heidi*

go tigers!

2006-10-08T17:55:00.000-07:00

ok, so i've never been much of a tigers fan, but we just beat the yankees and msu football is nothing to get excited about. here are some pics from the tigers game we went to back in august- i don't remember who we played (that may have something to do with miller lite) but we lost.

my birthday gift under justin's collection

comerica park - my first tigers game!

at least i don't look as wasted as justin

crazy race season

2006-10-08T16:57:00.000-07:00

here i am on a sunday night not waiting on people and mopping the floor at hippie wasteland. yes, i have found better employment and now proudly call myself a meter reader. for the time being, that is. also been doing a few crazy races. i ran the grand island trail marathon with jay and sue on their wedding day, then the crim, then the dances with dirt relay in hell, mi, then the 24-hour reach the beach relay in new hampshire the next weekend.

other news.....not much new. hopefully i will finish my program this semester but i think that i am still a believer that i work better under some sort of time crunch.

here are some recent (recent being since last july) photos....

my boyfriend and his hillbilly friends and their favorite activity

at jay and sue's wedding in rapid river, mi

after the grand island (near munising) trail marathon

me and my krystal in o-town

asia and sienna in lansing

sleep deprived in new hampshire for the reach the beach relay

more from hadlock

2006-07-03T08:39:00.000-07:00

though port hadlock is small, smaller than o-town, i had a good time! it's small enough that you can get everywhere by bike and the public transport is excellent. people are also so much more environmentally conscious. here's some more shots from the quimper peninsula in washington.

the family at hurricane ridge

another beautiful day near puget sound! this is a shot from the dock at the boat school with indian island in the background.

eric, miles, and brian working on a large product of the rape of a rainforest and small amazon tribe.

eric and a product of the small boat building course.

once i got back to minnesota i took a bus north to duluth and met justin at grandma's marathon. here he is stuffing his face afterwards.

planes, trains, and automobiles

2006-07-03T07:41:00.000-07:00

and buses, bikes, ferries, light rail, subway, and wooden boats.

so i am a bum. this is what we do, ok?

since i haven't been required to stay in lansing for purposes of employment, i visited my brother and his family in northern washington state while he's in wooden boat building school. i found a cheap flight out of minneapolis and since i have plenty of time i took the train from e.l. to chicago and then from chicago to minneapolis. i didn't spend much time in chicago but the ride from there to minn was great! the train followed the mississippi for much of the duration and cut through several small towns. i spent most of my time talking to weirdos in the sightseeing car and reading guns, germs, and steel. when i got to minneapolis i was stoked that public transportation actually exists in the midwest. i caught a bus to the hostel and after running the next morning and spending the day at the art museum i took another bus to the rail station and caught the light train directly to the airport. from there it was on to seattle via plane, then to the dock by bus, and ferry to bainbridge island where my brother and the family met me and it was off to port hadlock, home of the northwest school of wooden boat building.

seattle skyline from the ferry ride to bainbridge

my nieces, sienna-bear and asia-monster

the confluence of chimacum creek at port townsend bay in puget sound near kala point. we went down here quite a bit as it's just a short trail down the hill from eric's house.

port townsend overlooking the straight of juan de fuca

me and the girls at the pier in pt. townsend

eric and i rode 9 miles to gibbs lake and did a 2 mile trail run and 2 mile walk through some awesome forests. most of the area is surrounded by the olympic nat'l forest and state and/or country park land so there are plenty of trails. after riding another 9 miles back home and realizing eric lost the house key (you know you did!) on the trail, we destroyed my license then had to ride our tired asses up to sienna's school to get a spare key.

view of the olympics

a better view of the olympics...he, he, he

this bear was just hanging out next to the road on our way in and was still there on our way out.

what's the word?

2006-07-03T07:25:00.000-07:00

what's the word... well still unemployed.

although i am a waitron (yes, that's what hippie wasteland really calls them) extraordinaire at the club. but that doesn't really count. other than that .... sarah and chuck got married on friday, i had a horrible case of food poisoning from the mexican joint i watched brazil lose to the dirty french at, and i haven't eaten in two days (don't worry, i'm not wasting away). here's a few recent pictures that i wasn't able to add in the last entry.

justin's parents' visit back in may

at the lugnuts' game

heather, dikki, and me in traverse after the bayshore 1/2

who doesn't like a good teabag?

umm, you're disgusting, sarah.

unemployed

2006-06-19T14:15:00.000-07:00

what does one do when you return from a tropical paradise to lansing, michigan you ask??
well, nothing. i am now unemployed and hating it. i've spent my time doing various things to catch up friends & family and with chores around the house.

first justin's parents came to visit from Pennsylvania so it was a mad frenzy to get the house in order. then it was up north to see the fam and go morelling in Oscoda. afterwards mom came down for her birthday and we went to a Lugnuts game.

