My ICRP, tranlated from spanish thanks to google.

My ICRP is with the School Attached Guayaquil. It is a public school for girls from grade one to grade eight, are in El Batan Alto, north of Quito. The school hours are 7:30 to 12:30, Monday to Friday. The 870 students living near the school, then most are neither rich nor poor. The public schools follow the state rules, for example every Monday is a half hour of songs and marches. All students must dress in blue uniforms. Also, there are assessments of student progress. In addition, girls learn phrases that have been made by government as progress and unity. Isabel Alvear, director of the campus, stressed that the aim of the school is "to prepare girls for life in a democracy. That is, they learn to elect and be elected ".. So far, the protests have made UNE school. The school offers classes in social studies, math, gym, computers, science, and if there are resources, English. A fun fact is that the German poet attended school Fabiola Carrera Annexed Guayaquil.

I taught both English and cheerleading classes. The seventh grade English classes had only months to us last year and this year had not had classes this year if it were a volunteer teacher. The school has no books in English for seventh grade, then I am using the books of last year, but I have a copy, then lessons are difficult to plan. I have three classes of more or less 50 students. Every Friday is my kind of cheerleading that consists of a group of 43 sixth grade students. These girls have a little experience with gymnastics and dance.

For the coming weeks, my English classes will learn basic verbs like "to be," "to have," and "to want" and useful vocabulary. They go to practice for games, homework and class activities. Ojala when that ends, they have a better idea basic English. The School cheerleaders will learn cheers Guayaquil Appends in both Spanish and English, and a final draft going to learn a short routine consisting of dance, acrobatics, and cheers.

The final project of mine can include the effect of the economic situation in public schools. For example, resources and programs that schools have compared to what the state requires. Or I can make an inquiry as to the social, historical and economic factors that shape the present education system in Ecuador.

long time overdue

Hello my dear audience, I am going to try to write more. 1.5 times a week.

As I sit in my room watching "The 40 year old virgin" in my big, sterile house and I thinking about my life here, credit to Roopa, and it is going. I have been anxious since Friday, especially in the morning and at night. I am not quite sure why. Maybe that i am no getting enough hours at my IRP, see below. Or that the boyfriend and the family are comming in a month. i stopped taking my malaria pills because my dreams got so bad aka my empleada trying to kill me or me destroying sex androids. But I am still having trouble sleeping. I wake up an hour or more before I have to. It is not fun.

Last week Gabriel (my favorite new ecua friend) Steve, Roopa and myself went tho the Liga gae atethe Casa Blanca en Quito. I have never appreicated a futbol game more. thousands of fans chanting, throwing rolls of paper and drinking $2 beer. The liga won the match 7-0 that let them get to the southamerican primer league world cup.

Today I was not able to go to the final vs. Brasil because I have the class from hell, Game Theory. I met up with Kzoo Gabe and his two ecuadorian friends, Eddy and I forget but he was super sweet and drove me from Cumbayá to the Mariscal to my house. We went for dinner and drinks at Mulligans and watched the game. It was fantastic. First of all, la Liga ganó 5-1. Second of all, it was great talking joking with people that A. are not exclusivly from kzoo 2. are ecuadorian 3. are fantastic. Needless to say it was fantastic.

My english is getting noticebly worse while it seems that my spanish has plateud.




article of the day: save the siberian tigers

taken from an email to my gran:

