Despidida en Ecuador!

My last day at the school in Muenala, Ecuador was amazing. It was one of only two or three days where the skies were clear in the morning and we had a full on view of Volcan Cotacaxi and the surrounding mountains around Otavalo. It was an amazing morning and I took tons of pictures before I left the school. I'm gonna try and post some today and hoping it works. I feel closer to these kids than any of the other kids during my travels. This is not saying I didn't love the other kids from previous countries, only we had the opportunity to spend more time with the kids at Muenala and we were the first volunteers in this school in over two years and it was a special context. On my second to last day of school, the kids made me cards and each child lined up and gave me their card and a hug. It was sad but it was brilliant to see the creativity of these kids and the words they wrote which included phrases like, "please come back again one day," and "thank you for being our friend and a great teacher," and "we will miss you so much." I will miss these little buggers and told them I will be back one day to visit, I plan on making good on this. For my last day, no local teachers were there and my buddy Troy deemed it Fun Friday. Therefore, we went for a hike with the kids (incredible views), made necklaces/bracelets with beads (they love this), and had an extra long lunch to play and visit with the kids. The kids we walk to and from school with everyday each gave me a hug and we each held on a little extra longer given it was my last day. So, as is the norm, I rushed around on the Saturday we left Otavalo: gifts for my host family, saying goodbyes to my local friends (peanut shop guys), checking the Internet, etc. Mission accomplished. I said goodbye to my host Mom and the kids and thanked them for their kindness. Then...we left for Quito and the airport! Sad to leave but also pumped up to visit Peru. Ecuador officially has a special place in my heart. All right, gonna try and post some pics!

Homestretch!!

I have officially been gone for over four months now! Wow! I am so happy I chose to do this as it is hard to even begin to reflect and think back on my time in Central and South America. I think I will begin to do this when I get back to the States in mid May. I have seen incredible beauty, met remarkable people, made strides speaking a second language, met lifelong friends from all over the world whom I have volunteered with, been a part of something much bigger than myself, have been rejuvenated and inspired by children who should be leading our world because of their innocence, ability to percieve, itelligence, and positive outlook. On the other end of the spectrum, I have seen poverty, pain, frustration, repression, and negative views about my country. These moments have been heartfelt and have struck me at the core. I know I want to do more each day to help people and I feel like this journey and my job back home have granted me the ability to do that. Also, one cannot expierence all of these things and not run face first into a new perspective and outlook. I hope that I can carry this special perspective unique to me each day from here on out. The journey has been everything I thought it would be and more. It has given me the perspective I have looked for I think and helped me to live in the moment, something I have wanted for a long time. Also, it has helped me to get in touch with Aaron...something I haven´t done in years, if ever. So, here I am with only three days left in Ecuador. I am dreading my goodbye to the kids on Friday and I think I will be worse for the wear than I was in Guatemala the day I left. I may need to return here someday but we´ll see. The future will play itself out and I´m not worried about it for once. Thanks to all of you back home who keep up with my blog and stay in touch. It means so much right now. Take care and until next time, buenas noches!

Shannon comes to Ecuador!

Shannon, my sister, arrived in Quito without any problems and it was amazing to have her here. She used her Spring Break holiday to travel to Ecuador to see me. This presented many challenges for her: being away from her 11 month old daughter, purchasing an expensive airline ticket, being away from Jay, and not being able to speak any Spanish outside of a few words! But, being the sister she is, she still came to visit me! We toured a local water fall, a condor park with many types of birds, and we had a great time in Quito the night before she left. I think Shannon would agree with me though that the highlight for her was coming to school with me for one day. Despite the language barrier, the kids adored her, espcially one of the special ed kids, Brian. He could read in her the patience she has and the love she shares with kids back home each day when she teaches. We had a great time with the kids that day and Shan was taken aback by the kids: their beauty, kindness, and energy! I was so happy she could share a small piece of my journey with me. Further, her fourth grade class donated materials to the kids here at Muenala: stickers, markers, colored pencils, crayons, construction paper, decoration/crafts, books, etc. The kids have since made kites that they decorated with the feathers, fuzzy colorful decor, foamy stickers, and all the other awesome supplies she brought. Further, the kids have used the glue sticks, markers, and colored pencils extensively. Thank you to the kids and to Shan for these things, they will never know how much it means to these kids who never get to have anything outside of the essentials! Shannon left on a Friday morning and it was tough to see her go. She has given me more energy though to finish off my trip. Always great to have a family member come see you let alone your best friend!

