New Faces and Old Friends--A Diverse Group at CR

Photo by Carol Marinho.

Finishing out what has been a HOT weekend here in Rio. Summer is in full swing and I am making the most of it. When not on the mats I am trying to get outside as much as possible and enjoy the day. I have taken to writing all my blogs outdoors and it makes for a relaxing time of typing. We (Nicole and I) are starting to see return visitors coming through here at Connection Rio. In the last month and a half we have had three people whom stayed in early 2013 come back through to stay again. With having so many people come through CR it's nice to see some familiar faces. Not only is it nice on a personal level but it is nice to be able to sit down with people and discuss how their training has progressed since training here in Rio. Yesterday evening, after a couple of hours of nogi grappling, a good friend of mine (and return guest) Christian and I headed down to the beach to relax, catch up and exchange thoughts on training. Being able to listen to the ocean and talk BJJ is just one more great aspect of the BJJ lifestyle here in Rio.

Making lifelong friends from all over the world.

Right now with the house is pretty full. We have people from all of the world and all walks of life. We have guests from Sweden, U.S., Kazakhstan, Jordan, Canada, Poland, Ireland, France, Chile, Australia, and England. Not only is there a huge mix of cultures, but there is a huge diversity in the background of our guests. There are people in the house on leave from the military, those newly graduated from university, people in the restaurant business, people in the financial sector, and in the social services. The purpose of the guests visit to Brazil varies as well. Some people are here for a “jiujitsu vacation”, some to compete advance, and some to help apply what they learn here back home. One guest who works with youths in the justice system, wants to take what he learns in BJJ and create a program for kids to help give them direction in their lives. That said, even with all the diversity everyone here has the bond of BJJ to unite them. This bond plus staying together here at the CR HQ has formed friendships that span the globe. I can't count the times that someone has said “If you're in England (or Canada, Germany, Switzerland, Norway, Malaysia, etc) you have a place to stay and train.” The cool thing is I know that everyone who has said that mean it 100%.

Working in my "office".

Monday was a holiday in Rio so most of the gyms were only open for open mat in the morning. In the afternoon we moved the furniture around in the living room and covered around ½ of the room in mats and rolled for couple of hours. Afterwords we all cooled off in the pool and joked around. It's great to have so many training partners right here the house. At any given moment you can ask if anyone wants to train and at least two or three guys will jump in. Most of my training this week was done at Rio Fighter's. It feels great to be getting back into MMA training. On Friday's session the focus was on ground and pound work. After an intensive warm up that consisted of grappling drills and some technique work we broke into groups and did grappling with striking rotations . After about 20 minutes of this we moved into the cage and did ground and pound shark tank drills. One guy was on the bottom with against the cage, each minute a fresh opponent would come in and work GNP and top control while the guy on bottom could only defend and work to escape or submit (no strikes from bottom). If you escaped or submitted you started over again. It was an exhausting both physically and mentally. The guys on top had 16oz gloves on and would just rain down strikes and try to advance position and if you managed to escape you found yourself right back down getting punched. It wasn't the most fun, but it helped teach how to keep calm under pressure and how to work your way out of bad position. I ate a lot of punches, but I worked hard and got in some great escapes or reversals on some tough guys. After we were done I took a few moments to stretch, relax and get my breath back.

Training at Miltons.

Coming out of sessions like that is something that I missed. I love the feeling of leaving a training session physically exhausted, knowing that you left it all on the mat. That sensation is almost indescribable to those you have never experienced it; for me it's a very serene moment where things just seem clear to me. It's having moments like that, which reassures me that this is what I am meant to do.

Train Hard Play Hard--Training Throughout Rio and Longboarding Through Ipanema

Nicole and I on Ipanema beach.

Yesterday may have been the most relaxing/fun day so far of the new year so far. It was a beautiful sunny day here in Rio and Nicole and I decided to make the most of it. After our normal Sunday breakfast and trip to the farmers market, we headed into Ipanema for the day. On Sundays (and holidays) they close a large stretch of the road going along the beach for people to bike, skate, or board along. It is a smooth road perfect for cruising along on our Bossa Boards. We skated all the way down to Aporoador where I grabbed a quick lift at the outdoor “flinstone's” gym and then headed back along the beach. We cut into Ipanema grabbed some acai and went into the “hippie fair” that takes place every Sunday. The fair has a mixture of paintings, carvings, jewelery, clothing, and other nicknacks (I was VERY tempted to by a small blow gun). From there we skated back to the beach and headed to Post 10 where every weekend until February 9^th they have free concerts on the beach. We relaxed and took a nap in the shade of the stage until the music started. There was a DJ playing a mix of songs and then a Brazilian rock band (no idea who) played. The beach was packed with a few thousand people everyone having a great time dancing and enjoying the music. Rio does a great job with putting on free to the public events like this and Nicole and I are definitely going to try to make it again next week.

