My photo slideshow can be seen here.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Safely Returned
Our team spent yesterday traveling and arrived in Upland precisely 4 seconds before 11:30 PM (poor Chris had predicted we'd be back at that minute and was distraught that he was only four seconds off... so we all knew our exact time of arrival).
I can post a little bit of a wrap up on the trip later, but I wanted to let you know that I am writing this from my house in Upland, IN and all the travel went relatively smooth. Debriefing with the students began well the night before last and I think it will be a really good process in the days to come.
You can help in this process... if any of my readers are receiving students (or me) back into their homes! Ask deeper questions that just "How was it?" and be ready for them to have a need to adjust to being back home. I know I was really well prepared for my transition home from Sierra Leone two years ago and the intentional things my family and I did really helped me come back well. So thank you for continuing to support my team in the way!
I can post a little bit of a wrap up on the trip later, but I wanted to let you know that I am writing this from my house in Upland, IN and all the travel went relatively smooth. Debriefing with the students began well the night before last and I think it will be a really good process in the days to come.
You can help in this process... if any of my readers are receiving students (or me) back into their homes! Ask deeper questions that just "How was it?" and be ready for them to have a need to adjust to being back home. I know I was really well prepared for my transition home from Sierra Leone two years ago and the intentional things my family and I did really helped me come back well. So thank you for continuing to support my team in the way!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Evenings in Cuenca
My team was somewhat tired after our hectic schedule in Guabo so we were glad that evenings in Cuenca would be a little bit more chill. But as it turns out, they just love each other and wanted to do stuff. So much to the distress of people needing us to drive us somewhere, our students usually planned something on their own. One night, some of us went to a restaurant up on the hillside; another night we all met at one of the host homes for games and tea. And then, on Thursday night, I went out with the guys and a few adventurous girls and we had a traditional Ecuadorian dish: cuy. Cuy is what they call guinea pig.
It was really good! It was spiced wonderfully and had the consistency of chicken but tasted very different. The skin was tough but very flavorful, but there was not much meat. Chris and I shared the heart and the brain. The heart tasted somewhat like liver and the brain has been accurately described by Mark as "smoked cream cheese". Weird, I know... but it was a lot of fun!
Here we are at the restaurant: did I mention the excellent juice too?
The next picture is the actual guinea pig... just so you know if you think you might be squeamish.
It was really good! It was spiced wonderfully and had the consistency of chicken but tasted very different. The skin was tough but very flavorful, but there was not much meat. Chris and I shared the heart and the brain. The heart tasted somewhat like liver and the brain has been accurately described by Mark as "smoked cream cheese". Weird, I know... but it was a lot of fun!
Here we are at the restaurant: did I mention the excellent juice too?
The next picture is the actual guinea pig... just so you know if you think you might be squeamish.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Painting and Kids
This week, my team spent almost all of our time at La Esperanza, a children's home here in Cuenca. Monday through Thursday we were there from 8-5. We would have team meeting then paint from 9-1 when we would have lunch. At 2, the kids would come home from school and we play with them for the rest of the afternoon.
We expected to be able to gather a group and sing songs with them and do our skits, but the kids were so randomly placed in doing homework, or napping, or playing different games with us that we soon realized we would never get a large group together. Our programs also included time for mingling and playing with the kids which we had seen in the past to be the time of best connections, so we just left it at that.
We played four-square, soccer, frisbee, and spent hours spinning kids around or carrying them on our shoulders. Most days my neck or back was pretty tired from all the kid lifting (the painting was less difficult). I got to know a few of the boys pretty well: the two who played with me the most were Santiago and Juan Carlos. Mark and I taught Santi and another boy named Alex the rules to four-square using extremely rudimentary Spanglish. We were pretty proud of ourselves.
We expected to be able to gather a group and sing songs with them and do our skits, but the kids were so randomly placed in doing homework, or napping, or playing different games with us that we soon realized we would never get a large group together. Our programs also included time for mingling and playing with the kids which we had seen in the past to be the time of best connections, so we just left it at that.
We played four-square, soccer, frisbee, and spent hours spinning kids around or carrying them on our shoulders. Most days my neck or back was pretty tired from all the kid lifting (the painting was less difficult). I got to know a few of the boys pretty well: the two who played with me the most were Santiago and Juan Carlos. Mark and I taught Santi and another boy named Alex the rules to four-square using extremely rudimentary Spanglish. We were pretty proud of ourselves.
