Videos

         The first is the video that my team worked on. Right now I'm translating the script so that we can get english subtitles, but basically it is about a fisherman in Bahía and his struggle to get by.
         The second video is the first episode of our cooking show that the girls from Texas and I made. It shows how to make "niños envueltos", those heavenly pancakes with banana and cheese. Enjoy!

¿Que és lo que más le gusto? (What did you like the best?)

            This is what a lady asked me while I was standing in line at the Quito airport for my boarding pass. I think she was doing some sort of tourism survey. She asked me my nationality, age, and if I spoke spanish well. I told her I did and she still tried to refrase some questions in english for me. How cute. She asked what I had done here, and it felt like I had to give my experience in a nutshell. Most nutshells don't involve talk about localism and imperialism, btu I couldn't resist. She asked me what I like the most, and immediately I thought of how warm people are here. I told her it's just easier to smile at strangers and to feel la "alegría latina". I'll miss that. She asked me what I liked the least, and the first thing I thought of was the fact that there's no toilet paper anywhere. I wasn't used to the fact that you had to carry your own to most places, even to some restaurants. The good definitely outweighs the inconvenient, though.

Some of us after Keneshia's hip hop lesson :)

            Other things I'll miss: Hearing salsa in the street, in cabs, in stores, etc. I'll miss the fresh fruit juice that I still drink with eyes wide open after tasting the freshness. I'll miss hearing spanish being spoken at the dinner table and outside my room. I'll miss those kisses on the cheek. I don't know if I'll miss people telling me "provecho" every time they see me eating something, but we'll see. Also, I'll never forget those quirky food melanges: Yoghurt and pan de yuca, bananas and cheese pancakes, oatmeal drink, spaghetti with rice (for the die hard carb fans), and platanos mixed into EVERYTHING.

@ The film presentation

 Today I met with Ale and Jorge literally just before leaving for the airport so that they could help me organize my thoughts about doing a Tanner presentation at Wellesley in the Fall about the program. This program was not what I thought it would be. Just with any service project, I didn't feel useful at times and felt as if I weren't really making a difference. I knew that I would not appreciate and learn more from my experiences until I would actually leave Bahía. Now I have learned the importance of being a role model and just being there for others. After saying goodbye to Crystal at 4 am on Saturday, I couldn't go back to sleep because my mind was overflowing with thoughts from the project. After two hours I decided to write them down and the thoughts flowed into a list of topics I wanted to cover in my presentation. I'm glad I'm writing them down now and that I got feedback from Ale and Jorge before I left because my ideas are fresh in my mind right now. Some topics jumped right out at me, such as socioeconomic class and opportunities. Others were harder to talk about, such as gender relations, because they weren't as prominent. The kids in the workshop got along, and the girls shared leadership roles with the boys. I sensed mutual respect, which is awesome.
          Right now I'm sitting in the terminal waiting for my flight to Lima, Peru which connects to L.A. then Seattle. I'm getting a haircut right after I land. I'll stop writing now because there are toddlers having a wrestling match right behind me so ciao for now!

Char

Sustainability

            Before coming to Bahía, I didn't think that sustainability would be on my mind so much here. The people here do live such healthier lives than in the U.S., though. Watching this 20 minute video made me feel so angry yet happy to have lived in a place where people use what they NEED, recycle, and don't need to buy a new grill every year. Just by living in the house with Doña Mariana, I have seen it. First of all, the people here don't really buy dog food. They give them leftovers. Even though we try as hard as we can to finish what we area given, we still have left overs. Rarely does any one go back for seconds. If Doña has left over plantains from breakfast, they will be in the soup for lunch. When no one eats the bananas, she makes her delicious platano pancakes. Instead of throwing away the cream from warmed up milk, she makes healthier butter out of it. This way of live even affects how long we shower. Now we are all saying how surprised we are that a 30 minute shower can turn into a 5 minute shower. Once we were told that our water could run out, we became conscious of it. Why hasn't this idea hit us on a global scale? I mean, we shower and flush with drinking water. Why hasn't any one hit us over the head yet? 

In front of a sustainability mural in Bahía. You don't see these where I'm from.

           People make plant pots out of old buckets. There's also a guy who drives around in a truck and pays to collect junk, if there is any at all. I do wonder what the dump around this area is like and how it affects the environment. Things do just feel cleaner here. There are no factories spewing dark clouds of dioxin nor are there strips of fast food joints that seem to have taken over the rest of the world. People own restaurants, but often times they are just downstairs from their homes. The money goes straight to them and the costs are not externalized (these terms come from the video)The only thing, though, that the kids buy over and over again are cell phones. This video made me think a lot about perceived obsolescence and how people keep buying new cell phones or lap tops because in 5 years, they feel as if their old ones are useless.

           This place is pretty clean too. You don't see a lot of garbage laying around. Also, when you go to buy a coke in a glass bottle at the grocery store, they make it so that you have to return the bottle. This also makes me think of how in France it shocked me at first that they actually charged for plastic bags. You were encouraged to bring your own. In the U.S. they hand them out like candy. Any way, watch this video. It makes sense why the U.S. is all about consumption and how the notion of "fashion" is just a way of getting people to buy new things and to never be satisfied with what they have. I hope this video makes you more conscious about what consumption means to you. Next time you go shopping, ask yourself if you really NEED or if if someone else has told you that you do.
            

