Paul and I walked to the bus stop a few blocks down from our hotel to catch a bus to the train station for our trip to Morretes. Morretes is an old village that is known for barriado meat, which is cooked for 24 hours. So, we barely missed the bus and did not have time to wait for the next one so we started walking and looking for a taxi. None were open. We ran back to the hotel to get our car. When they brought out our car I noticed there was a scratch on our rental car. We didn’t have time to deal with it because we were about to miss our train! We ended up being the last people to board the train with two minutes before they left. Even worse, Elisene’s whole family was waiting for us because we had everyone’s train tickets. Phew! We barely made it.
The train ride was three hours and through the jungle. Our view of the jungle was breath taking. When we got there, we went straight to the restaurant where they taught us how to mix the ingredients for the meat. Umm… I don’t like it but Paul does. I enjoyed the view we had of the lake and the town, and the company of course!
We all of a sudden saw Mauricio in the restaurant. Paul had invited them, but they never said yes or no about coming. It was a great surprise. We shopped and walked to town together.
Mauricio and Karin invited us all over for dinner, and of course we accepted.
We took a bus back to Curitiba and slept all the way home. When we got back, Paul and I walked to the world market and bought the stuff to make guacamole for the dinner. Mexican food is non-existent here. Most everyone has never had any kind of Mexican food. Ugh! It’s actually the first thing we want to eat when we come home. Also, avocado here is eaten sweet, like in smoothies. They had never had avocado salty. It was a hit!
Karin made a chicken wrapped in cheese and ham and covered in a creamy tomato sauce, rice, beef, and broccoli. We sat around eating candy and talking until really late.
We took Elisene and her family home. This was a very sad goodbye. Paul developed a very strong friendship with their family while on his mission and they have kept in constant contact over the past four years. This week, I was brought into that relationship and I love them. I too built a strong bond with them and had a very difficult time saying goodbye because we don’t know when we’ll see them again. We all stood in the front of their house hugging and crying and talking about how much we love each other. Above all experiences while being here in Brazil, getting to know them was the most special.
Paul and I went back to our hotel very heavy hearted, but grateful for the opportunity to have been reunited with them.
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