The Life of Jay

The Compound

2011-11-16T22:19:00.000-08:00

Come and visit to see why we decided on this name for our place...

Rio de Janeiro: A Cidade Maravilhosa

2011-05-13T10:21:00.000-07:00

Ipanema. My favorite neighborhood in Rio.

Taking a break from the beach to have a bowl of açaí.

Santa Teresa. The neighborhood still has the traditional early 1900s Rio look and still has a trolley that passes through main street

The city center is very crazy and crowded. Not for the faint of heart.

Except Ye Become As Little Children

2010-10-19T21:08:00.000-07:00

People sometimes ask me why I love Brazil so much. Today while pondering the exact reason, I had an epiphany--I feel no prejudice there. Like a child that has not had the time or experience to develop any sort of preconception, that's how I feel in Brazil. It's a fresh perspective and I enjoy every new opportunity and every new friend. Perhaps that is one reason why Christ admonished us to be as little children.

God Be With You til We Reunite Again

2010-07-18T22:38:00.000-07:00

Hi Family,
I spent this week at work wishing I could have been able to stay in Idaho and enjoy more company, but I am glad for the quick 2 days I was able to spend with ya'll. It would be great if we could make this an annual event as Samantha suggested on her blog. California is sweet, Brazil is even better, but I would trade all that for more hot tub pow-wows in a second. Love you all and hope we can get together again soon.

The Bridge to Nowhere

2010-06-19T21:45:00.000-07:00

5 miles up a trail into the Angeles National Forest is a bridge that leads to nothing. Apparently plans were made many years ago with the intent to build a road up the canyon but nothing ever materialized. What do you do with a bridge to nowhere? ... bungee jump of course!!!

I learned from my jump that I instinctively face the prospect of death in silence, no screaming whatsoever...

Adventure

2010-05-21T22:28:00.000-07:00

I am currently reading Into the Wild. For those of you not familiar with the story, see this link. Let me be clear, I don't intend to embark on a reckless journey which puts my life in peril; such an excursion would be selfish. But there is definitely a part of me that yearns for adventure in its rawest form. What is it with males in their early 20s? Lately, drawing upon my roots, I have acquired a renewed interest in the desert. I love the following quote from Paulo Coelho's The Alchemist:

"But the desert is so huge, and the horizon so distant, that they make a person feel small, and as if he should remain silent."

This was the exact feeling I had recently as I looked out over the inspiring contrast of sand and shadows at dusk, near a quiet rest stop somewhere around the Arizona/California border.

I think a camping trip to the little Sahara will do just fine.

The Road Ahead

2010-05-09T16:02:00.000-07:00

I am not sure that my blog will ever boast such cool experiences as it did when I was in Brasil, but I am pretty excited about what the next 8 months has to offer. In mid-June I will be moving to Los Angeles for a 6-month internship in corporate finance with Johnson & Johnson. I have been interested in living in southern California for a while now and I think I will fit in well with the rhythm of life in LA. I don't know where I will be living yet, but you all are invited to come and visit if you get the chance.

Yesterday I went with Dan to the Kennecott Copper Mine, the largest open-pit mine in the world. I was amazed by the size of the mine and the fact that I am taking a Geology class right now enhanced the experience. It is supposedly 2 Sears Towers deep (I recognize that some UK insurance company now owns the rights, but it will always be the Sears Tower to me). We humans can engineer some pretty cool things.

Lastly and most importantly it is Mother's Day. For the first time in my 24 years on the earth, I now call home sometimes looking for mom only to find that she is busy at work. I am very happy she has a job that she loves, but more importantly, I am happy and grateful to have a wonderful mom who was never too busy for me while I was growing up, who never put herself first, and who dedicated herself to loving me, teaching me, and providing me with much opportunity in my life. I love you Mom.

The Runway

2009-12-03T19:53:00.000-08:00

Dan and I modeled for Thais' final project today...it rocked. We spent hours back stage preparing, but it was cool because you are with all the other models and the anticipation just keeps building as you get closer to showtime. It also didn't hurt to be surrounded by so many amazingly pretty girls.

Her theme for the designs came from a very old Gothic-style German film. Finally, after all the preparation and anticipation, when it was time to shine it was done in just 2 minutes. Congratulations Thais!

Chillin' pre-showtime

Afterward with the star of the night...recently graduated stylist, Thais

Back to Bahia

2009-11-21T12:19:00.000-08:00

Last week was my long-awaited return to the area where I served as a missionary. The trip was amazing and reminded me how much I truly love Bahia.

I spent my first day in Salvador visiting friends and members I taught. Unfortunately, I do not feel particularly comfortable walking around Salvador anymore (it is not the most tourist friendly city) so while it was good to see old faces, I was eager to move on to my next destination.

I caught an overnight bus that evening to Vitória da Conquista and spent 4 days at the Guerra's house, good friends of mine and a family I greatly admire. It was a very relaxing atmosphere and I spent most of the time visiting with them and playing with the kids. We also hosted a barbecue as a means of me catching up with everyone in the Morada Real ward (my last area) which was very successful.

After Conquista, I took a bus to Itacaré where Dan met up with me. I could go on forever about Itacaré, but I will just say that I was completely enchanted by the place. It is a very small beach town, about 8,000 inhabitants, nestled on the southern coast of Bahia where the Contas river meets the ocean. It was once the location of many cacau plantations, but it wasn't until 10 years ago that the first paved road to the city was completed. This allowed the city to remain quite untouched from the outside world and much of the natural forest remains intact.

We spent most of our time there enjoying the beautiful beaches and hanging with fellow hostel members. It was very interesting to get to know many of the people and hear about their history and other adventures they had throughout the world.

While in Itacaré we also did an awesome day trip to Taipú de Fora which is basically only accessible by Land Rover. In some respects, I really liked the fact that the region lacks infrastructure like paved roads b/c it makes for much more adventure. The attraction at Taipú de Fora is the natural swimming pools caused by the coral reefs just off the shore.

All the beaches were gorgeous, the water was perfect, and the city was really chill. It is no wonder that many travelers I talked with said they had been in town for quite sometime b/c they just did not want to leave.

