You know the song "New York, New York" where Frank Sinatra talks about wanting to wake up in the city that never sleeps? Well, he's definitely not talking about Neiva. Sunday is the day when the whole city seems to sleep, at least in our neck of the woods. We went out for a walk yesterday and there was virtually no traffic - vehicular, pedestrian, or otherwise. We planned to eat dinner at our favorite Mexican restaurant, Tijuana, last night and it wasn't even open, nor were any of the other open-air restaurants in our neighborhood. We ended up eating in the cafeteria upstairs at the local hipermercado.
Eventually, we came to some playground equipment, and Yamile immediately wanted to go play. She had to accept a "no" from Daddy at first while we found a little bit better place to play. She wasn't all that thrilled with my answer but didn't throw a fit or anything - she just got quiet. That was soon resolved when we came to some more playground equipment where she could swing and play on the teeter-totter. (Unfortunately, Daddy's 45-year-old, surgically repaired knee couldn't tolerate the deep squats for too long on the teeter-totter.)
We decided, however, to take a morning stroll to the river called Rio Magdelena, where there is a park that follows along the river. It's probably 6-8 blocks from our hotel and Sorany met us at 9 AM to lead the way. (Sorany has been a great guide, making herself available at our beck and call, when she's not teaching English at her own English Institute.) As we approached the river, we noticed they had shut down one half of the street, opening it up to pedestrians and bicycles. It reminded me of Nava (in Spain), where the pasttime on Sundays was to walk up and down the main street of the town and stop and talk to your friends and neighbors.
Sorany took us to a "restaurant" that overlooks the river. This restaurant was a large area that looked more like a campground, with bridges leading past the cooking areas. Chickens, roosters, birds, wi
ld cats, and even a goat 
wandered around. The eating area was a very large, open space with wood planks for flooring and thatching for a roof. There were no walls--it was all entirely open. The trees surrounding us were really amazing. The restaurant was not open for business yet but we were allowed to enter and watch them prepare the meal for the day. You can see by the pictures that we were up above the food prep areas, looking down at the workers. The ovens and stoves were heated with wood; there was a humungous pot of something brewing; rather than cover their food with foil or saran wrap, they used palm leaves; a 
woman was placing food into a large clay oven, there were mounds of produce everywhere. Yamile loved taking pictures of all the food. Everything was quite different from what we'd see in America.
ld cats, and even a goat 
wandered around. The eating area was a very large, open space with wood planks for flooring and thatching for a roof. There were no walls--it was all entirely open. The trees surrounding us were really amazing. The restaurant was not open for business yet but we were allowed to enter and watch them prepare the meal for the day. You can see by the pictures that we were up above the food prep areas, looking down at the workers. The ovens and stoves were heated with wood; there was a humungous pot of something brewing; rather than cover their food with foil or saran wrap, they used palm leaves; a 
woman was placing food into a large clay oven, there were mounds of produce everywhere. Yamile loved taking pictures of all the food. Everything was quite different from what we'd see in America.The river itself was a swift-moving churn of brown water (and there was quite a bit of trash washed up along the sho
re). As we meandered down the sidewalk, we passed some people who were selling fresh fish, although I would be a bit leary to try any of it. They also had quite a few shops along the way that reminded me a bit of booths at flea markets, 95% of them were empty. Sorany explained that, during holidays, all of these shops would be open to cater to the folks who travel to Neiva for holidays. We were able to find a couple vendors selling their wares and bought a few souvenirs from Neiva.
re). As we meandered down the sidewalk, we passed some people who were selling fresh fish, although I would be a bit leary to try any of it. They also had quite a few shops along the way that reminded me a bit of booths at flea markets, 95% of them were empty. Sorany explained that, during holidays, all of these shops would be open to cater to the folks who travel to Neiva for holidays. We were able to find a couple vendors selling their wares and bought a few souvenirs from Neiva.Eventually, we came to some playground equipment, and Yamile immediately wanted to go play. She had to accept a "no" from Daddy at first while we found a little bit better place to play. She wasn't all that thrilled with my answer but didn't throw a fit or anything - she just got quiet. That was soon resolved when we came to some more playground equipment where she could swing and play on the teeter-totter. (Unfortunately, Daddy's 45-year-old, surgically repaired knee couldn't tolerate the deep squats for too long on the teeter-totter.)We finally decided to return to our hotel and walked back along the park. When we arrived at the park's main square we heard music and someone calling out instructions into a microphone. There was a large group of people who appeared from a distance to be doing some sort of dance. When we got closer we realized this was an aerobics class where anyone could join in at any time. We chose not to join and just watched. These people seemed to be having a blast working out in the 95-degree heat. (Something tells me Chatta would jump right in and join the party!) The music made us want to dance.
We finished the walk back "home" and took a dip in the pool and ate a lunch of tortillas and beans on the patio of our room. Ahhh ... delicioso!
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