Ellie and Mary

We’ve spent these past few days in Bloomington, Indiana with my grandmother, Anne. We ate more Laughing Planet burritos, which I was so happy about. We ate Turkish and Ethiopian food, which were both super tasty! We got to see my Aunt Amy and my Uncle Joaquin, and little baby Iago is adorable. One day, Anne and I went to go to the movies and saw the new movie, Bandslam, which was good, and we also saw an opera performance by some Indiana University students. Most of the songs that they sung were in French and Italian, but the last mini scene was Hansel and Gretel. Yesterday my Aunt Katie came and we ate at Laughing Planet. We went to a roller derby in Bloomington, it’s a mix if athleticism and theatrics. It takes place in ... read more

Aloha. Now don't be alarmed. We're not in Hawaii. I am lying in bed decaying with my mom and sister. Dictating this to my mom as she types is a lot harder than I thought it would be. I don't know what to say to you, my audience, my muses. I can just imagine you all, staring dumbfounded at your computers. The trip has been magical in more ways than you could ever know. I would have to say that Portland was my favorite destination, due to its youthful ambiance and good burritos. Were you aware that wolves no longer exist in Rocky Mountain National Park? I am looking forward to visiting the thriving metropolis of Bloomington and then John and Aynara's wedding and seeing my amigos. Then, I'm excited to go back to school. Hopefully ... read more

These past few days have been quite adventure packed! We stayed in Yellowstone National Park for two nights. We would’ve stayed longer, but there were so many people, my mom, sister, and I felt like we were at Disney World. We felt like that especially at the Old Faithful. It was so cool when the geyser spurt out steamy water over 100 feet high. My dad loved the geysers and animals. We all loved the nature walk with a ranger and twelve others. At night, we would fall asleep to motorcycles speeding through the campground. Comments from Paulo: I loved almost everything about Yellowstone: the large animals, the views, the vegetation, the geothermal features (geysers, mud holes, and fumaroles), the mountains, the lake, etc. etc. As Ellie mentioned above, the place was Harley Davidson heaven, but ... read more

Portland is so beautiful! We started off the day with great bread and other French baked goods at a really delicious bakery called St. Honore Boulangerie. St. Honore bakes croissants, baguettes, many other types of french artisan breads, and makes great salads and sandwiches. We all thought it was sublime. Dad was impressed with the shape and texture of their Pain Poulaine. We enjoyed touring neighborhoods around the city. One of these areas included a co-housing community we had read about in the past. We had a picture of their teahouse on our bulletin board, and today, thanks to mom's detective work, we were able to find it. We met one of the residents, and she gave us a little tour. We also ate at the Vita Cafe in the Alberta neighborhood that was vegan and ... read more