caminante

july & back in flagstaff

2008-11-11T16:11:00.000-08:00

returned to az in the best possible moment... rain was falling in the desert-- and then, flagstaff, and this is what the rain brought to my parents' backyard...

2008-06-29T19:46:00.000-07:00

the black sheep inn...

1) me and laufty with two fabulous people we met this week-- we played texas hold 'em, hiked along the quilatoa loop, and snacked on oatmeal cookies, and we just can't decide who we've got a bigger crush on, johnny or his mom...

2) us and the ilinizas

2008-06-29T17:57:00.000-07:00

chugchilan... 1) local kiddos who danced cheerfully about for much longer than we expected and then invited us to dance and dance and dance with them... good times at 10,400 feet! 2) the best bathroom, ever... seriously, they have these fantastic composting toilets with a view of the most shocking landscape ever and a small garden growing in the loo, offering just enough privacy to do your business with the recycled t.p. 3) me on my horse, maria, who later bit me and our new pal johnny too...ouch

2008-06-29T17:51:00.000-07:00

1) amazon ants carrying gigantic leaves... 2) me and the super scary masks above my bed at the magic bean (our hostel) in quito... 3) me and slothy at a fancy restaurant that jared took us to in tena... i wasn't as freaked out as i look, really, i wasn't...

2008-06-29T17:37:00.000-07:00

in the jungle, the mighty jungle... 1) our view from tena 2) the hammock deck 3) us, ready to go hiking through the selva... note the fancy boots.

2008-06-12T12:59:00.000-07:00

the barrio...

on days like today, with the air clear enough to see the andes and the sky with just enough clouds to soften the ecuatorial sun, when i am wearing my favorite purple shirt and an ecuadorian woman stops me on the street and asks me for directions, on days like today when i am rambling on and on to my spanish teacher in her native language and the big white dog in the yard on the corner doesn't bark at me like he'll bust right through that iron gate, i feel like i never want to leave...

2008-06-11T13:48:00.000-07:00

end of service... and little miss grammar pants' birthday... 1. end of service... katie and i win cutest WT couple-- josh orders a giant beer so we can celebrate 2. charlie shows us how he really feels about pilsner 3. skips (in thunder-cats earings) gives y'all a little taste of what you're missin...

2008-06-03T19:26:00.000-07:00

so, the house has been filled with laughter for the last two months... due to this little giggle bug. but, this weekend, she heads out with her mom and her new baby sister, back home to ibarra, in the north. we have matching shoes. i am really gonna miss her, la rosana linda...

2008-06-03T11:49:00.000-07:00

so... last week they canceled classes at the university; i'm still not sure why. but, as i'm getting pretty darn good at making lemonade down here, i just hopped on across the counrty to visit josh in porto viejo. we ate super rico ceviche, watched the new indiana jones with his students, and rode a bus to a pueblito near buy so i could but a birthday present for my dad, since i'll be home in time to celebrate on july 14th!

1. josh & some chickens, little chickens 2. an amazing mural at the porto mall 3. rudow, keepin it clean for all you blog readin' peeps 4. me and rudow, after darring the most enormous vuelta ever with his pals in porto to a little beach restaurant for pizza and pasta, in our new pins (see the tiny ecuadorian flags?) we really look convincing, don't we?

2008-06-03T11:43:00.001-07:00

deep sea fishing... oh yes, deep sea fishing. Um, we caught a bird, and that was it. Very sad--catching the bird was sad, being on the boat with beer and crazy united statesians was excellent...

1. the crew... don't they look like fun? 2. dolphins... obviously dolphins are fun!

2008-05-27T12:12:00.000-07:00

a little photo-catch up from the last few weeks here in ecuador...

banos birthday and waterfall party:

2008-05-27T12:06:00.000-07:00

my students had a holiday presentation at the Instituto's showing-off day. Halloween, as always, was a big hit!

2008-05-27T11:59:00.000-07:00

oh vilcabamba!

2008-05-27T09:12:00.001-07:00

more pix from cotopaxi...

1. Ava an me at 18,000 feet

2. 1:15 am, time to hit the trail

3. pregaming the night before

4. bunkhouse snuggling

2008-05-09T15:07:00.000-07:00

so... 18,000 feet is pretty sweet. I was tied to Ava, and Nico, our guide. Our hike began at 1:30 am Saturday. The sky was clear and black and starry and the lights of quito danced in the distance. At one point it go so I couldn´t tell the difference between the snowy surface of the mountain sparkling in the light of my headlamp and the stars. Lack of oxygen to the brain will do that to you. We hit 18,000 feet by 5:30 am and then decided it was time to turn around. The sun was crestingjust enough behind us to let light spill over and across the cotopaxi province. The browns and blacks of the exposed earth looked like shadows splayed open against the green. We could see the illinizas, el corazon, and at least five other peaks as the sky turned from deep, dark blue to rose and back to blue again.

2008-04-24T14:38:00.001-07:00

So no kidding, there I was, in front of my class, yes, teaching, here, in Ecuador… “Listen and repeat,” I stated. We were going over simple past and past of be. “Were you in Peru?” I said.
“Were you in Peru?” they repeated.
“Yes, I was.”
“Yes, I was.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
“Was the weather OK?” I asked.
As they responded the corner of my eye caught Gloria text messaging. A giant gasp followed by, “Gloria, how could you?” brought the activity to a full stop. I confiscated the phone, regained my composure, and said, half to myself, “Now where was I?”
“Now where was I?” they repeated.
“No, where was I?”
“No, where was I?”
“Where was I?”
“Where was I?” the echo was astounding. But I kept going, it was a mixture of disbelief and really wanting to remember where I’d left off.
“Where were we?”
“Where were we?”
“Where am I?”
“Where am I?”
All I could do was hide behind my teacher’s edition of Interchange One and say softly to myself, “I’m in hell, that’s where I am…”And then I just started laughing. And they started laughing. Maybe they were just repeating the laughter. But I like to think they got it…

2008-04-20T19:00:00.000-07:00

so, ladies weekend started out with a trip back to one of my favorite spots here in ecuador... cajas, outside of cuenca, and then, then we took an hour and a half long bus ride, the 13 of us, with 7 seats and arrived in the lovely town of jima... we got to crash in a very cool dorm room, quite the sleepover...

