La Pastora

Last weekend we had the chance to take a two day trip to La Pastora in the Ucumari Natural Park, situated in the Park of Nevados. Fede and I went with his cousin, Juan Martin, while Fede's parents babysat the kids. The pictures below are compliments of both Fede and Juan.

We drove for an hour to reach El Cedral (the little house pictured below) and from that point on was a 2+ hour hike up river. Most of the trail was up semi-dry creek beds, which means we were looking down, negotiating each step on slippery rocks.  Even so, we managed to slip a few times as we scrambled up the trail.

After an hour of rain the sun came out and we were able to really appreciate the beauty of this tropical-mountainous area. The beautiful river is the Otun. It was bizarre to see a mixture of pine trees with palm trees, and vast amounts of vapor rising from the mountains. This vapor effect is called the "Rain Factory" because it condenses in the mountains and comes down the valley every afternoon to shower Pereira.

Near the end of the hike the trail leveled out and we came upon a little Finca (a ranch house) --complete with a Direct TV Satellite!!-- where we stopped to take pictures. We also came upon a man with his mules, which are responsible for carrying all sorts of provisions up and down the trail. Their pace is impressive, especially considering the uneven terrain and slippery rocks.

When we arrived at La Pastora (which is the red house below, a rustic hostal) we were delighted to have reached the goal. And, pleasantly surprised to find a very hospitable staff on hand who were willing to set us up for the night. The electricity was down, which made the experience all the better.

Seeing that we still had a couple of hours of sunlight left, we decided to go see the waterfall -a 30 min hike. Again, the vegetation was breathtaking and it felt like we were in an enchanted land, totally unaffected by the rest of the world...

When we reached the waterfall, Juan took the iniative to jump right in. Bear in mind that at this altitude it was chilly, and we had spent a good portion of the day wet. The waterfall was quite high and besides the freezing cold water, torrents of air came down with force. After watching Juan scramble under the waterfall and then slip on the mossy rocks, Fede decided it was a good idea to go in too. Personally, prudence and modesty held me back from following suit, but I was more than happy to laugh and take pictures!

Farther up the mountains one finds the Laguna (really a lake I suppose), which is the source for the Otun River (which runs through Pereira). That night for dinner we had the pleasure of dining from trout caught that day from the laguna. Everything was delicious and all the tenants sad around the fireplace all evening chatting and keeping warm.

The following morning we were up by 6 am to see the sunrise and spend a few quite moments next to the river. By 7 am we were hiking back down and witnessed the spectacular beauty of the sun's rays as they filtered through the mountains and foilage. This short but wonderful trip was definitely the highlight of our time in Colombia and we hope to come back and make it up to the Laguna next time around!

The Pereira Zoo

Last week we went to the zoo here in Pereira. Aside from its smaller size (compared to the Houston Zoo), which makes it very manageable with kids, it is easy to navigate and the animals are really close. You can definitely tell we're not in America, where they have 10 ft high fences, pits, wires, bullet proof glass etc to keep you from the animals. Here, it's more the other extreme: the Rhinos and the Hippos are so close and the fence so blatantly inadequate that I marvel that no mischievous kid has made his way into the cage!!

Now, when we arrived at the zoo, Fede started taking pictures of the animals. No, not our three munchkins, the real animals. And, if I am going to be honest, I usually scoff at people who whip out their little cameras and iPhones to take pictures at the zoo. I mean, the animals are usually hiding in some corner, 25 feet away, and the picture is muddled by a fence or glass of some sort. Not National Geographic quality to be sure. However, I have to say that Fede --in this case, and this case only-- totally proved me wrong. To his great credit, all of the pictures below were taken by him and most are really beautiful. So, with that, we present to you the animals of the Pereira Zoo....

For those of you who are unaware, Antonio has developed a near-obsession with birds. Specifically, vultures. I know. When I asked him why vultures, he said "Because they're bald and ugly." Very compelling reasons. Not to mention that they feed on dead animals and stink. In any case, it was quite amusing to watch Antonio marvel at the resident vultures loose in the zoo, as opposed to the majestic jaguars, tigers and so forth. We'd try to get his attention but he was mesmerized by the scavengers. To his delight, the zoo has the King Vulture (pictured above, bottom middle), which is actually a really beautiful, bird!!

