Hello world. We landed in Brazil last month. My husband got an exciting job in Rio de Janeiro and we are trilled to bring our girls to my home country. It has been a busy month, making the move, getting kids to school, and the best part — catching up with family and friends.

It was so so difficult to say goodbye and to move within 6 weeks. There was so much to do but our church family and our dear friends and community came to our aid and helped. We are leaving a life behind, that no doubt, we will miss terribly. We are leaving our dog Kora with a beautiful family, who we trust completely, until we can be reunited. We have made big moves before, when we went to live in France. We did not have kids, but still, this feels different. I left Brazil to immigrate to America when I was 19 years old. I got married in 2006… lots of math… anyway, I am living my home to reconnect with my other home. There are no simple ways I can explain in one post. Hope more words will come and more pictures that will fill in the blank.

Thank you for the memories and love Troy, NY! I hope we have thanked everyone, but we may have not. Thank you for the love, beautiful words, cards, gifts,  movies and good bye parties…

with friends at Nine Mile Farm in Delmar

With our church family.

I feel humbled and blessed. At times sad, happy, excited and homesick. We have had wonderful conversations  with our girls about change and how it can be hard. We appreciate the makeup of our diverse family and this opportunity to be here.

What does one pack for this kind of journey? I left almost everything behind that did not fit in my 2 bags quota; just like the first time I came to the USA. But I packed my cultures: sourdough starter, water kefir grains and Kombucha scoby 🙂 I also packed a few of my favorite kitchen utensils and one recipe notebook and a blank one I intend to fill. I also packed a couple of cameras, bible, and a couple inspirational books. Special blue ink pens I got from my friend Mary Baldwin.  I am happy to report they all cleared customs and are doing very well.

We arrived in Rio de Janeiro during the Olympics and that was very memorable and fun. Ok, it was also very expensive, so we left. We will be back in January to fix residence. Our first day in town, we got up to a wonderful farmer’s market happening right outside the  apartment we were staying in Copacabana. We could not get enough of all the tropical fruits and wonderful smells. We wanted to eat everything: papayas, guavas, coconuts and mangos… but wait, this time we have time.

And what’s happening with StoryCooking?

You may have noticed a new hashtag #storycookingbrazil on my recent posts on Instagram and here on the blog. I will continue posting recipes and stories and hope you will check it out and join the journey. I am ready to learn, experience and share the art of life. There is so much wisdom and oral history in all kitchens. At the moment, we are living with my mother in Goiania and there is not a day that she does not surprise us with  a new story, method or ingredient. Stay tuned!