We get up really early to leave at 6:30 am. We have to be there on time at 8:00 am or everyone will throw us off the plane as we have everyone;s ticket. Zosia does a fabulous job of getting everyone checked in and their bags on the plane. A short two hour and arrive in Maringa and our host are waiting for us as we arrive. Everyone is tired as we got home very late and everyone had to pack the nigh before. This town of 250,000 has a totally different feel than Sao Paulo with its 20 million people. First order of business is,of course, lunch - Like everywhere we go it is a buffet with fantastic food.
This city is 10% Japanese heritage so all places have sushi. Everyone loads up their pate and it is weighed and the Friendship Force of Maringa pays for all these lunches. Now we go to our new home for five nights.
And what a beautiful home it is. In an exclusive gated neighborhood close to downtown, the home is very modern. Our hosts are Marceli (with an accent on the i) and Gerberto who are professional in their 50s. Marceli is a teacher at two schools and is the Exchange Director who organized the stay for the club. There is a motorcycle out front as Gerberto is an enthusiast. We come through the kitchen where we are greeted by Gabriela, the 17 year-old daughter and Isabel, the comely day maid. We are led to our quarters which is the mother-in-law suite out back with a living room, bathroom, and air-conditioning in the bedroom (which is sweet as it is about humid 90s). Outside our door is the swimming pool. We put down our bags and put on the bathing suits and we are ready.Kathleen, another Ambassador from Austin, stays in the house with the family. Here is Marceli and Gabriela -
Mercedi asks if w want to go with her to pick up Gabriella at the horse stables in town - Yeah! It is a really large facility and the young girls are all training and surrounded by young working men. We go to see her horse, Sweepi (sweetpea). They are quite the pair.
We see some great birds and then off to the travel agent Zosia has been working with for months. We have to make sure all of the arrangements are in order and paid for for the rest of the trip where we are not being hosted. Zosia did a fantastic job we do some money arranging as we have US dollars.
Back at home we are preparing for the welcome party. Marceli is in charge of the dinner, in fact as time goes on we find our host is in charge of about everything. We bring the things down to the community center in the neighborhood where we meet all of the hosts. They have also hired a couple of woman to serve and help. Half of which are of Japanese descent. The party begins where the men are all hanging together as we muddle through languages barriers. Everyone is so friendly - good thing they are in Friendship Force. What can we say, every got to know each other very well and many sets of pictures.
Later we take the leftovers back home and do a modest clean up leaving the real clean up for the maids they have hired to finish the job tomorrow.
This city is 10% Japanese heritage so all places have sushi. Everyone loads up their pate and it is weighed and the Friendship Force of Maringa pays for all these lunches. Now we go to our new home for five nights.And what a beautiful home it is. In an exclusive gated neighborhood close to downtown, the home is very modern. Our hosts are Marceli (with an accent on the i) and Gerberto who are professional in their 50s. Marceli is a teacher at two schools and is the Exchange Director who organized the stay for the club. There is a motorcycle out front as Gerberto is an enthusiast. We come through the kitchen where we are greeted by Gabriela, the 17 year-old daughter and Isabel, the comely day maid. We are led to our quarters which is the mother-in-law suite out back with a living room, bathroom, and air-conditioning in the bedroom (which is sweet as it is about humid 90s). Outside our door is the swimming pool. We put down our bags and put on the bathing suits and we are ready.Kathleen, another Ambassador from Austin, stays in the house with the family. Here is Marceli and Gabriela -
Mercedi asks if w want to go with her to pick up Gabriella at the horse stables in town - Yeah! It is a really large facility and the young girls are all training and surrounded by young working men. We go to see her horse, Sweepi (sweetpea). They are quite the pair. 
Back at home we are preparing for the welcome party. Marceli is in charge of the dinner, in fact as time goes on we find our host is in charge of about everything. We bring the things down to the community center in the neighborhood where we meet all of the hosts. They have also hired a couple of woman to serve and help. Half of which are of Japanese descent. The party begins where the men are all hanging together as we muddle through languages barriers. Everyone is so friendly - good thing they are in Friendship Force. What can we say, every got to know each other very well and many sets of pictures.
Later we take the leftovers back home and do a modest clean up leaving the real clean up for the maids they have hired to finish the job tomorrow.
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