At the end of June, I asked a few expat friends if there was anything they still weren't used to about living in Colombia. After a few thoughtful beats, one of them offered, "Well, there is the toilet paper thing..." The group hummed in agreement, bobbing our heads in knowing nods.
What's the"toilet paper thing"? Let me paint you a picture...
It's your first week in Colombia and you're at a mall/restaurant/gym. You excuse yourself to use the rest room. Once in the stall, you notice a small wastebasket next to the toilet....cute? Next, you see a sign, and use your pretty limited Spanish ability to decipher it. After a few loops of mental gymnastics, you're able to puzzle out that you are suppose to throw away your toilet paper, post use, into this bin. Ummmm, what? After a few months and many repeated exposures to versions of said sign and said waste basket, you start to realize that people in Colombia are very concerned about the clogging of pipes. You awkwardly confer with your expat friends, and realize that this toilet paper disposal bin is everywhere. You try your best to remember to honor this practice, but let's be honest, after 26 years of flushing your toilet paper, it's pretty hard to override your muscle memory and adapt.
I give you the "toilet paper thing." For a while, I thought perhaps this was just a Cali phenomenon, but after traveling Colombia from coast to coast, (at least from San Andres to Cartagena), I can promise you, this "toilet paper thing" is the national norm.
Speaking of coast to coast, the months of June and July were stock full of travel for Conor and I. In June, we hit up San Andres, a Colombian island in the Caribbean Sea, and shortly after jetted back to the States for a full month of family lovin' and summer break in the land of the free and home of the the brave. But wait, our travel didn't stop there! For the grand finale, on our way back to Cali at the end of July, we kidnapped our sisters and traveled to Cartagena, a poppin' port city on the coast of Colombia. Copa, we can't wait to cash in our miles for two free tickets home at Christmas break!
Since it's still technically summer break, I'm going to cut myself some slack and do a combined/abbreviated blog entry for June and July highlighting favorites from all three of these destinations, and end with one "schooled moment" Hey, teachers need some down time too!
San Andres
Favorites:
-Boating to Cayo El Acuario, a small sand island off the coast of the big island, rocking with Caribbean music, multiple drink stands, snorkeling, and the clearest blue water I've ever seen
-Enjoying fresh lobster, amazing conch fritters, and sweet coconut beverages at La Regatta, a hidden restaurant tucked right into a fold of the main marina
-Ringing in 27 with a arhuaca mochila, (popular Colombian artisan bag ) from Conor, filled with funny nick knacks from the Dollar Store around the corner from our apartment
Home (aka Connecticut, Maine, and New England)
Favorites:
-Raspberry picking at Lyman Orchards with my Mom
-Teaching my Dad to cook picadas, and enjoying them on the back deck of my parent's house in the summer breeze
-Walking Scout by the Farmington River
-Hitting up T.J. Maxx, Target, and, of course, J. Crew!
-Basking in the sun at Crescent Beach with Conor and his Mom
-Celebrating the 4th of July at Conor's parents' house, with both our sets of parents and a backyard cookout and the Portland fireworks!
-Wine and Cheese at the cabin with Gram and everyone else at Valentine Lake
-Walks and runs around Mackworth Island
-Celebrating my main girl, Kaitlyn, with a New England bachelorette party and beautiful wedding
-Moonlight kayaking in Rockport, Massachusetts with my parents, sister, aunt, uncle, and cousins
-Trying out Orangetheory fitness and getting those splat points!
-Numerous moments laughing with both our families in our childhood homes
-BAGELS, PRETZELS, and, of course, GOLDFISH
Cartagena
Favorites:
-Walking the old city, enjoying the bright colors and cascading flowers around every corner
-Dunking into the mud volcano at Volcan del Totumo
-Racing off to the Rosario Islands for several day trips
-Enjoying drinks on top of the wall that surrounds the city at a cute restaurant, Cafe del Mar
-Delicious seafood, especially the amazing ceviche!