2008-04-20T18:47:00.000-07:00

Soyla, the amazing woman who killed, cleaned, and cooked this little guy for us...

and the gals from guayaquil... ain't they cute?

2008-04-20T18:38:00.001-07:00

me, and lunch...

shelby and ellenita, cooking the cuy!

2008-04-20T18:28:00.000-07:00

2008-04-20T18:02:00.000-07:00

1. climbing the hill to huinara 2. me, ella, and claire at the top 3. uh, the andes... 4. mmmmm, cookies and beer in bed... the perfect end to a great day.

2008-04-14T09:16:00.001-07:00

I had a grand plan to write about what an amazing time we had this weekend, Katie, Charlie, Pete, Ella, Rob, Ellen, Jon, and I. But really, this picture sums up the joy…

2008-04-14T09:06:00.000-07:00

The Boys From Machala: Charlie, Rob, & Jon

2008-04-14T08:28:00.001-07:00

1. skippercita and i at the gates of Jambeli 2. group lunch, seafood, hooray! 3. mmmmmmm ella and peter 4. the crew-- Machala bound 5. rings skipps and i got to commemorate the day, hers says caminante, mine, saltadora…

2008-04-06T18:30:00.001-07:00

It was a big weekend for birthday parties here in Ecuador… We celebrated in true gringo fashion Saturday night for Sarah’s 23rd… Sangria and out dancing with our Spanish teacher and a few students… and then, tonight, my host sister’s daughter had a little fiesta for lucky number 4… mmmmm, cake. Oh, and there was a piñata tambien.

2008-04-01T12:06:00.000-07:00

so... i've decided to leave ecuador to follow these turtle racers... they can use someone with my lettuce chopping skills to help with the feeding...

2008-03-30T18:12:00.000-07:00

the skipper kids... who are quite handy with rebar, much like their parents who made this trip possible.

2008-03-30T17:57:00.000-07:00

1. alyssa, capitan tortuga, and chris, an interesting lot, hard working, and yes, good looking too... 2. jacqueline and Alison and some girls from the neighborhood 3. katie pointing at me and my cuchara 4. us, shoveling concrete, just cause we can…

So… I got to help build a house, and see lava flowing from a volcano, and meet some amazing new people, and walk my feet down the cobblestone streets of another Spanish-speaking country. So good—so good.

2008-03-30T17:33:00.000-07:00

1. skipper and walker, hugging again, this time at a market in antigua 2. saturday's parade and the carpet we made from pine needles, flowers, and green and blue sawdust 3. me, pointing my thumb in the direction of liquid hot magma 4. yoga at the volcano with the seattle chicas

2008-03-11T16:10:00.000-07:00

had an awesome visit in flag too... you guys are amazing! 1. my folks… who screamed and gave the best ever hugs when they found me at home in the living room drinking beer and eating pizza with my pals… 2. david and diana, who can both do downright amazing things with their lenguas… 3. heather and danielle, superwomen extraordinaire…4. sobrinas, and the new bambino, Angus…

2008-03-11T14:30:00.000-07:00

1. jesse and me at laguna quilatoa, 2.us on the boat for my never-ending birthday party... thirty looks pretty dern good! 3. just the two of us at the center of the universe...I mean world, errr, um, earth 4. Us at the top of the basillica in quito... probably the best two dollars spent all week.

2008-03-11T13:17:00.000-07:00

Back in town… I can hear reggetone thorough the closed window panes of my bedroom… can see a tractor pulling up pieces of asphalt and the Andes in the background. For now, it’s home, and feels pleasantly familiar. Boy did I have some wonderful travels though… Here's me and Jesse in the Galapagos... blue footed boobies and our boat in the background...

2008-02-13T13:18:00.000-08:00

Are we ready to celebrate our birthday early in cuenca this weekend? We are we are. Did I mention we have the same one? SUERTE. Wish you all could be there.

2008-02-10T07:06:00.001-08:00

1. me, ava, and brooke... armed and ready

2. the superbowl bed... minus a few warm bodies and piles of chips

3. a mural in ambato... made of flowers, fruit, and bread

2008-02-09T06:41:00.000-08:00

Carinval in Ecuador… Well, it was bloody crazy, that’s what… Had a touch of the I’ve-got-tummy-troubles but managed to sleep it off mostly and still engage in a bit of the big to do. We arrived in Guaranda Saturday afternoon to a town full of what I like to call loquitos… they were wildy insane, water balloons, espuma (cans of silly-stringish hair mousse) and beer flew at us from every direction. Sunday found us watching a parade laden with beauty queens, cave men, bag pipers, and pretty much anything else you could think of. Later, we pushed our two beds together and curled up in front of the superbowl. On Monday we hit up Ambato for more culturally sound carnival experiences. There were parades aplenty here as well. And, as I stood, holding my ground against the crowds, and they were really pushy, a woman leaned on me with all her weight, trying mightly to get through, and said to me, “You are not the duena of Ambato.” And how could I really respond to that besides with, “No, I’m not…”? Because, I’m not, and really, I don’t even want to be.

2008-01-31T10:56:00.000-08:00

just wanted to give a little, well, BIG actually, shout out to all the folks who have sent me stuff from the states down here to Ecuador... your packages are dearly appreciated, mostly by me, i don't even share much of the chocolate with people I've once referred to as, "my new hero." She understands, or accepts me anyway.... SUERTE!

team ecuador

2008-01-27T09:50:00.000-08:00

english teachers... game on!

Also... heather found me some broccoli tea. how lucky am I? So lucky, so lucky.

my new hero

2008-01-27T09:27:00.000-08:00

my new hero... katie skipper, thing is, she got me here, to this hostel in La Libertad where our friend Mark lives-- i was all in a grouchy fog about having to travel with a nasty head cold... 1. and then, i'll be doggoned if she didn't saddle up and ride one of these stools just to put a smile on my face 2. next mornin we lit out on a bus up north to our teaching conference... she and sarah here talked a guy into giving them this little chicken so we'd have an appropriate ecua-gift for our new assistant field director (the chick has found a very good home in alandaluz) 3. katie and ella, on the beach, where we lead a massive group skinny-dipping about an hour after eating meals served in hollowed out coconut shells and bamboo shoots...