Week in Training

Teaching at Rio Fighters. Thanks to Senki for
all your support!

It's been a busy week on the mats down here in Rio filled with wrestling, MMA, nogi, BJJ, and drilling. On Wednesday a group of us got up early and visited X-gym for their morning class. When I say got up early I mean we were all up around 6 am to eat and pack for the 7:30 class. The warm up was an extensive calisthenics and gimnastica natural movements and by the time we were down I was finally fully awake. We covered a nice butterfly sweep into an arm triangle, really focusing on the little details. When the class first started it was a very small class (composed of mostly the guys from the house) but they quickly started to file in. Soon we started rolling. As the rounds went on more and more blackbelts stepped onto the mats....and we just kept rolling. After a roll almost every blackbelt I rolled with stopped to take a minute (or more) to explain to me something that they noticed I had to work on or correct. It was awesome that they would take the extra time helping someone they just met to make improvements. There was an older 3^rd degree black belt, whom after thoroughly destroying me took about 10 minutes to give me some technique advice. Round after round ticked by and soon we looked up and saw it was 10 a.m.--- we had been on the mats for 2 ½ hours! Class ended shortly afterwords and after a quick acai headed back to CR.

On Friday I headed into Laranjeras to train with Professor Cleiber Maia at his gym Equipe LPM. I messed up the time of training and arrived WAY early so Cleiber came to the academy picked me up and took me to his house. There we spent an hour or so talking BJJ technique, philosophy, and history. I learned a lot through our conversation. We headed down to training, where we covered a judo technique and a really interesting pass that I had never seen. Cleiber teaches a really active and physical style combining it with his refined knowledge of technique. The rolling was competitive and I felt pretty good, I was able to hit a few techniques that I have been drilling. It's always nice to start hitting new things that you have been repping and trying to refine. It helps to give you a real feeling of improvement. After rolling the Professor took about 15 minutes to work with me on things he noticed I had to work on. Again to have a high caliber black belt there to help out is just an awesome thing.

Equipe LPM

This past week I have also started training more regularly at Milton Veiera's Rio Fighters. As I said last week, Rio Fighters is a new gym in Humaita, with great facilities and training. I will be both training and teaching wrestling there. Milton's dynamic and aggressive style plays well into my nogi game and I am excited to continue to work with him. His thoughts and techniques for attacking the anaconda is mind blowing, he even has a back escape to anaconda from seat belt position (which I have seen him hit on good black belts). Right now I am training mainly during the MMA pro training. Without being officially open there are around 20+ experienced pro fighters already training there regularly it will be interesting to see how things pick up when it officially opens. I also spent a lot of time drilling my takedowns this week. My timing has been a bit off on my offense, which has made me play a more conservative game. I don't like that. It's frustrating seeing openings and missing them, so I have been drilling my setups and timing for my attacks. I still have a ways to go to get back to form, but things are already feeling better and smoother. I have high expectations for 2014, but I can't sit back and hope to hit my goals. I have to MAKE them happen; it's a long road, but one I am happy to be going down.

Nogi at Rio Fighters and Training Wrestling--Oh What a Life

Some of the guys on Sundays BBQ.

Sorry guys I was a bit late with this weeks post it's been finished for a couple of days I have just been on a mad dash so far this week. enjoy!

There is something to be said about being able to type at your computer poolside in the middle of January. Back home in the U.S. they have been getting hit with record low temperatures and feet of snow. I am sitting here 8:30 at night in a pair of board shorts. It's hot enough that I'd probably would be sweating if it wasn't for the cool summer breeze. It was a relaxing day here at the CR house. It started off with longboarding down to to get a breakfast of fresh fruit and acai. From there we went to the local farmers market, picked up food for the week. After going for a quick swim when we got back to the house some of the guys fired up the BBQ and we had a house churrasco. Now I am just sitting here by the pool, relaxing and thinking back over the week.

At Rio Fighters in Humaita.