then it was catching up with some friends. after the bayshore half marathon in traverse city, dikki, heather, and i went out to celebrate the race and heather's birthday. then it was back home to organize sarah's bachlorette party.

mais minas

2006-05-18T06:20:00.000-07:00

lavras novas

the next stop on tour was lavras novas, a very, very (i think the population is probably around 500) small town that was founded as a quilombo, or run-away slave haven. it was pretty high in altitude so no wonder it made a great hideout. and, i can't imagine anyone being able to find it. the bus ride there was like driving through a cloud, you can't see shit and, of course, the driver was doing like 60. ok, maybe that's an exageration. but i did think i was going to barf, especially when i looked out the side window at dusk and we were teetering a few inches away from a huge gorge, then looked out the front window and concluded the driver must have been using the force.

pretty, out-of-focus flower

the only place open for business in town. we survived off of salty bread, yogurt, and coffee.

thanks, paderia.

random dogs, ok, that's to be expected in latin america. random cocks, that too. but this cow was just hanging out outside of the bar, the only bar, in town. reminds me of itabata.

judging by his eyes i think he had a shot or two.

after a few hours we found one of the several waterfalls in the area.

i was actually standing on a small makeshift mud bridge about 15-20 feet overlooking this. it really was much more interesting in person.

what would any s. american experience be without a random dog? this is one of our friends who joined us for our hike to find the waterfalls.

most of the time being outdoors was like standing inside of a cold cloud. here we're on a stark mountaintop where it looks as if all the vegetation that could survive here has been scraped and washed away by water. because it was so humid, it seemed as though it was always lightly raining.

really, i had to drink to sleep in these quarters.

me in my trusty poncho

of course i have to include the church! this was the center and focal point of town. aside from that, there realy wasn't much else other than the small, hut-style cottages there.

MeeNas

2006-05-18T05:39:00.000-07:00

i love minas!

here are some outdated shots from the state of minas gerais (translated 'general mines'). this state fascinates me because it has so much history that is well preserved and the people are genuine. there's also so much variation, although the ornate church thing does get a little old after a while. here's a quick lesson in history....the state was never really important until gold and gems were discovered in them there hills. bands from são paulo were sent to exploit them and with the sweat of millions of slaves, minas soon became one of the wealthiest, most powerful regions in brazil. now that has faded away, but many of the small mining towns have retained their character.

looks like someone i remember from the landshark

one of the hilly streets of ouro preto, the token tourist city of minas

the state, particularly o.p., is known for its soapstone work. this guy is designing a bowl carved on a lathe with a simple tool that pounds in his design. i think he said it only took him a few hours to make.

in front of some church at night. take your pick, they all look the same.

doors in front of cathedral de pilar (if i remember correctly). but i do remember that this is the second most lavishly decorated church in brazil, second only to one in salvador. sorry i forgot all the details.

another street shot. try slithering up these.

...and minas loves me!

i told you they all loook the same... these are actually different cathedrals. mineiros luv 'em.

ilha bella and são sabastião

2006-05-15T09:59:00.000-07:00

after the half marathon in são paulo, which was way too hot, i went to são sabastião and took the ferry to ilha bella with jerry, the crazy irish leprechaun.

yes, i feel the same way too.

ilha bella was beautiful although it was a bit upitty, mostly a resort type place for rich paulistas.

good-bye weirdo jerry.

one of our only successful hikes on the island to a really beautiful waterfall. this one was like a waterslide and we slid down to the pool below.

one of the pools around the waterfall.

just a cool shot i found on one of our fruitless hikes to find another waterfall. this is the type of place you really need a guide because, as we later found out, most of the falls are on private property.

stop for some agua de coco.

praia grande

view from the ferry on the way to the island which is the largest island off the coast of brazil.

our excellent meal of garbage. sheila would have loved it.

just a cute little church on the island near praia grande.

this was a creepy moving statue in downtown são paulo. i gave him a few centavos and he did a little jig for me and then gave me a worthless heart trinket. but it was really cool.
me and my friend the figueiro on one of our scouts throughout the city.

são paulo and the dangers of cachaça

2006-05-15T08:25:00.000-07:00

Please read the following warning, i should have learned my lesson by now-

government warning: after drinking cachaça your teeth may look like this.

or you may spew blood all over the tasty lime and rum mixture

or you may try to take a dump while making caiparinhas

if you do, please do not drink the brand 51

here are some other pics that probably also involved cachaça, a dane, a leprauchaun, and a brasileiro

ok, more pics will be in the next post as i cant seem to add more here...

disculpe

2006-04-25T06:22:00.000-07:00

oi amigos!

