Category Archives: foreign service
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 17, 'Culture' from other Countries in Bolivia]
Diplomatic Corp present at the Diplomatic Ladies Event in La Paz {April 2013}.
The Diplomatic Ladies Association [Asociación de Damas Diplomáticas] in La Paz, Bolivia, organized a fair to showcase products and a little bit of the culture of the many countries who mark their presence in La Paz. Entrance fees were used as a fundraiser for charity projects throughout the capital. Here, a collection of snapshots of a few of these countries, including Panama, Japan, Great Britain, and, the United States…
Wish I weren’t be so caught up working at the booth, and had the opportunity to go around snapping more pictures from the beautiful German Embassador’s Residence! Maybe next time… next year, for sure! 
Find here, more impressions from other bloggers on “Culture”… Thank you all for sharing! ♥
In the meantime, what else has our ‘home diplomatic corp’ been up to? Take a look at this beautiful initiative: http://3rdculturechildren.com/2013/04/25/la-paz-runs-for-boston/
La Paz runs for Boston!
Date: Sunday, April 21, 2013.
La Paz [Bolivia] streets taken by locals and groups of expatriates, including the US Embassy in La Paz. Running for Peace. Running for Boston! ♥
And, a nice write-up on a similar inspiring story:
http://diplopundit.net/2013/04/24/us-mission-canada-canadians-run-for-boston/
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 16, 'Up & Down' in Viña del Mar, Chile]
The most popular beach resort in Chile, and an easy flight-and-drive from our house in La Paz, Viña del Mar is within reach of both Santiago and Valparaiso. Viña teems with tourists during peak months December, January and February, despite Antarctic currents that make swimming a formidable prospect. Our family went there during Spring/School Break [why not?] Renaca Beach is the hippest spot to sink onto the sands – and the ‘chosen spot’ for our oldest kids’ [7 & 5 yrs] ‘acrobatic performances‘… Our 2-year-old daughter is still too shy [and her parents, too cautious!] to give it a try!
“Viña del Mar, is a city and commune on central Chile’s Pacific coast. Its long stretches of white sandy beaches are a major attraction for national and international tourists”, from Wikipedia.
- Find here, more impressions from other bloggers on “Up”… Thank you all for sharing! ♥
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 15, 'Change (in numbers)']
Innovation. Technology. CHANGE.
Using social media tools to change the way the world is perceived. In this case, celebrating the landmark of having 100,000 friends on the Facebook page of the U.S. Embassy in Bolivia [text extracted & adapted from the US Embassy Bolivia Website, link here] - simultaneously welcoming guests in the five different cities in Bolivia, through webchat technology. Hope on over to their fan page for images from guests in all 5 cities… Number of fans are changing every day… Changing now the way celebrations are done.
Photo is current Profile Cover of Facebook Fan Page for the Embajada de Estados Unidos en Bolivia – https://www.facebook.com/usdos.bolivia
Find here, more impressions from other bloggers on “Change”… Thank you all for sharing! ♥
Snapshots of Artistic Expressions in La Paz. Part III: Mujeres Artistas.
Tomorrow, March 8, it’s Women’s International Day. Bolivia, like many other countries, is honoring all women with a full month of celebration and recognition. In the capital, La Paz, it’s possible to appreciate the artistic works of several gifted women, through painting and photography – and luckily, a couple of the artists presenting their pieces are friends of ours, and members of the US community here. Congratulations, ladies!
Sharing here a few images from the exhibit, at the Galeria de Arte Alternativa – by the neighborhood of San Miguel, La Paz – with art pieces [paintings and photography], courtesy of one of the participants, Mrs Susan Scanlon – my deepest appreciation to her as a wife, committed mother, artist and friend – thank you! ♥
Spanish: La galería Alternativa inauguró el sábado la muestra Mujeres artistas con obras pictóricas de Mirta Cwirko, Carolina Lovo, Mónica Rina Mamani, Rosmery Mamani, Guiomar Mesa, Laura Miller, Susan Scanlon y Cecilia Wilde, las esculturas en cerámica de Corina Barreto y los trabajos en metal de Marcela Mérida.
Con un total de 40 obras realizadas en diferentes formatos, técnicas y con una amplia variedad de temática, esta muestra estará abierta al público paceño hasta el 22 de marzo.
Related articles
- Snapshots of Artistic Expressions in La Paz. Part II: The Fighting Cholitas! (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Snapshots of Artistic Expressions in La Paz. A visit to the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo in La Paz. (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Photo Essay: People and Feelings of Copacabana, Bolivia. (3rdculturechildren.com)
‘Hardship Homemaking’: contributing to the collaborative blog…
Post originally prepared as a contribution to the Hardship Homemaking collaborative blog, which is a back to basics blog for recipes, tricks, and tips to make life overseas at hardship posts easier”. The blog is a collaborative effort, with several authors, each one sharing unique experiences and life backgrounds, most of them, with real examples of life in the Foreign Service, its implications, challenges and strategies to overcome them.
“Handling Fruits and Vegetables: Sanitary Tips
Living at hardship posts offers more than challenges to all ‘household managers’ out there. If offers us the opportunity to learn – through advice from our peers, through our own research, through experience and why not say, through mistakes – ours or someone else’s – while facing similar situations. A common concern among families living at hardship posts is ‘how to offer the best, healthiest diet to my family?’- and that includes not only how to “optimize” your grocery shopping budget, but how to ensure those beautiful fruits and veggies will be safe for consumption, even before they’re tossed in the fridge, or beautifully displayed on a fruit bowl!…” [continue reading]
Curious to learn more tips on this and other topics? Hope over to the Hardship Homemaking collaborative blog! Thank you for the interest…
A brief talk about ‘Diversity & Raising Children in the Foreign Service’.
Originally published as a Letter to Editors [The Foreign Service Journal, March 2013].
Diversity at State: Helping our Children.
The value of diversity promotion in the State Department was well emphasized by EEO Counselor Krishna Das (Letters to the Editor, January issue). As a parent, I see the discussion regarding how we bring up our children within the diverse Foreign Service lifestyle as equal parts interesting, challenging, and crucial. It is, of course, necessary to serve as role models for our children right from the start, particularly in teaching the lesson that everyone, despite appearances or stereotypes, deserves respect.
As noted, State Department children are highly exposed to diverse cultures, and we as parents should demonstrate why this is such an advantage to their own growth as human beings.
Building a culture of diversity starts at home, a literal reality for many State Department families. We speak different languages, come from distinct cultural backgrounds, and practice different religions. And yet in most cases, our children are growing up in a culturally richer environment than we (parents) were brought up. Children in the Foreign Service live the concept of diversity and its social implications – on a daily basis.
That said, it is often necessary for us to question what is our role as parents in this process? How can we assist our children regarding the issue of diversity? It would appear as far as diversity is concerned, we need to be extra involved in their lives: listening to their stories, learning about their ventures and challenges adjusting to new, countries, discussing their questions and social frustrations, establishing a healthy communication channel, building positive identities and respect for differences. Further, we should seek ways to insert these concepts into the routines of our children’s everyday lives and help convince them through our actions that a society without discrimination is possible. It is critical for us parents and caretakers to develop ‘cultural sensitivity’ regarding our surroundings; otherwise, without specific cultural information, we may inadvertently promote practices and approaches that could counter other parents’ efforts.
One great piece of advice I once received was to “encourage your child’s friendships with others across race, ethnicity, class, religious practices, background and ability.”
The more personal experiences children have with other groups, the easier it will be to dismiss stereotypes and misperceptions.
******
Want to add to the discussion? Please feel free to share your comments/opinions/suggestions here!
Related articles
- Embracing Diversity as an Expat: “How could we help our children around this issue?” (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Raising resilient expat children? (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Children: Of Mice and Men? (researchingreform.wordpress.com)
Sweet contribution to a progressive dinner: Trio of Licorice Desserts… yummy!
Well, Carnaval is over, but the celebrations continue! The same week we offered a typical Brazilian Feijoada for a group of friends and their kids, our family celebrated the 5th Birthday of our Valentine’s Girl, with special ‘mommy-made’ cupcakes… and to top it all off, why not take part at a 16-couple Progressive Dinner?
A bit of background: This type of moving feast offers hours of entertainment with a limited amount of prep work. It’s a great way to entertain a group of friends or neighbors without shouldering the whole responsibility (or cost) of a multi-course dinner party — all because a progressive dinner party was held at 16 different homes in succession, with a single course served at each one. In our case, we hosted Dessert.
What was prepared for our special guests?
Considering I’m a mom of 3 very active little kids, with not a lot of ‘free time‘ on any given Saturday, cooking time had to be carefully planned, and all three desserts needed to be simple, easy and tasty. That said, had all kids in the kitchen during prep time, and before I knew it, Voilá – we’re done! ♥
A first-timer Trio of Desserts, each one including a different type of liqueur... [totally made that up... instead of going with one type of dessert for all guests, decided to try something different, and offer a light variety of flavors: dark chocolate, light caramel/'dulce de leche' and a fruity option, with not-so-sweet elements, for a fresher taste. What's the deal with the different kinds of liquor - Rum, Kahlua [coffee liqueur] and Brandy? It’s part of the fun… something unusual, something to talk home about!]
Besides the ‘sampler desserts’, guests had an opportunity to enjoy some freshly brewed Brazilian coffee!
Results?
Liquorish mix of fruits:
Peaches, raisins in rum, Maraschino cherries [as wished], and caramelized peanuts, as the ‘crunchy element‘…
Dark chocolate and Kahlua mousse
Pudim de Dulce de Leche (Caramel Pudding) with Brandy
From our “Paceña Kitchen”, to yours… Curious about the simple & easy recipes? Send me a comment with your email and I’ll be happy to share the tips to all “busy bees” out there!
More about “getting high on cupcakes”!
Cupcake Cocktails?
My ‘transcontinental’ margarita cupcakes: approved by Brazilians, Mexicans & Americans!
Taking up on another cooking challenge: our middle daughter’s Valentine’s birthday… and nothing could go better than… cupcakes! ♥
Scrumptious, rich, yellow cake, strawberry and vanilla-based, topped with chocolate frosting or a simple butter cream…
Both my oldest kids (7 and 5) had a blast ‘helping me’ decorate the mini cakes! They came up with interesting choices for toppings – scroll down to check the pics out! I guess, at the end, it all worked well…
That said, for this Friday, I’m getting back into baking. High altitude [and attitude!] baking.
cupcake tower keeps getting higher and higher!
Moving on to the preparations. Simply followed regular yellow cake and vanilla recipes [oh, you, Martha Stewart!], as well as, a simple lemon pound cake recipe, and a fantastic recipe for strawberry cupcakes, from Yummy Cakes from Lynn, discovering [through extensive online research] a few tips/adjustments for baking at high altitudes.
La Paz, Bolivia, can be a great example of how frustrating it might be for a rookie baker! In order to remain in good terms with my kitchen oven, my ‘overactive kids assistants and I’ decided to go for a ‘new & improved first-timer’ cake (batter) step-by-step:
Flour: Increased by 2 Tbs per cup of batter
Baking Powder/Soda: Decreased by 1/4 tsp per tsp of mix
Sugar: Decreased by 2 Tbs per cup of mix [we're always advised to go light on the sugar here, it's healthier and better for the body's blood pressure...]
Milk: Increased by 2 Tbs per cup of mix
Extra egg: added one more to the usual 3
Oven Temperature: Increased by 25 degrees
Baking Time: Decreased by five minutes per 30 minutes of baking time.
It looks like a lot of math, right? Adding this, subtracting that…. raising the oven temperature, decreasing the baking time… But it all makes sense – you’re looking for a less ‘runny’ cake mix/batter, and with hotter oven, it’s logical (!!) to leave your ‘lovies’ in there for less time. At the end, it’s all about a great deal of TLC! ♥
Curious about the results?