Week in Training

On Monday I headed into Flamengo to get some longboarding in with Dennis. While in Zona Sul I took the opportunity to go check out Milton Vieira's new gym Rio Fighters. His new gym is still getting some finishing touches but has already started its pro MMA training and some of the other classes. The gym in located in Humaita, so I left Flamengo and skated over to his gym (I'm getting to know Rio pretty well on my Bossa Board) to train luta livre. Even though his gym isn't quite finished it still is very nice, the main mat space is large (with another mat space being laid down soon), the cage is up, and the locker rooms are great. Once fully up and running it will be one of the more modern gyms in Rio. Milton is a black belt in both luta livre and BJJ, which translates over to a very technical and aggressive style of grappling. For the technique portion of the class we covered an arm drag to the back from butterfly guard. Once on the back we covered several transitions from the back to an arm-in guillotine and a leg lock. Milton broke the techniques down so you knew each little detail to pull it off. That said, he stressed drilling it as quickly as technically possible to get a proper feel for the attacks. The rolling was very competitive. Transitions and submissions were constantly flowing and there was very little time spent in static positions. Rolling with Milton is always a great (and humbling) time. He is well versed in submissions from all angles and just when you think you are going to be able to advance your position you find yourself caught in a submission. His style has a way of making you uncomfortable so you have any opening you see you try to exploit; the thing is this opening is there because he allows it to be your just falling further into his trap. I always come away from our rolls with a better understanding of grappling out of the kimono.

Helping guys with takedowns at the house. Photo by Carol Marinho.

The other highlight of training this past week was meeting up with my friend Antoine Jaoude and getting some great wrestling training in. We met up and Antoine took me to the first highschool in Rio to have an official wrestling team. The mat space was large and modern; it's great to see the sport of wrestling growing here in Brazil. At the school we met up with a group of other guys, who were either wrestlers or MMA fighters (or both). I showed a couple of series and then Antoine showed a few as well. While the focus was many on Olympic style wrestling, Antoine showed some great wrestling for MMA that I had not seen before. It was a series involving takedowns from the clinch and dirty boxing. We got in some live wrestling, and man I felt rusty. Not sloppy but I just wasn't pulling the trigger on my attacks and my timing was a bit off. That said I kept good position and in the end started picking it up. Antoine gave me some good tips and pointers after training, which is always nice. Sometimes when constantly teaching others it can be difficult to grow yourself so it was great to be learning again and have people there to make corrections in my technique. Working with Antoine is always a great time and I can't wait to go train with him again this next week.

The rest of the weeks training was a mix of MMA and gi training all of which was fun. It really feels like I am coming into my own style-wise learning how to best integrate things to fit into my game. It's hard to believe we are almost already two weeks into 2014, but if the past couple of weeks of great training and experiences are any hint at what the year will be like 2014 is going to be one amazing year!

NYE in Copa, Rolling at CR and Equipe LPM

Big thank you to  Professor Cleiber Maia and Equipe LPM
for the great training!

This week it's been hot here in Rio, I mean a real scorcher. In between training sessions people have been trying to stay cool by relaxing in the pool, swimming in the ocean, and/or eating copious amounts of acai. With the heat it has been very important to make sure to stay hydrated. I have been chugging down multiple liters of water a day and thankfully not letting the heat get to me (I still manage my morning and afternoon coffee even in triple digit temperature). On Tuesday evening a large group of us headed into Copa to ring in the new year. For those who don't know it is one of the largest new year celebrations in the world, with millions of people flocking to the beach to enjoy music, friends, and TONS (I believe something like 24) of fireworks. Nicole and I went to Copa last year as well and were a little over welcomed by everything. This year though we handled it like seasoned veterans. We knew where we had to be to catch buses, the best spot on the beach, and we knew to stick close by each other so we wouldn't get lost in the crowd. During the amazing fireworks ceremony it really sank home that we have been here for over a year. It was great to be able to look back on the differences from one NYE to the next. I have to say I had more fun the second time around (and the first was a blast), it makes me excited to see what the second go around for events like Carnival will be like and what new experiences I will take away in 2014.

Beach side cocktails on NYE.

Week in Training

I was able to close out 2013 and welcome in 2014 with some great training. Earlier in the week I got in some great nogi grappling in at Reyzinho's ATT. It was a smaller class, but other than me everyone there was a black belt. We started the class off with me showing a few wrestling techniques and then transitioned to nogi. We first covered using a double underhook pass and transitioning to an anaconda choke as your opponent tries to roll out. The next technique that was shown a Peruvian necktie variation off of a ¾ nelson. I really liked that submission, it translates well into my style of grappling. We rolled for 5 rounds, and I felt really good. I feel like I have taken a step up in my game (especially in nogi). I am seeing openings to pass, escape, or attack the submission with much more clarity. In nogi I have really been working a more wrestling based bottom game working for escape or reversals and using the resulting scramble to create openings for submissions. During one such scramble I was able to use a sit-out with a high turn in to escape and before my opponent had a chance to reset his position I was able to dive in for a deep anaconda and eventually force the tap. Don't get me wrong I am still very much on the receiving end of some whoopings, but it's feeling like I really made a big breakthrough in my game.

