Heads Above (an in) Mud

Okay, the STRANGEST thing happened tonight. [Well, maybe it's tied with Devon's run in with the FBI this spring/summer, which was pretty strange, but an entirely different story.]

I'm still kind of "having a moment," even though it's been an hour that I've been investigating & convincing myself that it really is us! You see, Avery took a bath tonight with her new mud soap (a birthday gift from Reyna & Noah), and it got me thinking back to my own mud bath in Colombia a few years ago. So, I wandered downstairs, found my photo album (#23) from our trip to Barranquilla, Colombia in 1999-2000 to visit Devon's brother Bryan & his wife Tina. While there we travelled to many neat places, but one of my favorites was the Volcan de Lodo El Totumo (a mud volcano). It's very cool in the hot Caribbean sun, you actually "float" in it, and you can get a massage from a local as well. It's really quite heavenly. So, I scanned a couple pictures, and the first thing I noticed was that the date was 30 December 1999 -- exactly one year to the day before we got married, and 6 years to the day before Jordan was born. Funny, I thought, I guess that's a pretty significant day for us, but not that strange.

Then, pics scanned for this blog entry, I went on-line to make sure I had the name right -- it's been 7 years since we've been there (where does the time go?). And the first page I click on from my Google search takes me to a picture of US -- yes, me & Devon. Now you HAVE to go look for yourselves. Of course we're covered in mud, but notice the patterns of mud on our legs, arms, faces. It's us! WHERE DID "THEY" get this picture of us??? It's credited to be "A Whatsowhenner duly smeared" -- but we were not What So Whenners (which appears to be a travel company or something). WHERE did they get this photo of us???

So, since they "borrowed" our picture for their website, I've borrowed the following to describe the mud volcano & the spa-like treatment associated with it.

"A mud volcano is created by natural gases emitted by decaying organic matter underground. As the mud is pushed upwards by the gas, it deposits and hardens above ground. As more mud oozes out and spills over the edge it grows in size, gradually forming what you can see today - a miniature volcano with a rich, creamy mud crater at the top.

"If you have never been in a mud volcano before, then the initial feeling of mud on skin is unusual to say the least. But relax, lie back and enjoy a massage from an experienced local and you will soon be drifting off into a hippo-like state of well-being. When you feel like you are about to become one with the Earth, just climb back down the staircase and stroll down to the nearby cienaga*, where you can wash yourself down."

So, here are the pictures I was going to share, but first, the one "they" are using on their website, with the same dimensions, so you can line the pages up side-by-side and compare for yourself (if you care to, I did it for about 20 minutes already tonight, but I'm probably more interested than you are).

Almost famous. . . .

The spa itself

The fearless crew: Devon, Bryan, Tina, & Leslie

A dip in the mud (Devon, Bryan, Leslie)
Tina & Bryan get messy
What a mess (Leslie & Devon)
Rinsing off in the local cienaga, locals help out

*A perennially wet area supported by a spring or other water source, also called "wetland," "marsh," or "swamp."