Take a look, and let me know how you think this Valentine’s Birthday Bash went with another batch of the ‘highest cupcakes I’ve ever baked’!
In the mood for still more? Take a look at these unique recipes for high altitude baking: from my kitchen to yours! ♥
Cupcakes filled with ‘dulce de leche’ (very popular in Latinamerica, similar to caramel)
Below, strawberry cupcakes, filled with fruit (jam) and topped with ‘bubble gum’ frosting [just came up with this recipe today... let me know if you're curious about it!]
cupcakes topped with caramel
- How to…Bake the Perfect Cupcake! (thepartypost.co.uk)
How to be a wife, a mom, a cook, a household manager, and yet, enjoy Carnaval?
Oh well, the answer is actually, quite simple: join forces with other fun friends! Couples willing to help each other during the long 5-day weekend, where kids had no school!
Share responsibilities. Tag along with friends and other families, especially the ones facing the same challenges with their lovies…
Cook together. Host group parties. Let the kids run wild while the adults are enjoying some well-deserved quality time! Have the older kids teach the younger ones how to really get into the “Bolivian Carnaval” traditions: the water fight, with latex globes filled with water, water guns and foam!!! Let the good fun begin, keeping a close eye on your ‘little warriors’ while they’ve got each other soaked, covered in foam, running for their lives!
[snapshots from our Family Brazilian Feijoada, recipe & instructions below]
Simple, healthy fun. A fantastic time with family and close friends. Learning about the Carnaval Paceño. Dancing. Remembering the old days of high school cheerleading… Eating a lot [why not? It's Carnaval Weekend!]
As I’d promised earlier about making Brazilian Feijoada, here are the steps! Enjoy!
Whenever I meet someone else from Brazil, I ask them what their favorite food is. After steak (picanha), it is almost always feijoada. It’s an old bean, pork and beef recipe, brought to South America, like many foods in many places, by those intrepid, globetrotting spice traders, the Portuguese, and then enhanced, like many other foods in many other places, by African slaves and their descendants.
1 1/2 cups dried black beans (turtle is preferred, for texture)
1/8 lb. carne seca/cesina (about the size of your flat hand)
1/8 lb. pork ribs (about 2 thick ribs)
4 strips smoked bacon, finely chopped
1 paio sausage, cut into thick slices
1/2 lb. of linguiça calabresa (Portuguese-style smoked pork sausage), cut into thick slices
1 white onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
1 orange, peeled (remove all of the white pith!)
8 cups water
The night before, soak the pork meat in cold water. In yet another bowl, soak the beans in cold water.
The next day, cook the pork meat and then drain. Refill the pot with cold water, bring to a boil again and cook until the meats are tender and beginning to fall apart. Drain well.
In a large pot or dutch oven (preferred), place the beans and 8 cups water, bay leaves, and peeled orange. Bring to a boil, then lower to simmering. Cook for 45 minutes. Add all meats, and cook for 20-30 more minutes.
In a saute pan, fry the onion and garlic on olive oil. Add about 1 cup of beans from the pan, cook briefly and mash well with the back of a spoon. Return the whole mess to the dutch oven and adjust for salt. Let simmer for about 20-30 more minutes, until beans are tender and meats are falling apart willingly. Remove from heat and let cool about 10 minutes.
Serve with boiled, medium-grain white rice, orange slices, farofa and (chiffonaded) collard greens (that have been quickly fried in canola oil and drained on paper towels.
Related articles
- Getting ready for Carnaval: Making food from Brazil! (3rdculturechildren.com)
Happy Birthday to our Valentine’s Day baby girl!
Being born in South Africa
Baptism in Mozambique
African Bath
Mozambique
Wedding party in the US.
Folklore Day in Brazil
Modern Ballet Recital, Brazil
Carnaval in Brazil
June Festivities in Brazil
Halloween in Bolivia
Christmas in Bolivia
Hiking thru Isla del Sol, Bolivia
She’s not a baby anymore… better to say, she’s a young lady… a ‘señorita’…
Like her parents, this young lady has already moved quite a bit…
She was not born in Rio de Janeiro, like her momma, not in Virginia, like her daddy. She did not have her Brazilian ‘vovó and vovô’ to welcome her into this world, nor her American ‘nana and abuelito’ to greet her when she first smiled… She was born 5 years ago, while our family was stationed in Mozambique, and was fortunate enough to have the unique Pretoria (South Africa) as her birth place.
Despite not having our families around, she was [and still is!] surrounded by love, through her parents’ friends, the extended family, and her now, personal friends in Bolivia.
This morning, before getting ready for school, still recovering from the very intense and fun Carnaval in La Paz, our girl came to our bedroom, holding her index finger upright: “Mommmy, would you believe we’re only ONE DAY away from my cumple?” She’s right: Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, and she knows it! For our family, this particular day will aways transcends all the commercialism, the consumerism associated with the date – it goes beyond that, it’s definitely, truly, unconditionally related to LOVE. The love between parents and their daughter…
We’re pleased, lucky and grateful for all the experiences we’ve been through, and we’re grateful for having had this intense, warm, active and loving girl into our lives for the past five years… Half a decade ago, husband and I received the best gift one could ever expect for Valentine’s Day: the birth of a baby girl! ♥ And, for the ones who may find hard to believe that there are no boundaries, limits nor geographical barriers for friendships, that little baby girl got some visitors… friends from DC [pictured below] came to meet her, while visiting South Africa… Our deepest appreciation for such a great demonstration of friendship! ♥
Baie Dankie, South Africa for such a wonderful Valentine’s!
Getting ready for Carnaval: Making food from Brazil!
Keeping this little tradition: Holidays, talk about food. This weekend, it’ll be no different.
Bolivia also celebrates Carnaval, and kids are off school, for a grand total of 5 days… (!). Work will also be off, for Monday and Fat Tuesday – the best thing to do? Get together with friends, and plan fantastic meals! Let’s see if I’ll be able to come up with a fairly decent Brazilian feijoada, using my Bolivian ingredients… More to come on this post, but for now, let’s just get our appetites ready for what could be in-store for us!
Whenever I meet someone from Brazil, I ask them what their favorite food is. After steak (picanha), it is almost always feijoada. It’s an old bean, pork and beef recipe, brought to South America, like many foods in many places, by those intrepid, globetrotting spice traders, the Portuguese, and then enhanced, like many other foods in many other places, by African slaves and their descendants.
Feijoada Completa
1 1/2 cups dried black beans (turtle is preferred, for texture)
1/8 lb. carne seca/cesina (about the size of your flat hand)
1/8 lb. pork ribs (about 2 thick ribs)
1 pig foot, split
1-2 pig ears
1 pig tail (smoked, if possible)
4 strips smoked bacon, finely chopped
1 paio sausage, cut into thick slices
1/2 lb. of linguiça calabresa (Portuguese-style smoked pork sausage), cut into thick slices
1 white onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
2 bay leaves
1 orange, peeled (remove all of the white pith!)
8 cups water
The night before, soak the pig foot, tail and ear in cold water to draw out blood/impurities. Separately, soak the cesina in cold water overnight. In yet another bowl, soak the beans in cold water.
The next day, put the foot, tail, ear and cesina in a pot with cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, boilf for 10 minutes and then drain. Refill the pot with cold water, bring to a boil again and cook until the meats are tender and beginning to fall apart. Drain well.
In a large pot or dutch oven (preferred), place the beans and 8 cups water, bay leaves, and peeled orange. Bring to a boil, then lower to simmering. Cook for 45 minutes. Add all meats, and cook for 20-30 more minutes.
In a saute pan, fry the onion and garlic on olive oil. Add about 1 cup of beans from the pan, cook briefly and mash well with the back of a spoon. Return the whole mess to the dutch oven and adjust for salt. Let simmer for about 20-30 more minutes, until beans are tender and meats are falling apart willingly. Remove from heat and let cool about 10 minutes.
Serve with boiled, medium-grain white rice, orange slices, farofa and (chiffonaded) collard greens (that have been quickly fried in canola oil and drained on paper towels.
Farofa
2 tbsp canola oil
1 small onion, minced
4 slices smoked bacon, minced
1 cup toasted manioc flour (farinha de mandioca torrada)
1 bunch scallions – only the dark green tops! – thinly sliced
salt and black pepper to taste
Saute the onion and bacon in the oil over low heat until the bacon is fully rendered and crisp. Add the flour a little at a time, stirring to coat. Add the scallions when the flour has just begun to brown. Remove from heat, mix well.
Serve at any temperature, and refrigerate any unused portion.
Raising resilient expat children?
I feel like I began this year on a very ‘introspective mode‘, rethinking life, our lifestyle, and the way we plan on leading it forward…
This is a third post on my ‘random thoughts‘ about bringing our children out [first one discussed multilingualism and its approach as parents; and the second one dealt with 'how to approach' diversity issues], especially when it comes to the heterogeneous society they [children] are about to face…. any moment from now… [find all interesting links to great discussions at the bottom of this post!]
For a child, especially the young ones, parents are their strongest link to the concepts of ‘reality‘ and ‘normalcy‘.
That said, I recently found from Expat Child, a fantastic site for inspirations for any parent out there, even if they’re not ‘serial expats’ like our family:
[and my deepest appreciation to the site authors for bringing out such an interesting discussion!]
Five Quotes On Resilience
It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change. – Charles Darwin
Resilient children tend to have parents who are concerned with their children’s education, who participate in that education, who direct their children everyday task, and who are aware of their children interests and goals. Another important characteristic of resilient children is having at least one significant adult in their lives. – Linda F. Winfield
Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear. – Mark Twain
There are two lasting bequests we can give our children: one is roots, the other is wings. – Hodding Carter
Self-esteem is the real magic wand that can form a child’s future. A child’s self-esteem affects every area of her existence, from friends she chooses, to how well she does academically in school, to what kind of job she gets, to even the person she chooses to marry. – Stephanie Martson
I don’t have answers for these questions, and maybe, secretly, would hope to find a few over here… from other expat/parents out there... I’m aware that we [parents] are all seeking answers, suggestions, so, I’ll echo my voice with many more… who knows? Comments/messages are very much appreciated, and more than welcome! “How are we [parents] working on raising more [socially] resilient children?”
Thank you!
Related articles
- Comments and extra thoughts on being a multilingual parent… (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Expat Families: Story Telling Can Be Key to Success in Raising Happy Children Who Grow Up Abroad, Parenting Expert Julia Simens Writes (sys-con.com)
- What’s a Third Culture Kid? (iwasanexpatwife.com)
- Diversity (resetparenting.wordpress.com)
- Language and TCKs (raisingtcks.com)
- Embracing Diversity as an Expat: “How could we help our children around this issue?” (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Home is where the heart is… (bxlsprout.com)
Photo Journal: Alasitas, the Aymara Festival of Abundance.
During the month of January, we were introduced to the popular Alasitas! Miniatures representing a wish one is seeking pursuing. It could be a house, a job, a diploma, a car, food for the pantry, a construction building or construction supplies…even money! [they actually had miniature copies of dollar, euro and peso/boliviano bills!].
The Alasitas is a 3-week long fair that, in La Paz, takes place beginning on the 24th of January. Everything is in miniature! This festival originally started when farmers prayed for a good crop so their harvest would be bountiful. Alasitas is an Aymara festival Bolivia celebrates in reverence of the indigenous “god of bounty” or “abundance” called the Ekeko.
Therefore, Alasitas has been called the Festival of Abundance. Ekeko is a diminutive fellow with a jolly disposition. His happiness may have something to do with the material wealth overflowing in his arms. Miniature versions of dollar bills, euros, fancy cars, houses, and college diplomas can all be seen in the presence of Ekeko. This event is based in the city of La Paz, but can also be seen in other cities of Bolivia.
