just a few pics

Sorry i dont really have a lot of pictures because guess what the connection is a little slow and i dont feel like waiting forever.

This is a monkey that Tim and I saw while we were on monkey island,  I caught him at just the right time yawning!

This is the night of Geovi's birthday,  Emilio is the friend on the left.

This is my professor Lidia while we were in the Cloud Forest (Bellavista).  i look like a serios hiker and birdwatcher,  This lady wanted me to carry her binoculars for her and it is really muddy there so the boots are a necessity. 

So rafting...We actually went on Sunday...it was so amazing the most beautiful place i have ever seen i think.  Before we went rafting we  did a short hike in a canyon with a waterfall coming out of a cave.  our guide jumped right in the water and told us to follow so we did and we climbed the waterfall and then went through the short cave climbed another waterfall that led us out of the cave and onto  a ledge about 30 ft above our starting point and then he said who wants to jump first...i didnt go first a beautiful man from austrailia did and then a girl from sweden and then me!  it was a little scary bet really awesome...my butt hurts a little now because i think i landed in not the best position.  then we went rafting about the 3rd rapid my raft flipped and we were all swimming...but we got back in quickly and safely!  We would hit a rapid and then about every other pool after the rapids there would be an amazing waterfall!  I cant even describe how beautiful it was, but Tim took some picture with his waterproof Camara so when he gets back to california and puts them on his computer he will email them to me!  After rafting we got on a bus back to Quito which should have only taken about 5.5 hours but this time it took 10 because there was a landslide that went over the road so we had to wait while one tractor made a way for us all to pass.  But we finally made it back home in quito at 3am!

This weekend is going to be nice for me i Desi, a missionary lady i met here, her family has a conference to go to this weekend so i am house/dog sitting for her...woohoo a house to myself...a little relaxation!

So I guess it has been awhile :(

I don´t even know where to start since it has been so long.  I would like to say that things have slowed down a bit but obviously they haven´t because I haven´t had time to update my journal.  Since the coast I went to Otavalo for a day with Geovi(my ecuadorian friend) and her friends, because it was Día de los Muertos so they all had the day off,  that weekend I stayed at Geovi´s house, I like her family.  The same day we went to Otavalo we went over to another friends house for dinner and dancing...it was a lot of fun to just hang out in someone´s apartment, because most people here my age still live with their parents, and this friend of ours Juan Pablo has an apartment with friends, so it was more like being in the states.  After that Geovi commented on my dancing and she said I am not so bad!  She even liked some of my moves..and wanted me to teach her...haha  The rest of that weekend we just kind of took it easy and one afternoon we went on a long walk and talked quite a bit it was nice...because it was all english!

A little backwards but the weekend before i went out dancing with Geovi and her dance profesor...and i got to dance with him...he is a nice looking Cuban man, he was trying to teach me to dance...i was finally catching on and now my hips are starting to somewhat move like latin hips...it is a beginning i still have a lot of practicing to do to get my hips to move like that!  The club we went to used strob lights...i just have to say i love strob lights because no one can tell how bad of a dancer you are!

Nov 5-10, i was at Bellavista, a cloud forest reserve.  I had a week of classes there, just me and a professor.  Lidia was the professor that went with me.  I was really glad about that because she is one that is easy to talk to and fun for me to hang out with...she pretty much told me her whole life story and i was able to understand most of it!  My spanish improved that week because it was a lot of time with her and anytime that we would have dinner with English speaking people i would have to translate...it was really diffiicult but good for my spanish.  No i think maybe my spanish has regressed a little being back in Quito because i am able to speak a lot of english.  The  week in the forest i did a lot of hiking and sleeping and eating and some reading and writing...it was a great relaxing week because there was nothing to do but bird watch...and i am not much of a birdwatcher and after seeing all the crazy birdwatchers...i dont think i will become one like that anyway!  oh but in the cloud forest there are so many different types of hummingbirds...they were everywhere.  there were 20 different species just around the lodge.

After the cloud forest i went out dancing again with Geovi and friends because it was Geovi´s birthday, then on Monday i went over to her house for her actually birthday with her family...it wasnt much different than a birthday back home...except louder because latinos like to talk and talk and talk loudly too.  Also this past week I started my volunteering at the Orphanage.  It was a good time.  Monday i went to meet the Mother of the house and she pretty much said your spanish isnt good enough to work with everyone but you can help the older girls with their english...i am ok with that!  So i went back wednesday and for the first hour i help a 14 and 15 year old girls with their english but we really just had an hour long conversation in spanish about life in the states.  The one girl was really into music and so she really liked the fact that i do concert security and have been able to meet a lot of different bands.  Then the next hour i help a 13 year old with her english, this time we really did do english because she is a quite girl and didn´t really have any questions for me.  Thursday i went back and helped the younger girl again, then i went to the park with 6 of the kids, the only 3 boys at the orphanage played soccer, and the 9, 5, and 4 year old girls and i just played in the park...i didnt really catch on to the game they were playing...some kind of hospital game and they would heal eachother with flowers it was cute.  I was holding the 4 year old and the was touching my face and hair...and she was telling me how beautiful she thought my hair and eyes were...it was really cute. 