sorry that i havent posted anything in a while. i have a lot of recent pics that i havent been able to put up and i promise they will be up shortly. you all know im a technology idiot.

beijões!

heid

more weekend photos

2006-04-03T14:20:00.000-07:00

here are more pictures of vegetation...

sunset in jacareipésirlei and her pet bromeliad at the fair

weekend update

2006-04-03T13:48:00.000-07:00

i spent the weekend in vitória with my family. saturday we spent the day in jacareipé (i think thats how to spell it) with some friends and met some really cool artists. the town was a small surfing hangout and fishing village about an hour outside of vitória until recently. its developing into an expensive weekend town for rich capixabas.

anyhow, the artists we met are pretty well-known in brazil and specialize in recycled and natural art. we visited five houses or showrooms of theirs perched up on a hill off of a shitty, impassable road - needless to say they were pretty rustic but awesome.

here is neusso´s dining room. he built this house and all of the furnishings and artwork himself.

the kitchen.

his showroom. the bedroom is like a treehouse above this room.

sirlei and gleidlsei approve

heres another small house we visited. nearly everything was built of recycled materials

me, neusso, and sirlei outside the showroom.

back in itabatã. just some cows in a field near my house.

fish heads

2006-03-30T03:56:00.000-08:00

nothing really new here. ive been working and running and thats about it. i plan on traveling this weekend so i will have more pics soon. here are some pretty uninteresting shots followed by some of the market in posto da mata. markets here usually sell a variety of crafts and jewlery but this one was just food.

fish heads, fish heads...rolly-polly fish heads. you know you remember that song.

alzemar caught an enormous fish last weekend. do not ask why they decided to sever and freeze the head.

awesome pruning job

amigas- tia helen and dona lidia

são mateus

2006-03-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

the last week has been pretty uneventful, just life as usual. classes at night, run in the morning, walk aimlessly during the day, that sort of thing. no, really, it's not that bad. the weekend was pretty relaxing. saturday i did a long run in the evening because i planned on going to the beach on sunday. well....i never made it to the beach but i did check out são mateus, a city about the size of teixera in the southern state of espirito santo.

i had intended on going to the beach at conceção da barra but there are no direct buses there from itabatã. since i am a product of instant gratification in the u.s., i planned on getting a bus directly from são mateus to c. da barra but the only bus left in the late afternoon. so after traveling 2 hours, i decided just to check out são mateus in my bikini brasileira instead.

not really exciting, especially since it was sunday and everything was closed. but i got some nice pictures of a really old church in the centro.

just some of the local hoodrats playing in the field near my neighborhood in itabatã.

a view of itabatã from the neighborhood. although close to 7,000 or 8,000 people live there, it is really small. it's hard to see, but in the background of the cemetary is the centro.

old church in são mateus. this was built by jesuits in the 1600's. from what i was told, the blocks were cemented together using whale blubber and oil. not too bad i guess if it's still standing today.

this is looking up from the inside of the chuch. it smelled like urine and bird poop.

rio são mateus. it's hard to see, but if you look into the distance on the left side of the river is the newer part of the city.

i have girl feet!

2006-03-24T09:47:00.000-08:00

below is proof that i do in fact have the feet of a women (sheila).

i also included a few more that were intended for the last post, but as ive realized in common in itabatã, the internet and lights went out.

i think i may be going to vitória again tonight so i should have some more pictures that are a bit more interesting up soon.

more flowers! this tree is pretty common in brazil, though i dont know the name yet.

we will see how long this lasts

daniel, me, and sirlei in (of course!) shopping vitória

dont try and tell me não estava como uma cobra, juliano

eucalyptus harvest. these trees are only about 10 years old which is amazing! most of itabatã is surrounded by eucalyptus plantations intermixed with native forest and fazendas (farms and ranches). for those of you opposed to the above image, i appologize. but i would like you to think about where your clothes come from (cotton, unless of course your brazilian) and the food you eat (wheat, corn, meat, soy, whatever) which are all grown and harvested in the same manner. then think about wiping with your hand or a leaf. i have to confess that ive tried the latter and its got nothin on t.p. ok, im done with my rant for today.

forestry shizzy (of course) and vitória

2006-03-22T06:39:00.000-08:00

the weekend here was good. friday i had classes in posto da mata, another small city north of itabatã. its small, but i think it is larger than itabata. my first class showed up but, in typical brazillian fashion, my second class in the afternoon decided to call after he was already 30 minutes late to cancel on me. awesome....now i have to wait 2 hours for the next bus to itabata. so i walked around in the rain and took some photos. sorry these photos are all kind of gloomy, its been raining here quite a bit.

