Highest High Holidays Yet

Shanah Tovah to all who celebrated Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, or at least considered doing so! I'm pleased (and relieved) to report that Fernando's first experience in synagogue was a resounding success, and sitting separately was surprisingly no big deal. We were actually FACING each other across the aisle (oddly, given the idea is to avoid distraction...hmmmm) and he was in the good company of a friend from Cornell who guided him through selecting a yamulke, reading right to left, kissing the dozen or so Torahs paraded around before the service, and standing at sitting at all the appropriate times. I was lucky to be joined by said friend's wife and two year old daughter, who kept us entertained with the wonderful assortment of toys she'd brought along for that explicit purpose.

We rang in 5769 (?) with my first attempt at making both brisket and potato kugel as well as tsimmes, the traditional sweet potato and carrot dish that's a personal favorite. Unfortunately, with my new second job teaching English on-line at the Instituto Exclusivo around the corner, I was even more rushed than usual and erroneously grabbed a huge quantity of YUCCA instead of YAMS and our friendly neighborhood supermarket. The dish came out edible, but I'm eager to try again with the right ingredients. And maybe try a normal kugel as well if I can ever lay my hands on cottage cheese again...

In other news, school is nearly over for the year and the kids have major summer fever with 5 weeks to go. We're rehearsing like mad for next week's Fiesta de Colores for which they must perform an entrance, syncronized dance routine, traditional dance, and video. Being 11 year olds, you can imagine the difficulties (especially in our Russian number which requires boys and girls HOLD HANDS!)

Fernando and I didn't let our colds interfere with home improvement projects this weekend. We spent last Saturday in the knock-off neighborhood looking at Persian rugs, then yesterday compared with merchandise available in the more affluent Zona Sur. Pretty equivalent I daresay, and we miraculously seem to agree both about what we don't like (easy!) and mostly about what we do, and I am optimistic about recovering the cheap-o living room set by Christmas, our first together and certainly in our own home...which brings us to the impending fun of decoration shopping in Christmas crazed La Paz in the weeks ahead. WHatever happened to Halloween??