Home Sweet Home

Pool and back yard

Patio

Living room

Bedroom

Stairs to upstairs

Office

Kitchen

Front of house

I ended up renting a 4 bedroom, 5 bathroom home in what's called Condominium Britannia. I don't even use the upstairs at all. The downstairs is plenty for me. The school pays for most of it, but it was worth the extra money to get my own place instead of sharing, and to not have an apartment. It's about a 20 minute walk from the school, so I have been walking both ways to get exercise, so far. I'm a little worried about when it rains because I hear it 's really hard to get taxis then. But, so far it's been a great commute. It's an interesting walk. Everyday there is something new to see. Saturday there was this guy dressed as a clown on stilts walking in the busy road begging. He had this type of fishing net to get the coins people would give him. There are people begging on the streets everyday. I haven't been giving them money on the way to school because I'll be walking everyday for the next 2 years and I don't want them expecting it everyday. But, I do feel bad. Most days I can find someone using the bathroom on a wall. There are a couple of yummy bakeries on the way. There is even a Subway (Myway), not as good as home, but it's there. There are dangers everywhere. Broken sidewalks, broken pipes sticking out of the ground, crazzzzzy traffic, and a really busy intersection to cross, people staring at you, but when you look at them they look away...LOL no eye contact here.

This house, when compared to Bolivian standards, is a mansion. And I actually think it is a really nice house. Reminds me a lot of my home in Cedar Hills. High ceilings, spacious, and lots of windows. It's got a beautiful back yard with a mini pool. The pool is only deep enough to come up to above my knees, but there is a large pool five houses down the street. And it's guarded 24 hours a day. That is a huge plus to me. One night I left the front door open accidentally, and I'm still here to tell about it. It's only a 7-10 minute walk to the church, so that is really nice. There are some drawbacks, but you get used to them. A guy that takes care of the pool and yard. No housecleaner yet...I'm thinking I can handle it on my own. A lady at church was interested, but with the language barrier we haven't gotten that set up yet.

Drawbacks:

1. No washer or dryer. So, it's all hand washing. I have a system down that's working fairly well. At night I put all my dirty clothes in a large tub in the tub and soak them in soapy water. In the morning I scrub them and then rinse them and hang them out to dry on the side patio. When I have a big load I get in the tub and march on them to simulate a washing machine. Yes, picture that in your mind. LOL Sheets are a real pain, and because they are really expensive I only have one set right now. So I hang those in the backyard and hope they dry quickly.

2. No hot water in the kitchen. Can't figure that one out. Why would you not want hot water in the kitchen?

3. Can't drink the water.....so I lug big bottles home from the market...remember I have no car... I have also been boiling a kettle of water most days to add to it.

4. Wind. Because it's so windy and dusty here, you really have to dust and sweep everyday. My house is not as clean as I would like it to be... oh well.

5. Bugs....yes..lots of roaches, geckos, spiders, mosquitos, and other unknown things. There are also cats everywhere that get into the trash.

6. Toilet paper - Nope, not in the potty. It has to go in a garbage can. Not just at the house but everywhere you go. This part is just like China. Gross.

When I need a taxi I just go to the guard shack and they call me one. So far they come within 5 minutes. It's pretty cheap for a taxi. For a 15 minute ride it's about $3. It would cost me about $3 dollars a day to get back and forth from work, but since I'm missing my wonderful walks in Utah I'm saving money on that.

I played the piano in church today. There is a Bolivian man that plays a tiny bit, so he played some too. The bishop asked me to work it out with him, so he plays what he can, and I'll do the rest. It's a good thing, because they won't always be able to rely on me to be there. I tried to listen hard and pick things up at church, but honestly, I didn't know what they were talking about. But, people are so nice. I'm going to tutor a 17 year old from the ward this week. They took me home so they would know where to get me. Then they took me to their house, and invited me for dinner. I really just wanted to get home and rest so I told them another time. They seem like a really nice family. She also has 3 sons. One is on a mission in Brazil. They invited me to Relief Society on Thursday. I'll try that. They say it starts at 5. Not sure if that is Bolivian time. I'll have to see.