MSIA travel staff is currently in South America, providing MSIA Services (Innerphasings, Polarity Balances & Aura Balances) as well as MSIA events. Staff member, Angel Gibson, provides this update from the trip:
DAY 16 – Buenos Aires to Rio
It’s our last few hours in Buenos Aires and we decide to head to the Palacio (the Park Hyatt) for some breakfast. It’s a bit nippy outside but feels so good to walk. This is a treat for us; this is a beautiful house/mansion converted to a hotel. We dine in the restaurant below the gardens looking up onto the terraced greens and elegantly designed walls of this mansion. Then it’s a fast walk back, grab our carry-ons and we’re off to the airport.
Ani has already gone ahead with our tickets and check-ons and is checking us in–one of her specialties. (Ani fondly calls us her “babies” from time to time when she’s corralling us at the airports.) It’s still amazing to me to see this tiny little woman take our whole group through customs and immigration as if she is the mayor of the airport. Once again check in is smooth. We each seem to go our own ways for a little shopping or emailing or both. Ina and Nora are hanging with us though they will be flying on to Santiago and then Ina flies back to Vancouver. Ani couldn’t get onto our flight so she’ll be taking the flight after ours. While we wait to board, John grabs a few extra minutes on his computer. Always a tickle to see this big man perched in unique ways to get out one more email before boarding. Those Travelers never stop!
Our flight goes quickly and before we know it we’re in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Now traditionally when we go through customs we usually get out but our equipment is frequently kept back. This time it is completely smooth sailing and before we can even think about it, we are out the door being hugged by Lana (Banana) Barreira, the Rio de Janeiro MSIA Rep. Lana has two mini-buses ready. We put our luggage in one and us in another and away we go. As we head towards our hotel, I take in the special landscape that makes Rio so unique. The mountains have shapes that are reminiscent to me of Guilin in China. And of course there is “The Christ” standing way above Rio with outstretched arms welcoming us.
This year we are in a hotel that is up on one of the mountains not too far from Ipanema. And to our surprise our rooms are right “on” the ocean. Celia and I open our porch doors and the sound of waves is hypnotic; the temperature stress-less, just perfect. My goodness, we are in a paradise. Time later to “be” with the view, no we go to eat. Lana buses us to a fun little restaurant on the bay. This restaurant is a little bit like a churasco where they bring to your table roasted/grilled meats, chicken, fish, vegetables, sides, cheese empanadas, drinks, desserts. We each have a little paper circle. One side is red; the other is green. When the green side is up, the food and all just keeps on coming. When the red side is showing, that means “STOP”. Well, our green sides are up, and the food starts coming. Yum, those first bites of “carne” meat, are fabulous. Pretty soon I can’t keep up with the tide, and have to turn my circle over to red, to take a breather. This is the perfect place for us tonight. Our tastebuds could keep on going, but our tummies are full and our eyes are getting to that half-mast place. So once again we board our bus and head back to the hotel. Light to Ani. Her plane didn’t arrive until 10:30pm. She has had one long day. The high-speed Internet finally starts working for us, and after unpacking we do some email, and then we surrender to the lulling sound of the waves and the enveloping sheets and mattresses as the angels watch over us.
DAY 17 — Rio
All righty we’re in Rio. Now it’s daylight and we look out our window. The weather is stormy and the ocean is strikingly beautiful in shades of gray and silver. We all head to breakfast and check-in with each other, and then Vincent starts set up for tonight’s “Power Within You” workshop with John Morton. The ladies meet in the lobby with Eliete and the translators and a buzzing gang of MSIAers who have come from all over Brazil, particularly Belo Horizante, Porte Allegre. So far many of the Sao Paolo’ers who were flying can’t get in due to the weather, but a few have dared the drive. The chef has made the warm buffet free of onion/garlic and pork so we have a good lunch, sharing our special foods with the rest of the hotel clientele. Our waiter Revaldo has the most beautiful smile and a continual willingness to arrange and get whatever he can for us.