Salvador, Bahia

Churrasco in Conquista

Guerra Family, excellent hosts

Resende Beach, Itacaré, Bahia

Costa Beach, Itacaré, Bahia

Our balcony at the hostel

They pulled these out of the river

Boarding the ferry for our trek to Taipú

Taipú de Fora

Returning to Itacaré, the scenic route

Hammocks are part of the seating at this roadside snack shop!

Our guide was a stud

My hostel and the dog that followed us all around town

What Be Happenin'

2009-11-02T04:30:00.000-08:00

Life continues to be sweet. This second module is keeping me slightly more busy in terms of schoolwork and I also have projects for Empresa Junior on my slate. That being said, my motto for my stay in Brasil "Work hard and play harder" is still in full swing.

Today is a holiday and some friends came up to São Paulo for the weekend so we could party. Hooray for living in a Catholic-influenced society...lots of holidays in the name of religion!

HUGE caterpillar. I wonder what kinda butterfly it turns into...

We decided to rock it up for Halloween.

The Ninja Cupcakes, minus the lovely Thais.

I guess you know you hit it right when several people at the party ask to have a picture with you.

Just another fun-filled day at Vila Lobos park with the regular posse.

More Floripa

2009-10-22T20:36:00.000-07:00

Floor-Eee-Puh

2009-10-14T08:04:00.000-07:00

"What are you doing in Florianopolis? Don't you ever go to school down there?"

This was Dad's last email to me. I must admit, my schedule is favorable to travelling. I only have classes 2 days per week, but I have 9 hours of class on Monday...I can't help how they set up my schedule. It is kinda like binge studying.

The real explanation, though, it is spring break and Dan and I are enjoying the great city of Florianopolis (Floripa to locals) for the week. Floripa is a very charming city situated on an island just off the mainland in south. It is the "surf city" of the country and may just be my preferred local in all of Brasil. Big city but very relaxed pace of life, and there is much more to do than just beach life.

In other news, in light of my very open schedule I am participating in GV's Junior Enterprise. Basically, it is a group of student consultants and my team and I meet with businesses to discuss their difficulties and propose solutions. But the grunt work is left for other teams, so it works out nicely.

Interestingly, I have not come to know Sao Paulo very well. It seems every chance I have I am travelling elsewhere. My goal for this next module is to get to know places in Sao Paulo. Why is it that whenever we live somewhere we often overlook it for other places of interest?

Here are a few pics from the stay in Floripa thus far:

There was a Childrens Day party at Samara's work before we left. This was my 5th grader smile.

After an all-night car ride, the sunrise just outside Floripa.

Highest point on the island.

Natalia, Valerio, Thais, Dan, Jay, Leandro

Natalia, eager to catch some waves

Guarda do Embau. You have to wade through the ocean to get to this beach. The tide was higher than expected so we had to give up and grab a boat.

Dan is way more ripped than I am.

Boat ride back to shore.

Our boat dude was awesome. You could hardly understand him and he kept laughing hysterically at his own jokes ;)

One of the many cool, little hippie shops in the town.

We are Usain Bolt.

Dan found the biggest sand dollar ever.

Rice patties

Southern Adventure

2009-09-28T12:11:00.000-07:00

My friend Gabriel had a birthday party this weekend, so Carol invited me to go along with her and some other friends. It so happens that Gabriel lives in Curitiba so I got the chance to become acquainted with southern Brasil for the first time. We road tripped there, as usual, driving all night and arriving very early morning. Unfortunately, we were so tired that we slept Saturday away but the party in the evening was really fun.

The weather on Sunday was beautiful so we decided to visit the temple and Tanguá park after church. It was a nice, relaxing day. I really enjoyed Curitiba, it seems more like a city I could live in.

Curitiba, Brazil Temple

This individual pine behind us, the species is called Araucária, is the reason President Hinckley chose this plot of land for the temple.

We decided to give it a hug.

Just before the storm.

Edifice at Tanguá park

Tanguá park waterfall

Randomly Materialized Thoughts

2009-09-22T21:12:00.000-07:00

It is past 1 am and I am sitting in the student lounge at GV. I just put some finishing touches on our group's 50 page paper for Brazilian Economy. By now we are completely sick of anything that has to do with Brazilian or Indian deforestation issues, but at least we can now talk about the subject in an educated manner. I enjoy our group: Andrea from Italy, Andres from Italy, Camilla from Denmark, Jean-Jacques from France and myself. More papers and final exams to be finished in the next week and a half.

I was essentially wait-listed by Empresa Junior (student organization that provides consulting to smaller-sized companies here), they want to do one more interview but honestly I am beginning to lose interest.

Spent last weekend in Vinhedo (about an hour from here) with Paulo and Keiko whom I became acquainted with on my mission. It was great for many reasons: Vinhedo was sunny, Sao Paulo rarely is; they live in a condominium where houses actually have lawns and stuff, felt like the states; the family environment made me feel like I was relaxing at home for a weekend; Paulo, Keiko and Kimberly are awesome.

I discovered that I REALLY like Sushi. I have been to some excellent all-you-can-eat places over the last couple weeks.

Started playing tennis again but I have yet to play on a clay court. My knee hurt afterward though, could I finally be getting old?

Brazilians are awesome!!!

Going to Curitiba this weekend with friends. Excited to get to know the city and to go on another road trip with the same gang as last time.

Phrase of the week - ME DÁ O MEU CHIIIIIIIIIPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEÊ!!!

Ubatuba

2009-09-09T12:15:00.000-07:00

It appears that time has become blurred to me. I think it is a function of enjoying my stay here and taking advantage of as many activities as possible. I received a few friendly wake-up calls this week reminding me that I have been silent for almost 3 weeks...I could have sworn it was more like 10 days. I have much to tell.

Have I mentioned how awesomely social Brazilians are? I have been appreciative and impressed by this. It seems that every time I meet someone new the introduction ends in being invited to a party.

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of meeting Carol, Samara, and Thais. They are all about my age, really cool girls and we have been having a lot of fun lately...clubs, restaurants, rockband, a weekend at the beach and much more. Thais studies fashion and has a final project coming up at the end of the year. I am going to be one of her runway models which I think is pretty sweet. The outfit is nearly finished...I got a sneak peak of it a few days ago...I will be sure to document the event.

