Oh my god, I just picked up my shorts and some sort of black insect fell out of them and ran under the tv stand!!! ACCCCKKKKKK!! no idea what that was! I'm actually seeing less insects here than I originally expected... My first encounter was with a dead cockroach on the sidewalk. I screamed when i saw it, but more for effect rather than out of true fear. It was enormous though. The next time I saw a cockroach it was alive and on the sidewalk and this time I screamed with a little more genuity. Damn, those roaches are quick! Today, at the gym, Debora and I saw a big dragon fly fluttering around in the light fixture... that is something you definitely would not see at a GoodLife! haha, you also wouldn't see women wearing one-piece, ass-eating, tit-baring, multi-coloured "workout clothes" but here you see it alllll the time. Especially the style with the low back that points down right to the ass. I have seen more ass here than ever before, that's for sure.

I will also detail a little further what the gyms are like here in Rio.

Gym Staff: There are usually, at one time, at least 50 people working in the gym. Around 3 girls at the front desk (where you scan yourself in using your thumbprint). There are a couple of girls working in the small fenced off area that is the child minding zone, where I've only seen kids playing video game soccer all the time. Then, you'll have your array of fitness instructors (who I have witnessed show up for class 15 minutes late, not apologize, and still end the class on the scheduled time). There is a pool at this gym so there are generally 3 or 4 swimming instructors. Cleaning staff generally totals around 3 or 4 people and then upstairs you have your 'instructors'. These are essentially trainers, and there are usually around 10 of them working at once, whose job it is to walk around the floor helping people with their workouts, spotting, creating exercises etc etc. This is the one aspect of the gym I really didn't like in the beginning. I was already feeling pressured to learn my way around the equipment, deciding what exercises I wanted to do, and on top of it countless instructors were approaching me speaking quickly in Portuguese, and to each of them me replying "Eu nao falo Portugues!!!" Pass it on.

Gym Etiquette: It is the general etiquette of the gym to accept the help of the trainers. But we still don't. Also, kind of boring stuff is when you use the tiny black floor mats you take one from the top and then put your dirty one on the bottom. Also, you don't need to wipe down the equipment. Actually, we later learned, people will laugh at you if you do. So we got laughed at.

Gym Fashion: Saved the best for last! Aha. I want to take a picture so you can really see the gym fashion for yourself. This is not an exaggeration. First, as I mentioned in a previous post, earrings. Always. Big, hoopy, dangly whatever, just wear 'em. Hair - long and down. The longer and more down the better. And if you plan to wear it up, it's going to just be tied in a low, loose ponytail and held back with a big 'ol scrunchie. Remember scrunchies? Clothing - baggy-ish shirt usually low cut. Tight, cycle-short style shorts ALWAYS lighter than the shirt ALWAYS with huge swirly multi coloured patterns ALWAYS going up the bum. ALWAYS ALWAYS paired with wooly socks that make it up to about halfway up the calf. Ahahaha. Oh man it is hilarious. But then again, this crazy style makes me look like a boring man with my mostly black clothes, hair always up in a bun and kinda muscly. I probably look like a weirdo to them too.

The one class I really miss here is.... ACTUALLY it's a test. People, I'm putting it to you! What class do I LOVE more than anything??? (Hint: I did it every Friday...) Well, they don't have that glorious class here! DAMN I will just have to learn how to Samba! ;)

TCHAU!