Week 3

¡Buenos Días!
Oh, how the time flies! The past week has been very full and exciting! I will try to pick up where I left off last time.

On Friday, January 30th I went on a tour of the Centro Historico in Quito with my classmates. It was guided by CIMAS staff and it was very interesting! The Centro Historico is the older part of the city where the Spanish conquistadors settled. There are churches on nearly every corner and they are all very elaborate. We walked down a street called La Ronda, which is closed to traffic and has a lot of restaurants and artesian shops. The upper levels of the buildings are lined with balconies that are absolutely beautiful. Walking down this street at night is like walking in a movie scene! We also went to the Presidential Palace, where the President actually conducts some of his business! Outside the palace is a plaza where a lot of the Ecuadorian people gather. It is neat to see such a strong sense of community with the government.

As it turns out, I didn’t go to the reggaetón concert with my sister. A few weeks ago she and a few of her friends bought a discoteca so she was busy getting that started up. I have been there quite a few times now and it is a lot of fun! Instead on Saturday the 31st I went to a town called Papallacta (pronounced Papa-yata) with 9 of my friends from school. Papallacta is famous for its hot springs, which are heated by a volcano! It was like being in a natural hot tub. =) We also went on a hike along the river in a valley. It was very refreshing!
Last Friday morning (the 6th) I had an informal interview at the hospital Pablo Arturo Suárez, one of the best hospitals in Quito. The interview was for my internship that I will be starting in March. It went really well and if I want to, I have the opportunity to work there! I still want to look into going to another town, though, but I am having a hard time deciding where I want to go. The work that I do in my internship will be similar no matter where I go. Any input?
On Saturday, Feb. 7th I went to a town called Riobamba with my mom, Bertha. We went for a reunion with her friends from high school. I had thought it would be awkward, but it turned out to be a lot of fun! When we arrived in Riobamba we went to a nice mass (they graduated from a Catholic school) and then ate a big lunch. It was delicious! After that we went to a Catholic school to celebrate their reunion, and also the 93rd birthday of Madre Calidad, the nun that founded their school! The ceremony/celebration was very nice. The ladies were so joyful! On the way home we drove past a volcano that is still active and it was emitting smoke! What a sight to see!

I apologize for not updating very often…I will try to do better! I am still not able to upload photos directly onto the blog, so I apologize for that. Look below for some links to the photos on my facebook page:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2023155&id=1178730191&l=76f54
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2023326&id=1178730191&l=2561f

This weekend I am going on a big trip with a few of my classmates that will be full of fun and adventure. Can’t wait to tell you all about it! Hope everyone is doing well!