My semester here is divided into 2 modules. The first one finishes in 3 weeks, I can't believe I am so close to final exams already. With professors being gone and the swine flu thing at the beginning things have been all over the place. My classes are great though, I like all of them.

Some other fun events over the last couple weeks:

-When we were leaving a club I found 100 reais on the ground ($55 US). Decided it would best to recirculate it into the economy and made some good purchases. Included in these purchases are some sweet Oakey sunglasses. No, that isn't a misspelling, but I can't tell the difference from the real ones so it's all good :)

-Played Rockband and unlocked "Everlong". I miss that game, glad that Carol has it.

-Went to the São Paulo temple. First time doing a session in Português. Very enjoyable.

-Went to another soccer game. The best place to learn all the swear words in a foreign language is definitely a soccer game. The home team won again, we painted our faces and had a great time.

-All-you-can-eat Sushi at Liberdade, the Japanese district of São Paulo. Sooooooooooooo good.

-Took the metrô during rush hour. This is as much an adventure as anything else. Pushing is allowed and expected. Lines don't really exist either, more of a free-for-all.

-Bought my plane ticket to Bahia in November. It will be great to go back and visit the mission, but even better to be able to hit up the beaches this time.

The highlight of the last few weeks, though, was definitely this past weekend. Our trip to Ubatuba and Paraty, two beach towns on the literal norte of São Paulo and sul of Rio de Janiero.

Day 1 - We left São Paulo a little after midnight in a 3 car caravan. Road trips are always a blast with friends. We joked, talked, planned our vacation and sang along with the tunes of Jimmy Eat World, Weezer, Los Hermanos, Regina Speckter, and Cansei de Ser Sexy, just to name a few. Upon our arrival at the house in Ubatuba a little before 5 am, we discovered that the lady responsible for the rental did not leave a key. Carol made a few calls, got a hold of a key from who-knows-who and by 7 am we were finally in the house. It got better though. There was no electricity, thus no hot water, not really much of anything. That didn't come until later in the afternoon. Thanks for prepping the house, rental company...not! It takes a lot more than that to dampen our spirits though, after all, we were at the beach. We spent the afternoon at two beaches. Lázaro was very calm and good for swimming and family. Next to it is Sununga beach which was having a surf competition sponsored by Red Bull. The waves were insane and coming from all directions so you couldn't really enter the water to swim. At dusk we stopped by Vermelho beach and Valério took Natália out (his surfboard) and tried to catch some waves but it got dark pretty fast. That night we went into the city center of Ubatuba and grabbed a bite to eat. Brazil dominated Argentina, 3-1 (in Argentina mind you), as part of the world cup qualifiers. It was shown on a huge projector at the mall we were eating at and a huge crowd gathered to cheer their team on. Good times.

Day 2- Somewhat cloudy but not cold. I had slept in a hammock that night. As cool as it seems, a hammock does not make a great bed. Plus you are exposed to the elements. I probably killed a million mosquitoes during the night. We ate breakfast and began the day at Trindade beach. I didn't go in the water but just chilled under an umbrella, played some Uno and enjoyed conversation. Later in the afternoon we drove about 70 km north to the city of Paraty. The city is very old and charming. I would guess most buildings there are from the 17th century or earlier. A lot of Portuguese influence can be seen throughout the city. We headed home after sunset and had a churrasco for dinner. I maintain there is no better meal than a churrasco (Brazilian barbeque). Good food, friends and the beach--it was great.

Day 3- The weather was spectacular, not a cloud in the sky. Our agenda for the day was Félix beach and Promirim Island. Félix was by far my favorite beach of the trip, it was so pretty and there are even some rocks that are fun to jump off. We found some dude to take us to Promirim Island which is a couple kilometers off the coast. I guess it is his business but it sure wasn't very official. Just one boat, a sign by a lawn chair, and no official waiting list so it was a battle with other tourists to get a ride. The island was amazing and we just relaxed there for the afternoon. I even did a little hiking (barefoot) through the brush to get out on a huge rock face. The view was definitely worth it. Near sundown, the first group of us took the boat back to Félix beach. I was in the second group. We waited for the guy to come back and get us...and waited...and waited...and waited. Finally we decided he wasn't coming back so we talked with dude B whose route is to another beach and he agreed to take us back to the mainland. I was ready to create our own version of LOST should we get left on the island. Then dude B on the way back said that dude A had left people on the island before, whether that is true or whether he was trying to take away clients I am not sure. I am sure, however, that it is smart, especially in third world countries, to only pay for a service after it has been rendered. When we got back to Félix we saw the other guy in his boat near the shore. I guess his motor burned or something...whatevs. We packed up and headed back to the house for another churrasco. This time I included some grilled pineapple...so delicious. The lady came during dinner to lock up but we told her since we really didn't have a place Friday night, due to the key and electricity episode, we deserved Monday night in exchange and we got it. We left about 1 am that night trying to avoid traffic...yeah right. It was stop and go through the hills until we finally got to the interstate. There are so many people in São Paulo that planning around traffic doesn't really exist. It was worse for some friends of ours though--a 4 hour trip became a 10 hour trip due to traffic. We rocked out some more on the way home and arrived very early morning. Poor Samara and Carol had to go right to work afterward. Thanks so much, Carol, for driving!!!

Samara and I chillin'

Friendly neighborhood turkey.

The roads were centuries old.

Our group in Paraty, só zoeira!

Practice photo shoot.

Valerio is the king of churrasco...I helped a little

This was the boat guy's business set-up.

On our way to the island... high seas.

A true surfer...

This was the most comfortable chair ever.

Still some more pics to come.........................

FGV, Avenida 9 de Julho, Edificio Conquista

2009-08-21T11:22:00.000-07:00

That's FGV...no campus really, just 2 separate buildings each with 11 floors, a gym and a small courtyard. The building farthest back and to the left is my residence.

9 de Julho entrance to FGV.

Student Lounge

Edificio Conquista, home to me and several other exchange students.

This has become our office, the only place in the apartment that picks up a wireless connection from who-knows-where.

My room.

Life Outside the "Bubble"

2009-08-16T16:50:00.000-07:00

Many people here in Brazil have told me that FGV is the top-ranked business school in the country. This gave me the impression that I would be surrounded by only the most intelligent, talented individuals Brazil has to offer. True to my expectations, I have already met many high-caliber students here, but I also failed to remember two things: first, most of these students do not follow the same religious moral standards to which I adhere, and second, many are still young-adults. What does this mean? It means their idea of fun frequently involves clubs, bars, and alcohol.

