Hello all!

I cannot believe it is already time for the second blog post!  We have now been in Ecuador for almost three months and we are still loving every second.  

My last post came just as we were just finishing TEFL and beginning our month break.  In that time, we worked on our VISA applications (it is quite a process, let us tell you), and got more acquainted with our city and surroundings in a more meaningful way. We went on many walks just to get lost and tried more than a few new restaurants. Now it’s fun to see how much better we know Cuenca!  In our first month, we got lost with the slightest deviation from paths we knew well, and now we can get an idea for where something is based on other landmarks that we are familiar with. It is definitely a beautiful thing to see your idea of a place change as it becomes layered with experiences and memories over time. We are still as enamored with Cuenca as we were the day we arrived, but it has shifted from a curiosity about the unknown to a sense of the city colored by the everyday experiences we have here.  As we continue to meet people and make new friends, we are always astounded by the amazing spirit of Ecuadorians and Ecuadorian culture. 

A beautiful day in Cuenca

Sunset in Cuenca

Though for most of our break we stayed in Cuenca, which we really enjoyed, we also had the incredible experience of going to Baños de Ambato for 5 days.  For a girl who thought the beach was the end all be all for her, living in the mountains has been an entirely new experience. Though I never pictured myself appreciating the thin air and brisk climate as much as warm sand between my toes, I have begun to see the magic in the mountains.  And, if Cuenca is mountain life, Baños was even more so. Everywhere you look you are surrounded by picturesque mountain views that seem to go on forever; if there is anything that can make you acutely aware of how small you are in this awesome world, this will do it for you. We got to do some super fun activities and see some super cool sights there, like riding bikes for 18 kilometers (although I’m fatal at bike riding- thankfully the group didn’t leave me behind), ziplining, as well as Pailón del Diablo (a gorgeous waterfall) and Casa del Arbol (a swing over the mountains).  I forgot how much I love swinging until we went to Casa del Arbol, so I was swinging my heart out having the time of my life! The views there are so breathtaking, and for a moment on the swing, you are totally suspended in the midst of it all. This was definitely one of my favorite things I have ever done! The best part of the trip was the company- we were fortunate enough to go with a friend who has family in the area, and fortunate is an understatement. There are few better pleasures in life than being surrounded by wonderful people in a wonderful place. This trip included some of our best times yet in Ecuador!

In town- Baños de Ambato

The swing at Casa del Arbol!

Best day ever!

The zipline!

Triumphant smiles after ziplining!

Pailón del Diablo 

Bike riding- I barely made it!

The whole group! Amazing people make the world turn 

Upon returning to Cuenca, it was time to get started with the cycle! We are now in the full swing of classes and volunteering.  In the afternoon, I teach English classes with CEDEI. I have two classes of niños (kids), and a Saturday class with mostly young adults. All of the students have been great! It has definitely been fun to learn together with the students as we begin to gain a footing in our class.  I am grateful for the stroke of luck to get such wonderful students for my first cycle- although the schedule has been a bit grueling, I know that the time in the classroom is a time when everything else stops, and we can all learn from each other for an hour (or four on Saturdays)! Sometimes I sit back and look at myself as a teacher and laugh, because it is not what I would have ever dreamed that I would be doing after graduation, but I couldn’t have planned it any better for myself.  Now, I can call my mom (also a teacher) and we can compare notes about everything from hectic lesson planning to helpful youtube videos. 

Us with the other CEDEI teachers!

In the mornings, I volunteer at San Jose de Calazans, a school for students with disabilities.  I was nervous to begin volunteering, as I just hoped that I could be helpful in any way. After the first day, any anxieties I had totally vanished.  The students and teachers are some of the most wonderful people I have ever had the pleasure of working with, and a unique kind of love and community emanates from the school and those who spend the day there.  I feel so divinely lucky to have been placed at Calazans as a volunteer. I still hope that I am able to be helpful in some way, but I mostly just feel so grateful to spend time with the students. Everyday I get a bit emotional as I come and go, showered with “good morning Emily!” or “Ciao Emily!” from the students.  Although we are constantly tired from long days and lots of work, waking up in the morning isn’t so hard knowing I get to go see all of their lovely faces again. We have felt very grateful to experience both teaching at CEDEI and having volunteer hours at our respective locations, because it allows us to interact with different parts of the Ecuadorian population, therefore expanding further our perspective and understanding of this country, culture, and these people.  It is very important for us not to live in any kind of “bubble," and that might have been easy to do if we did not have our volunteer hours additional to our teaching hours.

A note I received from a student- I'm still crying!

As always, things are wonderful with Jhoseline! We continue to tackle the world together- whether that means ziplining over a waterfall or just finishing the lesson planning before 1am.  We definitely miss our families (thank goodness for FaceTime) but we are building more of a life here everyday. As always, we are beyond grateful for this opportunity and for Mark and Linda’s support.  We look forward to Mark visiting soon! Thanks for reading!

Amigas para siempre!

Photo from September 9th- Celebrating two months in a new country and two months of friendship!

