Picture Website

Instead of posting slideshows that take forever to upload...go to this link to see my photos :)

Picasa Web Albums

Also check this video out. We watched Happy Feet last week and so far the only English command that these kids know is "Dance like a penguin"...sorry Ecuadorian parents--I'm new.

por fin

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Hello everyone, I have been very busy this past week but will be sure to post more pictures this week as I am giving English exams and pretty much have the week to correct and get grades entered. It should take me two days...MAX. So the pictures you see above are from the day we had swimming class at a local swimming school. It was their last day (that was why all the parents were taking pictures). I also posted a picture of my new room! Enjoy!

busy, busy, busy

Note-today is my first day with internet I actually wrote this on saturday!

I have completed four days of class at CEDEI School. I really haven't done much, observations, helping where needed, and playing obo-shin-oton-totton...you know, the usual day in the life of eLo.

I promised I would post pictures, so here they are! I only took a few so far of my classroom. Rest assured, there's more to come. Internet at the hostel is very slow so I am staying in tonight while the rest of the gringos are out partying to steal some bandwith!

	View Slideshow

Today we had an open house for the parents. Only one kid/parent duo showed up to my English class on "opposites". Fat, eesskiiiny, taul, shor...etc. i love cuenca accents.

I am posting a video of my room at the hostel. Tomorrow I am moving into a room in a big house where a lot of international English teachers live...i am paying 30 dollars less to live in this hostal for a week than is my monthly rent in my new place :/ Oh well, asi es la vida.

Also if you have skype names make sure you let me know what they are so that someday when I get reliable internet we can talk!! :)

i have arrived!

I arrived safely in Cuenca today. I left MSP yesterday at about 9:30am and arrived in Quito, the capital, at 12:00 midnight. I had arranged for an airport pickup, which was great because the plane was supposed to get in at 11:05. So I am glad I had a ride to the hostel still!! The driver was really nice and he wrote my name on a sign and everything--very official. So basically I just went to the hostel for some sleep (hostel casa kanela in Quito--would recommend) and some breakfast because I left this morning at 8:45.

I flew from Quito (9500 ft) to Guayaquil (0ft) to Cuenca(9000ft) and arrived with some altitude sickness. No problem though, I slept it off and am going to take it easy for the next few days. I start at the school on Wednesday and will be sure to post some pictures as well as let you know how it is going. It hasn't hit me yet that I am here! I am making an appearance at the orf tomorrow and can't wait to see all the girls and my friend santiago!

So stay tuned, I will post pictures asap! Cuidense todos! (take care everyone!)
eLo

Chicago

I know I said I wouldn't post until I got to Ecuador but I am posting anyway. These pictures are from my "visa run" to Chicago a few days ago.

getting everything together

This is my first entry in my new Ecuador blog! I am planning on updating this much more than I did on my last trip/blog.

So I graduated from UMD this weekend and it feels great to be done with undergrad! I am excited to move on and experience more of the world. I am really going to miss Duluth though, well, the summertime. I am glad I won't have to endure any more Duluth winters! Most of all, I think that the transition from college life to "real world" life will be a challenge, especially not being able to see friends and classmates everyday. But, así es la vida...such is life.

Anyway, in case you are curious...I leave for Ecuador June 7th and return July of 2010. I will be living in Cuenca, the same town I studied in fall of 2007 through CEDEI. I essentially made a 13 month commitment, which for me is a big deal. I think that I will not only be able to teach my students a lot, but also learn a lot about myself--that's the plan anyway.

In order for me to teach in Ecuador for a year I must get a VIII Cultural Exchange visa. For this visa, the majority of documents that you need are going to be sent to you by someone who works (usually a lawyer) for the school to which you will be employed (if working as an EFL teacher). You have to then mail those documents along with a your passport, a doctor's note, and a background check. I will have to go down to Chicago for a meeting at the Embassy as I leave in 17 days...the plus side is that I will have my visa in hand before I leave the meeting so that cuts out a lot of stress of having to wait for it in the mail.

Here's the school's website that I will be teaching at (it hasn't been updated in a few years but you get the picture): CEDEI School. I will be filling in for a teacher that is returning back to the states for a little over a month and then doing some odd jobs until the school year starts back up again in September. The students are very young 4-7 and I imagine that it will be a sort of Ecuadorian "Club Care" (an after school/summer program that I have spent the past few summers working at with 1st and 2nd graders).

If you are interested in learning more about Ecuador, please visit these links:
you tube video: Ecuador, life at it's purest
wikipedia: Ecuador

That's all for now. Next time I update, I will be in Ecuador!

Cuidense todos (take care everybody!),
e.Lo