Ultimamente...

Ñukaka gringomi kani (I'm a gringo). Kanka lluchami kan (You are naked). Ñukaka mana kichachu charini (I don't have diarrhea). Ñukaka ñukallami armani (I bath alone). Ñukaka allkukunami mikani (I eat dogs). Piwan muchanki? (Who do you kiss?). Ñukaka achkawarmikunawanmi muchani. (I kiss lots of women.)
(by the way, achkawarmikunawanmi is actually ONE word...and I can make longer ones when I try.)

These and many other things are the wonders of Kichwa (also spelled Quichua or Quechua) that I have been learning for the past 3 days. Only 3 days and I can already ask people to bathe with me or kiss me. The wonders of the human mind. Anyways, here's the lowdown for those of you who don't have inter-continental ESP:

I got my 2-year site assignment on Tuesday. I'm going to be in a small rural town of about 8,000 people called Licto. It's about 40 minutes outside Riobamba, which is an awesome city of about 150,000 people that you may have already read about in my other posts. I'm going to be working with the organization INNFA, who works in the area of children's right and with families. I'll be working in the area of youth groups, community banking, and child labor. Other types of projects may come up as I find need or opportunity for them. The majority of the people of Licto are indigenous, so that's why I've been learning Kichwa this week. Almost all indigenous people speak Spanish as well, but it's not their main language and some of the oldest and the youngest people (anyone without schooling) don't speak much Spanish, so they're letting me take some Kichwa classes just in case I ever need it. Plus, I just think it'll be cool to be able to speak an indigenous South American language. I'm going to see if I can get moderately fluent in it by the time I leave Ecuador...we'll see how much oportunity I have to use it in Licto.
So, this might be my last major post for about a week or so becuase I leave on Sunday morning for a visit to a current volunteer and a visit to Licto for a week. Pray that I'd make a good impression on the people I'm going to be working with and have Christ's eyes for the people of Licto and all of Riobamba.

Beautiful Ecuador

Here are some more pictures for all you people out there in Internetlandia, most of you in Gringolandia. I'm finally getting better at uploading photos, but there are still some kinks in the system and it seems as if the links to the full size pictures aren't wanting to work, but I guess you'll just have to deal with it for now. Here's a link to the main page of my photo album on Snapfish. If you go there, you'll notice you have to a make an account. Despite being an annoyance, it's free, so go there if you want to see these pictures in better quality. Thanks!

Some PC friends in the airport in Miami...Left is Rob from California; the guy in glasses is Tyson, a Christian buddy of mine who's from California; next is Farrah who was in my former language group; me; Marianne, who is now in the US due to medical complications; lastly, Ashley who is one of my best Peace Corps friends (at least until she moves to Machala which is like 7 hours from Riobamba).

Another good PC friend, Sarah, taking a picture on a mountain-side.

Picture of a street heading down towards Ayora, where I've been living for the last couple weeks.

Picture of one of the beautiful views up above Ayora. I love just going for walks in the afternoon whenever I have time. And with this altitude that kind of walk actually turns out to be a pretty good workout.

Another beautiful view above Ayora.

A break from the norm

This weekend I was finally able to get a break from the monotony of classes and such to get a bit of relax time. On Saturday I got to chill with friends and go out dancing in the evening and then Sunday I got invited last minute to go to some 'Thermal Baths' called Chachimbiro a couple hours from Cayambe. Despite the possibility of disgusting amounts of bacteria when bathing with no chlorine, it was really neat to bath in the warm waters that come up to the surface after being heated by volcanic magma below the surface of the earth.

A beautiful sunset in my backyard.

Some friends and I at the Thermal Baths of Chachimbiro (with a pouty ex-cousin of mine)


One of my family's dogs, Niña.

A view of the compound.

Another picture of some friends and I with a couple ex-cousins.

One of the main baths.

Another backyard sunset picture.

Around town...

Sorry, but the links to the full size pictures are screwed up, let me know if anything else is screwed up in this post. Enjoy!

My new 19-year old sister, Doris, and I showing off laundry skills.

Sisters Doris and Eva and brother Jorge (who lives in Quito) giving Jordi a bath.

Doing laundry on a rock...Ecaudor is not the United States.

