Home at Last!

Well boys and girls! It was an adventurous trip, but I am finally home! I arrived at the airport with plenty of time to spare on Friday, only to find out my plane had been delayed until 10pm. No problem, though...that would still get me into O'Hare at 7am, with two hours to spare until exams. Then came the announcement: They were cancelling our flight until 7am tomorrow. They would give us hotel vouchers, but that mean going to a hotel, and then dealing with 2+ hours of checking in and security again. I chose to have the mother of all cramming/study sessions in the airport ALL NIGHT LONG!

That got old quickly. Thankfully, I got to watch the German soccer league championship game, a quick Maria Sharapova win at the French open, and some of the following match. I did get some studying in, but 14 hours non-stop was going to be a little much.

We finally took off at about 10:30am on Saturday, 14 hours late. Keep in mind that we were now flying in broad daylight, too, which made sleeping almost impossible. One cool thing was that we could see the Amazon as we flew over it, which took 4 hours!!! It takes 4 hours to fly from Key West, FL to Chicago, and we were flying over the jungle that entire time. Pretty amazing!

After landing in Chicago, I finally picked up my bags and jumped in a rental car to speed my way home. It was wonderful to be home. I wasn't scared for my life on the highway, my yard was nice and green - and no graffiti! It was also wonderful to see my wife.

So now it's back to the real world. I'm actually sitting at work right now, waiting until Lord-only-knows to get called into a meeting. Thanks again for reading the blog and emailing and commenting. It was great to keep in touch while I was gone. Take care and we'll talk soon!

The End is Near.....

So here I sit in 40-degree temps in Sao Paulo, putting off my final paper for Managerial Accounting. The end is near. Its Wednesday night and I am heading out of here on Friday night (God willing!). It's not that I'm excited to leave - Sao Paulo has grown on me. I'm excited to get home. I'm also nervous....they shut down the airport today because someone was broadcasting a pirated signal over Air Traffic Control. Add to that a Customs Agent strike, and I'll be lucky to get out of here. Only problem is that I must get on my flight on time - I land at 5:30am in Chicago and have a final exam at 9:00am. If I miss it, I'm going to be hurting.

So as for Sao Paulo updates....lets see...we've had a lot of class this week, along with working on our final projects. We've had some funny Brazilian issues this week, starting off with our field trip leaving 60- minutes late with no explanation. Brazilians are notoriously late, and it's been rubbing off on we Americans. The second lesson was in Brazilians inability to say "no". Once you know what is going on, it is the funniest thing to watch.

The field trip we went on was to a high-end cosmetics company named Natura. They use only sustainable (renewable) products from the Amazon. Their facility was amazing. It was very contemporary with poured concrete walls and fluid shapes....lots of elevated walkways and skylights. They had lounges designed with feng shui in mind. They also had on-campus daycare, gymnasium, soccer stadium (of course), cafeterias, CD and DVD rentals, and 32 coach buses that picked up employees from all over Sao Paulo state. All of that was FREE!! All told it was a great trip, until we had to stand outside in the cold and wait 30 minutes for our bus home.
(Photos below are L-R: Brazil tree, exterior of Natura, Natura walkway w/childcare on right, Feng Shui garden)























Alright....I suppose I should get started on my paper. Barring something pretty fun over the next day, this will probably be my last posting from Sao Paulo. We'll see how this blog carries on - I'm sure I will have lots of other fun things to write about over the summer! I can't wait to see everyone very soon. Thanks for the emails and for reading my babbles. I'll see you very soon!

-Kevin

Rio de Janeiro!!!!

Hey everyone! I'm back from an amazing weekend in Rio de Janeiro! I've actually been back for several hours now, but needed a nap first before I had the energy to write. Rio is an amazing city, both good and bad. We got (mostly) perfect weather, a nice hotel, good food....what more can you ask for?

