First 24 hours in Queretaro

Wow! It's been almost 24 hours since we arrived at our homes and we have done so much! The flights went well, no problems with baggage claim or customs, our driver was waiting for us, we all exchanged some money before leaving the airport and we were on our way. Jose, our driver, was very friendly and did a great job driving us the 1 1/2 hours to our final destination. We even stopped for strawberries and cream, a favorite local snack.

We were hot and tired by the time we arrived at the Centro Intercultural, but still excited because we were about to meet our "Senora" de la casa. They were all there waiting for us and we quickly loaded our things and went home. Plans varied last night. Rachel and Alex went to a birthday party while Lauren and I talked our host, Patricia, for the next 2 hours on her beautiful patio.

This morning we all met at one of the plazas and Lulu gave us a walking tour of this beautiful city. On a Sunday morning there is very little traffic and very few people out and about so we felt free to pose for pictures and walk around at a leisurely pace. After a couple of hours we ate breakfast at a beautiful restaurant called Las Monjas (The Nuns). The food was delicious and it was very relaxing.

From there we got on a bus and headed toward El Bernal, another town in the state of Queretaro. There is huge butte there called La Pena. You can hike up and get a great view of the town below. For those of us who wore flip flops and/or were not ready for a two-hour hike, there was plenty of shopping to keep us busy. This is a fun place where many families come to spend their Sundays walking around, eating ice cream and buying little gifts. We tried a local favorite called gorditas. Yum! We also explored a local cemetery, which is always interesting. The highlight of the afternoon was probably when the reptiles from the local circus showed up and you could play with a huge turtle, iguana or even put a snake around your neck! (I had to say no gracias to that one.)

The bus ride was an hour and a half so by the time we got back to Queretaro everybody was ready to go home and rest for awhile. All the moms were there waiting for us to pull up.

Tomorrow - first day of school!