2008-01-20T18:15:00.000-08:00

So Friday, after class, a few of my favorite Ecuadorians were chillin outside the gate. We’re going to Malacatos, for a homework assignment, they told me, come with us they said, pleaaaase… I stood there for a moment, thinking, why the heck not? Logistics crept in… my plan for the day: a trip to the post office, a quick stop at my favorite juice place for a shot of vitamin C, possibly a nap to recover from a late Thursday night of dancing to reggetone with said Ecuadorians, maybe write a story, maybe fiddle around with those guitar strings that’ve been calling my name, plus, my backpack was really heavy. Thankfully, I came to my senses. Moments after stashing a pile of books under the computer where I clock in everyday we were bounding up the street, whistling for the vilca bus to pull over, which, indeed it did.
We climbed off the bus (Fabian paid for my seat) at the Malacatos square and waited for a bit for Ximena to meet us. While we sat, flowers blooming in gardens behind us, I split my eye time between the puffy white clouds against a blue, blue sky and a giant church donning the same exact colors. Next, we hopped into a little almuerso place for the traditional lunch of rice, meat, a fried plantain and a spoonful of tomatoes, onions, and cilantro (Marlon paid for mine). Then we hit up the panela packaging facility, this building a block from the center of town, piled high with drying sugar cane stalks used to power the oven that heats the sugar cane enough to melt and mix it into a gewy substance that is poured into molds, cools and is then packaged in huge bags, thrown on a truck, and sent out to the tons and tons of stores here that sell these brown blocks of sugar. Wouldn’t you know, even that wasn’t the sweetest part of the day…
Next we hit up a park. Hackey sack, me racing and only beating one of three Ecuadorians across a soccer field, a very short lived pull up contest and laying on the earth singing right out loud only lasted about an hour. And then, then we spent the next few hours engaging in a little something Ecuador likes to call Carnaval… Technically it only lasts from February 2th -February 5th. However, if you visit any of the fine cities of Ecuador right now you are likely to see evidence of it everywhere. Basically, anyone willing engages in a water fight that, if you start counting now—and you might as well, lasts for about two and a half weeks. Anyone not willing walks around in their grumpy pants, and, you can bet, no matter what their pants look like they still get slammed.
So, before climbing onto the return bus for Loja (Eduardo paid for my seat) the four of us, and two kids from town, used an entire package of water balloons on one and other… we were nice, we were mean, we threw them soft when we cried out, suavita, suavita, we threw them hard when it was for revenge. We shrieked, we giggled, we teamed up on each other we all stood alone. We got soaked. Water ran from the tops of our heads and on down to out the cuffs of our jeans. Our feet were grass-stained and muddy. We collapsed, exhausted, beneath the equatorial sun and sucked on oranges that were green and tasted like sweet sweet lemons. For a while there, all six of us were exactly the same age…

2008-01-11T12:55:00.000-08:00

1) St. Patrick's day came a little early this year... Mark, Katie, and I chilled out in Vilcabamba this past weekend and had ourselves a horrible green beer. As tired as we are of Pilsner, all three of us will take it sin crema de mente... as if we really had to perform this experiment to be certain... ah well I'm sure we at least gave the waitresses a good chuckle. 2) mark walking isaac to school on friday afternoon... just another day in vilca 3) me in the hammock before Mark and I trekked all up a road and through a valley and crossed a river with the help of a 9-year old named Juan and slid down the side of a mountain and swung over a barbed wire fence from a giant tree branch all the while discussing love and laughter, names and medical school and finding the similarities in people from all the corners of the earth-- thanks for the hat mom! 4) katie, sarah and me all curled up and ready to watch Star Wars... another bust, could only get the dubbed version. R2D2 just isn't the same in Spanish...

2008-01-01T18:00:00.000-08:00

cotopaxi bike ride and ilinizas... 1. me. crusin down the mountain, visibility low due to cloud coverage but high because of lack of trees... 2. me. contemplating the void with a smile because of the teeny, tiny, squishy leaves beneath my feet... 3. me. struggling to chew my chifles... 15,000 ft will do that to a girl. we almost turned around here due to weather and decreased motor skills. sure glad we didn't because ahead of us was picture number 4. isaac. at the saddle of iliniza norte...

2008-01-01T17:47:00.001-08:00

oh the mountains! these here are more from isaac's and my trip to cotopaxi...

2008-01-01T17:30:00.001-08:00

1. faculty christmas party... Katie is the princess! 2. papgauyo near the illinizas

3. me at cotopaxi (a little cloudy)

4. jeremy, mike, and travis, three guys from montana climbing mountains and raising money for great causes, check them out: alpinechallenges.org

2007-12-17T07:14:00.001-08:00

This weekend was filled with Lojano hospitality… started out with a Friday cafecito with five of my students and then an evening jaunt to what the three of us refer to as “the creepy place with the birds.” It got its name during our first week in Loja when Katie and I were searching for hangouts. It’s actually creepier in the day time so we only go there after dark and usually, like Friday, with one of her students, Hover. Hover is 19. Hover is in Katie’s level 4. Hover is studying to be a chef. He is the cutest Ecuadorian ever, seriously, the cutest. Katie says that once in a while Hover shows up to class in his chef get-up. Although I’ve yet to see this, in amplifies his cuteness. Anyhow, the three of us had a beer and talked about love and magic. Katie and I discussed her use of the word “should” in the way that people who’ve studied Literature and been to a bit of therapy discuss things. It made Hover uncomfortable. This intensified our enjoyment. Then I went out with my host brother and his cousin, Christian. We listened to a band play Megadeath and Metallica songs. I was surprised at how many I could sing along to. When the band finished we danced off our cuba libre buzzes with six beautiful young ladies of Loja. Then the nine of us piled into Pato’s car for the ride to the next bar a block and a half away. They only let five on the girls in. We dropped the other one at her casa and headed to a dingy little place that serves guatita (cow stomach in peanut sauce). I only ate rice. At three in the morning I texted Katie. Told her how she should have come out with us. Then I fell asleep. Dreamed of home. Woke up and had lunch with the gals at the ice cream shop with the cute waiters. I lost a bet and had to ask one his name. It’s David. I said, of course it is. Next Katie and I made truffles and watched six feet under. It took all afternoon. Then, today I went for a hike with one of my students. He is cute and young and has lots of energy. We followed a long narrow path that led to a castle. We raced near the top. He won. I let him. I asked him where the queen was. He thought I said, where’s the sand? We laughed and climbed the tower. We read graffiti and looked at the city. He taught me the word for tattoo. It’s Tatuaje. It looked like it might rain but it didn’t. He tried to teach me to ecuawhistle. The Spanish word for whistle is silva. It’s also the last name of my dad’s grandmother. I think it’s something I can learn to do. Then he bought me an ice cream. It was orange sherbet and something that reminded me of pralines and cream without the pralines. It was topped with syrupy strawberries and raspberries and chocolate sauce. It was too sweet but I ate it anyway. And just like that, I made a new friend.

