I had an epiphany. Sort of.
I´m not ready to start the real world in any way, shape, or form. As excited as I am to start med school (sadly, I´m big enough of a dork to really look forward to it), there´s still so much of the world I want to experience and do.
Part of me wants to say ¨Forget med school, I´m going to be a gypsy.¨ and just go with the flow and take whatever opportunity that comes up. Live in France, live in a park in Big Sur, work my way around the world by taking small odd jobs.
So far in Ecuador I´ve met a lot of cool and crazy gringos with lives I secretly and not so secretly covet. They take off and travel the world, moving to different destinations as they meet people and opportunities arrive. Or people who come to visit a friend in Ecuador and decide to stay and make it work and then see where things will take them next.
What´s next in my list of opportunities to take? Living in Europe? You better believe I will make it happen (if even for a short while). Working my way through India (We shall see!)? Southeast Asia? Or maybe I´ll just stay in South America longer. We shall see. But I refuse to just ¨settle down¨ once I am done with Ecuador.
Now, to incorporate that with med school...
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
HALLELUJAH!!!
The skies parted and God said, ¨There shall be internet!¨ and it came to pass.
I have internet in my house!!! This is super special. Now, I shouldn´t have to pay to use the internet all the time and even more special, I can use the internet after 5 PM! HOOORAY!
Expect more posts and pictures soon! Maybe, if I can stop being lazy and stop leaving the house early to make a stop by the yummy bakery for a galleta or roll.
Also important, I am coming home. After a day of fiesta on the 6th of December in Quito, I will be flying home on the 7th and be staying until the 27th. Unfortunately, I don´t have a ton of time to hang out (but I will make time for you, if I like you!) because I will be doing interviews. On that note, WOOP! I have interviews from VCU, EVMS, Temple, Georgetown, and Einstein so far.
Coming up, a halloween fiesta for my class. Can I pull off a giant party for my Ecuadorian students and impart upon them the importance of Halloween, candy, scandalous costumes, and jack'o'lanterns? TBD.
I have internet in my house!!! This is super special. Now, I shouldn´t have to pay to use the internet all the time and even more special, I can use the internet after 5 PM! HOOORAY!
Expect more posts and pictures soon! Maybe, if I can stop being lazy and stop leaving the house early to make a stop by the yummy bakery for a galleta or roll.
Also important, I am coming home. After a day of fiesta on the 6th of December in Quito, I will be flying home on the 7th and be staying until the 27th. Unfortunately, I don´t have a ton of time to hang out (but I will make time for you, if I like you!) because I will be doing interviews. On that note, WOOP! I have interviews from VCU, EVMS, Temple, Georgetown, and Einstein so far.
Coming up, a halloween fiesta for my class. Can I pull off a giant party for my Ecuadorian students and impart upon them the importance of Halloween, candy, scandalous costumes, and jack'o'lanterns? TBD.
Monday, October 20, 2008
I hate computers.
I just wrote a long blog post with pictures and witty descriptions and then the computer just turned off. I was about to push "publish".
Because I am angry and I refuse to rewrite and computers suck, you all miss out. I will write it again another day. Le sigh. If I ever have time! Hahaha.
Oh well, here´s one picture of this rich blonde Ecuadorian girl from the Caceria del Zorro. I was a big time creeper and took a million pictures of her. She´s just so adorable with her riding jacket and crop!
As a side note, there is no movie theater in Ibarra. How will I ever watch Batman!?
Oh well, I´m enjoying my time here! Yay!
Because I am angry and I refuse to rewrite and computers suck, you all miss out. I will write it again another day. Le sigh. If I ever have time! Hahaha.
Oh well, here´s one picture of this rich blonde Ecuadorian girl from the Caceria del Zorro. I was a big time creeper and took a million pictures of her. She´s just so adorable with her riding jacket and crop!
As a side note, there is no movie theater in Ibarra. How will I ever watch Batman!?
Oh well, I´m enjoying my time here! Yay!
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous.
This was the post I tried to post when I posted "I hate computers". I thought I deleted it, but really it was saved. I'm just that technologically challenged. Well, here you go.
The glamorous side of Ibarra.
