This weekend has been great! I got a whole lot of English chatting in as Cindy and I spent the day in La Candelaria- she hadn’t been there yet so it was fun to show her around and play the expert. We had lunch in an awesome place called El Gato Gris (the Gray Cat)- a cozy Dalí-themed cafe.
We also took a look inside La Catedral Primada, which makes up one side of La Plaza Bolivar- the main square in the center of the city. On the outside, the cathedral looks impressive in size, but is rather run down… and blanketed in pigeons who occupy every spare inch of ledge space on the building (the Plaza in general is overrun- more pigeons than Trafalgar Square. And the same idiots who think it’s a good idea to feed them. I will never understand the pleasure people take in feeding pigeons. You wouldn’t go to a park or square and think, “You know what would be so nice? if several hundred rats were scurrying around here. Maybe next time I come I’ll bring some rat food.”).
But inside it is grand. Very different from La Iglesia Del Carmen with its white walls and relative lack of ornamentation, but beautiful nonetheless- huge and immaculate (no pun intended), with large crystal chandeliers and gold molding. I didn’t take any pictures of the interior because there was a service going on when I was there, but I’m sure I’ll have another chance.
Last night I took Cindy and Leo to a party I was invited to by Hanna, a Swedish grad student who wants to research Escuela Nueva for her master’s thesis. It was a housewarming party thrown by a Swedish embassy worker who had just arrived in Colombia and her roommates, though I never figured out who they were. Fantastic party- strong mojitos and daiquiris, a great mix of people- Colombian, French, Brazilian, German, Swedish, Finnish, Italian (and Cindy and me, the Americans); businesspeople, students, embassy workers, development workers, artists… and a live vallenato band- Colombian folk music from the Caribbean coast that is really popular here. Everyone was dancing and all of the Colombians in attendance were singing along to the songs. Here’s a picture of Leo breaking the ice on the dance floor with Maria, the hostess, and one of Cindy and me:
…a good time was had by all, except for the girl who expelled into a plant while waiting for the elevator at the end of the night.
And today a woman from work took me to her country club for the day. Swimming, sauna and a nice lunch. Ironic that my first day at a country club comes while I’m volunteering for an NGO in a developing country… but I’m not complaining.
Take me Home!
