Well, sorry to disappoint. I never got my jokes back. Though, perhaps its better this way. I am still behind on the blogs, too. Like you couldn’t tell. However, I have an excuse. So you can’t blame me. I have been…busy. So there. Now I am done with the short sentences. Well, almost. Ok, now I am.
On Sunday I got to spend some time with an American gentleman and his Colombian wife, sister/brother-in law and nieces. It was a good time, reinforcing some cultural factors here. We went to church, which was lively, (typical of the area) and then went to lunch. We drove outside the city to a really good restaurant on a hillside. Afterward we went back to the house where my American friend and I watched a movie while everybody else took a siesta. All told, we spent the whole day together. It was not a big deal that we had to wait 45 minutes In between ‘events’ here and there. People just spend time together here. Cool stuff, you know, though a little difficult for someone like me to get used to.
Well, on Monday, (I didn’t have to work because it was a national holiday) I went for a long bike ride in the mountains. It was gorgeous outside the city. The farms on the mountainside looked so peaceful and the grass was so green it made me think I was in Ireland. I don’t know if the grass is really very green in Ireland, perhaps someone who has been there can confirm this; it is just what came to mind…
I got a couple pictures of the city from partway up the mountain, though unfortunately, my camera went on the blink after a few minutes. Consequently, I didn’t get many photos. One really cool thing I love about this country is that all the country roads are lined here and there with little settlements or restaurants. If you ever get hungry, just pull off almost anywhere and get a delicious arepa or two. I did that, in fact. Twice. :)
The most fun part of the ride was this one particular hill, going out of Bogota. It took 45 minutes to climb it bu only 5 to go down on the return trip later. I passed car after car on the downhill, it was pretty sweet!
Two different views of the city. It was too big to get all in one photo even from this height.
The road down from where I stopped. Notice the car to motorcycle ratio: 3 to 3!
This week has been slow, just like last week except even more like last week. I hear I am going out of town tomorrow, though. Jesus Ortiz is taking me to a conference where he is speaking. Hugo and Francisco are already there. They have been attending the conference-a factor which has contributed greatly to the quietness of the office. Plans for the camp are coming together well, though, and it looks like it will be great. There are 11 Americans coming down next week, including my friend Cody. He is the only non-Chick fil-A person to be involved. Don’t worry Cody, you won’t have to say “My Pleasure” down here. There will be about 30 Colombians, making about 40 people altogether. The four and a half days of the camp will include various activities that illustrate servant leadership and opportunities to put it into practice. We will be in a remote area of the country for a couple days, we will get to make coffee at one point—beginning with picking the beans. A variety of things from milking cows to picking up trash to a visit to a theme park will round out the week, hopefully leaving everyone involved with a better idea of how to S.E.R.V.E.
In Truth,
Stephen
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