Sometimes it gets hot in the winter.

The Austrian girls came in and bid us farwell really early before they took off. I knew I would miss breakfast, and indeed I did. I didn't feel like a dog as I had expected. Instead, I felt like having a cat.

Jimmie's Sao Paulo flirt had flown up Salvador to surprise her( Instead of staying in her bed at the hostel, they got a room at a love hotel where you pay by the hour. It turns out it is cheaper that way. This is all besides the point). When she came home in the morning the hostel cat was asleep on her bed amongst all her clothes. I believe I was dead asleep, but I heard her say 'The cat is on my bed.' Out of my deep sleep, I said in a short spoken serious tone, 'Cat? Hand me the cat.' So the cat ended up sleeping with me on the top bunk until I decided to get up several hours later. My saying this has come up randomly in our travels since.

Josh didn't get up till later though, and he felt a bit shabby. I lounged around till Tomaso asked me to go out and get some lunch with him. It was the warmest day I had experienced yet.

We walked around and found a place with some outdoor seating. We both got some delicious guava juice and the same shrimp dish. The dish was probably the worst thing I had ordered the whole time I have been in Brazil. Even then, it wasn't horrible. We had a real nice time sitting and talking about life. It was in this meal that I really felt absorbed by my setting. I had a feeling of ease and relaxation that comes after traveling for some time. I bought a hammock from some guy who approached me. He started with 200 heis and I talked him down to 50! I really wasn't interested in buying a hammock, but I have not had one in a while. It is a really nice hammock for the equivelent of $25. I got a good deal indeedio.

An old man came up to us after we had sat there a little while longer. He had his portfolio with him and it was full of prints of his work. He had a folder of articles that had been written about him along with a bunch of pictures from his life. He said he was 70 something years old, and he spoke Italian to Tomaso and English to me. I believe he had another several languages under his belt. He said he was truly rich, because he leads a happy life. He was glowing as he approached us and I am grateful that he decided to sit and talk with us. Tomaso bought a print from him. I had no money to do so. I would have loved to add his art to my collection, though I will not forget this man's presence any time soon.

Tomaso and I walked to a near by church called Igreja da Ordem. It was a very nice space to walk around. There were many tile murals in an old Portuguese style, where the tiles are blue and white. I have never been to Portugal but Tomaso let me know of a few history lessons as we walked around the grounds. There was one room that was very strange! It was full of life sized figures representing all sorts of saints, and not to forget the ol' J.C. too. The breeze would come in through the open windows and some of the clothing on the figures would move. Out of the corner of my eye I would see this and want to run away, far away. The hair that some of them had was not synthetic hair, but real human hair. Creepy. Honestly though, this is the kind of creepy that I really do enjoy. It was not the kind of thing that I would seek out, but I was grateful to see such a sacred space, and with such strange ambiance.

As we came around the corner to our hostel we ran smack into Josh heading out for his first time of the day, off to get dinner. He was obviously still recovering from the night before. It was a long night. He came back to the hostel with us, and then he and I went out soon after. We rambled over to the square adjacent to where Tomaso and I had eaten lunch. Being that I can always conjure up an appetite, I was ready to eat dinner with Josh. We payed 5 heis for a nice variety of meat and a big salad. It was a great meal that we ate over beers and backgammon. There was a capoiera group playing close by. The night was alive with tourists and beggars. A stage close by was being occupied by a band of kids playing in a traditional Brazilian ensemble. We headed back towards home in a round about way.

There was a free concert going on at the same steps where we were almost mugged a couple nights before. The band was named after the lead singer and trombonist, Geronimo. He had a big band and the stairwell was packed. There were more joints being smoked in this crowd than I had ever seen being smoked in a lighted, public space. The music was a really good mix between reggae and Brazilian genres I have heard around.

After a while, we retreated back to the hostel to scoop up Jimmie and her flirt, Alberto, and Tomaso. Tomaso said he would meet us there, but we didn't see him. Alberto has strange social issues and didn't stay for more than a song. Jimmie, Josh and I hung out for a while. The crowd was great. Everyone seemed to be having a real good time. The only reason we left is because our feet had had enough.

We got back to the hostel to play farkle with my crew of peeps and an Israeli fellow straying there. Alberto and Josh nearly got into a fight talking about politics and such. Alberto was at the top of anyone's list that night. He has strange social issues.

Josh and I befriended some other travelers and shared a hooka with them over several beers. I got onto Skype with Jalie and was up too too late. I came across a picture of my grandfather online, and I cried like a baby. I didn't make a scene. Everyone else had gone to sleep. It was nice to see these pictures of Cecil and our family. I went to sleep, once again knowing that I would miss breakfast.