November 15 and 16

Yesterday (Tuesday), we visited the Zoologico de Cali! The drive there took us through the city and up a part of the mountains. Beautiful views! The zoo was small but definitely worth the trip. We saw an anaconda (ewww), a grizzly bear that I swear was the size of a car, condors (very cool), and a big anteater (which I just loved - haha). There were different birds that would walk right in front of us, and Michael would just watch and watch them. The staff was very nice. We passed a staff member feeding pelicans while summoning them with a whistle. They had several animals that we had never seen or heard of too. Here are a few pics.

(I'm telling you - he was HUGE.)

Unfortunately, I picked up some South American allergy because from the second I entered until the time I left, I sneezed (which has now turned into a cold - ugh). So, today (Wednesday) we just rested and did our normal routine. For lunch, we headed over to Unicentro and ate at a place called Checker's (NOT the hamburger chain). We had passed it several times and today decided to try it. We picked the right day. After we ordered, an older man approached us to say hello. We figured out he was the owner. He spoke English and Spanish and teased us that we didn't know that much Spanish (although it's improving). He said his name was Isaac, "it's in the Bible. My father's name is Abraham." I pointed to Michael and said "This is Michael." He said "Hello Michael. You are very lucky." Turning to us, he said "And what you are doing, it is a mission. It is a mission. There are so many children, and this is a start. May God help you." We thanked him and he continued on, greeting all the patrons of his restaurant. A little while later, he came over to our table, sat down with us, had his lunch delivered to our table and said "I will be your company for lunch" after saying it in Spanish first and making us try to figure it out, all with a grin on his face. So we had lunch with the restaurant owner. He asked where we were from and we told him Louisiana, United States. He told us he was from Israel, and that he and his wife moved here 23 years ago to teach in the Hebrew school. After 11 years of teaching, he said "God told me I didn't need to teach them anymore. He [God] said 'they are hungry' so I opened a restaurant." I couldn't help but detect a bit of dry humor in his stories. He was very aloof at times but always joking. He said his restaurant was named one of Cali's top ten best restaurants. He commented on its reasonable prices and big portion sizes. He then asked what we did for a living. He also told us he had a daughter who lived in Cali and a son who lived in Dallas with his grandchildren. Small world again! He said "I will not be buried here though. I will be buried in Israel. It's a good place to be buried. You know, 2000 years ago, someone was buried there and after 3 days, he rose" (making the hand movements and all). We all chuckled and nodded our heads. I just sat there thinking what a cool, ole man this was and how lucky we were to have shared a conversation and meal with him.

Later in the conversation he asked us "Can I ask you a question?" We agreed, and he said "How much did it cost you to adopt Michael?" We told him and he just shook his head and told us that this outraged him, that people should only have to pay $3,000 or something nearer, that there were so many children in the world, and that the United Nations should be throwing their money and resources to help all starving children across the world (and right now, in Somalia) especially with all the money it gets from the US and Canada. He also said "America has a lot, but it cannot help everybody." He certainly was opinionated, but I can't tell you how neat it was to hear the opinions of someone from a completely different background and life than ours. He ordered cappuccinos and a dessert for us. He said "the baby needs some." ;) The dessert was a hot fudge brownie and ice cream. He said when Obama was elected President of the US, he renamed the dessert the "Obama." He also said "Texas has had lots of Presidents. Louisiana, no?" His sense of humor was just great. After giving Michael a couple of small bites and as I was about to give him another, he said "Wait. Watch him." and we waited and watched Michael get a little anxious for his next bite. He said "See! He likes it!"

He seemed to know everyone who passed us in the restaurant and was very cordial with his staff. I gave him my business card before I left (a trick I learned from my Daddy). You never know who you will hear from one day. ;)

We have been in Cali two weeks! At some moments, it feels like we have been here forever, and at other moments, it feels as if the time has flown. I think we are over the hump; we WILL be home in two weeks or less! (mantra, mantra, mantra)

Thanks for letting us share our experiences with you and your families. We miss you all!