Flowers, Medical Appointment, and Coffee (Monday April 19)

 On every street we wandered, there were these darling flower shops. Gorgeous, colorful blooms spilling out onto the street and lovely little vases and trinkets in the windows. I love them. I must have taken half a dozen photos of different flower shops we passed. In addition to the flower shops, there were also flower road side stands. Right next to the newspaper stand were buckets of tulips. After a few days, I began to wonder, how on earth do all these flower shops stay in business? Some of the little shops were in pretty prime real estate. Who is buying all these flowers? So, when our guide, Simon, came to pick us up for Emmaline's medical appointment on Monday, we asked. 

"How do all the flower shops stay in business?" He looked at us with such a confused expression on his face. "We buy the flowers," he replied. Robert was equally confused, "How often?" "Everyday...we buy the flowers and take them home and have flowers on our tables. How often do you bring flowers home?" Robert looked a little sheepish when he replied, "Maybe once a year." Simon was shocked. "You should do better my friend. Your life needs more romance." Maybe he's right. Maybe we need more fresh flowers in our life. They certainly were beautiful. 

Monday brought Emmaline's medical appointment. She had to get a blood draw for her TB test in order to gain entry to the United States. She also saw a doctor who looked her over and translated her vaccination card for us. It was a long morning, full of tears. The reward at the end was Starbucks for everyone. We had a Starbucks just about a block and a half away from our hotel and were pleasantly surprised to see the inside cafe allowed us to sit and enjoy our treats. Even Emmaline got an overpriced milkshake (minus the coffee, of course.)