Me: I'm Talyse
Her: What?
Me: Talyse
Her: Oh, nice to meet you. I'm Pilar.
Me: What?
Her: Pilar.
Me: Very nice to meet you too.
When it came time for the professor to call the roll, he stumbled over both of our names and an instant bond was formed.
I'm pretty sure I've blogged about Pilly before, but can't remember how much. If I can't remember, I'm assuming you can't either. From that point on, we spent a lot of time together. She was brand new to the country, just moved from Bogota, Colombia for a summer program and decided to stay and get a Master's degree. She didn't have a car yet, so I drove her home many nights.
When Halloween rolled around, we went out. When it was time for Thanksgiving (which they don't celebrate in Colombia, of course), she came to my grandmother's. When she couldn't go home for Christmas, she joined us once again.
My family quickly adopted her, and she has been my sister every since.
We've seen each other through grad school, boyfriends, jobs, across-the-country moves, sick parents, marriages, kids, and so much more.
Nearly three years ago, I got a phone call from her that she had met someone. They had only been dating for a month, but I could tell she really, really liked him. Right after Gemma was born, she brought him to meet us and we liked him just as much (ok, almost as much...just as much would be creepy!). Right before they left, Karyssa had this exchange with him:
Karyssa: Are you married?
Michael: No, I'm waiting to meet the right person.
Karyssa: Well, you can go home and tell your parents that you met me.
She was obviously in love with him from the beginning, and Kyran and Gemma love their "Uncle" Michael too!
Earlier this year, he proposed and the wedding planning began. They decided to have two weddings - one in Greensboro where he is from and where they met, so that their American friends and family could attend, and another in Bogota, where Pilly's family and Colombian friends could attend. I immediately asked Jason if we could go to the wedding in Bogota. I'd been promising her I would go for 15 years and this was the perfect opportunity.
Her sister-in-law was handling all of the wedding preparations, so that would give us plenty of time to spend with her and Michael.
First, we had the Greensboro wedding. The kids were in the wedding, along with Michael's nephew, Liam, and they were all so adorable!
We had so much fun and I got to meet some of Pilly's friends and Michael's family members who I had never met before. Jason brought the kids back to his dad's house and put them to bed, and we danced all night. (More of that in another post!)
Then came time for the Bogota wedding. I have to admit, part of me was dreading the trip. I had only been away from Kyran and Karyssa for two nights at a time a few times, and had only been away from Gemma for one night when I stayed in a hotel in town for our twins club convention.
When they announced there was a hurricane coming through, I thought maybe it was God's way of telling me not to go on the trip. Then the hurricane turned slightly, and we were even able to make it out of the Miami airport an hour and a half before it closed.
The trip was definitely meant to be.
Bogota was a little different than I expected. When I think of a city with 8,000,000 people in it, I think of tall buildings and mass transportation. Because of the mountainous terrain and earthquake potential, that was not what I saw. There are some tall buildings, but nothing like what we have here. There is a bus system, but nothing underground.
Because of this, traffic is crazy. They actually have a rule that cars with license plates ending in odd numbers can't be on the roads on odd-numbered days during rush hours, and vice-versa for even numbers. On Sundays, though, they actually shut down several roads to make it easy for people to ride on bicycles through the city.
The weather was great there. It rained only very briefly twice, but the days were in the high 60s/low 70s and the nights were in the 50s. I was only cold a couple of times on the cloudier days. People there get very cold, though. Even on the 60-degree days, when Jason wanted to wear shorts, people were bundled up in jackets, scarves, and boots.
Our week was filled with fun people and delicious food. They handpicked several of the best restaurants, one they even had to make reservations two months in advance!
This restaurant is owned by a famous Colombian singer's brother, and there is a stage in the restaurant with shows every so often!
There were a few other Americans there, but aside from Michael's mom, we were the only ones who didn't speak Spanish. I started using the Duolingo app in March, but still couldn't get to a place where I understood what was being said most of the time. There are not many Colombians who are bilingual, so it made it hard to go anywhere alone. However, all of Pilly's friends and families speak English as well, so we were never short of translators!
It was a very weird transition to arrive back home and hear everyone speaking English again. And to know that if I said something to anyone, they would understand me.
We stayed with Pilly's brother, Richard, his wife Sandra, and their daughters, Mariana and Paula. They are the most accommodating hosts I've ever stayed with, even going out and buying a coffee-maker so that we could have real Colombian coffee in the mornings. They also had a dog who, believe it or not, barks more than Bella!
Richard took Sunday and Monday to show us around the city. We learned so much history and got to do some shopping. The best of both worlds!
Vendors were selling everything from cotton candy to electronics in the street!
Presidential Palace
That's the closest I've ever been to a loaded rifle!
Beautiful church on the mountain (or hill, as Jason called it!)
Apparently this was meant to be ironic.
Llamas everywhere
This parking garage had sensors, so that you could look down the line and see if there were any open spots. Pretty genius!
The club where the wedding was held is just beautiful. Jason got to see more of it than I did, while I was getting pampered (nails, hair, and makeup for $25!) and helping Pilly get ready. But what I did see was gorgeous, and the roses that Pilly told me that are grown in Colombia did not disappoint!
Pilly had borrowed some jewelry from her mom, but nothing quite matched her dress, and I just happened to have brought the perfect set that she used as her "something borrowed"! It was so much fun helping her get ready, just like she helped me 10 years ago. We even staged a similar photo.
The wedding was in a gorgeous chapel with a waterfall window (I can't even describe it, and it didn't photograph well, but take my word for it, it was amazing!). The only English in the ceremony was my reading (1 Cor. 13) and the vows and ring exchange. Imagine a Catholic ceremony, with all of the sitting and standing, when you can't understand what anyone is saying! It was beautiful, nonetheless, and after the ceremony the reception was fun and the food was delicious! (I really can't remember the last time I ate as well as I did in Colombia!)
Dinner was perfectly paced, with the servers seemingly choreographed. Then the dancing started, and oh, can Colombians dance! I was too embarrassed to get out on the floor at first, but then loosened up and actually danced some.
I got to dance with Pilly's nephew, Juan Philipe, who was a hit at our wedding, dancing with a friend's daughter when he was just 8 years old!
The only bad things about the whole week is the fact that my kids weren't there and that they don't have Diet Dr. Pepper in Bogota. Everything else was perfect! I'm so glad that we were able to take this trip, and for Pilly, Michael, Pilly's parents and siblings for their hospitality and love!
Gemma tried to stow away!
This is when I knew I was in trouble!
My first Colombian coffee!
Jason's late night snack on our first night in town. He had no clue how good the food would be!
Jason's drink of choice in Bogota!
More coffee!
And another little piece of home.
We took these pictures with no clue the other had done the same. Pilly texted the one of Jason and me to me in the Miami airport, and I texted hers back to her!
I love these two and their amazing family!
No comments:
Post a Comment