On the 4th of October, we had the Caceria del Zorro which is this festival/event thing where there are Zorros, dressed as Zorro (hat, mask, cape, everything black) on horses. The point of the festival is to crown the next Zorro. At Yahuarcocha lake, in the afternoon, the Zorro races and there are a bunch of other people on horses who chase after him to catch the flag at the back of his horse. Whoever catches it is the Zorro for next year. It´s an event that happens every year and it really is just an excuse for all the Ibarreños to go out and drink and socialize at the race track. But earlier in the morning, the Zorros and the competitors have a parade on Bolivar street. That part is for all the rich Ibarreños to come out and show off their expensive horses, designer clothes, and very European looking children. I´ve never seen so many blonde and red headed Ecuadorians or so many popped collars outside of UVA. Talk about feeling like I was in a Ralph Lauren advertisement. But it was really fun and really pretty. I don´t want to write anymore, so here are pictures.
Zorro on Bolivar street.
A cute little Ecuadorian blonde rich girl. I took many pictures of her. I´m a creeper.
The actual race track with a female Zorro, not a zorra...
The Nonglamorous side of Ibarra.
That would be me. Yeah, I was a sick little gringa during the Caceria. I will not disgust you with details.
Another side to Ecuador.
On Saturday, Debby and I went to an AfroEcuadorian town of Santa Ana with some PC vols. They were nice enough to invite us to experience the different culture of an AfroEcuadorian town while they distributed eyeglasses from a project they had worked on earlier. We took a bus to Santa Ana and helped with the distribution. It´s a small town of about 600 in the Sierra and it really is very different culturally. It is a much smaller, poorer town, but the people were so personable and warm. And the town itself was small and rural, but the area around it was gorgeous. We couldn´t get a bus out of the town so we got a ride on the back of a truck to the Panamerica highway. That was a pretty ride. Then we flagged a bus down on the highway and got back to Ibarra. Good day.
The glamorous side of Ibarra.
On the 4th of October, we had the Caceria del Zorro which is this festival/event thing where there are Zorros, dressed as Zorro (hat, mask, cape, everything black) on horses. The point of the festival is to crown the next Zorro. At Yahuarcocha lake, in the afternoon, the Zorro races and there are a bunch of other people on horses who chase after him to catch the flag at the back of his horse. Whoever catches it is the Zorro for next year. It´s an event that happens every year and it really is just an excuse for all the Ibarreños to go out and drink and socialize at the race track. But earlier in the morning, the Zorros and the competitors have a parade on Bolivar street. That part is for all the rich Ibarreños to come out and show off their expensive horses, designer clothes, and very European looking children. I´ve never seen so many blonde and red headed Ecuadorians or so many popped collars outside of UVA. Talk about feeling like I was in a Ralph Lauren advertisement. But it was really fun and really pretty. I don´t want to write anymore, so here are pictures.
Zorro on Bolivar street.
A cute little Ecuadorian blonde rich girl. I took many pictures of her. I´m a creeper.
The actual race track with a female Zorro, not a zorra...
The Nonglamorous side of Ibarra.
That would be me. Yeah, I was a sick little gringa during the Caceria. I will not disgust you with details.
Another side to Ecuador.
On Saturday, Debby and I went to an AfroEcuadorian town of Santa Ana with some PC vols. They were nice enough to invite us to experience the different culture of an AfroEcuadorian town while they distributed eyeglasses from a project they had worked on earlier. We took a bus to Santa Ana and helped with the distribution. It´s a small town of about 600 in the Sierra and it really is very different culturally. It is a much smaller, poorer town, but the people were so personable and warm. And the town itself was small and rural, but the area around it was gorgeous. We couldn´t get a bus out of the town so we got a ride on the back of a truck to the Panamerica highway. That was a pretty ride. Then we flagged a bus down on the highway and got back to Ibarra. Good day.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The end.
Well, Orientation has come and gone. Yesterday was the last day. It was spent doing evaluations and saying "goodbye" at dinner and dancing. It´s funny because it feels like something is over. But it´s not. It is literally just the beginning.
I´ve already said goodbye to a bunch of the other volunteers. And in a couple hours, I will be leaving for Ibarra. I will say goodbye to my precious Quito host parents and then say hello to my new host family in Ibarra. Pretty crazy. We´ll see how it goes!
I´ve already said goodbye to a bunch of the other volunteers. And in a couple hours, I will be leaving for Ibarra. I will say goodbye to my precious Quito host parents and then say hello to my new host family in Ibarra. Pretty crazy. We´ll see how it goes!
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Ecuador - 2, Kristine - 0
So Ecuador is an interesting place. Too bad I haven´t had too much time to explore with our 16 hour days of orientation. For 16 hours, I´m practice teaching, taking classes on teaching and Ecuador in a hotel with 40 other gringos, and then off to Spanish class. Can we say intense?
