Chile-giving

The great thing about coming to Santiago as a part of ChACE is that you have this ready-made group of friends and people who care about you. And if there´s one thing I really love in life, it´s being a part of a group, a family. As easy as it is to sometimes feel isolated here because I don´t speak the language, because I don´t understand the culture, because old, deranged men pretend to shoot me at bus stops (yeah... that´s right)... as easy as it is to feel that way, I never have to go far to feel more at home.

And with all the difficulties and struggles I face in figuring out how to live and work in this new place, there is an equal number of rewards and wonderful things I´m experiencing every day. The staff and the students at San Esteban are truly so kind and welcoming. I´m constantly barraged by greetings of "Hello, Miss!" "Miss, how are you?" And I´m finally getting used to the cheek kisses that both faculty and students (and everyone in Chile) greets me with. I´m excited for the opportunity and challenge to teach here.

Last week was Thanksgiving. That´s pretty hard to believe. We had school like normal that day. Instead of getting colder like it would be in Nebraska, it´s getting hotter here. The school year is coming to an end, and I´m having a hard time connecting to the idea of the holiday season. But, this year especially, Thanksgiving felt very special to me. It was the first Thanksgiving I had ever spent away from my family. This Christmas will be, too. And I couldn´t help but thing... can´t help but think... about how thankful I am for them. Thankful for their love and support while I am here. Thankful for their appeasing me in my demanding attempts to contact them. Thankful for everything about them. And I miss them a lot.

My family at Thanksgiving. They´re pretty great. 

I´m also endlessly thankful for my friends in the United States. Not only have they been very intentional about supporting me and contacting me during my time here, but their support has made me feel incredibly loved. They are all so good. I don´t know what things I´ve done in my life to be so lucky to have the friends I have, but man, whatever it was, it was the right thing. The picture below is of a fraction of my friends from one particular group of friends, but this picture could easily be of dozens of people who I have come to love over the years.

Last fall at the pumpkin patch. 

And I´m thankful for my new family and friends here. I need them, and they are always here for me. And I´m so looking forward getting to know them better and spending the next year in their company. about a month after we arrived in Chile the current ChACErs (the people who started this program in Chile a year before my group did) threw a Halloween party. Traditionally, the group choose costumes to wear to the party.

We went as clue. I´m Ms. Boddy, and Dan (on the right) modified Mr. Green to Hipster Green. 

The other group went as Batman characters, and I hate to say it, but I think they won. 

And that brings us back to Thanksgiving. Other ChACErs have said it before, and I think I have to agree, Thanksgiving was the first day I actually felt homesick since coming to South America. The whole day was just strange. There wasn´t any build up at all... and then I just went to work like it was any other day. I knew that all my friends and family in the United States were either in the middle of a giant meal, talking to one another, or in a turkey-induced coma. And I was grading papers. The saving grace of the day was the Thanksgiving dinner that the priests at Saint George´s College (the school some of my friends work at) hosted for us. It was great. I love being able to see everyone during the week, and I felt anything but alone.

All of the people who hosted and attended our Thanksgiving here in Chile. 

All of the past and present ChACErs who were in attendance. 

Finally, my ChACE group. We´re pretty fabulous. 

In summary, I´m so thankful. For everything. I´m just so thankful.

Jokes about being cold

So I'm in Santiago, Chile. (Yes... it's actually been pretty chilly... I get it.)

I know. I know. I said I'd fill you in on the rest of Ecuador before I left, but there were just so many things to cram into that last week. Blogging just didn't make the list. The day after we got back from the jungle, we hopped in the van with Hugo and headed to Otovalo, a city that hosts a GIANT market every weekend. The market was full of homemade goods that were 1.) beautiful and 2.) ridiculously cheap.

I didn't end up buying all that much, because by that point in my Ecuadorian adventure, I was pretty low on funds. (I hadn't received my replacement debit card from when mine had been stolen. Did I tell that story?) However, after the market, we went to visit a nearby waterfall. You (like I was) may be thinking, "Really, ANOTHER waterfall. I think we've seen enough." Listen, if there's one thing I've learned about South America, it's that there will always be more waterfalls.

Aren't we just ADORABLE!?

The rest of our time in Quito was spent visiting our favorite places one more time. The two months there flew by so fast, and I have a feeling I'll be saying that after my 15 months here in Santiago as well.

