It´s a national carnival holiday here so everything is shut! Can´t post letters, buy stamps or walk to the shops. Everything will be closed again tomorrow too. I won´t have been to the post office in over a week and normally I go 3 times a week! I´m getting withdrawal symptoms.
Over here carnival means the children run around with water ballons and spray cans of foam and anyone is fair game! I was "got" last week by a little 5 year old girl with a can of foam. She looked so proud of herself I couldn´t help but laugh. My host however are prudently staying indoors until it´s Wednesday and all is safe again :)
Monday, 7 March 2011
Sunday, 6 March 2011
mini break!
ok so Mindo, well it´s a town further up north in the jungle. In my opinion it´s a village not a town but apprantly locals are trained as guides and they have 3 pick-up truck taxis and 4 cars so that makes them a bustling town! Who are we to argue?! We had to take the bus through the mountains to get there, took about 3 and a half hours and we left at 5.45 am. Fun times! The bus trip was quite pleasant and the views were spectacular.
In Mindo we stayed at a hostel. The hostel is entirely made of polished wood and one side is totally open so you look out directly into the trees and are surrounded by hummingbirds. On one side of my room I had a verandah and on the other side was a lounge(?) with 2 hammocks. I spent a few very relaxing hours swaying away and listening to the birds. On Saturday morning we were up and breakfasting at 6am and got a truck ride up to the top ridge of a mountain. The truck ride will forever stay with me!! No seat belts (of course) and nothing to hold unto. The road (and when I say road I mean dirt track with whopping big holes in) was dreadful. The locals tried to fix the holes by pouring gravel all over the place which just made the road even bumpier. If you ever do this kind of journey then be warned-sit by the window and if aren´t very careful you will end up banging your head against the glass (guess how I learnt this.) We got to the top by 7.20 and spent the next 4 hours walking down the mountain. The early start and bumpy ride were worth it-the walk down was amazing!
It was so peaceful; all I could hear was the water dripping off the leaves and birds all around us. So much natural beauty before you, it´s impossible to not believe in a Creator God. Everything was so green and lush. Hundreds of different kinds of trees and creepers, the only ones I could recognise were palm tress and banana trees. GIANT ferns bigger than me (and a normal sized person) guarded the sides of the ridge. The jungle is so dense. Our path had a 60ft drop on either side but you couldn´t really see it because of the thick undergrowth. The trees had dangling vines-looking like right out of a Tarzan film! The trees are covered in moss which hangs down, I felt like I was in an "Indianna Jones" film. Whilst walking down we spotted some beautiful birds including a couple of Toucans! I´m not an Ornithologist but seeing those birds in the wild was quite an experience! Take that Chester Zoo
At about 9.30 we passed a truck dropping off hikers. We went past feeling smug. Giving kindly but patronising looks of those who´d already been on the trail for 2 hours
Made me feel hardcore whereas they were merely day trippers! We tutted (in Christian love of course) as we passed them.
In Mindo we stayed at a hostel. The hostel is entirely made of polished wood and one side is totally open so you look out directly into the trees and are surrounded by hummingbirds. On one side of my room I had a verandah and on the other side was a lounge(?) with 2 hammocks. I spent a few very relaxing hours swaying away and listening to the birds. On Saturday morning we were up and breakfasting at 6am and got a truck ride up to the top ridge of a mountain. The truck ride will forever stay with me!! No seat belts (of course) and nothing to hold unto. The road (and when I say road I mean dirt track with whopping big holes in) was dreadful. The locals tried to fix the holes by pouring gravel all over the place which just made the road even bumpier. If you ever do this kind of journey then be warned-sit by the window and if aren´t very careful you will end up banging your head against the glass (guess how I learnt this.) We got to the top by 7.20 and spent the next 4 hours walking down the mountain. The early start and bumpy ride were worth it-the walk down was amazing!
