Tuesday, January 24, 2012

La Vida Loca

The other day, I had a mini-breakthrough. I was lying in bed after one of many action packed days and thought to myself, "I am now happy 100% of the time." And it's true. I mean, sometimes I miss my family at home, sometimes I'm frustrated with my host parents, but underlying the homesickness and frustration or what have you is still happiness. I explained this to my mother (my psychologist mother, it must be noted) and she compared it to being physically healthy but getting the sniffles sometimes. Everyone has that friend who's sick all the time and you feel like telling them to just grow an immune system or something and, to extend the metaphor, I used to be that friend. Now, though, I don't feel so fragile. In a nutshell, I think I'm emotionally stable! Yay! It's funny how much my perspective on some things has changed. Nowadays being emotionally stable is a cause for celebration and a 50 cent bottle of water is an outrage. Another example: the other day my host mom told me that she was conducting job interviews for some people who wanted to work in the tourism department of the county building (where she works). She asked me if I would help her by giving a portion of the interview. I was pretty terrified. But then she told me that the part of the interview I would give would be in English. And suddenly it wasn't a big deal anymore. Brush aside the fact that I've never given a job interview in my life, the fact that these people would be at least ten years older than me... I knew that it could have been so much more difficult, and I saw being able to speak English as such a gift.  Like I say, it's a complete change of perspective.
Anyway, while I'm sure this is all very interesting to you, I do more than just sit around and philosophize here in Ecuador. You may or may not have noticed that I named this blog post, "La Vida Loca." It may be a little cliche and overused, but it's true. Right now, my vida is feeling a little loca. But good loca. I'll run you through what's been going on in my wonderful, loca vida. 


12/16-12/18: Visiting Valborg
After lots of planning, my friend Johanna (from Germany) and I went to visit our friend Valborg (from the Faroe Islands) who lives in Portoviejo. Portoviejo is a decently big city that's a little over an hour away from Bahia, where Johanna and I live. We went to the mall and to the movies, some luxuries that don't exist in Bahia, hung out with the zillions of other exchange students in Portoviejo, visited Valborg's school. The last day, we went to Crucita, where part of the last Rotary trip took place. I think I wrote a little about it earlier, but to refresh your memory: it's really great and looks like this:

12/25: Navidad
Christmas was a little weird for me. Everyone says that Christmas is hard, but they get through it because of the cool customs of the host country. Unfortunately, my host family decided not to celebrate Christmas this year. Christmas Eve, which is when they celebrate Christmas here, my family told me they'd take me out to eat that evening. So, the homesick me decided it would be a really good idea if I spent the afternoon listening to Christmas music from home and talking to friends from home on Facebook. I admit, I could have played that much, much better. That evening my host parents took me out to eat. They knew that I like pizza, and apparently had no qualms about pizza for Christmas dinner, so we went out to eat pizza. I had to remember that it was really, really sweet of them to do that for me when neither of them even likes pizza, but it was kind of rough. We went home afterwards and went to sleep and that was it. The next day, when I normally celebrate Christmas at home, I went to the beach all day with a bunch of my friends and we played soccer and frisbee and went swimming, then went to watch a movie at someone's house afterwards. It was the perfect day and I was so very thankful to have them to take my mind off being sad. Before I knew it, it was 26th, the holiday season was over, and I was just so relieved. 

12/31-1/1: Año nuevo
New Years here was a completely crazy experience for me. It was culture galore. Also it was warm, which was so strange for me. I have a tradition with my friend back home that at the stroke of midnight on New Years we run out into the snow barefoot. Needless to say, not so possible here. So culture! They burn giant paper mache dolls (año viejos - to represent the old year) at midnight, and it was so cool to look up and down the streets to see little fires all over. Also there are all sorts of things you can do to get good luck in the new year: eat 12 grapes on the 31st, wear yellow underwear when the year changes, or just wear yellow new years day. Also, if you walk in circles holding a suitcase on the 31st you'll travel in the new year. But back to what I did. Bazillions of people come from the mountains to the coast (specifically Bahia) for New Years, so the streets were packed. Everyone just wandered around, setting of fireworks, watching fireworks, burning año viejos, and just hanging out. That's what my friends and I did too, and somehow we managed to stay out until almost four doing that. As a sidenote, New Years came with a little bloodshed on my part as I ran into a trashcan trying to escape a firework after the fuse was lit. All turned out okay, but I certainly brought in the new year in a memorable way. 

1/3: School's Out!
So I'm in Ecuador, on the coast, which means school goes southern hemisphere style. So I came in the middle of the school year, then finished early January. I'll start up again (at a different school) in April. So yeah, I've got three months of break right now, which is beyond fabulous. My friends and I go to the beach, watch movies, go to the gym, take day trips to the big cities... And to top it off I start guitar lessons the first of February, and if I can convince my Rotary Club to let me, I'll get surf lessons too. 

1/7: Change of Host Family
One evening the Rotarians came and took me to the house of a family I had never met or spoken to in my life. I was so terrified. After living with them for more than four months, I knew my first host parents and they knew me. We had a good thing going. But when I arrived, my new family was so warm and welcoming. Introductions: my new mother is called Maria and my father Luis, but they insist that I call them mami and papi. I have a 9-year-old brother Josue who is probably the most adorable person on the planet. Here's a family photo:
Don't worry- you haven't lost your ability to count. There are indeed five people in that picture. That's Fabio, their first host son. I also have some cousins who are my age and are at the house all the time, so I've become pretty good friends with them. After more than two weeks with my host family, I've gotten into a rhythm here and no longer wonder why we always drive past the turn to my old house when we're going home. I adore my family and am very, very happy here. 


1/15: Fabio Leaves
I can't pretend to have been especially close with Fabio, but the day he left was still a landmark because now I'm the experienced one. In the beginning of February two more Brazilians will come, and we'll be the ones who know the language, who show them the ropes. When I first came it felt like Fabio had been living in Bahia forever, but it was just a month more than I'll have been here when the Brazilians come. I wonder - will I seem like I've been here forever? Will they think I know as much Spanish and as much about Bahia as it seemed Fabio knew when I came? Will it feel like I leave so soon after they arrive, like it seemed Fabio left such a short time after we came?  It seems crazy to me to think that the answer to any of those questions could be yes, but they probably are. Which is so crazy.

That brings me up to the present. Here are some things happening in the near future (I swear I'll keep it short)

1/25-1/27: Mompiche!
Yeah, January 25th is technically today, and in seven hours I'll be boarding a bus to Mompiche. Unfortunately, the thing about blogging is that is seems like once you start you can't stop, and once you stop you can't start up again. BUT. If you'll remember really really far back, Mompiche was where I had Spanish camp. It's a 5 star resort, and if you Google image Mompiche Decameron you'll discover that it's probably the most beautiful hotel on planet Earth. Yay.

1/29-2/2: AMAZONIA
Rotary trip to the Amazon rainforest. I'm so excited. Since I said I'd keep it short, here are some highlights I picked up from the schedule: piranha fishing in the Amazon river. night hike through the rainforest to find tarantulas. hanging out with some indigenous folks chatting with the shaman. And we do all this while living in a little village in the middle of the rainforest.

2/28-3/2: Uncle Paul!!
This is also an extremely exciting topic. My uncle is coming to work in Quito in March and beforehand he (and maybe my aunt) and I are going to spend a few days together!! We'll see a little of Bahia, then go off to bigger and better places. It should be legendary.

So! As you can see, I am living the life here. As far as I see it, I have every reason to be happy 100% of the time. I love my life.