A waterfall at Peguche (near Otavalo)

Soccer field, country style.

An awesome view of mountains about 5 minutes from my house.

Getting my pants soaking wet on a log over a waterfall at Peguche.

Update...

Briefly, here's the latest:

I got really, really sick recently (I think it was from either the chicha, which is a homemade alcohol, or the guinea pig that the heated up for me for breakfast on Sunday morning. Note - Guinea pig tastes as bad as it sounds...like chicken that's been soaked in fish juice for a week). I'm just now starting to get over it. Guess how I know? I've been like 5 hours now without hitting up the bathroom. And that's a feat to write home about if I've ever heard of one.
Also of interest, it's now been officially one months since I left home. 4% of my Peace Corps service is now done. Whoa...
Also, I find out my site assignment in less than 6 days. Nice. Today the site-assigner-boss-lady called the site where I'll probably be "one of the hardest and poorest sites in Ecuador." Rock. Peace Corps Lite? I think not.
Speaking of my site, I met the Ecuadorian woman who would be my counterpart if I go to that site and she's real cool. That's a relief after hearing about some counterpart horror stories.

Signing off...

Riobamba Pictures, Finally!

Well, it's been awhile. In the next post I'll give some updates, but for now, here are some pictures from the trip I took a week or so ago.

The main historic church in Riobamba...didn't get a chance to go in though.

A lagoon near Riobamba that some friend of a friend wants to turn into a tourist destination. I have my doubts, but we'll wait and see.

Cool stray dog. You wouldn't believe how beautiful some of the stray dogs are here (and there are PLENTY of stray dogs...so if you're looking for a new dog, just pay me a visit. They might charge you like $1000 in customs, but hey, it's cheaper than some pure breads that aren't are beautiful as these dogs)

Another pic of the dog...

Demarcation of the oldest and first church in Ecuador. Since 1534...wow.

The First and Oldest Church in Ecuador. (ps - the Virgen inside is modeled after the Virgen de las Nieves from Málaga, Spain).

Chimborazo at night. (btw, Tungurahua, mentioned in my last post, just blew up the other day. Check it out)

Guranda by night (another Peace Corps Site for Youth and Families Volunteers that we visited).

Sheep...

Sheep...

Riobamba Nights

So my first "tech" trip with the Peace Corps came off without a hitch. I really loved the place (Riobamba or here) and it sounds like there's a good possibility that I'll be in that 'cluster'. Things like meeting a gynecologist that also served as a philosopher with sentences like "sometimes in life you're the doctor and sometimes you're the patient. It's the human condition." Other moments such as "whiskey and theology" in which another PCV (who had recently consumed over half a bottle of whiskey) and I had a 90 minute conversation about the existence of god on the street corner. Despite the large amounts of whiskey and immensely long conversation, John (the other guy) was actually an awesome addition to the trip and will likely be a buddy of mine if I end up in the area. The city is right near Ecuador's largest mountain/volcano Chimborazo (below picture; inactive) and not far from Tungurahua (bottom picture; very active). Anyways...really loved the place and all the other PCVs there, so I'll be excited if that's where I'll be living. One thing about it that makes me nervous is that I'd likely be in an indigenous site with lots of indigenous people who tend to be more hesitant to open up to foreigners and having to try and help a lot of kids who go into Riobamba during the days to sell random trinkets and candies. Anyways, I'll keep you posted on my site assigment...we're supposed to find out July 25th as of right now...keep your fingers crossed.

Signing off...

Home Again, Home Again?

Well, I'm back in the Cayambe region after a sweet 4 days in the Riobamba region. But, as you may have guessed from this posts title, my home situation was not what I expected. I got a call on the way home from Quito to Cayambe that I was going to be changing homes...with no explanation why. Once I got back to the area I was explained the situation and told I would be packing up and moving to a new community. The short version of the story is this: apparently one of my two "moms" apparently has an "unhealthy preocupation" with me. I don't think it was anything big, but basically the sister of this particular mom (also a "mom" of mine) decided after a visit to a doctor and some medicine prescription that it wasn't healthy for her to have me in the house. So, in short, I'm now in a new house, with a new family, in a new town, and a new language training group. Or rather, I no longer have a language group. I'm now wandering the plains of language acquisition and cultural integration as a lone ranger, which sounds much more dangerous than it really is. Good news is that I might get to start learning Quechua sooner than I expected...we'll see. Take note that Quechua is also that language that Jabba the Hutt speaks. Nice.

