Up to my gills.

If you're wondering why I haven't updated the blog it's because I just don't have time. Yesterday, for example, I woke up at 7:30am. School starts at 9am and ends at 6pm. I managed to get away for a few minutes to head to Banco do Brasil to request a CPF card (Cadastro de Pessoa Física), something similar to a US Social Security number, used to identify yourself for all commercial and personal transactions. I couldn't even activate a pay-as-you-go cellphone SIM card because I didn't have a CPF, had to go to the cellphone company store the next day to do that. It's a lot easier to get things done in Brasil if you have a CPF. Once school ended I went home, ate dinner, and worked until 11:30pm, at which time I did my homework and finally crashed into bed, exhausted.

That might explain why all I've seen of São Paulo is the four blocks east and west of Ave Paulista, perpendicular to the street where I am staying. That's OK, though. I signed up for this and I'm sure I'll get my chance to see more of the city at some future time. Right now, I have plenty of work to do and have to keep my priorities straight.

School is going very well, I am some 500% ahead of the other students, mostly because I know Spanish and can read Portuguese. The hardest part of this is trying to keep the pronunciation rules straight and separated in my head. I keep mixing Spanish with English, a habit that is not easy to break after nearly 50 years of the former and just two weeks of the latter. I am heartened by several strangers who have expressed surprise at how well I can speak the language after such a short period of training. I've also met with one client here and they were very impressed with my Portuguese, which at times was better than their English. We both tried hard, though.

The highlight of this week is a Cuban friend of mine from Havana, a regional airline pilot on the island, with whom I have corresponded for several years but have never met. He is here in Brasil, in training at a facility in the nearby town of Curitiba, about six hours away by car. He will be coming back to São Paulo on Friday before heading home on Sunday, so it looks like we will finally get to meet.

That's it for today. Time to get back to work. :)