So, yeah, I'm in Santiago. I have been for about a week and a half. Quito and Santiago are like night and day. Where Quito was huge and sprawling and historic, Santiago is huge and sprawling and modern. Where I was starting to understand some Spanish in Quito, I can't understand anything in Santiago. Where we were told to avoid public transportation if we could in Quito, here it's starting to become a way of life already. I can already tell I'm going to like Santiago. I loved Quito, too, but this will be different. This is my first real city that I've lived in. It's been a whirlwind, but there's too much to tell in this post. I'll have to save it for another time. For now I'll tell you I've moved in with my host family. I can get to all the places I need to get to via the bus or subway system. I'm working (well, working is a strong word... read: present) in my school every day. And I'm trying desperately to understand anything anyone says to me in Chilean Spanish. So far, it's not going well. ¿Cachái po?

This is where I live! What?

Welcome to the jungle

We've got lots of bugs.

We spent last week in the heart of the Amazon rainforest. Ok, that's not entirely (or even mostly) true. I think "technically" (maybe) we were in the rainforest or at least a climate that's similar. However, we weren't exactly roughing it by anyone's standards. We spent a week in a lodge on an island in a river. The only way onto said island was by (you probably guessed it) a cable car.

Hopefully my last tarabita ride for a couple of months.

While it wasn't really the rainforest experience I had envisioned, which was probably a delusional picture of poisonous snakes, terrifying spiders and wild animals, it was a really wonderful week. We spent the majority of our time swatting mosquitoes, relaxing in hammocks, and swimming in rivers. Oh, we also spent a good amount of time attempting to learn more Spanish, but mostly it was all hammocks all the time. Our first full day in the jungle Matildo, our guide and knower of all things important, gave us a tour of the island and showed us some of the plants and insects there.

I'll admit, I'm a little bit in love with Matildo.

We had to be careful to not step on lines of ants carrying leaves through the jungle.

Jungle plant on my face.

The next afternoon, the group went to climb around in some canyons. I played with Tarzan, the puppy that lives at the lodge, and napped by the river. That night and the night before we walked to the river in the dark to look at the stars. Let me tell you, that stars were simply nailing it the second night. Slam dunk, stars.

Tarzan.

On Wednesday, we went tubing down the river. We drove up the highway a little bit and climbed down to the river with our tubes. After they were tied together, our guides told us where to sit, and we set off. I was prepared for a leisurely jaunt down the river, and for the most part it was. However, at one point Marco, my group's guide, told us to all lay down flat, and that was when we started going over the rapids. Aside from Marco falling off once or twice, we all remained on the tubes. The other group wasn't as lucky. They ran into a number of trees and at one point lost Dan to the rapids.

On our last day on the island, Matildo took us to pick yucca, a potato-like plant. Matildo also took us to find grubs in the fallen trees. Believe it or not, both the yucca and the grubs were for eating that night. Yes, I tried one. No, they did not taste like chicken.

Slimy, yet satisfying.

I think our trip to the jungle was one of my favorites from our time in Ecuador. It was really wonderful to have a week where we were able to relax and bond a little bit more. I particularly enjoyed the jungle because it reminded me a lot of home. I know, I know, the plants and the wildlife are completely different. And the bugs... ugh... the bugs are about 100 times bigger than most of what Nebraska has to offer. However, it was just so quiet. Walking around on the island's trails brought me back to all the trails I've ever walked in the muggy forests of Nebraska. Sitting next to the river in the dark with only the sound of nearby rapids placed on the muddy banks of the Nemaha River. And it was wonderful.

Plants and White

I officially have seven days left in Quito... I'm going to try to fill you in on all things Ecuador before I leave. That's my goal. Let's see how it goes.

Three weekends ago we visited a city in Ecuador called Baños. Translated literally, Baños means baths, and the city certainly lived up to its name. We arrived Saturday morning in one of the only rainfalls I've seen in the last two months. We chucked our things into our rooms at the hostal (Plantas y Blanca... literally, plants and white) and went directly to a tour agency to set up our weekend.

After Sophie and Elaine invaded and sacked the bakery attached to our hostal, we almost immediately hopped on bikes and went lurching down a mountain highway outside Baños... in the rain. It was terrifying and wonderful. We stopped at several points along the high way to look at waterfalls and to ride YET ANOTHER cable car over a canyon.

Look Mom, helmets! Totally safe. Except for the rain and the highway part.

Waterfall... Claro.

