Organic Markets & Zumba! This morning Perpetua and I had organized to meet in a square in the centre - near to where Perpetua does her Pilates class. After some breakfast I made my way in walking; although I like walking- it is far from a pleasant experience in this city with some of the worst sidewalks I have ever seen. The organic market was tiny and there were only two stalls open so we sat at some table and chairs and tried to come up with an alternative plan for the morning. Whilst we were sitting this lovely lady by the name of Eva heard us talking English and joined in the conversation. What preceded was a very interesting conversation, with lots of recommendations and a new friend in Fortaleza - This is the Brazil and the Brazilian hospitality we have all heard so much about. Eva gave us a lift to downtown so that Perpetua and I could find a cafe selling a famous Guarana juice only found in Ceara. We eventually found a cafe selling the juice and wow oh wow; easily the best juice I have ever drank: Guarana fruit, Guarana syrup, Guarana powder,lime, Brazil nuts mashed and ice - the result a thick peanuty and ice cream like juice that gives you wings just like redbull. We also tried some tapioca and this sweet fruit compote thing that is found in the north of Brazil - also delicious. On the walk back to Perpetuas we stopped at the market and I got a few things so that I could return the favour to Perpetua tommorow by making her breakfast. I was on a real high after such a great morning plus all the sugar and Guarana so I went for a huge walk into the city and around the city centre. I had planned to find a camera house to get some passport photos, a photo of my host and I (small gift for her) and a money exchange but after hours of walking around in the sun I only managed to get the photo printed out. Earlier in the day at the market I had been introduced to a friend of Perpetuas by the name of Valaria and she had called and asked if I would like to join her tonight and meet her family. So at around 7pm Valaria came and collected me, I didn't really know what to expect and to be honest at first I was a bit apprehensive. At this point I realized how much I am slipping back into my old ways; being super tight with money, not wanting to try new things and not getting out of my comfort zone. Valeria had kindly brought me a gift of some special flour made of rice as Perpetua had told her of my food allergies; I felt terrible having to tell her that rice was one of my worst allergies. We drove around to Valarias daughters house and picked her and her very cute 2 year old son up and headed to a Zumba class; I had been told we were going to a dance club but in fact it was a gym class haha a little lost in translation. Valarias sister and friend were doing Zumba so we stood around and chatted whilst we waited for them to finish. When they finished I met the sister and the friend and they were also lovely but spoke no English so we conversed in Spanish - the amazing thing was how happy and excited they all were just to talk to me and hear of my travels - Brazilian culture highlighted again. I learned a lot about the city and they all reinforced how dangerous and violent the city is - something I luckily haven't witnessed. It turned into a really nice and different night even though I didn't really do much but I got to bring some smiles to some new faces and make some new friends. When I got back Perpetua was still out so I made her a healthy dinner - she is on a healthy diet so I am helping her come up with healthy eating ideas.

OBSERVATIONS:
- Guarana and peanut juice
- Met Eva - from Switzerland
- Centro - crazy shopping district - I stood out as a tourist
- Met Valaria; shared night with her and her family