrassed to say "I blog, I read a lot about nutrition and healthy recipes, and exercise." I sound like some privileged housewife with no kids. I mean doesn't it? I'm not working because I don't have my work visa yet, but hopefully soon.

And it's not just the lack of work that's getting to me, but the absence of close friends and family makes this a lonely place. We have met some wonderful people here who are already friends for life, but what I miss is the history between old friends that takes time to build. I miss my close knit group of girls that are always there and I miss calling Erin at the drop of a hat and asking her to meet me for a drink at Ten Bells.

Sometimes I feel like an ungrateful teenager, whining about my life in Rio. I guess the grass is always greener, even coming from a beautiful beach city with year round summer. I'm in a happy place now and I can feel the tide turning. Things are on the up as we transition from temporary to permanent. So going back to that Frida painting, when I was cutting my hair I was going through a bit of a dip. I wanted to come out of it and I thought I'm going to cut my hair. I'd been wanting to do it for so long, now seemed like a good time. New hair, new outlook.

Easter in Rio

 

Our first Easter in Rio was a happy one. We had a long weekend, with both Friday and Monday off, so we made the most of it. We hit the beach, the race horse tracks, caught some live capoeira and had a delightful Easter brunch.

After church on Sunday, Hub and I decided to work up our Easter appetite with a jog and we ran into this Capoeira group in Leme beach.

  

Our friends Ky and Shanna (of 360Fit fame) invited us to Easter lunch at Prado Grill and some horse race gambling at the Jockey Club.

 

Shanna and I shared the salmon, which was tasty but did not visually compare to the picanha steak.

 

The restaurant had large bay windows and we could watch the beautiful horses in their stables and also catch them parading around before going to race. It was really cool to watch, except for the fact the restaurant advertised a recipe with horse meat on our place mats. WTF.

After lunch, we headed over to the races for some amateur gambling. I'm not into betting, but I did pick the winning horse for Hub.

 

Lucky number 6.

We had a bit of funky weather on Easter Monday, but that didn't stop us from hitting the beach. We had some serious fog coming in from the beach, kind of eerie. You could barely make out the SUPers in Copacabana, but Ipanema was a bit clearer. 

 

The clouds eventually receded and it turned out be a gorgeous afternoon. The water was warm and it was the perfect end to a perfect weekend.

Street Child World Cup Rio 2014: Part 2

Happy belated Easter everyone or boa páscoa! We had a beautiful long weekend and the weather was gorgeous, so we hit the beach a lot. I can't wait to share some photos tomorrow.

It's kind of strange (and sad) how fast the Street Child World Cup came and went, but I guess that's the sign of a good time. I finally finished editing my photos and videos and I'm so happy that I captured some great smiles, wonderful dancing and some singing.

The Late Show

Every evening after dinner, we would have The Late Show where SCWC would share football highlights and each team gave a cultural performance. I absolutely loved this, especially the dances. It felt like a special glimpse into each of the different cultures that I probably wouldn't have the opportunity to experience if I was just a tourist in any of these countries.

Team Kenya

I loved the music from Team Egypt's dance. Egypt has always been high on my bucket list and when I go, I want to hear more of this.

 

Team Liberia started off with a choreographed dance, but I enjoyed their freestyle the most.

 

 

And Team Pakistan got the whole crowd going. That was pretty spectacular.

One night after The Late Show, the DJ carried on a bit so we could boogie and played Michel Teló's "Ai, se eu te pego." This song is so popular here and super catchy (I love it) and Team Brazil Girls would singing it every chance they got. Here below is their captain leading us in the song's dance, which is kind of like the Macarena.

 

Let's Dance...or break into song

Dancing and singing at the drop of the hat was a common occurrence at the SCWC and it was so fascinating to watch. Sometimes the kids just start singing Shosholoza, a South African folk song they all learned or break out a little freestyle circle because they were happy. 

Team Zimbabwe

Team Mauritius

 This was magical and it happened at the top of Cristo Redentor

Well as the saying goes, all good things must come to an end. After two weeks away in the middle of nowhere with a bunch of boisterous (yet lovely) teenagers, I was ready to come home. I look forward to seeing these smiley faces again in the near future and I'm so grateful to have been part of this special experience.

permanent SCWC mural by Joel Bergner at Espaço Lonier

Street Child World Cup Rio 2014: Part 1

 

Hello...I'm sorry I didn't get a chance to visit you last week. We dedicated two full weeks for the actual Street Child World Cup; Hub was working very long hours and I was volunteering as a translator every day. We were beyond exhausted and I just couldn't muster the energy to write. I still don't feel 100%, but it was a beautiful experience for me. I only hope I can convey everything in two parts. 

Street Child World Cup took place at Espaco Lonier, a private events camp with dormitories, football pitches, swimming pools with slides in Barra. The space was surrounded by mountains and was very relaxing. I couldn't wait to see the reaction from the kiddos who I imagine for many, this would be a luxury. We tried to give the teams a warm and cheerful welcoming and so we rallied together as each team arrived, clapping and chanting things like "Ole, ole, ole..."

 

The Teams

I have to say that meeting and getting to know the teams was the highlight for me. We had 8 girls teams and 15 boys teams and I really bonded with a few of them over the 10-day period. It goes without saying that each team had their own unique traits which was ingrained with their culture, but it was so interesting to see them react differently to the whole experience. And they were each so visually striking, different and beautiful...here are just a few photos of the kids.

Team Brazil Boys

Team India

Team Nicaragua

Team Pakistan

Team Kenya

Team El Salvador

Team South Africa

Team Zimbabwe

GOALLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!

We had live commentators at all the matches and some were fantastic and others were a bit dud, but they all manage to get one thing right....GOALLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!! It really got the crowd going, but not nearly as much as seeing the kids celebrate goals in their own special way. I mean that was just pure money.

Team Brazil: I can't hear you!

Team El Salvador: Hey Macarena!

Team Nicaragua: The Tackle

Team Philippines: A little prayer

The Friendships

In the beginning the kids were shy and kept to the their teams, but gradually they opened up and friendships formed between the different countries. It was fascinating to watch them bond through the experience and to communicate without a common language between them.

Team India loved Team USA

Team USA & Team India

Team Brazil & Team Philippines

Team Burundi & Team Philippines

Team Mozambique cheering on Team El Salvador

Team Brazil and Team Mozambique cheering up Team Nicaragua,
who were knocked out of the semi finals

One of the highlights was seeing how the teams supported each other, like Zimbabwe helping Indonesia score a few goals and then both teams celebrating together with a cheeky dance and piggy back rides. Or here when Team Nicaragua, Team Brazil and Team Mozambique started celebrating something...I can't remember now, but it was fun.