It is 6:45 a.m and Max and Jane and Bruce and I are all waiting for the school bus to take us to school. Max and Jane have on their gym day uniforms.
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Max and Jane waiting for the school bus
It is 6:45 a.m and Max and Jane and Bruce and I are all waiting for the school bus to take us to school. Max and Jane have on their gym day uniforms.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Janes in Ecuador
Jane Austen
Bruce and I judged a contest today at school called The Book I Have REad. Today was 9th and 10th graders. The 10th graders read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. They gave their speeches in English and had to answer one question that members of the jury (Bruce, me and two other English speakers) came up with. All of this in English. It was amazing!!!!! There were 8 contestants today. I learned things from the P &P speeches after having read and taught the book several times. Wow.
Jane Iverson (and Max) have been going to school all week. They now have uniforms and seem to be making a few friends. (or they are just such an oddity that the Ecuadorian kids following them around out of curiosity) 3 of their six classes are in English. School starts at 7:25 and is about 45 minutes from our apt. so we have been getting up 5:50am to catch a cab for an 8 minute ride to where the school bus picks up the whole family and takes us all to school. The kids have actually been working, Bruce and I start teaching English classes next week so we have been "preparing¨" all week in between being on the jury for the contests. The quotation marks mean we have mostly been hanging out in the teacher´s lounge using the free internet. More about school later and I promise to figure out the pics this weekend.
besos y abrazos (soon I will be the least bilingual in my family)
Bruce and I judged a contest today at school called The Book I Have REad. Today was 9th and 10th graders. The 10th graders read Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. They gave their speeches in English and had to answer one question that members of the jury (Bruce, me and two other English speakers) came up with. All of this in English. It was amazing!!!!! There were 8 contestants today. I learned things from the P &P speeches after having read and taught the book several times. Wow.
Jane Iverson (and Max) have been going to school all week. They now have uniforms and seem to be making a few friends. (or they are just such an oddity that the Ecuadorian kids following them around out of curiosity) 3 of their six classes are in English. School starts at 7:25 and is about 45 minutes from our apt. so we have been getting up 5:50am to catch a cab for an 8 minute ride to where the school bus picks up the whole family and takes us all to school. The kids have actually been working, Bruce and I start teaching English classes next week so we have been "preparing¨" all week in between being on the jury for the contests. The quotation marks mean we have mostly been hanging out in the teacher´s lounge using the free internet. More about school later and I promise to figure out the pics this weekend.
besos y abrazos (soon I will be the least bilingual in my family)
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Mindo with paragraphs
A picture is worth a thousand words and since two cameras died; I think I wrote 2 thousand words to replace the pictuies we couldn’t take. Please forgive the long entry.
No camera! For the lunch at Mindo Gardens next to the rushing rio (river) then crossing the same rio in a little cage on a pulley called a Tarabita. On the other side there is a narrow winding trail through the jungle. We have been warned there are poisonous coral snakes that live in the jungle. Bruce is on high alert the whole time smoking a couple of Cubanos (his new preferred cigarette) to repel the snakes. There are occasionally small wooden signs that direct us toward the cascadas (waterfalls).
There are at least 10 waterfalls right in the area of the little town of Mindo. We hear some noise up at the canopy level of the trees and spot some monkeys. There are several forks with no more cascada arrows so we wing it. We keep climbing up and arrive at a sort of vague park entrance full of half build cement structures with wires sticking out and jagged rock piles, rusty wire, tires and general garbage all over. A man with some xyz (examine your zipper) jeans and very good English points to a sign and explains about the 7 waterfalls and the slide and the warm natural pool you can swim in. It is 9 dollars for all of us to enter which includes our guide Javier a young lad of 17 or 18.
