Hola!
I have been in Ecuador for about a month and a half and have so many great memories to prove it. This month has been pretty low-key. I´m simply getting to know Riobamba, making new friends, and getting used to my new school. September went by so so fast!!! In the beginning of the month I attended a language camp in Quito where I got to meet my first group of exchange students. It felt so good to speak english for a little while!
I am finally starting to adjust and become comfortable in my new school, Colegio Jefferson. It is the complete opposite from my high school in Salem! Classes begin at 7:20, but my bus picks me up at 6:40, so early!! I usually have to run out the door with my breakfast in my hand. Before every day at school, we line up according to our grade and sing the national anthem, then they make us do jumping jacks and run a lap around the school (not so fun when you´re half asleep). The classes here are very short (only 45 minutes) but we have so many of them! Some of the classes I am taking are philosophy, history, geography, literature, economy, and english (I love that class!). I get to teach part of the english class which is very fun. I don´t really like how the professors teach, however. They simply read out of their textbooks and the students have to copy down word for word what they say, they hever explaing anything or have projects. Then right before tests everyone just memorizes everything in their notebooks, you don´t really learn anything. But I really love the social aspect of the school. The students are so friendly and I have made so many great friends here. Right now we are preparing for the inauguration of the sports. Each grade has to make their own uniform and on October 16th we compete with the other grades in several sports. We also vote for the girl who will be this years Señorita de Deportes (Queen of Sports).
On the weekends the whole city is one big party! My family gives me a lot of freedom as long as I tell them where I am going, call them if I have any problems, and don´t take taxis late at night because it isn´t really safe. On friday and saturday all the teenagers meet up at the Giralda which is a big plaza with places to eat and shop. I go out both with my friends from class and the other exchange students in Riobamba whom I´ve become very good friends with. On sundays I usually go out with my family, Las week we went to a town named Penipe where there was a big festival celebrating a saint. It was so much fun! They had an amazing parade where there were people dressed up as devils and people on horses and a huge statue of the saint in the back of a pick up truck. Everyone was drinking this traditional drink made of fermented corn. After the parade, the whole town walked over to the bull fighting arena where they lit an enormous bonfire. I already have established a very good relationship with my second host family (we only change host families once), so that will be a very easy transition.
On the 17th of October we take our first official trip with all of the exchange students to the coastal province of Manabi. We will stay there for five days and I get to visit the two exchange students from Ecuador who came to Oregon last year. I´m so excited!!
I am loving it here so much, everything is so new and exciting and I just can´t believe that this is going to be my life for a whole year. I´m so lucky!
Best wishes from Ecuador,
Alex