After our bike ride a van picked us up and took us farther down the road to where we were going to start our white-water rafting adventure. Now, as far as rapids go, I've been told that the ones we did were pretty tame; however, they were quite scary enough for me. I loved it, except for the time that the boys, Laura and I got chucked off of the raft. That part was not my favorite.

I think this is previous to falling in.

The crew after rafting.

As part of our tour package, we were able to take a chiva up the volcano next to Baños to overlook the city that night. A chiva is basically a bus without sides that plays blaring music with neon-strobe lights that careens around curves as it blasts up the mountain. If it hadn't been pitch-black outside, I'm sure I would have been terrified; however, it was pitch-black, and I loved our chiva ride. We stopped toward the top of the volcano to overlook the city, listen to some Ecuadorian comedians and simply relax.

Our chiva :-)

Baños at night. Perfect.

It was an incredibly full and fantastic day. That night we explored the city a little before heading to bed. Sunday morning we woke up, dragged our tired bodies to Mass and ate one of the best breakfasts I've seen in Ecuador. Afterward, my companions went canyoning, which is basically rappelling down waterfalls. You adventurers out there are probably screaming, "Sarah! Why wouldn't you do that?! It sounds like SO much fun!" And you're right... it sounds like fun, and the pictures show that everyone had a lot of fun. But you have to keep in mind number one: my fear of heights and number two: I've kind of reached my two-month adventure quota. I don't regret not going. ESPECIALLY, because while everyone was rappelling down waterfalls, I received a bomb-diggity massage. So there.

I'm kind of regretting waiting so long to write this, because I'm not sure if I'm able to give you the full Baños experience in this belated blog post. I will say, that it was one of my favorite trips to date. After my companions returned from waterfall hopping, we visited one last waterfall. I shared the headbands I had bought that morning while I explored Baños solo, and I enjoyed our last, dazzling views of the area.

Deep in thought.

I mean, honestly... look at that.

I fell into...

The Ring of Fire is an interesting place for a girl form land-locked Nebraska to find herself, but if there's one thing that Ecuador does well (and there's more than one) it's shifting plates and volcanoes. Two weekends ago we visited Quilotoa, a volcanic crater located several hours away from Quito.

We pulled up to the rim of the crater Saturday morning, and the view... the view of the crater is just overwhelmingly beautiful. The rim of the crater offers about a five hour hike, and it's probably another hour's hike down to the lake.

I mean.... look at it.

Ready for adventure... obvi.

My companions decided to hike part of the way around the rim and then down to the lake. You might remember an earlier post in which I described my relationship with mountains. That being said, I chose to avoid the upper part of the volcano and go down the nicely paved path to the lake.

Look at this well-maintained path.

This is me, excited to get started down the path.

Little did I know, the supposedly "well-paved" path was one the greatest lies told in my lifetime. A fraction of the way down, the path turned into a crevassed and loose sand slant. When I wasn't paralyzed by fear or sliding precariously down the incline, I was being passed by Ecuadorians who were basically RUNNING down the path as they led horses. I'm not exaggerating. A few, kind Ecuadorians took my hand and helped me down some of the scarier parts, which was really adorable and really embarrassing.

When I finally did make it to the bottom, which took much longer than it should have, there was almost a round of applause, as if the Ecuadorians were saying, "Oh look, the crazy gringa made it." When the same man wasn't following me around and incessantly asking if I wanted to take a horse up on the way back (which I did... but as I kept telling the man, I needed to wait for my friends), I was able to enjoy the beautiful view from the lake.

Eating lunch

Yes, sir, I want to ride one of your horses... geesh.

Eventually, my friends joined me, and we ate a quick lunch before climbing (or riding) out of the crater. Then we headed home, of course, not before Hugo (our trusted driver) almost ran over a herd of sheep.

I'm not in Nebraska anymore

So... three weekends ago (I know, I'm behind... spare me) we went to a farm. If you know me, you know that I was basically raised on a farm. Fine... not true. But I did live next to a corn field, and I've spent some time on farms. Living is small-town Nebraska, you have a basic amount of farm knowledge. So, I think it's safe to say I was pretty much raised on a farm. Ok? Therefore, when I found out that we were visiting la finca (read as: the farm), I was excited for a little taste of home.

Just LOOK at how excited I am.