2007-12-10T08:29:00.000-08:00

Well we went to catamayo with my students yesterday… And it was fantastic. We played basket ball, ate a ridiculous amount of food, had a mini dance party and took a dip in the pool. They kinda freaked out when Katie and I showed up in our super white skin and even exclaimed, “Oh my goodness!” (I taught them that) but everyone recovered in time to hit up the water slide. Here we are in front of this airplane that is on display in the middle of the park, for some reason. Seven mangoes to anyone who correctly identifies the class president on the first try.

2007-11-30T14:13:00.000-08:00

So, this little gringita, yes, that’s me-- with a few of the uncles, has had a pretty full 24 hours… last night was leonardo’s birthday and let me just tell you what a birthday party in Ecuador is like when you are a young musician with more than 50 cousins. Yes, more than 50. It’s pretty much how you’d imagine it to be… starts off slow with sangria that tastes like dimetap followed by whiskey of one sort or another and then things really get going. Before you know it, it’s two in the morning, all those not related and many who are have left but there’s still a solid, talented group rockin the latin tunes with an occasional glimpse at “honesty” and other what I’d refer to as 80’s emo-ish ballads. Once I realized that it was two in the morning I snuck off to bed… I’ve found that in the house it’s easier to just disappear rather than try to be granted permission to go, especially when I have to teach at seven in the morning…And teach I did, but, as you might suspect, I was running a bit late. So, no kidding, there I was, tryin to hail a taxi, when who should pull up but one of my students. He’s one of those clever, good-looking types who does the least amount of work possible and is used to getting what he wants by smiling and not quite looking you in the eye (which of course never works with me except for sometimes but, sadly for him, not in his case). He misses class about 25% of the time and never has his workbook even though he’s the one who got them for everyone else in the class (and I suspect made a dime or two on the side). But anyhow, he stopped and offered me a ride. And, of course, I was like, “I am not getting on that thing with you.” And then I did anyway. Don’t worry, mom, he drove very carefully and I arrived in once piece. And, of course, he didn’t have his workbook AGAIN, and I, of course said, “Boy are you lucky you gave me a ride to school this morning.” Which he, of course, didn’t understand but did, cause I looked him right in the eye when I said it like I do when I’m telling someone something I really mean. Oh, and then, after lunch I jumped in a cab with Caitlin and the taxi driver recognized me, said didn’t I used to live somewhere else here in town, which of course I did and maybe it’s the first time I got in a cab I’ve been in before and maybe it’s not, but anyway it really makes me feel like I do live here now. Which, actually, I do.

2007-11-29T12:26:00.000-08:00

my students... 1) Monday/Wednesday group-- can you guess which one keeps asking me out? 2)Tuesday/Thursday group-- can you guess which one I'd ask out if he wasn't 21 and my student?

2007-11-25T17:46:00.001-08:00

turkey for me, turkey for you, i like to eat my turkey in a big brown shoe... So, this was our saturday, the offical gaint meal, but fear not... I ate pie for four days in a row. Eucador and The US aren't so different, you know? 1) here's our group, Pete & Ella's host fam and then and 11 vols from the good ol' usa... 2) look, here are three now, Mark, Ellen, and Jon... they love turkey almost as much as they love jell-o 3) Pete's plate, pre diggin-in (note the fancy place card) 4) Sarah showin off our handy work, haha... look at all those handsome turkeys...

2007-11-25T17:31:00.001-08:00

back to cuenca again... 1) Katie Skipper= Q T PIE 2) Skipper and Danita showing off their speed-walking form in front of Ecuador's best, Jefferson Peres 3) Above the city of cuenca, Skipper (saltadora) and Walker (caminante), smiling about doing neither skipping or walking the moment.

2007-11-25T17:16:00.000-08:00

so, pix from the b-day and a day trip to zamora... 1) Cecilia and Patitolindo 2) Leonardo and Patitolindo singing at the party 3) Caitlin and me en route to zamora 4) recovering from a delicious lunch in a hammock in zamora

2007-11-19T12:46:00.000-08:00

so i've tried to post a video of the b-day bash... did it work? or has my allergy to computers won once again?

2007-11-18T15:45:00.000-08:00

This marks my second weekend in a row of chillin in loja. (And here we are with R2.) Have had a chance to hang with some students, watch parades, wander around with my host bro, patitolindo, check out some churches, celebrate cecilia’s birthday , and even hit up a day-trip to the jungle where we ate tilapia and relaxed in hammocks as the rain sprinkled down upon the flowerbeds constructed of recycled soda bottles…
The best part of the weekend was, by far, the birthday celebration. Last night was quite the fiesta, cecilia sang, patitolindo played the guitar, leonardo played the drums, carlos played the piano, and skipper and I sat around with the birthday girl’s nine siblings drinking whiskey and soda. At two in the morning we ate a massive Ecuadorian meal and birthday cake (who knew pork with peaches could be so good… probably tom robbins, at least) and then I went to bed, the piano still sounding softly in the background.