The weekend started off with a 4am alarm on Friday. We had a VERY early flight that got us in to Rio at 7:30am. Despite being a "preferred guest," we were unable to check into our hotel early, so we crashed by the pool. This was the only time the weather was bad. Kirin slept on the beach chair using a towel as a blanket (she also had jeans and a sweatshirt on)! I just enjoyed the 10-foot waves crashing just outside the pool. Somehow during this cloudy stretch, I managed to sunburn my right bicep and shoulder. Don't ask.

Around noon, the clouds finally broke and we were in business. The whole group of us (10 ended up going) went to Sugar Loaf mountain, right on the cost. It's named Sugar Loaf because of its resemblance to the "loafs" of sugar that were shipped from Rio to Europe in colonial days. You take a cable car up to one mountain, and a second to Sugar Loaf. There were mountain climbers on both, dangling thousands of feet up. The view from Sugar Loaf was amazing, especially as the sun was setting over Rio. The city looks like someone poured it over the mountains that pop up throughout the city. (Pics below L-R: Sugar Loaf Mountain, facing East; Copacabana beach at far left, from Sugar Loaf; Sunset over Rio)













Friday night we went out to dinner in the Ipanema neighborhood, to a Brazilian fusion restaurant. We sat on pillows on the floor in their upstairs lounger, which we dubbed "the makeout lounge" as we were the only ones in there not making out big time. I tried my first "capirinha," Brazil's national drink, which tastes a lot like a margarita, but stronger, and with cahaca and more sugar than you can believe. Dinner was outstanding. I got tenderloin cubes which came on a skewer, leaned against a big serving of almond-mushroom risotto. It was easily a Top 10 dinner. The waiter, a Red Hot Chili Peppers fan, recommended a nearby bar for us to go to. When we arrived, they were playing great 80's rock songs. At one point, one of the girls in our group requested Justin Timberlake. Based on the music they had been playing, we thought he'd laugh at her. Not only did he have it, but he changed his whole playlist. All of a sudden is was Justin Timberlake, Black Eyed Peas, Jump Around....fun stuff. We got the whole bar dancing and singing - no one spoke English, but they all knew the words to the songs! At 3am, we decided we needed to go home to prep for our big day on Saturday.

At 9:00 Saturday morning, we were in a cab headed to another mountain - but this time we were going to jump off! We got to the top and - oh my God that's high! The 30 -story buildings below look like legos!!! We got a quick lesson and then jumped in line. There were a handful of hang-gliding schools throwing people of the ledge, but it moved quickly. All of a sudden it was my turn to run-run-run-run-run and jump. I can't begin to describe the feeling. It was insane. I got to sit back while my pilot guided us around - he was watching the vultures circling below to figure out where the thermals were. We caught one and were all of a sudden a couple hundred feet above where we took off! The whole experience was absolutely amazing! 15 minutes later, we landed on the beach which was already packed. I would do it again in a heartbeat, and would recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity! (Pics below L-R: View down the launch ramp; Sierra, Kevin, Kirin and Kelly; the mountain on the right is our takeoff point)











One really cool thing about Rio is the level of activity. At any of the beaches, there were hundreds of people playing soccer (of course), volleyball, surfing, site surfing, hang-gliding, running, biking....anything you can think of. We chose to fall asleep by the pool. Saturday afternoon we headed out to Copacabana Beach to wander. The beaches were packed, and the famous tiled walkways were covered with vendors selling anything from churros to capirinhas in coconuts, to counterfeit purposes, jerseys, etc.....and they all happen to know just enough English to try and pull you in. I grabbed a small oil painting of the hillside with two people doing capoeira (Brazilian martial arts). (Pic below is the North end of Copacabana beach)











Finally, last night we headed to a churascaria, which is a Brazilian steakhouse where waiters keep bringing different types of meat until you say "stop". Funny thing, though, was that I probably had more of their awesome sushi than I had meat. The place was just crazy, with big groups of people, and waiters running around EVERYWHERE, with spears full of meat, and huge knives ready to slice the meat for you. The waiters would clear your buffet plates in seconds, stacking 50 plates on one tray to take to the back. Unfortunately, we all ate so much food that we were in a food coma when we went out and only lasted through 1 beer!