In hindsight, I know that it's a little unreasonable that I when I heard farm, I started thinking rolling hills, corn fields, tractors, and the lot. But that's exactly what I thought of. And it really wasn't until the van ride there that it dawned on me that I was about to visit a farm the likes of which I had never seen. La finca belongs to Rosa's (the director of our language school) parents. It's near a tiny town where she grew up, and the whole area is beautiful. Here's my proof: 

When we arrived, we checked into our hostal and went directly to the river to swim. Swimming in rivers could easily become my jam. Afterward, we visited some of Rosa's family. We tried some delicious fruit called guaba. Guaba (pictured below) is a bizarre little fruit that looks and feels like a wet cotton ball, but tastes like heaven. Somewhere, someone has video of Rosa's brother-in-law and nephew climbing the thin, tall guaba trees and whacking down the fruit with sticks.

After a delightful helping of guaba, we visited Rosa's brother-in-law's fish farm. I think someone asked us, "Do you want to go fishing?" And I instantly became my father's daughter and said, "I can bait a hook." No. From what I can tell, when someone asks you if you want to go fishing in Ecuador, they mean to ask if you want to go to the fish farm where Rosa's brother-in-law will pull 20 fish out of a small pond with a net. It's a little less thrilling than fishing with a rod, not that fishing with a rod is thrilling, necessarily.

I made friends with this fish.

Later I ate my friend.

The next day we visited Rosa's parent's farm. It was quite a trek up a giant hill, but once we arrived we were rewarded with various different fruits that are grown there. We tried more guaba, cacao, oranges, lemons, and more. You see, in Nebraska, when you hear farm, you immediately think of some type of grain. Let me tell you, if I visited a farm in Nebraska and someone said, "Here, try this alfalfa." I'd kindly decline. HOWEVER, if you visit a farm in Ecuador and someone says, "Here, try this pineapple." Jackpot. Speaking of pineapple, did you know that they don't grow in trees? I did not, and I feel a little silly admitting that here, because I know that some people may choose to ridicule me for it. But I really didn't know, and I was shocked. If I've learned nothing else in Ecuador (and I'm not sure that I have), I've learned that pineapples grow near the ground. 

Perhaps you're thinking to yourself, "That sure is a big knife that Rosa is using to cut that pineapple off the stem." And you're right. It's a machete, and that's basically all they use to harvest their crops on the farm. There aren't tractors. There are only machetes. Naturally, I needed to get in on that machete action... and Rosa actually let me. 

Notice everyone keeping a safe distance.

So, no, I'm not in Nebraska anymore. That much is becoming more and more evident every day. But, for not being Nebraska, it's still pretty great. 

The group about to leave the farm.

Our view on the way back to Quito. Stupid beautiful, right?

The middle of everything

I used to (and still do and still will) call Nebraska the middle of everything. Because that's truly how I feel when I'm there. I feel like the earth is erupting around me and spreading out for miles. However, a few weeks ago we actually went to the middle of everything, to the middle of the world. And Quito really does feel like the middle of everything. But instead of erupting from Quito, it feels like the world is falling into it, and it's unreal. This blog, and I know it's a long time coming, is about one of my favorite days in Ecuador so far. We didn't do anything terrifying. Finally.

We started out the day going as a group with our teachers from the language school to el Mitad del Mundo, the middle of the world. We are in Ecuador, after all, so it's only fitting we went to the Equator. The story goes that the French built a huge monument in Ecuador where they decided the equator was located. And that's exactly what you see as you head toward the middle of the world: a giant statue that basically screams in French, "We were wrong." Because the actual equator is down the road a bit and has a nice little museum on it for touristy folks such as ourselves. To the museum we went, and we did all the cutesy experiments, and although it was a little corny, I had a ton of fun. And, hey, I can say I was in two hemispheres at once. Also, the experiments were way cooler than I wanted them to be. We saw how water on the equator doesn't rotate at all when it drains. Then we moved five feet to the north and watched it rotate. Then we moved five feet to the south and watched it rotate in the opposite direction. It's true, ya'll... it works. We also saw a shrunken head... so that's something.

Here are some photos from our trip... mostly of me being awkward. Enjoy.

The group on the equator. Count it.

Need to stop biting things in photos.

Panicking about something, probably.

At the end of our tour we saw a performance of an indigenous dance, and Sophie and Laura were chosen as volunteers to participate.

 

 

That night we went to the Panacea. We had been in Ecuador for three weeks by this time and had grown accustomed to seeing a giant statue of the Virgin Mary, with wings, overlooking the city. That night, Hugo drove a group from the school up to the statue, and that was when I fell in love with Quito. The view from the top of the Panacea was breathtaking. It was the kind of view that reminds you why you love the things you love. And even though I know they won't do the experience justice, I'm going to share a couple pictures from that night with you.