Our school, Muenala

Wow! It has been awhile since I have posted anything and given I am in Quito currently awaiting the arrival of Shannon, my sister, I have an opportunity to finally access a wireless connection. Don't know if I will be able to post pics as the connection is slow but I'll try. I didn't think my journey could get any better and then I came to Ecuador! My host family is great: Pilar is the mother and is a very nice woman and great cook. Alfredo is the father and he is a manager for the Ecuadorian beer Pilsener! Jorge Luis and Mave are the two kids and it is nice to have them in the home as well. The school that I am teaching at is amazing. The name of the indeginous community we teach in is Muenala. I am teaching with Troy, a firefighter from Canada, Zoe, a human resource worker from London, and Kathryn a recent graduate from Chicago. The dynamic our group has is incredible and I feel we truly are a wonderful combination of people working with some truly remarkable kids each day. We drive forty minutes to Muenala from Octavalo each day and then we have an uphill hike that takes around twenty five to thirty minutes. The views are brilliant and one can see rolling green hills dotted with cows and horses as well as a wonderful view of a local volcano, Cotacaxi (it is snow peaked and high in the sky). The best part about school is the kids. The girls where single braids with beads around them and the boys have long ponytails that are braided in a very beautiful way. At first, it was very hard for me to tell the boys from the girls but all is clear now. Our group is actually blazing a path as we are the first group of volunteers in Muenala since GVI withdrew from the community almost two years ago. This presents challenges but our group has worked so hard and the energy from the kids transfers to the adults in our group each day. I am working with "the trouble makers" and "special ed" kids as well as Cesar who is the only fourth grader in the school. Another local teacher works in the class as well and he is a very nice man. He has been in and out of school as of late for teacher trainings and I have had the opportunity to lesson plan for individual kids. It is challenging but I have had days when the plans have worked out flawlessly and each kiddo is excited to learn more and eating up any positive feedback I give him/her. I must say, it will be so hard to leave this group of kids. We have kids ages 3-14 at the school and it makes for a very fun time. You'll have to look at the pictures to see the radiance and beauty that emanates from these faces I see each day. Hopefully it won't take me long to post the pics! Until later, buenas noches!

The EQUATOR

Before we left Quito, we made our way to the museum at the middle of the earth. I felt like a kid again as we witnessed some things that were truly amazing at the museum. First off, we were introduced to an indigenous tribe and their customs and the structures they lived in. Tracey informed us that the homes our families live in consist of much the same. Further, we saw an actual shrunken head from the days when this tribe decapitated important people after they were dead or the heads of their enemies. The members of the tribe would wear the heads around their necks as mementos! No thanks! Further, we saw some guinea pigs in the hut and we were told that if they made a lot of noise this was an indicator of a bad omen or spirit among the group. Fortunately, they made no obscene noises and it made me feel good that our group does not consist of any serial killers or madmen! Last, our tour guide had us walk to a red line that is literally the line that separates the Northern Hemisphere from the Southern Hemisphere. She poured water down a sink in the middle and the water rushed straight down into a bucket. Then, she took the sink to the Northern Hemisphere side and the water ran down the sink counterclockwise! And, as expected, the water ran clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere. Last, we each had a chance to balance an actual egg on a small nail in the middle of the world. The egg should be able to balance as the gravitational pull of the earth is much less at this special place. Some people were unsuccessful in balancing the egg but I luckily got the egg to balance. I must mention that it did not take me much time either! Those of us who successfully balanced the egg were awarded with stamped diplomas recognizing this great feat. My friend Kathryn and I joked that we should have received honors given the length of time it took us as well as accounting for the fact that our nail was the hardest to balance the egg on. Overall, a great little side trip and it was amazing to see how another example of our mysterious world. After the museum we made our way to Otavalo to meet our host families and start our six week tour of duty!