Bats and Ferris Wheels...an Adrenaline Overload

Rosa! I'll miss her hearty laugh and scary stories :)

            Last Saturday was the MOST eventful day I've had in a long, long time. Nelda and I continued the interviews, first with Rosa. I love Rosa so much...she is so cool! She is 21 and worked on the cameras for the film. This is her second year and has such a hearty, fun personality. Her interview was to the point, but then after Vicente came we somehow started talking about scary Ecuadorian folk stories. They were legit scary. Vicente told us about how the grim reaper appeared late one night to his father and asked if him if he knew where someone was. I don't believe in these kinds of stories but the way in which they were telling them and taking on the personalities of the characters in their stories was incredibly unsettling and powerful. They included their family members in these stories, which made them feel more real. Nelda and I started tearing up because I'm going to admit it: we were SCARED! But then we just laughed at ourselves at the same time. Sometimes really early in the morning I do hear shrill screams, and Vicente told a story about a figure who wonders around the town screaming. Such CHILLS to start the day! Adrenaline overdose #1.
          For lunch Doña made us ceviche, which we haven't had in a while and I love it because it's a seafood/lime soup, basically. Then they blew us away with a dessert, which we don't usually have. Strawberry and banana crepes with vanilla ice cream have never been so appealing after eating jello on rare occasions. After lunch we headed over to the yacht club because Keneshia was teaching us a hip hop dance. We got there and there was some confusion regarding the dance space, so naturally I headed for the nearest chair and watched part of the Costa Rica vs. Colombia fútbol game, which the latter won. Watching soccer is so boring to me because it's such a game of defense. I miss playing it though. Anyway we got to our dance space which was right next to the ocean, and Keneshia asked us if we wanted to dance to 'Look at me now' or 'Move move shake shake'. I was the only one who would want  a Pitbull song so we ended up with the first one. It's amazing how quickly she came up with a dance in her head, and could adjust it to different songs. We learned it in an hour and a half just for fun, then recorded it to show her parents.
          At 5 we stopped by the surfer dudes' house and confirmed our surfing lesson was a go. I was a little hesitant to get in the ocean before dinner, but luckily we kept going with the spontaneous feelings of the day. We walked to the beach, which was completely covered because it was high tide and the waves crashed against the rocks. We looked at ourselves and thought "are we really doing this?" Yes. The were really nice and helped us into the water. We felt at ease as soon as we passed the rocks and walked into the water, which was pretty shallow. There were fish swimming around us, and something bit Meghan in the back but she was fine after that. The sunset was gorgeous, and all four of us each got 6 tries on the surf board. They let us use the bigger one because it floated more easily. I managed to stand up, which was a feat in itself for me but I could fell backward because I'm used to leaning back for water skiing. We went home and had rice for dinner. Rice, again.
        Then we took cabs to another part of Bahía where I thought there was going to be a church dance. That's what they told us. Nope! It was a full fledged carnival. No churches involved. We got onto a ferris wheel that sounded as if it were going to collapse any second with the screeching of the motor. We got onto it and got oil on our hands. The oil should have been on the motor, not my hands. It was fun but I have never been on a ferris wheel that went 300 miles per hour that had a motor that sounded like a car screeching to a halt. Adrenaline rush #2. Then we went to Alejandro's house to wash the oil off ourselves. Nelda and I went to the bathroom and we're the only bilingual students so the other girls were left with Alejandro's family AKA awkward silence. We also went through sketchy dark allies filled with dogs in order to get there. Adrenaline rush #3.
          We went to go dance and the speakers were blasting to reggaeton and latin pop with a huge screen playing J. Lo and Don Omar videos. The hosts of the dance party kept yelling stuff about the opposing soccer teams, Barcelona and Emelec. I got a Barcelona shirt because more people told me too, and I thought I'd try out a yellow shirt. Alejandro and his friends were very protective of us. Going out in Latin America is definitely as safe for a group of girls as it is in the U.S. It doesn't help that we are bigger than everyone and whiter so we stand out like a sore thumb. I have never felt exotic here because I've blended well in the U.S., Mexico, and Europe, but these people always stare at us when we walk by. We left at 12 45 and came home to our apartment.

This is what we look like when we DON'T have a bat in our apartment. 

          Jettie said she has never been so grateful to be in our apartment when suddenly, someone opens the door and screams "There's a BAT in the apartment!". ADRENALINE OVERLOAD! We were all screaming like crazy and I realized the door was open so as I was screaming/running towards it to close it, I tripped on the rug. The bat fell onto the floor and we were in the same room. I flipped out and opened the door, then Jettie and Crystal (the bat wranglers) told us to calm down and the trapped it. At the end of the night Jettie and I talked about this super eventful day that had to carry onto the next night with the grand finally involving a BAT. Oh, we also took cute pictures of ourselves on photobooth for the first time. This day just seemed like a huge day to check things off the list before leaving Ecuador next week. Check check check!

