teaching assignments

Today we finally found out what we will be teaching for the next year! I have:

1st grade English (3x a week)
3rd grade English (3x a week)
Art (1st-6th grade)
Human Relations- for high school girls
Computers- 1st level for hs girls
Girls Program
anddd
Adult Basic Education

I'm going to be busyyy!!!

el mercado artesenal

Today we all decided to check out el mercado artesenal which was like a 20 minute ride from our house. It was about a block long & just full of different booths with vendors selling different things. A lot of it was touristy stuff like key chains and shot glasses but some of my friends got cool things like blankets, purses, rugs, hammocks, and scarves. I trieddd to remind myself that I will be here for a year & didn't need to buy every cool thing I saw but I did walk away with...

 

a cool Ecua-Headband (which is hard to see in this picture, sorry!) that is yellow, red, and green for only $2 bucks!

 

I also got a Liga jersey! They are Quito's home team & I can see their stadium from my window so I am sure we will be going to a game one of these days (: 

Well today was very fun but tomorrow we go back to work with our first Minga of the year. We have to meet at 7 a.m. tomorrow & will drive up into the mountains to build or add on to a home. I hear it is something like the Amish barn raising in the past...haha Anyway the Madres told us to expect that it will be hard & dirty work but I'm sure it will be a great experience!

tid bits

1.      1.  Chapas means the lock on a door. It is also slang for police in Ecuador who are know for being corrupt. Chapas dormidas literally means sleeping police but it is the word for speed bumps in Ecuador. #respect hah

2.    

       2. I learned the hard way that it is not okay to play Frisbee with the cute little kids on my lunch break. Turns out they are supposed to be at the afternoon Mass & not running around with me…whoopsies

3.    3. I tasted an Oblea tradicional at the mall which was sooo so good! Imagine a thin wafer, like 10 inches in diameter, that tastes like a waffle cone. Then take two of those and fill the center with crème de leche and any other fruity or chocolatey filling! I ordered the traditional filling which tasted kind of like hazelnut & it was a great snack!

4.    4. Every day I have either played Frisbee, basketball, or fútbol with some other volunteers and the kids. It is super fun, a great way to pass time before dinner which isn’t until 8, and it turns out I am more athletic in Ecuador. I beat my personal best all-time scoring record in basketball by scoring a shocking 10 points last game (: 

5.       5. My picture & bio is uploaded on the WBC website….check out my terrible picture taken after a downpour & cheese ball bio here http://www.workingboyscenter.org/meet-our-volunteers

 

Those are some of my fun side stories so far but mostly we have been in orientation all day every day this week. We are learning more about the Center and getting trained by two retired teachers on how to teach which is super helpful!

bienvenidos a quito

 

Leaving at 1:30 a.m. from mi casa in Wisconsin to begin my adventure to Ecuador!

 

and 16 hours later....here I am!! This is the cool view from my room looking right out to the Centro de Muchacho Trabajador sign & onto the mountains surrounding us!

 

We each get our own HUGE rooms & bathroom with a shower built in! Also there is plenty of space in my closet for my Packers gear to hang (: 

 This is another view from our patio. Pretty pretty, huh?

And this is a blurry picture of a church! haha

It was all that I captured from our excursion to downtown Quito on Sunday. We rode the bus for an hour just to arrive at the main plaza in time for it to downpour. Also most of the vendors were closed since it was a Sunday. We still got to walk around for a while & we got coffee at the cafe so it was a very fun day after all. Good thing we are here for a year so we can go back & do the sight seeing the right way next time (:

last call for modeling services...

JOKING (: haha

I had a lot of fun this summer babysitting, painting a basement, working in Dr. Pickart's office, spreading mulch, painting bathrooms, slanging camp cannon cds, and painting a masterpiece (: 

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

TO EVERYONE WHO SO GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED ME 

by giving me these odd jobs!

I am not trying to be cliche or exaggerate but I literally could not have afforded my airfare and living expenses without your help!! Thank you  for helping me live out my adventure!! I will miss all of you so much while I am gone but I promise to keep this blog updated & stay in touch.

xoxoxo

it's official....

I have my ticket.
I have my passport.
And today I got my VISA!

On Saturday, August 20th at 5:45 a.m. I'm taking off to Ecuador!