feb 9 and 10

Last night we ended up meeting up at Brett’s house and then heading out to a bar to dance. It was a really good time. One guy taught me how to dance latin-american like, or he tried anyways haha. I also met a guy from North Carolina, Raleigh to be precise. He was really nice. The people here are really nice. I guess that’s applicable to any place in the world J

I got up this morning around 10am and didn’t really do anything. Watched some tv and then ate lunch with Veronica and Maria Clara when Veronica came home from work for siesta. Then Veronica took me to the post office on her way back to work (which means that those postcards were mailed on Feb 9^th). Then I went back to get my CENSO again. I only had to wait about an hour and 15 mins, which wasn’t that bad, and I had no problems getting it this time. I don’t really think the CENSO is really worth anything. I know if I get like arrested or something happens and I don’t have it then I’ll get like a $200 fine, but I’m not really expecting that to happen. I’m supposed to have it with me at all times but I don’t even take my wallet with me everywhere so I probably wont….oh well. Also, while waiting for my number to get called, I pulled a JoJo-Grandaddy act. The men sitting behind me were speaking English with a serious country accent and one of them asked me where I was from. Anyways, they were older men, not to worry, but I found out they are from Oregon and work putting out forest fires at home but they were offered a job with a construction company here and they are here in Ecuador for a year working construction on building the new U.S. Embassy here. I thought that J & B might be proud of me for talking to someone I didn’t know and practically finding out their whole life story. I didn’t, however, get to the part of the conversation in which we figure out how we are related to one another, but hey, it’s a first time. Haha J

Anyways, I also got my Permiso de Salida, which means I am allowed to leave the country haha. It’s this little receipt-type piece of paper that says my name and basically nothing else. I don’t really understand the value or meaning of it but I have to have it so I have it.

I shouldn’t have to do any more DMV-type paperwork, now. Which makes me very happy. I’m glad to have it all done with and now I can really focus on other stuff I need to do…….like get my wireless internet.

I was supposed to get a call from the people today to come set it up but I didn’t. Which makes me very frustrated because I have just about had enough of these people. I guess it will happen eventually. I hope so anyways…

I went to El Jardin – a shopping mall – that was right beside the place where I got my CENSO to go to the SuperMaxi (Krogers) to get some stuff for later tonight/this morning on my trip to Pichincha. I also went to Cinnabon and got a cinnamon bun for myself. I felt like I deserved it. And it made me feel like home. It tastes exactly the same, FYI, and it made me think of hanes mall and hokie grill J

I had 4 mail items waiting for me when I opened the front door when I got back: 2 cards from JoJo & Grandaddy, a package from B, and a card from Enis and Edith Griffith. I’m listening to the CD that B sent me right now. I also found out that MariaClara loves the Beatles, so she appreciated song #3 (I think that’s what it was). The card from Enis & Edith was much appreciated, if you remember, please let them know! J

JoJo & Grandaddy:

- I am missing the snow. I dreamt about it last night, actually. And then this morning I woke up and was hit with the reality that I am sunburnt and my skin is peeling because it’s like summer here J

- I am: having fun, studying hard, and being careful

- I seriously doubt I will be getting any classes cancelled because of weather J we were told during orientation that they have only cancelled classes 1 time since opening the university and it was for political unrest in the 90s I believe.

- My classes are: MWF Volcanology, Latin American Literature, and Conversation class, T/R Anthropology

- I’m sure I will have a special Valentine’s Day. Your card is a little early, but much appreciated. I just was reminded that it’s almost Valentine’s Day the other day by my friend Laura. It’s not as big of a deal here as it is at home at all. I think they know it happens and I think that some people celebrate it but it’s nothing like at home, not half as consumer-driven.

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- I did not go to Pichincha last weekend. I am going tonight/tomorrow morning.

Which leads me to my next topic: my schedule for the rest of the weekend as of right now.

I am planning to study some for my vocab test on Monday morning, eat something (probably something really light), wash my hair, call a cab around 8pm to schedule it being here around 3am, then probably hit the sack for a few hours, get up around 2ish to get ready and wake myself up, take a cab to the Mexican Embassy, we leave at 3:30am for Pichincha, 1.5 hour drive up there, 1 hour talk, 1 hour to enjoy the sunrise if its not cloudy, 1.5 hour drive back, probably sleep some (we are now at around 8am Saturday morning), get up and shower, lunch for Veronica’s mom’s birthday at noon-ish, and that’s where my plans end.