In my 23 years of life, I had never been to a club or a bar. This past week, I received several invitations to both. I admit I had little interest in going, but I was interested in meeting new people so I decided to accept the invitations. I made a few interesting observations. First, after repeatedly telling people I didn't want any alcohol, I realized I was very out-of-place without a drink--I solved the problem by getting a soda. Second, my limited knowledge of stateside clubs is enough that I know most of them close by 2 or 3 a.m. Here in Brazil, dancing doesn't even begin until around 1 a.m. and many people get home when the sun is beginning to rise. Third, it seems like the common way to celebrate a birthday is by creating a VIP list and inviting friends to hang at a club. Both times I went was because someone was having a birthday. Parties at someone's home do not seem to be as commonplace. Fourth, while I enjoyed meeting new people, my suspicions were confirmed...I do not like clubs or bars. The only anticipation I have of ever returning is if I am on a VIP list that allows me free entrance.

It has certainly been interesting though to get a glimpse of social life outside of what I am used to at BYU. I think certain aspects are unique to Brazilian culture and others are just normal to life outside Mormonism, neither of which I am familiar with. I also met a lot of people at the institute here and we went out together to a pizzeria. It was a nice change of pace, I felt more at home.

Classes started last Wednesday. I will be taking Negotiation, Brazilian Economy, International Strategy, and Finance in New Endeavors & Private Equity. All are MBA-level and are taught in English except for the Private Equity class. I also have 5 hours of Portuguese courses during the week to improve my language skills. This week was also the "Trote" activity at FGV, which is their equivalent to freshman initiation. It was insane, but unfortuantely I didn't get any pictures. They threw eggs at the freshman, shaved their heads, poured beer all over them and then had a crazy party. Glad I am not counted as a freshman ;-)

I finally got a cell phone. It is so convenient, if not necessary, to have one as a student. Plans here are very different from the states, more complicated in my opinion and somewhat expensive so I just got a simple pre-paid plan. If anyone ever feels like calling me, I would love to talk: 55 11 6515-4221.

Mountaineering in Paradise

2009-08-10T19:58:00.001-07:00

What a whirlwind of a week. I feel like a million things have happened since my first couple days here in São Paulo. I suppose I will just start from the beginning. Last weekend mostly consisted of meeting new people. I went to the ward party, which was themed Festa Junina. The “Festa Junina” is a traditional party here in Brazil that normally occurs in the end of June, but I guess they decided to have an August one as well. Essentially, the party involves redneck dress, traditional food (corn, boiled peanuts, sweet rice, and some other treats), and Forró line dancing. Dan and I were impressed that they even had a mechanical bull. We both took our turns on it. Unfortunately I did not make Idaho proud as I only lasted a few seconds.

The first week at church was great. The ward is quite strong as far as attendance is concerned. It is funny how a lot of people in the church call Dan and I “Elder.” I think it is because they either have too much difficulty with my name or they are so used to two white guys being Elders that they just default to that. Sunday evening we went to a family home evening at the Spat’s house. He is an older gentleman who speaks great English from having served a mission in Switzerland several decades ago. We met a lot of new people at the event from different wards in the area.
Since our classes had been postponed until the 12th, Dan and I began the week with plans to travel somewhere. Our two main choices were Rio de Janeiro and Salvador. A bunch of other FGV exchange students from Europe were going to Salvador, but for some reason I just was not feeling Salvador so we decided on Rio. I will get to the Rio trip shortly.

On Monday or Tuesday, Dan and I were heading home from FGV on the bus, about an hour’s ride. It was late afternoon, we were tired and we were standing, packed like sardines inside the bus. We looked at each other and realized we were both thinking the same thing—there was no way we could keep up this type of commute for five more months. We knew we needed to find a place closer. Dan said, “Well, we better start praying pretty hard.” Wednesday and Thursday we hit the housing search hard. Things were going fast because this time of year a lot of students are returning from different places to start classes. We saw a few places, nothing that just called out to us, but definitely places better than our situation at the time. In talking with renters, we could sense the pressure time was putting on us; some openings were disappearing in a matter of hours. We were close to deciding on one place because it was so cheap, we were leaving that evening for Rio, and it was sure to not be open when we returned. We used our better judgment, however, and told the lady we wanted to think about it even if that meant losing the spot. We had a couple other options still, so we decided to check them out and our next stop was our last. We found a really chill apartment less than 100 meters from FGV in the heart of downtown São Paulo. Dan and I are sharing it with Roberto, our new roommate from Texas. He is cool. I cannot get over how glad I am that we ended up with the apartment, it is great for our situation. Plus, it is only $280 per month for each of us, which for the area is a great price. So tonight we should be officially moved into our new place! I will take two lessons away from this experience. First and once again, prayers are answered. Second, never let time constraints affect the decision making process such that you feel forced to make a decision before you are ready.

Just hours after closing the contract (well, more of an oral agreement) we hopped a bus to Rio, embarking on what turned out to be one of the sweetest weekends ever. About midweek, Dan and I were talking to our friend Lani, who was doing a BYU study abroad here. It turned out that her parents live in Rio, and she was going with a couple of other friends to visit for the weekend. We expressed our interest in going and she agreed that it would be fun so we booked some overnight bus tickets and met up with them Friday morning. They were incredible hosts and took such great care of us. The apartment was amazing—right off Ipanema beach with a nice view from the balcony. Her mother made French toast, ribs, tacos, sandwiches, fruit, brownies and other things…a welcome change from rice and beans :). I felt at home. On Friday afternoon we climbed Pão de Açucar which mostly consisted of hiking, but there was a short stretch that required climbing gear. We had no problem reaching the top where we took in the incredible view of Rio. It was a lot better than dropping $20 to take the lift car to the top. Later that evening we relaxed at the apartment and the beach. About 3 a.m. that night, I awoke to a loud, catchy remix of Viva La Vida. The bass was seriously rocking the entire block, and I got up and saw a party going on across the street in the penthouse suite. Apparently Rio doesn’t have any type of noise ordinance. The party went on until 6 a.m. or so. To be honest, I wasn’t really that mad—the beat was good and after an hour or so I was able to fall back to sleep. I almost considered going over to join the party ;)

Best spot in the apartment.

