Arrived in Recife

Yay! After a long day of travel, we arrived safely in Brazil. Ruben and I, and our group, made it to South America by way of NY, to Miami and then an overnight flight to Recife (with a quick layover in Salvador). When we got off the plane in Salvador, it was a great opportunity to stretch my legs and have the famous Brazilian soda, Guarana.
Yummmy!

 We then arrived in Recife, where we met one of our guides, Pricilla, who is a representative of the government in Pernambuco (the state where Recife is located). From there, we hit the ground running - well, driving. Our first site- one of the things for which I was most excited- was a visit to Kahal Tzur Israel- the first synagogue in the Americas. It was an amazing day of meeting representatives of the community and learning about the amazing Jewish history of Recife and Brazil.

Here is a picture from the following website, with great info about the synagogue-
http://www.kahalzurisrael.com/en/index.html

After a great time at the synagogue and museum, we travelled to see one of the first five sugar plantations in Recife, which was owned by a Jewish family- it was a fascinating and sad history filled with the trials of living in Brazil while the Portugese Inquisition was raging.

Our day then concluded with a visit to Olinda- a very cool island off of Recife where there are amazing views of the city, cool artists and street vendors and the oldest ¨hidden synagogue¨ in Recife¨.

The evening ended with a great dinner at an amazing restaurant. Eventhough I am a vegetarian, I still had the chance to taste some wonderful Brazilian delicacies.

Tomorrow we are off for more touring and really getting a chance to meet with more members of the Jewish community in Recife and even visit a Jewish school.

And, by the way, if you are wondering, the weather here is beautiful!