Less than a week left in Bahía

Getting the props ready for the fisherman story

            So we have finished filming the three short films. In total it took about a week. Now Jorge has to edit them before we present on Wednesday. We also filmed a cooking show, with which we showed how to cook Niños envueltos (those pancakes with cheese and banana I've mentioned). What a success. On Wednesday we had a poker night, which I surprisingly won. It was the first time I'd won at cards. We had popsicle sticks instead of money so you know things got pretty serious.

          Yesterday the girls and I interviewed some of the students in our apartment, and still have more to do. It was great talking to the five of them because they all sounded so grateful that the Project came to Bahía. One common theme I got from talking to them was that they appreciated learning more about "responsibility" and "punctuality." One of the young men we interviewed has to wake up at 2 am on some days to work with his family selling chickens at the market. So for him, shooting the films at 6 am was no problem because he had already been up for four hours. I was confused as to why the kids called him a zombie until I learned about this. It still took me a while to realize this because this guy is always so happy when he talks to the girls and I. When we asked him what people think of him being involved in film making, he said that some people made fun of him and asked why he is doing it if he isn't gaining anything. But he knew he is gaining skills that he can use in the future whether technological or leadership skills.

Fritada

           The kids also used the words "brindar" (to give, provide...to me it almost has the connotation of giving a blessing) and "encariñar" (to become attached). I have never really heard these words being used in real life before, so it felt special that they were using them to describe how much our work has meant to them and how they don't want us to leave. Another guy talked about how he realized that this Project can expose hidden talents. Some of these kids find it hard to even write basic sentences, yet ended up working on scripts. They also appreciate the level of discipline the instructors had. All of these things made me wonder what life is like in their schools and at home. Their parents supported them and allowed them to take part in the Project, but some are reluctant to let their kids go off to school in Quito, which is 7 hours away and is sadly where things mostly happen. That's where the schools are. The lack of knowledge of the resources or opportunities that these kids have is astounding.

David!

          Last night we had fritada for dinner. Basically, it's like a salad made of plantain chips, tomato, cold pork, and lettuce. We didn't think we'd each get one, but SURPRISE! It was a feat in itself to just even finish one. I couldn't, even though I love plantain chips. I always joke around, saying that they can't be nearly as unhealthy as potato chips because I even have to add salt to them. Right? :P After dinner we enjoyed the late night breeze with some Pilseners and sang some cheesy but good songs at a bon fire on the beach. I can't believe we're leaving on Thursday for good! On Wednesday we have the short film screenings (they are about 3 minutes each), so more on that later.

Nata

            This week we have been filming the stories. My story won't be filmed until Tuesday and Wednesday, so estoy tranquila horita. I just wanted to write down how much I am loving NATA right now. Every morning we get fresh milk that is heated up. We can either drink it straight, with chocolate, or with cofee (which is what I have). This morning I drank it straight and became fascinated with the nata. It is basically the cream that rises after the milk heats up.

Fresh milk with nata :)

       They even make butter out of it, which tastes so real and I feel much better eating it than that gross "I can't believe it's not butter" stuff. This is the start of my real butter revolution. When I get back to the US I am going to buy whole organic milk and make real butter out of it. ¡¡Ñiam Ñiam!!

Puerto Lopez: Blue-footed-boobies, whales, and whale sharks

            Last weekend we went on an excursion to Puerto Lopez, which is about 3.5 hours south and is known as a jumping point to Isla de la Plata, an Island which has species found on the Galapagos, such as blue-footed boobies. Here's the play-by-play:

Our hotel

            We wake up at 4:30 am, then leave around 5 for the van. We all packed into it and listened to reggaeton, salsa, and bachata music while driving away in the pitch black dark. It was the sketchiest night ride I'd ever taken. We were going up and down deserted dirt roads, and would only see the lights from houses scattered here and there. Megan asked us if we would rather walk a mile down the road at 5 am or 5 pm. It is still a question I cannot answer...I'm thinking at night because either no one else would pass by anyway, or you could hide on the side of the road. Such dark questions for such an early hour of the night/morning. We were fed simple buloni and cheese sandwiches and drinkable yogurt. Mine was guanabana "stone" flavor, and had a picture of what looked like a stoner. It did not taste like guanabana. We got to Puerto Lopez at around 8:30, and were blown away by how pretty the hotel was. We had it all to ourselves and had a pool with a little slide. The only problem was that there was a bees nest right next to the pool so it was scary going down the slide. We had a gorgeous view of the ocean too, and they always played latin music.
          At 9 am I rode in the one lawn chair in the back of the van because there were no more seats left, and we arrived at the beach that was full of fishing boats, dogs, pelicans, and frigate birds flying around everywhere. We took off our shoes, put on life jackets, and took a boat which I THOUGHT was going to take 15 minutes but we were on there for a good hour and a half to get to the "Isla de la Plata". On the way were other boats and whales. We stopped and managed to take pictures of a few surfacing only enough to see their dorsal fins and tails. Our guide kept saying "¡cola, cola!" which means "tail, tail!" in hopes that we would get a better view of it. We got pretty soaked on the boat, as it was not a smooth ride but riding the waves was fun. I'd love to have the guides' job.