Today its back to Sao Paulo and real life...we actually have a couple assignments due tomorrow for class. Its pretty cold here in Sao Paulo, especially after 90 and sunny all weekend in Rio. Housekeeping actually put multiple blankets on my bed - it must be VERY cold to them.

So now its time to go do some homework. I hope everyone is doing well. Take care!


P.S....Ben - I didn't get close enough to Corcovada to high-five Jesus, so this will have to do:

Sorry - It's Been a While!

Hey everyone - I am in fact alive! I've gotten several emails asking if I had been kidnapped. Where are the posts?!?! Well, it's actually been pretty busy here, hence the lack of posts. Let's get started with a couple days' updates.....

On Tuesday afternoon we visited the Sao Paulo Commodities and Futures Exchange. This is where they exchange derivatives (which are like stocks that derive their value from the underlying asset, so if oil goes up, an oil derivative would go up), as well as carbon credits (which businesses can exchange so that, as a whole, the comunity maintains greenhouse gas emission standards). Its lots of very complicated and crazy stuff - I commented that its like legalized gambling. The best part, though, was when we got to see the trading floor. This was just like in the movies with hundreds of guys (no women, interestingly enough) screaming orders to buy and sell at each other. I tried to send out a video, but it was too big. You'll have to see it to believe it, though. A picture is below:













That night, a small group of us went to a Brazilian "barbecue." This is a concept we might have to try at home. They brought out a fondue candle but then put a 10" x 12" griddle on it. Then they brought out a tenderloin with garlic and butter on top, sliced very thin. You tossed the pieces on the grill and cooked them to your liking. It was a lot of fun, and very good. This bar was amazing - absolutely packed at 9pm on a Tuesday night, with more people coming in when we finally left at about 11:30. I don't know how the Brazilians do it - party until the whee hours and then go to work at 8. Actually, I tried their coffee....now I know how they do it!

Wednesday was an all-class day. The classes are all going well so far. Nothing extraordinairly difficult, and certainly not as hard as U of Chicago. Good thing, too, because I am still having to do homework for U of C while here in Brazil. We've been laughing at how there is a lot of overlap in the classes here, with corruption and inflation (both historical problems here) being major topics in everyone's presentation. However, with the overlap, we've notice a lot of different numbers. Not everyone appears to be on the same page. Oh well. Wednesday night Kirin (the other U of C student) and I went to a cafe near the hotel for dinner. We were clearly Midwesterners in a tropical town. The temp had dipped to the 60's and Paulistanos were buying winter hats on the street. Kirin and I sat outside, though, enjoying the lovely weather.

Today started off with a trip to a can-making factory. This company has won tons of innovation awards over the past decade, something you wouldn't expect for a tin-can factory. It was pretty interesting, with a speech from the CEO and then a tour of the factory. After class this afternoon, it was back to the hotel to wrap up some homework and get to bed at a decent time (I accomplished one of those!). I also got to coach a US indoor soccer team, coached by Milwaukee's own Keith Tozer, get trounced by Brazil, 4-0. Ouch.

Tomorrow, a big group of us is headed to Rio Dejaneiro for the weekend. We're on 4 different flights, and the most anyone paid for a round-trip flight was $120 total. Good stuff. We'll be staying on Ipanema beach, and are going to take a stab at hang-gliding from the mountains. Oh, yeah....and I need to take a picture high-fiving the Cristo Redentor statue for Ben. So I should have another long post on Sunday, but more importantly, more pictures! Stay tuned!

I hope everyone is doing well at home. Take care, and keep in touch.

-Kevin

A Softer Side of Sao Paulo?

What a day yesterday! We finally got to see the softer side of Sao Paulo which made it look like a pretty appealing city. The day started off in class with my new classmates. There are about 15 of us, with a big chunk from University of Illinois-Chicago. 3 others are from USC, 2 from France, one from the Czech Republic and myself and another U of Chicago student. Its seems like a very good group to spend the next two weeks with.