Old, young and children become excited to acquire bills, houses, vehicles, household items, college diplomas… The desire to buy some bills is so that one’s pockets aren’t empty during the year. In addition to shopping, there was some excitement to find those that in Aymara are called “YATIRIS,” which can be said to mean “PSYCHIC,” so that they can CHALLAR (bless) the purchased miniatures, which helps make these wishes into reality. The challa is an Andean ritual that sprinkle these items with a drink (alcohol or wine) and cover them with incense.
People would buy their ‘product of desire’ and have it blessed by a priest [at the church] or by a native yatiiri… Some people chose both options, why not? :o
Miniatures for every taste and wish: your dream house, your car, passports, credit cards & suitcases for that long waited travel… or, maybe, that wonderful engagement ring…
For those ladies seeking marriage(!!), why not go for a blessed miniature of a Rooster?! That could guarantee not only a good mate for the seeking lady, but also, would ensure he could father many children! [for the unmarried men, there's also a version, with Chicken, instead of the male bird...]
Having trouble finding a job? Getting your College Degree? Or… putting an end to a bad marriage? Find there miniatures of Work Contracts, College Diplomas and… a Divorce Certificate! [top left, kid's hand, "compre aqui su sentencia de divorcio" = buy here your divorce agreement!]
What about you? What would be your ‘miniature of desire’?
Thank you for reading, and lots of luck in 2013!
Related articles
- Bolivians stage miniature festival in tribute to god of abundance (rawstory.com)
- Market of minis took off in Bolivia (bigpondnews.com)
Photography: Isla del Sol, Bolivia.
Trying an unusual blogging experience here!
I hope you’ll enjoy this post. Before you begin reading, let’s try this: “what do you expect to see through this post? What type of images come to your mind when you read ‘Isla del Sol’? ‘Bolivia’? — please let me know your thoughts by dropping me a comment below: did the results live up to your expectations? – obviously, share your thoughts after checking all these beautiful images out! ♥ Thank you!
This is the third post of a series on our visit to the main Bolivian town on the shore of Lake Titicaca. The previous posts focused on people and our perception of their lives, as well as our ‘on-foot exploration’ of the Copacabana town [missed the great images? No problem! Just hop over to the posts using these links: stop 1 & stop 2!]
From our home, La Paz, to the town of Copacabana, we drove some 172 kilometers, route including a ride on a Ferry Boat! Once in town, we took a 2-hour boat, packed with tourists, families, kids, to the mystic Isla del Sol, for an exciting and exhausting challenging (!!) 3 hour hike through the rocky mountains, towards the pre-Inca ruins, the Sacred Inca Labyrinth, and a well deserved stop at the intriguing ‘floating islands’ [islas flotantes], artificially established fish farms, restaurants & rest areas, for some delicious trout lunch!
According to Wikitravel, “Isla del Sol (“Island of the Sun“) is the largest island on Lake Titicaca, and part of Bolivian territory. An ancient holy site of the Inca, it’s easily reachable from Copacabana“. Considering I love to search for meanings, reasons, traditional explanations, I really loved to learn that, “the Inca [people] legend says that Viracocha, the bearded god who created the universe, emerged from the waters of Lake Titicaca and created the sun at this location”… How can something get any cooler than this? That said, we’ve been to the place where it all began… or at least, the spot where the Sun was created! ♥
Lovely, right? And the images are a testimony of that… take a look and enjoy this journey with our traveling family!
The boat ride to the Isla del Sol…
…and snapshots of the floating islands and the fish [trout] farms!
The floating restaurant
The floating restaurant
Detail from the trout farm
The fish farm
The floating restaurant
view from the floating restaurant
Learning a bit about the island and its features:
A full-day tour took two hours to get from Copacabana to Cha’llapampa, two and a half hours to see the museum and make a round trip hike to the Rock of the Puma, and back to the Inca Steps and two hours for the ride back to Copacabana.
It’s possible to hike from the Rock of the Puma back to Yumani (three hours) and catch the boat from there. Our family just could not do this, and we skipped the extra 3-hour hike, due to exhausted kids… But, our adventure was well-worthy:
- Cha’llapampa, the town on the northern end of the island, is where the boat lets you off. The Gold Museum (Museo de Oro) displays Inca treasures which were discovered underwater off the island in the last decade.
- The sights on the northern tip are ancient Inca sacred sites. The Rock of the Puma, or Titi Kharka, after which the lake is named.
- A short distance from the rock is the Inca Table, a low platform fashioned of stone. which was supposedly used for human sacrifices. The Footsteps of the Sun nearby are a set of natural impressions in rock.
- From Yumani on the southern part of the island, the Inca Steps descend down to the water. At the bottom is the Fountain of Youth.
Finally, once at the island, our hiking adventure through mysticism, tradition & culture!
Blessing the hikers
Pre-Inca Ruins
Entering the Sacred Labyrinth
Pre-Inca Ruins
Sacred Labyrinth
Sacred Labyrinth
The Table of Sacrifices
The youngest hiker
The Sacred Labyrinth
Aerial view from the villa
View from the top of the mountain
Photo Journal: Cultural trip to Copacabana, Bolivia.
Typical lady of Copacabana, selling bread in front of the church. Photo taken at the Basilica of the Virgin of Copacabana
This is the second post of a series on the city of Copacabana, the main Bolivian town on the shore of Lake Titicaca.
The previous post focused more on people and our perception of their lives, the image on the right should give a pretty good first impression of what we found during our visit [if curious, hop over to the post using this link!]
Our path towards a very restful weekend. Bags packed, kids packed, car tank full. Let’s begin! ♥
172 kilometers to drive, route including a Ferry!
Leaving La Paz was a breeze! Not the heavy traffic we expected throughout El Alto, and as a bonus, some very interesting buildings along the way - see below!
Our kids simply loved their ‘new way of moving’ along the Lake!
Our ‘home away from home’, Hotel Rosario do Lago Titicaca, a welcome respite in this funky beach town …. heavenly views, spacious rooms very tastefully decorated, modern and spacious bath, comfortable and beautiful beds. Food is fantastic with beautiful views overlooking lake and lovely gardens… Here is what we spotted from our hotel, while enjoying a cup of coffee [me] or a chilled beer [husband] – the magnificent Lake Titicaca:
The city was completely ready for pilgrims and tourists coming from all sorts of places. People seeking blessings, people honoring promises, people of faith and tourists. The colorful city of Copacabana had a special place for each and every one of them!
The street markets were a sure hotspot for visitors! Clothing articles, leather-made products, typical food, ‘the famous tostadas’ were among the offers!
Hiking options were also available to all, and again, the reasons varied with the will: adventure, faith, curiosity, photography… you name it! The views from up top the Calvary Hill are definitely priceless, and made us forget the difficulties climbing up through the 14 Stations [of the Cross] with a bunch of little kids!
Entrance to the “Calvary”
Detail from one of the “Stations of the Cross”
…and more kids along the way!
Detail: hiking and adventure see no boundaries… no age is too young!
The beginning of the hike along the Calvary Hill
Our youngest member of the hiking team: a 2-yr-old girl”
The little members of our family’s hiking team – our kids!
The city of Copacabana, spotted from our hiking mid-point
Moms & Kids, resting at mid-point.
Detail from another one of the 14 Stations of the Cross
Once at the top of the Calvary Hill, we were introduced to the popular Alasitas! Miniatures representing a wish. It could be a house, a job, a diploma, a car…even money! [they actually had miniature copies of dollar bills!]
People would buy their ‘product of desire’ and have it blessed by a priest [at the Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana] or by a native yakiri… Some people chose both options, why not? :o
At the top of the Calvary Hill, it was time to enjoy the magnificent natural beauty around us: the Lake seemed endless, powerful, and yet, soothing. The deep blue colors from the waters mirrored the blue ceiling the sky was offering to all the ones brave enough to accomplish the walk up… ♥
After all this, were we tired? For a bit, we were, for sure. But we found enough energy to keep moving on, and exploring… an island! The Isla del Sol [Sun Island], a 2-hour boat ride away from Copacabana, with occasional stops at the ‘floating islands‘… But this will be part of an upcoming post… For now, just get back to the images, enjoy them, and if you wish, let us know what you think! Thanks for tagging along with our ‘traveling family of 5′!’
[Spanish] Copacabana, región encantadora a orillas del Lago Titikaka, está situada a una altura de 3.841 m.s.n.m, y a una distancia de 155 km la ciudad de La Paz, que es la sede de Gobierno de Bolivia y la ciudad más importante del país.
El recorrido desde La Paz toma aproximadamente 3 horas y media por carretera asfaltada. Copacabana, casi es un paso obligatorio entre Cusco (Perú) y la ciudad de La Paz.
Related articles
- Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 4, 'Love']. (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Photo Essay: People and Feelings of Copacabana, Bolivia. (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Bolivia Vacations (orbitz.com)
Willing to travel? Check out this suggestion on cheap tickets from Flighthub!
Photo Essay: People and Feelings of Copacabana, Bolivia.
Typical lady of Copacabana, selling bread in front of the church. Photo taken at the Basilica of the Virgin of Copacabana patio, where she patiently waited for the Mass to end…
This is the first post of a series on the city of Copacabana, the main Bolivian town on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It’s an amateur attempt to capture more than just images, landscapes and hotspots from the enormous Lake Titicaca and its surroundings – it’s an experiment to enter people’s lives and understand their feelings… That’s why it’s being called ‘People and Feelings of Copacabana‘.
[Spanish] Copacabana, región encantadora a orillas del Lago Titikaka, está situada a una altura de 3.841 m.s.n.m, y a una distancia de 155 km la ciudad de La Paz, que es la sede de Gobierno de Bolivia y la ciudad más importante del país. El recorrido desde La Paz toma aproximadamente 3 horas y media por carretera asfaltada. Copacabana, casi es un paso obligatorio entre Cusco (Perú) y la ciudad de La Paz.
Religion, devotion, faith – many names for the several different ways of approaching what’s believed to be a stronger, powerful protective force… People seeking blessings, seeking help, seeking guidance…
The town has a large 16th-century shrine, the Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana. Our Lady of Copacabana is the patron saint of Bolivia. As part of our trip, we also visited the Isla del Sol, and appreciated the long and heartwarming hike through the rocky paths, up to the pre-Inca ruins – sensations and feelings, were everywhere…
More still to come on our recent family 4-day road trip, but for now, let’s begin with these very personal and intimate photo shots… Hope you are all able to perceive the same sensations we got… ♥ Let us know!
Snapshots of Artistic Expressions. A visit to the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo in La Paz.
Art galleries in La Paz have been springing up like cactus flowers after the rains.
Many are within an easy walk from one another. Is there a better way for getting to know the beauties (and resources) this colorful city offers?
Now, that I’m comfortable enough to walk around the city, I’ve begun a series of posts about art in the city, this one being the result of an afternoon visit to a current Art Exhibit at the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo ‘Plaza’, in La Paz. Oh, the temporary advantages of being a ‘stay-home-mom’! ♥
Got some free time to explore, what about nicely educating yourself on the country’s history, art and endless man-made beauty? I’ve got, and I’m slowly educating myself... through art and history!
[All images provided here were taken by me - with permission].
Still curious for more?
Find below a list of gallery websites, and/or related resources:
Bolivian Painter Claudia Soria
Online gallery of paintings by Bolivian painter Claudia Soria.
Bolivian Painter Emma Rosario Imana de Murguia
Biography of the artist and some art work samples (Italian).
El Retorno de los Angeles
Amazing online exhibition of Bolivian baroque paintings (angels, archangels, virgins and saints).
Galería de Arte y Cultura de Bolivia
Art and culture gallery. Paintings, masks, enbroideries, books, and videos for sale.
Jorge Crespo Berdecio
Artist in metal work, serigraphy, xilography, and lithography.
Jorge Hurtado’s Fine Art Gallery
Works in fine arts, illustration, and graphic design. Nice site.
Mamani Mamani
Collection paintings catalogued by theme: mothers, flowers, archangels, birds among others.