2007-11-11T16:08:00.001-08:00

And there I was, riding this llama… I find myself wondering, did I get fleas from this llama? Maybe… maybe… that’s right. As of so far have managed to escape any major stomach troubles unlike most of my co volunteers… however, this week presented a few little bites, all in a row on my right leg, and then a few more on my left leg and they’re slowly progressing to the point where connect the dots could take at least five or six minutes… so the real question is, are they fleas or are they bed bugs? Word on the street is raid will kill them both… oh dear. But on to brighter topics—this weekend was fantastic for spending in Loja. Katie, Caitlin and I headed out with my new host brother, nicknamed Patitolindo (which translates to pretty little duck) and listened to some live Ecuadorian Folk Music and a Mariachi band. He and his pals also talked us into drinking a fancy little number called “The Spirit of Loja” which I can tell you tastes a lot better warm than cold. This complicates things when you are trying to drink it slowly so that they won’t pour anymore into your cup… My new host mom, Cecilia, and her sisters also made these marvelous tamales yesterday. The whole family came over to enjoy them. Lucky for me, I even got a few for breakfast this morning, oh, and on Friday, I found a cute little juice and breakfast spot where I treated myself to some spinach juice. Life is so good.

2007-11-09T10:46:00.000-08:00

so, mom wanted a few more pix and here they are... from the weekend in cuenca: 1...rio tomebamba. 2... hitchin a ride back from cajas to cuenca (we waited for a bus for 30 minutes and then this guy and his family and little perrito picked us up). 3... charlie, josh, and pete, after they ate fruitloops off of katie's curves and before they posed like ron burgundy. 4... me and ella fighting over who has to eat the last piece of ecuadorian cheese...

2007-11-09T10:28:00.000-08:00

so... 1...pete had these jerseys made for us, i picked "megancita" because it's what some of my professor students and my new host brother call me. 2...me and katie being cute after eating the best chocolate cake in all of south america and isaac being a boy. 3... san sebastian square in el centro in loja (this is taken from the balcony of my spanish language school). 4... annie, me, and ella in cuenca at the hostel where ella and pete live (site of upcoming turkey fiesta in a few weeks).

2007-11-07T18:28:00.000-08:00

So, first of all… you must know that the first thing I saw when I climbed up the stairs at my new host fam’s house was none other than a made to scale model of R2 D2… Clearly, this was a match made in heaven. Am posting from my very own quiet bedroom right now. Very exciting. Carlos, Cecilia, Patricio, and Leonardo are already amazing and just like that, the world makes sense again.
I’ve included another picture from cajas where Pete, Josh, and I are lying on the earth. Man did it feel good and, of course, mad props to Isaac for the marvelous composition. Cuenca last weekend was a blur of a reunion for all us voluntarios. There was hiking and hitchhiking (in a group of 7, don’t worry mom…) bussing and speed scrabble, dancing to reggetone, running along the river, cooking and eating together and together and, of course, dancing and eating in the street for the independcia festival.
Perfect is really the only word for this weekend, for the chocolate I got in the mail from the good old USA, and for this moment, right now.

2007-10-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

So, I am in love again, already! This time, it’s with a very short Columbian named Shakira… I thought I enjoyed her music before I left the US. Now, it’s part of my daily routine. Most recently I was listening to her tunes as I traveled on the bus to Cuenca—my first real solo trip since arriving in Ecuador. It was fantastic. The earth was spread wide open, mountain top after mountain top exposed, all just right out there for me to stare at as I smiled, singing along to the ladrones album, writing crappy poetry with my new Spanish verbs and stretching out across my own two bus seats. And then, the day only got better. Because I was with Ella and Pete and a few of Pete’s students, sitting in the back of a pick-up truck parked on the side of a busy street drinking coronas and passing a bottle of mescal which I’m sure we only bought because it had a worm in it. And then, then we went dancing…and tumbled home to crash out at Cecilia’s hostel, termed the cuenca house by some peace corps volunteers, only to wake up and head to one of the most amazing places on the earth… cajas national park. Here, we shared a picnic lunch of avacados, tomatoes, bread, cheese I’m growing tired of, and apples and oranges. We crossed over soggy earth and up and down colinas and across streams and bridges. We took a moment to lie on the earth. We closely examined the teeniest tiniest green leaves with a bright yellow ring around their oja verde shapes, Pete pointed out some crocus-like yellow and red blossoms and Ella spotted the most amazing bulbous drip of water hanging from the branch of a tree. And, as if that weren’t enough, it even rained millions of tiny raindrops. These small things seem even smaller against the vast expanse of the open earth and yet, they are somehow bigger at the same time.

2007-10-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

Running on the sidewalks of Ecuador can be a bit like trial running…. What with the uneven concrete, occasional low hanging scaffolding, trees mid-sidewalk, seemingly impassable roundabouts, and strange particles in the air… Okay, maybe that’s just what it’s like to run in a city…in any case, I finally got out and did yesterday and boy oh boy did it feel good.

I haven’t actually had the old hip-flexors movin like that since I left the soccer fields of Quito. I mean yeah, I spend almost two full hours walking everyday to and from work and the house and Spanish lessons, but there’s nothing quite like getting the quadriceps all excited and taking those long deep breaths, stomach and abdomen expanding, lungs pumping, breath hot as it escapes the lips.

I hit up a park about a ten minute jog from my casa. The path wound through green hills and along a river in a valley of the Andes and I ran passed llamas and mysterious playground equipment and groups of people playing volleyball. There were horses and a few other runners and walkers and a guy on a bike, and pair of policemen riding a motorcycle on the footpath. Oh, and lots of couples making out. That’s one thing that seems to go on in all Ecuadorian parks, people are making out all over the place. It’s a goal I have this year, to make out with someone in a park… any takers?