August 28, 2019

I still can not believe that I am here in Ecuador!!!! I have been here for almost 2 months
now and have loved every minute of it. Deciding to leave Minnesota was a tough decision for me but I am
so happy that I decided to challenge myself and experience a new place and culture. 

  

In Cleveland, I met Emily, who is the other grant recipient from Ohio.
Immediately we connected and I am so blessed to have her on this journey with me. Our personalities
are so much alike which makes exploring and living with each other so wonderful. We both are there for
each other and I appreciate her support so much. Having her by my side on this journey has made it so
much fun and easier. 

Emily and I 

After 3 flights I finally arrived in Ecuador on July 9th. We arrived in Guayaquil which is about 3 hours from Cuenca. The next day we were given a tour of the beautiful city and learned so much of the history. That same day we drove 3 and a half hours to a town called Gualaceo. The hostel in which we stayed was very beautiful and the scenery was breathtaking. There we met the other 3 TEFL students Noah, Charlie, and Fionna as well as our professors Mark and Erica. Also, we got an orientation of what to expect from the TEFL course and how the month-long course was going to play out. 

Guayaquil 

On Friday, July 11 we arrived in Cuenca and there I met my host parents. I enjoyed living with them for four weeks. They were the most caring individuals and always made sure that I felt comfortable and loved. The food that my host mom cooked was out of this world and I felt so lucky to be able to have Ecuadorian food for every meal. Living with them was a great introduction to a new culture and I'm so blessed that they treated me so well. They made sure that I was part of the family and included me in all the family events which meant a lot to me. It was sad having to say goodbye to them once I moved out but we built such a great relationship that I know I can see them anytime I want and they are there to support me in any way possible. 

Coming into the TEFL certificate course we knew that it was going to be intense, however,
I was not aware of the level of intensity. Right away we got thrown into teaching after only having one day
of class! Teaching practice was so intense and overwhelming but I learned so much from it and feel like
it prepared me to teach. During the course, my days were as follows: class from 8:30 am to 12:00 pm,
then return to my host families home to eat lunch then back to CEDEI by 2 to lesson plan for hours. We
would teach from 6 to 8 pm and then get critiques from 8 to 8:30 pm. I would get home by 9 then eat
dinner and work on the assignments for the course. I was super busy but I enjoyed teaching so much.
The students were amazing and teaching practice was so much fun. 

TEFL Professors and Classmates 

During the TEFL course, I was very emotional and oftentimes felt like I was not prepared to teach and
did not belong. As many of you know English is not my first language which caused me to think I was
not good enough compared to the other students taking the course who are native English speakers. I
was scared that my students were not going to like me or take me seriously because I am not a native
speaker. This caused me to overthink a lot and be harsh on myself. My professors, however, made me
realize that I had something no one else had; my experience as an ESL student. I had to take ESL for 2
years so I could learn English and this was a huge advantage I had compared to my classmates. The
students I taught during teaching practice enjoyed having me as a teacher because they could relate to
me and I was an inspiration to them which allowed them to work hard to learn the language. I was very
emotional because I saw my face on the students and it made me think of how far I have come over the
years and it made me feel super proud. Also, it made me feel super grateful to have a family who has
supported me so much throughout my lifetime. I want to thank Erica and Mark so much for encouraging
me and allowing me to see the greatness I have within me. 

TEFL Certified 

As soon as the TEFL course finished I moved into my very own apartment with Emily. This was a huge
adjustment for me because I have never lived on my own (besides living in dorms) and had to pay so
many bills. Also, I now have to cook my meals, do my laundry, buy things for the house, etc. Living by
myself makes me miss my family so much as it can feel lonely at times. I miss being around all my loved
ones and it makes me realize all the things I took for granted and how hard my parents had to work to
give me everything. Despite all of that, I am very happy that I have my own space and that this
experience is allowing me to grow. 

Ecuador is very beautiful and I have been extremely lucky to visit Cajas National Park, Gualaceo,
Chordoleg, Principal, Ingapirca Ruins and Guayaquil. I learned so much history throughout my travels and
feel like the luckiest human on planet earth for being able to visit places that are just breathtaking. I
oftentimes feel like my reality is a dream and that soon I will wake up from this amazing experience that I
am living in. Ecuadorians are so friendly, welcoming and caring and I am beyond blessed and fortunate to
have the opportunity to experience a new culture and place. I am so happy to be here and live a different
lifestyle than I am used to living.

Hostel in Gualaceo 

El Cajas National Park 

Ingapirca 

I want to thank Mark and Linda for choosing me as a grant recipient. Words can not explain how thankful
I am for all that you have done and continue to do for me. It means a lot that you chose me to take on this
new experience and I will make you proud. 

I look forward to my month-long break and beginning to teach in September. For now, I will continue to
explore the city and see what Cuenca has to offer me. Until next time! 

Hello everyone!

This is my first attempt at a blog post, so here it goes!  I am hoping that this will help me to document my time here in Cuenca as well as share it with anyone interested.  I cannot believe we have already been here for almost two months! It has been quite the whirlwind- I had to go back through all of my pictures to make sure I didn’t forget a single detail!

