The Girl From Iponema

Greetings from Brazil where the weather is hot and the men are even hotter. Actually the weather's not that bad but my comparison wouldn't have had the same effect if I said the weather was mild. Anyhoo as I sit in my hotel room it's a little surreal because really it looks like any other room from any given business trip. It's not until I open my drapes and see the hussle of the city that I realize that I'm not in Kansas anymore. (For those who always take me literally please note that I'm not from Kansas. It's a quote from The Wizard of Oz). One full wall of my room is filled with a gigantic window that looks out onto Sao Paulo. Can't blog long as I want to explore the city before my first meeting but first a few observations:

• The prettiest women here are the natural beauties. There are definitely surgically enhanced women but they don't hold a candle to the women with little to no makeup who wear jeans and a t-shirt.
• The fashion for young women is bright colors and lots of skin.
• The fashion for young men is the tighter the better.
• Portuguese is my new favorite language of the moment. It sounds like a combination of Spanish and Italian.
• Knowing how to speak Spanish paid off as I made my way from the airport to the hotel. The driver they sent to pick my up last night has lived here all his life and had great recommendations on places to go.
• Watched T.V. as I went to bed. I'm fascinated by the Portuguese overdub of the audio.
• What's up with the porn? I understand the hotel offers basic cable and it's "only" soft-core but geez, what if there were kids around? As I switched channels I wasn't expecting to go from CNN to BBC News to porn. *waves at Jay* I can't even say the word porn without thinking of Jay and a post he once did on his Japanese porn collection. *shudders at the memory* And NO. I'm not thinking of him in THAT way because *whispers* Jay's gay. shhhh. I'm not sure if anyone knows that.

OK. Off to explore. Bom dia mis amigos.