Nick & the Tour, 7/17//2012

After a good night's sleep and a shower, I felt refreshed for the first full day at Hacienda Cusin. The meals have been extraordinary. Breakfast is a served buffet, and lunch and dinner are cloth napkin, three course events. Each day we have a new fruit juice to try: pineapple, tree tomato, and raspberry.

Class went well yesterday. Some of the information was a review from previous courses, but it was a good refresher. We also had some thought provoking activities regarding our racial identity. Then we were asked to draw what we value in day to day life. I drew Bri and Mia in our house. I also drew Mom, Dad, Tommy, and Elizabeth. I thought it was funny that my picture was so similar to what I drew as a kid: family, house, pet. I suppose the most important aspects of my life have remained the same.

We also discussed various counseling skills, and my classmates made references to their current jobs. I found myself wondering how happy I would be in their careers: social worker, preschool teacher, case manager, or working with autistic children. I am trying to keep my options open for what to do with my degree instead of pigeon-holing myself into being a school counselor.

Nick, the British owner of the Hacienda, gave us a tour of the 30 acre grounds with a detailed history. At the end, he invited no more than ten people to join him for tea. I was one of seven who stayed. Nick was sharing stories about his former teaching career, and I felt that love of teaching spark inside of me for the first time in quite a while. I started thinking about how so much of our happiness comes from our perspective. During the tour, Nick showed us two side-by-side paintings that were created by two travelers while passing through Ecuador. One man was very religious and seemed to paint as though God was in the mountains and the lake. The other saw something different; his painting was a mix of the landscape of his home in Europe and the actual landscape in Ecuador.

Overall, an excellent day!

(Side Note: I'm typing this on the bus. An ambulance just went by on a windy two lane road, and no one pulled over. They all kept moving and just pulled closer to the shoulder. It's so interesting to see how the traffic, seemingly chaotic, works. It's as though everyone works together without being competitive about who should be ahead.)

7/16/2012

- I had my first glimpses of Quito, Ecuador today. Globalization was apparent through the food establishments and car dealerships that I saw in the city as our taxi driver zipped between cars and through round-a-bouts.
- Hotel Quito has a gorgeous view of the mountains, houses, and buildings in the city. The majority of the day was spent in the seventh floor dining area where we had lunch and worked on assignments.
- I realized how shaky and minimal my Spanish is today.

One Week

One week until departure. I have my lists: items to pack, items to buy, and assignments to complete. My one week course begins tomorrow and continues until Friday. Then I have Saturday to finish everything up before heading out on Sunday...

let's do this.