Vacation-Parque Tayrona

There are many impressive National Parks in Colombia. This one is probably the most visited by tourists, from all over the world. The Sierra Nevada Mountain Range lines the most northern coast of Colombia. While we were walking on this beach, we talked about being on the very top of South America. This is the highest seaside mountain range in the world.

Many of the people who visit Tayrona are "outdoorsy" people, who love to hike and camp. We were expecting to rough it a bit. We did not have any of our camping equipment, so we rented a little cabin to stay in. As it turns out, the cabin was very nice, and probably the fanciest place we have stayed in so far in Colombia.

In order to get into Tayrona, you have to hike in. We enjoyed this short hike immensely, noticing all the jungley flora and fauna, and relishing in the casual, but intimate conversation that happens on a hike. Abby was recovering from several days with a fever, so she was too tired to walk, and got the adventure of riding in on a burro.

We did not have easy access to a safe swimming area where we were staying, so we did a lot of walking on the beach to get to La Piscina, where we could swim. We loved that the main thing we heard the whole time we were there was the ocean. There was no loud, blaring Colombian music, no city noises, no venders on the beach trying to sell us things. What a gift to be able to simple hear the ocean and nothing more.

We also enjoyed lounging on our cabin porch, sipping coconut limeades (we had a personal lesson on how to open a coconut properly and drink the water), and watching for interesting animals: frogs, lizards, insects, leaf-cutter ants, fuzzy biting caterpillers, etc. It was so nice to connect again with the natural world in this way.

Vacation- Rododero

Our family left rainy, cold Bogota and flew to Santa Marta, which is one of the major coastal cities in northern Colombia.

**Side Note** I give all the credit for planning this vacation to Aaron, who carefully called to make reservations, did the research, planned all the financing, etc. We have very different styles of doing this, so at times there were periods of stress, but it was a good exercise for me to let go and not worry about the details.

So, on the way to our hotel in Santa Marta, Aaron decided to change the plans. He had visited with the person sitting next to him on the airplane and the taxi driver and decided that we would be better off staying in Rododero, a smaller town south of Santa Marta. We were told the beaches were better here, and it was calmer and easier to walk to the beach. So he found us a modest, but lovely place to stay about two blocks from the beach.

Rododero is very lovely. It is easy to walk places, there are a few small, but good seafood restaurants. We took a boat about 10 minutes up the coast to visit a small Aquarium, where we could see sea turtles, various sharks, baracudas, and dolphins up close. From there we took another boat ride to the Playa Blanca (white beach).

Playa Blanca was my favorite beach of the trip. There was beautiful white sand, and clear Carribean blue water. It was not crowded (you have to go by boat). On the way we saw all kinds of Colombian fishermen, in small canoe-type boats, which they stand in to row, diving (we were told sometimes 30 feet down just by holding their breath), using giant, impressive spears, and maneuvering large systems of nets. We rented a little shade tent and played together on the beach for most of the day.

Our family had our first snorkling lesson at Playa Blanca. Words cannot describe the amazement we found under the water. We saw beautiful coral reefs and hundreds of tropical fish. We enjoyed talking about which ones were our favorites, with so many bright colors and different shapes and sizes, it was astounding. Once our children learned how to breath under the water, they never wanted to come up. It was an amazing gift.

Closing the school year

We are so grateful for loving teachers, flexible administrators, a nurturing, natural, bilingual environment for our children, and the honor to watch them grow. Blessed be.

Delagation from Bluffton University

Our seven year old

Abby turned seven this spring, celebrating with a "Pijamada" or sleepover, pierced ears, a lot of imported junk food, and the thrill of a scooter brought here by Aunt Katie.

Oh, what an honor it has been to watch this one grow. She provides all of us so much love and humor and perspective on the world. Bless you, sweet Abby, and Happy Birthday.