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.