Normal Day in Ecuador

Well, life's settled down to a rather normal routine. Sorry for the long delay in blog updates, but things have been a little crazy around here with the moving and getting used to being in classes all day again. One a normal day, I wake up at 6:20, get ready, eat breakfast, and catch the buseta at 7:10 with the rest of the group. We head to the church, and I'm in speaking and reading class from 8-10 and then grammar class from about 10:30-12. After that, the buseta takes us all home for lunch. I head back to school for culture class at 3:00, and we either head downtown Cuenca to see some cultural sight, have lecture, or have dancing class. Around 6:00 I head home.

Activities in the evening depend on the day. Sometimes the group of Taylor students goes out, sometimes I go to home church (basically small group), and sometimes we head to a relative's house for a cafecito (little coffee). The thing with meals is that lunch and dinner are reversed. Lunch is the large meal of the day and dinner might just be coffee with a roll of bread or eggs and rice. A lot of my family will get together each night to have cafecito, and it's a lot of fun. I get a lot of Spanish practice in there, too.

This Friday begins the World Cup! I'm super excited to be down in Ecuador for the cup. My family already has all the parties planned out for the coming games. Each family will host one of the parties in a sort of rotation for each game that we are able to watch. My family is rooting pretty much for Brazil, and it's going to be a blast. Lots of food, lots of family, and lots of soccer!

Some of the things I enjoy most down here is the family. They are a lot of fun to be around and to get to know. Things I miss the most include American food (food down here is great, but they don't eat a diet I am accustomed to), having a yard (most families don't have one in Cuenca), and being able to go outside whenever I want. My family is pretty protective of me, and they don't like me wandering outside by myself, which is understandable. Still, I miss being able to head outside for a walk or enjoy the sunshine whenever I want. But still, I'm learning a lot about Spanish and the culture. I think that's all for now! Chao!