2007-10-16T10:41:00.000-07:00

So, here we are. The ladies of Loja. Caitlin, Katie, and me… and in this photo, we’re back in Vilcabamba. Behind us are mountains that lead to Podocarpus, the national park I’m hoping to take a few day camping trip in next month with a few pals and a guide. Apparently the guide is the key to not getting robbed mid-adventure…

In front of us is Ella, in a hammock. Yes, it’s true, we could really only stand two weeks apart from one and other, she and I, and it was almost as though we hadn’t been separated once we were reunited. Vilca this weekend turned out to be even more relaxing than last. We stayed at a hostel called Rendezvous and it was amazing… Not only were our ears graced with the sound of Spanish with a French accent, but our stomachs… oh, our stomachs. We ate mangoes and dark chocolate and drank a tasty mixture of cheap red wine and cocoa cola (calimotxo)… I know, it doesn’t sound that great but it really was the perfect afternoon card-game beverage brought straight from the streets of Spain, where my three traveling partners have studied… And I dreamed, in a room full of giggling girls, of friends, of spinning, of smiling, of dancing in the rain. And in the morning we ate at Frenchish breakfast of eggs, the most delicious flaxseed bread, real butter, and a very-bery compote, washed it down with tea, cocoa, and coffee, climbed back into the hammock and called it a day. Oh, Ecuador!

2007-10-12T10:17:00.000-07:00

If my classroom had a window you could look out, this is what you’d see… If only it had one you could look in…

My students threw a little party this week… At the end of our 8-10 am class yesterday a couple of them ran off to pick up chicken sandwiches, banana chips, soda, chocolate covered maltballs with some marshmallowy goodness in the middle, and wine that tasted like cough syrup. They returned and flipped on some laid back spainsh singers and started playing this little game where you count off and then have to say a series of responses in the right order. I joined them, having no idea what I was saying… and I don’t know if it was because I did it correctly or because I said it wrong, but I had to give up my watch and then dance with a student to get it back.

Dancing proved to be a theme for the day when, after my Spanish teacher raked me over the coals for continuing to pronounce “todos” like “toros” which I’ve been doing since I got here… can’t seem to let go of that one, not sure I want to… but anywho, the host fam took me and Caitlin out dancing later on. We went to this discothèque called The Mills and rocked out for most of the evening. After a while, the lasers and smoke machine were kinda getting to me so I sat down for a beer break—this guy came up and asked me to dance. I told him no, that I was tired and he proceeded to speak to me in Spanish. Between the loud music and the smoke and lasers and me repeating, “Lo siento, no comprendo.” You’d think he might get up and head on out of there. But he persisted, trying to gather I don’t know what kind of information. And I just started to laugh. This is the hilarity of my life right now. I find myself in these situations that are only ridiculous because I can’t find the words to get my way out of them. Me, no words… and all I can do is giggle. Moments later, my host mom (who is like 4 years older than me) showed up and explained that I was her cousin and that I didn’t understand a word he was saying and would he please shift his energies elsewhere. Which he did, after apologizing and saying that he hoped the next time he saw me we could dance. I might just be busy laughing though…

2007-10-08T11:41:00.001-07:00

today I thought I´d just throw up a few pix from the last week.... this one is of Santiago and his cousin Gabby. I´m staying with Santi and his folks here in Loja.

2007-10-08T11:39:00.000-07:00

the vicla oct '07 gang this weekend

2007-10-08T11:38:00.000-07:00

sarah and isaac in vilcabamba eating broccoli soup and drinking jugo de mangoes...

2007-10-08T11:37:00.001-07:00

me and ellen on the hammock deck in the cloud forest...

2007-10-08T11:35:00.000-07:00

jon and some kiddos we picked up on our way to see some waterfalls and on their way home from school

2007-10-08T11:34:00.000-07:00

me rope-swinging in the cloud forest

2007-10-08T11:32:00.000-07:00

the little cart we traveled in across this gorge in the mindo cloud forest...

brilliant

2007-10-05T08:44:00.000-07:00

The guy who snapped the photo… you can’t see him, in that photo from the last post, but he’s there. He’s here, in Ecuador, and he’s brilliant… Actually, even without having spent a whole lot of time talking with him one on one I know he is, without a doubt, one of the smartest people I’ve ever met. And never mind the fact that he went to an amazing school and will probably leave this program to get paid to go and study math somewhere in Europe or write the next fantastic adventure book with languages he might create out of thin air, he shared with us the most clever idea ever—something small really, but I know it’s changed my life forever.

And now I’m sharing it with you: For long bus trips, or any trip anywhere for that matter, but especially when you are in unfamiliar lands, wander your way into a tienda or some type of grocery store and buy the cheapest— yes, cheapest— cookies you can find. They’re bound to taste just like those cookies you remember from your childhood, the ones that resemble a parade of unimpressive blobbish circus animals. You’ll barely be out any dough and will be projected, even if only for a moment, back to the boulders on the front lawn, barefoot in the summer grass with a handful of bland, carboardy cookies, the shadow from the crabapple tree barely big enough to shade the jar of grasshoppers Jesse caught, using five-year-old diligence and my butterfly net. Or at least that’s where I found myself this afternoon anyway…

2007-10-02T11:49:00.000-07:00

Goodbye Quito, for now…
Last weekend, after a day of soccer in the park we climbed upon a little gondola and crawled up the side of a mountain. This group of us was lucky, without incident we hopped off, traversed a trail, sat and watched enormous creatures with gigantic wingspans soar above our heads, above the two and a half million people in Quito, above the Andes and Andes and Andes that surround the city. Then we finished up our last three days of orientation and had an amazing celebration on Wednesday night…

And then after that last little party... You know how guidebooks, field directors, and host families always tell you to take a cab in the Mariscol after 8 pm? Well, they do. Even on Wednesdays. And it’s important to listen to them. Even when it’s your last night in Quito and you’ve been out salsa dancing, have gotten your jiggy on to some regge-tone, the moon is bright, and the cool air is wicking away the sweat from your ate-cuban-food-and-drank-ecuabeer-and-danced-and-danced-and-danced-all-night body… the thing is, we just started walking. And it’s close, my host family’s house—and he said, should we take a cab? And I said, yes, it’s way after 8. And still, we kept walking. And we heard voices and looked back and saw them following us, and before we knew it there they were, hands in our pockets, knife to his throat, taking his phone and wallet but leaving his keys and missing altogether the seven dollars and extra dose of benadryl in my sock. And then, more suddenly than they had appeared, they were gone. And we were okay. Minus the phone and the wallet and the false sense of security that is having grown up in towns like Flagstaff and Ashville… so take a cab. Even if it’s only three blocks, take a cab. And, count your blessings and the stars if you do live in a place where you can walk home safely in the middle of the night even if you are a tall, strangely glowing foreigner.

