Minicamp

Well, let's start before the minicamp even started. The morning of January 5 we woke up a little bit earlier than I have been used to, but I was glad to have the chance to actually do a little bit more in the day. We were supposed to wake up around 10, but I asked Ana if I could get woken up around 9:30. I took a nice shower and then rechecked that I had everything that I needed for the mini-camp packed. There were a couple things that I needed to get done like email parents, post here, etc. so I got that all done. I had some frosted flakes for breakfast, and then I headed off for mini-camp. We arrived to Ze's family's farm around noon, but before that we had to meet Bruce, Maria, Gen, and Carol at one of Ana's English schools because they didn't remember how to get to the farm. They followed us there and we were greeted by friendly and familiar faces. Ana and Marcelo had to rush off back to São Jose, but luckily Ana had already given me the tour of the farm and told me where everything we would need would be.

I gave Bruce and Maria the tour, and, as Ana asked, showed them where everything was. We divided up each of the meals and put them into bins, and then I had some time to socialize. I went around to all of my friends and instantly started chattering away about all of family week. Each person had an different and interesting variation on how they spent their week. Everybody spent it at the beach except for Lane, who spent it in the mountains of Brazil. She enjoyed her week very much, but is also looking forward to the beach, because she is the only one that hasn't walked on Brazilian sand yet. We all had some time to hang out and get settled in the house, and then we had some activities. 

We started with a few energizers, and then moved on to some running activities. Maria and Yago worked together to change some classic running games into water-related games. For instance, the classic game of eagle's nest, where there is a base on each side with balls that you have to steal and bring to your side, there were water balloons. If the water balloon popped, you were out, and also got wet, which was a nice chance to cool down! Then we had a deeper game, which all of us completely missed the point of. Between three trees, Bruce had tied a string that we were supposed to get over without touching it or going under it at all. Our goal was to get over the string like he had said, but we resorted to things like mass jail-breaks and the like. Bruce's goal for us was for us to work together, even if there wasn't a feasible solution to getting out of the triangle. We played some more activities, but eventually all of us ended up getting pushed into the pool, or just falling accidentally in Lane's case. The rest of the night was pretty uneventful, mostly freetime. But we have been enjoying all the time to hang out and get to know each other better!

The next day, we all woke up around 8:45, totaling in about 6 hours of sleep. We enjoyed some cereal and coffee for breakfast, and then got started with our day. We have all found out that Andre and Michael really like to sleep, given that in addition to at night, each of them have slept for about 3 hours each day at random times. Most of the day was freetime, but we did have some activities such as the Mickey Mouse game and Yard Sale. Yet again, most of the day was pretty uneventful, but very fun. There was a large activity and importance laid down towards the spider activity. There are many spiders in Brazil, and most of them are about 5 times the size of the ones that we are used to. The ones that stared at us from the ceilings of Ze's farm were approximately 3 inches long, and probably 2 inches wide. Next I will post an original account from Mileah, keep your eyes open!

Other than the spider hunt, the most exciting part of the day was the newfound display of love binding the United States of America and Brazil. The first display was when Michael and Carol were found outside washing the dishes together, even though only Carol was on cleaning duty. They were smiling and laughing when we found them, which instantly made us start the search. We knew that something was up, so instantly, Bruce, me, Gen, Nikki, and Blake were on the hunt for any suspicious activity. We found an open window in the bathroom to spy on them from, but right after Bruce climbed up on top of a chair to peek, we all heard Michael yell "Bruce!!" in an disapproving tone. Apparently, he had seen us. All but Bruce had decided to give up the search, but Bruce was determined to get something on camera. The only problem with that plan, that we hadn't realized, was that he had forgotten his camera when he went out to find them. As we were socializing in the living room, we heard the back door open and Bruce ran in yelling "I need my camera, quick!!!" We all knew that he had found something interesting. I asked him what was happening and he said that he would explain later, he just needed his camera! I ran and grabbed his camera, and mine. He ran out of the door and sneaked across the side of the house. Unfortunately, a whole entourage of eager onlookers followed him, and disturbed the newfound couple. By the time Bruce had held his camera around the corner of the building, they had heard us and fled back into the house and suggested that nothing had been happening. They were both smiling, so we just had to ask. They admitted that they were attracted to each other and had kissed behind the house. So, congratulations to Michael and Carol! Then they sealed the deal with a quick kiss goodnight. 

Today we all woke up early, thanks to Bruce. It did take a little bit more work for Andre, though. Bruce had to jump on his bed and pick him up and have a pillow fight with his torso before he woke up. Getting him out of bed is a entire different story. Bruce had to pull his mattress out from under him before he would finally get out of his bed, and then he just got into a different bed! Well, finally he made it out of bread and we had breakfast. 

We had a nice quiet morning with some activities and freetime. We all said goodbye and then split up to go back to each of our families. Once we got home, I had about an hour to get settled back in and then we headed off to the mall. More to come tomorrow...