Here is the 5th and final installment of my daughter Emilia’s series of blog posts on her recent trip to Brazil to cover the story of how the government is dealing with the slums of Rio in advance of the Olympics. (It’s also about the need for sunscreen.)
“Inside every adult lurks a graduation speaker dying to get out, some world-weary pundit eager to pontificate on life to young people who’d rather be Rollerblading. Most of us, alas, will never be invited to sow our words of wisdom among an audience of caps and gowns, but there’s no reason we can’t entertain ourselves by composing a Guide to Life for Graduates.
I encourage anyone over 26 to try this and thank you for indulging my attempt.Ladies and gentlemen of the class of ’97:
Wear sunscreen.”
I would like to take this moment to inform my e-audience that, before I went to Brazil, I’d read that speech. Several times. I thought it was funny. Now I know it was serious.
After 5 whole days in Brazil, and only three left, Roshan and I finally made it to the beach—we made a day of it. We’d go to both…
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Paul's Voyage of Discovery & Etc. 
Ouch. Soooo painful. The further south, the worse the sun is. I slathered myself in SPF 50 +++ sunscreen repeatedly the entire time I was in Belize…except for that tiny little 45 minute boat trip to the mainland to catch my flight. I thought the water taxi would be covered like it was on the way out to the island, but nope. Wasn’t. Open air boat ride. Sunburned? You bet. In 45 minutes. At least I was mostly covered and had a hat. Just the tops of my thighs got fried. In 45 minutes. I can’t even imagine how painful a full day of exposure that far south would be. Oh wait. I can. I was in my 20’s once, and I too “didn’t burn”. Until I did. Badly. That was one for the live/learn curve. And now I visit my dermatologist annually for a full body check. Because one blistering burn is unfortunately followed by a lifetime of vigilance. I totally feel her pain. Big time.