A few pictures

Bethany and Windy having their swim lesson this morning.



View from our room

Hola,

Bethany and Windy had a swim lesson this morning. It was somewhat helpful to Bethany, but not as much as we hoped because the instructor's English is very limited. Either way she had fun and they spent about 2 1/2 hours swimming. Later, while I washed my hair, Jim took the girls downstairs for ice cream and a couple rounds of miniature golf.

We wanted to go across the street to the Colombian restaurant, Hatovierjo, for dinner; we'd been told by several people here how good it is. Throughout the entire day we noticed that a police officer had been on the side of the mountain and I heard a round of about 10 loud "booms" earlier, so Jim thought he had better go down to the front desk and make sure it was safe to leave the premises. They said it was okay and that the extra officer was there for additional security because of the medical convention going on. We went across to the restaurant and it was VERY good!! It was decorated in bright Colombian decor and it was quite amusing trying to communicate our needs and meal choices since the servers spoke very, very little English.

I don't think I've ever mentioned the security here. Todd and Diane... much like when we were in Israel... maybe even more. There are armed guards everywhere. When you enter any parking lot (hotel, mall, grocery store, tourist attraction, etc), they are there. At the mall, they use a mirror to check under your car and then they check your trunk. They are even in the lobby of our hotel; we definitely feel safe. There were two up on top of the mountain yesterday when we went to that little replica town. I told Jim we should ask if we could get their picture with the girls; he didn't like that idea. Diane, if you were here, we would have... remember... we had our picture taken with the armed guard by The Dead Sea. I still think it would have been a great picture... not Jim.

Tomorrow afternoon we are going to go out with Gloria to a restaurant that Gina told us about. They have a horse show during your meal. Bethany is going to love it... especially since she's having Sophia withdraws!!

I'd like to fill in our family and friends as to who the mystery Gina and Laura are that I keep mentioning. Gina and her husband, Jim, are a couple from Houston that adopted two beautiful children (Yamile and Jorge) from Medellin and also stayed at the Intercontinental this past summer. I have been following their blog for many months. Gina has been a HUGE help with making us feel comfortable coming here and knowing what to expect. She gave us tons of tips as to the hotel, what to bring, places to see, how to handle money, etc. Any question that I had, I was able to email her and she would answer right away... THANKS Gina!!! Laura and her husband, Andres, live in Atlanta and will be here in about 1 1/2 weeks to pick up their new little baby boy! Mateo's 1st birthday is today, but they'll be here soon enough to have a birthday party for him. Laura's husband is from Colombia and has family right here in Medellin. Laura, as well as Gina, has been very encouraging throughout our journey. Since she's been here several times, she's been able to give me many tips on Medellin... THANK YOU!!!

Oh, I almost forgot, FYI... Windy is not from this area. She is from Putumayo; the very southern part of Colombia. Laura, I think your idea is wonderful, but she's only been here since August 18, 2007. I'm sorry, but I guess that is something I failed to mention. Putumayo is a place that we will never be able to visit... WAY too dangerous. The orphanage told us that this is the area where they harvest cocaine 3-4 times a year and to not even think about trying to go there... you don't have to tell us twice!!

Buenos noches,

Kathy