The Birthday

La Paz was our last stop before heading back to Cochabamba to begin our 3.5 month stay here as volunteers. Though we had to put an end to our Backpacking Journey of Self-Discovery, the excitement lived on. Leah's 23rd birthday fell two weeks after our return to Cocha. Fortunately by that point we'd amassed enough friends and housemates to throw a respectable birthday party in our backyard. Jeff baked an excellent banana cake in the tradition of Gold family birthday parties (thanks for the recipe, mom). Music was supplied by Andres, who serenaded us in both English and Spanish.

Invitation posted on fridge. José Miguel, pictured below, edited it for us after we posted it. We found out that 'be merry' doesn't translate very well.

Jeff preparing the cake.

Laura (front and centre) is a friend. She's from Switzerland. She speaks Swiss-German.