Mother Hen Complex?

I have been concerned in the past few days with Liam. He has visibly lost weight since we've been here. I can think of several possible factors being: the change of foods (he's really missing the peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, quesadillas, burritos, etc.), the change in climate (from cold to very hot), and the stress of all of the sudden changes in his young life. He is someone who is sensitive and feels things deeply. I know that he misses terribly his friends back in the U.S. We don't know as many people here with children his age to get together with (although we are friends with a couple of families who do - but they all have girls. That's fine, as he enjoys playing with them, but he also loves to play things like Star Wars and light sabers and he's very obviously missing having boys to get together with.)

We've been taking the kids once a week to a pay play area at the mall (slides, plastic ball pools, trampoline, games, tubes, etc.) They have a great time there. We also try to get to the park on the weekends. It just doesn't seem like enough. There's no place to go for walks in our commercial district, hot, noisy, obnoxious, speedway traffic filled neighborhood. I won't even let my kids walk out the front gate and 3 feet up the sidewalk to my sister-in-law's little storefront without accompanying them! Other than the mall, the park (both of which are hard to get to without transportation) and our own little back courtyard with kiddie pool, there's not much for the kids to do.

Liam was eating a little better the past couple of days. Mealtimes have been a huge challenge. It's been agonizing watching him decline whatever's offered to him at every meal! He did eat a little more today. Maybe he's getting used to the food? I just wonder if it is all due to emotional things. I am going to take him to a pediatrician to make sure it's not something health related. All he ever asks for are sweets (comfort food?) Of course, we are very careful in moderating intake of sweets; although the Brazilian culture makes that a challenge with complete strangers offering sweets wherever we go. Plus the fact that sugar is used in huge overabundance here (they even put sugar in a perfectly good healthy glass of milk! Not just chocolate milk either.) Soda pop is also offered almost always during lunch and dinner (not at our house though.)