day five- the complaints

It's a bit odd having someone else try to find you a place to live. I love my host family, but their idea of "nice" is much different than mine. They seem dead set against me living in Quito, and not enthused about the same places that I am, and yet they are the ones setting up the appointments and who will negotiate for me. A certain portion of my experience of living with a host family for me has been one of powerlessness. I can't leave the house on my own, they don't have a car, we are miles from anywhere, there isn't much food, and I can't communicate or research getting an apartment very well. And my pillows are both lumpy and hard.

Alas- I broke down Monday and got a taxi after school to get groceries for Uma and I as it seems that they are always "going to go to the market tomorrow" and it was getting dire. It was after I laid in bed one night- starving- and tried to fall asleep as they were just beginning their dinner at 11:00pm- with a lumpy pillow. All this said, they are lovely people- truly lovable- it just sucks not being able to take care of things for yourself. (However, someone at school sent me a posting today what might be my perfect place to live today- more info on that is forthcoming hopefully.)

Coming back to school on Monday after the weekend, I had to learn to navigate the labyrinth hallways of the school all over again. It is massive. All of the classrooms in the elementary are in open courtyards- I get a whiff of the most gorgeous tropical flowers as I speed-walk by, trying to get everything organized while running to meetings. Remembering everyone's names is a real struggle too. Most everyone goes by two names- like Maria Jose, but then there are so many Maria Joses that you have to learn their third names too.

I finally got the "complete meal" at the cafeteria today and it was incredible. I got a delicious soup with some variety of yummy yellow potatoes garnished with avocado, a plate of chicken and rice, a salad with all kinds of weird things (including ham which they are CRAZY about here), a corn muffin, and a huge glass of guava juice for $2.50. That was certainly a highlight of the day.

I'm finding that although the principal and director are really on board with my particular teaching philosophy and practices, much of the staff is in another realm entirely. There are worksheets everywhere- EVERYWHERE. All of the teachers are running to the lamination office- where someone's full time job is laminating and color copying for teachers- and making bulletin boards that say cheesy things like "Everyone's a star!" or "The sky's the limit!" or something dorky like that.

I have to keep reminding myself that I was hired to teach the way I told them I taught, and not to get caught up with all of their textbooks and worksheets. Hopefully, the Ecuadorian parents will see value in inquiry and constructivism and not see my lack of worksheets as a weakness.

Another interesting thing is there are a whole fleet of "workers" at the school who stand out because they are wearing a kind of airplane command control attire. They are the ones who move things, clean things, etc. It's odd because they are equally men and women, and the women are just so beautiful. I just can't seem to figure out the class system thing here yet. Everyone seems really respectful and friendly to each other, but there is a clear distinction.

Lastly- Uma is doing wonderful. Her daycare before school begins is entirely in Spanish and I can just see her mind reeling. She has been exhausted from all of the mental processing and the altitude but is as well adjusted as I could have hoped for. Soon she will begin her Pre'K which will be in English, but most of her classmates will only really know Spanish. Then her afternoons in aftercare will be in Spanish again...it's only a matter of time before she surpasses me in- I give her a month at most. I can't wait for her to teach me!

quito!

Today my host family gave Uma and I a tour of the city. We packed seven people into a tiny vehicle and went to explore the mega-tropolis known as Quito.My host family is wonderful- they live in a beautiful house filled with windows overlooking the Cumbaya-Tumbaco valley. The view is spectacular. They are multi-generational- it is the grandparent's house we live in, along with two of their children, a son-in-law (who Uma adores), and one of their grandchildren...with other assorted children and grandchildren popping by frequently. Yesterday, on Saturday, we took it super easy and just went out for ice cream in a super fancy plaza loaded with beautiful and rich people. It was okay, but as most of you know, I like things a bit grittier. I was excited to see how the other half lives today in Quito.

