Vacation!

It's officially vacation season in Colombia!  You may think to yourself, "That's not anything unusual.  It is mid-June, after all."  But it IS different in Colombia!

The official school year in Colombia begins in February and ends in November.  Though most of Colombia is north of the equator, the country uses the southern hemisphere school calendar, and considers December and January as "summer break" and mid-June to mid-July as winter vacation.  Vacation season officially kicked off Saturday, June 15, complete with fireworks and neighborhood all-night celebrations.

Of course, living in this City of Eternal Spring, we never experience "winter," as we know it in Iowa.  And, in fact, "winter break" takes place at the end of one of the "winter" (i.e., "rainy") seasons.

So what does vacation season in Colombia mean?  It means quiet days and noisy nights!   It means fewer school buses on the streets, but more people on the streets and in the popular gathering places. It means special activities in daycare centers, at the zoo and the museums, and at shopping centers for the kids.  It means all the popular vacation destinations – whether an hour out of town, or an all-night bus trip away – are packed with families vacationing together.

Vacation season at the Bible College means students have completed their quarter of studies.  It means we're getting ready for two, separate week-long intensive classes, this year offering Greek and Pastoral Theology III.

Because Christopher studies at a U.S.-based school that follows the U.S. school calendar, it means he's on break for two months instead of just one.  It means mentally winding down from 11th grade and anticipating 12th grade.

In our house, it means catching up on all the things we've fallen behind in – office work, blogging, cleaning out closets, etc.  It means hosting AIM teams.

Yes, it's vacation season in Colombia!  That doesn't necessarily mean a vacation!  But it does mean change... and a change of pace!