We hike down to the falls for about 10 minutes straight down. Stop to do a rope swing and continue down to the falls. They are breath-taking and there is not a soul around. The aftermath of Carnival is all around and there is garbage, swimming suits and some more half built cement platforms with wires sticking out. Javier shows us a giant falls from a little tiny platform built out into the rio on 12 foot (strong I hope) metal stilts. We change in some dressing rooms that are completely wet and have giant insects guarding the outside. I’ve been hot and sweating all day in the cloud forest, but it’s not that warm next the river in swimsuits. Javier takes us up some stone steps and asks if anyone wants to jump off the 50 foot cliff into the narrow swift ribbon of a river. He is serious and demonstrates. Next he demonstrates the “slide” which is a cement trough that throws the momentum powered slider into the river from about 15 feet.
There is no one around to witness our demise besides Javier who assures us it is completely safe. There are ropes to hang onto to prevent my small children from being carried away by the strong current and dashed on the giant boulders below the falls. My family elects me to go first. I go saying “oh my gods quietly to myself”. I am still alive and swim to the side and bump my shins all along the submerged boulders. The pressure from the drop off the slide makes my fillings hurt, otherwise I am unscathed. Next is Max . As soon as he hits the water Javier dives in and brings him to the side. Jane hesitantly goes. Javier also expertly gathers up Jane and brings her safely to the shore. Bruce finishes up. Javier then goes down the slide stops himself, uses it as a platform and backflips into the rushing river. Unbelievable.
10 minutes later Jane is still recovering from her scary plunge. Max of course wants to do it 10 more times. Javier encourages him. I go one more time just to make it worth putting my swimsuit on and push my fillings up more.
No camera! For the lunch at Mindo Gardens next to the rushing rio (river) then crossing the same rio in a little cage on a pulley called a Tarabita. On the other side there is a narrow winding trail through the jungle. We have been warned there are poisonous coral snakes that live in the jungle. Bruce is on high alert the whole time smoking a couple of Cubanos (his new preferred cigarette) to repel the snakes. There are occasionally small wooden signs that direct us toward the cascadas (waterfalls).
There are at least 10 waterfalls right in the area of the little town of Mindo. We hear some noise up at the canopy level of the trees and spot some monkeys. There are several forks with no more cascada arrows so we wing it. We keep climbing up and arrive at a sort of vague park entrance full of half build cement structures with wires sticking out and jagged rock piles, rusty wire, tires and general garbage all over. A man with some xyz (examine your zipper) jeans and very good English points to a sign and explains about the 7 waterfalls and the slide and the warm natural pool you can swim in. It is 9 dollars for all of us to enter which includes our guide Javier a young lad of 17 or 18.
We hike down to the falls for about 10 minutes straight down. Stop to do a rope swing and continue down to the falls. They are breath-taking and there is not a soul around. The aftermath of Carnival is all around and there is garbage, swimming suits and some more half built cement platforms with wires sticking out. Javier shows us a giant falls from a little tiny platform built out into the rio on 12 foot (strong I hope) metal stilts. We change in some dressing rooms that are completely wet and have giant insects guarding the outside. I’ve been hot and sweating all day in the cloud forest, but it’s not that warm next the river in swimsuits. Javier takes us up some stone steps and asks if anyone wants to jump off the 50 foot cliff into the narrow swift ribbon of a river. He is serious and demonstrates. Next he demonstrates the “slide” which is a cement trough that throws the momentum powered slider into the river from about 15 feet.
There is no one around to witness our demise besides Javier who assures us it is completely safe. There are ropes to hang onto to prevent my small children from being carried away by the strong current and dashed on the giant boulders below the falls. My family elects me to go first. I go saying “oh my gods quietly to myself”. I am still alive and swim to the side and bump my shins all along the submerged boulders. The pressure from the drop off the slide makes my fillings hurt, otherwise I am unscathed. Next is Max . As soon as he hits the water Javier dives in and brings him to the side. Jane hesitantly goes. Javier also expertly gathers up Jane and brings her safely to the shore. Bruce finishes up. Javier then goes down the slide stops himself, uses it as a platform and backflips into the rushing river. Unbelievable.
10 minutes later Jane is still recovering from her scary plunge. Max of course wants to do it 10 more times. Javier encourages him. I go one more time just to make it worth putting my swimsuit on and push my fillings up more.
