Before leaving Cali, Maria had the good fortune of meeting with some of the colleagues with whom she had worked prior to departing Colombia for the United States 32 years ago. Maria worked for a brief period at printing and publishing company, Publicar, which only had about 100 employees and everyone acted as a big family.

We had two memorable reunions in November, the second at the country home of a couple both of whom worked for the company for many years. He is an artist and graphic designer and she is a crafts lover. Together they built a beautiful home shown in the album of pictures called "House of ex Colleagues Esperanza y Pablo Emilio, Dapa Valle". The house sits on the western mountain range which surrounds Cali, at an approximate altitude of 1500 feet. The weather up there is nearly perfect, sunny and warmly pleasant during the day (up to about 75 degrees) but cooling at night to about 60 degrees. The house has breathtaking views all around, including a great view of the city of Cali to the east.