Just before heading up Pão de Açucar.

Some friends we met on the way up.

A lot of it was a huge rock face.

Getting the gear ready...safety first!

First time climbing in many years.

Successfully on top.

What a view! Too bad it was a little cloudy.

We did take the cable car down since it is free going down.

This is on the agenda for the next trip to Rio.

On Saturday we one-upped ourselves. We got up early for our climb up Pedra da Gávea. Rio is full of dome-type mountains and Pedra da Gávea has to be one of, if not the tallest, at 2500 feet. Lani’s father is in the military, and a couple of his friends came along—Major Lee was our guide. That turned out to be a good thing because I did not have the climbing know-how to conquer a few of the points along the way. It was so awesome to hike through jungle, climb rock crevasses, and traverse exposed rock faces along the way to the summit. Once on top, the view is amazing—Rio is basically paradise. We had lunch and by then the wind died down enough for Chris, the other military guy with us, to be able to parasail off the top. It looked like so much fun; I am going to have to try hang gliding when I go back. We picked Chris up on the beach down below and talked about the awesomeness of his jump. Even more impressive: he left on his trip last November, riding his motorcycle from South Carolina through central America, Columbia, Peru and now Brazil—that’s a world traveler for you. The hike took a lot out of me so I just chilled at the apartment in the evening. Sunday was pretty chill as well. I didn’t have church clothes so I went in shorts and sandals…that was a weird feeling. We took a stroll along the beach and then caught our bus at midnight to head back to São Paulo. I am excited to start class and move into my new place, but it was really hard to leave Rio. I will be back though, for sure.

The group at the hang gliding point below Pedra da Gávea, early morning.

Most of the climbing did not require gear.

For the crevass, however, we pulled it out just to be safe.

Close to the top. It opened up with a great view of the coast.

The group at the peak...we made it!

The wind cooperated and Chris was able to para sail off the top. Sick picture!

Me rappelling down the crevass on the way down.

I did the climb in sandals...wouldn't recommend that.

I want to document funny experiences I have here in Brazil so I don’t forget them. Here is one from last week:

Dan and I are entering the subway and there is a large group of kids in front of us, probably around 17 or 18 years old. As we are going down the escalator, we notice three girls in front of us who are not being very discreet about looking back at us.

Dan: Jay, did you hear those girls?
Me: No, were they talking about us?
Dan: Yeah, I think so.

One of them turns around.

Dan: What’s up?
Girl A: You speak Portuguese? Where are you guys from?
Dan: The U.S. We are exchange students.
Girl A: You guys are hot.
Girl B: Really hot.
Dan: Thanks.
Me: What are you guys up to?

They gave a short response, but did not at all seem interested in that part of the conversation. I continued to talk with them and we explained that we had already lived in Brazil, so we spoke the language and whatnot.

Girl A: Cool, so yeah, you guys are really hot.
Me: Thanks, we gotta get going, but it was great to talk with you.

Girl A waves goodbye, but Girl B prefers to proceed in the spirit of Brazilian culture, and we both give her the kiss-on-the-cheek goodbye.

Girl C: No, do it on the mouth.

I laugh to myself, say tchau and we go on our way.

Videos

2009-08-10T19:31:00.000-07:00

Oi Gente!

2009-07-30T21:02:00.000-07:00

I arrived safe and sound here in Sao Paulo yesterday after more than 24 hours of travel. A friend of mine, Paulo, was kind enough to pick us up from the airport. I am glad he drove because traffic in Sao Paulo is INSANE! I would never want to drive here but maybe you get used to it. The worst are the Motoboys. They drive around on motorbikes so they can weave in and out of traffic to make their deliveries quicker. Paulo cut one off and he knocked on our car window and had several choice words for Paulo who just glared back at him. Just another day to a normal driver in Sao Paulo.

Today Dan and I took the bus into Bela Vista to complete our check-in at FGV (our college is called Fundação Getulio Vargas). We don't have a campus like most universities in the U.S. It is a 10 story building in the heart of Sao Paulo. I am completely in my element at FGV. It's in the middle of the city, talk of travel and business fills the air, there is an excellent cafeteria on the lower level so you do not even need to leave the school to eat, internet and a student lounge, it is great. If they could provide me a mattress and a shower I would live there ;-) To kick things off, I am going to a forum on Tuesday with Mark Zuckerberg, the founder and CEO of Facebook...sweet!

Apparently the swine flu has recently escalated here so unfortunately our classes are postponed until August 12th. They were supposed to begin on Monday. I am thinking I will do some traveling now rather than right before I come home because classes will now end later in December.

We also went to a soccer game today...pretty crazy. It wasn't even close to full since it is pretty cold right now, but there were still enough fans to get a taste of the chants, yelling, jumping, and other shenanigans that literally rock the stadium when it sells out. Looking forward to going to a rivalry game that's filled to capacity in the summer!

I live with a couple, Djalma and Ivone Santos. They are older, probably Mom and Dad's age (that one's for you Mom ;-)) and they are very kind. Both their kids are married but they live in the same apartment complex so they visit quite a bit. I quickly became friends with Ivone's nephew, Emerson, who lives on the same floor as us. He took me to the soccer game tonight and showed me the "Brasilian way" of getting by at things like that. It is also really nice that Dan is on exchange at FGV as well; I like having a traveling companion. As Dan's mom said, FGV is lucky to have such sharp, clean-shaven guys as us :).

I have already rediscovered the amazing fruit here, relived the fun of walking the streets, made friends and cheered with the die-hards at a soccer game. It has been a great start to the trip.

With Mom and Dad just before departure

Dan and I eagerly anticipating the next 12 hours we would spend in the air

Waiting for Paulo to pick us up from the airport

My place of residence

View from my bedroom

The pool and recreation area of our complex

A staple for any housing project here...quadra de futebol

Holi! Festival of Colors

2009-03-31T15:01:00.000-07:00

This Saturday was the yearly Festival of Colors at the Spanish Fork Hare Krishna Temple. I had heard a lot of good things about the festival and I had seen some awesome pictures, so there was no way I was going to pass up the opportunity to attend this year. So I hit it up with a few other friends and it was a blast. It was crazy when the color throwing started b/c you literally cannot see the sky or any surroundings (like ground zero was I imagine) and it was hard to breathe for a bit. But it was all good and things cleared out and we danced the evening away singing...

