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Published: July 19th 2006
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Hola chicos,
Spanish Classes and Volunteering Well we've started our spanish lessons properly now! We're having one-on-one lessons for 3 hours a day (mon-thur). It's certainly intense as its Spanish, Spanish, Spanish. My teacher ended up giving me a 20minute speech about the difficulties of life in Ecuador as a single parent. Its quite frowned upon and it can be very difficult to rent/find accommodation. She is constantly being asked if she if getting married or going to get married. In Ecuador it is the norm for women to stsay at home, cook , clean and look after the kids once married.
We've also started our volunteer project!!!! We have to take 2 buses to the centre in a place called Toctiuco - its in the West of Quito - very high up with a fantastic view over Quito and of the surround volcanoes. The journey on the bus up to the centre is a little hair-raising and the bus drivers certainly have no fear! Oh and they also like to adorn their buses with frilled curtains and numerous hanging ornaments and play loud latin american music.
The minute we walked into the centre there were kids
surronding us and hugging us jabbering in Spanish - asking our names, where we come from, whether everyone in our country has blue or green eyes... they also found it highly amusing that Cam and I are 'novios' (going out)... and since have asked us every 5 minutes when are we getting married!!! Some of the girls (being 10 year old girls - the same the world over) want us to say we love each other to each other.
We also lunch with the kids which is fun. The tables are made for 5 year olds so we're squidged in and then its cold soup followed by something hearty to fill up the kids. Its probably their biggest meal of the day and is good for them. Some former students of the centre help in the kitchen. They are really lovely too. One was trying to teach us some Quecha - I think spanish is enough for us right now!!!
Oh the kids also like to mention England beating Ecuador in the World Cup!! The Ecuador team were welcomed back to the country as heros doing a celebratory tour round the country that finished in Quito to an
Heidy
It took ages for us to work out what her name was - sounds like chaidee in Spanish. She´s 5 and exceptionally cute. official reception by the president. I don't think England got that!!! (failures!) 😊
We also go to the cancha (playground) and its amazing how many more poor kids there are in the area. There are no adults around and they just run around in the dust making the most of what they have. We played 'bases' (like baseball but not) using a tied up cloth because we didn't have a ball.
Its amazing how tiring it is constantly listening to Spanish - in class and then with the kids. The hardest to understand are the 5 year olds. When you say you don't understand they just keep saying it... and its really hard to understand!!!! They are really sweet though. Just today I was playing puzzles with two of the cutest little 5 year old girls. One awkward thing is how to tell the kids off when they're being naughty!! Argh - thinking of the Spanish words. And there are plenty of naughty little boys - always the boys... why always the boys?!?
One day I was showing pictures of my family and the kids were ever so fascintated - wanting to know who everyone was (they
didn't recognise Cam! - his hair was 2 inches longer!) and where we were in the photos... They asked where my mum was, and when I told them that she wasn't alive any more it was amazing the number of them that piped up that either their mother or father was dead. It was an unexpected and really moving moment for me.
Otavalo We went to the wonderful Saturday market in Otavalo. It's a 2hr15 bus ride from Quito. It takes so long because the bus stops every 5 seconds near Quito picking up new passengers. All the buses have what we refer to as a 'bus touter' ie a man who yells out the open door where we're going trying to entice people to get on our bus! Just in case people are going to randomly decide to take a 2 hour bus ride north out of Quito! Also people get on selling random products - like icecreams, drinks, yoghurts, mandarins... they then get off at the next stop and seem to bribe the driver with freebies.
The market was wonderful!! Ahhhh you could wander round it for hours. Most of the stall holders wear the
traditional dress. Its fun bartering with them too. We got quite good at it (after a couple of poor attempts).
Oh there is an animal market too selling chicks, chickens, ducks and lots and lots of guinea pigs... a local delicacy in these parts!! Now I'm not all that fond of guinea pigs but seeing a huge clump of furry little guinea pigs for sale kind of makes you think hmmmm.....
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