Will You Ever Stop Amazing Me, Dear Generous Universe?

 

With my current volunteering program host, we agreed on updating the original plan and shortening my stay. Thus, I needed to change my flight to the next destination’s date.

Such an unexpected event — triggered by a misunderstanding — put some pressure on a stranger like me who doesn’t speak the country's official language.

Furthermore, most of the Brazilian population doesn’t speak English, sadly enough. It wouldn’t have felt challenging if I wasn’t accompanied by my furry kid, in all likelihood.

Appealingly, the burden of being responsible for another living creature adds much more meaning to my existence. I guess that it might be possible thanks to my deepest conviction and mantra:

I keep faith the Universe always knows better and that any seemingly challenging and tricky situation is nothing but a gift in disguise!

 

To come back to the story, I booked my flight through a local travel agency. An important detail to keep in mind is that I don’t have my international credit card. I ordered it a bit late, unfortunately — or not!

Hence, I had to pay one of my hosts in cash, and he kindly proceeded with the online transaction they call a pix here in Brazil. Little did I know that modifying my flight return date would be anything but a smooth operation.

My very special agent Veronica promised to check whether she could do something about the fees, which turned out to be negative. I accepted it while being armed with the knowledge that it was my choice to be here and that risks were part of the equation.

In a second step, Veronica started looking for some possible options she was sharing with me while I was looking for a way to pay the fees. As if it wasn’t enough pressure, the Universe decided to make it a little more complicated, and we had a power outage!

For three days, I have been trying along with my host to find ways to be connected with the world again and secure my flight before the fees become exorbitant, without much success. The reception was too bad, and it was arduous to finish any conversation.

I contacted many friends and we tested zillions of methods. Nothing seemed to work. On the last day, my host took me to a coffee shop far away from the house. He had some errands to take care of, and it was convenient.

If you've come this far, maybe you might enjoy my upcoming free eBook about the whole tale! I'll be honored if you decide to stop by!