I'm running away to the CIRQUE DU SOLEIL!!!

Last Wednesday I went to the Cirque du Soleil with my host mama Christina and one of her friends! It was an INCREDIBLE show - not like any circus I've ever seen before!

These are some of the flags representing all of the countries that the circus visits.

Fun fact: The Cirque du Soleil in Las Vegas is a permanent attraction and they work EVERY DAY for 11 months out of the year. They only get that last month for a break, and they get paid an insane amount of money (it's in their contract) because they are so vastly overworked. They sometimes even perform multiple shows each day!






















The top of the Big Top (that's a circus term I picked up in "Water for Elephants"). The entire tent appeared really small from the outside, but they fit a surprising amount of things inside, including a large concession/merchandise area, large hallways to various entrances, and of course all of the seating and the impressive stage!






















Me with one of the circus' trailers. I was killing time while waiting for Christina and her friend Naiara (Nie-ray-a) to show up.






















Naiara, me, Christina! The theme of the circus this year was "Varekai." I have no idea what that means, but it was a kind of forest theme with a strange bird-being falling out of the sky (while doing amazing acrobatic tricks with a net in the air) and finding himself in this crazy land and seeing what all of the creatures can do (all of the various acts).


























Mama Christina thought that this was a neat had in the merchandise center. I bought a Christmas ornament that's a clear ball that holds a bunch of strips of fabric from old costumes, and it has some photos of characters and sayings (in French and English) inside as well.























A photo of me (yes, I promise that's me) inside the tent with the set! It was all very pretty with bamboo-like poles in the back for people to climb all over and be all forest-y. You can see the sheets that they put up to catch the acrobats and the round metal aparatuses that they spun and propelled themselves off of (see middle left).

It was an amazing show and I can't wait to be a part of it! lol I think I'll be a clown, or maybe one of those acrobats that do all of their tricks in the sheets of silk in the air!