Home Sweet Home

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010.  Arrival into the United States after 11 months in Ecuador. Maybe you can imagine where we went immediately to spend our lay over time in the Miami airport...the Brewery. We were anxious to have something other than a pilsener, but I almost fell off my chair backwards when Ben told me the pints were $8 each. Something we noticed immediately about being back in the states was that without any effort we could understand every conversation going on around us-- and its very noticeable in an airport. We dared each other to stand up in the bar stool and say "shhh....". First, we spent a few days in Tennessee with Sara's family.

Sara, her sister Maggie and our nieces Alex and Hensley

Alex with Uncle Ben

We arrived back in our home state of Washington a few days later, all our bags stuffed with souvenirs arrived safely, and we couldn't be happier. Ben's sister Whitney and her husband Craig organized a Homecoming Party for us. As usual, they went "all out" -- home smoked pork, a keg of our favorite microbrew and their band set up to play for us. More than 40 family and friends welcomed us back. It was amazing and I (Sara) noticed chillbumps on several occassions. Thank goodness for family and good dependable friendships!!! Finally, the 9th of August, we took the beautiful drive over the Cascade Mountains and arrived at our home in Ellensburg, WA. We were extremely pleased to find our house in good condition, the renters hardly left a blemish. Not an easy task for a family of 3, including an 11 year old boy. Next, we headed to our dear friends to reunite with our dog, Elsie. She didn't recognize us at first sight, but we could see it slowly coming back to her as she sniffed us carefully and sat staring up at us. By the time she arrived back at her old home an hour later, she knew right where she was (as evidenced by her direct route to the back door as soon as she exited the car).

In our backyard with our dog Elsie

From there ensued several days of readjusting to home including unpacking, tracking down furniture, starting our internet, getting the cars running and road legal etc. Everything went very smooth and we hardly hit a hiccup except for the sticker shock everywhere we went. We heard ourselves repeating, "can you believe what this costs!" We were excited about exploring our local Farmers Market which takes up about a block and tomatoes cost $1 each. What a difference from the markets in Loja!

Our local Farmer's Market

Now we have come full circle. All the furniture is back in its place, the dog feels at home and we are falling back into the routine we were so desperately looking to get away from a year ago. Sara is back at work as the School Psychologist in the Wahluke School District, and Ben is working at getting his shop back up and running. For now it feels comfortable and homey, but we expect to be really missing Ecuador when the cold short days of January and February roll around and the work feels like it's never done.

It's hard to sum up such an experience. One year is both long and short. Today, it already feels a bit like a dream from last night-- short, sweet and a little strange. But, if we focus for a moment, the experiences are still all laid out in our heads like a book. As the years pass, they will most likely see those pages whiddle down to more of a highlight  reel. We both learned a lot personally, professionally and culturally and we're sure to see those lessons played out in the years to come. "Culture shock" may be a bit strong to describe our experiences in recalibrating to life in the US, but we certainly associate some stress with the change. More details about those experiences to come...

Make no bones about it, we are happy to be home!

Our Last Travels

                     
As soon as our school days came to an end (literally... catching a night bus on the last day of school), we met up with our friends Justin and Renee for some more travel in Ecuador. After reuniting in Quito ( it felt really good to see friends from home after 10 months), we headed out to Mindo, a quaint little town located in what is known as the cloudforest. The climate is rather tropical, and it´s known for birdwatching. We were extremely lucky to view 3 different types of Toucans and a lesser known but more rare Guan. We were also mesmerized by the variety of hummingbirds that allowed us within a  foot or less of the feeders.

Hiking in the cloudforest

A booted racket tail hummingbird

At the butterfly gardens in Mindo

  After Mindo, we made our second trip out to the Secret Garden Cotopaxi, the lodge is located at about 11,000 feet so we switched from tanktops to sweaters.  Once again, we had good fortune -- sunny, clear skies for amazing views of the surrounding mountains. The addition of a hot tub with  a view of snowcapped Cotopaxi which glowed in the moonlight was a plus!

An early morning view of Cotopaxi (19, 388 feet) 

After Cotopaxi, we decided to head back to  lower a elevation and warmer weather. So, we headed toward the Orient, or jungle region of Ecuador. In Puyo, we took a cool rainforest walk in Parque Omaere with an American expat biologist who educated us about the medicinal plants of the area and the local indigenous tribes, played with some monkeys at a local monkey refuge, and entertained ourselves in the evening at an outdoor heavy metal/punk rock concert (lucky again because Justin is a fan of metal). After Puyo, we headed down to Cuenca where we parted ways.