Monday, February 22, 2010
Bruce contributes
Wednesday February 17, 2010
We had to get up early today so that we could catch the bus to go to Mindo. Mindo is a little town in a cloud forest about 2 hours northwest of Quito that has an abundance of butterflies, birds, and wildflowers. Jane popped up immediately, but Max was a little slow to let go of his slumber. We could have taken a city bus to the main bus terminal for 75 cents, but we opted for the $6.50 extravagant taxi ride. We got to the bus terminal and met two retired, Canadian teachers who were also on their way to Mindo. The cost of the 2 hour trip was $7.50 FOR ALL OF US! We all slept a bit on the way to Mindo. We got to Mindo by exiting the main highway and descending into a plush, green valley. After some confusion, we arrived at our cabanas to be greeted by Leo, a very friendly man who runs the Cabanas Bambu. He showed us to our cabana which was a very lovely two bedroom, one bathroom abode with a porch which was where we had to leave our shoes before entering the cabana. The porch had a hammock that Max and Jane loved and fought over. At one point, I heard a loud crash on the porch and a dramatic Jane crying, and discovered that Max had poured Jane out of the hammock because he felt it was his turn in the always exciting “carnival like ride” of the apparatus. We unpacked and went to town to eat. Beth got fairly crusty about the restaurant that the rest of us picked, but when she ate the fresh trout that I’m certain was pulled from one of the nearby mountain streams she was very pleased. We then walked up a dirt road for about 30 minutes to Mindo Canopy Adventure, a series of 13 zip lines that zigzagged across the forest valleys of Mindo well above the canopy of the forest. Our guides were Alex and Diego, two kind and gentle young men who were very and patient with us. It was exhilarating to be zipping across the valleys on a cable so high above the trees. We were all a bit nervous or scared the first time, but it was so fun and safe that we hooted and screamed each time after that. We were always excited to see what the next ride would be. The last line was the fastest and longest, about 500 meters. It was too dangerous for the kids to go by themselves, so they went first with Alex. The clouds had begun to descend so we were now in them. I saw Max, Jane, and Alex zip and then disappear into a cloud. I could hear Max and Jane howling. I was next to go. When I zipped into the cloud, I had no idea how thick it would be. I was moving very fast and couldn’t see Alex and the kids at the end of the line. I felt like I was literally flying in the clouds which, I guess I was. I finally saw a faint image of what looked like some trees and my party waiting for me. When finally I could clearly see the end of the line, I was very close and applied the brake (a thick leather glove with which to wrap around and pull on the cable.) I came speeding into the landing and could see some padding attached to a tree at the end, but I stopped before hitting it. WOW!!! I waited in anticipation for Beth to come soaring out of the clouds, and she did not disappoint. She was flying and I was sure that she was going to crash into the padding, but she, too, finished with a strong landing. We spent two glorious hours traversing the treetops of the mountain valleys of Mindo. We all had an adrenaline rush. One last tidbit; Beth, Max and Jane did some tricks with our guides. They flew like superman/superwoman and zipped upside down with their legs and arms spread apart so that they looked like a butterfly. I opted for no tricks because I really loved flying solo. We went back to the cabana, went to town to eat, returned to the cabana and went to bed (with the usual Max and Jane bickering.) I wonder what adventure tomorrow will bring.