The area that I am "supposed" to like, near Carolina Parque, I found to be rather dull. So many people told me it is the place to look-perhaps it was because it was Sunday and many businesses were closed, but there just wasn't much going on. The big draw seemed to be that there are 3 malls nearby and that does nothing for me. The park itself I am sure we would love, so I will give it a second look if I find a good furnished apartment. The "old town" on the other hand was fascinating and beautiful and I can't wait to explore it more, it is way too far from Cumbaya to live, but I imagine I will be going back frequently. It is like stepping back in time- tiny streets with ancient buildings, lively squares, women in traditional dress and multitudes of secret alleyways. We went to see the famous winged Virgin statue in Old Town which took my breath away. As soon as I get my own place, I will get a replica and place it at the center of my alter.

Finally, we saw Guapulo, which I had a feeling I was going to love as I read it had yoga, dance, coffee, and it was considered "hippy". Wow. It was gorgeous-windy narrow roads that hugged the mountainside with amazing artistic graffiti and murals sprinkled about and a gorgeous church. It was the first place I felt like I could truly live and be happy. That said, I should be able to live anywhere and be happy, I just want to be inspired by my surroundings. Hopefully, it will all become clear in the next week or so....

Our first day...

Uma and I arrived, safe and sound, in Quito last night. We were several hours late and I was so worried our host family might not be there to pick us up, but they were waiting for us with smiles and sweetness. I had woken up at 3am for the day of travelling and had only about 4 hours of sleep until going to school for the first time.

I had no idea today would be the parent orientation day, and I'm sure those parents thought I looked real good (not). Luckily, it was almost all in Spanish, so I just had to wave and smile, and you all know I'm pretty good at that even when I'm totally sleep deprived and out of my head. My principal took a long time with me today as well , she was very interested in my experience and my ideas, and was also super comforting and sweet.

The most excellent news was- they had just decided to delay the opening of school for a whole week(no- not just for me, but it felt like such a blessing). This has totally saved me from utter madness- as I arrived after midnight Thursday and school was schedules to start Monday. Thank you goddess! Now I can actually set up my classroom and think about how I want the year to go.....

So today was a whirlwind of meeting dozens of new people, receiving tons of cheek kisses, and trying to wrap my head around their particular curriculums, philosophies, and values while also doing a zillion administrative things like setting up a bank, getting a phone, etc. The good news is that everyone I met today was super warm and friendly, and that Uma was having a fine time with all the staff kids. We got back to our host family's home today and Uma fell asleep immediately, before 4pm. This has been such a crazy couple of weeks. I think I'm almost ready for sleep too.

Our big task is now to find our dream home- I am imagining a gorgeous view, somewhere that is beautiful and safe, and quiet yet near lots of interesting things. I want really friendly neighbors who are fun,kids nearby for Uma to play with, and parks nearby to frolic within. A refuge with cultural perks. Shouldn't be too hard.....

uma and claire

In Flight

Uma and I are flying today to Quito! The ten days or so leading up to our departure were absolutely nuts. I hit the ground running each morning, like a headless chicken, trying to organize our lives for the adventure while storing the rest of our possessions at a number of generous friend's homes. It was madness. Having a child multiplies your consumption quotient considerably. But alas, with help from dear friends ( you know who you are!) I was able to pull it off and get our butts on a plane the day after receiving our visas.
It's bittersweet- knowing in my heart that we have left a beautiful community of friends who truly love and support us in so many ways. Yet also knowing in my gut that this is the perfect opportunity for us to become bilingual and to gain international experience teaching. In my own little happy mantra world, I do remind myself often that everything really does just keep getting better.
So we will arrive tonight and hopefully someone will pick us up and bring us to someone else's house where we are going to hunker down for a small while as we look for a place of our own. Tomorrow when we wake up it will be Friday, and school starts on Monday. With all of the mad packing done in the last ten days, thinking about the classroom has taken second fiddle. Now that our life is whittled down to 4 bags, I need to put some serious thought into out first week of school. Wish us luck! The adventure begins!