Class yesterday was Brazilian culture, and the biggest takeaways are that "yes" means nothing in Brazil (they're unable to say "no") and that they, as a culture, are regularly walking the line between bending the rules and corrupt. Keep in mind, too, that this was a native Brazilian teaching the class. She also talked about race in a way that made me wonder if it was how they taught race issues to our parents? She was reading quotes that everyone knew their place and didn't really argue with it. Its hard to put into writing, so don't take it too far out of context, but it was a bizarre discussion.

Yesterday afternoon we went on a bus tour of the city, which really opened our eyes to some of the nicer neighborhoods within Sao Paulo. We got some of the history of downtown Sao Paulo, which had the largest concentration of Nazi's outside of Germany, although the sided with the Allies in WWII. You can find subtle symbols of this throughout downtown's architecture. We also visited the Market, which is a huge old train station renovated to house hundreds of food stands. It was a foodie's paradise and simply amazing...any fruit, spice, meat, fish, etc that you could ever want.

After the Market, we headed to Vila Madalena, a neighborhood which the guide compared to SOHO in New York. It was bar after restaurant after bar and looked like a very cool neighborhood. Most of the places were in converted houses so it had a very low key, bohemiam feel.

From Vila Madalena, it was off to Jardines, Sao Paulo's Rodeo Drive. It was a beautiful area with trendy stores and restaurants, beautiful people, and nothing that I could afford. We ended up having sushi at a Japanese restaurant in the area. It was an awesome dinner, and a great conclusion to a busy day.

Up next, a soccer game on Wednesday (?) and perhaps a trip to Rio this weekend. Somehow in there I get to write a final exam paper and study for exams?!?! Sounds like a great time! I hope you are all doing well. Talk to you later!!! -Kevin

Ilhabela and buses

Hey everyone...its noon on a rainy Saturday here in Sao Paulo - what better time to post an update? This is a long one - I apologize right now for that! I got back to Sao Paulo last night after an adventurous trip to Ilhabela, Brazil. If you picture Brazil, Sao Paulo is in the Southeast corner. If you go 3 hours straight East (including a 30-minute ferry ride), you get to Ilhabela, a 20-sq-mile island of which 85% is designated as a National Park.

The trip started off just fine, with a 9am bus which was very comfy. The views when we got to the coast were jaw dropping. So was the driving. You come over the crest in the coastal mountains and all of a sudden you can see for miles. Bright blue ocean, huge green mountains - it was amazing. The bus driver, clearly determined to make good time, flew around extremely windy mountain roads at breakneck speed. I had to hang on just to stay in my seat. When I arrived on the island, I had an idea of where I wanted to stay and what I wanted to do. Luckily, though I still stopped into the Tourist Center at the ferry landing. The hotel I wanted was booked, as were most on the island, for a wind sports festival this weekend. However, they were able to find hotel for me, as long as I promised to be out early on Friday, which was my plan. She showed me to the bus (more to come on the buses!) and I was on my way. Based on my guidebook, I had planned on hiking to the hotel, and I'm very glad I didn't. It was much farther than it looked and included lots of hills. The bus, although very bumpy, suited me perfectly. Well, I got to the end of the bus line and....no hotel. After wandering a bit, I had to ask for help. A nice Brazilian kid walked me to the hotel, about 200m farther than the bus stop.

I immediately threw on my swimming suit and headed to the beach. All of the beaches were fairly separated, and the buses only ran once per hour, so I was fairly limited as to where I could go. I grabbed a seat at a beach bar, a beer, and was all set. The Brazilians were shocked and awed by the whiteness of my skin, but once the laughing stopped, it was all good. On my way home that evening, I stopped at the restaurant at which the kid who helped me worked. I had them recommend a seafood dinner for me. It came out as a big mix of some kind of fish, seafood and veggies wrapped and deep-fried. It was okay - very salty, though. After dinner I learned that Wednesdays on the island aren't very busy, so I crashed at my hotel that night.

