First day traveling and first day in Rio

So the trip out of New York was the start of one big adventure.  I am on a public computer now so pictures will be inserted once I have wifi.

Here I am camping out at the airport:

I befriended a native Brazilian that was on the 4:15 flight from JFK going directly to Rio, and with the snow getting worse he suggested trying to get on that flight rather than the 5:40 one I was scheduled for.  I tried, but apparently I was too late to do so.  Here is what things looked like while I waited:

The snow was piling up, but we boarded around 5:40.  For the next 3 hours we sat while huge machines were de-icing the wings and entire plane.  Looking out the window I could see frost and ice accumulating on the window, and I thought that was not a good sign.  When I asked a flight atendant when we would take off, he told me that the captain was debating cancelling it at that moment.  Here's what it looked like:

Luckily the plane took off around 9 at night.  The flight was pretty comfortable, as I had a seat free next to me and they had video screens in front of us to watch movies and play all types of games.  The food was good, and we landed in Sao Paulo around 9 the following morning.  Here we are touching down:

By that point I missed my connecting flight, but they had rebooked me on a flight leaving at 12:30.  There were 2 problems with this: 1.One of my luggage pieces did not show up and 2. The new flight was leaving from another airport in Sao Paulo.  I spent about 45 minutes trying to get to talk to somoene from the airline about my bag but finally got to file a report.  I then spent half an hour standing in the wrong line waiting to get info on how to get to the other airport.  Once I found out I was supposed to be outside waiting for a shuttle but, it was already 11.

I got on the shuttle bus at 11:30, and I thought there was no chance of me making the 12:30 flight.  Luckily flights to Rio from there run every half hour, so when I arrived I got booked on the 2:00 flight and had to board right away.  I made a mad dash to the gate and made it there at about 1:35.

The next flight was uneventful, and after asking for help with a taxi I was able to get a legit one for 37 reales (about 20 dollars).  I got checked into my hostel around 3:30 or so, and it was such a relief to be there.  The heat here is crazy, as it must be about 90 degrees and there is humidity on top of that.  Once I got settled I went out exploring with an English couple, and we got some nice pictures of the Santa Teresa area and then got a bite to eat.  I got a hamburger made of lamb, but it was served without the bun.

Now I am working on plans for hang gliding and taking tours over the next few days.  I am in serious need of a tan, so the beach is definitely on the agenda for tomorrow.  It is such a good feeling to finally be here and that everything has worked out.