Riobamba Trip

Below are some pictures from the internet that I didn't take (mine are still on my camera) but are of the city Riobamba where I'm at right now. I'm here to get a better image of what the life of a PCV is like and see some other parts of the country. Tomorrow we're getting to talk to a guy who works with community banking which could well be the exact job and location I'll be filling in a couple months. Anyways, I'm enjoying the trip and getting to see some cool stuff and meeting cool new people.Street near my hotel here...

Church
Typical Ecuadorian open-air market

Disculpe las molestias (pardon the inconvenience)

Well, you see, I'm in Ecuador. In Ecuador not everything works like you wish it would. Internet cafés, for example, are finnicky. Anyways, to make a long story short, the entry below really sucks by my rendering, but it's the best i've been able to do with slow internet. Each picture will go to the larger version if you click it. In other words, my captions and my pictures are on different pages and you'll have to bear with me until i can figure out some better system.
In other news, one volunteer (nearly 60 years old) is now at home based on doctor recommendations for her health. Another person is rumored to be leaving soon for the same reason. My good friend Rachel is/was in the hospital in Quito today. Thankfully I'm feeling well, but keep Rachel, myself, and everyone else in your prayers.
As an update, I didn't make it to the church this week, but I'm hoping to make it this Sunday.
Last but not least, I'm leaving tomorrow (Friday) for a trip down south to Riobamba, Cajabamba, and Guaranda to visit some site and check out the region. I'm sure I'll have some cool pictures when I get back. See you then!

Photographic Journey

The view of Cayambe (the snow-capped peak looks almost like part of the clouds) that we had the first days of training in Cayambe


Eating lunch at the Inti Raymi (which my “cousin” owns) while watching Ecuador’s World Cup game vs. England (bloody Brits!)
L to R: Carmen (one of my two “moms”), Soledad (Jennifer’s “mom”), Jennifer, Me


Jen and I in front of the church in La Esperanza (not the prettiest church in Ecuador)

One view inside my house for the next 2 months (I’ll get more pictures when people aren’t around...so as not to be rude and take pictures while they’re around)

Some of the people I live with, except the people with stuff on their heads. I’m not sure if that is just a weird coincidence or what, but everyone in the picture with nothing on their heads lives with me and everyone with hats doesn’t.

A bigger family shot...and this is just the beginning of the family...there are tons of us.

The diablo huma or “devil head” in Quichua-Spanish. This is the guy who directs the group of dancers and musicians. He also hits you with the whip if you don’t get out of the way. (It’s so crowded that most people get hit at least once...thankfully it’s just a soft whip)

My little sister, Lupita, dancing in the procession. She’s 9 years old and is absolutely adorable. She’s actually from another family with some serious problems and is just living with my family. Thankfully, she gets good grades but her interactions with adults show a lot of residuals from abuse or mistreatment in the past.


My little sisters who recently went from fear of me to attachment. Marcela (11) and Lupita (9) are always holding my hand now or hugging me or asking me to spin them around. I’m in no rush for children, but spending time with beautiful, adorable kids like them make me excited to have kids.

Our dog, Perluza. She sleeps all day and barks all night. One night she barked for literally 3 hours straight.

Part of my training group. L to R: Julie, Jose (our language facilitator), myself, and Jen.


My street, which is just a bit outside town, about a 3 minute walk from town and 10 minutes from the downtown area.


The front gate of my house.


Julie in front of some crazy traditional thing where they have a stick with like 8 live chicken tied to it...weird.


Bullfight in the middle of town (wooden structures are built just for the weekend for the bullfights.


As you can see, any town crazies can hop right in a chase the bull around in there (or rather, get chased around by the bull).


Not like Spain...not at all.


Two of my best friends here with some family kids: Steve in the middle, Sarah at bottom, and various kids all around.


Lupita, me, Marcela


These kids love taking pictures. They also do whatever I tell them to do. Like play dead (which is the trick I like to use when I'm too tired to play with them anymore).