           We got to the island, and got off the only small port which had one house. It looked like a desert, but we hiked up to see a ton of blue-footed-boobies. Our guide took us up at a gazebo, where a female was just chilling there. He told us that you can tell the gender from looking at the pupils. He kept asking us if we had questions, but we finished all of our boobie questions really fast and there was not much else to talk about regarding the deserted island. We walked a little further and saw groups of frigate birds (they had bright red pouches that they inflate to impress their mates), and they would tap the bright red bags with their beaks. We passed a ton of boobies doing their mating dances...they just lift their feet and squawk. We also learned that the color of the feet depends on how well nourished the boobies are. Some even had turquoise colored feet.

            After our hike in the hot equatorial sun, we got in the boat for lunch. We had a chicken salad sandwich and a sandwich with cheese and apricot jam. What odd mixes. I gave my banana bread to Keneshia because it was too dry. I have discovered here that I don't like dry things. Then, we jumped in the water and snorkeled. Apparently someone saw a whale shark swim next to the boat. I didn't see it, but they are harmless so I stayed in the water, which was surprisingly clear. We were lucky it was sunny. We got back in the boat and saw a ton of whales jumping. I didn't take pictures because I left my camera with Chio and she was on the other side of the boat, but here's one someone else took.

            I loved being on the boat. It reminded me of how much I love boating and just water in general. Back home one of my favorite things to do was to go water skiing and tubing, and I just have not gotten to do that in the Northeast. It's these little things that make me so happy that make me realize where I want to live later on. As soon as we got back, we were greeted by a huge St. Bernard on the beach. I have never seen so many dog species as I have in Ecuador! He was so big and fluffy! :) We spent the evening at the hotel chilling in the hot tub, which wasn't so hot. The pool was deliciously refreshing. Then came dinner, and we had a three course meal which reminded me of France. It was great getting whole vegetables again and the fish was yummy. In the night time we went downtown because there was a town festival going on, but we were all too tired to stay for the salsa dancing and there was a creepy man following us. I did get to speak French briefly with some tourists. They told me that I should go to Cuba because the people there are really nice. Then I told them how it is harder for an American to go, but I would love to head over there at some point and have Perníl!

Cebiche de pescado/Fish cebiche

          I was so tired from the early morning ride that I crashed on a hammock and slept through the fireworks. Apparently I can fall asleep at the club and through fireworks, but I still need a facemask and earplugs to sleep at the apartment. Weird.
         Sunday: The day to lounge and leave at 2. We decided to go walk to a beach, which we were told was 10 minutes away. FALSE. We walked down the side of the road and found this sign with sea turtles that said "No trespassing, turtle nesting site". This guy kept telling us to go in....so we did, and 5 minutes in we stopped and decided that we should go back because things were getting way to scratchy. There were bushes and thorns; something I'm not used to encountering on the way to a beach. I found it funny that that path was better carved out than some I have seen in national parks. We have a beach every day in Bahía anyway, so we chilled by the pool.
            At 2, our van was supposed to pick us up but it didn't get there until 4:30 because of an apparent accident. Then we left the gravel road of the hotel, then before we even touched the road, the van broke down. Apparently the driver knew something was wrong with the battery, but he tried to see if he could make it. So, we took a bus instead, which was full up to the point of having people standing. It was more comfortable than sitting in the van, and reminded me of the Senate bus from Wellesley to Boston because it, too, gets packed to that point. We got to Manta, one of the larger coastal cities, and took cabs to Bahía, which took another hour. We arrived safe and sound at midnight.

