Sunday, August 10th, 2014

Last night I went to bed at 11pm and we got up about 9am.  She told me she wanted to buy some things at Exito and make me breakfast.  I’m concerned about having extra things lying around my refrigerator that won’t get used.  I told her she can cook for me all the time when I’m in her finca but while she’s here I want to buy her meals in restaurants.  We had cereal here and then took our showers.  We’ve decided that so many people will be out to see the Silleteros parade that we might be able to get into Jardin Botanico today.  (Our backup plan was Parque Arvi.)

I finished Sidney Sheldon’s 392 page Rage of Angels and downloaded his 255 page Nothing Lasts Forever.

We waited 20 minutes for a Simon Bolivar bus but then were downtown 20 minutes later.  We took the metro to the Universidad station and were happy to see no lines at Jardin Botanico.  Usually entry is free but today I paid 30mil for our 2 tickets to the Orchid, Birds, & Flowers exhibit.  We looked at a few exhibits and then I started to feel strange so I told Teresa I needed to eat.  I thought we would go back to the restaurant near the entrance but we found some booths set up selling food.  I had chicken shish kebabs that were pretty fatty and greasy that also came with a cooked potato and yucca.  She had a slab of pork also with potato and yucca and we both had a mora (blackberry) juice for our drink.  The total came to 36 mil.

I remembered to bring my camera and here are some pictures:

She generally ignores the jewelry stands and looks more at the more artistic booths.  She asked me to buy her this plant for 20mil which looks very similar to the one in my bedroom.

We had a number of snacks including an ice cream bar and a cup of strawberries in whipped cream and we shared an oblea.  (I have also seen someone selling them in Viva just outside Exito.)  I hadn’t had one since Parque Arvi.  This is a good description I found on the internet:

This unique snack isn’t found everywhere in Colombia, but its worth seeking out. They’re pretty much large, round communion wafers, which might seem a little plain at first, but once you smear some arequipe (Colombian caramel sauce) between two and make yourself a little sandwich, you’ll soon be craving more and more.  Be warned, an oblea with everything (con todo) could upset those that don’t enjoy eating caramel and cheese together.

BTW, I usually try to avoid the cheese.

I found a tent selling Medellin Cultural and Tourist maps for 1mil so I took the opportunity and added another one to my collection.

We finally retraced our steps – metro then bus – back to my apartment.  She wanted to go to mass here – one is at 6pm and the next is at 7:30.  We stopped in Exito where she bought some sandwich fixings for Laura’s lunch then the corner store where she bought dog food.  By this time it was 6:30 – too late for the 6pm mass and much too early to wait for the 7:30 so she got in a car for the ride to the Aquacatala station.

I noticed on the map it says from Envigado to: Caldas is 22 kilometers, and Amiga is 36 kilometers.

I expect to see her again next weekend.

T-shirt of the day: Stressed, depressed, but well dressed.