“This date would be unforgettable for any Brazilian – in the evening of the 6th of September 1964 I got on a plane at Galeão Airport and the next day at 7am I landed in New York. But earlier in the evening of my departure, on the terrace of my aunt's apartment in Rio de Janeiro, something happened, something that, besides having touched me deeply, was permanently registered in my mind. Suddenly, in spite of all the common buzz arising from a first time trip to New York, I found myself alone on the terrace. Immersed in the beautiful night of Rio de Janeiro I asked myself what was that craziness that then took me to a rocket ride to the USA only having a return ticket, 50 dollars I had borrowed from friends in my pocket and the promise of 500 more by the Brazilian embassy. What an adventure! But what for? If I could at least see a sign … That was the moment I saw a flaring shooting star drawing a line on the deep blue sky as if telling me "go for it". I went and, as it turned out, the star was right."

 

Luiz Henrique