Rant!

Up until now, most of my blogs have been mainly informative. They detail the highlights of my Ecuador experience and the events I have witnessed or been a part of. This blog may be a bit different. Why? Because I had a bad day yesterday and I want to be real with my readers about the ups and downs of this year.

What started off as a typical work day turned into one of the more frustrating days in Ecuador so far. It was around noon and I was on my way in to the neighborhood where I work. My bus was approaching my stop so I got up and waded through the standing crowd, heading towards the doors. The bust driver (who is inside a plastic enclosure, separated from the people) got on his microphone and started saying repeatedly "Miss, miss, keep going, keep going." (I think that's the rough translation) I wasn't sure who he was talking to and everyone around me seemed to be looking around, confused. A couple of seconds later, we arrived at my stop and I got off the bus. Before the doors had a chance to close behind me, I realized that my cell phone, which had been in my pocket, was gone. Someone had, in the confusion of that moment, been able to swipe it right out from my possession. I turned around and had the thought that I should jump back in the bus and confront everyone, demanding they return the phone. Then I realized, what thief is going to say "Oh :) You got me! Nicely done! Here ya go...you're cell phone. Man! Quickest gringo I've ever ripped off! Well done, well done."? I don't think that would happen. Ever. So instead of getting back on before the doors closed, I just eyed everyone in the bus that I could and gave them a look of disappointment that said "Really? REALLY? Did that just happen?!" I hope that look is now burning a hole in the back of the thief's mind.

So that's how my bad day started.

It continued to go down hill when my high-school aged students pushed all the right buttons. First, about three of them came in 10 minutes late. Instead of quietly going to their seats while I was talking, one went to the back of the room and started looking out the window and another was on her cell phone talking to someone. I stopped mid sentence and asked "What are you doing?!" I continued to show my frustration by explaining what being rude and disrespectful meant, using them as examples. About 10 minutes later, two more students came in to take the test they had missed on Wednesday. I had to again stop what I was doing and leave the room to get the correct tests from the secretaries (which is the protocol at CEC) so these students could take the exam. When I got back to my room with exams in hand, half of my class was in my room and the other half was in the empty room next door yelling out the window to their friends. No one was working on the exercises I had assigned for those 5 minutes I was gone. I told one particular girl that if she didn't want to be here, she could go home. No one's making her come here to learn English, except maybe her parents, and she clearly doesn't want to learn the language. After that particular outbust, I think the entire class got the hint that I was pissed off and they tried to work in their workbooks (for a record 10 minutes). Somehow, I made it through the day...but barely.

No doubt exacerbated by my bad day, I didn't have much patience for bad listeners when I was trying to vent afterwards. What people should be aware of is that I am a professional listener. I usually don't talk just to hear my voice. I'm not interested in one-upping people during dialog and I put much thought into the ideas I want to express verbally (especially when it's personal). So when it's my turn to talk, you should probably be on your A game. Don't redirect the topic back to yourself. Don't interrupt. Don't start talking to someone else while I'm in mid sentence. Because I won't be entirely motivated to continue should I feel like what I'm saying is not important. I refuse to shove my feelings into the 5-second window of your short-attention listening span. There. Rant DONE!

Ah, blogging. It's good sometimes to just blog it out! I feel MUCH better!

I heart Fridays

Welcome to my blog entitled "I heart Fridays." It is, in fact, Friday and I'm really jazzed because today in class we're taking a field trip. Instead of the meticulous *cough cough* lesson planning I usually do, today I'm just relaxing at home, drinking coffee and catching up on some internet. My students today will be doing a Scavenger Hunt around the touristy part of town called La Mariscal (aka - Gringolandia). They will have to find answers to such questions as: What is the name of the MLB team from Boston? Krispy Kreme is what type of chain store? and my personal favorite, What is a mullet?

Last weekend I traveled a bit south of Quito to a small town called Latacunga for their Mama Negra festival. Now, I have asked several people what the significance of this festival is and I have gotten several different answers. At first I thought it was religious (and maybe it is), but after viewing the parade and shananigans that is the festival, I would hesitate to attribute any religion to it. One story I heard is that the Mama Negra Festival celebrates the first time the image of the Virgin Mary was seen as a black woman. The story goes that a forlorne slave woman trekked up to the peak of Cotopaxi and there witnessed the divine incarnation of Mary as a black woman, giving hope to all the slaves of that time. Other Ecuadorians I asked had no idea what the significance is.
The festival is an all day event (reminded me a bit of May Day/Spring Fling from my college years). People rise early in the morning and head toward the parade route to claim their seats. The parade starts around 10am and lasts for about 4 hours. In the parade, there men wearing black face and dressed in drag, people carrying hollowed-out crucified pigs adorned with cuy (guinea pigs), bottles of liquor and cigarette boxes. There are about a million marching bands, traditional dancers, people in parrot costumes and men who come around to cleanse any onlooker. I, of course, jumped at the opportunity to be cleansed. In my mind, I was envisioning some sort of meditative, patchouli-like ritual. What REALLY happened was three men danced around me chanting things like "long live mama negra! Viva Latacunga" and then, much to my surprise, a different man came up and sprayed alcohol all over me. The alcohol, which came out of his mouth mind you, got in my eyes as I didn't know I should avert my face. It stung for a couple of seconds, but I laughed at my foreign ignorance and spent the rest of the morning smelling like booze.
After the parade, people linger in the streets to eat, drink and have impromtu dance parties. We all had a really great time that day, ending our adventure at a club called The Galaxy dancing until about 1am.

Well, that's about it for now! Cheers to all my readers!

(Cleansing pre alcohol in eyes)