Whipped cream stories and pineapple deliveries

Sean's birthday celebration

            It's Wednesday night and we're sitting in the living room watching a movie about Richard Gere in China. I can't really take Richard Gere seriously, much less dubbed in Spanish.
            On Saturday we went to Canoa, a beach town known for its parties. It just seemed like Bahía but with more touristy things and a bigger beach with bigger waves. I rented a boogie board for a little bit, but was afraid to break it in half since it was made of something other than fiberglass. My favorite thing about this place was the number of speakers along the beach blasting salsa. We danced on the beach and played soccer to songs like Celia Cruz's "Guantanamera". We went to get drinks and tried this gross local one, so I tried washing it down with a so called 'mamey' milkshake which I was super excited for because I haven't had one in forever, but it tasted nothing like I thought it would... like bad virgin piña colada Yegh. Yuck. Fuchi.
            Later that night some of the girls and I walked down the street and encountered an older woman, Theresa, and her husband selling cakes. She had some of the best tiramisu I've ever had. We sat down and talked about Bahía, and how both of them have basically been here all their lives. I asked them if Bahía had changed much, and they said it did. I found that hard to believe since it seems stuck in the past. You don't find the fast-food chains you see in Quito and there are only two traffic lights. Their best story was their description of an earthquake that shook the city's foundations (I couldn't resist, hehe) about 14 years ago. Their house was fine because it was well built, while a 5-story building down the street crumbled to the ground because it was built out of concrete and SAND. What a no-no. The couple was really nice, and let us take pictures on some swings they have on their front porch that look like open cages. The next day I went for a walk and saw the couple enjoying their swings with just each other in the evening. It was a pretty picture....they looked so happy together.
            On Monday we held a birthday celebration for one of our instructors, Sean. We had cake and broke a piñata that looked like a paper lantern and had "El Chavo" on it, I'm guessing from El Chavo del Ocho. It was fun singing "Las Mañanitas", the Mexican b-day song. Also, we taunted him with a chant of "eat it, eat it!" after he blew out the candles. He actually took a big bite out of it!
            Yesterday the highlight was getting Pan tres leches with Keneshia after the taller (workshop). For one dollar you get this cake topped with all of this whipped cream I always give away. This time I plopped some of mine onto her cake, but decided I still had far too much. There were some small boys huddled around each other eating bread they bought at the bakery, and I quickly thought to offer them some whipped cream to put on their bread. At first I asked them if they wanted it, and they looked at eachother blankly. As soon as they realized I was offering it to them, they swarmed around the both of us going "me! me!". I'd never seen people so eager for whipped cream. In America, if you asked someone if they wanted it they would have backed away disgustedly. These kids were all over us. Then this boy wanted my strawberry. Maybe I was overreacting, but told him, no, as I shook my head in disbelief. This is the second time this happens when I offered my whipped cream from the same cake! Nelda also wanted my strawberry, but I'm sorry, it's the best part of anyone's cake. The scene of the boys swarming around us like bees on honey would have made a great picture.

Chio and I with our pineapple delivery

           Today I haven't been feeling well. I don't know what it is, but I don't have energy not have I been in the best mood. Maybe its the cloudiness. Usually I'm bugging to get out and jog or walk. The little things that happen during the day just make me smile, though. During our spanish class, we sit outside so we always listen to men driving buy yelling, advertising their products from fruit to water. The pineapple guy pulled up and sold us 2 for $1, while blasting bachata music. I love the fact that you can listen to such great music without playing it yourself...the cars play it for you! Some people from the city might be used to this but I sure am not. I know I'll miss it. During the workshop we went around the town and took pictures of potential places to film the kids' stories. They took pictures of what they would think a fisherman's house looked like while I danced to the bachata music blasting from the neighboring house. People don't have much, but they do love their high-quality music and that is more than fine with me. :)

"Provecho!"

The beach on a rare, sunny day

            That's what we always say at each meal. I know it's going to be hard to leave this program and not eat three meals a day with the same people. We are very sarcastic and joke around, but we don't complain about everything, all of which I love. This weekend was chill. I went running and played soccer on the beach with the girls and some guys who came up and wanted to play soccer with us. I got darker too, after a sunburn. Lucky we have an aloe vera plant next door so I used it up. One girl said it smells like chicken soup which I disagree with but I can't say it smells nice. Last we watched "Born into Brothels", a documentary about a photographer who teaches the children of prostitutes how to take pictures, and manages to send them to boarding schools but only two end up staying. It was relevant to our project in some ways. I came here being optimistic about non profit work, which I still am. However, there are so many outside factors that can pull kids away from the workshops we offer. Some of them have to work or take care of their parents, for example.
          Today I woke up for an early run on the beach, wchih is nice because there are less people out to give you weird looks that you are running for the sake of running. Also I probably look funny because of the head band I always wear. Whatevs! I need to get out! On that note, today we decided on an excursion we are taking in two weeks...the choices were A. Organic farm without electricity (and somehow they told us sawdust would be involved) or B. Beach town/whales mating/national park/islands with Galapagos species. BBBBB!!!! I feel like we are already doing organic living because our water shuts off and we are used to taking 2 minute showers.

Fake mexican food with a 'frutilla' yoghurt drink.
I'm just happy they had hot sauce.

           Today for class we went to the local grocery store to compare the products sold here to those back home. The products here are more fruity, and they don't really sell as much meat as I thought they would. They have tons of fruit drinks (some with oatmeal) and soda such as Inca Cola, which Erica said is like candy on crack. They have prices on the local things, but not on the imported stuff often times. None of the alcoholic beverages have price tags on them. Also, spaghetti here costs about 4 times as much because it's imported. Also, they sell huge 5 liter waters with pictures of babies on them that we have been drinking because we don't have matches to turn on the stove and boil water with. Also the water is from wells so I still wouldn't feel okay just boiling it.

Meat, plantains, green bean salad, and rice.
Why don't I just start a food blog?