Another great thing about this zoo is that because of the mild cool climate, it seems to me that the animals are much more active. I get the impression that in Houston the animals are so hot that it discourages them from moving around!

Love the Toucan!! Its beak doesn't even look real it is so colorful!!!

Here again you can see the King Vulture above, middle right picture. And the handsome fellow on the left, yeah, the blue one with the red hanging thing, has a bone-like ax on its head which it uses as a machete to cut its way through trees and brush.

Loved the feathers of these ducks --extraordinary tones of gold and brown.

That's it folks until our next post! Hope everyone is terrific.
-The Martinez

Manizales

This past Saturday we went to Manizales again. We took a hanging cable ride over the city which was a HUGE hit with the kids (as can be seen from their expressions!). The most amusing part for them was watching all the little people below carrying on their daily life. 

Perhaps some of you may know the volcano El Nevado del Ruiz. Well, this volcano exploded back in 1985 killing thousands of people in a monstrous mudslide. Manizales sits at the foot of this volcano and because if it, thermal springs chalk full of minerals can be found in these parts. After the cable car ride we went to one such spring. The drive up the mountain is beautiful: pine trees, deep hues of green, overcast and cloudy, cows everywhere and crisp cool mountain air (how's that for all of you Houstonians??!)...

From the pictures one cannot appreciate just how HOT these waters are. First of all, we were warned to remove all of our jewelry because it apparently turns black with all of the minerals. I took their word for it and removed everything. The pool where Antonio stands was so hot that it hurt to move--poor kids, we pretty much cooked ourselves alive! The water is full of sulphur, highly acidic and stings like crazy if you get it in your eyes. Curiously, along side the pools they had cold showers and recommended alternating between cold showers and scorching baths. Somehow that didn't seem to make sense but no one died from experimenting this...

After an afternoon in the springs we were relaxed and sleepy, but a visit to Fede's grandparents and the drive home still awaited us. So, a cup of coffee and a brief family visit later, we were on our way back to Pereira. We finished off the day by watching the Fifa World Cup Under-20 match between Colombia and Mexico. Mexico won, to my in-laws dismay and I have to admit that since Colombia is the host country, I was hoping they'd win seeing the team spirit that's around us everywhere. Still, now we'll root for Mexico to win it all!!

Missing all of you guys and hoping that everyone is doing great.

Marsella

In the last week we've taken a couple of short trips to visit Fede's family. On Friday we went to Manizales, which is about an hour away, to see his grandparents and several other family members. The drives are very picturesque and of course seeing everyone was great.


Then on Saturday we went to see his other grandmother in Marsella. Where Manizales is a small city, Marsella is a quintessential town, complete with its plaza and at the center a colorful church. Since we arrived on a Saturday we were met by all of the rural folk who come into town on weekends to relax and shop. Perhaps you can imagine the looks of curiosity that we received upon our arrival. Horses, chickens, stray dogs are commonplace along the street, as are painted balconies and doors.

Fede's paternal grandmother, pictured here with him, is 93 years old. It was after her late husband (Antonio Martinez) that we named our firstborn.  Antonio and now Francisco are the only male heirs that will carry the Martinez name. Antonio and Alejandra enjoyed the good eats everywhere we went!

Back in Pereira, we have also spent fun times with Fede's cousins and family. Below are pictures from an afternoon at Fede's uncle's house. Pictured with us are Fede's cousin, Alejandro with Alejandra, Antonio with Simon Pedro and Alejandro and German with Clo.


After a good swim, we had quite the appetite so we stopped at a street vendor to eat Colombian hotdogs, which consist of the dog, with ketchup, mayo, mustard, onions, crushed chips, pineapple sauce, fresh cheese, berry sauce, topped with quail eggs!!! Try getting that in your mouth!  Can anyone say reflux?

