Last day in Pato Branco

Our last day in Pato Branco was a great one. We kicked off the day with a tour of the radio and television station, then off to the newspaper for a tour and interview. 

After yet another delicious lunch we were taken on a bus for a beautiful country drive to tour the hydraulic electric plant.

For a little relaxation, we visited a gorgeous home on the lake where we picked fresh oranges. Ohhh so sweet! Thanks to all those that made our stay in Pato Branco so enjoyable.

Arrival to Pato Branco

On Saturday morning we said our goodbyes to everyone in Guarapuava.  Two hours later we had a very warm welcome to Pato Branco with over 30 people greeting us with a welcome banner. After meeting our host families, we went to the local TV station for a quick hello and introduction on TV, we will be going back for an interview on Monday. We then went for a typical lunch which was delicious as usual. We all split up for a few hours and rejoined for dinner at a nice pizzeria and bbq place... the dessert pizzas were amazing!!

We were on after these guys......

Guarapuava Day 3 - Eric

At this point the group is getting split up for different activities and vocational visits. We do some things together, like eat lunch, but then we split up the group to see our vocations, or related fields here in Brazil.

I started out the day with breakfast with my host family, it is pretty quiet as they don't speak any english. I get by with my phrase book and google translate. Edder, the son of Doralice can speak a little english so that definitely helps.

The group met to get a tour of the University Unicentro and meet the director. It was a good overview of all the programs and we had the help of a translator to fully understand. It is great that as long as the student has good marks here, they do not pay for University, it is paid for by tax dollars.

After the tour we went out for yet another delicious lunch and then went to our vocation visits. I didn't have anything scheduled for a little bit so Edder took me to his families cottage just outside the City. It is a beautiful piece of property with a cottage and even a soccer field.

After that I went for a vocational visit to the water and wastewater treatment plants. Very similar to Canada in design and operation, with some differences. It was interesting to see their processes, the water treatment plant was under construction due to some changes in environmental policy and also to increase efficiency and recycle more water.

Tonight, we are off for a nice dinner and then I have heard about a party with my host families son so it should be a fun night, stay tuned for more pictures!

We are in Guarapuava!

We officially started the GSE experience yesterday in Guarapuava with another warm welcome - this time from our host families. No time was wasted as we jumped right into a tour of Entre Rios (a district within the city composed of 5 Germanic-Slavic colonies) and a visit to the cultural museum. A quiet evening with our host families rounded out the day.

Today we had a visit with the Mayor of Guarapuava followed by an afternoon visiting one of the local Rotary projects - a collaboration of the Rotary and the military. This project provides space and resources for kids and youth to access extracurriculars - more study time, sports, music and art. We were welcomed to take part in a Mother's Day celebration for the families of these boys and were definitely an attraction to them! Tonight we are off to our first Rotary Club visit and presentation. Wish us luck!

Words cannot express the gratitude for all that we have received here in Curitiba thanks to the kindsness of Rogerio and Joao carlos of Fransico Beltrao.

Curitiba Day 2 Part 2

After the botanical gardens, we went for a tour of the future World Cup stadium in Curitiba, this was such a nice privilege and not many people get to stand on the field and walk through the same spot the players do.

Standing on the field where players will be playing the World Cup matches in 2014!

Lunch at Madalosso, the biggest restaurant in Curitiba, they feed you so much food here!

Tangua Park, one of the beautiful parks around Curitiba, the view was amazing!

The view from one direction, pictures do not do it justice!

Waiting for our ride for a night out at Taj, a very fancy Japanese bar, it was so dark in there we needed flashlights to read the menu!

Afterwards, Taj was a blast!

Last day in Curitiba

We got to sleep in a bit today which was a nice treat, we then went for a talk from the Governor's daughter who works at IAP, an environmental organization that works to protect and conserve Parana's environment. This was a very informative session and it was great to learn about the issues that Parana is facing environmentally.

Well what can we say ... 2.5 days is not enough time to see all of the amazing things this city has to offer. But we sure are trying! Today included a visit with IAP (the Environmental Department of the Parana Government), a tour through the world famous Museu Oscar Neimeyer and a stroll through a very large mall. Tomorrow we are off to our first official GSE stop in Guarapuava. Thank you to our wonderful hosts in Curitiba, and we look forward to meeting our next hosts!