It was so peaceful; all I could hear was the water dripping off the leaves and birds all around us. So much natural beauty before you, it´s impossible to not believe in a Creator God. Everything was so green and lush. Hundreds of different kinds of trees and creepers, the only ones I could recognise were palm tress and banana trees. GIANT ferns bigger than me (and a normal sized person) guarded the sides of the ridge. The jungle is so dense. Our path had a 60ft drop on either side but you couldn´t really see it because of the thick undergrowth. The trees had dangling vines-looking like right out of a Tarzan film! The trees are covered in moss which hangs down, I felt like I was in an "Indianna Jones" film. Whilst walking down we spotted some beautiful birds including a couple of Toucans! I´m not an Ornithologist but seeing those birds in the wild was quite an experience! Take that Chester Zoo
At about 9.30 we passed a truck dropping off hikers. We went past feeling smug. Giving kindly but patronising looks of those who´d already been on the trail for 2 hours
Made me feel hardcore whereas they were merely day trippers! We tutted (in Christian love of course) as we passed them.
Wednesday, 2 March 2011
mini break! wohoo
Last minute plans have come togather and we´re off to far flung places! Were going somewhere (I´m not a 100% sure where though.) Mindo? I think we´ll be by Santo Domingo. We´re leaving at 6.15 am (yuck) tomorrow, Thursday, and returning Saturday afternoon. Lets hope we have a fab time. Please pray I don´t lose anything valuable or get anything nicked (I´m taking my bank card, mobile, camera and kindle with me.)
Tuesday, 1 March 2011
On Monday I arrived at the post office (yet again) but this time I had a clever excuse! I didn´t need to look pathetically into my empty mail box, this time I needed to print off a document. If I just "happened" to check my mail box it would not be important. This slight deception is because I check my mail box a lot and usually it´s empty. Up until last week it didn´t really bother me since the post office lady is friendly and I practise my Spanish on her plus the walk to Conocoto is my only source of excercise. However...last week a lady watched me check my empty mail box and say to the PO lady "ah look at her, she doesn´t have any friends!" As my sister says-shame on my name ;)
Yesterday as I arrived the PO lady stood up and waved at me and gave me a big thumbs up! Did this mean I had a letter? I didn´t want to get too excited so I went over to the computer and started printing off my documents. When I went over to pay I casually opened my mail box while nobody was looking and...a pile of letters fell out!!! The Post office lady came over beaming at me.
Getting letters and cards from family is so special. The nicest surprise though was the reaction from the Post Office lady, she was so obviously genuinly thrilled for me. I know it sounds cheesy but seeing her beaming at me with excitement was the nicest bit!
Yesterday as I arrived the PO lady stood up and waved at me and gave me a big thumbs up! Did this mean I had a letter? I didn´t want to get too excited so I went over to the computer and started printing off my documents. When I went over to pay I casually opened my mail box while nobody was looking and...a pile of letters fell out!!! The Post office lady came over beaming at me.
Getting letters and cards from family is so special. The nicest surprise though was the reaction from the Post Office lady, she was so obviously genuinly thrilled for me. I know it sounds cheesy but seeing her beaming at me with excitement was the nicest bit!
Thursday, 24 February 2011
a red letter day (only without actually getting a letter)
It´s been an interesting couple of days for me. Yesterday I went out for dinner at someones house. For the first time Ceci has finally let me take the bus alone. This was a BIG moment. I walked to the bus stop (uphill hike but simple enough) then came the fun bit of deciding which bus was the right one! This meant actually having to put my glasses on to see what was written on the buses as they zoomed past. I managed to get the right bus (quite an achievement) and get off at the right stop! The next part of the "plan" was to meet another girl, Amy, outside the supermarket. I had a worrying moment whhen I couldn´t see the supermarket but all was well and I stood in the right spot and waited...and waited....and waited.... I tried to call Amy but I´d run out of credit aah that´s my safety blanket gone. I went to the closest shop but I didn´t have enough cash to buy a top up card. Shouldn´t the phone tell you when you´re running out? I tried to comfort myself with the thought that even if I managed to call the police/ambulance in an emergency my Spanish probably wouldn´t stand up to explaining where I was-strangely enough this thought didn´t end up comforting me!