The next morning, I hiked to BL3, a wind sports outfit about 2km south of my hotel. Wanting to blend in with the locals, I wore my new flip-flops...and broke them in....and killed my feet. 45 minutes after I got to BL3, they opened, and quickly informed me that their other location (there's another location?!?!?) was the one that taught kitesurfing. So I went to the bus stop to wait....then decided I would hike for a while....then watched as the bus drove past me as I was in between stops. Did I mention that the buses run once per hour? Ugh. So I hiked some more, all the way back to my hotel. An hour later, I caught the northbound bus, all the way to the end of the line, without seeing BL3. Excellent. I asked the driver if he knew where it was and he said he would point it out on the way back. So we're driving...driving....right past BL3, and he points it out at the next stop. So after hiking some more, I finally arrive at BL3 only to find out the kite-surfing teacher was not in on Thursday (immediately into my head popped that old commercial, "phone first!"). So that took 15 minutes to figure out, and then I got to wait for the bus again....are you sensing a trend??? When I got back to my hotel, I took a nap - I'd had enough.

Thursday afternoon, post-nap, I went to find something to eat, do a little shopping, and wander around town. Its a pretty cute town - very much like Door County. That night I had a great pizza at a restaurant on the pier. I got to watch HUGE tankers coming in an out of port, the fisherman catching and selling fresh fish right there, and honeymooners wandering around. The first night, I watched as one couple wandered up to my restaurant 3 different times. The first time, the husband was engaged, checking out the menu, trying to decide. The second time it took some coaxing, but he looked again. The third time, he just had this look like "just pick a fricking restaurant." It was great to watch.

The next day, I jumped on what I thought was the bus to head north to BL3, except that it turned around and headed south. Fed up with the buses, I rode it until the end, where I knew there would be taxis waiting. I finally arrived at BL3 and headed out to the ocean with Renato, my teacher, and Hafa, his right-hand man. Renato has spent the last 5 years travelling the world surfing....Australia, Bali, New Zealand, Hawaii. That sounds like a pretty good life. For those of you not familiar with kite surfing, you have a harness strapped around your waist, with loops under your legs. You lock yourself into this huge kite (probably the scariest part, if you think about it). Then you throw on a wakeboard and let the kite pull you. There's not much arm strength required because you're attached to that hitch. The problem is you need to independently control a wakeboard (this I can kind of handle) and a huge kite (a challenge). We started off learning how to control the kite....I think I would have had fun just doing this. If you catch enough wind, it will pull you clear out of the water...but of course you land in water again, so it was a ton of fun. After learning those basics, we threw on the board. I was able to briefly get going once, but after I a couple hours I had to quit. On one hand, I had a ferry and a bus to catch. On the other, I couldn't drink any more salt water. It was an absolute blast, and I can't wait to try it again!

Now I'm back in Sao Paulo. I suppose I should be studying and/or getting ready for classes on Monday. I've posted a handful of pictures below.....a beautiful island, just as the name implies. I hope everyone is doing well. Take care. -Kevin

A Quick Post

Hey everyone...a quick post as today has been filled with work and studying (no need to write about that!) The morning started off with a trip to the Museo de Arte Sao Paulo. The building is raised about 20 feet off the ground by huge concrete pillars on either side of the building. It is right on Avenida Paulista, so you could actually hear the craziness inside - makes it difficult to lose yourself in the art. The collection, although small, was pretty impressive, with Goya, Velazquez, Manet, Monet, Picasso, etc. The building itself looked like someone had hastily painted a Third Ward loft in Milwaukee and threw some priceless paintings on the wall. The lighting was kinda crummy and the paint on the walls was flaking off. They wouldn't let me take pictures inside, so you'll have to take my word for it.

I had to laugh at one point in the museum...bear with me.....There was a painting of Jesus in the museum that made him look less handsome than normal. It reminded me of a tour my family and I did in Seville, Spain. They expilicitly pointed out a painting of Jesus that they called "The Ugly Jesus." Apparently it was one of the only painting of Jesus ever done which portrayed him as an ugly man. That night, we were out at the bars (Pud, Peg and all), and we saw ugly Jesus at the bar!!! My stomach hurt so bad from laughing! This guy was a spitting image of the painting. Good stuff. Okay - moving on........

