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Published: August 10th 2009
Although we're only a long weekend into our trip, I feel like I've been here for weeks already. Everyday so far has been full enough with activity that we are ready for bed by 10pm. There's no daylights savings here, so it doesn't help that it's dark around 6:30, too.
Our favorite thing to do so far is to sit out on the balcony of my grandparents' condo. Monte says he could sleep out there. We eat, drink, talk, read, and gather out there for hours at a time. We're on the 20th floor of a tower that gives us an amazing view, and the weather is so perfect, that the windows and sliding doors are left open all the time, even when we sleep. Eventually, I'll get some pictures up here.
Our first weekend consisted of two days trips. Saturday we did a circle tour south of Medellin three little towns. Our first stop was El Retiro where we got an exclusive look at a plot of land that will one day include my grandparents' new country house. Maybe when we return, the house will be built. Our next stop was the town of El
First night on the balcony
We're tired, we've been wearing the same clothes for 2 days, but we're finally in Medellin, and this view couldn't be more welcoming.Penol where we (stupidly) decided to climb this massive rock. The views of the surrounding area, with dozens of fingers of aqua blue lakes was awesome, but I thought I was going to pass out from exhaustion when we reached the top of the 650 stairs. The rock itself is a mystery. It's thought to be some sort of meteor. After the climb we drove to the nearby town of Guatape for a much needed relaxing lunch/dinner. I use the slash for meals because we don't actually eat dinner here. We're still trying to get used to the huge lunch, then small snack around 8pm eating schedule.
Speaking of food, that is another highlight so far. (I'm gonna make Susan and Amy jealous here...) Most of the meals consist of arepas, chorizo, chicharron, rice and beans, plantains, and avocado. We will be trying mondongo, sancocho, ajiaco de santa fe in the coming days. When I have more time, I'll include links which explain the different foods. In general, it's very mild, lots of starches, and very filling country food.
Yesterday we celebrated grandma's birthday with a family get together. A second cousin of mine, Rafael (Rafa),
drove us to a town north of Medellin called San Pedro where my grandparents share a finca (a sort of sprawling farm and weekend house combo) with my grandmother's sister, Maruja. We met lots of new family, ate lots of food, hiked the perimeter of the property, rode a horse (well, I did, Monte passed), saw a new baby calf just born, and took lots of pictures. It's really nice getting this combination of city and country everyday.
I could write some more, but I'm not the only one who wants to use the computer (we just have one laptop here at the condo). Around noon today, we're going into the city to see some sights and maybe do a little shopping.
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Ava
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Sooo glad
Glad to get the news of your fun trip. I can imagine the lovely view from the 20th floor and would love to feel the cool breeze--it's 94 here in GA at 9:00 PM, so enjoy! The food sounds wonderful too--can't wait to see the pix! Say Hi to your grandparents for us!