Even though my site is only a couple of hours away from the beach, I still hadn´t found the 
opportunity to see the ocean until this past weekend. A small group of Manabí volunteers and I got together and went to a great little local beach called San Jacinto. The cool breeze off the water combined with the warm sun made for a perfect day to enjoy the ocean. I was so thrilled to see the water and to hang out with other volunteers. We swam in the warm water, played 
soccer, ate fabulous seafood and spoke English all day long...it was great! Sarah, Kendra, Kristen and I decided we needed to plan more regular trips to the beach because it was a good way to recharge. (Above: Manabi girls=Sarah, Kendra, Kristen and Me..sadly Brit couldn´t make it)
We have been without water for 5 days now. I spent the entire morning loading water in buckets up to the second floor to have for cooking and to have for showering. When our back up tanks run out of water, I will be sent to bathe in the river. I had planned to do my laundry the last day we had water and now because I never got to wash my clothes, I am running low. I may be bringing my bag of laundry with me to the river when I have to bathe.
In other news, my community’s annual fiestas started the first of November, and ever since there has been an activity or dance almost every night. I did have another run in with a clown and found myself in front of a giant crowd again, except this time; I had to participate in a mock beauty pageant. The clown started the show off by saying the person who had the best Miss America walk across the stage would be crowed the winner and would receive a huge prize for their pe
rformance. I, unfortunately, had to follow two girls who were experienced beauty queens. I figured I would make the best out of the situation and strutted my finest Gringa dance moves across the stage. I´m sure it was a sight to see.
The last participant in the beauty pageant was an older heavyset woman who strolled across the stage with robotic like moves and an unusually serious face. The crowd couldn´t stop laughing and loved her presentation. She had clearly beat out all the other candidates with her unique performance. The clown couldn’t have asked for a better show. He decided to crown the older women as the beauty queen and awarded her with the huge prize… jumbo-sized women´s undies. Pobrecita….humor here is a bit different. I´m just glad she laughed and went along with it.
We have also had a several dances, kids’ performances and today I ran in what they called a marathon, but was equivalent to a 5k race. This Friday is the town parade and a big dance that is suppose to last until Saturday morning. It is my good friend Delia´s birthday on Saturday and it is tradition for her and her friends to celebrate at the dance when the clock strikes midnight. The following day is a running of the bulls/ rodeo show. I will make sure to post pictures of all the festivities.
It is hard to believe how fast the month of November is going and that Thanksiving is right around the corner. I am going to miss cooking with my mom. I think I am going to have to wip up some of my Thanksgiving favorites to share with my host family here. The day of Thanksgiving ,I will be heading to Guayaquil to spend the holiday with other volunteers at the U.S.General Consulate´s house.
Alright, my eyes are crossing from sitting at this computer for so long. Love to all!
Con cariño,
Alea
PS. Counting down the days until December when I get to have my first visitor!
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