Hey everyone!
I cannot believe that tomorrow is October 1st. It seems as though time is flying by! Now that I am in a routine and my day is scheduled, the days just seem to fly by.
These past three days were spent out at a camp with my students. We were an hour and a half east of Coch in the mountains. It was really cold, but the weather reminded me of being home in New England during the fall. Although it was cold, it was nice to be out of the city and in the fresh air. I spent one night on a mountain after a pretty intense hike with my students. I enjoyed myself, but it was definitely hard to hike at such a high altitude! I was sucking wind pretty hard.
Since we had camp for the past few days, we have tomorrow off! I am looking forward to a long weekend full of relaxation. Some of the other teachers are going on a weekend trip, but I am too exhausted to go with them! Not to mention I am sick of riding in a bus...
Otherwise, life is great here in Bolivia. I feel as though this is home for now, and I am content with how things are going so far. Of course I miss things about home...mostly food. Just kidding, I miss family and friends as well! But I know that I am here for a reason and that God wants me here, so everything will work out for the best.
-Sarah
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
One month down...
Hey All,
I can't believe that it has been over a month since I arrived here in Bolivia! Time seems to be flying by, and now that we are in a schedule everything is going very smoothly. There have been some bumps along the way, but overall our time down here has been nothing but great!
Teaching has actually come fairly naturally to me. I am really enjoying my time in school, and all my fellow teachers are great. We all go out to dinner every Friday, so it has been really nice to get to know everybody, as well as get to know various restaurants around Cochabamba! Everyone here is super nice, and a lot of fun. I cannot ask for a better work environment or peers!
Last week I had my first Bolivian hospital experience. It was not as bad as I expected. For a few days I had been feeling really bad, running a fever, and experiencing some GI upset. After a couple days of not going to work, I decided to head to the doctor, just to make sure I didn't have anything nasty, like parasites or amoebas. I headed into the emergency room, which was pretty much just 3 beds surrounded by curtains. The doctors were all very nice, and decided that I was dehydrated, and needed an IV to help remedy the situation. They were not sure if I had parasites, but I took some antibiotic that I had brought from home, and now I am as good as new. So no worries, I have not contracted parasites or amoebas...which I am of course very excited about.
Last weekend I also went to La Cancha, which is the largest market in Cochabamba. You can pretty much get anything you would ever want or need there, but the quality sometimes is somewhat suspect. It was really crowded, but a lot of fun, and I got a few "important" items there. I got a Wilsterman soccer jersey (one of the teams here in Coch), a futbol, and a new pair of shoes. Overall, it was a really fun experience. If any of you come to visit (hint, hint!) I will definitely take you there!
Well I should sign off, its almost time to Skype with my parents. Isn't modern technology awesome? Hope you are all doing well, thanks for keeping up with me and this amazing adventure that I am on!
-Sarah
I can't believe that it has been over a month since I arrived here in Bolivia! Time seems to be flying by, and now that we are in a schedule everything is going very smoothly. There have been some bumps along the way, but overall our time down here has been nothing but great!
Teaching has actually come fairly naturally to me. I am really enjoying my time in school, and all my fellow teachers are great. We all go out to dinner every Friday, so it has been really nice to get to know everybody, as well as get to know various restaurants around Cochabamba! Everyone here is super nice, and a lot of fun. I cannot ask for a better work environment or peers!
Last week I had my first Bolivian hospital experience. It was not as bad as I expected. For a few days I had been feeling really bad, running a fever, and experiencing some GI upset. After a couple days of not going to work, I decided to head to the doctor, just to make sure I didn't have anything nasty, like parasites or amoebas. I headed into the emergency room, which was pretty much just 3 beds surrounded by curtains. The doctors were all very nice, and decided that I was dehydrated, and needed an IV to help remedy the situation. They were not sure if I had parasites, but I took some antibiotic that I had brought from home, and now I am as good as new. So no worries, I have not contracted parasites or amoebas...which I am of course very excited about.
Last weekend I also went to La Cancha, which is the largest market in Cochabamba. You can pretty much get anything you would ever want or need there, but the quality sometimes is somewhat suspect. It was really crowded, but a lot of fun, and I got a few "important" items there. I got a Wilsterman soccer jersey (one of the teams here in Coch), a futbol, and a new pair of shoes. Overall, it was a really fun experience. If any of you come to visit (hint, hint!) I will definitely take you there!
