Holiday in Copacabana

Greetings,

Celina and Janelle and I just got back from a wonderful, relaxing trip to Copacabana - just three Canadian gringas taking a holiday. We stayed in the gorgeous hostel that I'd stayed in last year with the Vargas family, and it was even nicer than I remembered.

Our main goal in going was to sway in the hammocks overlooking Lake Titicaca and read books, but just so that we didn't feel totally lazy, we climbed up Copacabana's Calvary. It's a very steep hill with markers for the stations of the cross, and boy, do you get exhausted from climbing up there! But the view is totally worth it.

Everything went off without a hitch, except for when our bus got to the part of the journey where we had to cross part of the lake. All the passengers get off the bus and take a short motor-launch trip to the other side, while the buses go on barges. We stopped for about five minutes to use the washrooms, and by the time we made it to the other side, our bus had left without us! And I mean, we had signed the register and everything, so it's not like they didn't know they were missing people! Fortunately, we are such intrepid travelers that this didn't dismay us - we just hailed a taxi, who drove us the remaining 50 minutes to Copacabana for the equivalent of $1.50 per person. Not a problem!

Hope you all are having a great Christmas season, and doing something fun for New Year's Eve!
Lots of love,
Rachael

Second Annual Gingerbread House Party

Hey Everyone,

So this Saturday night I hosted (along with Celina) another gingerbread house party for the youth group. We made a huge double-batch of gingerbread and spent nearly all day cutting out the dough, baking it, and then cutting again after the dough had risen in the oven into the wrong shapes. But it was worth it - we had a companionable, Christmassy evening of eating too much candy, constructing houses, and generally having a good time. After the houses were done, we practiced singing "Silent Night" in three different languages - we are going to perform on Wednesday night, which is when our church will have a Christmas celebration. I get to sing it in Spanish!

So, Carlos and Jeremy are back in Canada now, and I am starting my "month alone," which won't really be alone because the Schulzes are so close. Celina and I and another friend are going on a short trip to Copacabana after Christmas, so that should be fun!

Love to all of you,
Rachael

Two-Year Visa, Here I Come!

Dear Everyone,

So, I am totally impressing myself lately. I had to get a bunch of documents together to apply for my two-year visa, and this involved going to a lawyer and stuff like that. And I managed to do it mostly on my own! I went to the lawyer and asked for a "memorial" and a "carta notariada" and got that all figured out, BY MYSELF, in SPANISH! And then I hit Immigration by myself, and got shuffled around from window to window, and got it all filed and paid for and stamped, BY MYSELF, in SPANISH!

They say it takes 10 to 20 days to process, but I'm skeptical. The lady at the final window showed me the date on my receipt, and it says to come pick it up on December 30th. However, the lady very frankly told me that there's no way it will be ready then, but I can just come check on it. You know, if I'm missing my passport and want to let it know how I'm doing, I can come in on that day and inquire after it, have a little visit.

So, that's all in the bag, which I consider to be a miracle on a not-too-minor scale.

Ooooh, and speaking of minor scales! I am having so much fun with my guitar lessons! I just learned my first two chords on Tuesday, and I'm practicing diligently. I think I'll be doing a lot of that over the holidays. Jeremy and Carlos leave tomorrow for Canada for Christmas, and I know the house will feel very lonely.

Prayer request: that I will have peace over the holidays and not get worried about staying here alone. And for safety.

Thanks! Lots of love,
Rachael

The Decision Has Been Made

Dear Everyone,

First of all, before the news, this is a picture of the decorations I made and put up in our downstairs hallway, outside my room. Yes, it may be summer down here, but it's December and I will decorate with snowflakes! They make me happy.

And now!

So maybe you will remember that I have been facing a big decision. My visa runs out next week, and since I plan on staying here until June, I needed to look at options. It seemed like there were two choices: either go for a two-year visa as the next step, or try to stay in the country for another six months using a tourist visa, by entering and exiting the country and getting my passport stamped again that way.

I didn't want to go for the two-year visa unless I was sure I would be coming back for another year, because it's a lot of work and a lot of money. But neither was I keen on entering and exiting the country by myself while Carlos and Jeremy are in Canada for Christmas!

Today it was all made clear for me. Carlos and I went to Immigration to ask for advice on what was our best option. The man behind the counter informed us that there are no options; I simply MUST get a two-year visa if I want to stay here until June. And it turns out it is much less expensive than I thought, and easier too: I can have it all ready to be processed in a week!

So, I'm going to get a two-year visa! Hey, that was an easy decision! This DOES NOT necessarily mean that I'll be coming back here for a third year - I really have no idea what next year will hold for me. I'd appreciate prayers for that!

Lots of love,
Rachael

Happy Election Day!

Hey Everyone!

Today is a big election down here in Bolivia. The big question: will Evo Morales, current president and the first indigenous president in Bolivia's history, get in for another term? Most people seem to think he will, but we shall see.

On election day down here, life basically stops. No public transit, you're not allowed to drive, you're not allowed to gather in groups bigger than ten, no alcohol can be sold...things are at a standstill.

What this means is no church, and basically a day to just relax. I plan to spend mine making snowflakes to decorate the house for Christmas :) We're also having a barbecue with the family next door, so that's fun!

Love to all,
Rachael

Morenada

So this dance is called Morenada, and it is sort of hard to describe - there seem to be a lot of different costumes and separate pieces going on. My favourite part, however, is the girls dressed as cholitas. They are the ones swishing back and forth, wearing the traditional costume.

Believe it or not, lots and lots of ladies dress like this every day! Their everyday outfits are a little less flashy than these ones, but they wear the big skirts with the multiple petticoats underneath, and the lovely shawls, and of course the bowler hat! Pretty much every time I get on a minibus to go anywhere, there is at least one lady in traditional dress, often more than one. They have developed the fine art of keeping those hats on their heads no matter what the circumstances - I don't know how they do it!

One thing that really surprised Aimee and I when we got down here was seeing these ladies in their traditional dress, looking so old-fashioned, and then they'd pull a cell phone out of their pocket and start talking! Seems incongruous, but no matter what you wear, I guess you still need to keep in touch with people.

I think that's all of the traditional dances I will put up for now. I hope you enjoyed them. Sarah, good luck creating the traditional dance of Fort Langley! And Aimee, yes, I think I'll be taking lessons to dance the cueca, is that great or what??

Love to all,
Rachael