Living The Good Life

My husband. Yeah, that's right. Dave is a working man now. The art teacher at IA has left on maternity leave and Dave has become the art teacher extraordinaire . He will be filling this position until mid-February (Ecuadorian law provides three months paid maternity leave). Our conversations now deal with lesson planning, rubrics, and when grades are due. What does Dave say about this change in his Ecuadorian lifestyle? "Finally! I can join in on the conversations with you, your mom, Aunt Juli, and Aunt Sherry this Christmas!" Oh, let the fun begin. :)

One could say that the past few weeks have been a bit of a struggle for me here in Ecuador. The realities of life have caught up with me and the fact that this is not merely an extended vacation has settled in. To put it simply, I've been homesick. I miss my family, my friends, and my city. Each day thoughts of everything that I have been missing ran through my head on a constant loop cycle (see previous post) and this list of things that I can't wait to see and do have become a sort of mantra, repeated over and over for anyone willing to listen (thank you Dave). I was walking to my classroom building last Thursday as I glanced up from the memos I had just received and caught a glance at the hills that surround the school. They are beautiful and beginning to flourish with new growth. Imagine my surprise as the thought, "I love it here," ran through my head. I stopped, stunned at what I had just been telling myself in light of the homesick tune I had been singing for w...

David and I bought our tickets to the states for Christmas vacation yesterday. Needless to say....I can't wait. Things I am counting down the days for: * Maxi's Pizza * Java's Bowl of Soul * A consistently hot shower * The ability to wear a sweater every now and again * Tillamook Cheddar cheese (preferably accompanied by frito's and chili) * A meal at the Falcon Tavern * Blake to show me "somefing" * Small group catching-up * Actually being able to flush toilet paper down the toilet * REI and Target shopping extravaganza * Laughing with the Miller/Silvers/Hall/Damon ladies * Pretzels * Ice cubes * Not seeing even one ant within in a 24 hour time span. * Road Rides on Ronnie ahhhhh (deep sigh of anticipation) Only 72 more days...

Dave and I are going into our third month of living in Ecuador. It is hard to believe that the months have gone by so quickly, but the evidence is everywhere. Parent-teacher conferences are next week, Christmas decorations have already hit the stores throughout Guayaquil, and Dave and I have established routines that have made us realize we actually live here and are not just visiting. The fact that life in Ecuador is beginning to feel "normal" is comforting and unsettling at the same time. Do ants crawling along the edge of my plate, or through the dessert I am about to order at the nearby bakery, bother me? No-that is just life in Ecuador, you flick and move on. But on the other hand, when and how in the world did I get used to that ?! Ants back home would ensure the food would be in the garbage. See what I mean? Comforting because I no longer lose my appetite when ants want to have their own little nibble. Unsettling because I can't believe how wasteful I tended to be ...

Finally, I was able to experience a typical "Dave Day" here in Ecuador. I wanted to know exactly what Dave spends his time doing while I am off slaving away during the week. So, what is a typical day in the life of Dave? I found out that it is a day that is filled with bus adventures, people watching, and a lot of walking. Dave and I left our gated community for the busy streets of Guayaquil on Saturday morning. He was armed with his handy-dandy spy camera , and I was armed with my purell hand sanitizer. We caught the ChongGong bus headed towards the city and our day officially began. Oh, the things we did see! Here are some of the highlights: 1. Party balloon truck. Awesome. 2. Iguana Rumble. I wish we caught a picture, but they are quick little buggers. You will just have to let your imagination take you to the Lizard WWF that we witnessed. 3. The Bahia: Ecuador's Black Market. You will be able to find absolutely anything you can imagine in this district, at any price. ...

I know that it has been awhile since I have written a "real" post, but Ecuador has kept me one busy chick-a-dee. I think I've made up for it with this last one. Warning---it's long, but there are pictures. Read it in doses if you must. :)

Field trips, I'm pretty familiar with them. During my 12 year career as a public school student and my four previous years of teaching middle school, I have been on my share of visits to the local zoo, government buildings, cultural centers, and city parks. When I arrived at InterAmerican Academy and they told me that I would be chaperoning a "field trip" for my advisory class, which happens to be a class full of eleven year olds, I readily agreed. I mean, how hard can it be? Foolish, foolish Danielle. Apparently, in Ecuador a field trip is not your typical quick little trip to Guayaquil for the day. Oh no. It is a four-day adventure out in the middle of nowhere. Did I mention I was in charge of a group of 13 sixth graders? Yes, there was an initial bout of panic, but I quickly got over it and began to prepare for this new adventure. Another teacher and I were in charge of taking the kids to Bucay, Ecuador, a little village that sits right at the base of the Andes Mountai...