Curitiba’s Jardim Botânico and Rua das Flores

November 14, 2016 It seemed sunny and relatively warm when we got out of the car at the Jardim Botânico (Botanic Garden). On Eliane’s advice, though, I kept my windbreaker with me, tying it around my waist and sure enough, dark clouds soon hung ominously overhead. We took the path toward the main structure, a […]

CFFC: Inner and Outer

A rare treat in the Midwest during winter – guavas! I found them on sale at a supermarket last week. I love the taste of the soft flesh combined with the crunchy seeds. Inside the Minnesota History Museum, looking out – or at least the appearance of it! Half-buried fire hydrant in a field of […]

Curitiba: Opera festival

November 13, 2016 This evening, we attended an opera at the Teatro Guaira, a 3-day run of an unstaged production of an opera by Carl von Weber, a contemporary of Beethoven, called Der Freischütz, roughly translated to “The Sharpshooter.” It was the first time this opera has been performed in Brazil. The tickets were only […]

Curitiba: Feira do Largo da Ordem

Curitiba, November 13, 2016 Another cool day. Eliane drove us to the Feira do Largo da Ordem downtown – Carlos didn’t go with us because he hates crowds. And crowded it was! This feira is a crafts market which takes place every Sunday from 9 am to 2 pm, with well-made craft items, some beautiful, […]

Curitiba’s Municipal Market

November 12, 2016 We planned to go to the large Mercado Municipal, an enclosed market of mostly food stalls. My points of reference were those in Peru and Mexico. On our way there, we stopped for a late lunch at a popular churrascaria which catered to a lunch crowd, Pepino Azedo, which was about to […]

Solidarity on Saturday in Chicago

250,000 people filled the streets of downtown Chicago for the Women’s March on Jan. 21. But it wasn’t just women – lots of men and kids of all ages too! My husband, son and I and three friends came downtown by El and metro, met in a predetermined spot, then joined the throng. The mood […]

Curitiba’s Historic District

November 12, 2016 Our plan today was to walk around the Setor Histórico downtown. Although it was cool, rain was no longer in the forecast. First we stopped at Clube Curitibano, which I wrote about in another post. Leaving the Clube Curitibano property, we walked through a plaza of white and black mosaic tiles, lined […]

Thursday Doors: Clube Curitibano

Clube Curitibano is a social club in Curitiba to which my friends and their family belong. It was founded in 1881 and was originally a club for people of German descent but expanded with time. This building is the older – and smaller – of the club’s properties. However, I’m sure it is the most […]

Curitiba: Upscale Mall – Photo Essay

November 11, 2016 Because we had eaten such a large meal at lunch, none of us was particularly hungry for dinner. So Carlos and Eliane took us to a fancy mall around 8:30 pm, to look around and eventually get a small bite to eat. Patio Batel was nearly deserted when we arrived and parked […]

Santa Felicidade: Italian restaurants and cachaça cocktails

Curitiba, November 11, 2016 Santa Felicidade is an Italian neighborhood in Curitiba famous for its Italian restaurants. Eliane’s mother wanted to treat us to lunch there. The restaurant we went to was called Madalosso and it was huge – in its various dining rooms, it could seat 5,000 people! As we entered, an empty dining […]