I came out of the museum to a crowd of people in the street - I think there had been a motorcycle-car accident. This wasn't surprising given the number of people on the roads and the craziness of the motorcycle drivers.

From the art museum, I headed to the Casa de Rosas, a French-style mansion with "Versaille-inspired gardens," built in 1935 for a famous Pualistano's daughter. I put the garden in quotes because it was all of 20 feet by 20 feet. I'm starting to learn that this tour book is stretching to point out "tourist" sights. Nonetheless, the building was very pretty, and a nice surprise on a street full of ugly skyscrapers.

After those sights, I stumbled my way through ordering an ice cream cone (delicious, by the way, and worth all the effort), and headed home. Throughout some studying and watching more movies, I saw a couple of funny things. First off, it seemed particularly loud today - maybe that was because of the helicopters regularly taking off from the buildings around me. Yes, that was plural, helicopterS. My only guess is that its businessmen who can't bear to sit in traffic - or are afraid to? I don't think its that bad around here! Later, when I went out to watch one of the helicopters, I was briefly confused - is that the Eiffel Tower (sorry for the bad pic) ? I think that means its time to go to bed!

Tomorrow I'm going to try to navigate to Ilhabella, and island off the coast, about 3 hours east of here. If all goes well, I'm going to try to learn to kitesurf...and survive. We'll see how that goes. The moral of the story is that there will be no updates until Friday evening. Until then, take care, and we'll talk soon!

-Kevin

People Everywhere

Whew! What a day....And its not even 4:00 yet here. Lat night I got a well-deserved good night's sleep. I hadn't had one in a long time, so it felt very nice to wake up whenever I felt like it.


I headed out to the Centro district this morning, Sao Paulo's hub and busiest area. I packed my bag with multiple cameras and lenses and headed out for a walk. The guidebook says to take the subway or a cab, but it appeared to be only about 1.5 miles, so I figured I would get my workout. After discovering how twisty SP's streets are, I got more of a workout than I planned.


Finally I hit Edificio Italia, SP's tallest building. It wasn't very impressive or tall, so I took a pass. From there I went to the Teatro Municipal, modeled after the Paris Opera, and then to Parque Anhangabau, which was arguably the prettiest area I saw. Pictures are below:













From there I wander to Catedral de Se, a beautiful building at the center of SP, and a hangout for migrant workers. The inside of the church was fairly plain, but the building itself was beautiful.












After the cathedral, I tried to hike to the Mercado, the central shopping and food area. I couldn't get my bearings, though, and wandered around aimlessly. I've heard so much about trying to blend in so you don't become a target that I was afraid to ask anyone directions.....and then it started raining. That was my cue to come home. I backtracked and walked for what seemed like forever.

This city is amazingly big and busy. Picture the mall on Christmas eve, and make it busier...and EVERYWHERE. Its very international, and the people watching is great. I honestly never felt unsafe, although I would get funny looks when I was taking pictures. I don't think Paulistanos are used to having tourists around. In most areas, there is a lot of trash sitting around, and lots of homeless people. It definitely makes you appreciate what we have in the US. One other thing I've noticed that surprised my was the amount of graffiti. Every inch of almost every building is tagged.....its interesting to look at, but turns otherwise nice-looking buildings into crummy looking concrete. (How did they get the graffiti on the outsides of that bulding?!)
















Tonight its time for some work and homework, and more movies on TV. I'm going to catch up on all my movies here - they show them in English with Portuguese subtitles. Tomorrow its off to the Art Museum and the Casa de Rosas and it's Versailles Gardens. I hope everyone is doing well at home! Congratulations to Pete and Becky - I think they're having a baby as we speak! Take care, and make sure to comment or send emails!

Boa Tarde de Brasil!

Hey everyone! Good afternoon from Brazil! I'm here safe and sound in Sao Paulo. The trip could not have gone more smoothly. I'm all checked in to my hotel, the Paulista Wall Street Suites....think outdated Marriott Suites for a mental picture. It is comfortable, though, and in a nice neighborhood.