Speaking of Thanksgiving, last year was quite spectacular. I had a great time. (Not) Surprisingly, Thanksgiving, or as my host mom says (fankgivins) is basically unheard of in Ecuador, but Kalamazoo foots the bill for a "pot luck" type of event to be hosted in quito each year. I will be making the pies, there is no decision in that matter. My Intergrative Research Cultural Project (ICRP) was at an investment banking firm where I felt like i was being babysat with nothing to do, could not understand what was going on in meetings, and was required to bring my laptop. One will get robbed, at gunpoint or less, for a laptop in Quito. I changed my ICRP to teaching 7th grade english and cheerleading at the public school by my house. Even thought the school does not quite apply to my future directly, I am speaking more spanish, spending nothing on transportation, and enjoying myself way more...This is my first weekend in Quito in the last month! I had class trips to Cotopaxi and Tunruahua (two highly active volcanoes), a 5 star retreat to the jungle with Kalamazoo, and to a coastal pueblo, Crucita to see different geological formations.... My body does not coroporate with food in ecuador. We have been having rolling blackouts from 4-5 hours a day that could last from next week til March. Welcome to 21st century socailism. 30% of the countries electricity is powered by a hydroplant, and the river waters are low, so no electricity. The popularity rating of the president went fomr 88% in June to about 44% now. Not to good Rafel Corerra.

Ecuadors rolling blackouts due to a lovely president on the Wall Street Journal
For a more complete analysis of the situation click here

Did i mention while my spanish is improving, my english is getting worse

Day One
I woke up sick. I was very sad because I wanted to travel to the east for all my life. But, my Ecuadorian mother, Maria del Pilar, I speak with Tania and Nataly, and I found a way to go the next day.

Day Two
When I arrived at the hostel for the fall with my fellow passengers, I learned that I go in a van with 8 European Ecuadorian and a driver. I was wrong on a chair between the driver and a man from England. It was an experience. Speak Spanish with the driver because it was too weird. He has traveled to England Husquila before, but can not speak Spanish fluently anything. under way, police stopped cars to check on us, it took too long. I'm afraid of these police actions because it means that there will be more police control. I arrive in time for lunch and then went to a presentation of Quechua people. We greet you with traditional face painting. we learned about the music, dancing, a shaman, and drinks. The traditional dress clothes seems like the day of the mills of the United States, simple yet powerful. The dance had a lot of weight, but this in the "up beats" instead of the more traditional "down beats." Life there is simple in every way. However, I wonder about the local youths and how they live. After dinner we played "monopoly," my favorite. The landscape is liadísimo to Husquila.

Day Three
This was the better day. I saw my friends, animals of the jungle. We had a canoe trip up the Napo River towards downtown recastre animals. Along the trail you see nature and poverty of the area. Happy children, but poor play in the river / old canoes on the River. The center is fantastic. Our guide taught us about animals that were abused or had pets. Wild animals should not be pets, never works. His blood is not blood from a kitten, is more like a lion. I love the anaconda. After swimming in the river, there were plenty of mosquitoes. Two local children played with the group. They enjoyed the attention of grown-ups. our museum guide showed us a false trap. primitive traps seem to be effective. Also, the snakes in jars were great. However, during this time the arms and legs felt like they were burning stings. When he showed us houses typical Quechua I feel strange. It's like people are in a zoo and all the gringos went to her. Tena dinner was disappointing in comparison to more trips in Kalamazoo and a further comparison Hostaria

Day Four
The time Jumando Caverns was too short because the volcano Reventador, was active. I hope the weather outside longer. the caves are magical. dark, damp rooms within the earth that provide water for the community. then we went to a cave pool water. It was clean, fresh and fun. There was plenty of Ecuadorian people. But women were not hidden estadunise. I love the east, the trees, the sounds, the weather. This trip was my favorite.

taken from a note to sally

so i am offically lame. last night we went out wht my new gay bff. my madre told me that it is ok that he is not perfect but i should be aware of gays becasue they can get jelous and fight me.i went home early since i felt not good. and i didnt goto the jungle today. but fuck it i need to see some tigers, and i am lucky enough to find a ride out there for tomorrow.

ecudor is beautiful. the longer i am here the more i appreciate it.
and hanky is wonderful and sat with me on skype as im sick. kinda gross. i cant wait to see him in 45 days.

trip to the coast

Friday:

When the trip began, I felt sic, but after one or two bus stops, and Pepto, I feel better. I was so afraid that he had been sick during the trip, I was very afraid. But I was lucky, but many of the people I saw during the trip without access to health care, and this is not fair. Our guide, Andres, said that the situation of the people there are super different it is in Quito.