         Also, for an exercise we talked with Jorge (from Monterrey, Mex) and Juan Carlos (from Puerto Rico) to talk about their favorite foods from home. Jorge liked goat, which is really popular. He also says he would eat dulce de leche in a tortilla. Weird. I might have to try that. They only have flour tortillas here....I have really come to appreciate corn tortillas. Juan Carlos likes mofongo, which is a mashed up plantain/meat dish that he says is really hard to make. My mouth watered just hearing them describe the bacalao (cod), pasteles (Puerto Rican tamale type things), and menudo. It was neat hearing what Jorge and I had in common because we put lime in our soups and remember eating chilaquiles for breakfast. Soon came lunch, and the most eventful part was that we saw a huge crowd of school kids run to the beach because there was a fight or something going on. Later that night there would be a huge crowd in the same spot to watch the surfers at dusk :)
        The workshop with the high schoolers was challenging. We had to brainstorm a lot and really dig through how to write a story and include twists and turns. Then we worked on making floorplans from observing the set of a spanish movie. After dinner I watched a little bit of the Greece/Ecuador soccer game in an attempt to get into it. Fail. Both sides seemed so apathetic and just kept passing the ball to each other. The last game I watched was Spain play in the world cup so I probably have too much to compare it to. I came to the apartment and the cleaning lady totally rearranged everything. She also hid the extension chord we have that lets me plug in the fan in our room and to charge my lap top. -___-!!! ugh. If I had left my clothes out she probably would have even folded them. The search continues.

It's Friday

A Torreja: Basically a fried pancake with melted cheese and plantain,
minus the syrup because that would be weird.
BEST. THING. EVER.

TGIF! In Bahia. This is what I did today:

           We woke up at the crack of dawn thanks to the roosters, and made sure to make it to breakfast at 8:30 because Doña Mariana expects to serve us at that time. We had bread, queso, and recently hard boiled eggs. Everyone was in pain cracking them because they were so hot. Then, we had our hour long spanish written exams. I did alright, and am finally getting the hang of the rules of accents on letters and being able to explain where they go and when. Taking French definitely helped me with preterite/imperfect, so that wasn't so bad. After an hour we began working on our translations of spanish stories and it was harder than I thought, but I like translating and trying to get the same senses out of one story and transplanting them into another language.

Working on shooting a story.

         For lunch we had soup and rice with some form of mystery sausage with rice and more plantains. Plantains have started to replace meat for us. We walked over to the museum for the cinema workshop, and in between we made an ice cream stop but I haven't tried it here because I'm so full after lunch. The workshop was pretty productive. We go to the basement of the museum (we haven't even seen the exhibits yet) and go to a classroom. At first I thought there were more local girls than boys, but today I was the only girl in a group with 3 guys. They are 'high schoolers' but they range from the ages of 14 to 28! They are bright and enthusiastic kids, and so far seem willing to learn and the soak up information like sponges. They already know about camera angles and the rule of thirds. I'm getting there. Today we had to shoot a story in 6 pictures, so we went for the classic 'stuck in an elevator' story, with the guard's help.

         After the shoot, I had a great conversation with 28-year-old David, who was the 'director' of our group. He has lived for a year and a half in Bahia. He talked about how he likes learning about all kinds of things, and how he enjoys playing guitar and writing music. This is his second year taking the cinema workshop. I found it surprising that some students have been doing this workshop in past years. He said it is sad that some kids have come expecting to be spoon fed, but that they become so badly behaved that they are dismissed from the group. He is interested in learning english and traveling, and I hope he achieves what he wants some day. I thought he was a pretty confident guy because you pretty much have to be if you are ten years older than most of your classmates. He didn't look older. Then another guy in my group asked me if I liked running, and then said he saw me running on the beach the morning before. This really IS a small town! After the class, the kids asked for our names to find us on facebook. Half of them already know where we live, I think. We went to the grocery store on our way to dinner and Maddie bought a soccer ball I just bought liquid soap. They don't use body wash here! Just bar soap!  How odd. Considering that water and power goes out here so often (today a 'transformer' exploded so we ran out of power for a while), I am not so picky about body wash. Plus, I'll be home to the U.S. and all of its comforts soon.
       Before dinner we wanted to go to the beach but couldn't because the tide was so high so we just took pictures in front of it and this creepy guy followed us. Then we helped paint a wall with black paint because it was for some eco-friendly youth program. I don't know, but over here you just go with it. At dinner, I was so happy because Doña was making torrejas (see photo above), and she sensed my excitement. I had asked her to make them more often and she listened! :D After dinner I washed the dishes with Crystal, but in a very efficient way. Here water is scarce so we filled up a pan with water, which we used to rinse the dishes. The way they save water here will make me guilty to go back to the U.S. and see how much we waste, but I definitely will be more resource-conscious. The people here don't waste things in general. They use old buckets for flower pots and you don't really see much garbage lying around. This town in a developing country is cleaner than Aix-en-Provence, in southern FRANCE. Mmhmm!
        After dinner we had the house to ourselves and played Wii sports. I played tennis against some of the girls while sitting down. I told them it's all in the flick of the wrist but I seem to have lost my touch over the years. Maybe next time I'll stand up. Before going home, we had to find Carolina, the dog that lives in the house and always begs at the dinner table. Shaun went to get her because she had found some other people near the beach, and he came back with her in his arms. She is just this little white skinny dog, and she seemed to enjoy herself. Even the dogs here are more chilled out! On our way home we passed several restaurants, and noticed that some don't even have signs. Just tables outside. I like how family owned everything is. There are no Mcdonalds or KFCs in sight. In Quito, the KFCs have kids playparks and they call them "Chicky parks". Tomorrow Doña wants us to have breakfast at 8 am, and afterward we are going to the beach. Even thought we are at the equator, sunny days are rare. Yesterday was the first sunny day in a week, but I hope tomorrow it's like that.
         Me gusta estar aqui. Hoy, me tomé mi examen afuera de la casa y cuando acabé, me sentía muy calmada. Hay un árbol en frente de la casa que tiene ojas verdes que son más oscuras que otras, y veía a la gente caminando por la calle en frente de la puerta del jardín. Las casas son bien pegaditas aquí como en México. Me siento mas relajada aquí porque me recuerda mucho de México...tomar jugos frescos, decir buenos días a la gente, y ver a los letreros en español. En ese momento, respiraba el aire que viene del mar y aunque estuviera nublado, me encantaba el lugar en donde estaba. La gente aqui se nutre de las cosas simples. Cada mañana, pasa el vendedor de leche, de agua, de frutas, y el comprador de chatarra. Pensé que algún día me regresaría a este lugar simple. Como el poeta Armando Tejada Gómez
dijo en su "Canción de las simples cosas":

