NOT a Hard Knock Life here. At the airport we were greeted by our social sponsor. She immediately handed Chris his cell phone- saying that he’d be getting a Blackberry within a couple of days- and also keys to a car that we could borrow (and pay mileage on) for the entire long weekend. There was an Embassy driver and van to bring us all to our apartment. After all 16 bags were brought in, we explored the roomy apartment, complete with beautiful hardwood floors, a nice big kitchen and living room and 2 full baths and 2 half baths. We are quickly making up for the 1 bathroom house we lived in for 7 years (I know, I know cry me a river). The kids were excited to have a bunk bed waiting for them. We all slept well that first night! (Above they are pictured above on a balcony with Dad.)
On the fifth floor we have a nice breeze with neat views from our balconies. These balconies have recently been child-proofed so they are enjoyed frequently. Outdoor living is so nice! Brasilia is a very organized, completely planned city and we live in the area that is full of apartment buildings. They are well kept and guarded and really quite nice looking buildings. There are only 2 apts/ floor with a nice little elevator bringing us right to our door. We have small playgrounds on either side of the building and have bread shops and 2 great grocery stores anywhere from 1-4 blocks from us.
Our first weekend in Brasilia was full of outings to a great local park, our sponsor’s house for dinner (their son is almost 3 too) and a big BBQ gathering at an Embassy worker’s house complete with tons of food, a big trampoline, a bouncy house and face painting. Kids are very much in mind when neighborhoods, parks and parties are planned here. Gotta love that! On Memorial Day we visited 3 schools, all offering great options for Kindergarten and maybe Teague too. We did not visit the American School and know that that is another excellent choice. My favorite of the 3 is a bilingual school with a Baha’i philosophy. Most of the student there are Brazilian and therefore our kids would be motivated to learn quickly. Fiona’s favorite school is also bilingual with a music focus throughout the day including violin and or piano lessons for kids 4 and older. She really liked the playground.
We make daily visits to playgrounds in this area- here is a video taken (June '09) of them playing on the swings.
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