day 3–meet the english tutor

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Introducing, Mario, our kids’ English teacher. We met him the morning after we arrived at our hotel–The Radisson. He is the one that gave us those great first impressions of the children’s learning abilities. Mario studied in London for two years and speaks very good English. We are so grateful to have found him. We are so glad we joined adoptColombia and other Colombian adoption yahoo groups. We were able to collect a wealth of information before traveling–like Mario’s contact info. We hope to pay it forward and pass on as much helpful information as we can. That is another reason I am obsessive about documenting this entire trip. If our experience can make the slightest difference in someone else’s future adoption travel then we are very happy!

We spent the rest of the day touring the different accommodations that we will choose from for the rest of our stay. If there are any PAP’s out there reading…it is absolutely OKAY to come here first and then make up your mind where you want to stay. We are so glad we did it this way. We met with Betty from Betty’s Place–she is a total gem–and she agrees completely that couples should make an informed decision. We appreciated her candor. Also, we toured Zuetana and drove by an apartment we found online. I wish we could stay at the Radisson the whole time, only because it has a pool, spa, and work-out room, but it is way too expensive. My mom was a trooper, we made her walk all over the city, and get in and out of squishy taxi cabs. And when I say squishy–I mean squishy:

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So I know you are all waiting for pictures of the kids–after all this is an adoption blog–but for now you will have to take in the sights of Bogota through our camera. Here are a few pics from our first full day in the city:

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Below, you can see the monster burger my mom couldn’t fit her mouth around. We stumbled on to a TGIFridays and decided to have dinner. $65.00 later (yes, that is US dollars for sandwiches and drinks) we decided we needed to find a cheaper dinner. Night one, in the LA airport we spent $55.00. Night two, we ordered room service because we were tired and disoriented, which ran us about $80.00. And then TGIF was night three. Granted, these figures are for three people, but still. Adam and I went to the supermarket late that night and bought some drinks and fruit for the hotel room so we didn’t have to buy the hotel Evian water for $8.00. Don’t worry, I’m keeping a running total on everything that I will post at the end of my stay. This trip is very different than backpacking through Europe or living in a village or even going to the beach for a week.

One more funny thing…the other picture below is just a random construction worker. I asked Adam if OSHA had approved the work site or the way he was leaning over the building with no harness–very scary, but very non-North American.

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7 comments

  1. i’ve been checking every few hours to see if there were any updates! gald to see you made it there…I seem to remember that “american” restraunts in Taiwan were expensive too! And weren’t you the one who had to unpack suitcases in Taiwan? or was that me? it’s all just a blur to me!

  2. Congratulations on your arrival in Colombia! What an exciting time! I am enjoying the pictures…it brings back great memories of our time there adopting our son. Can’t wait to see you all as a family!! All the best to you!

    Nicole
    Las Vegas

  3. I have been checking my computer numerous times each day. If I’m not careful, it will become a habit that will be hard to break after you get home! Congratulations that you arrived all together, in one piece and with all your luggage. That in itself is a miracle! I am so excited this moment has finally come for you. And I’m thrilled that your Mom got to go with you after all. You are on my mind and in our prayers constantly. Thank you for sharing this experience with everyone . . .

  4. Rach, you have already become one of my favorite habbits 😉 Not to sound stalkerish or anything! 🙂 I was thinking about one of your previous post about the kids and how you hoped that they would love all the blog info., time, photo albums, and everything that you have done to have them part of your family as a gift. I think they will. I came across some books that my parents bought for me before I was adopted. They have a little bit of a Catholic hint. Even though we are now LDS, I would not trade those books for the world. I received these books and my sleepy bear {my favorite teddy that only had lashes, because he was suppose to be sleeping. I slept with everynight until. . . we will not diclose when;)}They were something my parents bought for me so I would like my new home. I remember being a little girl and thinking “Wow, they bought these for me!”, everytime I looked at these books. It was so hard to believe that someone would want to give me something so beautiful and special. I know your little ones will look at all the record keeping (blogs, alblums, e-mails and all the other things) as a treasure. They help reassure, until your little ones have the confidence they need, that this real. Life can truly be this wonderful. As an adopted kid and adult, I think you guys are wonderful. What you are doing is truly one of God’s great miracles…

  5. Just like everyone else, I check your blog a couple of times a day for updates. I can remember American food being expensive, but I also remember how refreshing it was to have some American food every once and awhile. I imagine Columbia a lot like Ecuador. I would love to visit South America again. I am so excited that you are in Columbia and just a few days from wrapping your arms around your little ones. Love ya.

  6. I had to comment on this specific post and just say you look awesome! You have lost more weight since moving back to Vegas! Congrats! I love all these posts and am so happy for you guys! I so wish I could be there right now! Lovers you!!

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