Final thoughts

We really did have a wonderful time in Brazil. It was good for me to go to do some troubleshooting for my work and to meet with the research staff. On a personal note, taking a family vacation was pretty amazing. Alvaro and I didn't plan a trip for the previous summer because we didn't really know what we'd feel like doing once Nikhil arrived. Getting to spend so much time together was a much appreciated gift. I know that some people probably thought we were a little nuts to take on international travel with a six-month-old, but that's just how we roll. =) Seriously, it was really doable. We were fortunate to have a seat for Nikhil on the flights, which helped immensely in terms of his sleep. Six months is a great age for travel - he was really starting to be aware of his surroundings and to be observant, but was only a little mobile. He hadn't started eating solids, so we didn't have to worry about tummy troubles. We knew that he was a pretty good traveler already, and this was no exception. We love to travel, and being able to take Nikhil along makes the experience even more wonderful. Certainly different, though - grandparents, wanna come next time? It would have been nice to go hear some samba and experience the Rio nightlife, but luckily, we had pretty recently done this, so we didn't feel like we missed too much.

Brazil was also an excellent first destination. Rio is not the safest place in the world, but we knew that going into the trip. Beyond that, it's not a particularly stressful place, compared to other places we've visited. We stayed within walking distance of most everything we wanted to do as a family, including the beach. Alvaro finally got to fulfill his dream of wearing Nikhil all the time! Having a baby strapped to his chest certainly garnered some funny looks and definitely marked us a foreigners, but we didn't really care so much. Brazil is so family friendly that we really felt comfortable taking the babe everywhere. When we arrived, we got off the plane quickly,.hoping to breeze through customs before most of the other passengers. That didn't happen because by the time the stroller was brought to the gate, nearly the entire plane had passed us by. But it mattered not - as soon as we made it do the customs area, we were whisked away to the front of the line because we were traveling with a baby. So different than the U.S., where you are relegated to a very slow line because you are traveling with child. And it was so great to see Nikhil experience a city for the first time. He pretty much forgot about us as soon as we stepped outside because he was so busy looking at everything - the buses barreling down the street, the swaying trees, the throngs of people walking by, the patterns that the stones made on the sidewalk, the ocean.

I'm rambling here, so I'll end this post by saying that we are already thinking about our next international destination!