Tuesday, February 18, 2020

I left the apt at 8:50 and only had to wait 1 minute for a metro bus.  I was outside the Exposiciones station by 9:15.  Jim and Juanita were supposed to meet me at 9:30 but their Didi ride had trouble finding their hotel.  In the meantime I noticed lots of buses for La Ceja, El Retiro, and the airport.  They finally arrived about 9:45.

Jim talked to the dispatcher and we were told we need to go to San Diego mall to catch a bus to Santa Elena.  (Jim had previously asked a number of taxi drivers and they all said we could catch at Santa Elena bus at Exposiciones.)  It was only a 3-4 block walk with a slight sidewalk detour due to roadwork.


At SD mall we were told we have to go to Plaza de Flores to catch a bus to Santa Elena.  We took a taxi there (appr. Calle 50 and Carrera 41) in heavy traffic.  At 10:43 we paid 2,600 each for a seat on the Santa Elena bus.


It took about 20 minutes just to get out of the heavy downtown traffic, finally arriving at Santa Elena at 11:30. (At one point high in the mountains my Altimeter app reported we were at an altitude of 8,250 feet.)  It was the small area as I remembered it but almost no one was around.  We tried the main restaurant but were told they are only open on weekends and holidays.


At 12:18 we paid a private driver 25mil to take us to Hotel Piedras Blancas arriving at 12:45.


We took our time and we all enjoyed our lunch.  I had the baby beef, which I’m pretty sure was a skirt steak, and a limonada de coco for 38mil (about $12).


Back outside the guard informed us that a bus to the metro cable arrived about every 30 minutes.


We paid a private driver 15mil to take us there but he dropped us off at the bottom of the hill and it was about a 10-15 minute walk to the metro cable.


We got in a car with a couple from Los Angeles who had just arrived yesterday from Bogota.  I talked to them as far as the Poblado station then they got off.


I got off at the Envigado station and ran into Herman at his OJ stand.  In a Gana store I paid the Direct TV bill, bought milk and returned to the apt.


Teresa seemed to want to dress fancy tonight but I told her it’s not going to be that type of dinner.  I put on a nice shirt instead of a t-shirt.


We left the apt at 7pm and took a taxi to Tagliata, Carrera 43D #13-23, where we usually have our going away dinner.  I had the chicken and pasta and it was delicious as usual.  I noticed the Chiropractor’s office is no longer across the street.  He probably moved to a better location.


Juanita picked up the check for dinner and Teresa said goodbye to them until next year.  We walked down to the end of the block and after about 5 minutes they caught a taxi and a minute later our Didi ride arrived who took us back to our apt for 7mil.


8,536 steps today.


Joke of the day

Sam and Dean were the best of friends as well as two of the biggest baseball fans the world has ever seen.

All their lives, Sam and Dean would talk about baseball. They went to all the games they could get to. They even made a pact, as kids, that when one of them dies - the other will return to tell him if heaven has baseball games.

One night, after watching a Yankee victory, Sam happily dies. A few nights later, his buddy Dean wakes up to a familiar sound - it's Sam, and he's talking to him from beyond.

"Sam, is that you?" Asks Dean.

"Sure is, buddy!" replies Sam.

"Wow this is amazing!" exclaims Dean. "So, please tell me, is there baseball in heaven?"

"Well," answers Sam. "I have some good news and bad news for you. Which would you like to hear first?"

"Give me the good news first." 

"Ok, well the good news is that the answer is yes, there is baseball in heaven."

"That's incredible! So what's the bad news, then?"

"You're pitching tomorrow night."