This past week one of the eigth grade girls, Amelia, invited all of the teachers over to her farm. We all piled into a bus after school to go to her family's farm. I figured if her family was inviting all of the teachers over to their house they must be wealthy. When we were in the bus, Amelia told us this is the start of our property. Her family has rose farms, broccoli, and cows. Her father, who was incredibly hospitable, showed us all around the farm. The farm was inheirited from his parents, and their house was approximately 150 years old. The house was decorated with ornate furniture and art. I was talking to the mother about how much I loved the art in their house, and she showed me all the rest of the paintings in the bedrooms. After touring the farm, they lit a fire for us and fed us snacks including some amazing chocolate cake. Amelia's cousin and his friend (both around our age) came over and visited with us. They were talking to us about all the cool sites to see in the area. We exchanged information and hopefully will be able to travel together. The family gave us each a head of broccoli from their farm to take home and a huge container of honey (straight from the hive...not as sweet as what I'm used to but it's still delicious). The family was so refreshingly warm and inviting. It was a very nice evening.
The more and more I'm at the school and around the kids, I learn more about their families. I get to meet some of the parents after school when they pick their kids up. Most of the parents who come seem to be responsible, caring people, but I wonder about my other students' parents. I wondered about one in particular...one of my second grade boys who seems to have some emotional issues/ADD. I asked Yasser, one of the teachers who has been at the school for about a year if he knew if most of the kids eat dinner at home and about the particular second grade boy. Yasser told me that there are about 8 boys in the family, and they often put the kids to work carrying heavy rocks. Many time they have to go to bed early because there is nothing to eat for dinner. It made me sad hearing this, and it gave me a better understanding of what life is like for him. I am glad though at the school the kids have plenty to eat. We eat breakfast, fruit, lunch and then yogurt right before the kids leave. Another thing that is different about the school but good is that the kids shower every morning. A lot of the kids come from farms and have to trek a long way to get to school in the morning, so they are pretty muddy from the walk alone.
This weekend, the other volunteer teachers and I went to Latacunga, a town about a half an hour away, for La Mama Negra festival. We all were unclear what the festival was about before going to it. I heard from someone it was a celebration of the freedom of slaves. The only thing we knew for sure that there would be lots of dancing and lots of alcohol. We arrived early and unsure what time the parade started. We asked around and a woman told us there was a mass and then the parade goes through the town after that. We found the mass in the center of the town. It was outside and many people were gathered around for it. We only stayed for a bit of it, but there was a band and they played a beautiful song about the Virgin. I later found out the festival is about thanking the Virgin for protecting Latacunga from Cotopaxi, the active volcano nearby that has destroyed the city many times. Throughout the festival, people give offerings to the Virgin. Most commonly a pig carcass adorned with other foods and alcohols. In the parade there are men who carry this pig offering on their backs. Looks very heavy and they have someone behind them in the parade to carry a table so that they can rest it on there when they get tired. La Mama negra is a man dressed up as a black woman, usually on a horse. La mama negra sprays sugar cane alcohol on people in the crowd. I loved seeing the dancing and costumes in the parade. Very different from the parades I'm used to! No dancing grannies in this one. :)
As all the guidebooks said, there was a lot of drinking. It started early. There were vendors on the streets selling Pilseners left and right for $1. A 40 oz. beer for $1. Heck yes. After the parade, we went searching for some dancing. We met two americans that are volunteer teachers as well in a town about 45 mins from us. They were cool and we plan to travel with them soon. We talked to random Ecuadorians on the street as well. Some were great to talk to, but some of them were so drunk I couldn't understand them. I kept saying "I don't understand you" and walked away from the drunk ones. All in all it was a fun day. Lots of people, drinking and crazyness. Next weekend we plan to travel to Mindo, near the jungle. Excited for warm weather! I'm definitely sad I'm missing fall in Wisconsin. Apple picking, leaf piles, pumpkin flavored foods....yum! Please do all of these things for me while I'm gone :) Love you guys!
domingo, 25 de septiembre de 2011
viernes, 16 de septiembre de 2011
Long Overdue Update
Sorry, that it has taken me so long to write a blog entry. I had forgotten to pack my power cord for my laptop and there is literally no battery life in my laptop, so I was at the mercy of other people's computers.
Gosh, it is too hard to re-tell everything, so I am going to summarize as much as possible. I'm going to ramble a bit too.
I flew into Quito (the capitol) about a month ago now and spent a week with a host family while taking Spanish lessons. My host mom was 77 years old, but seemed much younger. It was cute because she was so motherly and protective, but she also gave me my space when needed. I spent the week hanging out with Elsa, who is from France and also is a volunteer at Sierra Flor, and Reggie, an Australian girl who is doing a tour around South America. We saw different sites around Quito... Usually I get bored quickly with museums, but I found them really interesting.
The first weekend here, Elsa, Reggie and I went out to dinner at a restaurant on la ronda (a popular but not super touristy street) We tried canelazo, a warm Ecuadorian beverage with cinnamon and wine. Later we met up with Elsa's host guy, Cesar and two of his friends. It was really great going out with locals because it really gave me a better look into what Ecuadorian culture is really like. I talked to one of Cesar's friends and he told me that Ecuador is quite an alcoholic country and that he himself has an obsession with alcohol. That was apparent the rest of the night to me. It was good having them with us though because they were there to look out for us and protect us while having a good time. It was also funny listening to these Ecuadorian guys trying to sing the words to American songs.
