We were greeted this morning by a faculty member and one undergraduate student, and they directed us to the UFV campus. It was yet another beautiful day (10 F, sunny, clear, perfect!), and we headed to the pulp and paper labs. Dr. Jorge Colodette, a UFV professor who spent time at NCSU in the past, welcomed the students and introduced them to undergraduate and graduate students in the UFV program. All students had a chance to introduce themselves and tell what they were working on or where they were going to work.
Given the very brief nature of our visit, we took a bus tour of the campus. It actually has a lot in common with NCSU -- a land-grant history, plus programs in engineering, agriculture, plant science, food science, biological sciences, and forestry (and, of course...pulp and paper).
Dr. Colodette had arranged for a wonderful buffet lunch in town, and the students enjoyed amazing food on an outdoor patio.
After lunch, the students heard a presentation from the UFV international office about the school and its history.
After a quick change into comfortable clothes, the students settled in for ANOTHER long bus ride -- this time 6 hours to Rio. At least most of this trip was by daylight, and only the first three hours of it were on a two-lane road. Halfway through the trip, we stopped at a convenience area and had the ONLY cost-effect meal of the entire trip....a $5 steak platter that was actually pretty darned good.
As we got closer to Rio, the students started to stir. Our hotel turned out to be just off the main drag of Ipanema, a premium beach area just next to the famous Copa Cabana. The hotel was pretty nice. Once checked in, the students headed out to explore bars and clubs in the neighborhood (a safe one). By all accounts at breakfast the next morning, they apparently were succesful!
It's still hard to believe...we have a full day tomorrow in one of the largest and most exciting cities in the world!
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