Update

So, the longer I am here, the more I realize just how lucky I got.  Let me start at the beginning.  Coming into Quito, the lines for immigration are very long, and usually take 45+ minutes, I was there for more than an hour, and I wasn't more than 1/3 back in the line, (So if you are visiting Quito, schedule that time into your trip) Immigration was fairly simple, and I had nothing that required more paperwork, so I was able to get out just before minnight.  The UBECI person was easy enough to spot, and had a sign w/ my name on it.  They drove me to my homestay (all of them are in the south) and I ended up in Mayra's house.  Now my room (which I love and also find hilarious) is also the kids playroom, so half the room is just toys, and I have Hello Kitty and Disney Princesses on my wall, while the colour scheme is pink and purple.  And you know what? I love that room!  It has a good bed, lots of drawers, and a huge window. 
  Now Mayra is my host mother, and she lives here with her husband and 2 children, Allison (7) and Jose (2).  She speaks English well, is studying tourism, and is increadably kind and thoughtful. Also, I have to mention that the food is absolutely increadable.  (Seriously, the food is among the best I've ever had)  This was my first piece of luck.  As I have talked to other volunteers here, the most common complaint has been the food, most of the complaints I have heard have come from the Volunteer House, the kindest being that the food is "bad enough that I need to buy a new belt" (as he had lost so much weight)  The second complaint I heard was about the noise.  The noise from the street is constant, but after a day or so, you don't really notice it. (and to me it's actually somewhat comforting)  But again, at the Volunteer House, the complaint is that the walls are really thin and you can hear everything through them.  In my house, I hear nothing except from the street, and that isn't bad at all.  However, there are advantages to staying at the Volunteer House, chief among those is that you meet other volunteers.  There are at least 7 that stay there, and if you like to party and go out on the town, then that might be the place for you, as they have things going on almost every night.  As for me, I'm not a party girl, and I have so much work to do with Spanish lessons, my classes at the school, and TEFL, that I don't have enough time as is.  So I really don't miss out. 
     The second thing I really lucked out on was the woman I was replacing at the school, was in the same house as me and I had several days with her.  Unfortunately, if you are teaching English as an assisstant, they don't really give you much help.  For Stacy (the woman I was taking over for) they literally just dropped her at the front of the school, and that was it.  UBECI focuses a lot more on the Market Children Program, and there are a lot more people, so you have more support.  Luckily for me, I had Stacy.  She took me to the school and introduced me around and showed me how to get there and back again on the bus.  I really would hate to think of where I'd be without her.  I also went to Mindo (another story) over the weekend, and she told me all about pretty much everything she knew about Quito and the school, as well as how to handle the students.  I would have been completely lost without her, bith literally and figuratively.  As for right now, I need to get back to studying my Spanish.  Adios, I'll write again later!
 

Well, This is New

Ok, so things have changed since my last post however many months ago.  At the moment, I am in Quito, Ecuador, to teach English through International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ).  I am in a homestay and will be here for three months, though at the moment that seems rather terrifing.  I will post again, later today about all the insanity here, it should be interesting.

Off On A New Track

Well, I've done it!  I'm heading off to Kathmandu, Nepal to teach English in a Buddist monestary!  I'm hoping to do a photography project on literacy while I'm out there, as well as a "30 Years Later" retrospective in the villages of Lahachok and Rrampur, the villages my mother taught in as a Peace Corps volunteer in the late 70's.  More to follow, at the moment I'm too excited to sit still!

I Was Right To Be Scared

The Peace Corps got back to me with an e-mail, and basically said I am not qualified for any of their positions.  On top of that, they will shred my application in 1 years time unless I become qualified for another field and have 3 months of outreach experience in that field, or if I score a 50 or higher on the CLEP test in either English or Spanish.  My video post will explain what I am doing to reactivate my application; because know this, Peace Corps, this. is. not. over.

Now I'm Scared

So now I am trying to get in touch with the Peace Corps Placement Office.  I have run into so many problems since starting this that I want to make sure that they have all my info and aren't missing anything.  I am also terrified as this is the most competitive part of the process.  About 12,000 people apply every year for about 4,000 available spots.  Only 8,000 are accepted and begin the process, and others are knocked out in the medical review.  However, by the time the placement office gets the file, there are still roughly 2 applicants up for every available spot.  I wish I could accurately spell out how much it frightens me that I might not get picked.  However, I do know that if I don't get picked, I will up my skill set, maybe in building, maybe in medical, in language, anything I have to in order to get an invite to serve.  I know I will not stop until I actually have a paper in my hand telling me when I am leaving and where I am going to serve in the Peace Corps.  That still doesn't make it any less scary though.

A Video Post! Because I'm Lazy That Way.

I actually rather like this way of updating, maybe I'll have to do it more often now.

Is it Over Yet?

Huzzah! Huzzah! They finally got the last bit of my medical forms!  That's the good news.  The bad news? It's May 5th, and I was supposed to leave in ohh, 3-4 weeks or so... I (sadly) don't think that will happen.  Hopefully though, if that doesn't work, I can still end up going someplace similar in a few months, maybe around September.  I'm just relieved that I finally have the Medical Mess pretty much behind me.  They may still request more information or clairification on some parts, but that (I really really hope) won't be so bad. 
     As it stands, it looks like I will be around for a few more months, studying language, learning more about building techniques.  The only thing that really scares me now is that they may say, "Oh, would you like to go to Mongolia to help with community business initiatives?"