As some of you know, eating has been a challenge for me for a good part of my life. I have struggled with many digestive issues, but thankfully have overcome most of them. I was a bit nervous about moving to a new place, with new food, non potable water, and viruses we simply don’t have to worry about in the US, but so far, so good. My hope is that I will have a better time eating bread here than the overly processed wheat/gluten products I’ve been eating my whole life. As of 36 or so hours into arriving in Sao Paulo, I’m feeling pretty good (other than the minor headache I caused by sharing a few bottles of wine with my new friends and coworkers last night.)
My only “annoyances” so far (as my web-designing brother so aptly titled this section—are you saying something about me, Bro?) are that my wifi is very limited: I am constrained to a twelve inch distance from my router right now; however, I am also the only new expat who even has wifi in their apartment at this time, so I really am lucky, and this is a gripe for the sake of griping!). Also, I am not used to the noise of a big city (the fifth largest city in the world, to be precise!). I can hear airplanes flying overhead every few minutes, and lots of street noise even though I am ten stories up. I remember moving into Brighton from a quiet street in Arvada and the noise of the passing train would wake me up at night, but that only lasted for a few nights until I got used to it, and I suspect the same adjustment period with the noise here. Also, I am so thankful I brought a white-noise machine with me in my four suitcases totaling a weight of 231 pounds of goods from the US. Overall, I am adjusting well….but I promise to keep you posted on my pet peeves as life continues….you know, like….intolerant people.