Night out with Rosario

At the hotel where Evo Morales,
President of Bolivia, largely disapproved
of by Cruceñas, apparently stays

This is Rosario.  Rosario would likely define herself as a 61-year old mother of 3, a converted and strong Evangelical Christian, and a Cruceña (a person from Santa Cruz, more on this semi-feud later).  Months ago, I was making small chat with her while taking her EKG.  "My boyfriend is coming, so what kind of food should he eat here?" I asked.  Her eyes lit up, and she started raving about all the dishes here.  "You MUST come to a restaurant with me!  Yes yes come!  Here is my number, call me anytime and I'll pick you up."

So Jackie and I finally felt more relaxed with the project, and we figured we should call her up.  I've actually seen her in and out of her clinic appointments, gifting me with bread and earrings and a big smile every time.

I wish I could describe her better, but she is a riot.  She had her son pick us up, and they took us to a local restaurant with a wood grill and 50-gallon pots with the 3 typical dishes served for the night.  "No, not that, something less fatty and more meat!" she jokingly scorned the server picking out our meat hunk.

Los Tajibos is where the Queen of Spain stayed apparently.  It's decked out for the holidays, and starts at $205 per night.  Compare that with the hotel down our street (a nice area), starting at 250 Bolivianos, or $32

After dinner, she made her son drive us around town to all the fanciest hotels in Santa Cruz!  She also took us to the iconic restaurant here, but it is expensive so we just walked around it, snapping photos at her request and brushing off confused waiters.