Ella and the three sleep-overs…

2007-09-24T19:19:00.000-07:00

I feel compelled here to write about my roommate… she truly is amazing. We have a great time together and I have learned a lot from her about Ecuador, working abroad, speaking Spanish, and really living. During one of our karaoke escapades last week we discovered that we share the same birthday. Come February, there’s gonna be a big to do in Ecuador.

Yesterday afternoon she, her boyfriend, Pete, and I chatted back and forth between our two rooms up on the roof of Mama Marta’s house. We giggled and shot clever, witty remarks at one and other. Pete asked, “Do you guys do this every day?” We said yes, of course, and he told us it sort of felt like we were having a sleep-over. This lovely exchange was interrupted by the 5:30 call for Spanish class so the three of us headed down the hill catching a plethora of giant raindrops as we walked.

My beginner Spanish class normally consists of 5 students. Last night, however, it was just the three ladies: Annie, Karina, and me. And, por supesto, our teacher, Sandra. We started out talking about antonyms but somehow the conversation shifted to the taller and shorter hombres who have come in and out of our lives. After two hours of giggling and using the words guapo and alto and bajo about 80 times Karina said, “That was just like a slumber party!” I’ve said it before, the universe has this way of letting me know what’s coming—but I rarely see it until I’m in at least knee deep.

What I do see a lot of is pizza, even in Ecuador, and that I pretty much always enjoy. After Spanish we partook in pizza and dancing at Son Franciscano and then hit up a salsa club to meet some of our students. Much to my surprise, one student brought a gift for me, Jeff, and Annie… or three gifts, rather: shot glasses donning the words Ecuador and Galapagos. My United State’s teaching experience being my only frame of reference here, I promptly text messaged one of our directors asking if the appropriate response was to now buy her a shot. He replied with only three little letters: Y E S. And so we did. Dancing and laughing and sipping tequila ensued. (I actually even salsa danced with a couple of locals (both in fanny-packs (worn in the front)).) As the evening wore on a bit of tired crept in and Ella and I decided to head for home. We took Annie with us and Rob, Charlie, Pete, and Shelby climbed into another cab headed in the opposite direction. Somehow, at that moment, we forgot that after what was above referred to as the first sleep-over we’d given the keys to our casa to Pete… And, of course, cell phones really hadn’t gone with our dancing outfits…

So no shit, there we were. In a cab in Ecuador in the middle of the night, with no keys or cell phones, or desire to awaken Mama Marta or anyone else in the sleepy hours of 2 in the morning. So, we took a chance, headed for Pete and Charlie’s apartment complex, and waited, inside the gate with the armed guard, hoping that they wouldn’t try to double back and find us to return the keys. Thankfully, they didn’t. However, by the time they had returned we decided it would be better not to hop into another cab and travel all the way back across Quito. So, we divided and conquered (not that kind of dividing). Ella, of course went with Pete and I crashed at Charlie’s… Let me tell you, that guy has got one BIG bird book on the floor in his room. Being the southern gentleman that he is, he crashed on the couch, which means I woke up in an unfamiliar space away from Ella and needing to visit the bano just a badly as I didn’t want to leave the room for fear of who I might run into in the hallway. Eventually, nature got the better of me and I made a beeline. Encounter-free, I decided it would be best to leave the door open just a crack so that I might be able to tell when folks were moving about the house. After having danced all night I chose to stretch out the old hamstrings and transferred in and out of a few yoga poses. Just as I was settling in to warrior one, who should open the door to say good morning, but Myriam, Charlie’s host mom. I awkwardly shook her hand and introduced myself, thanking her in my shotty Spanish for putting me up for the night. Then she made me breakfast and while Charlie got ready for his soccer game we talked about how nice the natural the light in her house is and watched the blender chop up tiny pieces of tomatoes for one of my new favorite morning juices...

papallacta, super sunday, and a wee bit o culture shock

2007-09-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

So... the hot springs were absolutely amazing and the hike didn't disappoint either. I think it's fair to say that we were ready for an adventure, and indeed we got one... After a two hour bus ride where we spoke pretty much only English, we piled out into a valley of the sierra. Straight away most of us took to the muddy trail, crisscrossing cascading streams and slipping and sliding through the mud. We used every minute and beyond of the two and a half hours of daylight we had, returning to the hot springs by the reflection of night-sky light from low lying clouds. Then it was off to soak until we were so warm we raced to the icy-cold pool for a plunge and then back even more quickly into the steamy springs.

Sunday led a group of us to the courtyard of an apartment complex where several volunteers are staying with their Quito host families. It was an afternoon full of soccer and basketball, of laughing and breathing hard at a polluted 9,000 ft. We wrapped it up with pizza and super sweet apple soda and soft scoops of ice cream in celebration of Ashley's birthday.

Then, then it was Monday again... spent a few hours teaching, and a few talking linguistics with an Ecuadorian who studied at Georgetown, grabbed a very slow lunch of sandwiches with the best-ever avocados and picked up a few magnum bars (yes, magnum bars are plentiful here... mmmmmm ice cream covered in chocolate), had another educators discussion and then headed for Spanish class... where I realized I've learned to conjugate all the verbs I know. And now, dear ladies and fellas, I have to learn some more. It was amazing to me to find that I really hit a wall. One of the speakers from last week told us that this happens when we're experiencing culture shock. And that we won't be able to learn more of the language until we get over it. And so I asked our field directors-- How do I get over this? Their response... listen to music in Spanish, (I can hear some right now) watch movies in Spanish, walk around identifying all the things you can using the Spanish words, pick up a newspaper, magazine, book, whatever you can find in Spanish. To this I say, palabra. The translation to English: word.