I'm in South America

We arrived in Quito, Ecuador on Friday the 13th! No bad luck with the planes, in fact TACA, the airlines we flew in on, was more than impressive in getting our bags to arrive with us and work out some other minor issues! Back home I feel that our bags would have been left behind and the airlines would have made it our problem to worry about. Flying into Quito was amazing! To see a large city nestled between the sierras of the Andes Mountains was incredible. It rained the entire weekend we were in Quito but our hostel was very nice and it was nice to relax, read, and get caught up on emails and to use the internet again. We met some new volunteers whom we will spend the next four to five weeks with in Octavalo. They all seem very interesting and nice and it seems we will have a great group. Food was a highlight of Quito and we spend most of our time in what the locals call “Gringo Land.” I ate Pad Thai and sushi and steak, etc! It was wonderful. Also, Tracey, our program director, briefed us on our assignments and what we could expect for the next six weeks. I will be teaching in a new school and helping to integrate the new students into the school experience. Also, we will be teaching English to the older children as well. It will definitely be a challenge but I think my group is up for it. Susan, Aviv, and Maya will all be teaching at different schools so we will have drastically different experiences to share. On Sunday, we made our way form Quito to Octavalo. The drive was amazing and the views through the Andes were brilliant. The views reminded me of Colorado with a lot more green! To begin this week, I will have Spanish classes on Monday and Tuesday and then we will begin school on Wednesday…can’t wait!

Esteli, Nicarauga and Stove building!

Esteli, Nicaragua is situated north of Managua and is larger than the previous two base towns we have been situated in. Esteli seems to be a major thoroughfare between Honduras, Managua, and Costa Rica. In fact we cross the Pan American Highway everyday .The actual town does not have the character that Antigua and Copan posses but the community we are building stoves in, Thompson, is a stark reminder of the poverty that can exist in Central America. Thompson is basically a shanty town and the homes consist of scrap wood, corrugated metal roofs, plastic and any other item one can find to help close out weather elements. Other volunteers and GVI staff have started a small school here and the kids are just as cute and bright faced as any of the kids we have seen in the past. Right now, the school consists of two walls with the other three sides left exposed to the elements. But, it seems that the volunteers and staff are doing a wonderful job and it’s very exciting that the community is embracing the new school. Yesterday, we split into teams to build the first two stoves. Rufus, Susan, and Maya formed one team and Aviv, Don Juan, Domingo and me made up the second team. Don Juan and Domingo are locals and the stove we are building will be used by Domingo and his family. I guess he is around 15 or 16 and Don Juan is in his forties or fifties. Immediately, Aviv and I noticed the kind face of Don Juan and he and Domingo have been a thrill to work with. They are very lighthearted and patient. I had trouble understanding them the first day as the Nicaraguan accent is very different, especially given our rural location. But, today was easier and I joked a little with Domingo and understood Don Juan’s directions for the most part. It was fun to listen to the radio and hear Domingo sing and hear Don Juan’s laughter. Aviv did a great job today and we have nearly constructed our first stove. The stoves are made of cinder block, cement, ribarb, soil, tiles, etc. The stoves are much more energy efficient thereby allowing the family to use less wood; less work for the family and obviously better for the outlying environment. Also, the stoves are equipped with chimneys and this will allow for zero smoke inhalation by the family as well as a safer cooking area for the mother. She will not be faced with the prospect of burning herself anymore and there will be no risk of an open fire spreading throughout the house. Overall, just a wonderful project that GVI has started and each of us donated a stove through the money we paid to join this program (we each bought the materials for one stove). Domingo and his family are very happy with the stove thus far and his mother offers us coke, coffee, popcorn she makes, or crackers each day. The weather is very, very warm and it will be a huge change to go to Ecuador this weekend. All of us wish we could stay longer as we feel a connection to this desolate and poverty stricken pueblo with wonderful inhabitants who are all happy and supportive of our presence here. Rufus, our project leader with the stoves, has built hundreds of them and is a real pro. Fortunately for us, Rufus will be travelling with us to Ecuador as well! Here are some pictures of the stove and the community!