Ms. Heidi invited Ludi, Josie and Joseph to attend her children’s class at El Jordan on Tuesday morning. Joseph was reluctant (I pretty much had to drag him), but it turns out they had a lot of fun.
Exploring downtown
This trip has mostly been spent in the company of family. Adventure and exploring were overdue.
Singing, catching, praying
It was hard to wake up Sunday after the late quinceañera. But church is important, and I want our kids to have a different experience of church than what they get back home.
Yoli’s old church, Esmirna, is right next door to her dad’s house. It’s a small neighborhood church full of people Yoli has known since she was young. Though I don’t really know any of them, I recognize many, and I know some names.
Lights out!
A quinceañera can be a major production. This year it was Aby’s turn, the daughter of Noemi and Alcides. We had swept and mopped, and later set up the tables and chairs.
Then came my favorite part of any special event: forcing my kids to shower and wear dress clothes.
Meeting Tio Efraín
Saturday morning Yoli went with Josie to buy bread. Jadzia and Ludi were still sleeping on the other side of the city at their sleepover. Yoli had seen on WhatsApp that Tío Efraín, Doña Lucila’s half-brother, was in town and had brought a pig.
Zegarra’s Factory
Also spotted on our walk home from the book fair: Zegarra’s Factory, a boxing gym that shares the name of Yoli’s family. We stopped for a few minutes to watch a couple guys sparring inside
Anita’s gourmet
I didn’t realize my mom had opened up shop down here!
(A nice-looking bakery we passed on the way home from the Feria Internacional del Libro de Santa Cruz)
Electric showers and a book fair
We got off to a slow start Friday. Eventually it came time to run the kids through their first showers of the trip. Electric showers.
Longtime readers of this blog may recall that relatively few homes in Bolivia have water heaters. Those who want warm or hot showers install an electric shower head, which uses a heating element to warm the water.
We are a pretty big family
Thursday was a welcome change of pace. We went back to Lucy’s house, but this time Noemi had arrived with her children: Abi, Raquel, Genesis, and Melody.
We started off by playing games. Noemi’s kids are chess players and have won some competitions. Yoli brought along a Mancala board, and we taught them how to play.
Laid-back Wednesday
We got a late start on Wednesday. For lunch Yoli bought a chicken and cooked it. Chickens here come with the feet attached, which fascinated the kids.