February 2012
6 posts
January 2012
17 posts
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Tonight I took a bubble bath, relaxed, and read some of this new book I started. Now I am going to watch some Jeopardy and then start back on my homework. I love having time for myself and organizing my life. Yay!
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Time for Myself
I need to start taking more time for myself. I realized that I really don’t have any hobbies and for that matter barely any time for myself to do what I like. With a full course load I feel like all I do is homework, drive, go to class, read, and sleep. So going forward with the rest of this week I am going to take at least a half an hour to shut my brain down and do something I like....
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The End of Salasaca Trip
So after we had all received our cuy cleansing we were then scheduled to be cleansed again but this time by plants on a mountain overlooking the city. We were running out of time so we ended up driving our van up the bumpy road to the top of the lookout. It was a bumpy ride and I was glad to have brought my sweatshirt because it was sure windy. The view was beautiful though.
We huddled around...
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“www.iie.org/gilman”
– I created this blog not only to document my experiences abroad, but it was a part of my follow-on project for my Gilman scholarship. Now for those of you who don’t know what the Gilman scholarship is it is a program that provides awards to undergraduates who study abroad. There are some...
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Becoming One with my Indigenous Side.
That night proved to be somewhat of a flop because we were supposed to have a demonstration of their music but there was an event going on of an opening of a community center on top of a hill overlooking the town. However, when we got there all there was was a bunch of people yelling and arguing in Quichua so we decided to leave before we got caught into something more than we intended. I was...
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Arriving in Salasaca
We drove to the small town of Salasaca which was about 20 minutes outside of Ambato. We pulled up to our hostel, a clustered house on a spread out piece of property with dogs, sheep, hand-made goods, weavers, and plants.
We picked our rooms and conveniently Nick and I were put together. They gave us some time for nap/relax, wasn’t that what the drive was for? Oh well I spent some time...
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On our way to Salasaca, second to last trip.
For my last weekend on the mainland of Ecuador I guess you could say (my real last weekend was in the Galapagos) I went to Salasaca as a trip provided through our program of OUS. It was an overnight trip so we left early Saturday morning and came back to Quito Sunday night. That morning I had my bag packed and caught a taxi with Braden, a kid from the program who lived on the same street as me. We...
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I have something to say about all the comments...
So here’s the deal, there are a lot of bad reviews out there about Ecuador because of the danger and robberies. I fell victim to these responses before going to Ecuador because as I read them I thought they would for sure happen to me. Sprayed by ketchup and mustard while someone takes my purse (yes that was one of the stories) or mugged in a taxi. However, here’s the thing that I...
2012
I have big hopes for 2012. Its the year I turn 22 (my favorite number). Hopefully, the year I finally graduate from college. I hope to travel some in 2012 and continue my desire to learn and know other parts of the world.
I’m ready for you 2012, be good to me!
December 2011
26 posts
Back to the U S of A
So I have neglected to post for awhile, my apologies. I have been taking my time to settle back in with all my stuff that is in huge piles scattered throughout my room because I don’t know what to do with all this stuff I forgot about for four months. We had long layovers and three flights to get home, basically 24 hours of flying. But we made it home safely, thankfully. I never really took...
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The End.
Here it is. The day that I thought would never come. The day that I have to leave this beautiful country. It was a little over four months ago that I arrived in this beautiful country of Ecuador with no idea of what to expect, and quite honestly I was terrified (I thought I would get robbed almost immediately). In the beginning, I was overwhelmed by a big city and uncertain of what I would...
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What I'm Going to Miss...
My host dad’s cheerful and exaggerated greeting every time he sees me.
My host mom’s delicious cooking.
Being part of a family unit.
The beautiful landscape.
The culture.
The Spanish.
Cheap and delicious food.
My host mom’s tough love and seemingly helpful advice about things I don’t even tell her about.
Cheap public transportation.
There are so many things that I...
“People, even more than things, have to be restored, renewed, revived, reclaimed,...”
– Audrey Hepburn (via quote-book)
Interesting that I see this now…
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Gringa en la Ciudad.: I can belong anywhere. →
veranoenlaciudad:
You can belong anywhere.
Because you’ve mastered the art of fake smiles, and which fork to use, and what questions to ask about their childhood.
Because you know how to correctly fold the sheets with the stretchy corners.
Because you know when to laugh at their bad jokes, but more…
“To those who stay put, the world is but an imaginary place. But to the movers,...”
– (via elizabethannef)
“Somewhere weakness is our strength.”
– “Let The Flames Begin” by Paramore | via lyric-oneliners (via quote-book)
“I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can...”
– Marilyn Monroe (via quote-book)
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Bullfights... Controversial to say the least
Bullfights are an essential part of the Fiestas de Quito which start at the end of November and last until the 6th of December in order to commemorate the founding of the city in 1534. There are nine days of bullfights held at the Plaza de Toros in Quito. However, this was the first year that the killing of the bull in the arena was made illegal. On May 7, 2011, Rafael Correa’s referendum...
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“Maybe life isn’t as bad as it’s painted to be. It’s all about your point of view...”
– (via dreaming-and-wishing)
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45 Powerful Images of 2011 →
Wow, what beautiful work. Check out these AMAZING images from 2011!
So its about time that I write about my weekend in the Amazon. Sorry its taken so long, I have been quite busy with school lately. So last weekend myself, Crystal, and a new addition Michael made our way to the Amazon, Tena in particular. The bus ride was super easy. We just caught one to Tena right outside of the university. It was about a 4 hour bus ride and we arrived right as the day was...
November 2011
30 posts
6 more days of classes.
2 days of finals.
14 days until the Galapagos.
22 days until I go back to the U.S.
I hate to be counting the days, but WOW! I can’t believe this wonderful journey is quickly coming to an end.