Three Gals Say "Oi" from Brazil!

"Oi" (Hello) to all from Recife!
The eagles have landed - though by now, we probably feel (and smell) more like tiny little parakeets than that grand majestic symbol of home.
After a nearly 24-hour journey, Cindy Boehme, Julie Miller and Julie Hatch have arrived in Recife with six bulky carry-ons (who knew backpacks could get so heavy?) and exactly 420 pounds of VBS supplies, crafts, snacks and gifts for our Brazilian missionaries.
We had a very short connection in San Paulo, but thankfully, our next flight was delayed by 30 minutes. Cindy's quick-thinking offered a way around a very LONG line (legally and honestly, we promise!) to get all that luggage rechecked in the nick of time, and we caught our TAM flight with a few minutes to spare. We were blessed that the 6 gigantic duffles - filled to exactly 70 pounds each! - made it all the way through to Recife without any real problems.
Lecio, Ilma and darling 15-month old Leahanna Wanderley were kind enough to pick us up at the airport. That cutie-pie toddler with her babbling songs and toothy grin sure brings a smile to our weary eyes! After a nice lunch at a local burger shack (burgers can mean chicken and ricotta cheese on pan-tortillas, if you like . . . yummmm!), the Wanderley's took us to their homey apartment across from the beach to relax and begin planning the schedule for the next week.
However, planning lasted all of about 30 minutes. When Ilma saw Julie H. literally falling asleep while tearing apart perforated cards for Cindy, pity got the better of our hosts, and they graciously allowed us to return to the hotel for a power nap. You know, that Ambien CR seemed like such a good idea last night on the plane . . . guess we didn't realize how long the "CR" could last?
Never fear - a little disco nap did these bodies good. Cindy & Julie M. have returned to the Wanderley's to hammer out the details for the week, and Julie H. (that's me) has hopefully finally learned how to translate from a Portuguese blog instruction site into this English posting . . . I knew that Portuguese primer I bought on iTunes would come in handy!
Until tomorrow, we say "Obrigada" (thank you) for your prayers (okay - my iTunes primer only got me so far) and "Boa Noite" (good night)!