Hare Krishna! Hare Krishna!
Krishna Krishna! Hare Hare!
Hare Rama! Hare Rama!
Rama Rama! Hare Hare!

It is an easy and fun chant to learn. I don't exactly remember the significance of throwing colors at each other but I am sure you can read up on it online. I will definitely be back next year!

Back to the Grind

2008-08-23T20:29:00.000-07:00

The past two weeks back on the farm have been a great change of pace from fast-paced life in DC. Getting up with the sun, eating meals entirely from the garden, physical labor, running into wildlife, it has been both enjoyable and relaxing, exactly what I need before I dive into another semester. It is interesting how there are always multiple projects to be done...it makes me wonder if they will ever end. Anyway, to all siblings out there (especially the three who are far away) remember how awesome the farm is and come visit as soon as you can! It has been so long since I have seen ya'll here at home.

Trying to salvage the concrete for use as a parking slab.

I am up for any excuse to get up on the roof.

Running the powerline out to the barn.

Digging a trench for the powerline...the machine weighed at least a ton, it was hard to maneuver.

Pretty view of the valley.

I like how extreme the contrast is between the parched spots and the rest of the field.

One of my least favorite jobs—moving handlines out of the wheat field.

Fortunately there are not so many mainlines to move.

Mom and I were pretty proud of our scrabble game since we used all the letters but the "z", which ended up being responsible for her losing to me.

One Last Hurrah

2008-07-27T18:23:00.000-07:00

Well, NYC did not end up being my last excursion for the summer. My friend JD suggested we visit Palmyra and Niagara Falls before we leave and since he has a car that made the decision quite easy. So we road-tripped to upstate New York on Friday, saw the sites on Saturday and drove back all night arriving in time for church today...fast but fun trip. Heidi and Diana also came along, and we had our ipod, so that made the 10 hour drive (including stops) actually quite enjoyable. Friday night we camped at some random county fairgrounds and were the only campers, so we were initially confused as to whether it was the right spot or not. It was 10:30 at night when we finally got there, so we proceeded to set up camp in the dark after finding numbered spots that we figured must have been campsites (we were all cracking up at the thought of locals waking up the next morning to find a random tent pitched on the infield of the horse-racing track until we finally found the designated areas). Everything turned out fine the next morning. We breakfasted at a local diner and it was refreshing to hear that the talk of the day was about air wrenches and engines rather than the political discussion I have been used to these last 3 months.

The Smith family farm and the Sacred Grove were certainly my favorite historical sites. It was awe-inspiring to be standing on holy ground while my mind flashed back to the first vision, Moroni's first visit to Joseph and the instances when Joseph was busy translating. To think of all that has come about in the world because of the events at those little sites is amazing. The Hill Cumorah visitor's center was fun, but Hill Cumorah did not really do it for me. Mostly because the hill is covered by modern towers used for the pageant, it just had a less historic feel to it. We also visited the Grandin Print Shop where the first Book of Mormon was published and had a nice tour there.

Then it was off to Niagara Falls which was amazing in its own right. As you approach it looks like a building nearby is on fire, but then you realize that it is not smoke you see, rather it is the mist that rises so high above the falls. Since we were so close we took the opportunity to grace Canada with our presence and Heidi even took up my offer that I would give anyone a dollar if they would use "ay?" in conversation with a local. She said it felt completely unnatural but I commend her for her usage of local dialect, hehe. And if it was January 2009, JD and I would still be in Canada right now because we did not have our passports on us, but the new regulations for re-entering the US do not have effect until then so we lucked out. Might I add, the guard at the checkpoint into Canada was extremely stern and unpleasant, so I thanked our US guard for her pleasant and helpful attitude toward us as we re-entered the states. After that, we all-nighted it back home and basically ran into a hurricane of a storm that was with us from New York all the way though Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The worst stretches were near the NY-PA boarder where the intensity of rainfall caused us to go 40 mph on the freeway. But we made it home safe and sound, made it to church and I proceeded to take a 7 hour nap this afternoon which actually counted as my previous night's sleep--I love weekends like this.

For all fans of the Office out there.

Palmyra Temple, I like how it is secluded in the woods not far from the Smith family farm.

Palmyra Temple-view from Smith family farm road.

Smith family farm...I felt in my element here.

As close as I could come to recreating the First Vision.

It is nice how the canopy offers shelter, notice that I am a little rained-on, would have been soaked if I had been out in the open.

Smith family residence.

Our small understanding among all 107 translations.

The sign tells it all.

Original floorboards that Joseph walked on when he ordered the publication of the first 5,000 copies.

Even from here the mist was getting me.

All the gang: me, Heidi, Diana, JD

Start Spreadin' the News...

2008-07-16T21:15:00.000-07:00

So I feel like my summer adventures culminated with my recent excursion to New York City. Heidi and I basically decided 24 hours beforehand that we were going to make the trip because her dad had a hotel room that would have otherwise gone unused. Then we recruited Andrew and Lucy about 6 hours before departure and we all hopped a bus at 2 am expecting to sleep on the way there so that we would have all of Saturday to spend in the city. Well, none of us slept more than an hour on the bus, so we rolled into NYC at 5:30 am somewhat wired, but really hoping we would make it through the day. We lucked out though when we decided to try the hotel just in case, and it turned out that they were able to check us in at 6:00 am and we all took a little nap before we hit the town. Saturday was a full day with lots of walking, but it was good because the best way to get to know a city is by foot. We mostly just wanted to experience the city and I think that plan worked out perfectly. We visited the usual places: Ground Zero, Soho, Greenwich, Canal St., Times Square, Central Park, Harlem, etc. Things like Ellis Island would have been fun but would have cut too much into our day. It was the little things we experienced that I enjoyed most about the trip-watching break dancers in Central Park, listening to Jazz musicians in the squares throughout the city, seeing a rat in the Subway, eating at little bagel shops and a pizzeria at 2 am, haggling the street vendors at Canal St. until they realized we weren't gonna buy anything and would kick us out. All the joys of a big city. And of course, Hairspray was amazing plus we had front row tickets so it was that much better. Despite being the filthiest American city I have ever visited, I would have to say that The Big Apple lived up to the hype, it was an awesome trip.

