 Aurora is sitting up in bed, complaining to her portrait of Rock Hudson about how she is indisposed and alone. A neighbor girl calls out and comes in. She s brought Aurora tea and toast, is now bearing porridge. Aurora s sister Ana is out of town, having gone to Aparecido do Norte, a popular destination for pilgrimages. Ana s motives are not religious, however. A neighbor has not invited the sisters to her daughter s wedding, with the excuse that it will be far away in Aparecida, and Ana has gone because she doesn t believe the wedding will come off. She arrives back for lunch (Aurora, while protesting she doesn t want to be a burden, has gotten the neighbor to kill a chicken to make her broth) and is disappointed that the wedding had in fact occurred, and complains that she would not have spent the bus fare if she knew the girl would actually be married. As Aurora feels ill, Ana calls Dr. Rozendo, whose bachelor status is commented on by both sisters. He finds a slight fever and diagnoses food poisoning. Aurora and Ana both blame the generous neighbor s food: the tea, the toast, the porridge and the chicken broth. When she comes by with a piece of cake, though, Ana wolfs it down.