Minha Filha

We met our host families today. Each of us was given half a postcard and we were to find our mother who's postcard matched ours. At first all of us students shyly stood, wide-eyed and nervous, staring and these foreign women. The women returned our blank stares and bashful smiles also afraid to make the first move. They were equally anxious to meet the "child" that they had chosen and already started to love on paper. But suddenly we were all mingling.

My mother found me. Her name is Marla, she comes up to my shoulder and has dyed blond hair. She gave me a huge hug and would not let go of my hand as we walked around getting lunch from the buffet. Her husband lives in Japan and works as an Electrical Engineer. She has a 29 year old son who lives with her and works as a civil engineer. He is going to move to Angola come January to start work there.

Today she has treated me like a grandma who spoils her grandchild. She calls me "minha filha" which means my daughter. She speaks only a few words of broken so we have been stumbling through my portuguese to communicate. She took me to the mall to show me all the good bargain places (though it is really a fancy mall, because she is very wealthy so prices are like US stuff). Anyway, she insisted that she buy me a shirt as a gift. She chose out this sorta hideous red shirt with puffed sleeves and a large heart on the front and a low cut back with a bow. Its a little tight as well, but minha mae (my mom) insists that it looked beautiful on. It was also the cheapest shirt she had suggested for me to buy so i consented. And in a way I sort of like its rediculousness. She also was insistant I need a bikini. She wasnt pressuring me to buy one but we went to every single store (mind you this is the 3rd biggest mall in south america) to try on Brazilian bikinis. She also insisted I was a size medium, and was very skeptical when I wanted to try on a large. There Nothing like breaking the ice and warming up to someone than trying on/showing off too small bikinis. Especially when the girls working at the store wanted to look and give their opinion too. Luckily what my mom would have fainted to see on me, they said looked beautiful and fit me well. I refused to buy the 90 Real ones (60 bucks) and finally 6 stores later settled on a simple black and white one that was on sale for 30 Reals (20 bucks). It was also more conservative that the others because rather than being just a bandeau, it has a neck strap and the bottom isnt just string and small peice of cloth in front and back, it resembles a VERY VERY itty bitty bikini bottom. Anyway, minha mae is just a sweetheart. She also fed me some delicious chocolate cake she made. It was soooo good.

The apartment is beautiful too. I have my own room that is so cute and the veiw from the 13th floor is amazing too.

Well, thats all for now, Im exhausted. My brain is swollen from the portuguese overload of the day. I think it will be day and night of a difference a week from now as to how well i can communicate.