When we first got to Cuenca, our host families picked us up right away, and from there it was a dream! I couldn’t have had a better experience with my host family- they made me feel as if I had a place in a new city.  They are lovely people who genuinely cared about me, and I cared about them! The absolute cherry on top of the almost four weeks I spent with them was my host mom’s amazing food, which was an incredible introduction to Ecuadorian food that always left me feeling as if I had eaten the best meal of my life! When it was time to move out of the house, I was crying, and so was my host mom! Thankfully our apartment is not far from the host family’s house, so hopefully we can stay close! 

My host mom's cooking! Un Churrasco

More good eats at the host family's house- Including Mote (corn) and  fried plantains!

  I mean come on- how did I get so lucky??

At the beginning of this experience, we were warned that the TEFL program would be busy, and that definitely wasn’t an understatement! Coming from a background in Anthropology, not teaching, made the process a bit intimidating- and beginning to teach evening classes almost immediately was definitely a baptism by fire.  Many lunch breaks were spent hurriedly lesson planning, and every evening (especially Thursday) after class we took a large sigh of relief (one more class under our belts)! As time went on, every class felt more natural and easier to plan for. I was so sad when our evening class ended; both groups of students were so lovely! Now that we have completed the course, I feel vastly more prepared and competent for the upcoming cycle and I am looking forward to having my own classes in the future!  I am fortunate enough to come from a family of many strong, beautiful teachers; I have always been in awe of them, but always thought that “teaching wasn’t my thing.” Finding a way that teaching can be integrated with other branches of my path has been so rewarding. 

CEDEI Centro- Center of our daily lives during this month!

Our TEFL class and amazing instructors!

Fiona and I were teaching partners! Here we are with our class

Had to get a photo with both classes! This group was so amazing

TEFL Graduation!

We also got to do a bit of sightseeing during the TEFL course! We went to Ingapirca, which had my inner anthropological nerd absolutely jumping out! On the way to the ruins we also saw the town of Biblian, and stopped at a market, a beautiful church, and tried horneado (pig skin!).  One weekend we did an excursion to Cajas National Park, which was an interesting day in and of itself! Due to a bit of a mix up with the agency, I didn’t have boots for the hike, which caused me to fall maaaaaany times in the muddy conditions. Once I even fell on a plant and ended up with a ton of splinters in my hand!  Despite the falls, we still had a great time and enjoyed the gorgeous scenery! As a part of the TEFL course, we traveled to the town of Principal, where we got to spend some time with the people in the community. We were also lucky enough to get a wonderful tour of the zoo, Amaru, from one of the other students in our TEFL class! 

Biblian

Jhoseline and I at the church in Biblian!

Ingapirca

Ingapirca

Ingapirca

"The face of the Inca" rock formation at Ingapirca

My busted hand and our reaction to Cajas!

Cajas- does this remind anyone else of the Princess Bride?

Climbed to the highest point in Cajas

Llamas at Cajas!

One of the many gorgeous views at Cajas

The TEFL group in Principal!

Principal

Amaru  

We are definitely still adjusting to Cuenca, but in all of the best ways! We went from getting lost on our walk to and from CEDEI from our host family’s house (a ten minute walk, for reference), to walking around and exploring the whole city in our free time! Of course, we still get lost (quite frequently), but we are slowly getting a better grasp of our surroundings. Now that we have moved into an apartment, we have begun grocery shopping at local markets for our groceries! We are definitely trying to work on cooking more at home.  Something of a blessing and a curse is that we have both a great burger AND ice cream place downstairs from the apartment, and sometimes they are too good to resist!

The beautiful Cathedral, from Parque Calderon

Rio Tomebamba

Perks of an early morning- beautiful views

The view from our apartment window!

I have been so eternally grateful that Jhoseline and I were both chosen for this incredible opportunity! Our personalities mesh so well together, which makes constantly exploring so much fun! Being together has made our transition to Cuenca so much easier, because we both have each other to lean on on tough days, to try new things with, and to eat absolutely ALL of the snacks with.  Since completing the course and VISA application, our days have consisted of attempting to learn dances like Salsa and Bachata in the living room and getting lost around the city. We have already made friends here and feel very lucky to call Cuenca home.  

Do you ever see something and think “this cannot be real, it looks too much like a Windows screensaver?”  Though many people questioned my decision to move to a country I had never previously been to for a year, I felt absolutely confident in this transition.  As everything has unfolded this confidence has never wavered- thanks to this miraculous country that I am privileged enough to spend a year in. Ecuador has blown me away every day, from the kindness of everyone that I meet, the vibrant culture that I have been exposed to, the glorious experience of living in the mountains, to the vibrations of everyday life that happens here.  I will not take for granted the position that I am in right now; I am so thankful for every piece of the puzzle that made it happen. Particularly, I am grateful to Mark and Linda Raderstorf for their love for Cuenca that drove them to support students such as Jhoseline and me to fall in love as they did. The next chapter of this experience awaits us, and we approach it with open hearts, minds, and arms.  I can’t wait to see what the future holds, and to share it all here as it unfolds!  

Thanks for reading!

Emily Coleman