Salmon Flavored Ice Cream??

This year we made a tough decision to not go to the US for Christmas.  I can't say that we are regretting it, but we do miss everyone and won't let it happen again.  Either people must visit us or we will visit them.

With that said, we had a wonderful time in the city of Merida, VE at the foothills of the Andes mountains.  After a 22 hour bus ride (it was only supposed to be 12 hours), we arrived at Merida.  Before I get into the things we did in Merida, I need to explain why it took so long.  We left Caracas around 9 p.m. and around 2:30 a.m. the bus was detoured for construction (or so we thought, later on someone said it was to rob us, but nothing happened).  The bus then turned one block too early to return to the highway, but was presented with a very narrow road.  On one side was a 50 foot drop to the highway (definitely the quickest way back, but not very ideal) and on the other side the side walk was dug up about 2 feet deep for new plumbing.  Thankfully, the driver errored towards the plumbing. Unfortunately for us, we got stuck in the hole......7 hours later and three tow-trucks later, we were back on our way.  Thanks goes out to the wonderful woman who opened up her house to us for restrooms, retreat and arepas.

Ok, back to the vacation.  We ended up staying in a nice little posada outside of Merida in Tabay.  We had so much fun as you can see in the slideshow on the main page.  We went to the Zoo, Museums, lots of churches, hot springs, climbing in the mountains, Paragliding, and relaxing.  As you can see in the photos, it was beautiful and we had a blast.  One of the weirdest things was the ice cream store, Coromoto.  They have made over 900 flavors!!!!  Obviously, baskin-robbins has nothing on them.  For about 75 cents, you get two flavors.  I enjoyed Salmon ice cream with a whiskey ice cream chaser.  Silvia opted for drinks only and had a Mojito and a Cuba Libre.  Analee was brave at first to try Avocado and Asparagus, but that quickly faded and was trashed for pineapple and orange petal ice cream.

Paragliding was an awesome experience although it can get a little bit nauseating....trust me.

Thanks for listening and we hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday!

Love,

Davis' in Venezuela

Reina Maria Lionza

The first trip was a success, but what a weird statue. Going up the mountain was quite an experience. We arrived at the parking lot with no troubles. The bus driver was just told to park outside after he dropped of the kids (us). Then the wait began. About an hour and a half to get to the cable car.....it felt like Disney with the line as long as you could imagine. The car then sped us up the mountain to the top in about 15 minutes. Up top, you are supposed to see Caracas on one side and the ocean on the other, but it was too cloudy...
We walked around, saw the ice skating rink, ate hotdogs with potatoe chips on it, had a gyro with some not so cooked chicken, and a churro that was worth the 30 minute wait and $4 price tag.
On the way out of the park we noticed trucks take loads of people somewhere.....so we went too :) We could have been taken anywhere, but ended up in a quaint town, where strawberries and cream seem to be the economy :)

Final back in the bus heading home, it rained and rained and rain, but we return safe and sound.

Love,
Davis' in Venezuela

Money, money, money.....

Well, we got our first paycheck this week....bitter sweet. Mine was fine, but I had borrowed some money when we first got here (because I couldn't exchange my $1500 right away??) so it was a little low. Silvia's payment was late because of some confusion about how many hours she is teaching. We have worked out the confusion, but not before the payment was made, which was on the small side. Good news is that the next payout will be more for Silvia (and retroactive!) I get 80% of mine in the US, so we are trying not to spend that.

Ok, enough about money.......road trip tomorrow!!! Going to the "Avila Magica". It is the world longest cable car (3.5 km long) and takes you from the base of the city to the Andes Mountains in about 15 minutes. Silvia organized it for the new teacher and the school is giving us a bus and a driver. We are all excited and apparently you need to bring really warm clothes! Good thing we brought those winter jackets......not! The city is always about 80 in the afternoons, maybe more. Oh well, still should be fun. If your spanish is good or you just want to see some photos...... http://www.el-avila.com/info.html check it out.

That is it for now! Keep us posted on yourselves too. Oh and we have a new phone number in the US (through Skype), voice mail and everything. Kind of cool, you call it on your cell or home phone, it goes straight to our computer!! Only $6 a month for us and whatever you pay for your long distance. (440) 490-4896

The Davis' in Venezuela

Meeting new friends

Well, we have one week of classes under our belts and so far, so good. The school environment is great, fun, supportive and encouraging. Analee has meet so many friends, Silvia is doing great in the library, and I am meeting people all over the place. So far I have been asked for directions twice on the street (I was able to help too!!), my plumber warned me about letting Analee take a shower for fear of a urinary infection, and a masseuse offered us (the whole family) her services on the elevator ride up to our apartment (she did follow up with a phone call during one of my classes at school).

The new cohorts are great to work with, but some are crazy (check the photos)!! We had the first get together at our place and mostly it was just drinking, hot dogs, and good conversations. Although, I did have to make some grilled cheese sandwiches for the Veges of the group.

We have meet a lot of people that work at the embassy too. It has been fast and lots to do. Please come and visit as soon as you can :) We plan on hanging out and getting to see the country. (just need to work on getting a car).

Love,
The Davis' in Venezuela

P.S. Don't forget to check out the photos.
http://picasaweb.google.com/davis.ken

Adjusting to Caracas

Well, we have arrived.....safely, last Friday. We have been EXTREMELY busy, with getting to know the new teachers, opening bank accounts (with no money), getting cell phones, stealing the Internet from neighbors and making sure cable TV isn't cut off.

Caracas is a great city woven into the mountains and hillside....literally. I have not been all around the city, but in our immediate "hood" the roads wind, climb and descend all over the place. Our apartment is HUGE (and should be for about $4500 a month!). Included the maids quarters (which we will not have) there are 4 bedrooms and 3 full baths. We are on the fifth floor with a nice view once you get around the building in front of us. Photos will follow :) Check my picasa page later on. http://picasaweb.google.com/davis.ken

Silvia is loving her job in the library plus she will be helping a few needy students too. Analee is already enrolled in a soccer camp this week from 8am to 4pm......mostly because we can't watch her :) But she is having a blast, although tired. I am stressing as usual, next week classes start and until today, I was a little unsure of my content of the classes and how to grade according to the school and the IB program. That changed today and I am now feel better. But the Athletic Director position still has me a little baffled.

Well, that is it for now.....more to come! Take care. We miss and love you all.
The Davis'

Mid July

We are getting closer to the move. Silvia has one more week of school left, Analee just turned eight (July 4th), and I am trying to prep all of the packing.

It is amazing how you are able to reduce 13 years of life in Guatemala (11 married and 8 as a father) into about 20 bags. We are getting the final quotes on the moving cost and nearly, if not all, of the teachers who are not returning, have left Guatemala already.

It is sad to leave one chapter of our lives, but so exciting to start another one. Please keep us in your thought and we will keep you in ours.

I will leave you with the wonderful picture of the quality control of poultry in Guatemala :)

Love you all,
Ken, Silvia, and Analee

Last Day at CAG.......for now?

Well, I am sure to add more to this blog, but for now, a few departing words.

1. It has been a GREAT 13 years at CAG :)
2. I will pay for the gas for anyone who comes to visit us.
3. I will miss you all!