Chiva!

the chiva bus was this colorful and crazy opened air bus that had musicians on board (and rum and cokes too :) )

the bus now sells morrocas to tourist on buses in cartagena now. retirement is rough.

once i saw him though, i knew the night would be awesome!

cassandra sad because we didnt have rum yet

cassandra happy because the rum arrived!

we got to see the tourist areas around the beach and more of the city

the bus stopped at one of the fort walls. There were dancers and a man with a sloth

then we went to a club to dance. i really like dancing to spanish music, and tried by best not to be too awkward and white.

the whole chiva bus which included a daytime, rum-free tour this afternoon only cost 25,000 pesos (about $12.50) i'll post picture from that tour tomorrow

on thursday both eliza and maria brought me something. maria brought me a fake flower

and eliza had someone help her write a letter for me.

it was all about how much she loved me and wanted everyone in the group to be safe.

i know when i was their age i wasnt worried about anyones safety, but she mentioned it in her letter more than once. also a bunch of the kids wrote no violence when they were asked what the future should be like. It breaks my heart that so many of these kids have been through so much at such a young age. the fact that they're giving us presents when they have so little is incredible.

a lot of the houses have broken glass bottles fused into the cement of their outer walls so people cant jump over the walls into their yards. (fyi i have felt very safe here. the only way i would be in danger is if i was to walk through the neighborhood alone, which i dont, so no worries.)

on saturday, the morning group and afternoon group were together and i think maria and eliza were a little jealous to have to share my attention. (of course it made me feel cool haha)

i know im a little biased but im convinced i have the two prettiest girls in the group as my favorites. i look sweaty and gross in every picture and they're adorable

we're soulmates for sure

and just because there's no such thing as too many pictures of cute kids

and for the food......

this looks like gross meat here but it was this super sweet, super tasty coconut dessert this woman was selling. she was dressed in a Caribbean style dress and kept the tin bucket with all her goodies in it on her head when she walked (no hands)