The Summit

Except, this is only halfway to the summit...

We had a great group to climb with. Brazilians are so friendly- they shared water and food and conversation. They even helped me find beautiful little flowers on the path so I could photograph them. I had a horrible time deciding which photo to post here because I have two flower photos in particular that I just loved. But ultimately, this describes the day a little better.

We used our determination.. and our legs... to climb up through the clouds!

My name was "Americana" for most of the trip- and they laughed at how much I smiled while hiking and made sure that I applied enough sunscreen by constantly asking "passou protetor de sol?" I still got burned- mostly in my hair part and neck, but not too bad. The rocks were painful, but it made the experience more worth the making.