After lunch we do more Services and then head up to the 26th floor to the workshop room. Two ordinations have been cleared and John joins us as we add to the Ministerial family here in Brazil. We take a few minutes break to finish the set up for the workshop, and then Eliete (pronounced Eliechay), our MC for the evening, welcomes the small group (which proceeds to get larger as traffic abates outside. The stormy conditions have brought the flow of traffic to a creeping crawl). Lana is the translator for the seminar and she and John are welcomed warmly by the group. The room starts to fill up as John moves into the core of the evening. This is a potent workshop and it’s fitting that we began the trip in Caracas with this theme and complete the trip in Rio with this same theme. John takes the time for sharing, and again I sit back experiencing gratitude that these people who are new to MSIA are getting a chance to converse and be touched with the Traveler physically. John takes the time to cap the evening with a blessing and then bids us all “A Dios”, as he, Ehfigenia and Ani, drive off to the airport to get John to his flight back to the U.S. We staffers pack up and enjoy a quiet evening of room service, a little TV, and of course, our ever-present emails. We start to feel the trip’s on its way to completion.
DAY 18 – Still in Rio
Today is kind of fun to me. It’s all about Services and visiting with new and old Brazilian MSIA family. I’m starting to get into the Portuguese expressions and pronunciations…lots of “sh” and “ow” sounding words. I learn “eu vo subir” I go up; and “eu vo decir” I go down. Not totally sure of the spelling of these phrases, but I get a kick out of practicing them.
After services Celia, Lana, Ani and I drive down to Ipanema and walk to Copacabana. I’m so happy to be walking, climbing over some of the rocks right on the ocean. In Copacabana we sit down and have some fresh coconut water. This water tastes so good to me and has a way of refreshing me as if something was being balanced out. We are serenaded by a guitar and drum duo who sing to me the Portuguese version of “The Girl from Ipanema”. Lana translates and I do a little impromptu Samba dance with them. All is fun there by the ocean under the stars. Back we go to our hotel having enjoyed a little adventure and some wonderful exercise. A few more emails, and vintage “Men in Black” on TV and then our bodies are happy to call it a day.
DAY 19 – Last day in Rio
We have a leisure morning, grabbing some sleep, exercise and a later breakfast. The sun has come out showing us once again the Rio we have come to know over the years. Services go from 12noon-3pm today and then we are on a run to get some lunch, pack and check out. We give lots of hugs and thanks to Darva, Eliete, Ghislane, Roberta, Diego and Paolo who have assisted us in different ways with Services. We hold the Light as there seems to be some rough spots at checkout, but finally we’re all in the bus. We say “goodbye” to Ani (who’s staying overnight in Rio and then flying back to Bogota tomorrow) though happily we’ll see her soon at Living in Grace. Lana and Roberta come with us to the airport. I’m starting to feel a quietness come over me as we drive out of Rio, as though a plug is being unplugged….and there’s the excitement at the same time of heading back home. Soon we’re checked in, and doing a little snack shopping. We have an eight hour flight ahead in coach, so we’re looking to get some creature comforts handled for this leg of the journey. Lana is flying after us to Los Angeles for her DSS weekend, but we hug Roberta goodbye and God Bless. Our flight is called, and we find our seats, settling in for our overnight flight.
DAY 20 – Back in the USA
It’s Thursday and it must be Miami. And it’s 4:05am. We’ve made it to the Admiral’s Club now and as I look out, the pastel color of the sunrise sky over the runways is soft and gentle. We’re waiting for our 8am flight from Miami to Los Angeles where we will be greeted by some of NOW Production’s finest to drive us and our equipment to our respective homes. Celia will fly onto Santa Barbara being met by husband Robin who’s supported her on the home front. Thanks to each one who reached out and took care of us along our way. Thanks to the Travelers who were the wind beneath our wings on this journey, and thank you for the Light you each have sent to us and all we’ve been with. We have a few weeks on the home front, and then we’ll be off to San Francisco in early December. A Dios!
Click here to read Days 1 & 2 with Angel Gibson.
Click here to read Day 3 with Angel Gibson.
Click here to read Days 4 & 5 with Angel Gibson.
Click here to read Days 6 – 8 with Angel Gibson.
