City Tour

We had a full yet relaxing weekend of a city tour and outdoor activities!

First, our school took us on a city tour of Cali.  It felt like we we already went on one when we were apartment hunting, but this one took us to some more difficult to get to places.  It was fun to venture into new parts of our city!  Honestly, Cali isn't an amazingly historic or beautiful city like Cartegena or Medellin (so I've heard...), but Aaron and I are determined to find it's gems.

The highlight was going up to Cristo Rey which is very reminiscent of the Christ the Redeemer statue which hovers over Rio in Brazil.  It's over 25 meters tall and gazes down at the city from the top of the "Hill of the Crystals" which got it's name from the amount of quartz found in that area.

My mother's future vehicle. 

Wax palms in the center of Cali. 

The "founder" of Cali pointing towards the ocean. 

Cristo Rey--Cali's bodyguard. 

Colombian bird house. 

Found this gem at our lunch stop. 

In other news, Aaron had his first mountain bike race today!  It went really well and the guys he rode with already asked him to be on their team for another one in October.  He's really excited about becoming part of the Colombian biking community, and it's definitely inspiring him to learn Spanish.  All he keeps saying is how much he wants to be able to communicate with the other riders he has met.  

Aaron and Wojciech (10th grade chemistry teacher)
 riding up to the mountain town of Pance last Saturday.

As for me, I've been trying to get back into running.  I've been running home from school a few days a week and took advantage of the Ciclovia today.  Every Sunday the city of Cali blocks off long sections of roads in the city so cyclists, runners, and walkers can use them freely.  It's a fantastic way to explore the city!

I've also been trying to eat as much fresh fruit as possible here.  The fruit is fantastic and cheap!  I honestly think I could solely live on avocados and fruit (maybe with some plantain chips thrown in).  Here's one of my new favorites: granadilla.

Crack open the shell and slurp out the "snot" in the middle--yum!