Our Endless Numbered Days

I’m sorry to have been so inactive here for the past couple weeks, it’s hardly a reflection of my life here these days. Just the opposite, really. In my non-cyber life I have been so busy I’ve barely had time to keep you all up-to-date.

This will be explained much later.

Anyways, here are the highlights since the last time

My soccer team, Gasolina, is currently 2-0-0 and we hope to continue our winning streak for the next couple rounds of the girls tournament at the University. The games are really exciting and although we play in straight dirt and the fields are the size of the ones I used when I was part of teams like the Blue Sharks and the Red Devils, they’re quite intense.

Not so successful have been the salsa classes here for the Monday group (Jess, Emily, Brianna, Liz and I). We have seriously regressed and after skipping class two weeks ago because it was “too hot to walk”, we have now been prohibited from ever attending the Thursday class (the rest of the group) because they are so far ahead of us. Oh well.

Brianna, had 4 friends here from BC this past week and it was fabulous to visit with them, talk about what’s going on back at school and show them all of our favorite spots. We spent a night at Papallacta, a spa-type place with baths heated by a nearby volcano, with them as well. It was absolutely beautiful there and so relaxing. We spent the night in cabins and had three hot tubs all to ourselves, half the group got massages, and no one wanted to leave.

Peanut Butter Jelly time at Papallacta

Liz provides us with fire.

I'm sorry there aren't more pictures from our night there, it was a very water-based adventure, I hope you understand.

Yesterday two important events happened here in my Ecua house.

1. One of our two dogs, Lisa, died. She was 13 and died in her sleep and everyone was very sad. This is terrible to say but I was rather ambivalent. Lisa had cataracts so her eyes were bright white which always terrified me and any guests I brought back. In any case, may she rest in peace.

2. We had a crab feast. It was one of the most fun meals I have ever had in this country or any other. My family was shocked that I knew how to eat crab and I tried to explain to them the annual Carla and Amy dinner but my Spanish isn’t quite proficient enough to describe how much my actual family is able consume in one night.

Oh, also 3. I think one of my brothers here just got engaged. When and how this happened I am not quite sure (I feel like Robbie here), but lately there has been a lot of discussion about location for the wedding so…I’m slowly getting the picture.

In other news, Jackie Draper in Chile is a-okay, yesterday a group of us went to a soccer game of the two rival teams here in Quito (so much fun, fútbol fans go crazy from the get-go here, as evidenced by groups of them busting down doors to enter before the game had even started), and although I have a somewhat tough week coming up at school, things are going really well!

Matt, Leila, Ryann and me at the Liga game

Due to the lack of exciting pictures I'll add this one of Leila and I with Jess' host brothers, whom we love.

I know pictures of flowers are boring but my host mom and I just came back from the botanic gardens here and they were just too gorgeous not to include.

¡Hasta la próxima!