I realized I haven't put up pictures of the homebase yet. My B dog. Here you go.


Mi calle.

All of the house and store fronts are locked and gated and flat, and often really scary looking, but then you go inside and there is just this massive amount of space behind them. And it's all developed and gorgeous in there. It's like every house is a secret.


Inside. The street is through that open door...the kitchen and bathrooms and space pictured below are behind me. If that makes sense....


More inside. Hang-out area.
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Though most houses don't follow the traditional layout anymore, because of earthquake damage and frankly american influence, the traditional layout for houses is the most beautiful idea. The old houses are all built around a square courtyard, with an open roof and tons of plants, and in some of the wealthier houses, a fountain. The rooms are in a corridor that surrounds the courtyard, so its sort of like a long giant square, connected hallway that borders the courtyard...broken into rooms. It's set up so that if there is bad weather you can close off the entire corridor from the courtyard and access all the rooms by walking through them consecutively. Privacy is a non issue:) When the weather is nice, all the doors of the rooms are open into the courtyard and the whole house is open and bright and beautiful. I am in love. Our house is sort of a modernized version of this, as most middle class houses are now, we have a small open planty courtyard area, but the rooms don't connect in the old way, and we have two floors. It's still completely beautiful though:)