Transitions. We packed up our house today - so it's goodbye to the Ocean view on Piedade beach. Rach and I will head off to Porto de Galinhas and leave the Grandparents to babysit for the weekend (I'm not sure who I'm more worried for: Nelson or Steve and Celia). Monday we move, Tuesday I plan lessons, Wednesday start teaching...

CELTA finished and I passed with a "B" grade which I was pleased with. One of the best things about the course was meeting some real characters. Fabricio (pictured), is a thirty-something Brazilian who teaches English. He has published Poetry in Portuguese. His knowledge of English grammar, etymology, history, Shakespeare, poetry and popular culture surpassed us gringos considerably. He was a walking encycolpedia of lesson plans...

On the course were other memorable types - Bruna who lives on an island and is married to a man who surfs for a living, the unusually named Hugo Alberqurque with the perfect English accent, Emily from Leeds who has flawless Portuguese and many others...

ENGLAND v BRAZIL
Things I miss about England #7: Safe Electrics. Plug sockets in Brazil come in all shapes and sizes and states of repair or disrepair. The pins on the end of cables don't often fit because they may be too tight or too loose. Open wires are not uncommon and sparks fly whenever you switch some appliances on. Our apartment - despite being brand new - had dodgy electrics; the lights flickering or not working from time to time. Rachel's family's apartment has showers that give you electric shocks whenever you try to change the temperature or pressure. But today I learned a a bit about why this might be the case...

As part of taking our house down to move to Natal, our local Mr Fixit attempted to dissassemble our shower head for us to take with us. At one point when I was out the room, I heard a loud pop and saw a flash from the bathroom. I popped my head round the corner to see if our man was still breathing only to find him trying to undo live wires with a metal pair of pliers. He seemed pretty pleased with himself as he whistled away. Health and Safety, it has to be said, has not really made it to Brazil. I guess I'm generally OK with this until it involves the electronics of lifts, ovens or taxis. To mis-quote Prince Philip: "That box looks like it's been wired by a Brazilian". All I can say is, at least we're not in Chad where they barely get electricity at all. Every cloud and all that.

Things I love about Brazil #16: Guarana. Like a cross between Apple Tango and something nicer, Guarana is the best way to quench your thirst round here. Only available in Brazil or from shady corner shops on Euston Road, London.