Trip to Paurito

Last Sunday we loaded the Land Cruiser and headed to Chuck and Cindy's house in Paurito. It's in a neighboring city, although it's about an hour and a half drive since the roads are pretty rough. There were seven adults and two children (the baby carseat takes a lot of space). We all squeezed in. Monday was Dia de Santa Cruz and a holiday. It was hot when we left Santa Cruz. When we arrived in Paurito a south wind began to blow, with gusto, bringing cooler temperatures. None of us had packed for the cooler weather, since it was so hot when we left. We all survived.

We got some pretty odd looks. We're loaded for a safari!
The Paetkau's home.

We ate so much food! Chuck prepared steak. We sat around the charcoal fire to keep warm and to keep the neighborhood cats, dogs, hens, geese, and roosters away from our food!

New meaning to the words steak knife!
A catholic church in the center of town. We met Doris as we were walking through the plaza. She asked if we would like to see the church. In giving the tour (in Spanish) she told of the church's history and said that she holds services there and also runs a small daycare center. She was an interesting lady.

There are Mennonite colonies near this area. We saw several of Mennonite families in town. We also spent a few hours driving around the colony land. It was a cool windy day. It was also very dusty, since this is the dry season.