Tomorrow we are leaving Cuenca for Guayaquil. I have to say I will miss it here a tiny bit. I have really gotten a feel for our surroundings and feel a little bit at home here.
Here is a list of the top 3 things I will miss in Cuenca.
1. Señora Elena. She was one of the nicest people we've met here.
2. Paty. She was my teacher at Spanish school and I'll miss her a lot.
3. Banos. Banos was the town where all the hot springs were. It was super relaxing.
Here is a list of what I'm looking forward to.
1. THE BEACH BABY! I just really like the beach and I can't wait to go.
2. Surfing. I've always wanted to learn how to surf!
3. Seeing my cousins. I can't wait to see the Chaps Platts (my cousins who live in Chappaqua).
Sunday, December 29, 2013
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Ruby's Birthday
A couple days ago was Ruby's birthday! The first thing we did was exchange presents over breakfast. If I remember correctly, I think Ruby got two sets of earrings, a necklace and a bracelet. After that, we went to school just like a normal day, except during break, there was a special cake for Ruby and we all sang Happy Birthday, in Spanish. I didn't even know about it.
After school was over, we headed to a town called Banos just outside Cuenca. When we arrived at the actual spa, we found out the one half of it was closed for cleaning. We decided to make do with the other half. The spa contained a 42 degree pool (keep in mind this is Celsius) and two Turkish steam rooms, one for women and one for both men and women. After we spent a while in the main pool, we all climbed out and got some refreshments. Ruby and I each got a yogurt parfait and orange juice.
When we got back into town, we headed over to an Italian restaurant that Ruby picked out. We all had some variety of pasta with sauce on it. For dessert, we ate banana splits. Ruby and I each got our own while my parents stole little bites off of them. Over all, it was a fun and tiring day!
After school was over, we headed to a town called Banos just outside Cuenca. When we arrived at the actual spa, we found out the one half of it was closed for cleaning. We decided to make do with the other half. The spa contained a 42 degree pool (keep in mind this is Celsius) and two Turkish steam rooms, one for women and one for both men and women. After we spent a while in the main pool, we all climbed out and got some refreshments. Ruby and I each got a yogurt parfait and orange juice.
When we got back into town, we headed over to an Italian restaurant that Ruby picked out. We all had some variety of pasta with sauce on it. For dessert, we ate banana splits. Ruby and I each got our own while my parents stole little bites off of them. Over all, it was a fun and tiring day!
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
A Change In My School Life
One of the many differences between home and Ecuador is school. Some people might think that school in Ecuador is easy and short. In a way, it is but not all the time. School in Ecuador is indeed shorter by almost 3 hours but it is a lot more tiring! School is only Spanish so its hard trying to understand everything. At least our teachers speak English.
School here is very different because it’s shorter, more tiring and but more interesting. School here is shorter because there is only one subject, Spanish! But Spanish can get very tiring after you have been doing it for 4 hours everyday! In addition, I'm the only student in my class. Even though I learn a LOT more than I do at home, its still hard to answer all questions and do all the homework. Even though I do all the Berkeley Carroll homework at home, it still feels like I have more in Ecuador. Finally, school here is interesting because most days, we go out on field trips to different places like, a museum, the local market, and a pottery studio.
Overall, our school here is shorter but more tiring. But school at home is longer and less tiring (usually).
This is what our school looks like from the outside
School here is very different because it’s shorter, more tiring and but more interesting. School here is shorter because there is only one subject, Spanish! But Spanish can get very tiring after you have been doing it for 4 hours everyday! In addition, I'm the only student in my class. Even though I learn a LOT more than I do at home, its still hard to answer all questions and do all the homework. Even though I do all the Berkeley Carroll homework at home, it still feels like I have more in Ecuador. Finally, school here is interesting because most days, we go out on field trips to different places like, a museum, the local market, and a pottery studio.
Overall, our school here is shorter but more tiring. But school at home is longer and less tiring (usually).
This is what our school looks like from the outside
Friday, December 6, 2013
Mitad del Mundo
Today we went to the middle of the world (Mitad del Mundo)!!! The Equator!
We took a crowded metro-bus for what seemed like forever. The bus was too crowded to find space to stand without being in someone's armpit. Needless to say it was not very fun. The 15 mile trip took one and a half hours. When we arrived, we headed up to the original monument which, even though it is off by around 800 meters, was amazing! It was quite imposing. We walked around the complex for awhile, browsing souvenir shops and such. After that, we headed over to the real equator where there was a museum. The museum was directly over the equator. On our tour, we saw everything, from shrunken heads to water experiments. One of the grossest things was a fish called the candiru that crawls up into your penis when you pee in the Amazon jungle. >.< It's actually attracted by human urine.
We also saw shrunken heads and learned how they were made! First, you have to find someone worthy of preserving. Next, take off their head and remove all the bones. Third, steam it over a pot of a secret herbal concoction. Fourth, take rocks and clean out all the fat so there is nothing left inside. Finally, take your shrunken head and make jewelry!
After this, we headed down to the real equator and performed some experiments on it. For example, as many people may have heard before, water does swirl a different way on either side of the equator! When you are directly on the equator, the water just goes down. It doesn't even swirl.
We also performed some tests of our strength. If you put your hands above your head and have someone push down on them, it's relatively easy to keep them up and resist. It's different on the equator, though. If you did this on the equator, your hands would just go down easily. We tried it and it worked. I'm still a little confused about it though. If anyone knows something that might explain this phenomenon, leave an answer in the comments below. At the end of the day, we took a taxi back home, which was a nice change from the public bus.
We took a crowded metro-bus for what seemed like forever. The bus was too crowded to find space to stand without being in someone's armpit. Needless to say it was not very fun. The 15 mile trip took one and a half hours. When we arrived, we headed up to the original monument which, even though it is off by around 800 meters, was amazing! It was quite imposing. We walked around the complex for awhile, browsing souvenir shops and such. After that, we headed over to the real equator where there was a museum. The museum was directly over the equator. On our tour, we saw everything, from shrunken heads to water experiments. One of the grossest things was a fish called the candiru that crawls up into your penis when you pee in the Amazon jungle. >.< It's actually attracted by human urine.
This is the Candiru Fish
This is a real shrunken head
This is a mural of someone removing the skull
After this, we headed down to the real equator and performed some experiments on it. For example, as many people may have heard before, water does swirl a different way on either side of the equator! When you are directly on the equator, the water just goes down. It doesn't even swirl.
This is what draining water looks like on the equator
We also performed some tests of our strength. If you put your hands above your head and have someone push down on them, it's relatively easy to keep them up and resist. It's different on the equator, though. If you did this on the equator, your hands would just go down easily. We tried it and it worked. I'm still a little confused about it though. If anyone knows something that might explain this phenomenon, leave an answer in the comments below. At the end of the day, we took a taxi back home, which was a nice change from the public bus.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
First Post!!!!
Im going on a trip :D This is a blog where I'll write about most of the stuff I do and post pictures! Feel free to comment or whatever :D Also if you want to see some more stuff from my trip, follow me on Instagram ---> @oscarplatt
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