In all this intensity, Ecuador has scored the first few points in our epic battle (our friendly epic battle, but battle nonetheless). Yes. When I went to visit Ibarra (which I will write about when I have time and internet cafe money), I had my jacket, camera, and cell phone stolen. Nothing scary or anything. Rather me being careless. So yes, that is a point to Ecuador and shame head shake for Kristine. It´s ok, I´m getting it all replaced. So, smile!
Then in the intensity of our schedule, I got something with a little bit of a fever, aches, and tummy unhappiness. That´s spread to everyone now. But I was one of the first. So, again, when the other volunteers went dancing, I lay in bed like the awesome person I am. Ecuador, you get another point. And an obligatory laugh at my gringo weakness.
But all in all, it´s a friendly battle. Because every day Ecuador, you give me an awesome 4 course almuerzo for under 2 bucks, I see the Andes, am surrounded by cool people and get to see things like La Compania. So, Ecuador, thats why you and I are friends.
In all this intensity, Ecuador has scored the first few points in our epic battle (our friendly epic battle, but battle nonetheless). Yes. When I went to visit Ibarra (which I will write about when I have time and internet cafe money), I had my jacket, camera, and cell phone stolen. Nothing scary or anything. Rather me being careless. So yes, that is a point to Ecuador and shame head shake for Kristine. It´s ok, I´m getting it all replaced. So, smile!
Then in the intensity of our schedule, I got something with a little bit of a fever, aches, and tummy unhappiness. That´s spread to everyone now. But I was one of the first. So, again, when the other volunteers went dancing, I lay in bed like the awesome person I am. Ecuador, you get another point. And an obligatory laugh at my gringo weakness.
But all in all, it´s a friendly battle. Because every day Ecuador, you give me an awesome 4 course almuerzo for under 2 bucks, I see the Andes, am surrounded by cool people and get to see things like La Compania. So, Ecuador, thats why you and I are friends.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
In Quito.
I am officially in Quito. Well, I have been for the last few days.
It´s been pretty awesome, but also really busy. There are 37 of us and everyone is really cool. But we´re talking about 12 hours of work a day.
A typical day consists of waking up at 6:15, having desayuno with my very old and precious host parents (which consists of pan, bananas, cafe con leche y jugo), taking the bus to the hotel for classes, almuerzo of a couple hours (at a lot of places 3 courses - soup, main entree with rice, meat, and vegetables, and postre, and juice - all for about 2 or 3 dollars), classes for a couple hours, go home on the bus, have dinner with Victor y Mercedes (host families), struggle to speak Spanish with them, have Victor demonstrate how ladrones steal on the bus, watch some Spanish TV, have Victor y Mercedes laugh at my attempts to speak spanish and then pass out.
Today we saw Old Quito, which is gorgeous. I´ll try to post pictures soon (when I don´t have to go to an internet cafe - who knows when that will be). Tomorrow, I´m taking the bus to Ibarra to speak to my host family and the director of the school. I´m pretty nervous. But stay there for most of the weekend and then return to Quito.
I also got an Ecuadorian cell phone. Email me for the number.
So far I´m loving Ecuador and I haven´t gotten any altitude sickness or stomach issues. YAY! Go me! And I´m loving seeing the Andes every morning. They´re right there and beautiful.
Missing everyone!
It´s been pretty awesome, but also really busy. There are 37 of us and everyone is really cool. But we´re talking about 12 hours of work a day.
A typical day consists of waking up at 6:15, having desayuno with my very old and precious host parents (which consists of pan, bananas, cafe con leche y jugo), taking the bus to the hotel for classes, almuerzo of a couple hours (at a lot of places 3 courses - soup, main entree with rice, meat, and vegetables, and postre, and juice - all for about 2 or 3 dollars), classes for a couple hours, go home on the bus, have dinner with Victor y Mercedes (host families), struggle to speak Spanish with them, have Victor demonstrate how ladrones steal on the bus, watch some Spanish TV, have Victor y Mercedes laugh at my attempts to speak spanish and then pass out.
Today we saw Old Quito, which is gorgeous. I´ll try to post pictures soon (when I don´t have to go to an internet cafe - who knows when that will be). Tomorrow, I´m taking the bus to Ibarra to speak to my host family and the director of the school. I´m pretty nervous. But stay there for most of the weekend and then return to Quito.
I also got an Ecuadorian cell phone. Email me for the number.
So far I´m loving Ecuador and I haven´t gotten any altitude sickness or stomach issues. YAY! Go me! And I´m loving seeing the Andes every morning. They´re right there and beautiful.
Missing everyone!
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