things have been ok here lately. i'm starting to get a little better with portuguese (finally) and got to check out some of suzano celluloses operation here. itabatã is practically surrounded by eucalyptus forests which suzano and aracruz, another large company, use to produce pulp and paper. though it is not native to brazil, because of the climate and excellent growing season in southern bahia it grows very well. much of southern bahia and northern espírito santo (the state just south of bahia) are eucalyptus forests.
on saturday i was able to go to a harvest site and check out some of suzanos operations.

ant condo in the forest

me and my friend the eucalyptus

i spent sunday in vitória with my host family there and let me tell you, it was awesome to escape itabatã for a day. although i was on the bus for about 11 hours roundtrip, the day was worth it. this weekend i plan on going to conceção de barra in espírito santo with some of my students so hopefully ill have some more good pictures to put up soon.

meus pais brasileiros

more catching up

2006-03-18T08:17:00.000-08:00

happy st. pattys day to everyone! i know im a day late but it's not like anyone reads this anyhow. and i'm sure you were out getting drunk. at least if you're in the east lansing area. here i just ran and went to capoeira class afterwork. not too much else to do. today, it's been raining pretty much all day long though i still plan on going for a run.

since i am horrible at updating, here are some more outdated, random shots.

just a hibiscus. the flowers here are awesome. i will put more pics up shortly.

brazillians are all very proud to be brazillian and flags are everywhere, on cars, clothes, and flying in the town center. it's not like in the u.s. where only rednecks practice this sort of thing. this is in teixeira de freitas near the centro.

here are some more children that should probably be in school. they hang out nearly everyday on the street down by the ice cream shop.

ok, ok. i took another picture of myself. i don't really have too many photos of myself because it's usually not the best idea to take your camera to events and also to ask people to take pictures for you. this is right before i went out for a few glasses of wine with one of my students, paula.

me, sheila, and her buddy paulo at a bar in trancoso, the trustafarian mecca of brazil. of course one of the photos that they were absolutely embarrassed i took. but i'm glad i have it now, even though my head is cut off.

life in itabatã

2006-03-17T12:03:00.000-08:00

ok, i have nothing better to do today. here is life in itabatã. looks exciting, yes? it's a pretty quite town. most of the people who live here are very poor and work in the paper mill or one of the few local businesses.

this is a block or two from my house. of course there are plenty of free range dogs, but here there are also a few horses that hang about.

yes, i did take a picture of myself. but i dont have any because i am usually alone or there is nothing exciting going on.

this is my neighborhood which looks surprisingly like an american suburb. the 'villa' is only for employees of suzano cellulose.

hmm, i think these kids should be in school. but apparently peddling ice cream in the forest will better prepare you for a career in itabatã.

some catching up

2006-03-17T11:46:00.000-08:00

mucuri
suzana and i went to a concert my first weekend here in the beach town of mucuri, about 30 minutes away. it's hardly a beautiful beach (by brazilian standards) but it's a beach and we had fun. these pictures are from saturday morning.

giant fish next to the rio mucuri

fishing boats in the river

some salvador pics

2006-03-17T02:42:00.000-08:00

here are some shots from my brief car tour around the city of salvador.

some really old church building. not really sure what it is, it just looked interesting.

gustavo buying some acarajé, a fried bahian food with scrimps, yummy!

some bahians doing what they do best

some young bahians trying to do what older ones do best

sunset on the beach in salvador

2006-03-17T02:11:00.000-08:00

sheila, alison, and julian before our ill-fated bloco night. we missed our bloco, the group of people and enormous truck blaring music that you 'parade' down the street with. instead , roamed up and down the street, covered with other peoples urine and sweat, fending off drunken brasileiros. we still had fun.

sheila on friday night. we went to a camorote, an impromptu bar on the main strip to watch all of the blocos go by.

2006-03-16T11:45:00.000-08:00

ok, news from bahia- sheila and i had a great time during carnaval in salvador. i stayed with our friends alison, gustavo, and their son, julian, the cutest baby in brazil. here are some shots from salvador

i'm sure sheila will say this is a horrible picture of her, but i like it.

gustavo and juju

2006-02-11T09:17:00.000-08:00

work my bitches, work

this horrible example is from just before my plane took off in lansing

at least roland looks more slithered than i do.

ok, maybe not.

my justin and our children, sadie and dave

...and a puppy poncho!

I'm leaving tonight at 8 or so in the evening. Here are some pics of Roland, the pups, and Justin.

not sure yet what i'm doing

2006-02-08T08:21:00.000-08:00

hello all. thanks for coming to my blog. no fun pictures yet- i appologize. i really don't have a clue how to add pictures at this point. i'm sure i'll be able to do that in brasil.

so i'm still in lansing. i had to change my flight so now i will be leaving on saturday for sure. my flight will arrive in rio and from there i'll travel north to the state of bahia. as of now, i'll only be there for a few months....we'll see!