Again, our kids have patiently been waiting and playing cards in the apartment. For kids that grow up in the country, this has been an adjustment but they have been loving it and enjoying our time together. We took this afternoon to visit a little more culture and traveled to “Old Town Bogota.” This is the original Bogota and where the cobblestone streets are very narrow. As we traveled up the mountain, the views overlooking Bogota were beautiful. To the left, you would see some small shacks on the mountain side, and to the right you would see some sky scrapers of the city. As we came around a turn we saw a man walking his Llama and again motorcycles passing from all directions as we traveled up the narrow road.
We got dropped off on this narrow street, and within a few short steps was in the small town square. We walked down a narrow street probably around 10’ wide. There were stray dogs many holes in the street and side walk. We entered into a small shop, which they called a Marcedo, where many vendors setup shop. There were small shops where people were selling paintings, bracelets, necklaces and many other local handmade crafts. Adalyn fell in love with a bracelet, which the family running the shop explained that style of bracelet is from the indigenous, which is part of Cruz’s original culture. She fell in love with the idea that she could remember her brother on her wrist. We continued down the streets. The smells of a dusty, dirty streets, smoke, and car fumes started to bother Tayden. Walking on such small streets, you must remain on the uneven sidewalks to ensure not to get hit by the local traffic and motorcycles. We encountered 7th ave, which is similar to any “main street” in a city or town. They were doing a lot of construction on the sidewalks where the local merchants would normally have a stand setup for market. We passed by some stands that were explained to us as the Indigenous culture. We were told they weren’t speaking Spanish because they speak their own language. They all seemed very small, which aligns with the current medical records we have of Cruz showing that he is very small :) We changed direction and headed towards the McDonalds. We stopped at a local cafe called Declicias Colombianas Bread and Coffee. We enjoyed a latte and some locally made pastries. Continuing down the streets, talking with some of the local merchants and walking into the local markets. We made some decisions to purchase some tshirts, hat for tayden, a hammock and necklace for Tenley. Brock had fallen in love with a local bear made out of old Venezuelan money. The bear was larger than a basketball :) After explaining, this would be challenging to bring home, and that the key chain would be more practical, he decided against the handmade money gifts. He settled on a tiger bracelet. Approaching the Town Square, it was awesome to view the President’s house, and some of the other government buildings for Colombia. Our time was complete and our driver was ready to take us back to our apartment.
With an early morning the next morning to fly home, we decided to order dinner into our apartment. We really stretched our taste buds, and ordered PF Changs. This was a great ending to a fantastic day.
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