Settling In

We've felt so blessed in our transition to Santa Marta thus far - we've been welcomed into an amazing community here and we are having a great time in the classroom. Halfway through week 3, we are loving it and seeing the faithfulness of our God every day. "Those who know your name will trust in You, for You Lord, have never forsaken those who seek You." Psalm 9:10

Now that we've gotten a handle on grocery shopping, we are loving the food and learning new Colombian recipes everyday

From what we hear, Montezuma's Revenge isn't limited to Mexico. Fortunately, we haven't had any stomach issues and "Finesse" may be the key. The Colombian yogurt is delicious - it's much more runny than "American" yogurt but we pair it with fruit for one of our daily staples. The Peter Pan was a splurge but we've never craved PP&J this much! Also notice the jelly in bags - it seems everything comes in bags, suddenly turning us into very motivated recyclers.

Holy Guacamole! The avocados are huge and cheap, a great combo!

After church on Sunday we moved the kitchen table and did P90X yoga - no A/C makes for free hot yoga, any day, any time.

The fruit here is awesome. There are so many different kinds and they are everywhere. So far, our favorites are mango viche, an unripe mango with salt and lemon juice. There's also one called a zapote that makes a great smoothie. The one pictured above is a granadilla - it's awful. We decided it tastes like a sock soaked in garbage water and its consistency makes you think you're swallowing a huge loogie - we'll stick with the zapote, thank you very much.

One of our first English lessons incorporated some American monuments that we had the kids describe in English. After talking about the Statue of Liberty, the Grand Canyon and the White House we asked them if they knew any other American monuments. Among their answers: Mount Rushmore (pictured left, obviously) and the Washington Monument. The one on the right unintentionally drew an outburst of laughter, proving that 10th graders all over the world have more vivid imaginations than Carrie... (Copyright: Carrie Carrington, 2012)