Giselle's

Being a Physicist has some advantages...I know I´m never gonna be rich, but at least I can travel around to go to conferences!

The last one was in Argentina. Well, the conference happened in Mar Del Plata (from the 2nd to the 4th of May), but we enjoyed two days in Buenos Aires, having loads of fun!

Argentina is really cool and now my "portunhol' (mixture of portuguese and spanish) is brilliant. And, yes, the conference was good!!

How nice were the days in Cabo Frio! And, near ther, the gorgeous Buzios! I wish I could have stayed longer there. Sunshine, nice food and...my birthday! As you can see from the photos, the only candle we could find was 5, which doesn´t mean that now I´m 5 ... I´m 28, but looking like 20 :o)

Well, I´m happy, tanned and ready... Ready to go back there, not for STM !!!

Last Saturday I went to fish with my dad and my uncle, Wilson. Well, as I´m pitty of the little animals, I couldn´t even try to fish. But Dad managed twice...I think the creatures were very well fed so, they didn´t want food any more...

 

My youngest brother´s wedding was on Saturday, the 9th of December.

It was quite impossible to get pictures from the bride, ´cause she was busy with guests and her own pictures.

The little bridesmaid (looking like a cabadge!) couldn´t help sleeping (as you can see in the album)!

Yep, he´s got married...Regis, there is no way back!

I´m a PhD now! I can´t believe! My viva was on September, the 25th and it was much easier than I thought. But to be a doctor is a big responsability...Everybody expects you are wise and smart and you know lots of difficult stuff. Well, I don´t think I´m smart or wise and I don´t think I know lots, though I know some stuff that can be difficult for some people . Anyway, I´m a PhD now and there´s not to much I can do...I´m happy!

Well, well...I know that there are ages since last time I wrote here. But I´ve got a good excuse. Writing up takes ages and it´s not an easy task at all. So, since I arrived, I worked a lot on my writing. After that, I had to prepare a work to go to a Conference...

Ok, first things first! I´ve learned that if you want to tell your story, it´s better to do it in small sections. People usually are going to complain if you write loads at once. That´s why today I´m gonna write about what happend during my last days in Notts and first days in Brazil (in the end of April and begining of May):

 

Heathrow probably never seemed so sad to me than it was on that day, 30rd of April 2006...Luis and Roger were there with me. I can´t remember any other ocasion when I cried so much for leaving friends. It was if I were leaving them forever! I cried from the last goodbye in Heathrow till first "Hi" in Confins Airport, in Brazil... Ok, this is the only sad bit of this entry!

Last days in Notts were definitely nice! Lots of welfare parties, cards...I haven´t realised so far how many friends I had there. And I mean FRIENDS! Amongst friends, Chicken Ceasar salad, Chinese food and ice cream I had some of my nicest moments in the UK.

Then, on Sunday I had my last lunch with my big brothers Pinguim (Roger) and Luis, before going to the airport.

At Heathrow, while waiting for my plane, a Brazilian woman was talking to another lady. I approached and asked about the flight. She started talking to me...And then, I regret a lot to have started that chat! The woman was crazy, believe me! In the beginig it was nice, we were chatting about nice things in England. But then, she started to talk like a chatting box...Saying awful things about Brazil. Than, in while queueing for the plane, a found out that she was also from Belo Horizonte! Gosh! She wanted my email address. Good thing to not have a piece of paper at that moment! I thought I had got rid of her in the plane, her seat was far away from mine. Relief! But than, at night, I needed a wee. The whole plane asleep. In the middle of the darkness, two sparkling eyes where frozen in the space. Her eyes! Scaring! I thought that she hadn´t noticed me. But she had. Waiting for the toiled, a hand touched my shoulder...Her hand! Oh, no, again. So far, I was thinking that she was only annoying. Than, I realised: She was crazy! "Don´t use this toilet" she said..."It´s filthy...", she whispered..."Use the front one" .  What kind of person keeps awake, looking to the darkness, in the midle of the night , suddenly stands up, wakes other people up to pass, just to tell somebody  that the toilet is filthy? And, besides, the toilet was perfectly clean! Gosh! I prayed to get rid of her again...Arriving in Sao Paulo I managed to make her loose my track. Thanks God!!

When I arrived in Brazil, I couldn´t expect a bigger surprise...Almost all of my friends from church, my family...Everybody there, waving, shouting, taking pictures...And a big orange poster saying how much they loved me. Course, I was as orange as the poster by that time!!

Then, at night, there was a (suposed surprise!) welcome party. Guy, I was so tired! But it was nice, anyway...

First week in Brazil was dedicated to meet friends, family, make telephonic calls...I´ve tried to work, but it was nearly impossible!Than, I managed to start writing in the second or third week in May. Well, now it´s finished...The thesis! My history is not complete yet!