Vlad Alves showing technique at the house.

With most gyms being closed on NYE and the 1^st the guys all got together to either roll or drill here at the house. That's definitely one of the benefits of living here at CR. I have learned a ton of little tweaks or variations on my techniques from drilling with people from all over the world. On Thursday we had a guest stop by to teach and to roll with us. 2013 Brown Belt World Champion Vlademir Alves, who trains at Terrere's with a few people in the house, came by for the afternoon. At first there were four or five people drilling technique, but soon more jumped in. So many in fact that we were soon moving the furniture to lay down more mats. By the end almost the entire house was on the CR mats training.

Rolling at Equipe LPM

On Friday Mike Tlalka and I headed into Laranjeiras to train at Equipe LPM. Equipe LPM is ran by Cleiber Maia, whom we met at the CR Churrasco. The class started a bit differently then the normal routine. Instead of warming up then hitting technique, we started rolling right away. We had rolled for the better part of a hour. The rolling was competitive and spirited, with quick transitions and everyone playing a very open game. After we finished rolling we moved onto judo techniques. We spent the next half hour working grip fighting and several throws. I had varying success; I haven't trained judo much and while some throws are similar to wrestling many are not. It was a bit frustrating, but in the end I was able to pull a few good concepts away from it. After the judo we transitioned to the ground technique that was a great back attack to a shoulder lock. When finished training a group from the gym invited us to go grab a quick drink and some food at a local botequim. As often happens in Brazil a “quick” bite to eat was a couple of hours, but that's ok because it was a great time. We got to talk about techniques, social programs, life, and stories of BJJ past. The last part is one of my favorite topics. Hearing stories of BJJ legends and the more “wild west” days of jiu-jitsu is something I absolutely love. It's great to see how the art and its practitioners have evolved over time. The next day I was pleased to see that Professor Cleiber posted a video of the ground technique we covered in class, just to help me remember all of the little details of it. We were welcomed to Equipe LPM with open arms and friendly smiles. I look forward to the next time I can go and train with them.

Christmas In Brazil, Rolling with a Gracie

Relaxing in the pool Christmas morning.

Due to Christmas this week was a little bitter sweet here in Rio. I am used to big family dinners and everything being completely covered in snow. Here in Rio things are a bit different; it's Nicole and I and the temperatures are HOT. Summer is in full effect here in Rio, so even with all the Christmas lights and decorations of Santa climbing down a ladder strung everywhere it can be difficult to get into the holiday spirit. But that's not to say we didn't have a good time. On Christmas Eve, while most of Brazil was eating the traditional family meal and celebrating, the CR crew got together and headed down towards the beach. We just wanted to get out of the house and see if anything was open, and as luck would have it one beach kiosks was open. We spent a few hours sitting with an ocean view, talking, and having a few drinks before wandering back home.

Some of the Christmas day pool fun.

On Christmas Nicole and I decided to celebrate by having a huge American breakfast ( a tradition both of our families have). We made pancakes (with real Canadian maple syrup—which cost an arm and a leg), bacon, hashbrowns, and toast with peanut butter. We made mimosas, something we were told is tradition in New Zealand, and ate outside with a view of Pedra De Gavea. It wasn't the same as with our families but it was great none the less. From there the party got started. It was a beautiful day and everyone spent it in the pool. At first it was just swimming and relaxing (ok maybe a drink or two) then someone had the idea of putting the mats (which float) in the pool, connecting them together and then trying to roll. Of course it failed, but from there a free for all royal rumble-esk game of tackling and grappling one another off of mats began. It lasted for a couple of hours. At one point singlets were put on and an actual wrestling match took place. In the afternoon some went to the beach while others continued to relax poolside. The day concluded with firing up the BBQ and grilling some steaks, chicken, and sausage. Everyone went to bed Christmas Night a very full, happy, and sunburnt gringo. It may not have been a “normal” or “traditional” Christmas, but I am willing to bet it's not a Christmas that anyone that was here at Connection Rio will forget.

Training

After open mat at Reyzinho's.