We had lunch with typical coastal fish, green soup, and rice. I like that most people in Ecuador local food rather than food that was imported from afar. The village where we ate is very different from Quito or Cumbaya. The town's social economic status was lower viably. for example, the condition of the road, shops, and cars are signs. Also, it appears that the farther we are from Quito, the population increases Afroecuatorianos.

When we arrived at the biology, my first thought was that this place looks like a movie. I've never seen a type of a rainforest and it was fantastic.
Then we went to the island for a demonstration Muisne Marimba and traditional dance. I liked the dance with all of its energy and life. also if the dancers were dancing Kalamazoo students. It was funny. Moreover, poverty is obvious Muisne.

Saturday:

Saturday, unfortunatly did not go to see the howler monkeys. We went by canoe to the mangroves. The trip on the river was super fun and interesting. I saw many types of different tropical birds, including pelicans. At the same time, our guides explained on one of the industries, production Charcol. But, the most important to me that all the land under sea level is public, so much people in Muisne, and the remaining area, house built in flood areas because it's free. A mangrove tour of the island had Congal: transitional ecosystems, upland forest, recovery areas, mangrove regeneration, organic gardens, pool aquaculture. We learn a lot about the island's fruit, including pineapple, papaya, mango, and coconut. we also learnedabout the importance of shrimp farming and how the shrimp bust effected the population. we got stuck int he mud in the mussel and clam fields in the mangroves. can not imagine a woman doing this work with their children nearby. after all were hot and tired at the end of the tour, the best thing that happened, refreshing coconut water.

We ate lunch on a beach in Muisne, was beautiful. It was almost nobody on the beach and sand forever. I enjoyed the time at the beach lot. by this time, I think Kalamazoo needed some time to relax.

We returned to the station to go to the bar. to watch the local football match Ecuador v. Uruguay. As I do not like football much but I like the atmosphere. I played the daughter of the other guide during the game. The owner of the bar gave us a fruit I've never seen before, guava. The guava is different than any kind of fruit I've seen in my whole life, but the flavor was so rich. Unfortunately, Ecuador lost the match and returned to the station for an incredible soup and popcorn

Sunday
before returning to Quito, we walked to the community of Bunche. A poor village, built by the land under the sea level. But this town is improving with a new mayor. The children played outside with us without thinking of a dangerous. The need to care for children reminded me of poor children on the Pine Ridge Reservation.
Then we went to the beach resort of Atacames, a spectacular beaches, restaurants, artists and people. Atacames was similar and different Muisne beach. Atacama had more tourists, then more silver. But both are home to Afro-Ecuadorian people, a marginalized group in the country.

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Ecuadorian Buses

Ok, so if you, as an Ecuadorian male, are going to hit on me on the crowded bus from Cumbaya to Quito, at least have the decency to offer me your seat. Machismo should work both ways.

Love, Laura

No but really, the bus system is quite incredible here. They are some municipally owned, and some cooperatively owned. It takes two, not one person to work each bus. One, of course is the driver, who is driving a manual bus, yes a huge bus is manually operated. the second is the money taker, guy who yells the stops of the bus, "Cumbaya Cumbaya Tumbaco suba suba."

The bus has a wide variety of riders, young old, indigenous women with huge baskets, crying babies, and the vendors. There is the "manderinas maderinas un dollar" lady, the "helados helados" lady, the "tameridos, diez for 25 centitivos" man, and my favorite.. the occasional man that sells dvds and music for a dollar.

But my favorite of all times is when a man lets me on the bus first, or gives me his seat. There are a lot of ladrones on buses

While I was walking this morning, I looked into a national school, aka middle school, and all the children were marching, doing what looked like military drills. Huh. To say the least i was taken back by this...

