My first Carnaval...

...and I loved it!
First of all, we started this Bolivian holiday with a water-themed team day.

I thoroughly enjoyed taking my awesome Blue team to all of their various stations, which seemed to make them progressively more and more wet...it was GREAT!
But, for some reason, I wasn't all about the culminating event where we teachers stationed ourselves in the middle of the field, surrounded by our students, and attempted in vain to dodge the 90-mile-an-hour bullets that were hurled at us from all sides!!!! It's a Bolivian tradition to throw water balloons during Carnaval at anyone and everyone who seems too dry whether they're walking on the sidewalk or riding in a car. Therefore, this grand finale was a quick way for me to determine which students had grown up in Bolivia and had a more accurate and rapid throw than I. Were it not for my, rather awesome if I do say so myself, wellies and swim cap, I might not have made it out alive!!! Sorry there aren't any pictures to document this time......it wasn't safe to bring a camera out.

After celebrating this holiday in a typical Bolivian way, we were ready to leave the festivities of La Paz and spend this crazy holiday surrounded by the serenity of the BEACH!!!

Have I ever mentioned how much I really love the beach??!!
It was a nice time to enjoy..
.... the sound of waves crashing right outside our windows,
...a t.v. complete with a news station that actually broadcast the beloved WINTER OLYMPICS,
...fun friends from school who also appreciate my above "likes,"
...and deli meat:)! For those of you who have lived in a place with less than appetizing lunch meat, you understand how AWESOME it is to have real, right out of the oven, sliced turkey breast.

Even though the mountains of La Paz are "breath-taking", I truly enjoyed the "breath-of-fresh-air" I felt as I relaxed at sea-level in Arica, Chile. This small but cute city has made it's way up to "one of my favorite vacation spots" for me and I'm sure/hope you'll read about it again in the near future!