 At the monkey refuge in Puyo

With only a week left now in S.A., we were determined to make it down to Peru. Our goal was altered slightly by the fact that we were seeking a quiet beach experience before coming home, but we found ourselves on the beaches of Peru during the largest holiday of the year, Peruvian Independence Day. Nonetheless, it has been quiet, for the most part, and relaxing, without a doubt. Being rather early risers compared to the late night party crowd, we have been able to take quiet, almost solitary walks on the beach in the morning.  Our bungalow at Kon Tiki is perched on the hillside overlooking the ocean with our own  private space for sitting, reading, sleeping in the hammock. Although Ben contracted some stomach bug after our first night´s seafood dinner, it hasn't damaged the experience too much because we have done alot of nothing...perfect for relaxing and reflecting before our homecoming.

A view from our bungalow in Mancora, Peru

Our Despedida

The school year is finally drawing to a close down here in Loja, and it's not a moment too soon. We can feel the waning energy of both teachers and students. All are ready for a break. So, in the last couple of weeks, we've been making an effort to wrap things up, give the students final exams and assist them in performing their year end presentations, or "sabatinas",  for their parents. We spent seven straight hours one day last week, coaching the kids through staged demonstrations of their English and Math skills. It was tiring, to say the least, but rewarding at the same time. Our kids did fantastic, and the parents walked away happy (or so it appeared).

One of six groups celebrating their completion of the parent presentation

In all of the madness and mayhem that comes with end of the year activities in Ecuador (primarily because advance planning and preparation is not their strong suit), the teachers and students still found the time to throw us a despedida, or "going away party.". This wasn't your average punch and cookies event, but rather it was a full-on-performance. We sat like celebreties in a crowd of students for an hour watching students  sing, dance and cheer ~ all in our honor. We are the first foreigners to work for a full year at SEI, so they really wanted to show their appreciation. Despite the hot sun, it was an inspiring event and made us feel very appreciated.

We were the celebrities with front row seats alongside the school directors.

Students performing a traditional style dance

After school, the teachers gathered to send us off in a more adult-style affair, complete with shots of rum, tamales and humitas (the traditional food of Ecuador). The directors all gave touching toasts and then the teachers presented us with parting gifts. Then it was our turn to practice our Spanish by giving a little toast of our own. Short but sweet (Ben's more of the former and Sara's the latter) but enough to tell them how much we appreciated their friendship and support. It was very touching to feel such appreciation. The party left us feeling like the year was a success on many levels and that we will be leaving behind some good friends down here in Ecuador. It's a bittersweet ending. One more week and then a little vacation before we head back to the USA.

Posing with our Ecuadorian hand-made parting gifts

Learning Spanish: Poco a poco.

Now that we are down to our final month here in South America, we have been forced to recon with the progression of our Spanish skills. It has been quite humbling learning a new language. It can be so frustrating when you want to express yourself but don't have the words to do it.

That said, we have made a great deal of progress since we first arrived. We have been taking lessons with a private instructor for about 4 hours per week, 2 hours at a time. Our teacher, Marcia, is actually a full time English teacher at a local Colegio (high school), and she has taken this task on,in addition to getting her masters degree. She is truly a busy woman so we have been thankful to have her undivided attention.

Marcia , our Spanish teacher. She's actually not nearly as serious as she looks. 

So how much have we learned? If you measure from where we started to where we have gotten, it's impressive. If you consider where we are and where we would like to be in order to be fluent speakers, it's humbling. Ordering food is no problem, the bank is a breeze, and casual encounters are usually ok as well. And, of course, we have most of the travel lingo down pat (transportation, hotel rooms, shopping). Well, CNN is a bit too technical to understand, depending on the topic. Radio is difficult to keep up with. Phone calls in Spanish can be a bit tricky, even with people we know. The most difficulties arise in discussing details and technical points, especially in tenses other than the present, past or future. Spanish has way too many verb tenses!!!   And, how easily we can converse largely depends on who we are speaking with. For example, many native Lojano's speak very clearly, but when we encounter people from the coast or people that speak rapidly, it can be challenging to comprehend everything. At least we now get the gist! Certainly, one more year and we are confident that we would be speaking fluently.

So, we have been stocking up on children's books, and we have a stockpile of bootleg movies to continue our studies when we get back. We have heard that language is one thing that fades fast if you don't keep practicing. Use it or lose it! So we'll do our best.

Celebrating In Ecuador

Well, the Fourth of July just isn't the same down here in Ecuador, but we are doing our best to bring a little bit of USA into our dinner tonight with some hamburgers and french fries. We did, however, have the opportunity to celebrate yesterday after Spain's victory in the World Cup.