I just got back from wandering Avenida Paulista for a while. That is the main thoroughfare through Sao Paulo, and there were thousands of people out walking, checking out the street vendors or the antiques fair. Sao Paulo is a HUGE city of over 17 million people. What I've seen so far is lots of concrete, cars and people. Its not the cleanest city. I'm looking forward to laying out my plan of attack tonight and then diving in tomorrow. After 4 days of standing on my feet at KBIS and then a 10.5 hour flight last night my legs are a bit tired. I'm looking forward to lounging a bit tonight.


I'll be checking my work, school, and Yahoo! emails while travelling, so feel free to write. I won't respond as quickly as normal, but will respond at some point. I hope everyone is well, and I'll see you all soon.

Quick stop at home

Hi there....this post comes from a very quick stop at home. After getting in at 1:30 this morning, I had an early meeting and then came home to take care of things around the house. Most of this evening has been spent re-packing, and now its time to go to bed. I'll have class as normal tomorrow, and then it's off to Brazil on a 9:30pm flight. Who's excited for 10+ hours in a plane???

Las Vegas was good. I gambled a whopping $1....Maybe it was just the timing, but I didn't want to play around with my money before going to Brazil. The show was great - our booth was packed as always. The nights were fun, too....one night included an amazing dinner at Craft Steak in the MGM Hotel. Another was much more relaxed with a cigar and some beers, and the third was high-style at Ghost Bar in the Palms Casino. I've attached a couple pictures, from our trip to the Stratosphere, and one of the half-size replica of the Eiffel Tower at Paris casino.

Well, the next time I write will be from South America. Wish me luck, and send emails!
-Kevin

Live from Vegas

Hey there. Just getting home from a night out. We hit up the Ghost Bar on the roof of the Palms Casino. Very cool setting for a very relaxing night. Its official that I'm not a gambler....I can think of 100 things I'd rather do with $200. The show is going really well so far. Its been crazy busy and people love our products! That always makes the long hours and hard work even easier! Now its time for bed. I may have a 6:00am conference call tomorrow....not sure if I'm going to make that one. Adios!

Viva Las Vegas

So we're here in Vegas....an uneventful flight. It was actually pretty good. We got into Vegas about 30 minutes early. After a quick lunch, we spent most of the day preparing our tradeshow booth. After hours of standing around, we finally got the green light to get out of there. We have to walk through multiple casinos to get to and from the monorail to the expo center, so it's tough to not sit down and drop some cash.

We're about to head out and try our luck at the rides on the Stratosphere....Las Vegas' space needle. There's one that shoots you straight up in the air (on top of the building), another with swings that hurdle you over the edge of the building, and finally a teeter-totter roller coaster that appears to drop you over the edge. Needless to say, we saved dinner for AFTER the rides. Tomorrow will be a very early morning, with breakfast at 7:00 and training from 7:30 to 9:30, and then the show from 9:30 to 5:00. Its a ton of fun, though, so I'm very excited. Talk to you soon.

Too Early

Ugh...this can't be right. The alarm clock says 3:30am! I guess it's not that different from my normal Saturdays, but I'm fine with only doing that once per week. This is going to be a long day. Let's hope I packed everything and that the flight goes well. Next - from Vegas!

The Beginning

So I've finally started a blog. We'll see how this thing goes. Hopefully it's a fun way to share some of my travels with friends and family. If it grows into something else, that works too. I'm starting everything on May 6, 2007. Tomorrow I leave for a week in Las Vegas for the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show. I'm very excited for the show, as my first two products will be launching there. See more details on those at Kohler's website. Then I get to come home and fly right out for three weeks in Sao Paulo, Brazil! I can't wait.

Given time constraints with work, I'm not sure if or how often I will post this week. It might be fun to share some of the crazy stories from Vegas, but then again, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, so maybe I can't share it on a blog.

I hope you all enjoy the blog! There's plenty more to come!