Friday, May 22, 2009

Friday, May 22, 2009

Today we got a chance to have Sue and Greg show us around. We first went to the local newspaper, O Florense, and had an interview. They publish a weekly periodical in additional to special wine and business interest. They were kind enough to give us copies of each.

Then we got the chance to go to Fante Winery. Today was their 40th Anniversary. They provide wine for all of Brazil and 10 other countries. We got a tour and I had to wear these hairnets. For some reason I thought it was really funny so I took many pictures. The highlight was getting our sparkling wine straight out of the large canister/tank and into our glass-we didn’t have it served from the bottle.

After a great lunch, we continued our wine tasting tours. The second vineyard we saw was Viapiana Winery. It is a family owner winery from Italian ancestry. It was nice to walk around and visit with the owners.

My favorite part of the day was the dinner. We had a very special dinner where Flores de Canhua gave us a warm party. They had a live band play before dinner. The gauchos were dressed in their traditional costume that consists of baggy pants, boots, a belt, light shirt, and a tall dark hat. The women wore beautiful long dresses that were bright in color. They were long sleeved and had a tight bodice. Some women wore their hair up and others down. I tried to take many pictures and video.
Dinner was wonderful with lots of meat being served. We were lucky to sit next to Roteract and great friends. I got to learn about the different festivals that Brazilians celebrate and Monica got a chance to expand her vocabulary. After dinner, the Rotarians were kind enough to present us with presents. The Roteract gave us all CDs with Brazillian music. I can’t wait to take it home and listen to it. They also gave us a Brazil flag and they wrote messages and signed their names. We can’t thank them enough for their kindness. They were kind enough to show me how to play the tambourine. I wasn’t that good so I asked for them to play so the girls can dance the Samba we just learned.

I didn’t want to leave because everyone was so nice. Oh yeah, I also found out the name of the song I’m in love with right now. It’s Arere by Banda Eva-check it out on iTunes. It’s really catchy!!