We had to get up early today so that we could catch the bus to go to Mindo. Mindo is a little town in a cloud forest about 2 hours northwest of Quito that has an abundance of butterflies, birds, and wildflowers. Jane popped up immediately, but Max was a little slow to let go of his slumber. We could have taken a city bus to the main bus terminal for 75 cents, but we opted for the $6.50 extravagant taxi ride. We got to the bus terminal and met two retired, Canadian teachers who were also on their way to Mindo. The cost of the 2 hour trip was $7.50 FOR ALL OF US! We all slept a bit on the way to Mindo. We got to Mindo by exiting the main highway and descending into a plush, green valley. After some confusion, we arrived at our cabanas to be greeted by Leo, a very friendly man who runs the Cabanas Bambu. He showed us to our cabana which was a very lovely two bedroom, one bathroom abode with a porch which was where we had to leave our shoes before entering the cabana. The porch had a hammock that Max and Jane loved and fought over. At one point, I heard a loud crash on the porch and a dramatic Jane crying, and discovered that Max had poured Jane out of the hammock because he felt it was his turn in the always exciting “carnival like ride” of the apparatus. We unpacked and went to town to eat. Beth got fairly crusty about the restaurant that the rest of us picked, but when she ate the fresh trout that I’m certain was pulled from one of the nearby mountain streams she was very pleased. We then walked up a dirt road for about 30 minutes to Mindo Canopy Adventure, a series of 13 zip lines that zigzagged across the forest valleys of Mindo well above the canopy of the forest. Our guides were Alex and Diego, two kind and gentle young men who were very and patient with us. It was exhilarating to be zipping across the valleys on a cable so high above the trees. We were all a bit nervous or scared the first time, but it was so fun and safe that we hooted and screamed each time after that. We were always excited to see what the next ride would be. The last line was the fastest and longest, about 500 meters. It was too dangerous for the kids to go by themselves, so they went first with Alex. The clouds had begun to descend so we were now in them. I saw Max, Jane, and Alex zip and then disappear into a cloud. I could hear Max and Jane howling. I was next to go. When I zipped into the cloud, I had no idea how thick it would be. I was moving very fast and couldn’t see Alex and the kids at the end of the line. I felt like I was literally flying in the clouds which, I guess I was. I finally saw a faint image of what looked like some trees and my party waiting for me. When finally I could clearly see the end of the line, I was very close and applied the brake (a thick leather glove with which to wrap around and pull on the cable.) I came speeding into the landing and could see some padding attached to a tree at the end, but I stopped before hitting it. WOW!!! I waited in anticipation for Beth to come soaring out of the clouds, and she did not disappoint. She was flying and I was sure that she was going to crash into the padding, but she, too, finished with a strong landing. We spent two glorious hours traversing the treetops of the mountain valleys of Mindo. We all had an adrenaline rush. One last tidbit; Beth, Max and Jane did some tricks with our guides. They flew like superman/superwoman and zipped upside down with their legs and arms spread apart so that they looked like a butterfly. I opted for no tricks because I really loved flying solo. We went back to the cabana, went to town to eat, returned to the cabana and went to bed (with the usual Max and Jane bickering.) I wonder what adventure tomorrow will bring.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Sleepless in Quito/Quiet in Quito
Friday night was the beginning of Carnival which is a huge celebration for Latin American predominately Catholic countries. This is a four day weekend when everyone leaves Quito to go to the coast or other smaller towns. It reminds me of being one of the only people left in town during the Fourth of July while everyone else is at their cabins (we called them cottages in Wisconsin). The only thing going on in the city is people spraying each other with this foamy spray stuff (espuma de carnival) that smells like Bazooka bubble gum and leaves an oily film on your clothes and hair. Max and Jane wanted NO part of that. They actually had a wonderful esumpa battle with everyone covered from head to toe in foam and smelling like stale bubble gum.
So where does the sleepless part come in?? Friday night the fancy hotel across the street from us had a party with live music. They (like most residents of densely populated cities) make full use of their roof space and have a beautiful garden/terrace area; perfect for parties. Our buildings are 30 yards apart door to door so when we went to bed with our French door/windows facing the party, we felt like we were there with the band kicking off our Carnival holiday except we were in our pajamas. There is also a sad dog that lives next to the party hotel and barks continuously. The poor animal has about a 4x4 area to live in and I have never seen it walked so of course it barks all night. There is also the continuous traffic down our little street. I cannot figure out where all the cars without mufflers, diesel fueled buses with air brakes, motorcycles, and other motorized vehicles are going in the wee hours. Mostly around our apartment in the historic district there are churches everywhere and small restaurants and shops along the cobble stone streets. Sooo I guess everyone is going to church? Because our beautiful French doors of our bedroom face the street we also have the privilege of feeling like there are cars next to our heads. The last cause on occasional sleeplessness is the kids are now sharing a bedroom which they have never done. Needless to say they sometimes have trouble settling down and going to sleep. They think it is like a slumber party; I have dubbed it the lunatic asylum (no offense to anyone connected to mental health issues). Every other night we have an hour long process of threats, consequences blah, blah, blah during the lunatic asylum until either the kids or the parents succumb to exhaustion. On Friday all four of these factors kicked in: party and barking dog across the street, lunatic asylum and loud motorized vehicles which led to a maniacally good laugh.
