The past week or so...

Last week was a trying week, with returning to school after a 12 day break, getting sick - I think from the milk at my home stay - for two days and then the teachers not being in school for Thursday and Friday.  We were able to do half days so the kids still got their hot lunch at school and about two hours of lessons.  Julia, (a gal who is here working on her thesis on intercultural education, and who has volunteered and worked with GVI before), was able to attend school with me both of those days which was a HUGE help. 

On Saturday, 6 of us took a 2 1/2 bus ride to the Intag Valley for some down time.  There are natural hotsprings there and we stayed at a place with cabins and two pools.  Had to eat lunch at the place next door, but had dinner and breakfast at our place.  Total cost for the weekend per person: $22.00!!!!  We were the only people there, so had a very relaxing time and got a little vitamin D.  Absolutely gorgeous there.  A narrow valley in sub-tropical climate, where they grow coffee, have developed a woman´s cooperative to making handicrafts, and are fighting a large corporation who wants to come in and copper min.

Five new volunteers came on Sunday, one of which is staying at the same home stay as me, and is just a bit older than me!  I´m not the oldest by 20 years any more!  Bronwyn will be taking over for me as well at the school, so I am constantly thinking of things to record for her so she can just stay ont he same roll as I have been on.  I didn´t have that from the last teacher, so it made it kind of hard to know if the kids had done certain things or not. 

Now, Sunday afternoon I started feeling like I was getting a cold and sure enough, today it´s full blown.  Skipped Spanish yesterday and today, and today went directly to bed after getting back into town.  Just got up to prepare lessons and check in on life elsewhere....  My homestay mom took me to the pharmacy last night and we got a cold medicine...interesting: I was able to purchase them by the pill instead of the whole box!  Actually, you can also buy cigarettes here individually as well!  Haven´t asked how much they are.

Spent an enormous amount of time trying to figure out how to get to Arequipa, Peru for the second half of my stay.  On Friday I searched the internet for flights and couldn´t find one all the way to Arequipa for under $800!!!  Finally went to a travel agency in town and got the flight to Lima for just over $400 and now have to figure out how to get to Arequipa from there.  I have a week, so will try to go to Machu Pichu in that time if I can work it out. The materials I received said my transportation from Ecuador to Peru  was "organzied" for me by the program, but then right before Christmas I was told I had to do this myself and that I had X amount of dollars to cover it.  Well, didn´t find out how much X was until after I got back, and now I have to cover some of this cost myself.  Pretty misleading and such a waste of time and money as I could have done this from home before I came for so much less!  Anyway, ended up having to leave here a day early in order to get out of Ecuador before my 90 day tourist "visa" is up.  So will leave here on Friday, Jaunuary 29, 10 days from now. 

Thank you to all who have contributed or plan to contribute to my funding a cow and a stove. Don´t know how much yet, but will post the final amount.  THANKS.