"Uno vuelve siempre a los viejos sitios 

en que amó la vida, y entonces comprende como están 

de ausentes las cosas queridas"

Él dice también que "las cosas simples las devora el tiempo." ¿Qué pasa cuando vives en un lugar verdaderamente simple? 

Cumbia

Last night we watched "La Teta Asustada" and I will never look at potatoes the same. It features awesome Peruvian Technocumbia like this song which I will be jamming to as I do my Spanish homework. Gotta work on those tildes! Also I don't know if I mentioned this yet but last night Doña Mariana made us these patties made with melted cheese and banana. DELICIOUS! I love the food here, even though it's not spicy.  Today we were woken up by a chain saw at 7 am. When that ended, the rooster crowed to make sure we hadn't fallen back to sleep. Mañana vamos a ir al mercado a rebatear. ¡Que ganga!

Bahia de Caraquez: Roosters and Ice Cream

            ¡Hola! So after visiting the Equator in Quito and driving for 7 hours through windy, hillside roads, then through dirt roads through villages (every one stared at us), we arrived in Bahia de Caraquéz, on the coast. It is more humid and definitely warmer. I just didn't know it would be constantly cloudy. How ironic! I thought the sun would be deadly but it's only about 80 degrees. I'm not sad that it's cloudy. I think that hearing, reading and speaking spanish make up for the lack of sun. Oh, and the food is different on the coast. We have done a lot of fun stuff but I'm ready to work. I already did the fun thing in France so I'm ready to work.  This town is so small that it doesn't have a movie theatre so I'll have to watch the hangover 2 when I get back. There's a nice beach so this morning I went running by myself to take a breather and absorb where I was. I'm glad I am in a house surrounded by people. They are from the university of texas. I like them. They are chill.I can relate to them somehow because they remind me of home. I don't know how, but I act and speak differently around them. It's nice to be able to spend my summer w/ people because I've usually spent them alone.

Today I had spanish class w/ 2 other girls and I am surprised at how much I suck at writing it. I failed at accents. Apparently there was a spanish word for accent and I didn't even know it. I'm good at conversation, but I'm looking forward to improving my writing so I can own a Wellesey spanish class. Just now, Jorge corrected me on the title of my blog. I had spelled "gringuita" "gringita". See? I need to improve. Today we met the kids who are taking the work shop but haven't started filming. They are more enthusiastic than I thought they would be, and I had to interview a young guy in order to analyze their way of speaking. They speak really quickly and drop some letters from their words. He seemed pretty nervous and only responded with a few words. Maybe I just looked gross in my shorts and sports headband from running in the morning. I didn't shower because our water shuts down and we dont get it til 5 pm. The food is great though, and we have Doña Mariana cook it every day for us. Home made goodness!! I love the food here, but it could be spicier. I'm just happy they dont eat as much bread as in France. I really don't miss france as much as I thought I would...I'm just happy to be in a place that reminds me of Mexico and my mom (hearing people speak spanish). I don't know if I want to go to machu pichu any more. I kind of want to go home but I know I'll be wanting to travel more.

I live with 6 other girls in an 'apartment' above an ice cream shop. People LOVE ice cream here! We have to have the little old lady open the front door, then we only have one key to get in and you have to reach inside the house to lock it up. It feels like we are camping in the apartment because there is no running water until 5 pm, and we sleep on super hard beds. Maddie said she felt like she was sleeping on a pool table. I woke up at 2 am because so many bugs were biting me, so I put on spray. Then I woke up at 5 am to the sound of a ROOSTER crowing right next door. The girls and I want to make rooster soup now. Also, there are so many dogs here! When I went running, there was one just chilling on the side walk next to the beach. Dogs just walk up to you. There's this dog next to our apartment that sticks its head out of a barred window so it looks like its perpetually stuck there.  People get around by either taking taxis or tricicles that look like rickshaws. I haven't found the fruit market, but they have little stands every where selling things.

