It's today!!

Ai ai ai ui ui ui, it's today... it's ALL happening today! Oh my Lord, give us a smooth day and tranquility! The language barrier... oh no, so much Spanish packed in a single day only!!

After uncountable problems, I mean, endless problems or put in other words, loads of trouble, the delivery of the first container should start today at around 11 AM!

The obstacles we had to face were SO MANY, SO MANY, that it became normal, laughs...

You know those really cheap terror movies, when the girl is running away from the mean guy, in a cemetery at mid night and she manages to find a knife, kills him and as she turns back to walk away from the crime scene, the supposed dead mean guy jumps and grabs her leg and you, watching the movie, scream out your lungs because you were not prepared for that? Oh well, we had the same thing... last week, we saw Dolores arriving, we saw one of the containers, we scheduled the delivery, and then... we were informed that the fabulous moving company we hired back in Hong Kong, had not yet paid the shipping service in full, therefore the containers were being held until payment being settled!!! Just so freaking unbelievable!!!

Also, way back then, when we though life had brought us all the confusion it could possibly bring, Alice and David, together with us, set a date for their arrival here in Panama. The date was planned in such a way that Joel and I would have had 3 weeks to organize the new place after our stuff had arrived so that the flat would be ready by the time they flew in.

Well, it so happens that they are arriving tonight, on day 1 of the move, poor them!! Instead of walking into a place already with a "home" feel, they are going to walk into a war zone! Thank you dear Alice & David for not changing your travel dates! We are thrilled, but not so sure if you are thrilled with this holiday concept of playing hide and seek behind boxes, LOL!

We welcomed Dolores with tons (literally) of excitement!

Today was one memorable day in our lives... really a cool day!!

Joel and I went to Miraflores Locks to see "Maersk Dolores" pass the last of three locks of the Canal. On her deck, she brought our two so awaited containers!! What a thrill it was!! Just a few days short of 6 months since we last saw our stuff, Dolores made its way into the locks with its "heavy metal" cargo and sailed out into a gorgeous blue and hot afternoon, heading to the port of Balboa! Her crossing, cost Maersk over US$ 300 thousand.
I hope ship Captains, pilots - both plane and harbour, understand that their job is way more then just the huge technical side of it. They carry on their back people's stories, people's personal belongings, people's dreams and dramas, they unite people and today it was not different... Dolores' Captain and the Panama Canal's pilot brought Joel and I an enormous relief, a vast sense of closure to a confused period of our lives, they brought us satisfaction, peace!

My true wish was to have a band playing while Dolores was passing through the Locks, as well as, a big banner saying something like: "THANK YOU FOR BRINGING HOME OUR STUFF", but was happy enough with the idea of the guy in the loudspeaker who suggested us to shout out loud "hello" and wave for her crew. I waved like crazy as my eyes got wetter and wetter.

Since we didn't get the band playing, at least Joel got to cuddle Dolores!!

A big thank you goes to our dearest friends, R and S v T. Our moving company has given us a VERY bad service. We only chose them because they have the account of the Angolan Embassy, so we thought they would have some Angolan experience. BAD CALL! Just as an example, one day, at the peak of redirecting the containers, they sent Joel and email saying that Maersk, the biggest container shipping line in the world, did not have a service to Panama!?! Honestly, no matter what line of business you're in, can you imagine the No 1 container line in the world not calling Panama??? Honestly!!!!

Anyway, because of their low service standards, we had to cry for help, asking a huge favour to dear R, a big big guy at Maersk who came to our rescue, spoke to the right people and voila, Dolores sailed through bringing our things today!

As she was passing, we were able to spot our smaller container on the deck, so so so cool, I must say!!
I know that when we leave this planet for a much better life, we'll take nothing with us, so why should Joel and I be so looking forward to Dolores' arrival? Oh well, my conclusion is that as we are still very much alive, we enjoy cherishing the things that represent the many blessed and Kodak moments God has allowed us to have!

Plan ZZ

You know... in life not everything happens the way we first plan things, thus the expression "Plan B" or even "Plan C". Well, today, Ocotber 14th, Joel and I are already in "Plan ZZ", LOL!

NOTHING, absolutely nothing, except for good health and God's guidance, came out as we first planned back in May 10th, when we left Hong Kong.

If you read my last post, you already know that life, as we knew it, is finally showing itself in the horizon and therefore about to happen again. It's a wonderful feeling!

The only missing piece for the above scenario is the arrival of our containers which have, at last, been loaded onto a vessel coming down to Panama. But honestly, this is so so so freaking frustrating that it becomes funny and Joel and I have managed to laugh about this "Plan ZZ".

So, their last chapter goes like this:
- the containers arrived in New York on September 25th.
- missed the first vessel to Panama because.... nobody knows.
- were scheduled to be loaded onto the next vessel, 1 week later
- missed this one too, because they had to be x-rayed by US customs, despite the fact that their final destination is Panama and not the US.
- then... US customs decided to open both containers to inspect them inside and...
- ... because we have so much stuff, and because the containers had been packed in HK in a puzzle-like way, Joel got an email saying that they were having trouble putting it all back inside again, can you believe it??
- then we got another email saying that they had finally managed to fit it all inside and that the containers had been placed at the end of the loading queue. They were not sure there would be enough time to load them onto today's vessel.

