Day 9 & 10 - H. Sterns and the journey home

After we all checked out of the hotel and argued with the front desk about the mini-bar consumption, we were happy to see the farewell committee of street vendors that had assembled to wish us a 'bon-voyage' and secure any final sales!



H. Stern is a major player the jewelery industry and the largest in Brazil. They do everything from the extraction, manufacturing and sales of the gems.

I had to take this picture as it was one of the most interesting precious stones I'd ever seen!


H. Stern specializes in colored gem stones and had lots of variety to showcase.





Imperial Topaz below is a rare gem stone that is only mined from one place in Brazil.

We were then given an audio-guided tour of how the company operates and gets the stones from raw material to storeroom quality all in house.


After the tour, we were divided into groups of two and a sales person proceeded to sell us on the different items they offered. Some purchased items but for those that didn't, we were quickly whisked away to the gift shop.



Sonya was our guide in Rio and was an excellent host, her knowledge and humor made the time in Rio unforgettable! Here were some parting gifts to show our appreciation.


Austin and Lyndon posing for a shot at the airport before some last minute purchases are done before heading back to Canada.



Some very weary travelers at the Pearson International Airport in Toronto waiting for the last connecting flight back to Regina.





We finally arrived back in Regina and were greeting by Dr. Anne Lavack, Dean of the Business Administration Department of the University of Regina and lots of family and friends. Some could not even wait for their daddy to get to the bottom of the stairs!! Everyone was glad to be reunited and back together.













Thanks to Caroline who contributed a lot of the write-ups for the tours we attended and all our readers for sharing this once-in-a-lifetime experience with us. Thanks to Rob for arranging this wonderful trip and all the work and stress he had trying to "herd the cats" as it were! Thanks to Rhoda at the U of R for all the behind-the-scenes work she did to make this trip a reality and thanks to all my fellow classmates for putting up with my endless picture taking!