Marcelo Videa – Surrealismo Apechurrado
Surrealist art. Paintings, drawings, sculptures, and ceramic.
Orlando Arias Morales
Creative ecstasy in the works of Bolivian painter Orlando Arias Morales. Portfolio.
Paula Lopez – Art Gallery
Resume, exhibitions and pictures.
Pedro Portugal
Bolivian artist. Paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and murals.
Sanjines Art
Website for Bolivian Artist and Photographer Marcelo Sanjines.
Taipinquiri
Culture, architecture, and arts center. Paintings, sculptures and books.
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 3, 'Beyond']
With at least a post a week for 2013, which I’m calling “52 Bolivian Sundays”, I keep moving forward with the plan to share my [photo] impressions about our surroundings, the culture we’re currently calling ‘ours’, the place we’ll call home for the next year and a half…
Today, for the third Sunday of 2013, I’m sharing one of photo I snapped during a recent visit to a local Art Exhibit in town. The photo responds to the weekly photo challenge, “Beyond“, trying to answer to: “Do you have a photo which invites the viewer to look beyond?”
Leading the readers through the story in the photo. What do YOU SEE BEYOND the picture?
This is s very powerful picture, an oil painting, part of this months current Art Exhibit at the Museo de Arte Contemporaneo ‘Plaza’, in La Paz [more images from my visit to the museum to come later this week, after we return from our family escape to the Lake Titicaca!].
The image has many possible meanings/interpretations, although I believe there’s not doubt about its powerful impact/reaction… The picture portraits the image of a kid, maybe in despair? And, at the same time you find yourself looking at the helpless face of this boy, you discover the image is being ‘ripped off’ from its reality, which brings us to the questions:
‘Is it all real?‘ ‘Is all the pain portrait here, simply an illusion?’ Is the image a symbol of a lost childhood?’
What about you? What are you seeing beyond the painted image? ♥
Original posts from Photo Project:
- Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 1, 'Resolved']. (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 2, 'Illumination']. (3rdculturechildren.com)
The Big Move: shared from the HuffingtonPost
Moving homes can be one of the most stressful times in someone’s life. Does it always have to be such a nightmare, or can there be a breezy move?
Originally aired on January 14, 2013
Hosted by:
- Nancy Red
-
WOW: Moving is the 3rd Most Stressful Life Event Moving is a big source of stress for many Americans every year. And it’s listed as the 3rd most stressful life event.View Original
“You’ve been Freshly Pressed… Again!”
I’ve been blogging for exactly 22 months [the first post went live on March 11, 2011, about the Largest Street Carnaval in Brazil – and apparently, it didn’t take long to be picked up by Pop Pressed‘s radar, on March 2011. Link here for full post].
But it’s always nice to get that sweet email from the WordPress editors… Especially, for the second time.. what are the odds? Thank you all for reading! ♥
A bit of Math here [and my former Algebra students who thought they were free from this!]: The chances of being Freshly Pressed are, on any given day, about 12 per million. Well, considering that just happened for the second time, it brings the odds to… 1 in 6,400,000,000
Maybe I should move on to playing the lottery?!
Curious about the ‘map it out post’? HERE it is!
It’s [Girls Scout] Cookie time! [Sharing information from The Dinoia Family]
This community we’re part of [Foreign Service] is all about networking and sharing… sharing information, advice, comments, experiences… In sharing, we all become stronger, and able to keep moving forward! That said, I’m now sharing some information learned from The Dinoia Family‘s Blog, about this year’s Girls Scout Cookies Initiative, involving a couple of other very active ladies [and their daughters!] from the FS community – definitely, a great one! And I’m very grateful for the opportunity to be sharing their initiative and efforts!
Quoted from The Dinoia Family’s blog:
“Yep…it’s cookie time!
Girl Scout cookies are back and we are on those orders! In fact, this year, we are working together with Jill and Riley to spread the cookie goodness far and wide throughout the Foreign Service. We have made it terribly easy to enjoy those once-a-year treats that you buy en masse because they are so darn yummy (and ship well!).
To make it easy, I have copied the “how to” from Jill’s blog. Follow these simple instructions and you, too, could be enjoying those cookies very soon! And now…Spanish homework is calling again…
Want cookies? Read the excerpt from Jill’s post below and just follow the instructions!
First and foremost, we don’t want to step on anyone’s toes, so our joint efforts are focused on providing Girl Scout Cookies solely to our Foreign Service friends overseas, where we can ship to an APO/FPO/DPO or pouch address. If you are our family members or personal friends and want to buy from us rather than from the little girlies who are SURE to knock on your door sometime in the next few months, that’s great too. But we’ll take care of you outside of this joint venture.Just like the last few years, the cookies are only $4 / box … with all your favorites returning!
- Thin Mints
- Samoas
- Thank You Berry Munch
- Trefoils
- Dulce de Leche
- Tagalongs
- Do-Si-Dos
- Savannah Smiles
Here’s how to order:1) Attempt to narrow down how many boxes you want (versus how many boxes your eyes and stomach want.)2) Send an email to DSforGS@yahoo.com by Friday, January 18th, with …* Your Name* Your Post* Your Address* Exactly how many of each kind you’d like3) When the cookies come in, send us your payment via paypal, and we’ll get them out to you ASAP. We’ll send you an email invoice letting you know your totals.It’s THAT simple.We will be shipping the cookies in the USPS Flat Rate boxes. The current APO/FPO rate is $13.45 for a 12″ x 12″ x 5 1/2″ box … and we can fit 8 boxes of cookies in them. And as an incentive … you pay the first $10 / box, and we’ll pick up the rest!A wee bit of additional information …** If you are at a post overseas, pass along this information to any of your friends. We would LOVE to outfit your entire Consulate or Embassy.** Consider combining orders with your friends to help reduce shipping costs.** Between the two families, our girls sold over 1100 boxes of cookies to 50+ countries during the last two years to FS personnel.** We set up the DSforGS@yahoo.com email address so that we could make it easy to get more cookies shipped out to more places. If you know either of us personally and want our daughters to send out your cookies – no worries. Just say so in your email. Otherwise, we have divided up the world behind the scenes so that all you need to do is send in your order, and let us take care of the rest!Now what are you waiting for? Happy ordering!”
Please hop back to Jen Dinoia‘s blog for more information! Thank you!♥
{Weekly Writing Challenge} Map it out!
Moving as an expat…
[Backstory, inspiration from WP] “As bloggers, we scan through photos and descriptive tales from our fellow writers who share their travels with us… Maps symbolize the places we’ve been, the places we want to go, and the places we’ll end up, even if we don’t know it yet…”
That said, I’m taking up on the challenge, and ‘mapping out’ the places in my life. Just the important, ‘life event’ moves. A couple years back when I began blogging, I decided to name this blog, representing/expressing what my [now 3] kids are: the product of their mom’s and dad’s hybrid/joined cultures. Moving is part of our lives, and was part of mine way before meeting the so-called ‘best-half’. Maps are a frequent guest at my posts, and this time, responding to the challenge, I’m ‘mapping out my life’, the moves I’ve endured as a nomad child back in Brazil, the ones leading me to a new path as an expat, mother and ‘trailing spouse‘… ♥
The beginning: ‘this child is born’, in a small Japanese colony, in Southeastern Brazil:
Itaguaí, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
The original family moves to the nation’s capital, for a fantastic couple of decades of friendships, schooling, learning, growing, language, cultural and life experiences:
Professional opportunities keep leading that grown child to keep moving up… and North!
Life presents itself in very strange ways... and sometimes, love, personal life & work seem to agree with each other… a few fortunate moments, that one must take advantage of… and move on! Again, keep moving up… and North! The new home, now officially an expat, the “D” city indicated by the map – working as a foreign research fellow, in Davis, CA.
One day, we all come to the realization that it’s necessary to say ‘YES’ to a lifetime commitment… and so I did! And the acceptance brought me to a new address, some 2,800 miles away, to new work opportunities, to a new life as a spouse:
What happens when a ‘nomad child’ marries another ‘nomad spirit’?
Well, they move, together with their first ‘world citizen‘! This time, as a ‘trailing spouse’ and a mom, I’m going back South… to Southern Africa…
It came time to welcome our second child… so then we moved to a neighboring country, for a little while…
We were done with our work in Africa, and had to return to our original home. Back in Washington DC, before heading out to our next adventure… From “A” to “B”, landing in “C”, and welcoming our third child into the world [of traveling!]:
But since we’ve got ‘itchy souls‘, common to world travelers, we may not stop… We’re always moving, and as a result of work, lifestyle and adventurous minds, we find ourselves in a different place, the beautiful country of Bolivia… for now! Thanks for following us, and… what about you? What is YOUR JOURNEY? Feel free to leave a link at the comments section for others to ‘live thru your experiences’!!
Related: Writing Challenge: Map It | Fi’s Mutterings & Mumblings
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays [week 1, 'Resolved'].
Well, this is the time to come up with New Year Resolutions. I’m no different than many others, and since once of my resolutions is to get better at photoblogging, I’ve resolved to do something.
My resolution? Trying to blog better, more consistently… this year, I’ll see if I can abide by a weekly schedule… with at least a post a week for 2013, which I’m calling “52 Bolivian Sundays”, my plan to share my [photo] impressions about our surroundings, the culture we’re currently calling ‘ours’, the place we’ll call home for the next year and a half… Hopefully, I’ll stick to the plan, and have a photo post out every Sunday… 52 images of natural landscapes, people, culture, food, tradition, daily life, social events, artistic expressions… you name it! But each and every one of them need to represent the place we’re now calling home, the beautiful country of Bolivia! ♥
Today, the first Sunday of 2013, the opening photo is inspired by the weekly photo challenge, “Resolved“. My first resolution for the year: getting out [more] and exploring the country. We haven’t done a lot of traveling in these past 5 months here, but now it’s time to explore… and find out what’s hiding behind these mountains… or, what lies beyond these clouds…
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (hawth.me)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (kncali.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (Organ Player Paris) (chrisbreebaart.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (scsurfbutler.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (windagainstcurrent.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (pilotfishblog.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (artistoftheeveryday.wordpress.com)
- New post Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (thebeltanedaily.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (thepanamaadventure.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Photo Challenge: Resolved (myblogexactly.wordpress.com)
Snapshots of Artistic Expressions in La Paz. Part I: Paintings.
![Quenua Tree [oil on canvas]](http://3rdculturechildren.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/img_4726.jpg?w=162&h=217 "Quenua Tree [oil on canvas]")
My most recent creation, showcasing the love affair with a unique tree – the Andean Queñoa, from my front yard!
Art galleries in La Paz have been springing up like cactus flowers after the rains. Many are within an easy walk from one another. Is there a better way for getting to know the beauties (and resources) this colorful city offers? Now, that La Paz is our home, and I’m comfortable enough to walk around the city, I’ve begun a series of posts about art in La Paz, this initial one is about ‘Painting’, bringing up a list of resources for other visitors/expats, like myself. Also, this month I’ll resume my painting classes – something I’d stopped while back in Brazil when my baby girl was born (2010). Here in La Paz I already got one canvas out, but still feel the enormous need to improve my skills, and learn more techniques… Oh, the temporary advantages of being a ‘stay-home-mom’! Got some free time to explore, what about nicely educating yourself on the country’s history, art and endless man-made beauty? I’ve got, and I’m slowly educating myself... through art and history!
[All images provided here were taken by me - with permission - at different art galleries throughout the neighborhood of San Miguel, La Paz].
Here, 3 of my “creations”…
Find below a list of gallery websites, and/or related resources:
Bolivian Painter Claudia Soria
Online gallery of paintings by Bolivian painter Claudia Soria.
Bolivian Painter Emma Rosario Imana de Murguia
Biography of the artist and some art work samples (Italian).
El Retorno de los Angeles
Amazing online exhibition of Bolivian baroque paintings (angels, archangels, virgins and saints).