Dawn in NYC

Just off the Bus in Chinatown, for a city that never sleeps the streets were awfully empty at 5:30 in the morning.

Cool picture, though a bear would have been a more accurate reflection of the current market.

Wall St. and Broadway, doesn't get more famous than that.

Bagels in the park for breakfast.

Lady Liberty

Our hotel overlooked Ground Zero.

Times Square, this place seriously felt like being at the center of the world.

Hairspray, after meeting some of the cast.

Couldn't go to NYC without stopping here, though I wanted to eat at Rupert Gee's Hello Deli but it was closed for some reason.

Seinfeld was actually not filmed inside here, they just used the outside shot.

A Heavy Dose of Nostalgia

2008-06-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

Today my friend Heather got her mission call to Guatemala. It was really fun to she her excitement as she opened her call and read those famous few lines. I am so happy for her, but at the same time, I felt such a strong wave of nostalgia hit me that I was extremely overwhelmed. Then I got on my blog tonight and saw the post Mom did just before I returned home from Brasil-that was like a second dagger to the heart. I was doing better in recent months about not missing my mission, but now its as bad as ever. Let me just say that it was the best experience ever and means everything to me (I can say that since I am not married yet). When I look back at getting my call, it was like getting a call to the celestial kingdom. I had never heard of Salvador, I just knew that I was going to serve the Lord and I was going to a sweet tropical paradise. Up to this point in my life no words mean more to me than these: "You are hereby called to serve as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You have been called to labor in the Brasil Salvador South Mission." Even now, I can barely type them without crying out of joy. I can't remember if we video taped when I opened my call, I don't think we did, and I am sad about that, but we have pictures and I have my memories. As you may recall when I got off the plane and reunited with all the family I was somewhat quiet. Looking back I realize that was because as happy as I was to be home and to see everyone, I was still trying to come to terms with the reality of everything that I had left behind, it meant so much to me. I testify that each mission call is given from the Lord through his servants. I felt it when I read mine, and I felt when Heather read hers today; what an incredible, sacred feeling.

A Reflection on Life

2008-06-15T22:23:00.000-07:00

This past week had me thinking a lot. I hadn't really stopped to think about how privileged I am to have the experience of spending a summer in DC. Mom reminded me that I am doing things that many people won't ever get to do in their lifetime. It has not all been about fun and games (though I have had my fair share!). I have also been able to have inspiring experiences in our nation's capital. Yes, our government is far from perfect, but I would argue that we do a pretty darn good job for the most part. On monday we had the opportunity to attend a Supreme Court session. It was, indeed, awesome in the "awe" sense of the word. Sitting inside a courtroom that seemed to resemble the temple in both architecture and solemnity, I felt honored to stand in respect for the eight justices as they entered the courtroom (justice Ginsberg was not present). Opinions were quickly read, cases involving patents, discrimination, among others, some lawyers were sworn in as new members of the bar, and the justices exited-all in a matter of no more than 25 minutes. It was pretty fast and I would have liked to see a session with arguments, but it was a great experience nonetheless.

We also had the chance to have Senator Bennett from Utah speak to us about health care and also attend a briefing from a chief-of-staff in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs. This is our government working first-hand and I have really enjoyed seeing that myself so far during my stay here. I have also come to learn that politics is not so black and white as I thought. It is about compromise, giving a little to get a little and taking one step at a time. And it really bothers me to hear people disparage politicians, especially the President. I am not happy we are involved in Iraq either, but when I hear people make degrading remarks, I lose respect for them. The men in power are all brilliant people, and it is not easy to make decisions that literally affect hundreds of millions of people and their future. Its really easy to sit back at home and gripe about the state of the country, but I find that few people have an answer or a plan. It has been refreshing to meet people who don't complain, but actually go out and strive to implement change through their actions.

A happy Father's Day to all.

Future Chair of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs?

Annapolis...Sailing...Crab...Bliss

2008-06-08T09:18:00.000-07:00

Two friends and I (J.D. and Jessie) decided to hit up Annapolis yesterday, or as cool people call it "Naptown". It is a pretty sweet town, mostly because the historicity but also because of the harbor. Our main plan was to go sailing, but there is obviously much more to do and see in the city besides sailing. J.D.'s mom happens to be a walking tour guide, so when she had a break from work, she came and gave us a little walking tour of the town and the Naval Academy. It was awesome mostly because she was dressed up colonial-style and stayed in character for most of the tour. Afterward, we caught the Schooner "Woodwind" and went for a 2-hour sailing trip on the Chesapeake Bay. We first considered manning our own vessel, but in retrospect it was probably a good thing we didn't; sailing is more difficult than I imagined. It was really nice once we got out on the Bay and the breeze gave us a break from the extremely hot and humid conditions of the day.

Our day wouldn't have been complete without seafood, so we took the bridge across the Bay and went to a restaurant for a crab feast. Crab is a lot of work for a little meat, but that's part of the experience of eating crab, and it was really good. On the way home we saw one of the craziest lighting storms I have seen in my life, we even stopped to record some of it. This area has been getting a lot of thunderstorms and tornados lately, I wasn't aware this weather was typical of the area. Definitely loved sailing though. Someday I will need to get my own boat.

Me contemplating life...

Our captain actually trusted us with the boat for few seconds.

Anchors away!

Can't Stop Having Fun

2008-05-27T20:53:00.000-07:00

I realize I haven't posted for a while, I guess because I have been busy having fun. Last weekend Mandy, Jessie, Peter and I spent Saturday playing around DC. We went up the Washington Monument early in the morning for some incredible views of the DC metropolitan area. That afternoon we went paddle-boating by the Jefferson memorial and also went to an awesome air show at Andrews Air Force base. I had never been to one before and I didn't really know what to expect, but it was a blast. That evening we went to Baltimore to see the Orioles play and naturally the game was awesome; Camden Yards is classic. It was a fun-filled day and we were all dead tired when we finally got home.

