Tick Tock People!

 It's time for another blog entry! A few vignettes to showcase how wonderful Colombian people are:

It's days like these that reinforce my decision to work with the Scouts! Apparently this month celebrates senior citizens, so today a group of old men came to the university to spend some time with the Scouts. The kids game the men a tour of the university, and then we all had snacks. The kids then sang some of their songs for the men, and the men told the kids stories! It was so cute and the old men were so happy to be able to get out and around and be reminded of their youth. After the old men left, one of the dirigentes debriefed the kids by talking about how this was a spiritual service activity - the men left with nothing in their hands, but with smiles on their faces. It was overall very nice! We all then took a short walk to the woods for a campfire ceremony during which some of the young scouts received their bandanas (for having done service activities to earn them) and some of the older scout moved up to the older group. It was bittersweet! Parents who know me ask how I am doing, and new ones frequently strike up conversation and introduce themselves. It seems as if everyone is looking out for me - they always ask who I'm walking home with, where I'm living, if I'm settled in yet, if I like the food. It makes me feel very welcome!

This past week I was walking around downtown with a friend, when we passed a table with cakes shaped like snakes! It was some exhibition they were doing. When we walked by later, people were taking pieces of it, so we got to eat snake cake for free! It was so cool!

There is a professor at the university who received a Fulbright Scholarship about 6 years ago to get his master's and Ph. D. in the U.S. and lived there for 5 years with his family. They had me over for lunch yesterday, and although I was quite happy to reminisce about U.S. food with them (like peanut butter - it is a rarity here, as are sweet potatoes and mac n' cheese), what struck me most was how welcoming they were. I hadn't met the family before, but they gave me a great meal, took me out for ice cream, offered to show me around nearby towns and cities, and spent time with me. I felt like they were my aunt, uncle, and cousins! We got ice cream at a place called Popsy, in the mall.

In conclusion, Colombia, specifically Armenia, is full of wonderful people. Of course, there are always dangerous areas to avoid, but as I have avoided them, I can happily not tell you about them! I encourage all - who have the chance - to come here sometime and share a part of your life with this great group of people. You should also come to experience walking home for lunch and getting a whiff of platanos cooking. Yum! Thanks for being here with me today!

Love these things.

dirigente - scout leader

amañado/a = settled in

platanos = plantains