Galería de Arte y Cultura de Bolivia
Art and culture gallery. Paintings, masks, enbroideries, books, and videos for sale.
Jorge Crespo Berdecio
Artist in metal work, serigraphy, xilography, and lithography.
Jorge Hurtado’s Fine Art Gallery
Works in fine arts, illustration, and graphic design. Nice site.
Mamani Mamani
Collection paintings catalogued by theme: mothers, flowers, archangels, birds among others.
Marcelo Videa – Surrealismo Apechurrado
Surrealist art. Paintings, drawings, sculptures, and ceramic.
Orlando Arias Morales
Creative ecstasy in the works of Bolivian painter Orlando Arias Morales. Portfolio.
Paula Lopez – Art Gallery
Resume, exhibitions and pictures.
Pedro Portugal
Bolivian artist. Paintings, sculptures, ceramics, and murals.
Sanjines Art
Website for Bolivian Artist and Photographer Marcelo Sanjines.
Taipinquiri
Culture, architecture, and arts center. Paintings, sculptures and books.
Comments and extra thoughts on being a multilingual parent…
“Are you curious?” We are!
**UPDATE: Follow-up post discussing thoughts on Diversity & Raising Children as Expats
I often talk about the challenges of parenting, especially considering the difficulties placed by language and culture, one of the many issues associated with moving to a different country, every couple of years. That said, I took a look back at the posts published in 2012, mainly on parenting & language, and found one that generated a very instructive feedback; working as a sort of a ‘discussion forum‘, that I plan on exploring/expanding at length, some time this year… [Another one of my New Year's Resolutions... Like everyone else, I know there'll be a great deal of 'procrastination' before I'll be able to cross tasks off my 2013 to-do list!]
Oh, well, at least, I’m taking the time to revisit thoughts/facts/articles… it’s the first step for the beginning of a good research!
The post that got me thinking was one related to a simple question: “What type of multilingual parent are you?”, pointed out by the Mumsnet Bloggers Network for 2012; that had been initiated by a clever quote about the experience of raising bi/multilingual children:
“…raising multilingual children is an adventure you share together – one that is a lot of fun, but for which you will need quite a lot of patience. Sometimes, linguistic development will not progress in the way you hoped. That is fine, and everything will eventually work itself out. Sharing my language with my children has been about sharing my heritage more than anything else. It might be difficult at times, but it is a gift that will last a lifetime“.
Last year’s blogpost provoked a very positive reaction, expressed through the number of visitors, and especially, throughout the comments, coming from parents, consultants, educators, expats like ourselves, or simply, other parents who echo our opinions about how challenging, adventurous and/or never-ending this experience should be.
Learning should never stop, and teaching our kids through example is the best way to keep ourselves current! At least, that’s the hope!
Here are some of the comments, and based on their [shared] experiences, it could be YOUR TURN to answer – what type of multilingual parent are you? Or, even better, what type of [multilingual] parent you hope to become?
But first, let me thank all the visitors/readers who shared a comment, or who sent me a message [with your opinion/suggestion] regarding this topic. It makes the blogging experience much richer, more productive, and way more enjoyable! My deepest appreciation to all of you! ♥
Visitor
My husband is a German TCK growing up in Taiwan, and thinks in English most of the time. He is fluent in German and can read fairly well – though he is more comfortable in English. We are living in a Chinese environment and have been since we’ve been married. We had high hopes of me speaking English and him speaking German, but that didn’t work out. I’d say mainly because he didn’t think in German when the oldest was born – he rarely spoke German to anyone. So, remembering to speak it at home was difficult. He did better speaking Chinese to them. On top of this, his family all speaks English fluently, so there was no pressure on us in that regard as well.
I do have a question, though that I’m wondering. Will you continue to educate your children in all three languages through middle school and high school or focus more on one language? I’m just really curious about this. You seem to be really doing a great job with them right now so that they master both written and spoken of the three. Great post to ponder on…
Visitor
In our house we speak English, Spanish and Dutch and the boys seem to know all three languages equally. My five year old is a dynamo with languages. He can switch, translate and think in all three. My two year old understands all three but is not as talkative as my five year old was. We lived in Mozambique with the older one until the age of three and he was able to speak 4 languages when we lived there. It is curious to see how the different children take to the languages differently. I thought for sure my two year old would be the same since we haven’t done anything really different, but I noticed he is taking longer to use his words, although you can see he understands all three. I call Dutch the secret language in my house, because only the boys (not me) speak it. So basically this is how it works: School = English, Language we speak as a family = English, Mommy = Spanglish to the boys (more spanish), Daddy = Dutch to the boys, Empleada/Nanny = always Spanish. The boys will also take Dutch lessons once or twice a week. It is definitely challenging, but so worth it. We don’t really think about it… just the way we live our life.
Visitor
Enjoyed your post! All the more so since /multilingual-multicultural life – as mentioned by Sakti above – is part and parcel of life in India! I think it is an advantage more than a challenge, an opportunity to broaden horizons!
Visitor I am probably not looking at it from a parents’ perspective. My challenge is to make sure some of our less spoken languages – that includes my mother tongue, that my grandkids can not speak! – do not become extinct!
Visitor
Very interesting. I am from India and we have a different challenge as India has more than 2 dozens of official languages. I studied a different language (Odia) than my mother tongue (Bengali) and now staying in a state, which speak another language (Gujarati). Everybody in India speaks English and Hindi. So my kids (both below 6 years) now have almost learnt to speak and understand all the above languages. Yes it is a challenge.
Visitor
Thanks for the mention of our upcoming session on Emotional Resiliency in Foreign Service Kids that will be held next week (*). Even though you won’t get to see it live, AFSA will upload the video to their website for worldwide viewing.
I wish I could comment on what kind of bilingual parent I am…. but mine would be more of what I failure I was! When my daughter was 2, we left Portugal, where we had spoken Portuguese in the home when our housekeeper was around. The housekeeper only spoke to my daughter in Portuguese from infancy, so our daughter understood Portuguese as well as English. When we left Portugal, I tried to continue the Portuguese with her, only – at the age of only 2! – she wouldn’t answer me in Portuguese and finally admonished me to “stop speaking like Dolores!” I finally gave up on it.
(*) Please refer to original post for the full text, and more details on the 2012 AFSA initiative.
Visitor
I’m inspired to speak spanish at home more now. My kids’ dad all speak Spanish and I beg them to speak Spanish to the kids but they haven’t. My mom was raised bilingual, I was until they couldn’t accurately diagnose my infant-aged hearing issues because they couldn’t tell if I didn’t hear them or didn’t understand them so they told my mom to stop speaking Hungarian to me and she did. But she still wishes she’d have kept up with it. Other countries are so great with this and the US doesn’t do enough!
Visitor
This is so interesting! We also got “moderate parent”. I try to speak spanish to them most of the time but sometimes forget. I also read to them in french and english is the main language in the household. I’m taking them to a spanish speaking playgroup in hopes Evan will be motivated by seeing other little kids speak spanish! Great post!
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- Raising Bilingual Children (babyzone.com)
- Happy New Multilingual Year! (lydgate.org)
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Bolivian New Year’s Tradition: Underwear for Good Luck!
Learning a bit more about the Bolivian culture is definitely part of my ‘unofficial duties‘ as an expat and a mother… We have lived in different places, and each country has its own way to greet the coming year… in Brazil, our previous post, the New Year is celebrated in white clothes, and at midnight, asking for blessings from Yemanjá, the protector of the waters.
Regarding the many different traditions for welcoming the New Year, the beautiful country of Bolivia couldn’t stay behind others, and for sure, brings out its very own expression of ‘luck’…
This time, I was quite surprised to find out how: WEARING YELLOW (AND/OR) RED UNDERWEAR! Similar to countries like Mexico, where colorful underwear is a ‘must-have’ for the New Year’s Eve, here in Bolivia, it’s important when the underwear is changed.
People have to buy some yellow [or red] underwear piece and wait for midnight… When it comes, they just run to a place to change it and believe that their luck will change as well! It’s also believed that this practice helps them find a loving mate. Red means an amorous love life ahead and yellow expresses the desire to gain money and wealth. The wishes of the locals are expressed via their underpants.
Think I’m just making it up? Take a look at the largest open market in Achumani, a residential area in La Paz, and tell me what you spot from the selling stands! ♥ The Cholitas selling their articles probably thought I was another ‘crazy foreigner‘ when asked them for permission to snap these shots… and they were a bit disappointed when learned I wasn’t gonna buy any pieces… ‘aren’t you concerned about your good fortune for next year?’ And with a smile, I just kindly thanked them for their time and help, and for explaining the meaning behind the colors; but told them I was happy with my present fortune… and that I’d be okay for the New Year’s, despite lacking a piece of undergarment displaying a money sign…
Wishing all a very HAPPY, COLORFUL & LUCKY NEW YEAR!
[even if you could not get your red/yellow piece of underclothing for good luck!]
Related articles
- Snapshots of the Ballet Folklorico de Potosi, Bolivia. A dinner and dance presentation in La Paz. (3rdculturechildren.com)
- Pachamama: Mother of All (takingtotheopenroad.wordpress.com)
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- 11 Unusual New Year’s Eve Traditions (lasesana.wordpress.com)
2013 arrived in style… 80s Style!
Image Credit: http://stuckonthe80s.com/
So, 2013 is here… and we got to celebrate it’s first hours surrounded by great music, yummy food, good friends, all of our kids, who joined us for the midnight celebration (yeap, kids were too excited to fall asleep, or even, take a short nap!); while we all watched the fireworks happening throughout the city of La Paz…♥
Earlier, I’d shared that a couple of our expat friends here had decided to put together an 80s party to welcome the New Year! Everyone had a blast, and here are some of the images from the last day of 2012, and the very first hours of 2013.
That’s what the New Year’s Celebration brought out! The best? Definitely the 80s hair styles… look at what people came up with!
Someone else who wrote about ‘Style’ for the New Year? Here!
Saying ‘Goodbye 2012′ in style. 80s Style!
Image Credit: http://stuckonthe80s.com/
Celebrating the arrival of 2013, and bidding farewell to a dear 2012… All with style – 80s style! Could there be a more fun way to do it?
[A confession, thank you very much, Robert Smith, for not only making my high school/early College years bearable, but also for helping me endure my recent parenting years, as a mother of 3 little ones...
Only another tired mom would understand the calming and motivational power of an 80s song...
Especially if, that same mom is ready to give up on her first-grader's homework on a Saturday morning!
Somehow, the 80s music finds a way to 'reach out to me', and bring me back to reality... Not in high school anymore... the sleepless nights are not due to some term paper or exam...
now, the short nights usually come from a crying kid with fever, or, another one having a nightmare; or simply, missing my well-deserved beauty rest by having a couple of extra 'bodies' in our bed... every single night, since 2005! ♥
But well, that's the path we chose, and the 80s music have always helped me thru 'tough times'... ♥ My favorite, without question, The Cure...
Wonders that only a blond wig can do! 5 years later, 3 kids, 2 more countries under the belt… the forties have arrived… let’s see what type of hairstyle this mom will bring out!
Let’s see what the New Year’s Celebration brings!
Now, not only I’ll go to a party with ‘my guy’, but a handful of other ‘accessories’, which will include a 7-year-old boy, who loves 70s & 80s music; an almost 5 year old girl who loves to dress up [like her mother!] and is ‘addicted’ to dance… and a 2-year-old girl, which’s still a bit young to define her style… time will tell…
Image Credit: http://www.spirithalloween.com
That said, getting these bad boys out of the closet [I mean, the leg warmers! mine are pink with white stripes], making sure the hair will be ‘par’ for the celebration, check the clothing colors [lots of them, and they better be bright!], accessories, make-up… and head to the party humming my favorite tunes!
NOW: on my way out to the local market, trying to find some ‘miracle hair products’ for tomorrow night’s bash!
