Life is a Game we Play.

I did end up going to Sincelejo with Andres to visit his cousins, aunt, and uncle.  We traveled with his uncle, so we took some really strange forms of transportation because he refused to take the Brasilia or other well-known bus agencies.  They were too expensive.  So, we hopped on two different buses, the second of which my seat wasn't attached, so at every sharp halt, I went flying into the lap of the man in front of me.  Our trip there ended up being about 2 hours longer than it needed to be, but I think we saved about a dollar.  In Sincelejo, there was a band festival going on, so we went to a parade with drums, trumpets, and fandango dancing.  It was a blast from the past because we went out at night with Andres's 16-year-old cousin, so we could only go to bars/clubs where they weren't checking IDs.  Too bad, because we couldn't go to a disco called Jolywud (pronounced HOLLYWOOD!) that seemed pretty sweet.  We went to this bar that had a live band for a while, and when the band left, they played a DVD of a concert of Silvestre Dangond, one of my favorite vallenato singers.  We ordered a jirafa of beer (way cooler than a pitcher).  It's like having your own tap on the table.  We went to Sampues, where they are famous for making sombreros vueltiados.  I bought one for my brother.  They are also famous for making beautiful furniture, such as rocking chairs.  I really wish I'd had a way of getting one home, or even buying one for my little Colombian grandma, Rosi.  They were beautiful, and I think they only cost about $40!  They sell these little balconies to hang on the wall with typical Colombian things on them, like a guitar or a mochila and I was going to buy one for my mom but I didn't think it would make it through the trip home.  I was telling Andres's aunt that I liked them, and she immediately pulled one off of her wall and gave it to me to give to my mom.  It was so nice of her to do that, and she didn't even think about it.  I found that to be a common attitude there, always giving, even when there wasn't much to give.

Sincelejo was a cute, typical, little town without any tourists at all.  The water only comes every four days, which I still am not exactly sure why.  One of Andres's cousin's friends invited us over to her house for dinner, and we all talked about AIESEC for about 3 hours.  I think we recruited her.  It was really cool to talk with them about my opinions of Colombia.  They are so patriotic and love their country so much, so you could tell they were really happy and honored when I raved about my experience.  They are really truly saddened, even the youngest cousin who was 12, by the image that the rest of the world has of Colombia.  It was a totally relaxing weekend, and I loved hanging out with the family.

I've got two more weeks to get through, and then I will address the culture shock that is making me nauseous...