GUESS WHO DA B-DAY GIRL?

MOI. I spent my birthday night in the arms of the hunky Brazilian superstar Sambista, Diogo Nogueira, and the afternoon of my birthday relaxing on the beach.
With Diogo Nogueira and my birthday on the beach

So a funny thing about my town of Paraty, is that everyone stays so friggin’ calm around celebrities here. Diogo Nogueira is a huge star in all of Brazil. He is about the equivalent to Michael Bublé here. I went to his concert on the midnight of my birthday, and everyone was so calm and tranquil during his concert. If this was in the U.S. everyone would be screaming and shouting things like “I love you Diogo!”, “You’re so hot!”, and “Impregnate me!” When I conversed with some people here about the difference between Brazilian and American crowds at concerts, the main consensus amongst the majority of people was that Brazilians go to concerts because they just want to hear and enjoy the music. Going crazy over worshipping the artists is just not a part of the culture here. I honestly think that this part of the culture of Paraty is maravilhosa. Well, I ended up meeting Diogo after his concert and let me just tell you about the beauty of this man. He has the bluest eyes on earth, a smile that makes you melt like crayons in the sun, a rock-hard body, and is as gentleman-like as they get. He also, of course, sings the most beautiful music on earth- SAMBA, so we can end there.

Continuing onto the theme of tranquility amongst famous people here, the other day I went to watch the new film about the late Brazilian legend, Tim Maia, at the Paraty Film Festival. I didn’t know until after the event was over that it was the premiere of the film, here in Paraty, and that the main actor stayed only about 20 feet away from me during the entirety of the film, and that several Brazilian superstars from soap operas were also present at this showing. These important facts were not apparent to me at the time because no one told me and everyone remained as calm as the feeling of being in the fetal position.
 All of the missed opportunities.

Hangin’ out with gringos

I also went to some bonding meet-ups with some gringos!

 I am obsessed with Rio.

Ilha do Araujo

I’m pretty lucky that the state of Rio was the destination chosen for my time abroad, as it is close to so many beautiful natural hotspots. A weekend or 2 ago, I went to Ilha do Araujo, a beautiful island off the coast of Rio, and I had a splendid time with some great people.

Welcome to the life of this expat.