Last day in Macae and all packed. The wind was blowing hard here and some storm out in the Atlantic was whipping up the waves as well. Huge waves, I didn’t even go to the beach, went to the roof top pool instead. Can’t believe the strength of the waves, now I understand how a ship can break up if they go on the rocks with waves like that washing over it.

Found a nice place to eat just down the road, a buffet and so good, wish I had found it earlier.  I leave here at 7:00 tomorrow morning for the bus stop. It will take me to the bus depot in Rio where I have to get a taxi to the airport. I have a note for a taxi driver and a map of the bus depot provided by a teacher friend.  I leave Rio at 13:15 and get to Sao Paolo at 14:07 where I will be met by a school representative.

 Big tournament all day at the beach, some kind of paddle ball. Boy are they good!

Big surf.

Wash day…..and to find a washer before another early bird nabs it. Missed out on the washer by about 30 seconds, got there just as someone in their PJs was filling up the washer. I waited till after she left and to check the time left and it was 5 hours and 30 minutes. What kind of a cycle takes that long??? I’m thinking these wonder washers (not coin operated) are maybe washers and dryers combined!?!? Did a search of all floors and found a washer on the first floor unoccupied, same as the 4^th floor one, you need a knife to pop the latch. I must look dangerous or paranoid every time I go to the washers with a knife in my hand.

My main job today was to find an ATM with some English so I could get some money for the ride to the airport. Guessing what a bank machine says isn’t good.  Who knows where I would tell the money to go in Portuguese. Finally after about 8 ATMs I finally was able to withdraw some cash. Then off to the beach, just soaked up the sun and walked in the surf. Waves were huge and although the water looked so inviting….beyond the breaking surf… I remembered my last attempt at getting past the surf. I think it takes practice.
Oh I think I hear another big party coming down the road,again only this one is later and maybe bigger. Every street party so far has had a T shirt worn by the party people, now I can see people walking up the road wearing fluorescent orange halter tops. Oh and the beer trucks aren't beer, it is a soft drink they pass out.

 Shots  from my balcony of fishermen in the bay this morning.

Finally some rain falling this morning on the way to school but the sun came out and it was beautiful as usual. It’s my last day at school in Macae, they had a mini party with a birthday/bon voyage cake and gave me a beautiful Brazil book. What nice people, they are an example of a smooth running work team.  Sorry to leave the children as well, things were going very well.

Huge surf crashing in to day, now I understand where it comes from. It is rolling in from storms in the Atlantic. I won’t even put my toes in tomorrow if it is like this.

On the way home there were many huge birds perched on the lamp posts by the road…..vultures….the real thing!

The Grid

Feb 24, 2011

Tomorrow is my last day here then it's on to Sao Paulo, I'm very sorry to leave such a great school. It has a very comfortable atmosphere for students and teachers.  I have felt very welcome and have enjoyed working with such a dedicated staff.  Recently my constant companions are the 100 square grid and accessories.  This is a large floor mat with 100 squares, probably about 6 feet by 6 feet. It is stored in a length of PVC pipe with caps on the end and it has two boxes of accessories to go with it, (hard plastic cards with numbers 1-10, multiple letters of alphabet and shapes printed on them). I’ve been toting this awkward collection almost everywhere I go. Today I did what I didn’t think possible, I thought up more games to use with the grid. By the end of the day my brain is smoking from overuse, getting rid of the rust accumulated from retirement.

No transportation problems today, I even got home early.  This is a fun job, I get to think up as many fun, educational activities as my brain can take and test them out on a very appreciative group of children and teachers.  Today we played games with the 100 grid square, lots of fun there, one class was yelling like they were at a hockey game. Introduced learning centers in another class today and it went very well. The children made art from cut out geometric shapes and the pictures they produced were awesome.

All in all it was a great birthday. Appreciated all the Facebook wishes from home as well as the wishes and happy birthday singing at school.