Happy Holidays from Ecuador

Well, I am so thrilled because I am about to embark on a mini-quest around Ecuador with some pleasant company from the States. I will be leaving soon to go pick up Dan at the Guayaquil airport. He will be visiting for about 2 ½ weeks, and I can’t wait for him to visit my community. I know he is nervous about the language barrier but I think he will be happily surprised to find out that communication extends beyond words. You can tell so much through facial expressions, body language, pointing, drawing, interpretive dancing…it just requires some creativity. We have many exciting things planned for the rest of the month, and I am excited that December 12^th has finally arrived.

Due to upcoming traveling, I will not have many opportunities to use the Internet and blog. I promise to post pictures upon my return and tol reveal the wonders of the Galapagos Islands!

I would like to take the time to wish all you dear people a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I will miss having the trees dusted in snow (or even cold weather for that fact) to paint the city into a pretty white Christmas scene, but I know this holiday season will be one never to forget.

I hope you all have a beautiful and restful holiday. God Bless.

Love,

Alea

First World Aids Day in Honorato Vasquez brought to you by Talia

World AIDS day march…draining but worthwhile project!

• Clowns, whistles, banners (that my youth group and I stayed up painting until late hours of the night), posters, the school band, the high school students and teachers, elementary school students, the health center, the police, the mayor, the beauty queen formed my grand day of events to raise awareness about HIV.
• There were several setbacks while planning the march but I am happy to report that somehow everything fell together…at parts things felt like they were on the brim of falling apart with the energy of 250 kids intensifying but with the assistance of my great Ecuadorian friends, we pulled it back together.
  

My youth group's beautiful World Aids Day banner Everyone loved wearing the little red ribbons
Clowns to entertain the kidsThe kids are so adorable in their school uniformsIt turned out to be a very sunny day but my neighbor friend Arnaldo rode his tricycle through the parade carrying jugs of agua on the flatbed to pass out to the kids marching in the parade.

Lessons learned:

• Think twice about passing out whistles at any future kid events
• When planning an event, having a back-up plan is not enough. It is highly recommended to have a Plan B, a Plan C and maybe even a Plan D when organizing an event …it is hard to get people to follow through with commitments.

The high school band After the march, I invited all the participants to an exhibition in the elementary school with mini-workshops continuing with the World Aids Day theme.The best part about the day was when I heard kids telling their parents as they were being picked up, everything they had learned from the exhibition...very rewarding experience that made me feel like all the work was worthwhile.

My wonderful group who helped me put the event together

After the march, I was asked by another high school to give some more health workshops and to replicate the Aids presentation. I spent the last couple of weeks testing out my skills, and I have to say I was surprised to find out how much I enjoyed the classroom setting. (maybe I will get my M-R-S license and become a teacher when I return to the States, you never know)

(PS. Have I already mentioned how my community gave me the name Talia? For some reason, Alea was simply too difficult to pronounce and adding the letter T to the front end of my name transformed it into something they recognized. (Thanks to the beautiful and well known singer singer named Thalia)

Chronicles of November

Well, November proved to be very busy, and I am happy to say that I started to get worn out. I feel like it is a sign that my work is finally starting to pick up and my community has started to trust that I can be a hard worker and can contribute to community projects. The next post will include pictures from my big World Aids Day event!

To fastward a little bit, when my World AIDS exhibition was over, I headed to Salinas...Miami beach look alike, to unwind. Thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Bendeck, (parents of my fellow PC friend) we stayed in a condo with an ocean-front view.

In Salinas we decided to stay in and cook. Chrissy, Geoff and Hannah, other PC volunteers, turned out to be quite the gourmet chefs.Another dance party in town center combined with a celebration for my friend’s birthday…I danced so much, they gave me a music CD as a prize (the dancing isn’t by choice…I don’t get a chance to sit down.)

Continuing with the celebrations, we celebrated my little hooligan of a host brother’s First Communion this weekend..(As much as he terrorizes my things and torments my living space, I have to say I actually thought he looked quite adorable with his Dad’s navy blue necktie, hair freshly cut and gelled for his big day. I have to admit, I found myself feeling like his proud older sister…. )

The entire family came to watch as Joselo proclaimed his faith and participated in his very first communion. All the young girls were dressed in mini-bride dresses and the boys were sporting their finest dress clothes. After the ceremony, we returned to my host family’s house for a big feast to celebrate Joselo’s accomplishments. (Sunday morning, I awoke to high pitch squeals coming from the 3 chickens my host mom was killing for this particular feast. Apparently, it is quiet the honor to have a chicken killed in your name, and this specific day, my host family killed 3. Let’s just say they were a little proud of Joselo.)

Ecua-family

Joselo’s cousin who helped keep me entertained during the long church ceremony.

Besides staying surprisingly busy this November, another Thanksgiving has come and gone. This year, however, was my first Thanksgiving spent away from home and without my dearly loved family. So, thousands of miles away from home, I decided to make the best of my situation. I had been invited to spend the holiday at the U.S. Consulate’s home in Guayaquil. It was nice to gather with other fellow Peace Corps volunteers and to eat good traditional American cooking. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the feast that we were about to devour. We ate turkey, stuffing!, garlic mashed potatoes and even cranberry sauce (which had to be imported from the States). The Consulate’s spectacular home came complete with a personal volleyball court, an outdoor pool, a magnificent patio along with an in home maid and chef. I wasn’t use to all the pampering.