2007-09-15T08:43:00.000-07:00

This week in Quito brought with it the first days of teaching in Ecuador. I’ve been teaching with two amazing volunteers (who also, it turns out, happen to be fantastic dancers). We are working with a group of intermediate level language learners with a wide range of abilities. I’ve found that not all of my old classroom tricks work here, I use too many words and need to really structure the way I give directions—I’ve learned so much in the last three days! We’ve been talking about holidays—yesterday was New Year’s—and in Ecuador, one of their traditions is to have a giant bonfire and burn what’s being represented as the old year. Also, it appears that they are more into hugging than kissing when the bell tolls midnight.
Speaking of midnight…the past two weeks have been jam-packed with info sessions, long bus rides, sight seeing, salsa lessons, hours of teaching and planning and hours upon hours of learning and communicating with our host families… but last night, we finally made it to midnight… and beyond. A group of us hit up what translates to Bungalow Six and we danced, and danced, and danced… Ella and I returned home about two to find we were without one of the essential three keys to get into our house, luckily though, with our nimble fingers and the help of whatever fancy liquid we were drinking out of that fishbowl and Bungalow Six, we managed to manipulate the lock quietly enough to climb up into the house without waking anyone.
Today we’re off to Papallacta, described in the book as, “Ecuador’s most luxurious, best-kept and probably most scenic thermal baths…” ah, Ecuador.

16 equals twelve

2007-09-10T21:18:00.000-07:00

... at least it does today anyhow... So no kidding, there we were. Five Americans, backpacks on our fronts, voices and laughter loud and in English. But how could we help ourselves? We had to share our stories from the weekend. And we did—me about how Marco (my host father in Loja) and I realized that we both find relief in learning a new language because it stops the voices in our heads, about how Karina (my host mom) gave me a pair of shoes and promised me a makeover at her salon when I return—Isaac and Sarah about their amazing views from their hammocks in Vilecabamba—Katie about how her host brother is marrying a volunteer from last year—and Caitlin about how her host father may in fact be one of my students… All this we discussed while searching for the bus to Quito, which we eventually found after witnessing two almost-bus accidents at the terminal. Once we located it, we wove our way through the crowd and climbed aboard, grabbing a sandwich & mango juice snack at the top of the steps. We piled into seats, as comfortable as they could be, and tried not to look too closely over the edges of gigantic cliffs that dropped off into the darkness as the bus plugged away from Loja. Luckily, the night bus doesn’t stop, so we made it in 12 hours rather than 16, what a relief. It is so fascinating that a 45 minute plane ride can translate to all night long on a bus. So, was it worth it to save the $45 dollars more it would have cost to fly? Would you believe me if I said it doesn’t matter? Because right now, it actually doesn’t.

I think my favorite moment from the weekend was during my first Ecuadorian salsa lesson, which caught me entirely off guard. Not because I wasn't ready; I am always ready to dance— but because first, my teachers asked me to watch them dance. And there they were, Marco and Karina, salsaing around their living room, eyes smiling at each other, toes gliding across the floor, their hands resting gently in one and others. It made me think about the last time I’d been out salsa dancing. And, you know, it was the tear that surprised me, the one that came along right after my smile. It's something you can't escape when you are happy right where you are and remember one moment so intensely that it feels like everything is happening all at once...

fireworks

2007-09-08T12:07:00.000-07:00

Last night the streets of Loja were crowded with people... I could see above all their heads. Yes, even above the heads of most of the small children sitting on their father´s shoulders. I think, probably, I could count on both hands and the toes of one foot the number of people who I´ve seen here in Loja who are my same height or taller. Two of them are Isaac and Sarah, volunteers living in Vilcabamba (a one dollar bus ride away into a valley where some of the oldest people in the world live).

So, while I was up there, I felt a little exposed... My face was pretty much glowing, perhaps more because of where my feet were on the ground than from the light of the fireworks reflecting against my white skin.

mama marta and the 16 hour bus ride to come...

2007-09-07T09:07:00.000-07:00

Mama Marta cooks delicious soups in a tiny kitchen with a blue ceramic tile counter top. When I´m there with Ella, my roomie from the US, (although we each have our own tiny room on the top floor across an exposed concrete veranda) we sit on wobbly yellowish stools. I listen while Ella rattles off exquisite spanish sentences full of woooowwwws and other english words I recognize but that sound entirely different in the most fabulous way when she says them... The soup is salty and the bed is soft and each day I understand a little bit more of what they´re saying.

On Thursday I hopped a plane from Quito to Loja and found myself in a different kitchen altogether. This one is modern, the counter tops are a familiar black granite and the stools short and sturdy, the walls yellow and the soup lighter, not at all creamy, with a very american amount of salt. Last night we sang spanish karaoke in the family´s informal living area while drinking Johnny Walker (my first taste of liquor south of the equator) and I slept in a race car bed. It´s something everyone should try at least once... looks like the universe holds at least two nights in the red race car for me. Tomorrow I´ll be trying not to sleep on a 16 hour bus ride from Loja back to Quito where we´ll spend the next three weeks taking classes on spanish and teaching englsih to spansih speakers.

countdown

2007-08-27T22:03:00.000-07:00

Whaddya know? I leave for Ecuador in five days. Yes, that's right, five (5) days... I'll be heading to Quito for the first four weeks where I'll meet up with 40 other volunteers for training and orientation. Then three of us will hop on a bus going south west and 16 hours later we'll be at our teaching site in Loja. We'll teach there for about 10 months and then... and then and then... who knows? As I prepare for this departure the voices in my head take me on incredible journeys. When I'm able to wrangle them back in though, I keep an eye on the puffy white Flagstaff monsoon clouds and a foot firmly planted on the ground and smile, not only because I'm breathing in the clean mountain air but because it's 7000 feetnitude is helping keep my lungs strong for that first four weeks at 9000 feet on the equator.

Anyone for a visit? Keep in mind there's a plane ride from Quito to Loja too, if you're not feeling tough enough for the bus...

translations

2007-08-19T21:31:00.000-07:00

so... tonight I set up my new blogsite. I spent quite a bit of time trying to find a clever name. I settled on one who walks because trying to search for the spanish translation of megan or walker was non-existent. I've been assured by people in the know that my middle name won't translate either. That's right, I am the whitest person I know...