With Christmas Eve and Day falling in the middle of the week, it threw a wrench in everyone's normal training schedule. Even though that was the case there was still plenty of great training taking place. I put in a few good drilling drilling sessions and got some rolling in at the house. In both gi and nogi I really feel like I am opening up my game more. I am trying new attack and positions from both top and guard. Some have worked well.....others not so well. I am trying to integrate the new techniques in with my older more tried and true techniques. Right now when rolling sometimes I will be so focused on trying new things that I miss the opportunity to hit a move I have used more often (and had more success with) in the past. As my game evolves I need to be able to remember and use various positions and attacks, which in the end will make me a better grappler.

Fridays wrestling class at CR. Thanks again to Senki
Kimonos for all your support.

One training session that really stuck out for me this week was this past Saturdays open mat at Reyzinho's ATT. It really was an open mat session. There weren't a ton of guys there but the session was made up of guys from four or five different academies. Everyone was friendly towards one another and brought there own unique style of rolling. Other than me and one other guy, there was one brown belt, and the rest were black belts. I noticed one of the guys kept getting asked questions about different members of the Gracie family. I soon realized that it was Neiman Gracie. I had the opportunity to roll with him, talk about pressure and mat awareness. Whether from top or bottom he gave me constant pressure. From guard he was constantly pushing and pulling creating tension and keeping me from establishing an solid offense. With the constant tension any hint of me being off balance was noticed even before I could realize it and he would sweep me effortlessly. He is a really nice guy and it's always cool to get to train with a member of “the original BJJ family”. My other rolls went well, though I really noticed a few areas I need to work on. Especially some of my spiderguard defense and passing, I got caught in spiderguard several times and had difficulty mounting a solid offense. But this is why you train with better guys than you---to see where your weaknesses are and so you can work to correct them.

This past week also saw me start running mid to long distance again. Let me just say I hate distance running. So I look at it this way, it's not so much physical conditioning as it is mental conditioning. I am forcing myself to do get uncomfortable and do something I don't like to in the end get stronger mentally. It's that toughness that will help me persevere through any challenges.

Working on Weaknesses

Post wrestling and nogi at the CR house. Thanks to Senki Kimonos
for the new shorts!

It is officially summer here in Rio! While there has been a bit of rain lately, the sun has been out everyday and the temperature here has been high. Most of the house I has been enjoying the warm weather by heading to the beach, hiking, or swimming in the pool. We even have a few people who started to take up surfing while they are here in Rio (something I wouldn't mind trying again). Last weekend we had the CR end of the year BBQ, which was a great time. There was belly stretching amounts of steak, sausages, cheese on a stick, and much more. You would think that it would have given us our fill of the Brazilian churrasco but a few days later a group of us lighted up the BBQ and cooked---just goes to show you can never have to much grilled food.

Just a small amount of the food from the CR BBQ.
Photo by vitophotography.com

With regards to training I took it a bit easier. While in Gramado I banged up my shoulder a bit (and decided to train through it), so I opted to spend the week focusing on correcting issues with my technique and focusing on little details. One issue that I really started to address is my flexibility (or lack there of). I have never been extremely flexible, but I used to frequently do yoga and stretch after my workouts so it was never really an issue. Unfortunately though I have gotten away from it, and really started to notice just how inflexible I have become. While in Gramado I got some good stretching drills from Maurico Babuu, a former K-1 kickboxing coach, for kicking. I have combined those with stretches and BJJ specific drills to make a “corrective” workout to help make me more flexible. It's been humbling, but I have already began to notice some results. The biggest area has been with my hip movement. With my hips feeling looser I have been able to switch in transitions and maintain a more constant pressure from top. I had two guys comment this week on how crushing/smothering I felt from top so I must be taking a step in the right direction.

Talking shop before some nogi work.

I also spent a good deal of this week working to develop and improve my guard game. I have had a bit of trouble trying to find a game that really fits well with my aggressive style and more importantly I can carry over to nogi and MMA. I have a ton a respect for more sport specific techniques and positions but they just don't carry over. I am not saying I refuse to train them or acknowledge their value, it's just that at this time my focus isn't on learning the latest and greatest techniques in BJJ. Rather I started working a couple basic series from closed guard, half-guard, and reversal or escaping side control. With some experimenting and a lot of reps I think I have finally found a good fit for my style.

