It's so weird to know so far in advance where we'll be going-- and I'm not just talking about the fact that we've not even been in Shenyang for a year before we're already thinking about leaving. I'm just realizing that for the first time in a long time, I know where I'll be four years from now: just finishing up our tour in Brasilia. Crazy! I think the last time I knew where I'd be after four years was when I was a freshman in high school. I was pretty sure I'd be graduating, and thankfully, I was right on.
Last year, Brazil really came onto our radar. I remember watching a nature documentary where some monkeys were cracking palm nuts with rocks. It was a really beautiful area, and when I found out it was in Brazil, Kevin and I talked about the possibility of serving in Brazil in the future. Ever since then, I've just noticed it more as it came up on TV, movies, in the news, or wherever. Then when we got the bid list, there were four possible Brazilian posts. I had a good feeling about Brazil. (It didn't hurt that 3 of our top 5 bids were in Brazil.) (But still, I think Providence gave us a whole array of Brazil options that worked with our schedule and everything.)
We were both pretty excited about our #1 bidding option: Sydney, Australia. We debated putting it as our #1 or #2, and we eventually put it as #1, figuring that after serving a tour in Shenyang, China, it would be the best chance we'd ever have of going there. We didn't get it. I'm sure it went to someone just finishing a tour in Iraq or Afghanistan-- and you can't begrudge them. We'll just have to travel there before we leave the eastern hemisphere.
Honestly, I'm a little sad my girls won't have cute Australian accents. But they'll learn Portuguese, which is also cool. And the more we learn about the post in Brasilia, the more we realized we SCORED! Our housing will likely have a yard-- a large yard-- with a pool. The weather reaches the low sixties in the winter and the high eighties/low nineties in the summer. I think I can handle that! The houses are BIG-- my piano might get its own room-- and accompanying bathroom or two.
We read some info from other people posted there, including things they wished they'd bought beforehand and brought with them. The common lament was that things are so expensive there. So imagine my glee: everything's cheap here! And I have over a year to buy things!
I'll need to learn Portuguese, and as long as I'm still excited about it, I'm going to start working on it. Consistency isn't my forte, so an early start might give me a bit of an advantage. Plus I studied French in high school and grew up around a lot of Spanish-- right next to the big Rio Grande River, actually. I'll do fine.
8 comments:
Congrats! Brasilia is beautiful. We will be gone by the time you get here, but let me know if you have any questions. We have monkeys in our backyard! Start learning that portuguese, you'll be VERY glad you did.
Wow.. that is exciting. Sounds scary to me, but if your excited, I'm excited :-). Can't wait to hear all about your adventures!
Fun! Good luck on your Portuguese, you'll have to update us on how you progress.
Hey that's awesome! Congrats!
How exciting!!! If you can speak Mandarin I'm sure you can pick up Portuguese.
I guess you got Brasilia Jan 2014? We got Rio for the same month! Though I'm Brazilian, so fluent in Portuguese, my husband will be at FSI, probably with your husband!
I lived in Brasilia for 7 years and life there is VERY comfortable! You'll love it! Feel free to email me if you have any questions about Brazil! (The ONE thing you have to take enough of is sunscreen, it's a fortune there, but everything else you can find it! And there's always DPO...)
(I just realized I made the assumption that your husband is the officer -- not sure if that's the case! Either way, I can help out with the Portuguese once we all get back to DC!)
congratulations! Brazil is high on my list, too. I have heard great things about Brasilia!
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