The sensational highlight of my trip was probably hang gliding over Rio.  It was so amazing floating -- as if in a dream -- over a such a picturesque city in perfect weather.  Here's a clip of Dan jumping off a cliff and soaring into the wild blue yonder:

Wow, what a unexpected success the South America trip was!  I have pics posted here that document the adventure.

And for those insatiable appetites, I also posted my travel journal where in uncensored detail you can take in every thought or feeling I had for the two week period.  SEE: the debauchery!  TRY TO AVERT YOUR EYES: as you see our adventurer boldly trek into situations of extreme peril!  SHUDDER: as you learn of Karsty's reckless what-happens-in-South-America-stays-in-South-America attitude.  CRINGE: as our hero gets poisoned!  CELEBRATE: when I finally return home safely!  It's all there folks, and almost certainly in more detail than you'd like or expect. :^)

Cashew: "Go on Karsty, eat me.  I'm full of nutty goodness!"

Karsty: Um, OK.

Bad move.  OK so apparently I haven't learned everything there is to know about nature and/or safe living just yet.  Did you know that the cashew is mostly an accessory fruit with the nut encased in a shell attached to end of the fruit?  And furthermore that it's quite yummy and makes a good drink when mashed and mixed with cachasa?  I didn't. Check it:

Diana didn't dig it as much as I did:

Furthermore did you know that the nut is encased in a bath of highly toxic poison featuring poison oak's urushiol that must be carefully removed before it ends up on store shelves?  I didn't.  It does this so animals don't eat the seed.  Check it:

That's not me making a face kids, that's a genuine reaction after biting open the shell thereby filling my mouth with poison and creating a nasty toxic foamy paste:

Yikes!  Hard to describe, but similar to what poison ivy mixed with extremely under ripe persimmon might taste like.  It was funny at first, until Emmet started researching my "mad dog" reaction on the internet.  We jokingly figured I had about a 50% chance of dying on the bus ride from Rio to Ouro Preto later that night.

I lived though!  Yay, more vacation! :^) I'm writing this about 48 hours after the event and the cashew effects are still going strong.  My mouth is more or less normal (slight tongue numbness), but my lips are peeling off a few layers of dead skin and I have a small rash on my chin.  Thankfully there's no poison ivy like rash inside my mouth and down my throat. ;^)

The worst part is that I don't even like cashew nuts!  The fruit is really good though, and incidentally somewhat similar to durian.  So be careful out there when putting new things in your mouth, everybody. :^)

I guess it's not too surprising, but the rest of the world seems to be paying pretty close attention to our upcoming election --  and people are big on Obama here in Rio.  Even if some of the locals don't speak too much English, they often do know the phrase "yes we can".  :^)