Well a lot has happened since my last update. The main thing is that the courts here have finished with the adoption paperwork. Unfortunately, they finished the same day we left for 5 days at the beach in Cartagena, so we did not get to go sign the papers before we left. Monday is a national holiday, so we will sign Tuesday and then begin the immigration paperchase. Once we sign, a driver will go to La Palma to retrieve Cristian's original birth certificate. When we have that, he can do his medical exam and immigration paperwork. If we can get everything ready for the US Embassy on Thursday, we will be headed back on Friday, overnighting in Atlanta, and then back in Austin late Saturday night.
Since our last update, Cristian and I went to a 1st division soccer game here between Millonarios and Pasto. It was the first pro game he had seen. We also have been watching a lot of the World Cup. Unfortunatelty, the US-Czech Republic game gave him a bad introduction to being a US fan. He had told me he wanted the US to win the world cup, but after watching that game "malo" was his main comment.
We went to the beach in Cartagena, which is an old Spanish colonial city. We stayed at the Hilton on the bay and visited the Old Town a few times. We ate at Pizzeria Del Mar, which was excellent, and Quebracho, a great Argentinian restaurant. Other than that, he enjoyed his first trip to the ocean. He will really like going to his grandfather's house in Florida. He is impressed by waves here that rarely top 1 foot. When he sees the waves in New Smyrna, he will not know what to do!
We went and visited his foster family last Tuesday. They made us a small dinner and we visited for several hours. It was very interesting to see the neighborhood and actual house he had lived in. We didn't take many photos, but he was really happy to see them and they clearly love him like their own child. We promised to stay in touch, and he will be able to call them, especially his friend Melanie, the daughter of his "tia" Gloria.
Back at the adoption residence, everyone is waiting for word from the courts. A few families were here before the strike and still haven't moved forward, so I feel a little guilty that we will be leaving soon. We had a pool going where all five of the families but in 20,000 pesos plus 1K a day and the last one left "wins" it. It's a pool nobody minds losing.
Once we get back to Bogota, I am sure we will have some more photos from our trip and other events. Now I have to get down to serious souvenir shopping and getting ready for the trip home. We like phone calls, it gives Cristian a chance to practice his English, which he is generally resistant to. So feel free to call us and ask to talk to him!
Scott