Happy New Year to all of us!
2012 in review, according to the WordPress stats helper monkeys…
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog. Here’s an excerpt:
19,000 people fit into the new Barclays Center to see Jay-Z perform. This blog was viewed about 68,000 times in 2012. If it were a concert at the Barclays Center, it would take about 4 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.
Click here to see the complete report.
A look back at 2012: why people came to this blog? At the end, we’re all stats junkies!
Image Credit: http://blog.hubspot.com
2012 will be over in a couple of days!
A very intense year, in many levels, scenarios… Our family moved several times throughout the year… we got to live in 3 different countries [Brazil, USA, Bolivia}, lived out of suitcases for a long time; kids had to say goodbye to their dear friends, and say 'hello' to the ones becoming their new friends and teachers, adjusting to a new school, new cultures, and now, we're happily settled in Nuestra Señora de La Paz, capital of Bolivia...
At this moment, looking back at 2012, and preparing the 'retrospective': popular posts, interaction with other bloggers, popular searches/forums... good discussions... Good therapy, some may say - and I'm glad to agree - when it came to blogging, got a lot done this year, sharing our experiences, challenges regarding parenting, multilingual living, cultural adjustments... work... expatriate and family daily life.... So, why visitors, readers, commenters, came to this blog? Most of them are expatriates, like our own 'nomad family', some belong to the Foreign Service community, and are well familiar with the challenges faced by the 5 of us. Others, are parents, travelers, adventurers, looking for images, photos, tips about travel options, or simply... curious eyes in search of a good reading, or a funny/intriguing/amazing image from our travels and/or not-so-fantastic daily life!
Image Credit: http://www.seomoves.org
Now, I find myself with some time after the Christmas holidays, and with a chance to pull together the ‘highs and lows’ of 2012, displaying my gratitude to the readers, commenter, frequent visitors, who always enrich this blogging journey! A big thank you to all!
For a ‘visual summary‘ of 2012, please hop over to this other post, especially crafted for WordPress‘s weekly photo challenge, the last one of 2012: A year through images!
For all the ‘fellow stats junkies’ out there [don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about! ] here it is, this past year, through numbers… Who came in, looking for what, and the most popular posts…
Top visitors {countries}:
United States
Brazil
Canada
India
Australia
Popular Posts/Articles
2012 displayed an average of 246 blog comments/month, averaging 186 views a day.
Here are the ‘top commenters‘ [thank you for the very positive interaction!]
journeyman1977 - Lucid Gypsy - colonialist - eof737 - fgassette - travelgardeneat |
And which ones were the most commented posts? The ones with the strongest human interaction? [Again, my deepest gratitude for all the feedback received!]
See you all back in 2013! Let’s all have a great, peaceful and successful New Year!
Thanks for stopping by!
************
[Backstory] I initially began this blog to share my impressions, observations and along-the-road experiences with our families and friends, and later, with other expats experiencing similar challenges/adventures…
…so, the blog morphed into more than just a quasi-travel and photo journal. I liked the idea of organizing not only our travel notes, but also providing resources for other parents, and encouraging an exchange of ideas through comments, questions and suggestions from viewers. The name for the blog came from the term itself: “3rd Culture Children” (TCKs, more information here) are children whose parents come from distinct cultures, and grow up under a hybrid environment, experiencing diverse cultural growth.
Travels in Brazil, posts related to outdoors activities, cultural events, such as attending the world’s largest open air theater for the Re-enacting of the Passion of Christ, as well as the ones showing scientific investigations and natural discoveries, seemed to be quite popular! 
‘Adventure‘ popular posts:
Visiting the Archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, swimming along with marine dolphins (Brazilian Atlantic coast, World Heritage Site, according to UNESCO)
Builiding a Hanging Garden using Recycled PET Bottles - teaching the importance of respecting the environment.
I’m grateful to Ruth Bailey, for the recent nomination – the 7 x 7 Link Award, where one’s supposed to highlight 7 recent important blogposts. Many thanks to Cyclingrandma, for offering the Good Apple award.
Nominated by a couple of bloggers in 2011 & 2012
Thank you, ClaudiaJohnson, for the nomination!
For a working mom, juggling with the work-life balance, in charge of anything from grocery shopping to planning trips, I’m honored. I’m so pleased to share with other expatriates, parents, and traveling families, the beauty and excitement of traveling, exploring nature (I’m a biologist!), languages (we’ve got Spanish, Portuguese and English in our household!), social/cultural adjustments, and our not-so-professional advice as “parents-on-the-go“ - imagine hauling this family of 5 around, raising multi-language TCKs, and keeping the passion for photography and story-telling?!
Weekly Photo Challenge: My 2012 in 12 Pictures.
June 2012: After 2 years at post, our family says goodbye to Brazil in style, surrounded by friends & family!!
2012 will mark the 12th New Year’s Eve with my guy… yeah, the one riding the Peace & Love 70s van with me, just pictured above… ♥ And this December we celebrate 110 months of married life… it sure goes by pretty fast!
How was the year of 2012?
Apparently, we all did okay through the Mayan quasi-apocalipse, so, that’s a pretty positive point!
It’s often said that images speak more than words, so…. Considering that during 2012, we had homes in three countries, it was a bit of challenge to pick an image to represent each month, but, why not give it a shot? :
Here is our 2012, through photos!
August 2012: New life, new school, new friends. School kids receive their ‘welcome’ with a traditional ‘Salteñada’.
July 2012: Spending Home Leave in the USA. During a family Reunion, kids get to ‘show their colors!
September 2012: Learning about our new home, the beautiful country of Bolivia. First stop: the traditional architecture of the San Francisco Church
October 2012: Halloween at the USAID/Bol Compound
“November 2012: Celebrating the Anniversary of the Marine Corps. “Who doesn’t like a Ball?”
January 2012: Beginning the year cooking: a typical Portuguese/Brazilian dish: Shrimp casserole, here, with an added hint of…. beer!
June 2012: After 2 years at post, our family says goodbye to Brazil in style, surrounded by friends, family and co-workers!
March 2012: A trip full of adventure to the Archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, Northeast of Brazil.
May 2012: A visit to the Rainbow Warrior, ship from Greenpeace on Brazilian Waters.
February 2012: Enjoying the largest street carnival in the world – Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
December 2012: Scenes from old homes and present home. The warmest wishes for a fantastic New Year!
April 2012: Visiting the mystic city of Brasilia, capital of Brazil, for a USA/Brazil summit. Here, the architecture, lighting and unique beauty of the Metropolitan Cathedral.
August 2012: New life, new school, new friends. School kids receive their ‘welcome’ with a traditional ‘Salteñada’.
July 2012: Spending Home Leave in the USA. During a family Reunion, kids get to ‘show their colors!
September 2012: Learning about our new home, the beautiful country of Bolivia. First stop: the traditional architecture of the San Francisco Church
October 2012: Halloween at the USAID/Bol Compound
“November 2012: Celebrating the Anniversary of the Marine Corps. “Who doesn’t like a Ball?”
January 2012: Beginning the year cooking: a typical Portuguese/Brazilian dish: Shrimp casserole, here, with an added hint of…. beer!
June 2012: After 2 years at post, our family says goodbye to Brazil in style, surrounded by friends, family and co-workers!
March 2012: A trip full of adventure to the Archipelago of Fernando de Noronha, Northeast of Brazil.
May 2012: A visit to the Rainbow Warrior, ship from Greenpeace on Brazilian Waters.
February 2012: Enjoying the largest street carnival in the world – Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.
December 2012: Scenes from old homes and present home. The warmest wishes for a fantastic New Year!
April 2012: Visiting the mystic city of Brasilia, capital of Brazil, for a USA/Brazil summit. Here, the architecture, lighting and unique beauty of the Metropolitan Cathedral.
This week’s photo inspiration is to portrait 2012 in pictures… one per month… Let’s see how good of a job I did over here!
Happy Holidays to all!
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Getting ready to look back at 2012, remembering the most popular post in 2011!
Image Credit: http://blog.hubspot.com
2012 is almost over! A very intense year, in many levels, scenarios… Our family moved several times throughout the year… we got to live in 3 different countries [Brazil, USA, Bolivia}, lived out of suitcases for a long time; kids had to say goodbye to their dear friends, and say 'hello' to the ones becoming their new friends and teachers, adjusting to a new school, new cultures, and now, we're happily settled in Nuestra Señora de La Paz, capital of Bolivia...
At this moment, looking back at 2012, and preparing the 'retrospective': popular posts, interaction with other bloggers, popular searches/forums... good discussions... Good therapy, some may say - and I'm glad to agree - when it came to blogging, got a lot done this year, sharing our experiences, challenges regarding parenting, multilingual living, cultural adjustments... work... expatriate and family daily life....
Image Credit: http://www.seomoves.org
Before I get a chance to pull together the ‘highs and lows’ of 2012, displaying my gratitude to the readers, commenter, frequent visitors, who always enrich this blogging journey, I remembered last year, WordPress came up with a great initiative for all bloggers and readers: the year in blogging… That said, I thought it could be a great way to get ready for this year’s review. Post write-up is both in English and Portuguese, since we were living in Brazil, at that time… Maybe, if I’m gutsy enough, I could try to prepare this year’s review post in English and Spanish (Bolivia’s official language)??
************************
Here’s this blog’s ‘first year’s review’ [2011], according to WP: [Anxious to know what's in store regarding 2012's review, as well as the plans for 2013!]
For some reason, according to the WP blogging annual report (shown/posted yesterday), today I’m sharing the post that got the highest number of unique views (over 2,500 views in one day, September 2011), surpassing the one that’d been Freshly Pressed (about children and folklore in Brazil).
I had no idea that “directing” the photo shoot of my husband jumping into the paradisiac Blue Lagoon in Jericoacoara (Ceara, Brazil, one of the 10 most beautiful beaches in the world, according to the NY Times), could be so intriguing!
Anyway, thanks for checking it out, and here it is: The Blue Lagoon: Executing his best jumping, flying and diving moves!.
[Portugues] Depois que o jornal Washington Post, em 1994, incluiu Jericoacoara entre as dez praias mais bonitas do planeta, a pequena aldeia de pescadores, 300 km ao norte da capital do Ceará, mudou bastante. Jericoacoara não é simplesmente encantadora pelas suas dunas, praias e lagoas, mas também pelo seu vilarejo tranqüilo. O lugar era uma antiga vila de pescadores e até hoje conserva as ruas de terra, a arquitetura antiga e principalmente a paz de uma cidade que se esconde atrás de enormes dunas. O nome Jericoacoara deriva do tupi-guarany: yuruco (buraco) e cuara (tartaruga). Buraco das tartarugas, que seria uma referência a uma praia onde acontece a desova das tartarugas marinhas. Além de tudo isso, Jeri, como é chamada pelos moradores, oferece diversas opções para prática de esportes como windsurf, vela, trekking, cavalgada e outros.
Ending the 20 days of a Joyful Christmas… our wishes for a very happy holiday season!
Front & Back
Our Family’s ‘Happy Holidays’ Card
Image #20: 20 Days of a Joyful Christmas: Our Happy Holidays Card!
Early Christmas gift: …and the winner of the 2012 Expats Blog Awards Bolivia is…
… this blog! Gold it is!
I’d like to thank you all for reading, suggesting, commenting, checking the blogposts out… Thanks for the positive feedback!
Thank you for showing support through the great comments you’ve written.
One fan says: 3rd Culture Children has a wonderfully diverse mix of cultural posts, photography, food, local and daily life, and just general musings on life. It is a blog that gives you a glimpse of life as an expat, not life as a tourist living temporarily somewhere other than “home.”
If there are any suggestions or questions, please feel free to give me a shout… or Tweet along, or check the Facebook page [see right sidebar]… but I do believe the easiest way will continue to be this one over here: leaving your usual thoughtful comments at this blog… Thanks!