        In Quito they eat lots of corn, but here on the coast they eat plantains. For breakfast, we had grilled plantain with a peanuty powder and yummy fresh cheese. For lunch, we had eggy soup with a plantain dumpling then lentils, rice, beef, and a very salty cucumber salad. After lunch we went to the radio station to interview the staff of the project I'm working with. Apparently the radio is a large form of communication here. Once, someone lost a backpack and advertised it on the radio. It's like a lost and found. Once there, they asked if it would be ok to interview me. The host spoke super fast and I was about to ask him to speak slower, but somehow I understood him by listening to key words and putting them together. I spoke for about 5 minutes, saying where I was from and he asked me what I wanted the youth in the area to know. I gave this cheesy but true response about how important it is for them to stay in school. I used myself as an example, saying that my university has gotten me tons of places that I never thought I would have been, such as France last semester. He asked me what I wanted to take away from Bahia, and of course I said: the food. I joked about how much they love corn in Quito ;] I'm looking forward to getting to know the students more tomorrow. 

Listening

            When I sat in my apartment in France, I liked being able to hear French people speaking. Now it's cool hearing them speak spanish outside my window, and hearing latin music blasting from cars. Yesterday some girls from my program and I were walking through a department store, and I was just about the most excited person in there because they were playing salsa music.

Quito: Altitude Adjustments

           Hello! This is my blog continuing from my previous one about my study abroad experience in Europe. This blog is about my experiences in Ecuador, where I will be working with a non-profit that teaches film making to high schoolers. I'm starting in Quito then will work on the coast. I have no film experience so I'm pretty pumped. Here it goes so far: 

            Last night I left JFK airport for a flight to Guayaquil, Ecuador. I felt so at home in that little piece of NYC, even though I’m not from there. It’s just nice to see so many Latinos and other people of color living together and speaking different languages. Now I appreciate certain parts of the US for what they are. Europe was a huge conglomerate of languages and slight variations of cultures, while the US has its homogenous communities yet with strikingly different racial categories. My flight left at midnight, and the airplane was insanely comfortable. Also I couldn’t believe it was only a 6 hour flight to Ecuador. The seats reclined like crazy and go got nice pillows and blankets. At one point I lifted my sleeping mask to see them serving dinner in the middle of the night. No thanks! I needed to get rid of my jet lag. Thank goodness time zones are vertical and that I am only a 2 hours difference from home.

My first morning in Ecuador

            Right before boarding my plane, I had a $5 breakfast consisting of some form of mashed starch with cheese, real scrambled eggs, real orange juice, and coffee. It’s good to not be spending euros. I’m excited for the real fruit juice. Americans only lie when they say they serve it. It’s pretty early and my flight is delayed, but I’ll be in Quito in an hour. Also this airport is awesome because it has free wireless internet and JFK doesn’t. What up. Who is developed now? As soon as I boarded the plane, the steward said “Buenos días señorita.” It will be a hard transition from being called mademoiselle, but I think I can make it: P

The view of the Virgin overlooking the city

            Today I met up with the team I’m working with. We basically walked around all day, spoke Spanish and ate great food, which I was more than fine with. We went to this modern art museum with works by Guayasamín, a famous Ecuadorian painter who was influenced by Spanish painters like Picasso. His paintings depicted the struggles of the indigenous people and of the slaves who were brought to South America, and at first it was really shocking and heavy to me. I was proud that I knew who Victor Jara was, because he painted a work that was dedicated to the martyred Chilean poet. We visited his house, where he was buried next to one of his best friends who was a writer. It’s funny how many thigns you can feel from visiting the house of someone you don’t know but have heard about. I feel like when I do that, I understand them more…even if just a little. I felt very relaxed there. I appreciated being exposed to his art, which made me think about how far yet how little society has come.

            Then we took an hour long bus (traffic is insane here!) to the Basilica, a huge Cathedral in downtown. We were too late to climb to the top, but managed to go inside. It reminded me of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, but less controversial. Then we had a snack on a restaurant with a gorgeous terrace view. I had a café cortado (with half the milk) and an empanada de morocho (vegetables, chicken, rice). I had never had an empanada with rice in it. The menus here have more variety and I love that. It’s good to be in Latin America where I also have the option of having spicy food. When we first got there the lady told us that it was wet and that they were waiting for it to dry, but it was definitely dry when we got there. The thing about the weather here is that it can be cloudy for 10 minutes, rainy the next 10, and sunny (my nose burned a bit from a relatively short exposure time). The sun set and the Cathedrals lit up one by one like Christmas lights. There was also a rock concert going on in the central plaza, and the band kept talking about how the left was not left enough. It was going on right next to the President’s house.

One of Guayasamin's works...now an image of Quito for me.

            We walked towards the Ronda street, and tried to find a place for dinner. Meanwhile we had some hot spiced wine that warmed us right up. The weather here is colder than I’d thought because we are so high up. The cobblestone streets remind me of Europe’s, but they are definitely wider. For dinner we stopped in this little restaurant being served by one waitress. The big screen was playing American basketball (I didn’t think they would watch that here), and I had a delicious seafood soup with a green banana broth that was still boiling when I got it. AND green limes, which I did not have to bug the waitress about, surrounded it. Heaven! I want to learn how to make this concoction. We took a cab back to the hostel,  where I passed out and had a long sleep. I haven’t really budged since. It’s 3 pm. :]