Wonderings: Was my brother able to purchase a snow shovel in snow-socked D.C., or is he still shoveling his walk with a hockey stick? Has the Birkebeiner happened and how did people do? What did people do over President’s Day weekend? Book Across the Bay? How are we doing in the Winter Olympics? (Ecuador has no participants so there is not much coverage here). Did we get any snow days out of all the snow I keep hearing about?
So where does the sleepless part come in?? Friday night the fancy hotel across the street from us had a party with live music. They (like most residents of densely populated cities) make full use of their roof space and have a beautiful garden/terrace area; perfect for parties. Our buildings are 30 yards apart door to door so when we went to bed with our French door/windows facing the party, we felt like we were there with the band kicking off our Carnival holiday except we were in our pajamas. There is also a sad dog that lives next to the party hotel and barks continuously. The poor animal has about a 4x4 area to live in and I have never seen it walked so of course it barks all night. There is also the continuous traffic down our little street. I cannot figure out where all the cars without mufflers, diesel fueled buses with air brakes, motorcycles, and other motorized vehicles are going in the wee hours. Mostly around our apartment in the historic district there are churches everywhere and small restaurants and shops along the cobble stone streets. Sooo I guess everyone is going to church? Because our beautiful French doors of our bedroom face the street we also have the privilege of feeling like there are cars next to our heads. The last cause on occasional sleeplessness is the kids are now sharing a bedroom which they have never done. Needless to say they sometimes have trouble settling down and going to sleep. They think it is like a slumber party; I have dubbed it the lunatic asylum (no offense to anyone connected to mental health issues). Every other night we have an hour long process of threats, consequences blah, blah, blah during the lunatic asylum until either the kids or the parents succumb to exhaustion. On Friday all four of these factors kicked in: party and barking dog across the street, lunatic asylum and loud motorized vehicles which led to a maniacally good laugh.
Wonderings: Was my brother able to purchase a snow shovel in snow-socked D.C., or is he still shoveling his walk with a hockey stick? Has the Birkebeiner happened and how did people do? What did people do over President’s Day weekend? Book Across the Bay? How are we doing in the Winter Olympics? (Ecuador has no participants so there is not much coverage here). Did we get any snow days out of all the snow I keep hearing about?
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Wednesday, Feb. 10
gotta make this short. bruce is having a math lesson at the apt. with the kids while i snuck away for some internet cafe time. still can´t figure out how to post pics, but have the camera on my possession at least. we took a cable car called the Teleferico up the side of a hill at the base of Pinchincha a volcano that borders Quito. Once up the hill there are a series of other hills to climb all the way to something called Rocu Pinchincha which is either the volcano itself or close to it. Needless to say we did not get all the way up, but did some very cool climbing in clouds and light rain to about halfway there. The altitude is still a factor and going walking uphill at all feels like someone is sqeezing your lungs. Bruce was very proud of his lung capacity and says it is the result of careful training by smoking just the right amount of cigarettes.
good things: I can understand Bruce speak Spanish, the family is together almost 24 hours a day, our gringo skin is acclimating to the sun by being a bright shade of red, i went running by myself by doing laps around a park this morning; it was very liberating
bad things¨: the family is together almost 24 hours a day, Bruce still hasn´t written a blog entry you just keep having to hear my voice, i can´t understand anyone but Bruce when they speak to me, very few people understand my franglish(spanish, french and english combination). i could barely run for 30 minutes before my lungs burst into flame.
