Hola a todos!  Happy late fourth of July.  We celebrated here with a great American picnic and dance in the evening.  While the villagers hoped we might switch into English for the day, we still maintained our all-in-Spanish atmosphere!  It was a great day!

Yesterday, Sunday (domingo) we broke away from our normal daily routine of charlas, clases de credito y actividades.  The villagers participated in the Olymipic games, las Olimpiadas, in the morning.  There were eight different teams and four different sport categories.  In each competition the teams tried to gain as many points possible.  In the afternoon, once all of the points were tallied, we held an awards ceremony for the gold, silver and bronze medalists (check out the pics below!).

In the afternoon, all villagers participated in el Banco Mundial.  This is a simulation that demonstrates the complexities of the global market and how it fluxuates based on supply and demand.  The villagers were incredibly involved, cooperative and competitive. (pics below!)

Today we’re back to normal around here.   It’s quiet now while the kids are in their charlas y clases, but they’ll soon be flooding out for their merienda (snack).  Today is also a special day as we start to rev up our preparations for this Friday’s International Day in Bemidji, MN!