... And last Friday was the BEST DAY EVER. I got internet in my casa. And Liz and I bought crunchy peanut butter. However, there is no such thing as Cheezits, among others, in Ecuador. If you would like to support my cause by sending cheezits, chapstick, or what not, let a sister know.

14/9/09

Kalamazoo footed the bill for last weekend to Otavalo. Leaving before the birds woke up on Saturday, we spent the day exploring markets, making friends with birds, and a curadara. Beginning the day with the animal market, where one can buy a cuy, conejo, gato, perro, vaca, cerdo, caballo, gallina, duck, gallino o llama, I was not the happiest camper. I really want to buy all the cuy (guinea pigs) and save them from becoming lunch. It is frustrating to say the least to parade 30 Kalamazoo students through the fruit market with people getting lost, and it is also frustrating to walk through the restaurant/deli area… imagine dirty pots of corn, rice, and meat with kids running everywhere and then a line of roosted, raw, and or bloody pig and cow heads with blood dripping onto the walking path.

Once again Liz and I adventured the Plaza de Ponchos, the large artisan market… and Momma, we are getting A. alpaca blankets (I got the price down to $10) and sweet hammock chairs that suspend form the season that go perfectly with Liz’s new candle holder.

We almuerzo’ed in Peguche, an indigenous weaving community, and later explored el Parque de Condor, a reserve for injured hawks, eagles, and condors. I saw Hedwig. It was sweet. She loves me.

After a fancy dinner, we went to a curadera. I want a wikipedia explanation of this. Essentially, otavalan medicine person similar to a shaman. Luz Otavalo, an older Otavalan, cured four K students of bad energy and spirits. She spat aguadiente, Ecua Moonshine, on various items that are rubbed on those being purified, fire, leaves, eggs, the students, to purify them... all while the people being cleaned are in their skivvies. I kind of want to be cleaned….

THEN WE SLEPT IN THE BEST PLACE EVER… sort of. Lizzy and I bunked in a room with the softest, cleanest, beds I have ever had the pleasure to sleep on in the country, along with a steaming hot shower… we were cleaned too.

5/9/09

Yesterday was crazy; by crazy, I mean I was able to spend the whole day trying to get my censo, national identification card. The 15-minute process turned into a five-hour event, as any bureaucratic event should. Trey, Liz, and I were initially turned away only to come back three hours later because of a lack of numbers. We arrived back at the Ecuadorian DMV a half hour early at 2:30, to be ensured three of thirty censo numbers. As the officer handed out tickets, four people joined their friends in line… and us one ticket short. After Liz sweet talked the officer, and almost cried, he printed a 31st ticket. Oh and the guy behind us in line was from Ecuador but lives in Maryland and told us that our US passports have a street value of $2000-$5000. We watched our fellow classmates be turned away with lack of ticket, jumped the line after two hours of waiting and 15 numbers yet to go, and may or may have not lied about having to cut because church was in an hour.

We dinned on typical cuisine, mama’s mac and cheese, hot dogs, green beans, and yellow cake for dinner. Nothing like good ol USA comfort food to end a stressful day.


6/9/09
Today, I spent the day with Liz and her madre, Marci, in the pueblos of Otavalo y Ibarra. The primary population of Otavalo is quichua, an indigenous population. We went to a market that had anything woven that one could ever want. I am eyeing some wool socks with llamas, but I wont pay more than 2X $5. For lunch, and to watch the big Ecuador vs. Colombia soccer game, we went to Ibarra, the big city north of Otavalo, bought the required $4 Ecuador jerseys, and went the Marci’s cousins. We ate lunch, watched the game, and later took a 3-hour bus home.

8/9/09

So, I have really good luck. I have not been able to make an appearance to a single class this week, but I did get the opportunity to return to Hospital Vonderez last night. Perhaps my body was made to host bacterial infections. The plus side is that I now have a working TV, so I am able to watch trashy US shows, like “The Girls Next Door” to aide my recovery.

