Back at the beginning of December I had the wonderful opportunity to meet up with all of my Exchange Friends here in Bolivia and tour around Tarija. Our first day consisted of visiting La Ventura, The Vino and Casa Real Wine Tour as well as an unforgettable evening at the Observatory and lots of Flag Photos (An Exchange Student Tradition). The second day consisted of walking around downtown Tarija exploring museums and the plazas... One of the most interesting museums was the Museum of Paleontology because it is one of the three in all of South America. All in all an incredible weekend with all of my exchange friends :) Very thankful for all of them and our lifelong friendships <3

Sundays are one of my favorite days of the week, because they are the most relaxed day of my days here in Tarija Bolivia. This was a Sunday back in November where my mom, Ari and I went on a girls only lunch and afternoon date. First we went to a beautiful little Italian Restaurant and ordered Pasta and Creme Brules. Next we went to the Plaza Principle and had a little impromptu photo shoot. I love and cherish these special moments that I spend with my mom and sister. They have become a part of me and shaped me to be the young lady I am to this day. I am so thankful to have them in my life.

Singing as a part of La Salle's Senior Choir was and has been one of my best memories here in Tarija. After practicing all of October, we gave our first performance participating in a competition with all of the schools in Tarija. We came in second! Performing three beautiful songs in Spanish (two traditional Tarija songs)... Canzona, Contrapunto Chapaco and Allelujea. We gave our second and last performance of the year 2 weeks later in the school auditorium for our parents and friends. I am so excited for next year and all the amazing times to come.

Some of my favorite and most memorable moments are spent exploring Tarija beside Ari. We run through parks, make up crazy poses for photos when I am crazy sun burnt :) Twirl around a top mountain parks and pretend to fly when we can. She always puts a smile on my face and I know even when I am back in Canada our relationship will remain strong. <3

Back in October I gave my first speech at the Men's Friday Rotary Meeting. It was there that I was told women did not attend the Friday meetings. Instead the women meet for tea on Thursday's. Last week I attended my first women's rotary meeting alongside my mother Claudia. It was wonderful to meet all of these strong and beautiful women. We enjoyed a lovely tea with many deli (delicious) traditional Bolivian pastries. I look forward to our next meeting and fundraiser in March.

On another note: I would like to share some Spanish songs with you all. I love singing these and am learning to play them on guitar. I look forward to driving through Chilliwack blaring my Spanish songs and singing.

Ecos de Amor - Jesse y Joy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDza1cxbO0E
Ya Me Entere - Reik https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_7K9AwpgCU
Oceanos - Hillsong United https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2BJ0OA0nXPY
Hossana - Hillsong United https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j6xHR3t9e-I

Hello everybody, I am so sorry for not posting in forever, it had been a crazy November and start to December. School ended back in November but I have been keeping busy since then. With friends, gym, music and of course spending quality time with my incredible family. The picture above shows some of my Saturday morning rituals with Ariana, PANCAKES.... We love baking and cooking together, we laugh when I pronounce the ingredients wrong and when she puts to much strawberry drizzle on my pancakes. I love every minute we spend together and I am so excited for Christmas together in another town in Bolivia called Sucre.

After the Food Fiesta (Food Party) at La Salle Arianna had two of her close friends over and we went on a big walk through one of my favorite parks here in Tarija. It is very child friendly with little soccer fields and basketball courts and painted paths for practicing street safety. We went to the market and ate two of my favorite Bolivian foods, Empanada con Queso (with Cheese) and Sonsos (Yuca and Cheese on a stick). When we got back to the house the girls wanted to take photos so here are some from our little photo shoot.

October also held the last big fundraiser and festival at La Salle of this school year. The La Salle in the World theme continued with a food fair with traditional meals from all over the world. My class, 5A or Pre-Promocion made Tacos and some special Mexican salads and desserts. All in all another beautiful day with my friends raising money for our Grad next year and promoting La Salle :)

My sister Arianna is one of my bestfriends here in Bolivia and now the world. She may only be 10, but we share lots of similar interests and one of these includes taking photos and modeling :) Here are a few shots from our photo shoot back in October. The day finished with the stunning sunset above... The perfect end to a perfect day. SO thankful for Ari and everyday I get to spend with here... She is not simply my host sister, she is my lil sister <3

Un Inglesia aqui en Tarija, que hermosa (A church here in Tarija, how beautiful).

Hello Everybody, I am so sorry it has been so long since my last post. Things got a little busy with school coming to a close, choir practices and performances and much more in October and now November... But I am back and will try to post weekly :) This was a weekend back in October that I enjoyed thoroughly with some of my closest friends. We (twelve of us) pitched 60 bolivianos into the food and cooked it all ourselves. Cheese and Rice (Queso y Arose) Salad (Ensalada) and Beef y Llama (Carne de Baca y Llama). The barbecue was hosted in my friends Emilia's house. It is up on a mountain and the view down her street is simply stunning. I rode home in the tailgate with five of my other closest friends, (a regular occurrence here in Bolivia). It was a blast and a really good bonding time for all of us.

Our third stop was Conception and our beautiful hotel. We unpacked enjoyed a scrumptious dinner and fell fast asleep after a few hours of talking. Bright and early the following morning we headed off to El Encanto another small town near Conception. There we battled the mutant mosquitoes, camouflaged frogs, giant centipedes and rough mountain terrain on a half an hour long hike... That was totally worth the mutant mosquitoes, camouflaged frogs, giant centipedes and the sore legs after the hike. Got some pretty sweet flag photos (Rotary Tradition)... while trying not to fall off the edge of a cliff and avoiding very prickly Aloe Vera plants. After our hike to a piece of heaven we had the experience of a life time and where very blessed to join in a traditional Bolivian Dance celebrating the festival with some of the locals. The last photo is of some of the young girls I got to dance with. It was the most amazing thing being able to know the knew no English and talk to them in Spanish and have them understand.A wonderful day all in all.