Wednesday evening I wasn't feeling tired so I decided I would go write my paper at the Lincoln memorial late at night. It has become my favorite place for peacefulness and introspection. I noticed there was a lot of tents and lighting equipment when I got there, and as I was making progress on my paper, a bunch of people arrived and informed me I would have to leave the memorial because they were filming Night at the Museum II there that night. I thought that was pretty cool so I hung around the set for a couple of hours and watched them film. It was fun to see Ben Stiller and Amy Adams in action. But as I learned helping William film his short movie, filming mostly involves standing around forever and then getting a few seconds of footage; it was still fun to see the professionals in action though. I love it when random things like that happen to me.

This past Memorial Day weekend, Mandy, Jessie and I rented a car and headed down to the Outer Banks in North Carolina. Apparently it is the thing to do among LDS singles in the area every Memorial Day weekend. We rented a beach house along with about 12 other people and just hung out at the beach during the day and partied it up at night. It was my first experience with an east coast beach but I really enjoyed it. It is different from those in California but cool in its own right. It was so hard to come back and start work again today, I just want to vacation the entire summer!

I should be a photographer.

Paddle-boating at Tidal Basin, Jefferson Memorial

Gotta love classic WWII planes...or maybe this was a WWI plane, I don't know

Waverly, VA. We got lost on the way down to NC but it ended up being good b/c we saw the countryside. Isn't our little car cute?

Yeah, we're awesome.

This wasn't our house, but we liked this one and it has the classic beach house look.

As you can see, a big contrast from west coast beaches, at least the ones I know.

I got up early the last day to see my first sunrise over the Atlantic. Once again, mad photography skills.

A few more photos to come...I am waiting to get them from other people.

My Fill of Philly

2008-05-10T20:54:00.000-07:00

Our group returned tonight from a two-day excursion to Philadelphia. We left early Friday morning and took a bus to Valley Forge where we stayed the night. Unfortunately it was a very cold and rainy day. I being my stubborn self did not take a jacket and only had sandals. Though the weather was inclement, I like to think it allowed me to slightly experience what the soldiers did so many years ago, although it is a misconception that the winter there was particularly cold. In reality, no soldiers died that winter due to cold weather, it was mostly disease that killed them. Then today we left for Philadelphia early in the morning and visited the obvious spots: Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, etc. My favorite part of the day though was actually late afternoon when Heidi, Mandy and I bought some mangos and clementines at the market (they were extremely delicious) went to a park bench to eat them, and then visited a cute, little residential street that holds the claim to be the oldest such street in the nation. Philadelphia obviously boasts a rich history, but there is something unpleasant about it-I certainly prefer D.C.-and one day was about perfect to experience the highlights of the city. I could really get used to this traveling thing!

This was General Washington's headquarters at Valley Forge, the house is original.

(Left to Right) Mandy, Jay, Heidi, Russ

This is the room (mostly original) where the Continental Congress occurred...our Constitution was born here!

Mmmm...cheesesteak

Mandy and I having fun in front of Independence Hall

Market Street, Philadelphia, PA

This is the oldest street of its type in the nation, pretty awesome if you ask me.

Weekend Fun

2008-05-04T20:48:00.002-07:00

One great thing about big cities is that there is no excuse for being bored. Saturday my roommate and I got free tickets to the afternoon baseball game and then in the evening I went with some other friends to a jazz concert put on by a band out of Shanghi called Coco Zhao; it was kind of different but I really enjoyed it. Today after the CES fireside some of us went to the Einstein memorial and had a nice devotional about math and science in relation to the gospel. Afterwards we walked around the war memorials and the Lincoln memorial. I particularly enjoy walking around D.C. at night, I guess because it seems more peaceful and I can sit and ponder and take in all the sites and history of the place.

I like the inscription above Lincoln, I definitely felt a certain reverence about the memorial.

Good Times in D.C.

2008-04-29T20:32:00.000-07:00

My long awaited internship with the Federal Judicial Center has finally begun. Today was the first day on the job and I must say, I liked everything about it. Commuting by way of metro, passing through metal detectors, sitting through training meetings, and get started on a couple projects...it was all awesome. I just get energized by all aspects of this, I get on the metro in the morning and I am surrounded by people in suits, reading newspapers on their way to work and simply just looking important, which is fun to do even if you aren't important yourself. Then there is work, which is situated just next to Union Station and the SEC, and not far from the Capital. This alone makes my job feel cool not to mention to sweet layout inside the building. And there are so many cool tasks I might become involved in. Obviously the menial labor has its place, but there will be cool meetings I can attend with prominent judicial persons, the opportunity to proofread legal/management books up for publication, attend Supreme Court debate sessions, and many other interesting things. I plan on going to every single meeting possible, it will just be fun to be a part of it all. Already we have been invited to an event, some judges/attorneys get together tomorrow evening at a restaurant, how cool is that? Our supervisors just invited us and said it might be good for networking opportunities. What also makes it great is being with other BYU guys, we have a lot of fun together. Definitely looking forward to working, plus it's only 4 days a week, if it ever happens to get less cool.

Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building

It gets better though. After work, we decided to catch the baseball game, so we hopped the subway and went out to the park. I haven't been to a professional baseball game in a long time, it was a blast, a little cold, but still fun. Tickets were only 7 bucks, plus it was not even close to sold out so we moved closer to the field, and when the game was nearing its end, and we were starving after not having eaten since lunch, my friend decided to hit up a nacho stand that was closing and they gave us free food since it would be wasted anyway...what a night for only 7 dollars! All in all, a great day, and many more to come.

Myself and fellow FJC interns.

In-between-inning entertainment. These guys were dressed up as presidents and raced around the park, I believe Roosevelt won.

Inauguration

2008-03-26T14:31:00.000-07:00

I have decided to create a new blog and retire the old one. My hope is to document my life more fully since I only blogged 4 times in 2 semesters, not that I need a new blog to do so, I just wanted to create a new one. I also anticipate more blogging potential during the summer. I have realized that I suffer from the "winter blues" because we finally had a warm, sunny day yesterday and I noticed just how happy I felt and how awesome life is as opposed to my feelings in the last 5 months. My theory—the sun's rays stimulate chemicals within your body that make you feel good, at least me anyway—and that is why I love summer. Is there scientific proof on this? Anyway, can't wait for summer. Here is a picture to spice the blog up.

With my mad photography skills I was able to capture this beautiful Hawaiian sunset.