I want to go home. I want to be able to do laundry, eat food with out visiting the hospital, and not risk “loosing” more than $140 in my room.

It is not all bad. I just really miss luxuries like drinking tap water and not fearing for my safety after 7 pm aka sunset. If I could be anywhere right now, I would be on the Rez, where life can be bat shit crazy, but at least I know what to expect.

Forgive me, I´m still learning this whole blog thing. But this is one of many courtyards on campus......


I am to afraid to bring my camera anywhere, so we may lack pictures for a while.

Universidad San Francisco de Quito is a young, 29-year-old, liberal arts university in Cumbaya, Ecuador. It looks like a Japanese spa crossed with old South American buildings that Stevie Wonder designed. Getting from one class to the next is as close to I have come to finding the Room of Requirement.

There are approximately 300/5500 students from the US at USFQ. The rest are fast talking, 2003 fashion dressing, Ecuadorians.

We have to take 18 credit hours… aka twice as many classes as I am used to:
1. Espanol para extranjeros—the professor was a no show on day one.
2. Danza moderna 1—a typical old school modern dance teacher with two papers and group choreography final. Good for the body, mind, and GPA
3. Amazon societies—I JUST added this class, but we do get to spend a weekend or two in an indigenous village in the Amazon.
4. Game theory—really hard really hard really hard econ class, where I am one of two women, one of three foreigners, and one of 14 students
5. Ethnography aka Intercultural Related Project (ICRP) class
6. Voloconolgy—Theo, our prof is bonkers. In addition, the class is all international kids, with more than half being from K College. But we are required to go to four or 5 “field experiences” also known as three weekends of exploring volcanoes with the man in charged of certain volcanic areas for the country.

me and liz in tombaco

25/8/09

so I bet that you have never been in an Ecuadorian hospital until 2 am for dehydration and a bacterial infection. Last Saturday, all the kalamazoo kids went out together to the Mariscal aka Gringolandia aka the bar/clubbing district. Miss Geneva showed Liz and I around once again and I got home around 2 am.

The next morning as I was eating my delicsious Ecuadorian breakfast with fresh squeezed orange juice, I had to beeline to the bathroom to empty the entire contents of my body. And that continued to happen 4 more times along with other unmentionable activies. A little bit more than chuchaqi. Despues, mi madre y yo made a 4 hour trip to the ER where I got a sweet IV, a shot in the butt, and veins full of antibiotics, I was released. Two days later I am still exausted and its difficult to get back to 100%.

Ecuador is amazing. My house is pretty sweet, I live with mi madre in a gated community near the Estado Olympico, the state soccer stadium. I have my own room, bathroom, bbq, and game room. Liz and luis live near by. I take 2 buses to my University which looks like a spa complete with koi pond, sushi bar, and a posh dining room. Other than the huge language barrier, things are going well. It has been muy deficil to find internet.

i wrote a really long entry. but it wont copy and paste and liz baugh will not let me do it

i cant figure out how to write on this in ecuador

This whole blogging thing.

So, this blogging business is a bit more complicated than i expected, and I'm not the best at writing at a timely fashion....

I do love the Rez, the good and the bad. Granted, we at Re-Member generally see more of the good and the bad, its heart wrenching to see the way people live. Day after day volunteers comment on the standard of living of people out here. You have to see it for yourself until you believe it.

On to dogs:

The neighbors have three rez dogs: sassy the rasta, jem the bold, and tipper the licker. Tipper came to us last night pretty shaken up with porquipine quills lodged under his left eye. And there is nothing we can do about it. How about dem apples? An innocent animal comes to you for help and there is nothing you can do except pet him on the back.

Leaving For The Rez

I'm so jazzed about going to the rez. Despite only being able to stay for five weeks, it should be a blast. I'm heading out to Pine Ridge with Mayflower UCC and the one and only Dana Blanck. It should be a fantastic time.