gotta make this short. bruce is having a math lesson at the apt. with the kids while i snuck away for some internet cafe time. still can´t figure out how to post pics, but have the camera on my possession at least. we took a cable car called the Teleferico up the side of a hill at the base of Pinchincha a volcano that borders Quito. Once up the hill there are a series of other hills to climb all the way to something called Rocu Pinchincha which is either the volcano itself or close to it. Needless to say we did not get all the way up, but did some very cool climbing in clouds and light rain to about halfway there. The altitude is still a factor and going walking uphill at all feels like someone is sqeezing your lungs. Bruce was very proud of his lung capacity and says it is the result of careful training by smoking just the right amount of cigarettes.
good things: I can understand Bruce speak Spanish, the family is together almost 24 hours a day, our gringo skin is acclimating to the sun by being a bright shade of red, i went running by myself by doing laps around a park this morning; it was very liberating
bad things¨: the family is together almost 24 hours a day, Bruce still hasn´t written a blog entry you just keep having to hear my voice, i can´t understand anyone but Bruce when they speak to me, very few people understand my franglish(spanish, french and english combination). i could barely run for 30 minutes before my lungs burst into flame.
Monday, February 8, 2010
NO Saints went marching in. . . . .
February 8, Monday
new things: watched the Super Bowl on ESPN espagnol with no million dollar ads, no snow just 50-70 degrees every day, Bruce is READING and has almost finished a book he started when we got here!!!! Between Bruce reading and Max being forced to play futbol(soccer) the trip has already been a tremendous success. Putting sunblock on before we go out instead of boots and mittens.
things that are the same: I transformed from the Wicked Witch of the North to a sane human after my run yesterday!!!!!! Excited to start viewing some Winter Olympics, will have to find some gringo bar or something.
new things: watched the Super Bowl on ESPN espagnol with no million dollar ads, no snow just 50-70 degrees every day, Bruce is READING and has almost finished a book he started when we got here!!!! Between Bruce reading and Max being forced to play futbol(soccer) the trip has already been a tremendous success. Putting sunblock on before we go out instead of boots and mittens.
things that are the same: I transformed from the Wicked Witch of the North to a sane human after my run yesterday!!!!!! Excited to start viewing some Winter Olympics, will have to find some gringo bar or something.
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Soccer may creep in
rainy Sat. in Quito. there are internet cafes everywhere in the city. This session is costing 40 cents for a half hour. The kids watched a bootleg copy of Alvin and the Chipmunks 2 today we picked up on the street for uno dollar. thank you for messages, it is an instant warm fuzzy to hear your cyber voices. having some issues with the cell phone, but will have actual voice contact soon. also will send some pics when i figure out how to do it at the cafe.
things that are new, max fell asleep last night with a soccer ball in his bed, things that are the same, I am desperate to run but have been forbidden to go solo. . . . . . .
things that are new, max fell asleep last night with a soccer ball in his bed, things that are the same, I am desperate to run but have been forbidden to go solo. . . . . . .
Friday, February 5, 2010
incountry
Hola,
We are in Quito! The trip was super smooth. Veronica, my sister-in-law´s family picked us up at the airport and brought us to their apartment so we could have some transition time. They are so kind!!!! We are now in our apartment and have a phone, but i don´t know the number yet. we are all getting used to the altitude and are tired. Things that are new, noisy city 24 hours. Things that are the same, kids still fighting with each other. adios for now.
beth
We are in Quito! The trip was super smooth. Veronica, my sister-in-law´s family picked us up at the airport and brought us to their apartment so we could have some transition time. They are so kind!!!! We are now in our apartment and have a phone, but i don´t know the number yet. we are all getting used to the altitude and are tired. Things that are new, noisy city 24 hours. Things that are the same, kids still fighting with each other. adios for now.
beth
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