So now I was getting worried; all alone, couldn´t call for help and was begining to doubt I was in the right place. Had I confused the super-maxi with mega-maxi? Wrong meeting point, being late and no phone is annoying at the best of times but when you´re alone, abroad and you aren´t fluent in the language it´s a tad concerning! Learn from my mistakes please-don´t ever let yourself get stuck at a bus stop alone in a Latin American country. The stares, whistles, shouts and cars beeping was most uncomfortable! (of course if you´re a bulky 6ft man you may get away with it but I still wouldn´t bother if I was you!)
Amy finally turned up (I was at the right place yay) full of apologies. She´d been hugely held up. The positive outcome was we became friends whilst moaning about the traffic jams and useless phones :)
Today I wanted to send a parcel and of course I needed to buy a phone top up card, all boring everyday stuff but I´m feeling quite pleased with myself none the less. I managed to send off my parcel but for that I needed to spell my name, give my adress and phone number all in Spanish which I managed without a hitch. I then managed to buy a phone card and more importantly...read (and understand) the instructions in Spanish and get the credit put on my phone ! I stood in the street working it out and glowing with pride. Nobody else noticed but I was thrilled! I finished off by getting a set of keys for the house copied so I can go out and about now all alone. Gosh, I feel quite grown up now :)
So now I was getting worried; all alone, couldn´t call for help and was begining to doubt I was in the right place. Had I confused the super-maxi with mega-maxi? Wrong meeting point, being late and no phone is annoying at the best of times but when you´re alone, abroad and you aren´t fluent in the language it´s a tad concerning! Learn from my mistakes please-don´t ever let yourself get stuck at a bus stop alone in a Latin American country. The stares, whistles, shouts and cars beeping was most uncomfortable! (of course if you´re a bulky 6ft man you may get away with it but I still wouldn´t bother if I was you!)
Amy finally turned up (I was at the right place yay) full of apologies. She´d been hugely held up. The positive outcome was we became friends whilst moaning about the traffic jams and useless phones :)
Today I wanted to send a parcel and of course I needed to buy a phone top up card, all boring everyday stuff but I´m feeling quite pleased with myself none the less. I managed to send off my parcel but for that I needed to spell my name, give my adress and phone number all in Spanish which I managed without a hitch. I then managed to buy a phone card and more importantly...read (and understand) the instructions in Spanish and get the credit put on my phone ! I stood in the street working it out and glowing with pride. Nobody else noticed but I was thrilled! I finished off by getting a set of keys for the house copied so I can go out and about now all alone. Gosh, I feel quite grown up now :)
Saturday, 19 February 2011
tourism can be brutal
This week Ben, one of the American students from last week, came back and stayed with us. It's been fun to have someone else stay with us. Yesterday, Friday, we went into Quito to do tourist stuff.
Our first stop was the basilica. It's a weird building because it's a cathedral but it was built for tourists! It isn't actually used as a place of worship at all which is totally bizarre.
For the princely sum of $2 you can go up the tower and clock tower. This is where I made the HUGE mistake of agreeing to go up! I am scared of heights (evil vertigo) and I am not that energetic to be honest whereas Ben is a professional climber and ENTHUSIASTIC!! The stairs alone nearly killed me, it wasn't until halfway up that I realised there was a lift but Ben refused because that was "boring" (I nearly killed him at that point.) Once you get high enough the stairs run out and you are faced with a walk across the roof then up ladders!! I was not about to let the brave Brits down so I gritted my teeth, smiled for the camera and climbed up. A truly hideous experience that wasn't helped by Ben showing off and jumping off ladders etc! Between fear and exhaustion my legs didn't stop shaking for the rest of the day. I confess that my leg muscles are in serious pain today :(
We also visited a lovely local park, saw the presidents palace and visited a photo exhibition. I had an interesting moment when walking down the street I heard the sound of a zip go, perhaps from my bagpack? I turned around to find a woman had unzipped my bag and actually had her hand in my bag robbing me! She simply turned around and walked calmly off, cheek! Mind you, she picked the wrong pocket so all she would have got was my mascara.