Now i am in Tena.  Tim and i came here yesterday with the goal of going rafting today...we set it up through at travel agency in Quito.  Well last night it rained really hard all night...go figure we are in the rain forest and it does rain! well we get to the rafting company this morning all ready to go and they said it rain to much and the river is too high and fast to go today maybe tomorrow it will be down...so we are just waiting it out tonight to try to go rafting tomorrow.  This afternoon we went to Isla de los monos...island of the monkeys...we say monkeys!  did a little hiking i got attacked my ants and then we went swimming in the pool while it rained somemore!  And now we are just sitting in an internet cafe killing time updating our journals...Tim is better at journaling than me he is always updating his...sorry i am not that diligent :(  So hopefully rafting tomorrow with some waterfall jumping!

Some Repeat and photos to come later!

I have hit the half way mark.  I am excited about that but also cannot believe it.  This past week, well almost two weeks now, I traveled the coast with Laura.  Thursday, the 11^th, we left Quito in the evening for Riobamba.  We arrived in Riobamba at about 10p.m. Laura and I were hungry so we went in search for food…not much was open at that time but we did find a restaurant that only served one thing, seca.  At the time we weren’t sure what that was, but now we do…it is just a typical Ecuadorian meal, whatever is in the kitchen.  That night it was like roast beef with a tomato type sauce and rice.  When we were done eating we walked back to our hotel.  On the corner of the main streets there were two hookers.  It looked somewhat like a scene out of Pretty Woman, those women were stuck in the 80s, like most of Ecuador.  The next morning we woke up at 5am to eat breakfast and get train tickets, but they were sold out.  This is the famous Ecuadorian train that used to run from Quito to Guayaquil, but because the of horrible El Nino rains in the past it only runs from Riobamba to Alausi…it is now just a tourist attraction.  Since there weren’t anymore tickets we took a bus to Alausi because they add cars there is what we were told.  When we got to Alausi we bought tickets for the train, but it was a different train.  It was just a single car that did the “Nariz del Diablo”, which afterwards we were very glad that that is all we did because it wasn’t that exciting and the train from Riobamba didn’t take 4 hours like we were told it took 7 hours, and you couldn’t sit on the roof of that train.  So when we got off the train we took a bus to Cuenca, another four hours.  When we arrived in Cuenca we found a hostal, then ate after a very long day.  Saturday we just walked around the city looking at all the Colonial architecture.  Saturday was also a big game day for Ecuador, the first game of the playoffs against Venezuela.  So Tim, Kelli, Laura, and I bought Ecuador jerseys and wore them around all day.  We got honked at and many cheers because 4 gringos were supporting Ecuador!  That evening we went to the street where everyone was watching the game and watched with the locals.  It was a lot of fun, but Ecuador sadly lost 0-1.  Sunday we were pretty tired from all the walking the day before, because late Saturday night till about 2am we walked around the city so Tim could get some good night pictures of the architecture that is beautifully lit.  So Sunday Laura and I took a bus at about noon to the coast and Tim and Kelli flew back to Quito.

Our coast journey started in Salinas, but we didn’t stay there long because there isn’t much there during this time, it is slow season.  The beach is lined with white condos and reminded me of the popular destinations in Florida.  So, Monday afternoon we headed to Montanita, a small surf town 3 hours north of Salinas.  In Montanita we did a lot of eating and took a two hour surf lesson.  I can now surf if I have a good board and some waves, but I need a lot more practice!  The food in Montanita was amazing because it is a tourist town so they had some American food, I don’t think we had any rice there!  From Montanita we went to Porta Lopez to visit the National Park.  We missed the Humpback whales mating season which takes place just off the coast of Porta Lopez in July, August, and September.  We visited the beach in the National Park and did a short hike,  it was beautiful and there were only 5 other people there.  From Porta Lopez we went to Canoa, but it took us a while to get there.  In my travel guide it said to catch a bus from Porta Lopez to Manta and then to take a bus from Manta to Canoa, but there isn’t a bus from Porta Lopez to Manta, you have to switch in Jipijapa.  So we went to Jipijapa, but the buses going to Manta wouldn’t stop and pick us up so we went to Portaviejo then to Manta.  We spent the night in Manta, and in the morning got on a bus to Canoa which went back to Portaviejo first!  But we finally made it to Canoa that afternoon.  Then the next morning we rented some surfboards to try out our surfing in Canoa.  It was a little more difficult because the boards weren’t as nice, but I managed to catch a few waves.  That day the sun actually came out for three hours.  The whole week we had not seen the sun because it is dry season right now which means overcast with a few sprinkles.  Then that afternoon two Ecuadorians asked us if we wanted to go see the caves, so we did that but the tide was a little too high so we didn’t make it to the caves but we had a beautiful view of the ocean and surrounding mountains, we even saw some Blue Footed Boobies.  Later that evening some of the locals told us about a surf competition that was taking place in Perdeneles the next day.  So Saturday we woke up and took the 2 hour bus trip to Perdeneles.  While on the bus we stopped to pick up an indeginous man who had to ropes of dead chickens, I am assuming he was taking them to market.  So, the bus driver put the dead chickens on the top of the bus and away we went.  The surf competition was not the most exciting thing and we were pretty exhausted from the trip so we decided to head back to Quito around noon.

Finally at the Beach

Back on the Mainland!

So I am back in Quito!  And the rest of the Galapagos were good the last 2 of the 3 days were sunny so i got a tan!  Here are some pictures!

This is a male Frigate trying to attract females! Lava A nice view of the islands full moon over the ocean! a tired baby sea lion somewhat like a blow hole Marine Iguana...these guys and swim and surf the waves!

The giant Tortises that are so famous! The Blue footed boobies   My boat  the Frienship  and my favorite the Sally lightfoot Crabs...against the black rocks these crabs are gorgeous.

Well enjoy the pictures maybe some stories later!