Colombia - Week 3

 Monday: We all got up and out the door and on the bus and to the school!  If felt like a big accomplishment.  Justus is getting very interested in soccar (futbol).  It's a favorite pastime and serious sport in Colombia.  He played with a couple of boys from the apartment complex after school.  Dane and I went grocery shopping.  

This week we tried some sort of little cookie made from yuca.  It was sweet and had the consistency of something between a crisp cookie and a meringue.  We've met some friends in the apartments.  An American/Colombian couple and one is an ex-ECA staff member.  They have three kids 1, 3, and 5.  Same as ours were three years ago!  They have been so welcoming and are so happy to answer our questions, explain cultural tidbits, etc.  

Tuesday: School at ECA.  The school lunches at ECA are pretty amazing.  It's basically a three course meal with soup, the main dish, some sort of fruit and dessert served with fresh juice.  There are always leftovers and I pack them up and that usually ends up being an extra meal for us.  I haven't had anything I don't like.  I'm not sure how the kids are going to return to their typical school lunches!

Wednesday:  School at home

Thursday: School at home

Friday: School at home

Saturday:  Dane's birthday!  He spent the first half of the day at a government office getting his Colombian ID (cedula).  Woohoo!  While he was gone the kids worked on some decorations for his birthday.  We borrowed some tennis equipment, reserved the tennis court in our complex, and played tennis.  The kids and I went out and got him some special birthday treats.  And then we had his favorite for dinner.  Pizza and apple crisp with vanilla ice cream.  The only birthday picture I got of Dane was when we were playing a game.  

Our friends let us borrow some costumes, so I pulled those out as a surprise for the kids later in the afternoon.  We went to a couple of shops to pick up some items and the shop owners were giving out candy.  So the kids got to have some Halloween fun too.  And yes, that is Dane standing behind them, doing dishes on his birthday. 

Sunday:  We headed out around 8 am or so to tackle Monserrate, a mountain in downtown Bogota.  It was quite a climb with the kids.  There were some tears and frustration and they had to be encouraged to keep going (or carried in Naomi's case).  No tears from Justus though.  He was fine with it all and said he wanted to do it again the next day!  The hike is along a stone path/staircase.  At certain spots along the way up there are vendors selling food and souvenirs.  We thought there was just a church to see when we got to the top, but it was quite a bit more than that.  Shops and restaurants, more hiking around the site, etc.  We spent several hours exploring and then another hour or more waiting in line to take the train back down the mountain.  We weren't sure the kids would survive the hike down, but we probably could have made it down in the time we spent waiting for the train.  They call the train the funicular.  

Elise pointing to the church at the top of the mountain a couple of few hours before we actually made it!

As soon as we got to the top we located a peaceful place to sit down and have a snack.  Then we explored!

A clear day would have given quite a different perspective and view, but the cloudy day had it's own beauty too.  

We didn't get home until 5pm and had decided not to go to a gathering of some of the teachers.  But then they told me they had gotten a cake for Dane's birthday, so we went!  I'm glad we did.