Elsa and I went that weekend to Otavalo, a huge market about an hour north of Quito and La Mitad del mundo (The middle of the earth). Otavalo was really cool because there was a lot of indigenous people there selling items. It was fun bargaining with them too. Sister, it reminded me of Cancun and I saw some armadillos but decided against getting you one. I really like La Mitad del Mundo. There are actually two lines, but the real one is actually kind of hidden. The historical one had all the tourists there and they had a dance festival going on. The real one was super cool because they did different experiments on the line to prove that it was the equator.
After spending a week in Quito, Elsa and I came down to our school, Sierra Flor. It is about an hour bus ride from Quito. The first week we basically had meetings with all the teachers and prepared lessons and our classrooms. The next week school started!
I teach 1st, 2nd, 3rd grade English, Math and Social Studies. I am doing the work of two teachers, so it does get pretty tiring. The school is on Sierra Flor rose plantation. A lot of the workers' kids attend Sierra Flor. The farm is absolutely gorgeous. On clear days we can see Cotopaxi, a volcano which means Neck of the Moon in Quechua. It is nicer being in the country because in Quito there was so much pollution and it is safer here. I live in a house with other volunteers and teachers. There are a few other girls from the U.S., an australian guy, a french girl, two cuban guys, a taiwanese girl, an austrian girl and a czech girl here so far. The cuban guys are so funny. The part of Cuba where they are from is known for speaking really fast. I told them my goal is to fully understand their conversations by the time I leave. Everyone is great and it's nice to relate to the other teachers at the end of the day.
The kids' English levels vary a lot, so it can sometimes be difficult to teach. It's also difficult because I'm supposed to speak English with them all the time, but the 1st graders know a few English words. I try my best not to speak Spanish, but I definitely speak in Spanish when disciplining. I've learned that it takes A LOT of patience to work with young kids, and I don't know if I'm gifted with that kind of patience. They are soooo cute though. They like to use that cuteness to get their way. "Tia, please play!" I hear that quite often. They say that while hugging me and giving me a puppy dog face. The kids call all the teachers tia or tio. If someone ever calls me "Tia" again I will respond to it. I took some pictures today with the 1st graders and will post them soon. So tired now and I think I will continue tomorrow...
Missing you all!
Katie
Gosh, it is too hard to re-tell everything, so I am going to summarize as much as possible. I'm going to ramble a bit too.
I flew into Quito (the capitol) about a month ago now and spent a week with a host family while taking Spanish lessons. My host mom was 77 years old, but seemed much younger. It was cute because she was so motherly and protective, but she also gave me my space when needed. I spent the week hanging out with Elsa, who is from France and also is a volunteer at Sierra Flor, and Reggie, an Australian girl who is doing a tour around South America. We saw different sites around Quito... Usually I get bored quickly with museums, but I found them really interesting.
The first weekend here, Elsa, Reggie and I went out to dinner at a restaurant on la ronda (a popular but not super touristy street) We tried canelazo, a warm Ecuadorian beverage with cinnamon and wine. Later we met up with Elsa's host guy, Cesar and two of his friends. It was really great going out with locals because it really gave me a better look into what Ecuadorian culture is really like. I talked to one of Cesar's friends and he told me that Ecuador is quite an alcoholic country and that he himself has an obsession with alcohol. That was apparent the rest of the night to me. It was good having them with us though because they were there to look out for us and protect us while having a good time. It was also funny listening to these Ecuadorian guys trying to sing the words to American songs.
Elsa and I went that weekend to Otavalo, a huge market about an hour north of Quito and La Mitad del mundo (The middle of the earth). Otavalo was really cool because there was a lot of indigenous people there selling items. It was fun bargaining with them too. Sister, it reminded me of Cancun and I saw some armadillos but decided against getting you one. I really like La Mitad del Mundo. There are actually two lines, but the real one is actually kind of hidden. The historical one had all the tourists there and they had a dance festival going on. The real one was super cool because they did different experiments on the line to prove that it was the equator.
After spending a week in Quito, Elsa and I came down to our school, Sierra Flor. It is about an hour bus ride from Quito. The first week we basically had meetings with all the teachers and prepared lessons and our classrooms. The next week school started!
I teach 1st, 2nd, 3rd grade English, Math and Social Studies. I am doing the work of two teachers, so it does get pretty tiring. The school is on Sierra Flor rose plantation. A lot of the workers' kids attend Sierra Flor. The farm is absolutely gorgeous. On clear days we can see Cotopaxi, a volcano which means Neck of the Moon in Quechua. It is nicer being in the country because in Quito there was so much pollution and it is safer here. I live in a house with other volunteers and teachers. There are a few other girls from the U.S., an australian guy, a french girl, two cuban guys, a taiwanese girl, an austrian girl and a czech girl here so far. The cuban guys are so funny. The part of Cuba where they are from is known for speaking really fast. I told them my goal is to fully understand their conversations by the time I leave. Everyone is great and it's nice to relate to the other teachers at the end of the day.
The kids' English levels vary a lot, so it can sometimes be difficult to teach. It's also difficult because I'm supposed to speak English with them all the time, but the 1st graders know a few English words. I try my best not to speak Spanish, but I definitely speak in Spanish when disciplining. I've learned that it takes A LOT of patience to work with young kids, and I don't know if I'm gifted with that kind of patience. They are soooo cute though. They like to use that cuteness to get their way. "Tia, please play!" I hear that quite often. They say that while hugging me and giving me a puppy dog face. The kids call all the teachers tia or tio. If someone ever calls me "Tia" again I will respond to it. I took some pictures today with the 1st graders and will post them soon. So tired now and I think I will continue tomorrow...
Missing you all!
Katie
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