-Watching our sisters soak in Colombia's beauty and fun
-Banana boating at the beach at Playa Blanca
-Playing our new favorite board game, "Code Names"...Tomlinsons vs. Sullivans battle royale
Getting Schooled:
Okay, as mentioned above, while in Cartagena, Conor, Maggie, Brooke and I took sibling bonding to the next level at the mud volcano, Volcan del Totumo. However, we didn't just blindly dive into this adventure. Like good millennials, Maggie and I did research beforehand...we skimmed a few blogs, and read some Trip Advisor reviews. The reviews of the mud volcano experience was polarized: people either loved it or strongly hated it. Many haters commented on the strangeness of flubbering around in a mud pit with others, and a few mentioned awkwardly attempting to refuse massages from locals...but even after reviewing this information, we were just too curious to pass up this once in a lifetime experience. We put it to a vote, and unanimously decided mud pit or bust!
An hour van ride later, Conor, Maggie, Brooke, and I scaled some very steep steps to the top of what was either a giant mud hill or modestly sized volcano. Clad in only our bathing suits, having turned our only phone over to one of the locals who was the designated photographer, we observed about 6 people descend a wooden step into the thick, dark mud.
After observing a few more apprehensive tourists, I realized the locals running the pit had a full on assembly line set up! First, one friendly man helped a person down into the pit, flipped them on their back, and vigorously massaged their legs and arms with the mud. Then, once he was satisfied with their mud coverage, face included, he sent the slimy body sailing in a vigorous push to his partner. Yippe! The second man then flipped the body stomach side down, much like a pancake, and continued to massage in the mud. After these steps were complete, the person was set free to float on the other half of the pit with their massaged, giddy and disoriented friends.
If you know me, you know seeing this mud assembly line did nothing to deter my enthusiasm for the pit. However, others in the group were not as enthusiastic. Maggie was visibly shook, and Brooke looked slightly hesitant. We immediately created a girls alliance, and insisted Conor go first. Brooke went next, followed by me, and then a highly apprehensive Maggie.
Once I was done dying of laughter from watching Conor and Brooke's facial expressions while being covered in mud, I was shocked to find the mud fairly cold, but not uncomfortably so. However, as Maggie and I laughed our way through the second part of the massage (which honestly felt like being covered in thick pudding), I began to feel quite nauseous. Oh man, please don't let me vomit in this mud pit full of strangers. My body felt sluggish and every move I made was delayed...was I going to drown in this pit?! HELP! Suddenly I was pushed towards Conor and Brooke, and I tried to adjust my limbs with little success. Seeing my struggle, they helped to upright me, and my nausea quelled a bit.
As we drew tick tack toe boards in the mud, used our hands to make giant bubbles, and refined each other's mud facials, we decided it must be hard to move because the mud was much denser than our bodies, and the liquids (blood? water?) that filled them. Science teachers, feel free to weigh in on this theory! After a few minutes, I got used to it, and happily slopped around in the pit like a farm animal. Maggie, however, remained in the fetal position and made some seriously failed attempts to exit early, each time getting pulled back towards the middle by either myself or Conor.
When we were satisfied with our mud bath experience, we exited the pit, and walked a dusty path to a gorgeous inlet of the ocean. There, enterprising local women waited with bowls to assist us in the washing process...for a small fee. Cue water being dumped on our heads and every crevice of our body being washed...did that lady just rip my top off? YIKES! Once we were clean, we paid our our iphone holder/photographer, masseuses and washers and hopped back in the van."Well...what do we think?" I asked. "Loved it" said Brooke. "So strange, but cool" said Con. "Nope" said Maggie. We laughed. I personally enjoyed the mud pit, and would definitely align myself with the "loved it" crew. However, I'm pretty sure Maggie felt differently, and therefore, I'm going to award the "getting schooled moment" of the summer to her. Thanks for being such a good sport Mags!