After a busy day of walking up hills (I swear Ben did it on purpose) and enjoying myself being a tourist I had the Latin Link meeting on the evening. This is where all the missionaries get together. We are all from different organisations and doing various work but they come together to chat, pray and support each other which is a lovely idea. We had a huge meal, a devotional and then a time of sharing and praying. I would like to ask for prayers for a little girl who was mentioned. One of the ladies, Marie Augusta, runs a school for street children. Last week a little girl J ran away. She has no family or friends to go to. She is alone and only 10, please pray she stays safe and returns.
Our first stop was the basilica. It's a weird building because it's a cathedral but it was built for tourists! It isn't actually used as a place of worship at all which is totally bizarre.
For the princely sum of $2 you can go up the tower and clock tower. This is where I made the HUGE mistake of agreeing to go up! I am scared of heights (evil vertigo) and I am not that energetic to be honest whereas Ben is a professional climber and ENTHUSIASTIC!! The stairs alone nearly killed me, it wasn't until halfway up that I realised there was a lift but Ben refused because that was "boring" (I nearly killed him at that point.) Once you get high enough the stairs run out and you are faced with a walk across the roof then up ladders!! I was not about to let the brave Brits down so I gritted my teeth, smiled for the camera and climbed up. A truly hideous experience that wasn't helped by Ben showing off and jumping off ladders etc! Between fear and exhaustion my legs didn't stop shaking for the rest of the day. I confess that my leg muscles are in serious pain today :(
We also visited a lovely local park, saw the presidents palace and visited a photo exhibition. I had an interesting moment when walking down the street I heard the sound of a zip go, perhaps from my bagpack? I turned around to find a woman had unzipped my bag and actually had her hand in my bag robbing me! She simply turned around and walked calmly off, cheek! Mind you, she picked the wrong pocket so all she would have got was my mascara.
After a busy day of walking up hills (I swear Ben did it on purpose) and enjoying myself being a tourist I had the Latin Link meeting on the evening. This is where all the missionaries get together. We are all from different organisations and doing various work but they come together to chat, pray and support each other which is a lovely idea. We had a huge meal, a devotional and then a time of sharing and praying. I would like to ask for prayers for a little girl who was mentioned. One of the ladies, Marie Augusta, runs a school for street children. Last week a little girl J ran away. She has no family or friends to go to. She is alone and only 10, please pray she stays safe and returns.
Monday, 14 February 2011
a quick recap so far
On Saturday I will have been here a month. I´ve been thinking that I haven´t done much in that time but I´m not sure. During the last few weeks I have : been to the market twice
attended a leaving party
been to 3 birthdy parties
been legalised
visited Quito twice
been to church 4 times plus a revival meeting
participated in a church bbq
joined a cell group and a ladies group
done a lot of baby-sitting
seen a smoking volcano (was quite a concerning moment)
visited a native Indian craft market and toured a volcanic lake.
oh yeah also been learning Spanish too.
Considering I´m not busy I don´t think that´s too bad so far do you? I can´t believe I´m actually living here and doing all this stuff. I am soo lucky!
attended a leaving party
been to 3 birthdy parties
been legalised
visited Quito twice
been to church 4 times plus a revival meeting
participated in a church bbq
joined a cell group and a ladies group
done a lot of baby-sitting
seen a smoking volcano (was quite a concerning moment)
visited a native Indian craft market and toured a volcanic lake.
oh yeah also been learning Spanish too.
Considering I´m not busy I don´t think that´s too bad so far do you? I can´t believe I´m actually living here and doing all this stuff. I am soo lucky!
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