Making our Way Back

After the parade, we headed home to Nelson and Charo's. The kids were tired, but so happy to play with Claudia and Fabiana. We had the biggest pizza I had ever seen for supper and enjoyed laughing and talking together. Carl took some candid shots, which captured the fleeting hours we had with our host family.



Later, we presented the family with gifts as a way to thank them for their hospitality. They were really surprised. And of course then we pulled out the camera and started taking pictures. First the kids, then a couple of the kids with the dog, then all the kids with the dog, then us, then us with the dog, then their family, then our family, then just the adults.....on and on and one we snapped!







We put the kids to bed and then we came back to visit with Nelson and Charo. We had really enjoyed getting to know them and were sorry that we lived so far away. They were very open, talking about their friends that struggled, how they had hardship in their lives as well. It was really a special time. But soon, it was 11 and we knew we needed to head to bed as we'd be up before 6.



The next morning, we packed up all our stuff and ate breakfast. Nelson and Charo got up to send us off. We hugged and told them that they should come to Santa Cruz to visit us. I know that we will come back to Cochabamba to visit them. We hopped into the taxi and off we went. We're going to miss them.....

We get to the bus depot and meet up with a fellow student from the school. She was heading to La Paz. Carl hung around the bottom of the bus to make sure that our luggage got on and didn't walk away with anyone else (believe me, it happens and people only realize once they reach their destination). We were pretty thrilled because we got the front seats on the top of the bus. Seriously, it is quite the view!



We got along fine, but after about an hour, when the roads started to get curvy, Kezia said her tummy was bothering her. Carl reached into the bag and got the last Gravol pill out and gave it to her. We have had some interesting experiences with that girl getting car sick!

Well, not even 5 minutes later, Joel was saying that he wasn't feeling good. Kezia was perfectly fine, not one bit nauseous and poor Joel was turning greener by the minute. If only we had another pill! We scouted out a plastic bag, just in time. Joel grabbed it, shoved his face in, and puked. Poor kid was really having a rough time, but thankfully the bag held. When he emerged from the bag, I was shocked at what I saw.

He puked so hard that he bust all the capillaries around his eyes and cheeks. It was a bit unnerving to see until I figured out what happened. Seriously, the weirdest thing I had seen in a while.



Each hour on the bus the temperature increased. For a brief moment I was regretting being on the top level, way up in the front, with no windows to open. First, the jackets came off, then the sweaters, then the tights and socks and finally the shirts. One more hour on the bus and Asha would have been naked!

The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful. We stopped only once at the same "bathroom" that we had on the way up. There were fewer people, and we purchased a hamburger for each of us, hoping that we wouldn't get food poisoning. Well, I figured, we're 5 hours from home, so hopefully the diarrhea won't come for at least 6!

By the time we pulled into Santa Cruz, we were all ready to get off the bus. We had no more water or juice and all of us had to go to the bathroom (just pee, no diarrhea!). As soon as our luggage was out from the compartment, we hailed a taxi that was right there and off we went home.

It was so good to be back, to sleep in our own bed, to go without socks again. But definitely a worthwhile experience. We enjoyed ourselves immensely and hope to go to Cochabamba again, or maybe Sucre, or La Paz.....