We decided last minute to go watch the game at our "favorite restaurant" which is a quaint little place run by a Spanish fellow and his Ecuadorian wife. The main reason it's our favorite restaurant is that they actually made an effort to give it some ambiance. As far as food goes here in Loja, we don't have a "favorite" place. This restaurant is unique is pub-style decor and good lighting. Most restaurants hang a bulb in the middle of the room and call it good. Not even a lamp shade. They actually have small lamps on each table. Well, the main reason we headed there yesterday was because we knew that they would have the game on and be rooting full tilt boogie for España.

The owner and her kids.

So we arrived at about 1:30 to find the entire family including their 18 month old son, wearing Spain jerseys, and the restaurant draped in Spanish flags. David was playing the Spanish fight song through his ridiculously loud stereo and blowing on some type of noise maker. We ate our always surprisingly cheap and filling $2 almuerzo (3 courses plus a drink) and watched the game from our table.

After the game. The picture is blurry for obvious reasons.

At half-time a group of Spain fans showed up and started buying beers. Then the game started getting crazy, and the owners started pouring drinks. Everytime something good happened David turned the fight song on so the whole neighborhood could hear. After Spain won, the dancing and flag waving began. We all downed shots of ouzo and chanted the fight song. Then, everytime we tried to leave, the fans at the other table would set another beer in front of us and make us toast. It was great fun and an excellent way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

Hoop it up!

In the past week, I played in my first “official” basketball games since college intramurals. The school Athletic Director organized a Mami/ Papi Sports Tournament. The Mamis played basketball and the Papis played indoor soccer. The women Docentes (teachers) were invited to put together a basketball team. There aren’t enough men working in the school, so Ben was off the hook. Fortunately our team consisted of about 15 teachers, so no one had to run up and down the court too much. Just like back in middle school, my face was beet red after about 15 minutes in the game. I expected to be in better shape since Ben and I run regularly, but it didn’t prepare me for sprinting up and down a basketball court.

Maybe to your surprise, I wasn’t even the shortest woman on the team. While my basketball career ended quickly in the United States when most others outgrew me in middle school, the possibilities are better here for a girl my size. Ecuadorians are small in stature, so maybe I am considered “average” here in Ecuador. It was nice looking my opponent directly in the eyes. In each game, I only got about 10 minutes or less of playtime in order to share the time with my 15 player team. In the first game, I put up 2 points. We won the first game 25-4. The following games were closer matches, but we ended up losing in the semi-finals. Unfortunately, I scored no further points in the game, but I certainly scored some points with my fellow teachers who were surprised when I joined the team.

                                                         Our Cheering Section- My Students!

      

                                                                        

Are you ready for some Fútbol!

As many of you know, the US lags behind the rest of the world in it's appreciation for futbol or as it is known in the states, soccer. In Ecuador, futbol is second only to Catholicism in popularity and even that might be a stretch. Everywhere we have been we have seen futbol being played. We have seen "balls" of all sizes and shapes (including plactic bottles), players of all ages (no joke) and fields of all sizes and surfaces. If you go to the big park in Loja on Sunday you are likely to see futbol games in all directions with overlapping fields and goals made of whatever is handy. We once counted about eight different games from one sitting position in one section of the park.

So in an attempt to be culturally sensitive, we have decided to embrace this aspect of Ecuadorian culture wholeheartedy (perhaps Ben more than Sara). This is best recognized in our regular attendence at the local professional matches which take place every other Friday at the stadium in town. Loja's team is in the "B" league which is sort of considered the minor leagues here. Every year the winning team moves to the upper division and the losing upper division team moves down.

Lucky for us, Liga de Loja is quite good this year, so the games have been really fun to watch. So far we have been to about 5 of them. One ticket in the preferred section (there is an awning over the stands) costs $5, the 20 oz. beers $1.25 and (if you're so inclined) you can buy a knock off t-shirt for another $5. You could be an instant fan for less than $12. That would barely get you a Coke at a Sounders game. The only downside is that the seats are just concrete stairs and, if you're not careful, you could sit in gum like Ben did last week.

Yes the picture is crappy but so is the photographer.

Our only disappointment is that we can't understand all of the insults and profanity that the fans shout at the refs. For them, this is a big part of the game. Last week, when Liga was losing 0-3, the game turned into a one upsmanship of insults since the fans were getting bored with being the losing team. It went on for a good 20 minutes. We could tell when someone said something funny because the entire crowd would laugh, including our friend Eduardo. Ben has a list of bad words that he has been studying in an effort to contribute more. When in Rome.....