Now, as the tired involved mom I’m, back from the last day at the kids school, enjoying their end-of-the-year stage performance, the best way to celebrate this achievement is hiding from the kids and taking a nap, enjoying a glass of wine, bragging about it sharing the good news with my fellow bloggers!
Thank you very much for the ‘serial expats’ and friends in the Expat & Foreign Service community for taking the time to read the blog and leave comments… Much appreciated! ♥
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Snapshots of the 2012 International Day at School [or 'when you've got more than one Country in your heart!'].
This past International Day at the kids school made me remember a post I wrote some time back, about raising our children with a sense of different cultures… honoring and loving their unique background…
Picking their ‘home countries’ up for the 2010 World Cup!
When you’ve got more than one place in your heart …you’re expected to love, honor and respect them both [or the 3, 4... of them!]
Living in-between cultures, besides being an exciting experience, could be pretty challenging, as well.
Raising children from hybrid cultures offers countless possibilities to keep traditions alive, maintaing memories and links to the home country always fresh. It takes a great deal of effort. But it’s worth the trouble.
Witnessing your kids cherishing different traditions, honoring and respecting your and your spouse’s home countries, is worth any extra work. It’ll pay forward, we hope! ♥
They are learning to love and respect their mixed culture. They’re beginning to understand historical events, their causes and consequences. They’re learning that any country is not just about land, but also, its people, their beliefs and their sense of social respect. Hybrid cultures are a rich experience. Hopefully, our three TCKs will grow up comprehending that the world they live in is much bigger than geography may present itself. And a country’s boundaries go as far as its people. We bring our culture with ourselves. Our traditions, our honor, our respect to others. Wherever we are. Wherever we move to. It’s good to know that some of us ‘serial expats’ bring more than one country in our hearts!
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Illustrated ‘Bolivian-style’ adapted cooking: Green Bean Casserole!
Now, updated with the promised images! Great fit for this week’s photo theme, as well. How I love coincidences!
Enjoy!
Here is my ‘adapted’ recipe:
Green Bean Casserole, “Bolivian-Style”, totally vegetarian!
Ingredients:
1 cup and some 5 oz of 1 can CAMPBELL’S® Miranda Family’s Kitchen homemade Cream of Mushroom Soup
3/4 cup milk
1/8 tsp. black pepper
2 (9 oz. each) pkgs. frozen cut green beans, thawed* 1/2 kg (1 pound and some 4 oz) of freshly cut, cooked [with a bit of salt] green beans
1 1/3 cups FRENCH’S® Original or Cheddar French Fried Onions homemade onion rings (yeah, that one, where you beat one egg with 3 Tb spoons of all-purpouse flour, and a bit of salt!) [hopefully, it'll do the trick... gotta be original, at least!]
Directions:
MIX soup, milk and pepper in a 1 1/2 – qt. baking dish. Stir in beans and 2/3 cup homemade onion rings (see the images for a real shock on my recently-discovered cooking skills!)
BAKE at 350°F 375°F for 30 35 min.
STIR. Top with remaining 2/3 cup of onion chips/rings. Bake for some 5 min. or until onion chips are golden.
Liked the results? What about my first-time homemade onion rings for the topping? ♥
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Images and instructions for ‘Bolivian-style’ “camote” casserole [Thanksgiving cooking].
detail, Bolivian sweet potato (camote)
- The last days of this week are all dedicated to my ‘adventures in the kitchen’… all the perks of a mom of 3 little ones! Again: pre-Thanksgiving recipes! [Using a kids' school event as the perfect excuse for trying things out!] Ohh, the wonders of life in the foreign service…. Already shared my semi-successful attempt to make the well-know Green Bean Casserole. I guessed, it worked well – jury’s still out there! Note: HAD NEVER MADE IT BEFORE…. Now it’s time to try it in ‘breathless La Paz“! Here is my ‘adapted’ recipe:
‘Camote’ Casserole with Marshmallows, “Bolivian-Style”
1 (16 oz.) can sweet potatoes 1/2 kg (around 1 pound) of Camote, bought today at my dear neighbor, the Achumani Market
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 egg, beaten
4 tbsp. melted butter
1 pkg. marshmallows
Step 1: Get the ‘sweet potatoes’ (camote) ready: cooked, peeled.
cooked and peeled ‘camotes’ (Bolivian sweet potato)
Step 2: Mix (potatoes, cinnamon, brown sugar, egg, butter) in a buttered baking tray, topped with slices of white marshmallows. Place 1/2 of mixture in dish. Dot with marshmallows, then add remaining mixture. Bake at 350 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven, dot top with marshmallows and replace in oven about 10 minutes or until brown.
after baking for 30 mins, cover the top layer with marshmallows, and allow them to melt for about 10 mins in the oven… hummm!
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Everyone loves a friendly match…
…especially if it’s followed by a more than friendly picnic, where not only the players, but also their kids, were able to enjoy the after-match luncheon! Congratulations to both teams, the US Embassy and the Embassy of Japan, for their good athletic performance, and most of all, for displaying a great example of camaraderie!
Happy 237th Anniversary to the Marine Corps! Celebrating in style.
On November 10th, 2012, Marines stationed all over the world will celebrate the 237th Birthday of the Marine Corps. It couldn’t be different here in La Paz, Bolivia. We’re thankful and proud!♥
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Everyone loves a Fall Bake Sale!
Well, I already shared here my very first attempt to make Apple & Cinnamon Muffins for my kids school – a humble contribution to a great initiative to have a Fall Bake Sale, even though it feels like Fall, here in La Paz, Bolivia, we’re officially in the middle of Spring… Here is what I spotted during my time there, giving a hand to the other moms and enjoying a fantastic Pumpkin Latte (gotta get that recipe!)
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Twenty months of blogging, and the 100,000 hits milestone is reached. Thank you!
Credit: Google Images
March 2011 marked my very first blogpost: shared impressions from the world’s largest street carnival. It was obviously in Brazil, the country that lives and breathes popular festivities, and our assignment with the foreign service from 2010 to 2012. From that point on, blogposts began to come out quite often, increasing the number of subscribers, comments and blog followers. 
Today, a great milestone was reached, having me surprised and pleased, finding out that our ‘family travel & photoblog‘ displayed over 100,000 visits.
Being passionate about your life experiences, sharing images and impressions, reporting what one sees happening around, somehow, pays back. At least, in the ‘blogsphere‘… I’m inspired by the several bloggers who take part at the WordPress writing prompts, Weekly Photo Challenges, FrizzText and Jake Austria, probably being my very first inspiration (thank you both!); as well as, all the beautiful ideas shared by Ailsa, from ‘Where’s my Backpack?‘, with her travel theme challenges, and The Island Traveler, a parent, like many of us, who decided to share some beauty from their regular lives with the world… It’s great to have wonderful people out there, to look up to! I’m very grateful for all the support, and couldn’t have found a better time to show my gratitude [Thanksgiving just around the corner!]
Thank you all out there, parents, expats, bloggers, friends, for reading, commenting, following, and for offering a great deal of inspiration… Now, moving on to the next 100K visits… blogging is fun!
Now, now is it, for you all? What is your NEXT MILESTONE? Your Blog Milestone? Share here, if you care! Thanks!♥
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Getting ‘high’ on [apple & cinnamon] muffins!
Again: my path towards learning how to bake goods in high altitude settings…
Another fundraising bake sale, and, this time, the theme is “FALL BAKE” [even though it's Spring here!]. This week is all dedicated to my ‘adventures in the kitchen’… all the wonders of a mom of 3 little ones!
La Paz, Bolivia, can be a great example of how frustrating it might be for a rookie baker! In order to remain in good terms with my kitchen oven, ‘we‘ decided to go for this ‘new & improved first-timer’ apple muffin mix, step-by-step: Following this post, I’ll share images from the actual bake sale, with all their goodies: caramel apple, pumpkin pies, pumpkin brownies, honey bread… hummm!
It yields between 12 and 15 muffins. The recipe has already been adapted to the altitude so I should have no problems with it, right?
APPLE MUFFINS
2 2/3 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups chopped apples
For the topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tbsp all purpose flour
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tbsp butter
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Prepare muffin tins.
In a medium bowl mix flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
In a large bowl beat butter, sugar and eggs until smooth. Mix in vanilla extract and milk.
Stir in the chopped apples and gradually mix in the flour mixture. Spoon into prepared muffins tins.
In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture is like coarse crumbs. Sprinkle evenly over muffin batter in tins.
Bake 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the middle of muffin comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool 5 minutes before removing muffins from tins and letting cool completely on wire racks. At the end, it’s all about a great deal of TLC! ♥
Curious about the results?
Related articles
- How to…Bake the Perfect Cupcake! (thepartypost.co.uk)
- Pumpkin Muffins (alidoesit.wordpress.com)
- Pumpkin Cornbread or Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins (nancycreative.com)
{Weekly Writing Challenge} I wish I were…
I wish I were
nowhere else, but here. My home is where my traveling heart is.
I’m a woman, a wife, a mother, with a restless spirit and an endless thirst for life, for knowledge, for passion. I need passion in my days, and passion has always been given to me.
Gradually, and consistently…
I wish I were no wiser than I’m now, nor I wish I were more innocent than my current acts may appear.
Wisdom and innocence are two parallel states of mind. I’m grateful for the ongoing ability to recognize the difference.
I wish I were no younger than I’m today, it wouldn’t be fair with my younger self – she ought to have experienced and learned from her own mistakes. Why try to be older, when your mind and soul seek learning through life?
I wish I were no older than my true wrinkles tell the world. Aging is a critical part of this wonderful process called ‘life’. And life is good.
Right now, I wish I were no more than what I represent to my family, to my loved ones, to the world. I’m comfortable in my own skin and not scared by my own thoughts. The ‘little voices in my head’ keep me going…
I wish I were
nothing else, but what I’m right now.
I’m grateful for my present, and I look forward to living the future. Savoring a day at a time. No more, no less…
**************
♥ Thanks for the inspiration!
{Backstory} Last week, WordPress grammar guru, Daryl, talked about the oft-mysterious subjunctive mood in If Hairs Be Wires, Black Wires Grow on Her Head. Use of the subjunctive mood isn’t as common in English as it is in other languages. As Daryl mentioned in his post, the most common uses of the subjunctive mood in English are conditions, suppositions, wishes, demands, suggestions, and statements of necessity. At least once in our lives, we’ve all muttered, “I just wish I were…” or “If I were more like…”, knowingly or unknowingly invoking the subjunctive mood. In honor of Daryl’s post, we were asked to finish the following sentence for this week’s writing challenge: “I wish I were.”
Let’s see how I did it! If you liked it (or not!), share your opinion here… Is writing something for everyone, and the one thing we need is inspiration? Thanks for reading!
Other “wishes”:
- Weekly Writing Challenge: I Wish I Were (dailypost.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Writing Challenge – I wish I were good at Grammar!!! (suellewellyn2011.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Writing Challenge: I Wish I Were (patwoodblogging.wordpress.com)
- Weekly Writing Challenge ~ I Wish I Were (jlroeder.wordpress.com)
- I Wish I Were a Ghost (jonesingafter40.wordpress.com)
Best Wednesday night ever! [weekly photo challenge: foreign]
We’re all foreigners here in Bolivia… most of us, from the USA, some coming from mixed-culture parents, one from New Zealand, one from Brazil (myself!). But this event brought us all together, as one ‘party nation’, enjoying another foreigner’s performance (he’s Cuban-American).
Several nations under one roof (correction, there wasn’t really a physical roof, since we’re at a soccer stadium!) – were we really foreigners at that moment? Frankly speaking, even though we had different languages being spoken around us, the passion for music (and fun!) transcends all borders… We went from being totally foreigners to feeling completely at home!
