Friday, April 11, 2008

Brazil Part 2

We arrived at Posada Ekoa where we stayed for the week. It was so beautiful!!

This is the bungalow in which we stayed.
Our gigantic, king sized bed with the mosquito netting. The mosquitos were terrible at night. We had to wear long sleeves and pants and use mosquito repellent. However, there is no malaria where we were so that was not a concern.
Shelves, a twin bed that we didn't use, and a TV which we unplugged (it would have been amusing watching TV in Portuguese, but we wanted a break from all technology). We were, however, grateful for the technology of the air conditioner unit towards the end of the week when it got really hot!
There was a beautiful swimming pool there. Jake loved it! It was chlorine-free, so nice.
The beach was right on the property. Jake wasn't too sure about the ocean at first but it wasn't too long before he was enjoying it! His favorite thing to do was be completely naked, hold onto either mama or daddy's hand, and laugh like crazy every time a wave came up and got him wet.
It was cloudy for the first 2 days of our stay there, but very warm nevertheless.
Looking north out on the Atlantic Ocean.
Lots of playing in the sand.
It was just a short walk from our bungalow to the place where we had all our meals and ceremonies and gathered for lectures and sharing stories.
This was my breakfast plate every morning. So. Very. Yummy. Mango, watermelon, pineapple, papaya.
Jake thought it was all yummy.
Jake helped to sweep the floor.
(Some of these images are from other cameras, as you can tell from the clarity. My camera was on its last legs, and is now no longer working. I am, however, thankful for the pictures I have!)

Ralph, Sara, and Warinei during a lecture. Sara translated for Warinei who spoke Portuguese.
Me listening while drinking yummy agua do coco (coconut water).
Jake found other uses for the coconut. This is one of my favorite pictures.
The pool. We swam daily, and even swam at night the first evening we were there, under the stars and with the lights on in the pool.
You can see the beach from the pool. Gorgeous!
Sun! Here we are having a ceremony in which we each gave an offering of a crystal to the earth. (Later in the week we also had a ceremony and each gave an offering of a crystal to the sea.)
We held the crystals in our left hands over our hearts. Then when it was our turn, placed the crystals in our right hands and put them inside a hole in the earth along with some corn and tobacco.

Back to the beach!
Jake playing with friend Dominic.
So beautiful.
Looking at the fire pit and the massage house. A massage was included in the price for the week and it was, by far, the best massage Mike and I have ever had.
I loved swimming with Jake. His favorite thing to do was to hold onto my hands and jump into the pool. He also liked it when I moved him around in the water.
Jake had so much fun with friends Noah (6) and Zoe (8). Also shown is their mother Julia (in orange) and friend Lucy.
Getting ready for the daytime ceremony with our workshop friends. The ceremonies were very special and spiritual and overseen by shaman Warinei and his assitant, Sara.
It was a beautiful day.
Such a colorful scene!
Reading outside on the porch of the bungalow. So cute.
In the evenings we spent A LOT of time reading inside the tented bed. Here Daddy is making the sign for the "naughty/silly" face.
So much fun to read. We brought about 8 of Jake's books with us. I am hoping not to have to read The Cat in the Hat Comes Back again for awhile... He also loved the book Bear on a Bike.
Reading in the hammock was fun, too.
Happy vacationers!

8 comments:

Amy *aka willa* said...

OMGosh, what a wonderful journey. I think this location is the perfect place for a MDC commune!!!!

Looks like Jake had a ton of fun, too. I'm really glad you brought him. What an incredible experience!

:D

Hedy said...

Agreed about the commune. I want to go there now!

-H

Karen Compton said...

What an amazing trip! Gorgeous beach, adorable kid :-) The place you stayed looks incredible. I'm looking forward to hearing more about the workshops.

Leah Perlingieri said...

oh, this is great--now i am getting a feel for how you spent your days! it looks wonderful.....*sigh*

i am also appreciating how it wasn't just a "tropical vacation", but that there was a meaningful experience wrapped around it as well.

FannyHams said...

sign me up for cummune life!!!!
you look so happy, healthy and rejuvinated. so glad your amazing family was able to have this experience.
<3

FannyHams said...

ack! that should be commune!!!! lol

nicole said...

What a beautiful place! You all look relaxed and enjoying every minute of your special trip...I can't wait to hear more about your experience.

Aimee said...

Wow what a beautiful trip :) I can't wait to hear all about it. We would LOVE to go and get to savor the experience you guys did.
Love,
The Hansen clan :)