Well I should sign off, its almost time to Skype with my parents. Isn't modern technology awesome? Hope you are all doing well, thanks for keeping up with me and this amazing adventure that I am on!
-Sarah
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Time for another blog!
Hi Everyone!
It has been a few weeks since I last posted...and a lot has happened since! After a whirlwind weekend following our arrival, the following Monday brought us to school. Rachel and I are both teaching at this point (although the first week we just observed) and have been teaching for two weeks so far. Rachel is teaching 3rd grade in the mornings, and I am teaching 7th and 8th grade science and math. I am enjoying my new job as a teacher so far, and it has been a pretty smooth transition, which I appreciate! My 7th graders seem so little, and they are a great group. My 8th graders are completely different from the 7th graders and it is so crazy how much one grade changes students attitudes! They are not as "motivated' as the 7th graders, so trying to get them excited about what we are learning has been a challenge.
Life in Bolivia has been good so far. We have learned all about public transportation, and Rachel and I have even taken a taxi and a trufi (a 14 passenger van with a set route) by ourselves at this point...something which we are quite proud of. I have begun weekly Spanish lessons with a tutor at our school so hopefully my Spanish will improve. It helps living with a Bolivian, because Hadit barely speaks English. So I generally resort to broken (and incorrect I am sure!) Spanish. But at least I am practicing right?
I have also really enjoyed getting to know my co-workers. Every Friday we typically go out for dinner, and I am having fun getting to know them, as well as new restaurants in Cochabamba. Last week we went out to a Chinese food place, and despite my worries about a Chinese restaurant in Bolivia, the food was great. The chicken spring rolls were amazing! The food in general here is fantastic. We have gotten to try a few Bolivia dishes, and so far my favorite is Sillpancho. It is basically really thin, breaded meat, which is fried, placed over rice and french fries, and topped with a fried egg. It is delicious, and something about it reminds me of steak and eggs back home.
Overall, life down here is good. Please pray for my students, and that I would be able to connect with them and be able to be an effective teacher. Also, please pray for continued health. Yesterday I was out of commission with some stomach issues and a fever. I am feeling slightly better today, but pray that we would not get anything too bad while we are here. Pray for the continued health of my co-workers...a few of them are recovering from parasite infections and other sickness.
Thanks for reading and keep in touch!
-Sarah
It has been a few weeks since I last posted...and a lot has happened since! After a whirlwind weekend following our arrival, the following Monday brought us to school. Rachel and I are both teaching at this point (although the first week we just observed) and have been teaching for two weeks so far. Rachel is teaching 3rd grade in the mornings, and I am teaching 7th and 8th grade science and math. I am enjoying my new job as a teacher so far, and it has been a pretty smooth transition, which I appreciate! My 7th graders seem so little, and they are a great group. My 8th graders are completely different from the 7th graders and it is so crazy how much one grade changes students attitudes! They are not as "motivated' as the 7th graders, so trying to get them excited about what we are learning has been a challenge.
Life in Bolivia has been good so far. We have learned all about public transportation, and Rachel and I have even taken a taxi and a trufi (a 14 passenger van with a set route) by ourselves at this point...something which we are quite proud of. I have begun weekly Spanish lessons with a tutor at our school so hopefully my Spanish will improve. It helps living with a Bolivian, because Hadit barely speaks English. So I generally resort to broken (and incorrect I am sure!) Spanish. But at least I am practicing right?
I have also really enjoyed getting to know my co-workers. Every Friday we typically go out for dinner, and I am having fun getting to know them, as well as new restaurants in Cochabamba. Last week we went out to a Chinese food place, and despite my worries about a Chinese restaurant in Bolivia, the food was great. The chicken spring rolls were amazing! The food in general here is fantastic. We have gotten to try a few Bolivia dishes, and so far my favorite is Sillpancho. It is basically really thin, breaded meat, which is fried, placed over rice and french fries, and topped with a fried egg. It is delicious, and something about it reminds me of steak and eggs back home.
Overall, life down here is good. Please pray for my students, and that I would be able to connect with them and be able to be an effective teacher. Also, please pray for continued health. Yesterday I was out of commission with some stomach issues and a fever. I am feeling slightly better today, but pray that we would not get anything too bad while we are here. Pray for the continued health of my co-workers...a few of them are recovering from parasite infections and other sickness.
Thanks for reading and keep in touch!
-Sarah
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