Here are a couple of pictures of us playing "Simon Says" with the kids.
Sunday, January 15, 2012
El Cajas National Park
Today I visited the land that God made specifically to make my heart glad. I love the mountains! This post is mostly pictures because there's not much to tell other than we hiked, it rained and was slippery but it was awesome.
We also had an amazing lunch of fresh trout at a beautiful restaurant who's inside looked like this:
We also had an amazing lunch of fresh trout at a beautiful restaurant who's inside looked like this:
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Leadership and Spanish
My co-leader, Kristin, officially rejoined the team today and it is such a relief for me. I saw her this morning and I ran to her and gave her a hug. It was so good to see my friend there again instead of the sleepless look she had when she was suffering from the side effects of her anti-malarial medicines. She's doing much better now and I know the team was glad to see her again too, but for my part, I feel that I have some weight lifted off: she's carried some of my weaknesses already today and helps out by knowing Spanish more than I do,
Speaking of Spanish, it's tough. When my mind goes to the foreign language switch, I think first of Krio. It's the one I most recently used (and taught) and it was the one I was most proficient in because it was so easy. Next is French. It's been a while since I had a French class but I was steeped in it for a while and so it leaps to mind soon after Krio. French does however, share more cognates with Spanish than does English, so that has actually helped in listening and understanding. But in speaking, I hear i my mind the Krio phrase, which I translate into French and then goes into the broken Spanish I recall from my third and fourth grade Spanish classes. In other words, my Spanglish is more convoluted that usual and I have to depend on a lot of people to be understood. But I am improving. I've learned a lot of new words and I can understand probably 65% of what's said to me (provided it's not said too quickly).
So as far as prayer praises and requests go, those are both on my mind: I'm so grateful to have Kristin back and I need patience in communicating past the language barrier.
Speaking of Spanish, it's tough. When my mind goes to the foreign language switch, I think first of Krio. It's the one I most recently used (and taught) and it was the one I was most proficient in because it was so easy. Next is French. It's been a while since I had a French class but I was steeped in it for a while and so it leaps to mind soon after Krio. French does however, share more cognates with Spanish than does English, so that has actually helped in listening and understanding. But in speaking, I hear i my mind the Krio phrase, which I translate into French and then goes into the broken Spanish I recall from my third and fourth grade Spanish classes. In other words, my Spanglish is more convoluted that usual and I have to depend on a lot of people to be understood. But I am improving. I've learned a lot of new words and I can understand probably 65% of what's said to me (provided it's not said too quickly).
So as far as prayer praises and requests go, those are both on my mind: I'm so grateful to have Kristin back and I need patience in communicating past the language barrier.
Cuenca
Cuenca is so different from Guabo, While Guabo was hot, humid, and less developed, it reminded me of the Dominican Republic. But Cuenca is cool, mild, and a cosmopolitan city. It reminds me of Geneva, Switzerland.
My host family is excellent: the have hosted many Taylor student before and so maybe you have heard of the Borja's before now. Cesar and Elba speak some English but their children who are my age or a little bit older have been to Taylor and speak English very well. They are a wonderful family to be with. They have a beautiful home right on the river and I have plenty of space in my room to unpack my luggage. But my favorite part of their home is their three-tiered back porch that goes down to the river.
Our team took a city tour today on a magnificent double decker bust that was all finished wood tables and chairs on the bottom section. But we spent most of our time on the top checking out the sights of Cuenca.
Yeah check out my flannel shirt and jacket. It did get too warm for the jacket eventually, but it is nice here. I love it. Tomorrow we are going to Cajas National Park, so expect some more great pictures!
My host family is excellent: the have hosted many Taylor student before and so maybe you have heard of the Borja's before now. Cesar and Elba speak some English but their children who are my age or a little bit older have been to Taylor and speak English very well. They are a wonderful family to be with. They have a beautiful home right on the river and I have plenty of space in my room to unpack my luggage. But my favorite part of their home is their three-tiered back porch that goes down to the river.
Our team took a city tour today on a magnificent double decker bust that was all finished wood tables and chairs on the bottom section. But we spent most of our time on the top checking out the sights of Cuenca.
Yeah check out my flannel shirt and jacket. It did get too warm for the jacket eventually, but it is nice here. I love it. Tomorrow we are going to Cajas National Park, so expect some more great pictures!
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