Friends make ordinary moments feel extraordinary!

Our good friend Maria, along with daughter Violet (13-months), came to stay with us for 10-days from November 13th until the 23rd. How lucky we feel to be blessed with so many wonderful visitors!! It was a great excuse to explore a little more of the city... which we too are just starting to get to know.

It was amazing to see the world we are starting to call our home through the eyes of someone who is not living her permanently. For me, it was amazing to have constant company and positive reinforcement as a mom (thanks Maria!!). And, while it took a few days for our girls to get into a groove... they finally found some games that allowed them to play well together, share toys and enjoy each other -- even with the age gap (which at this age seems so huge)!! We went on an adventure up Monserrate. This is a mountain in Bogota considered to be a place of pilgrimage at 3,150m. In 1640, Don Juan de Borja founded a chapel at the peak dedicated to the "Virgen Morena de Monserrat" - whose sanctuary is located in Spain. Twenty years later a monastery was built, which houses "el Señor Caído" (the fallen Christ), a statue by Pedro de Lugo y Albarrícin to which many miracles have been attributed. Since this time, thousands of pilgrims climb the numerous and steep steps by foot or on their knees as penitence. Many tourists also climb the mountain, though we opted to take the train which seems to carve its way up the mountain at the steepest incline i have ever experiences. There is also a cable car, but it was not open that day. We were pleased with a wonderful view of the city as the clouds seem to open up for a few hours and allow us clear sights in every direction.

I was surprised to see just how 'flat' Bogotá is when seen from up high... though I suppose that is why it is a plateau. The mountain range seems to line the outskirts of the city, but it does not creep into it's centre. The city is scattered with buildings that from afar all looked quite similar. And everything seems to go on for miles and miles and miles. The vastness of the city was impressive. It was also incredible to witness the contrast between the city of roads and towers, while on the other side the view was of lush greens and mountain ranges. There was a really nice market filled with local foods and arts; as well as two beautiful restaurants that would make for a very lovely evening out on a clear night. There were several lovely spots that will be perfect for a picnic the next time we decide to make our way to the top of Monseratte.

Maria & Violet also did a lot of exploring all on their own - getting to know our neighbourhood, as well as touring around the rest of Bogota. So, for those of you thinking this is an unsafe town, you may want to take note of these savvy travellers!! I was continually amazed at how easily the two of them manoevred the streets, found new places to explore, and most of all how amazing Violet was travelling around with her mom just taking it all in.

On the last full-day of her visit, Maria & Violet even took Isabel & I on a tour of the eastern part of downtown Bogotá surrounding the Universidad de los Andes. Near the university we tried to find the 'artists quarters', but without too much luck. We did see some beautiful streets with homes painted in all sorts of colours. We then walked along a human-made canal, Las Aguas, towards the markets and right to Museo del Oro. The museum is supposedly spectacular, but when travelling with little kids we don't always make choices that take us to all the sights available. Instead, we found a beautiful market across from the museum where we enjoyed cheese bread and capuccino (Isabel ate all the foam) and the girls crawled around on the floor chasing each other and finding new ways to amuse themselves. We tried to find the artist quarters, but without much luck.

Throughout all of this touring, Maria & Violet got to experience Bogotá at its worst weather -- it rained every single day they were here. But that did not stop them from taking long walks and just getting to know their surroundings. One of the days they were here we took Violet to our regular music class at Allegretto - which she absolutely adored. I don't think I saw her smiling as much as in this hour at music class!! It was a blast!!!

And, now that they are gone, we are slowly settling back into our regular routine and living in immense gratitude for the time and effort they both took to visit us here in Bogota!! As usual, you can find more photos at http://picasaweb.google.com/jpstories