This week has been way less exciting than the last. We have spent every day learning about each site that we potentially will be going to and meeting the counterparts of those sites. Everyday sitting in hard chairs and listening to Spanish for hours on end is exhausting. It was interesting to learn about the different sites… ranging from a community with 17 families (and solely canoe access) to a group of communities with a total population of 35,000. Some communities are in the coastal area, some in the amazon, some in the north near Columbia, others in the south on the boarder with Peru. The wait is almost over: we find out on Tuesday where we will live for our time as volunteers. I can’t wait to know where I’m headed.

We have also spent this week learning about HIV/AIDS. It has been quite interesting to learn more about the disease and the difference in treatment between countries. Here in Ecuador a patient is not able to get drug treatment for HIV until he has a white blood count of less than 200. In the US that number is 500. It is amazing the differences in information people receive not only in other countries but also within the US. The trainees come from different parts of the US and obviously have very different experience and on certain topics, had been taught completely different ideas.

On the way home on the bus this afternoon, I realized that I am never going to get over how BEAUTIFUL this country is. Seriously breathtaking. The rolling mountains and the farms on the side of hills.

A couple other random comments: natural peanut butter is cheap here and its actually really good. It’s also really good on animal crackers. I woke up before my alarm this morning. My alarm was set for 5:30am. I still hate the morning but its getting easier to wake up before the sun. Also: roosters don’t crow at daybreak. They actually crow whenever they want. There are a lot of gringos in this country but not necessarily with PC. Sometimes an order of chicken nuggets or a tuna sandwich is necessary, even if it means spending $2.10 on lunch (how expensive!).

Today we had a session entitled ¨Love and Sex¨. Essentially it discussed the differences between US and Ecuadorian culture in regards to relationship and also the pros and cons to having an inter-cultural relationship. The lady discussed the history of the two regions and it made a lot of sense as to why relationships and life in general are different in the two countries. A couple of the best quotes of the discussion (in English for all): ¨long distance lovers = four happy people¨and ¨the best way to learn a language is to sleep with a good dictionary.¨ and clearly ¨that´s how men are.¨ Overall it was very informative... even if it did diminish my desires to have an ecuadorian novio.

Up for the weekend includes laundry (it’s been way too long), chilling with the family, and hopefully learning some Spanish before our language progress test on Monday.

Finally: write me! If you need my address let me know… but I really would like to get something in the mail! Small gifts (magazines/books, writing pens, markers, Swedish fish/other snacks, or crystal light/other drink mixes) weighing less than 4lbs are always welcomed and appreciated greatly. Or just a quick email to say hi would be sufficient!


--Stacie