Saying "Only for Family" is not to say this post is only for family, but to say that only for family would we go to such lengths for such a length of time. The trip was difficult as anticipated, though certainly good relationship-wise. The mosquitos started to bite not long after our plane landed in Sao Paulo and did not stop for the remainder of the trip. By the end, it looked like Audrey and I had had chicken pox. She didn't quite have the stomach issues I had, and I was thankful for that. On the way back with my nephew, I spent two days straight with what we will call an 'irritable bowel", which left me exhausted and weak, open to the very strong flu that was going around. No sooner had I stepped into the USA than i was faint and weak with pain just about everywhere in my body, specifically my throat and lungs. Needless to say that i was relieved to sleep at my dad's house and also when I finally arrived in KC (strombolis in tow). I stayed inside and didn't leave the house other than a doctor's visit and a very painful trip to the emergency room where I had to get hydrated and some breathing treatments and finally some steroids to fight this thing.
However, now that the negative is out there, let me tell you what I haven't yet, and that is the beautiful part of it all. Nieces, nephews and cousins all gathered together on the farm and it really was great. We layed in hammocks, road the horses just about every day, drank coconut water straight from the coconut until we were just about sick from hydration, and talked. The food was boring to say the least, but as I tell Cesar, there's no other farm in the area where you can step out and grab a handful of acerola, a few mangos, goiaba, jack fruit, bananas, or sugar cane. And hopefully we will develop the garden a bit more. I'd like to have a steady stream of vegetables and be more self-sustaining. I have been told that a few probiotics on my trips could potentially dramatically diminish the stomach issues on these trips. Now... if I could only fin a way to deal with these bugs....