7 million people and 6 million taxis

If you have ever traveled in a foreign country, you probably remember the thrill of getting out to see new things to say you have seen it or been there. While we are here for an entirely different reason, we still feel the urge to go out and 'do' rather than just 'be'. We also want pictures for Harry to have of where he is from, so he has a connection to his homeland and part of his story to make his life well-rounded. So here we come Plaza de Simone Bolivar! This Plaza is in the old part of Bogota, over four hundred and seventy years as the city's center. The Catedral Primada anchoring one corner, was orginially built in 1538 from straw and mud. Its had many upgrades to keep it around this long! The plaza also is home to the government buildings that house the president (Colombia's white house). Mind you, no one told us that the day we picked might not be the best day to go due to a huge Pope John Paul II memorial of some sort. But we have a knack fro picking the most difficult times to do the simplest things. People were packed in the square like a Tokyo subway. Folks were lined up 3/4 of the perimeter just to get in the church, and this is a BIG square! Elway couldn't throw a football from one end to the other. Army soliders and God's soliders (nuns) were marching all around. We felt as if all of Bogota had the same idea as we did. This is a very Catholic town, and apparently the Pope still hold some sway among the locals. Now, I've been up and down 5th av. in Manhattan during Christmas time, and I've been in the Hong Kong airport during peak hours, but I have NEVER seen this many people in one place. it was as if the entire world tilted toward Colombia and the entire population of the planet tumbled down to Bogota as if in a funnel. an we have two tired kids in tow. The way we usually catch a taxi here, as we mentioned, is to call Manuela when we are ready to go home, and she calls a cab and gives them our address, she then calls us back and tells us the cab's i.d . number, and we wait for it to arrive, safe in the knowledge that we will not be kidnapped. I don't trust my Spanish enough to interpret numbers over the phone. but....with 7 million people trying to get a taxi, the cab companies wouldn't even answer their phones. so we had to hail one on the street, which took about a half an hour. We (or at least I) was white knuckled the whole way home until I recognized the area I was in. Nothing like a few good kidnapping tales to frighten you silly. This is a hard town.
Addie continues to do great, she is sprinkling her sentences with Spanish very naturally now, and doing her best to cope in the new surroundings. I doubt I would have been that easy if I were 4 years old in a totally foreign environment. what a trooper!
Harry is doing better, and we monitor his level of anxiety almsot all the time. He is getting to know us and we him, and its going to take some time before any of us is totally relaxed. This is by far the hardest thing we have ever done. The language barrier is huge, I can get by just fine in town, but when I need to get a point across to a belligerent kid, I fear my message is weakened. in the madness we also went to the Historical museum in an old, old, old former prison, saw a cool soccer exhibit, and today we went to the kids Science Museum and hailed a cab home. I want to write exclusively about the adoption process we are currently living, as I have a lot to say and I remember looking for just such a thing about a year ago, but that will be another post. Tomorrow we get out lawyer, and have our Integration meeting (where we could call the whole thing off) and get fingerprinted again. I am drained and exhausted, and I have 2+ weeks in front of me where it will be just Harry and myself. Marathon parenting is not for the weak. -Brian