Just Us Girls

Ed has returned safely back home so it has been just us girls the last two days. It has been cold and rainy so, we have been hanging out inside the hotel. Sofia has been saying "da da". I asked one of the women here to explain his disappearance in spanish. Who knows, she may understand more than we think. I was banking on a girly girl but this does not seem to be the case. She pulls off all hair ribbons and plays with balls and trucks. Ed brought her two baseballs as a gift. One said "Cubs" the other "Sox". He asked her to pick one and she grabbed the "Cubs" ball. She could do no wrong from that point on. The last two days Sofia has slept through the night. She is also eating like a truck driver. I have seen her eat a "Jethro Bodine" size bowl of Fruit Loops and an entire chicken breast. The cooking staff here are very good to Miss Sofia. I have no idea where she puts it.

For all those coming to Bogota, Cerro De Monserrate is a "must see". It is a little frightening heading up the mountain on a small cable line however, the view makes up for it. They have created a beautiful shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe high on the mountain. The shrine could be seen from traffic below. Also, there is a lovely church at the top, the Sanctuary De Monserrate. They have ornate statutes depicting all the stations of the cross. Ed found food and I shopped. The top seller here is chocolate covered coffee beans. I did not think I would like them but, now I am addicted.





Today I went with another woman from the hotel to CFP Emeralds. They are known to have the finest emeralds in Colombia. These emeralds were actually mined in Bogota. I intended just to check them out thinking it may be something I would want to pass on to Sofia when she is older. They send a driver to pick you up. The store has remarkable security and the owner was so nice. He must have spent 30 minutes with us just explaining what to look for in an emerald before making a purchase. Absolutely no pressure. He told me he could not accept a credit card however, he would take my personal check. When I explained I did not bring my checkbook, he told me to take the earrings and send him a check when I return home. Do you know any other jewelers who would do that?

Tomorrow we are going on a hotel outing to Panaca Sabana, it is a farm with a petting zoo for the children. The women who have been here over a month laugh about the outings however, they jump at the chance to go somewhere other than the grocery store. Good news on the photo front. One of my friends here took lots of photographs of Sofia. Hopefully, she will make her debut in blog world later this week. Goodnight to all.