MISSING HOME

Although I do love my adventures I am having down here in Ecuador, I have to admit I am starting to miss home more and more.... Yes, I realize I have been gone only 2 months. Fall is my favorite season...football, the air, the leaves, not to mention that I love fall clothes! I still frequent the J.Crew website....as well as the Anthropologie one:) I also miss my friends terribly, I happen to have THE BEST friends in the world and going this long without them is kind of painful at times.....Thank God for internet, atleast we can keep in touch that way. So, all this being said, I have never once wanted to quit here--Ecuador is a great country, with great people, and great places to visit.

It is funny, the idea of home to different people and the affect it has on them. Yesterday I had the chance to go on a little road trip to a few different towns north of Quito...what a treat! Ecuador has AMAZING countryside....it reminded me of Italy in many parts. The colors, the people....I am horrible at taking pictures, but I am for sure going to return to those parts and take pictures, and maybe even stay a few days:). Anyways, The my friend and I stopped for lunch and were talking about her work.....she travels to the states frequently and was saying how after about 2 days there, all she wants in some soup and good Juice (ok, America....so we can put a man on the moon but we cannot make fruit juice? It is true, Tropicana you stink in comparison). While, the whole time she was saying this I was thinking all I want is Whole Foods, or Chick Fil A.....I am sick of soup! It was an interesting conversation. I have come to the conclusion that while I love to explore and travel, I will never want to be away for long--Good thing I did not join the Peace Corps! ha!

Interesting....

There is one word for this week- Interesting. Well, it actually did not get interesting until the end, but there was enough interesting in a day to make the whole week interesting. Thursday started off as a normal day at school, and was going great until about 1pm. A letter from the director was being passed around saying that school was cancelled for Friday...my first thought was "Oh maybe i will go to the beach!!" everyone was excited....until we got the reason behind this no school thing....Thursday morning the president was kidnapped by the police. There were riots all over the city, and looters were going wild due to no police. The military was called in and everything shut down. The police got word that their benefits and salaries were being cut, and this is how they reacted....they kidnapped the president! Crazy. Thus, my beach trip idea came to a halt fast. Many of the students got so scared for their parents at work, and they all wondered how long they would be waiting for them. All of this came as a shock to me, although i knew there was political instability in Ecuador, I mean....kidnapping the president!!! Wowzas.

The part that really threw me off was when one of the teachers told me "Oh, there is nothing to worry about, these things happen all the time. It will blow over in a few days..." She said it so calmly it almost made me laugh, until I realized how sad that it was. Those kids knew exactly what was going on, they had witnessed this before, and the teachers seemed to be worried, but they too were all too familiar with this uprising. My first thought was "How can a country even allow this to happen?!" Imagine the U.S. with no police....and then imagine the consequences if Mr. President were kidnapped....goodness gracious. It is Sunday and things here are normal again. I have felt safe everywhere I have gone, everyone says this is a dangerous country, but I believe if you are smart it is no more dangerous than any other. This incident did make me realize I am so lucky to have grown up in America....not only did I grow up in America...I grew up in a great city and went to THE UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA (can I get a roll tide?!) I am one lucky gal.

I realize that most of these kids may never get out of their situation. Some of them have to get past their family issues, and all of them have to get out of the issues of their country. Education is in very bad shape in this country. These little nuggets do not have it easy. I have decided I am going to make hem keep a journal everyday. I saw the movie Precious last week and that is where i got the idea...write. Every day. In English.

After the interesting week I had, I decided I was going to treat myself this weekend. I checked into a hotel with a hot shower and a comfy bed, and a tv with cable (I have hot water in my apt. but only for about 3 minutes at a time). I now feel like a new person!!! Hey, I may be volunteering, but everyone needs to give themselves a pat on the back every once in a while. To me, it helps me appreciate what I have and I am able to go back to those kids and give them 100%. Volunteering is not about giving up everything you know and want, it is about giving your love to others who need it. Pure and Simple. I am focused on giving a little love to those kids, they need it!!