Backstory: Armando Christian Pérez (born January 15, 1981 in Miami, Florida), better known by the stage name Pitbull , is a Cuban-American rapper signed to his own label, Mr 305 Inc. The Give Me Everything (Tonight) Songfacts reports that he adopted his canine moniker because, “They bite to lock. The dog is too stupid to lose. And they’re outlawed in Dade County. They’re basically everything that I am. It’s been a constant fight.”
Once in a while, it’s good to feel like an adult, again… In great company, we could enjoy a fun and safe presentation, with the so-called… Pitbull!
Rent a Party Bus! – check!
Buy the Super VIP tickets [oh, so worthy... It does feel great to be so close to the stage!] – check!
Call and confirm the baby sitter for our 3 children – check! [thankfully!]
Group of over 10 adults trying to get back into the ‘fun scene’ (even if it’s only for a couple of hours!), totally organized and in full gear – check! check! check!
Whatever reason he’s got for his life choices, I don’t really care… Just had a fantastic time at his concert!
Related articles
- Pitbull – Artwork for Global Warming Revealed (hangout.altsounds.com)
Children in adult-oriented places: a collection of [random] thoughts!
I found this theme really interesting, and intriguing… almost poking on us, parents of our loving well-behaved little ones:
“Everyone loves kids, right? Right! Except when they don’t. This week, we’re particularly interested in what you think about kids in adult-oriented places. I think most of us can agree that it’s not a good idea to drag little Sally to a bar at 1AM, but what about a museum? A fancy restaurant?” [Michele M. from King of States].
at the museum
Well, as a parent of 3 little kids (oldest one just turned 7), moving every two years, due to family work requirements, having to adjust not only to a new country, as well as to new cultures, new languages, there’s yet the expectation that [shockingly!] my kids should also re-invent themselves and adjust/adapt to new social demands/requirements, showcasing the pristine behavior only found in movies about expat children attending boarding schools, spending their spear time learning an instrument and being part of book clubs!
Clearly, that doesn’t happen. It never did, and very likely, it’ll not happen in any future…
This theme, discussing the pros and cons of having children in adult-oriented/adult-only social places got me thinking. And I began reading through what others had to say about it [I'm such a curious cat!].
I’m always searching for resources related to raising children in multi-cultural settings, I take part at parenting forums, I respond/comment on discussion lists, I blog about raising TCKs, and seek help for that…
I’m also the ‘household fairy’, you know, that one silent worker, that makes the breakfast show up in the morning, the lunch packs being ready before the school bus turns the corner… the ‘laundry fairy’, the intense PTA volunteer. Unfortunately, there hasn’t been enough time to ‘school’ my children on the ‘perfect social behavior‘ [whatever it is or means] – I’m still trying. And my children are also trying to learn, the best they can. They’ve been to restaurants, airports, family gatherings, embassy functions, social events, you name it!
So, answering the original question, should kids be allowed at adult-oriented places? PROBABLY NOT. And I’m stating that as a MOM, speaking my heart out from my life experience, as a mother, and a former teacher. NOTHING AGAINST children. Love them. Deeply. But in my very humble opinion, there are some adult-oriented places that little ones should no be taken to – and that includes some of our beloved evening pubs, bars and dining places – unless the latter is kid-friendly, otherwise, one should only take a [especially the very young ones] to a bar or pub, if looking for some unforeseen sickness, and a parental headache for the following days!
making pizza, at a ‘kid-friendly’ restaurant!
But, should we, as parents, carry out our frustrations to a public setting? Would it be enjoyable to ourselves, and to others?
Kids deserve people to respect them. And, do you believe they [the children] would be receiving their deserved share of social respect, if others [adults] would feel uncomfortable with their presence? Tough call.
My parents always had to travel for work. We moved a lot. We were also three children, the only difference was that, being the oldest one (9 years older than the youngest), I was responsible for their social behavior.
A ‘quasi-responsiblity‘, if I could put it like that. And I remember getting the ‘rolled eyes’ from others, the ‘evil looks’ at restaurants. There was no nanny at that time. Two working parents. Going out to restaurants was a rare treat – we definitely had to ‘earn our way’. Today, I’m the parent. I’m the one flying with screaming kicking bored wonderful children. The ‘looks’ towards me are still there. I can feel them. And I’m sure my children also sense them coming…
For all that, even if it’s hard, logistically challenging, last-minute need, try to find yourself a baby sitter. That’s my little 2 cents of advice, and one may do whatever it wants with it, even completely discard it. Just my humble suggestion…. Adult-oriented places are for adults only [clever conclusion, right?!].
Unfortunately, for the ones who would like to spend quality time with their children, tagging them along wherever they go, I’m sure there’ll be other alternatives… they’re called ‘kid-friendly places’. Trust me, kids don’t enjoy adult-only scenarios. I’ve been there. I’ve tried both ways, and I’d stick to the second one. It’s safer for the adult parent, the adult company, and for the children.
Good luck to all of us raising kids – what a tough job, man!
What about you? Had something else in mind? Are you curious about what others are saying at this ‘poking’ theme? Take a look at other impressions:
- Dp Challenge: Kids (cloudandmountain.com)
- Weekly Writing Challenge: Mind the Children (itlnbrt.com)
- Parenting and Temperament in Childhood Predict Later Political Ideology (psychologicalscience.org)
- Idiots are Ageless « IVF male What’s The Rush? | Five’s A Fellowship Children should be seen and not hurt « DCMontreal To allow or not allow, that is the question | thematticuskingdom Think Of The Children | Fish Of Gold Weekly Writing Challenge: Mind the Children | Italian Brat’s Obsessions Weekly writing challenge: Children and other animals. « Review Me Vee Children | Wise Counsel if you feed them, they will come | weebeebird Too Young to Patronize (Weekly Writing Challenge) « Anecdotal Tales Weekly Writing Challenge: You Otter Mind Your Otters | rarasaur Weekly writing challenge: kids and where they belong (and don’t) | Empressnasigoreng’s Blog Mind the Gap: Resident Work Hour Restrictions « At least we made it this far… Weekly Writing Challenge: Mind the Gap « Swozy’s Blog Kids in Restaurants: A Server’s Point of View | Good Morning, Joe Mind the Gap… Children in Adult Spaces? | A barbaric YAWP across the Web Weekly Writing Challenge: Leave my kid at home? I think not. « Military Bride No Kids Allowed « Spirit Lights The Way
Getting ‘high’ on cupcakes!
Strawberry cupcakes filled with ‘dulce de leche’ (caramel)
My ‘transcontinental’ margarita cupcakes: (tried and) approved by Brazilians, Mexicans & Americans!
my ‘assistant’…
Taking up on a new cooking challenge: in order to help a fundraising bake sale, I’m getting back into baking. High altitude baking. That said, after having a long conversation with my [American] stove/oven, we came to the agreement that we’d become friends, not rivals.
If I’m able to get my mini cakes out, not deflated, nice looking, and attractive to someone else’s mouth, both of us would win: I’d promised to throughly clean it after I was done.
Both of us [the oven and myself] smiled at the agreement [or at least I did, and maybe, in my crazy mind, my oven's alter-ego did the same].
Moving on to the preparations. Simply followed a regular yellow cake recipe [oh, you, Martha Stewart!], as well as, a simple lemon pound cake recipe, and a fantastic recipe for strawberry cupcakes, from Yummy Cakes from Lynn, discovering [through extensive online research] a few tips/adjustments for baking at high altitudes [that's why I'm calling this post 'getting high (altitude) on cupcakes!].
La Paz, Bolivia, can be a great example of how frustrating it might be for a rookie baker! In order to remain in good terms with my kitchen oven, ‘we‘ decided to go for this ‘new & improved first-timer’ cake (batter) step-by-step:
Flour: Increased by 2 Tbs per cup of batter
Baking Powder/Soda: Decreased by 1/4 tsp per tsp of mix
Sugar: Decreased by 2 Tbs per cup of mix [we're always advised to go light on the sugar here, it's healthier and better for the body's blood pressure...]
Milk: Increased by 2 Tbs per cup of mix
Extra egg: added one more to the usual 3
Oven Temperature: Increased by 25 degrees
Baking Time: Decreased by five minutes per 30 minutes of baking time.
It looks like a lot of math, right? Adding this, subtracting that…. raising the oven temperature, decreasing the baking time… But it all makes sense – you’re looking for a less ‘runny’ cake mix/batter, and with hotter oven, it’s logical (!!) to leave your ‘lovies’ in there for less time. At the end, it’s all about a great deal of TLC! ♥
Curious about the results?
Take a look, and let me know how you think the bake sale went with the ‘highest cupcakes I’ve ever baked’!
baking the strawberry cupcakes
Cupcakes filled with ‘dulce de leche’ (very popular in Latinamerica, similar to caramel)
decorating the cupcakes
Below, strawberry cupcakes, filled with fruit (jam) and topped with ‘bubble gum’ frosting [just came up with this recipe today... let me know if you're curious about it!]
cupcakes topped with caramel
and lastly, a new version of the ‘margarita cupcakes’: lemon cake recipe, with light lemon frosting and of course, the mini-straws for the final touch! [again, another 'creation from my kitchen'... happy to share the tips along!]
Related articles
- How to…Bake the Perfect Cupcake! (thepartypost.co.uk)
The La Paz Natural History Museum: an afternoon with the Tyrannosaurus Rex and ‘other friends’…
October Magic – learning through art, history, and now… dinosaurs! A group of friends got to spend an afternoon at the La Paz Natural History Museum, sharing with our children the fantastic lessons learned through investigative work, replicas, stories and, even… tales! Needless to say, everyone had a great time, easy to verify below through the images/photos taken during our trip to the museum.
[Backstory]: Bolivia is known internationally as “The Country of the Altiplano, which has the highest seat of government of the world, highest navigable lake on earth, is known for pre-Columbian ruins Tiahuanaku etc. What is known that two thirds of Bolivia are located in the tropical lowlands of the Amazon and silver, whose average elevation is 300 m. above sea level with an average temperature of 27 º C. La Paz sits in the Andes Mountain range and is the world’s highest capital. The city is the top place to visit in Bolivia. National Museum of Natural History joined the Bolivian Fauna Collection (La Paz), and the Noel Kempff Mercado National History Museum (Santa Cruz) to bring community and scientific expertise together to enable effective local and regional planning for biodiversity conservation. This association was called Conservación de la Biodiversidad para un Manejo Integrado (COBIMI), or Biodiversity Conservation through Integrated Management. Recognizing the urgent need for communities living in and around protected areas to actively participate in and benefit from the conservation of the resources upon which they depend, the COBIMI partners convened workshops to develop dialogue among local stakeholders, provided training for these groups in communication and outreach; and provided financial resources and technical assistance for communities and protected area staff to design and implement, for the first time, their own conservation projects. Several innovative community resource management projects were implemented, including community museums (or “interpretive centers”), ecotourism facilities, trails for tourists that highlight biodiversity, and protected area informational materials.
The T-Rex: The Official Story
“Tyrannosaurus, meaning ‘tyrant lizard’) is a genus of theropod dinosaur. The famous species Tyrannosaurus rex (‘rex’ meaning ‘king’ in Latin), commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture around the world. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other tyrannosaurids.
Fossils of T. rex are found in a variety of rock formations dating to the last three million years of the Cretaceous Period, approximately 68 to 65 million years ago; it was among the last non-avian dinosaurs to exist prior to the Cretaceous–Tertiary extinction event.
Related articles
- Date Night for Tyrannosaurus Rex: A Theory (amog.com)
- Tyrannosaurus Rex Goes Up a Size (history.com)
- Dinosaur Cells In T. Rex Fossil? Shocking Find Gets New Support From Molecular Analysis (huffingtonpost.com)
- Snapshots of Artistic Expressions in La Paz: Part I – Paintings. (3rdculturechildren.com)
brasileiro? latino? no speak americano?? click!
Photo Project: 52 Bolivian Sundays
good feedback!
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