Monday - Day 11 ? - Pictures (Finally)

I just spent the last hour typing. Then the computer crashed. Now I am starting from scratch. I am exhausted, so this will be short I think.

Last night was rough. Amelia would have a coughing attack every 30 - 45 minutes. She would start coughing and shoot the pacifier out of her mouth. She then would moan and cry until we stumbled in the darkness towards the sound of a sick baby, rummage through the crib looking for the "binky", and pop it back in. If it took you more than 2 minutes, she cried loud enough to wake herself up. So you had to hurray. This went on every hour of the night. Right up until 7:00 am, at which point she was ready for breakfast.

We had plans today to go to a clinic so the baby could get a vaccination. This vaccination was important enough that Raquel told us the baby needed it before we went back to the U.S.

Well we went to the orphanage to see their doctor first. You know, because Raquel was so worried about the baby last Thursday that we needed to see her doctor.

Thank god Linda called the hotel doctor the other day, which started the baby on antibiotics. Today she was diagnosed with a little bronchitis. Could you imagine if we didn't call the hotel doctor, how sick this kid could be.

This doctor prescribed 3 new types of medicine. More antibiotics, something similar to Tylenol for fever and one of those asthma puffer thingys.

So they tell us she can't have her vaccination because she is on antibiotics and that we would have to do it in the U.S.

One contradiction after another.

I can't wait to get out of this effing paradise!!!!!

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The good part about our visit to the orphanage was that we got a tour of the place. Our translator took us around the whole place. They said I could take as many pictures as I wanted but I felt a little uncomfortable. There were kids everywhere, watching us as we walked through.

I learned some things about the orphanage, that I didn't know when we came for James.
1) There is always about 40-45 kids in the orphanage
2) They range in age from brand new to about 12 years old.
3) 90% of the children are up for adoption, the other 5% are here because they are in protective custody. Which means that they come from an abusive family, drug addict parents, or their parents are in jail or whatever other bad thing you could imagine.
4) There is a nursery with about 8-12 cribs in it. There were babies on the floor in their baby seats and some were in swings hanging from the ceiling.
5) There is a boys room with about a dozen or so bunk beds. The girls room was larger and had more beds than the boys.
6) School age children are bused to the local school.
7) There is a full time medical staff, cooking staff, cleaning staff and maintanence staff.
8) Several children came up to us and tried to talk to James and I and wanted to touch the baby. That was hard.
9) Many children here have physical disabilities. I understand that some of the worse off ones spend their whole lives here, because they have no place else to go.

10) If I won the mega millions, I know where I would spend a lot of my money.

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I was able to get pictures in front of the orphanage for posterity I guess.
Here is the section of the building where we were presented with Amelia, up on the second floor.

In this photo you can see the wing that we went to when James was ready for us. I remember walking up those steps, in was drizzling. I could hear the rest of the children behind those barred windows eating lunch. Something I will never forget.

And in this photo you can see behind me the view that these children see every day. Notice the top of the playground. The ground just goes almost straight down after that. But the kids are safe, they get fall down the mountain.

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The other day we went souvenir shopping at some little tourist trap that was up on top of some mountain somewhere.
Turns out we went to this place because our translator gets some kick backs when he brings in some Gringo customers.

Anyway, it was raining very hard as we were driving up this mountain. They roads were being widened on this mountain and here is what the road looked like.

This is not a good picture but I think it gets the point across. It is the view, just to the right of the road. The billboard is an ad for an undertaker (I think).

On the way back to the hotel. We stopped at a place that has a view of the Medellin, however it was so cloudy we really didn't see much.

This picture shows Linda and the baby sitting in my translator's truck. The truck was clean when he picked us up. Today he told me it took almost two hours to get it clean.

Here is a picture that shows the gang from Denmark. You can see Oola, with the white shirt. Wife, Brit with the new baby Juliana and in the yellow shirt is Simon. James is at the left pissed off about something. Oh yeah, and an amazing view also. See in the back the mountains in the clouds.

Here James and Simon take in the view. Now remember these two guys do not speak the same language. Yet talk to each other and kind of get the gist.

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Here are some random images. Some good some bad. It has been awhile so I figured I owe you some.

Amelia chillin' poolside, pre bronchitis.
Amelia, not feeling well.
Amelia will eat that whole bowl of soup, twice a day.
View from my room.
View of the hotel, from poolside.
Good Daddy Kiss, Bad Daddy Kiss.
Mommy changing a sick baby. Mommy wants to go home...

We have a 90% chance that we will be flying out of here tomorrow (Tuesday) to go to Bogota which is several days earlier than expected. We may be home by Thursday.

Okay it is now 12:30 and I am tired. So, Hasta la bye bye baby!