Max and I went to see Brader's Tipico Dance performance. It was organized by one man, the school's upper school history teacher. He had about 90 students who VOLUNTEERED to be part of this. I found it absoultely fabulous and charming how students here get involved to celebrate their customs. A typical "tipico" is a series of dances that either involve a couple or lots of dancing pairs. Basically, the girl is flirtateous, and the boy tries to get the girl. The costumes are very elaborate, and in a real tipico, are usually made by hand, and are incredibly detailled and intricate. The music is loud and rythmic, which Max just loved. And as you can imagine, there is an amazing amount of "bling": the jewlery, the colors, the hair decorations. All are carefully put together to put the a best foot forward. It's very fun to see young people embracing it, and preserving a big piece of their culture.Other than that, it's so amazing how life turns into regular routine no matter where you are! And that's exactly what it feels like right now. Get up, breakfast, Max and I get dressed, I leave, Katy gets Max on the bus, school, a combination of speech therapy, Spanish classes and going to the park or the gym take up our afternoons. Dinner around 6:30, bedtime by 7:30, quiet house by 8:30 - hopefully!! Of course everything is so much easier because of Katy! She and Max are quite the pair. Max loves her to pieces, but he also knows what buttons to push. Besides cleaning the house, and caring for Max, Katy does little things that mean the world to us: refills the lemonade pitcher, empties the groceries, and of course so many things. The list goes on and on. It will be VERY hard to switch back when we move back to the States. But for now, it is a lovely treat.
I am finding myself really missing the fall: the cooler weather, the shorter days, a good soup on the stove, rain boots, and yes, Halloween. I know Seattle is probably covered by that eternal rain cloud just about now, but I miss being able to be wrapped up in a warm sweater and drink a cup of tea aftet dinner. Sigh.
Here are some pictures of a recent weekend with our friend, Titi. I got to ride a horse!!!! Super fun.
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| A boy and his Spiderman kite! |
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| Can this picture be any LESS flattering??? |
