Odds and Ends

This morning Patrice told us that he talked to our lawyer and that our court meeting might be today or tommorrow. Seeing as it is 10:46 p.m. as I'm typing this it looks like tommorrow. He also put his hand on our door frame and said " Knock on wood", crossed his fingers and finished with the sign of the cross, so we'll see. Once we have our meeting with the court we have to get Sofia's passport (at a Government Building) and then we can fly back to Bogota, go to the American embassy and then hopefully go home. It's all worth it , as Sofia is a blast . She can be funny, manipulative, charming, angry, hungry, destructive, flirty, coy, adventerous, demanding, and sleepy all within a half hour peroid. Just like me, so we get along pretty good.

Here are a few random things that didn't fit in any other blogs but I found interesting. I've mentioned before the wild dogs here, and have come to really appreciate them. I've never approached one but they seem pretty cool. The thing I like most about them is that you can see Darwinism at work. About 10,000 years ago there was wild dog, which was about 35 pounds and non descript. Since then humans manipulated, through breeding, everything from Chihuahuas to St. Bernards. When dogs are allowed to run free and breed at will, the dogs that survive are about 35 pounds and non descript. Little tiny designer dogs and huge dogs simply can't survive here. I am surprised though that these dogs don't form packs (as is natural for them) and attack and eat anything they want. But they don't. What I don't appreciate is the fact that they crap all over the sidewalks, streets, park grass and everywhere else. It's hard enough to try to walk around here with the traffic without making split second decisions between stepping in dog crap or getting hit by a cab.

Another thing we see in Pasto, and every other mountain town we've been to is armed soldiers at nearly every other corner. It's reasuring and disconcerting at the same time. Reasuring because they seem pretty nice and make you feel like they are here for your safety, and disconcerting because apparently there is the need for armed guards at every other corner. They are all in full military uniforms and carry weapons ranging from hip holstered revolvers (rookies ?) to clip fed assault rifles, uzis, or like the guy that is by the park behind the hotel we take Sofia to every day, a short barrel, stockless, pistol grip, pump action shot-gun. We see this guy every day and he is really nice. He speaks enough English to say to me "Good morning sir" When I say "Buenos Dias". I wanted to ask if I can get my picture taken with him but my Spanish is so poor that so far I'm following a good general rule, "When in doubt that you might offend the guy with a shot-gun, always err on the side of caution." But I'd still like to try before we leave Pasto. (watch for my next post:" Why I got shot in Pasto")

As I've mentioned before the traffic here is insane. Trying to cross busy downtown streets with a toddler in a stroller is a task to say the least. Sofia gets upset if I push the stroller, so Erin gets that job. Also if Sofia gets more upset and wants to be carried, Erin gets that job too, as Sofia won't let me carry her yet. Sofia weighs a good 29 pounds so Erin has been getting quite the work-out here. Sometimes we wait 10 minutes to cross a street. There are no cross walks with lights telling you when to cross, and stop signs/traffic lights seem to be more of a suggestion than a rule. Also traffic lights here go from green to orange to red when you need to stop, but also go from red to orange to green when you need to go. So everyone at a red light has an orange warning light to let them know the light is about to turn green. Cue horns. People here use horns for everything. One beep can mean "I'm passing you/I'm going through an intersection/watch out for me." Two beeps seem to mean "Thanks for the heads up/I see you/ Hello!!" Three or more beeps seems to mean "You're in my way!/ Why aren't cars moving!/My car came equipped with a horn and I'll be damned if I'm not going to use it constantly!!!" So you can imagine how fun that is every day while walking with a toddler in a stroller.

The hotel owner Patrice (our interpreter/ driver / tour guide ) took us to a number of different local craft shops since we've been here. These shops have been incredible. These have all been people thet have learned a craft/trade instead of going to school, sometimes things that have been passed down father to son for generations. A couple of times we went to shops where the people worked with wood. Patrice, I'm sure just to build some common ground, would tell them that I was a carpenter, and the people would say "Ah bien bien." But there is always a big difference. I appreciate Patrice saying that as a way to introduce me but these people are not carpenters in the sense of the word you or I would recognize. I can frame a wall, hang a door or build a deck. These people are artists. They carve 15 foot tall crucifixes out of a single block of wood. They make intricate wood boxes and furniture and candle holders that I could never even hope to do. I really appreciate Patrice trying to build some common ground but it would be akin to him introducing me to the Lakers and saying "Paul bought a basketball last week, he is a basketball player too."

So far everyone here has been more than helpful and polite. I have been getting some funny looks for wearing shorts, when most people wear jeans a coat and often a scarf. I wish I could explain that I'm from Wisconsin and haven't seen 60 degree weather in 5 months, but at least I can wear shorts.

Another funny thing is the motocycle riders. There must be a helmet law, as they almost all wear helmets, but they don't wear them right. Everyone has the full face helmet that comes down around the mouth, but they push them up on their heads so the mouth part is on their forhead. It kind of seems to defeat the purpose, as the slightest accident would send the helmet flying . I also often see motorcyclists wearing construction hard hats, and have seen a few times people wearing those cheap plastic major league baseball "helmets" that I used to wear as a kid.

To end , here is a link to the website of the hotel Erin Sofia and I are at. You can see pictures of the outside, inside, owner and staff. The owner Patrice and his staff have been helpful and accomodating far beyond anything I could say.



Paul

http://lamaisondelejecutivo.com/