What was really touching about the night was when we went around in a circle and shared what we were thankful for. It wasn’t a time of mono-tone cheesy responses but rather a time of heartfelt genuine comments that were shared amongst the group that made me tear-up several times. I feel blessed for this opportunity to serve in the Peace Corps…what a challenging but rewarding experience. I am grateful for my incredible family in the States (who loves me in spite of all my quirks and outlandish adventures), and for my great family here in Ecuador (who has welcomed me into their home like a daughter of their own).
I am also sincerely grateful for all of you! My friends mean the world to me and continue to be a great support and encouragement. You are the best.

What about you? What are YOU thankful for?

The natural beauty of this wondrous country continues to amaze me

Welcome to the Pacific Ocean

My first trip to the beach....

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 performance. 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!

What a great gift

What a great gift! I was so excited about this thoughtful package. I have the poster picture collage up in my room. I am glad I have something so memorable to put up on my walls, which have been pretty bare since I moved in.
So many good memories in these photos. I love being reminded of all our travels together.

Thank you Ashely!

History in the making

My first Halloween in Ecuador was spent 12 hours away

from my site in a small jungle town called El Chaco. Our hotel sat in the middle of a pretty spectacular view of the oriente. Over 60 volunteers congregated in El Chaco to compete in a weekend long rafting competition and to celebrate La noche de Brujas (Halloween). It was so great to see my friends from training who I had been missing dearly.
For our Halloween celebration, I was very impressed with everyone’s creativity for their costumes, considering resources were limited. My friend Laura and I decided to dress up as Ecuador’s staple food….rice and potatoes. My wonderful neighbors got excited when they heard I needed to make a costume that would represent rice. Yolanda and Ana Maria brought out a tape measurer, a sketch book and fabric to design my dress. They also took the initiative to find a special kind of rice still in its shell to use for the
dress, which they insisted would be more visible and authentic.

At the Halloween party we had Raphael from the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Sarah Palin, Little Red Ridding Hood and the Big Bad Woof, Waldo (who made his way into almost every photo), people representing Peace Corps staff members and the Spice Girls even made an appearance. The rest of the weekend consisted of rafting competitions and a hike to an incredible waterfall. It´s hard to show how magnificant the waterfall truly was through pictures but I was taken back by its tremendous force and beauty. People were tubbing in the river that extended from the waterfall and we watched as the people bounced around on the intertubes that were tied together and tried to keep from sinking into the chilly water.

November 4th, what a day!
I had just recently finished up my travels from El Chaco and had spent one night in Quito before jumping on an overnight bus back to my site.
I arrived in my quaint coastal town the morning of November 4th. It is stra nge how after 2 short months, this rural little town now gives me a sense of familiarity and comfort after a spending a weekend away. I did, however, only have a brief amount of time before I was had to jump on another bus to spend one more night out of my site. I had been invited to watch the US Presidential Election with the members of the US Consulate in Guayaquil, and I couldn´t pass up the opportuni ty.
So, I quickly unpacked my bags from Halloween and threw together a day bag to travel to Guayaquil. I had been excited to see my host mom, Cecilia, to tell her all about my adventures to El Chaco so we chatted it up over breakfast. (I had my usual cereal and homemade yogart) She caught me up with everything I had missed and made me promise to show her pictures when I got back from Guayaquil. The, I was out the door and off again!
In between my bus transfers, I was able to call my Mom in the states to wish her a very happy birthday! (I miss you Mom! What a monumental day. Im sure you will never forget this birthday!)
I arrived in Guayaquil feeling like I hadn´t slept in days. (okay, so it was really only 2 days but it was only my 2nd presidential election as an elegible voter, and even if I am living abroad, I

didn´t want to miss this historical moment.) My friend Ke ndra and I checked into our hotel, got all fancied up and headed to the Hilton Hotel for the US Election celebration. We were formally greeted by US Consulate members and then asked to place a sticker in the state where we voted in. I proudly put my yellow sticker in the state of Colorado, remebering how difficult the process was to get my vote to the Arapahoe County office. (Thank you Mom...who knew you could vote via fax?!) The night consisted of various speeches, a mock election for Ecuadorian participants, fancy trays of horderviers and local TV stations lingering in the background.
One of the highlights of the night was talking with Jefferson Perez. If you don´t remember who this Olympic champion is, you should check out this video. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2urNVmKnEaQ)
We also decided to get a picture with Miss Guayaquil...it was a Reina (Queen) sandwich with Sonya in the middle. (Kristen, the other tall PC volunteer, and I had been the Queens for our communites during training.)
The evening was a night to remember! I feel like this election has raised enormous hope that extends overseas.

Halloween

Happy Halloween!

I just made it into Quito after taking a 10 hour overnight bus. Now I am headed to the jungle for our Peace Corps Halloween Party where I will be reuniting with all my friends from my training group. I can't wait to see everyone! My friend and I will be going as the Ecuadorian food staple...rice and potatos. I will make sure to post pictures soon!

Trekking through the Jungle

I went with the mayor and his staff for a hike through this beautiful jungle scenery. We spotted monkeys, frogs, tropical fish and luckily no snakes. Our wise tour guide Antonio taught us the ins and outs about the tropical plants and the history of the ancient caves hidden deep in the jungle. Pictures can hardly do justice but here is a mini photo essays of the hike.

We also had an artist in our group from Quito who was sketching the increible screnery that surrounded us.

We snacked on rich flavored papaya and mococha. There was no need to pack snacks because the trail was lined with fruit trees. We also cooled off and swam in the gorgeous waterfalls, which was refreshing after our 5 hour hike. It was a adventure I am sure to never forget.