So the flavor of the day was something like " hang in there" type of mood, as we didn't know the outcome of this particular soap opera and then voila... Joel has just told me that "YES, THE CONTAINERS ARE FINALLY ON THEIR LAST STRETCH, heading to Panama!!

They have survived Somalian waters infested with pirates, heavy African bureaucracy, the Cape of Good Hope troubled winter waters twice and the strict procedures of US customs!! Hoorray!! Not so sure what the 100 year old plus crystal glasses think about that, LOL, I'll tell you later!

We are getting there... amen!

These last couple of weeks have certainly gone very well and quite frankly, we were needing some of that!

For me, it started with Al Gore's conference on Global Warming. Again I repeat myself, it was fantastic! I loved every minute of it and every penny spent on my ticket was worth it!

Then, we got our temporary IDs, obaaa, we're now "somebody" here in Panama! It reinforces the feeling that home sweet home is happening here and right now.

We've found a full time helper... big time obaaaa. She starts tomorrow.

We've closed a good deal on a storage unit to keep the many 220 voltage electrical stuff that is coming in our containers.

Another huge big blessing is, because we are so enjoying our new church, "Crossroads International Bible Church", we have applied to become members. It was love at first sight.

And... absolutely best of all... we have at last signed the purchase of our flat here in Panama!! This is unbelievable, this is awesome, this is just too fantastic for words! What a relief to have a place to really finally call "home sweet home".

You might have noticed that none of the good news above relate to the arrival of our containers... just because... oh well... that's another story all together!! After staying in Africa for over 1 month, sitting somewhere doing absolutely NOTHING, they sailed to New York, arriving there on September 26th. However, for some obscure reason, they not only had to be x-rayed by US customs, but they also had to be opened and checked inside. We are hoping they will be released in time for the vessel leaving NY this coming Wednesday, but it hasn't been confirmed yet. Of course, as it has to be in these situations, if they board this next vessel, they will be due to be delivered to us right when Joel has to be in Quito for an important meeting for him and... receiving on my own, 2 fully loaded containers, when they have already been opened and closed without us present elsewhere, is so NOT happening!

In other words, by the time Joel and I get to finally see our stuff again, our clothes will be so out dated that we will have to do the sacrifice and go on a shopping spree, right??

Mercedes Sosa, my first musical reference to go!

Mercedes, Mercedes... I'm really sorry she is gone. I knew she was sick and that there were big chances that the news would hit the newspapers soon... and so it did...

Mercedes Sosa, an Argentinian woman, with a deep velvet rich voice, a voice that came from the very bottom of her esophagus, gorgeous straight pure black hair - that she made sure to keep beautiful til her last days, who could easily sing acapella, became a symbol fighting, through her music, on behalf of the many political issues the Americas had in the 60's and 70's.

In my particular case, she became more known when I joined UNICAMP, my university back in march 1977. In those days, my political wings were quite wide opened and flying highish. In between classes, I would take part in meetings where us, young students, discussed our dream of a better Brazil, a less censured Brazil, what could be done and what could WE do in order to achieve it.

In those days, Cambodia was way into Pol Pot's regime and I clearly remember meetings we had where her songs would play before and after it and charged up with her music we started our heated discussions of how we could avoid Brazil having its own "Killing Fields". These meetings would carry on later in the day at parties that went on way into the night and of course, there she was again, being played in good old LPs. She became such an icon in the fight for a better society, specially in Argentina of course, that she had to go into exile in Europe for a while.

What a gift she had and me, 2009 Odila, is VERY pleased to have had Mercedes participating in my adulthood formation. I hope my other dear singers from those days, Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, wait a bit before going, I still want to see them live.

Here are two You Tube videos of her singing:
- Mercedes and major Brazilian singers singing "Volver a los 17":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYNx1D74mtQ
- Mercedes singing the absolute max "Gracias a la Vida".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WyOJ-A5iv5I&feature=related

Obaaaa, Rio 2016!!

I've been watching "CNN en Espanol" that is showing the Olympic Committee in Copenhagen on its final moments before announcing who will host the 2016 Olympics. I think I've just lost all my nails and have surely gained loads of gray hair, as if I needed any more!

Rio has just made it and it will be hosting the 2016 Olympics!! How cool my friends!

I'm so happy and proud of it! Ok ok ok, I know, I know... I have not done a single little thing towards this moment we, Brazilians, are living this very second, but never the less, it's an awesome feeling!! Good for us and sorry for the complete lack of humbleness here,... good for all those that will be able to make it there, becasue it's a GORGEOUS place of this planet!! God was in such inspired moment when he created that place.... I tell you!!

Photo by Fernanda Coelho
As if that were not enough, Forbes Magazine, has just voted Rio de Janeiro as being the happiest city in the world!

Bravo Cariocas, we made it!! Both photos below by David Scott

Care for some really ice lemon tea?

Old Rio
Spices in a market