It's hard to tell from this picture, but this statue is giant.

And here is Quito, erupting like a wild thing in the night.

As though the day hadn't been wonderful enough, we went to a street called La Ronda after the Panacea. While our group was big and the street was crowded, I loved how authentic and beautiful it was there. We walked around enjoying street performers, buying silly treats, and spending time among Ecuadorian families. A few members of our group were SET on getting empanadas. And when they described the size of the empanadas, I assumed they were exaggerating. But, then we got empanadas... and, well, you can be the judge.

I think we overdid it a bit.

Sorry this is so late in coming... I have a lot more to share with you, but, for now, this will have to do.

Cloud Computing

Last weekend we went to Mindo. Mindo is a cute little town surrounded by about a million touristy things to do. Mindo is also in what is called the "cloud forest." Perhaps you're thinking to yourself, "What IS a could forest?" Perhaps you've cooked up an image of said cloud forest in your fantastical imaginations. I'm guessing you nailed it, but, just in case, here's an example.

It's basically forest... that often has clouds covering it. Pretty cool.

After a short drive from Quito, we arrived at our hostal in Mindo. It was super cute and surrounded with some lush vegetation. Here are a couple views from around the hostal.

So... We're in Mindo, right? Well, the three things on the docket for Mindo were as follows: a butterfly garden, zip-lining, and something called the Gondola (we'll get to that later.) For the average person, these things probably sound pretty sweet. However, if you're someone who knows me AT ALL, you know that my top two fears are butterflies and heights, followed closely by almost everything else. For those of you who may not know me as well, you may be thinking, "I understand someone being afraid of heights, but butterflies? Sarah's such a jokester." Wrong. They really terrify me.

It's basically a weekend of my greatest fears all jammed into one beautiful setting. (Do you see a theme starting with my time in South America?) I'm relieved to say that the butterfly garden went pretty well. It was a giant greenhouse disgustingly full of butterflies, and I only yelped three or four times. Someone even got a picture of me holding a butterfly... I'm not currently in possession of said photo, but once I am, I'll share it. I promise. Until then, here's a photo of my finger dangerously close to a butterfly. It will have to suffice.

After the mariposas (that's Spanish for butterflies... LOOK MOM! I'm learning!) we headed to the zip-lining place. I'd like to go on the record as saying that I was ALMOST convinced to go on the zip-lines, but there were 13. THIRTEEN. I maybe could have stomached one... two on an especially brave day... but THIRTEEN? Really, zip-lining place? What do you have to prove? I ended up staying safely on the ground with the mysterious, black biting insects and my friends Iris and Ana.

We headed back to our hostal that evening. The cool thing about our hostal was that it was NEXT DOOR to a chocolate factory. Say WHAT!? So, obviously, we had to tour the chocolate factory that evening. It was pretty great. You can tell how great it was by how much fun I'm having in this photo of me during the chocolate factory tour.

Ok, ok, ok... I realize that maybe this photo doesn't scream, "I'M HAVING ALL OF THE FUN!" But it was a nice tour. This photo, more than anything, is to give you an idea of the look I'm rocking here in Ecuador, because it's basically this, all day, every day.

On Sunday, we headed to the Gondola. I'll be upfront with the fact that I love a good boat ride. We're going in a boat, you say? Count me in. However, in this case, the Gondola is not really a gondola. Perhaps you remember the teleferico incident from a week ago. Well, the Gondola is SHOCKINGLY similar to the teleferico. Except, it felt much less safe. Here I am, putting on a brave face as we boarded the Gondola.

Notice: the look being rocked. But don't let my smile lull you into the false idea that things were great. We were seconds away from doing this.

Maybe it's hard for you to see because it's SO FAR AWAY, but that's the Gondola there in the middle, scuttling across a giant gorge.

All in all, though, the Gondola was worth it to get to the other side so we could hike to an awesome waterfall. Somewhere, someone has photos of us getting frozen to death under the waterfall, but for now, a picture of the waterfall with some strangers in it will have to do.

Despite the difficulty and fear I'm facing in a lot of the things we're doing here in Ecuador, I truly wouldn't change or trade one second of it. I'm so thankful and happy to be here, and I kind of can't wait for the next ridiculous thing to happen.