9500 Kilometers - (6) First Steps in Rio

After just a step or two, I felt the intense heat and stopped in my tracks, a little shocked. Luna pulled me away from the door with both hands and quickly bought a stylish straw hat from a nearby street vendor. As she placed it on my head, she laughed and said, “Welcome to Rio!”.

At the next stand, run by a man with long dreadlocks, she ordered us a colorful, fruity slushy with two straws. She looked deep into my eyes as she slowly took a sip. I couldn’t take it that slow, about eighty percent of the drink ended up in my stomach in no time. Without this cooling drink, I probably would have melted already. A fleeting thought about the weather in Germany at this time of year quickly disappeared.

It was already well past midnight, and yet it was still so warm. Everything was brightly lit, and the streets were full of life, with rhythmic music playing everywhere. A completely different and incredibly pleasant atmosphere. So many impressions, I didn’t even know where to look first.

Luna took my hand so I wouldn’t get lost as we made our way to the parking lot. There, Palia, Luna’s mother, was waiting to drive us home. When she saw us, she quickly got out of her car and greeted me with her open and warm manner, a firm hug and very kind words, though I only understood half of them. She took my suitcase and loaded it into the trunk while Luna and I got in the back.

Since we were already very tired and the drive would take about 20 minutes, we leaned more and more against the teddy bear sitting between us and gradually dozed off. All I managed to do today was get from the car into the house and straight into the prepared guest bed. I couldn’t even remember how to say “Good night” in Portuguese anymore, so with my last bit of energy, I said, “Good night, Sweety” in Luna’s direction. She turned to me, leaned down, and smiled. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and whispered, “Boa noite, Jake”.