The rest of the group went camping at Cotopaxi this weekend so I think that Whitney and I are the only ones in Quito at the time being. I might see if she wants to do something with me Saturday night and then I don’t know what I will do Sunday other than study and homework.

Anywho, I guess that’s about it for now. I will write again at some point and let you know how it went.

I got up at 2am. Got ready. Ate some wafer cookies (because they told us not to eat anything much but that we would need stuff with sugar) and played some solitaire to get my mind working. At 5 till 3 I went downstairs to wait by the door for the taxi which I had called at around 8pm. I waited there until 3:15am. It never showed. I didn’t want to walk the streets trying to hail a taxi, because it was 3am, and I didn’t want to wake up Veronica, because it was 3am.

By the time I got back up to my room and sat down to think it was already 3:20. I knew if I tried to call a taxi now it would have taken at least 10 minutes to get to the house and I wouldn’t have made it in time before they all left. So I reluctantly changed my clothes and got back in bed.

I couldn’t sleep because I had already slept 7 hours and gotten up and dressed. So I laid there for a while, mad, until I finally did fall back asleep.

Now I am up again and showered and about to finish getting ready. We are leaving a 12:30 to go to Veronica’s mom’s birthday lunch. I’m super nervous about it.

Veronica isn’t happy with me at all. She came in my room and was asking me “why didn’t you wake me up?? We should have called the taxi company! What is going to happen to you?”

I don’t know whats going to happen to me since I didn’t go. But I’m mad the taxi didn’t come and I’m mad I paid $15 and got up at 2am for nothing. Yelling at me isn’t making me feel any better right now.

Anyways, so that’s that. No Pichincha. And I’m not happy about it.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­I just got back from the birthday party. It was a lot of fun. It started out really uncomfortable. But the food was really good and then after we ate we had champagne to celebrate the 75^th birthday. There were 3 different desserts: a double layer chocolate cake with vanilla icing, a toffee like pudding-ish deal with a hard fudge like topping with crunchies in it, and some kind of super rich ice cream thing. They were all really good, but really super rich.

After that, they went around the room and said what they were giving the grandma for her birthday, such as, “Mamama (which is what they called her), I am giving you the strength that you have given all of us through the years to use when you need it most.” It was really sweet. There was a toast with the champagne and everyone was crying. It was really sweet, as I just said.

Then there was dancing and singing for the rest of the time. It was crazy. The new 75-year old grandma was dancing in the middle of the living room with the rest of the family just as excited and happy as the rest of us. It was so much fun. And really interesting to see the different traditions.

They sang happy birthday in English. Which I was very surprised by.

Also there were presentations for the grandma. Two of the great-grandchildren sang songs for her, Maria Clara did a belly-dance performance (I found out she can belly dance, she took classes 4 years ago), Veronica did a salsa dance (she is taking a Spanish dance class at the moment), and one of Veronica’s brother/brother-in-law (I’m not sure which) played a few songs on the guitar for everyone to sing along with.

The whole experience was really fun. Well not the whole experience. At one point, Veronica and Maria Clara both went to sit at the dining room table and left me in the living room alone. There were other people in there, but they were all on the other side of the room and no one was talking to me.

The grandmother kept making me get up and dance with everyone at the end when that was going on even though I kept telling her that I didn’t know those dances. She also repeatedly told me that I have to come to her house and visit her sometime. What an incredibly interesting, exciting, and sweet woman. She was probably the person who reminded me most of my own family. Everyone else seemed a little distant. I guess that isn’t really uncommon, but it really made me appreciate the family that I have at home.

Not sure what I am going to do tonight but the only other person in town is Whitney so I sent her a text earlier to see if she wanted to go get dinner later (she hasn’t answered) and I need to meet up with Adam at some point because he has my camera. Will right more later…..goodness this is a long complicated entry.

....I ended up going to dinner with Whitney at TGI Fridays and then we met up with Adam and Cathy later and just hung out. It was a good time.
Sunday all I did was study and do homework....kind of boring...ha