The trip here was uneventful. I spent extra to get a seat with more legroom and bought a Tempur-Pedic neck pillow, which is a lifesaver.
I made it through customs, which took a little longer than it should have, due to a bit of a miscommunication. The guard handed my paperwork back to me, instructed me to “get [my] luggage and keep [the paperwork] when [I] come back.” So I went to get my luggage, then wondered how the heck I was supposed to get back to the customs desk. What he meant was “when you go back to the USA.” Clearing that up opened the door to go through the “something to declare” line, which was completely empty and moved more quickly than the “nothing to declare” line. Hah!
Now I’m hanging in the airport, where the food is overpriced and absolutely horrible. Somehow I managed to resist the temptation to try Pizza Hut or McDonald’s a la Brazil…
No AT&T service here on my phone, even roaming. Wireless costs R$9.95 for two hours, but was worth it to let the folks back home that I arrived safely and relatively soundly.