Goodbye Houston!!!!

July 28-August 2: The last few days in Houston were a blur. Between packing up our final belongings, stuffing things into storage, packing for Colombia, boxing up the stuff for Spain, lending things to friends, running errands, getting the documents for the Student Visa, selling Fede's car, and saying a few goodbyes it was hard not to lose our minds completely. Only now do I realize why people hire companies to pack and move for them....



We are truly indebted to our family and friends who helped us in those final crazy moments and send a profound thank you to them!!!

As a final tribute to our great H-town we went with our new Spanish friends to see an Astros game. It was a great time, and our friends enjoyed the ambiance, the "Fan Cam" and the Prince's Hamburgers tremendously!!

Now it was time to go. As a final act of lunacy, on the day we were set to depart to Colombia we decided to try and apply for the student visa for Spain. Going into this we realized that we didn't have all of the documentation ready but we thought we'd try anyway. That morning we scrambled to fill out the application, make copies of everything, take ID pictures, get the money orders and zip on over to the Consulate. We arrived at 11:45. It took some serious convincing before the lady accepted our documentation, with the promise to fax the missing documents as soon as possible. One hour later we left the Consulate (their floor covered in Fig Newton crumbs, slobber and probably a few jelly bellies) -- what can we say? it was lunch time and our three little munchkins were hungry!

12:50 p.m. We flew to pick up Grandpa Fernando who was to take us to the airport. Mind you, the flight was at 3pm and international.... This risky move could only be justified by the fact that Fede's "One Pass Elite" standing allows us to bypass many long, troublesome check-in lines. Finally we arrived at the gate only to find out that the flight was delayed by 1.5 hours. So we hung out at the President's Club (again, another perk courtesy of Fede) where the kids could eat, relax and watch a movie.

The flight to Panama City finally left at 5pm and arrived at 9pm. The kids did well. Francisco wailed a couple of times but otherwise fine. The great thing about traveling in Latin America with little children is that you get VIP treatment. The minute they see you have kids you get to go to the front of the line in immigration - what a joy, especially at 10pm.

Then the next morning we were boarding the flight to Cali, Colombia at 9am. It was only an hour long and we breezed through that one. Seeing Grandpa Santiago and Grandma Carmen Elisa brought tears of joy to all of us. It was such a sense relief to know that we had made it. Our first meal was a delicious Sancocho (typical chicken, potato soup) in Ginebra, a small town outside of Cali.

We arrived in Pereira on Aug 3rd in the afternoon. After the hot, humid, Houston weather this was a very welcome change. A typical day has weather of 70-80 F, with perhaps an afternoon shower. The vegetation is lush, yet we are surrounded by mountains. If you´ve ever been to Hawaii or Kenya, this is very similar topography.

Fede´s family has spoiled us with their wonderful hospitality and after these last brutal moving days, having someone pamper us a bit is just fine. As classical music streamed through the house this afternoon, windows and doors open with a light fresh breeze passing through, the typical street sounds could be heard: cart vendors, the gas truck ringing its bell, people chatting up and down the street. All of this is very different from America. Here things seem simpler, slower, and people devote more time to just visit with each other as they walk from place to place. In the evening, everyone hangs out in front of their stores, homes, and food stands. No one seems to be in much of a hurry. Stress in fact seems to be non-existent.  

We took a lovely walk through the nearby Technological University of Pereira today. To my delight we crossed a bridge made of Guadua, of the bamboo family, but thicker. It is impressively strong and stunningly beautiful in all construction. Their botanical garden is more like a jungle. It has a few miles of trails and one feels as if the Jungle Book has come to life.

Right up there with the Architecture in Guadua is the exquisite Colombian fruit. Below is just a sampling of the delicious and exotic varieties of fruit found here. My personal favorite is the Guanabana. It looks like green monster on the outside, only to reveal a slippery milky sweet, tart, fibrous interior. It´s hard to compare to any fruit in the States, but it is so delicious that I might just get sick to my stomach from eating so much!!! Adios for now!