I also explored a few new ways I can incorporate my wrestling for BJJ. While teaching my wrestling class at CR, I trouble shot a few positions that guys wanted to work from. At first some of the positions I didn't have an immediate answer for so I started to play around and experiment. Soon my creative juices were flowing and I started to see new ways that I integrate wrestling for BJJ. We explored options from halfguard, open guard and various other positions. I was seriously smiling with excitement. After the training we rolled some nogi and I felt more inspired than have in a while. I was trying new things and snapping into attacks faster. I can't wait to start the week of training and experiment more.

Back stage at WOCS 32, with Rogerio Nogueira.

While I may not have gotten in much training, what I did get was some enlightenment on how to move forward with my training. It was nice to be able to relax a bit and enjoy Rio during the week. While not training I have spent time swimming, exploring, and longboarding. It was good for the body and the mind. I think being able to chill helped me to make some of the technical discoveries that I made this past week. I am excited to see what this next week brings and what new discoveries both on and off the mat I will make.

One Year in Brazil--A Quick Look Back

After one of CR's BBQ's. Photo by vitophotography.com

This week has marked a huge mile stone-- one year in Brazil! Over the course of this past year I have had some pretty remarkable experiences. From the beaches of Rio,to the tropical mountains of Friburgo, and to the southern City of Gramado I have had a chance to train and enjoy Brazil. This week I wanted to get a bit nostalgic and take a look back at some of the great experiences on and off the mat.

Post training with Dennis.

I have had the pleasure of training in some of Rio's most famous gyms--Nova Uniao, Carlson Gracies, Gordo's, X-gym, and Brazilian Top Team to name a few. At every academy I was greeted with smiles and welcomed warmly to the mats. Each gym had a different style, atmosphere, and unique way of approaching the arte suave. I have had memorable rolls with Dennis Asche, Gordo, Braga Neto, Kit Dale, Roni Yahya, plus I have rolled with countless other black belts whom have amazed me with their techniques. I even had the chance to roll in the middle of the jungle in Alex Davis' open air dojo. The world of jiujitsu has been opened up to me and I have a greater understanding and appreciation for the art as a result.

My remarkable training experiences hasn't just been in BJJ either. I have trained with (and sometimes gotten my butt kicked by) some of the best in the world of MMA. I have trained with guys like Eric Silva, Paulo Thiago, Gleison Tibau, Rony Markes, and Milton Vierra. In addition I have been on the mats and in the gym with some of the best like Jose Aldo, Dudu Dantes, and Jacare. Working out with guys like that, plus their excellent trainers has raised my game to higher levels. Not only that but seeing how the best in the world train has given me a much better idea of what it takes to be at the op of he sport.

Rolling at CR. Thank you to both Connection Rio
and Senki Kimonos for helping me live the dream.

In wrestling I have had a super fight for charity with one of the Brazilian National Team members and trained with Olympians and world class competitors at the FILA Training Center. More importantly I have been able to have a direct impact of spreading the sport of wrestling by helping Rio's youth train and compete in wrestling by working with the Antoine Jauode and the UPP Programs. Through wrestling I have gotten into famous and exclusive gyms and programs. I had the opportunity to work directly with Brazil's paratroopers as well as the elite BOPE force. I have also helped train some great fighters, guys I never dreamed I would be able to help. I think that's one of the biggest takeaways I have had this past year in Brazil-- That I deserve to be here working with some of the best in the world.

The move here though has been about more than just training though. It's been about new life experiences with Nicole and chasing our dreams. The two of us have had some comedic follies, for instance taking the wrong bus ending up in a unknown part of the city in a storm, with Nicole getting a tarp full of water dumped on her and as I was laughing getting splashed with dirty street water. We been to some great parties- New Year's on Copa Beach, Rock in Rio, Carnival, Cabaret Lounge champagne party, and see many great BBQ's here at the CR house- and relaxed along Rio's famous beaches. We have been able to see some of social issues that affect Brazil and how they attempting to be solved. Touring Complexo Alemao with BOPE and BBQ's in some of Rio's other impoverished communities have enlightened us to issues we had never been exposed to in the States. We have met and made friends with some great people from all over the world here at CR. It has really enlightened us to new ways of thinking and cultures, and has given us great friends to visit in the future. We have made memories together that will last us a lifetime.

In the past year I have grown a lot here in Rio, both on and off the mats. At the beginning of the move I had set a lot of goals for myself one of them being that in order for me to ever truly feel like I lived in Brazil we (Nicole and I) had to live here for at least a year. I realize it was a bit of a naive statement, but it was a goal I had set. Well the year marker has come and gone and we are still here going stronger than ever. I am excited to see what the next year brings as Brazil continues to feel more like home and less like a foreign experience.