Saturday, September 28, 2013
LENA ON AIR
Hi!
So....yesterday my co-worker asked me if I wanted to join her to promote our Aniversary party....on TV!!!!!!!!!!!
LENA TALKING IN SPANISH IN A LIVE TV SHOW WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Craziness!!
It's super warm here especially since I've spent all day cooking...Dad, guess what I made?? Bread rolls :)) theyre super yummy.
I also made brownies...
Hasta luego, I need to finish cooking and baking :)
Lena
So....yesterday my co-worker asked me if I wanted to join her to promote our Aniversary party....on TV!!!!!!!!!!!
LENA TALKING IN SPANISH IN A LIVE TV SHOW WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Craziness!!
It's super warm here especially since I've spent all day cooking...Dad, guess what I made?? Bread rolls :)) theyre super yummy.
I also made brownies...
Hasta luego, I need to finish cooking and baking :)
Lena
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Soy una aventurera
Para los que hablan español......
Soy una aventurera.
Al momento soy una voluntaria con Arterias Urbanas. He estado en Santa Cruz hace dos semanas y voy a estar acá por un año.
Quería ir a Bolivia para conocer a la cultura de una parte de Latino América y para dar algo de mi suerte y mi alegría de la vida a otras personas.
Tengo 18 años y terminé la escuela en mayo. Viví en Chicago, EEUU con mi familia las tres años pasados y voy a estudiar allá en enero de 2015.
Trabajé en un Taller de arte en Chicago. Allá me enseñaron una forme de arte que cambiaba mi vista del mundo. En el taller, ellos hacen arte para expresar sus pensamientos, para encontrar a sus mismos, y para relajar. Lo diferente es que acá no hay critica del arte, no hay nadie que dice "Ay, que bonito" o "Debería cambiar esto". Ese me inspiré, me impacto, y me gusta mucho. En el mundo hay tanto competición, harto critica de todas maneras, que a mi se parece que la gente olvide disfrutar de hacer las cosas que hacen sólo por su misma.
El taller era una lugar donde podía hacer arte sin pensar de la consecuencias, y esto es algo que quiero enseñar a la gente que trabaja con arterias. También quisiera enseñar arte a los niños porque me encanta trabar con ellos.
En Chicago tomé varios clases de fotografía, ambos fotografía analógica y digital. También asistí a una clase de dibujar, pero me falta la practica y quiero aprender más de mis compañeros en arterias.
Creo que todas pueden hacer arte, y todos deben hacer arte porque es una forma de expresar sus pensamientos y sus emociones completamente diferente a escribir, hablar, y pensar. Arte puede cambiar personas.
Un abrazo,
Lena
Soy una aventurera.
Al momento soy una voluntaria con Arterias Urbanas. He estado en Santa Cruz hace dos semanas y voy a estar acá por un año.
Quería ir a Bolivia para conocer a la cultura de una parte de Latino América y para dar algo de mi suerte y mi alegría de la vida a otras personas.
Tengo 18 años y terminé la escuela en mayo. Viví en Chicago, EEUU con mi familia las tres años pasados y voy a estudiar allá en enero de 2015.
Trabajé en un Taller de arte en Chicago. Allá me enseñaron una forme de arte que cambiaba mi vista del mundo. En el taller, ellos hacen arte para expresar sus pensamientos, para encontrar a sus mismos, y para relajar. Lo diferente es que acá no hay critica del arte, no hay nadie que dice "Ay, que bonito" o "Debería cambiar esto". Ese me inspiré, me impacto, y me gusta mucho. En el mundo hay tanto competición, harto critica de todas maneras, que a mi se parece que la gente olvide disfrutar de hacer las cosas que hacen sólo por su misma.
El taller era una lugar donde podía hacer arte sin pensar de la consecuencias, y esto es algo que quiero enseñar a la gente que trabaja con arterias. También quisiera enseñar arte a los niños porque me encanta trabar con ellos.
En Chicago tomé varios clases de fotografía, ambos fotografía analógica y digital. También asistí a una clase de dibujar, pero me falta la practica y quiero aprender más de mis compañeros en arterias.
Creo que todas pueden hacer arte, y todos deben hacer arte porque es una forma de expresar sus pensamientos y sus emociones completamente diferente a escribir, hablar, y pensar. Arte puede cambiar personas.
Un abrazo,
Lena
Guarayos
Sept. 26. 2013
Hi everyone!It's been an incredibly long weekend with many adventures that I would not have thought of even in my dreams. I've been back in SC since Tuesday morning and am still more or less recovering from my journey to Guarayos.
Chaotic as I am, I planned to leave my house about half an hour before the bus-"flota"- would leave the terminal at 8:30 pm, but managed to spend a lot more time saying good bye to everyone and gathering a few last things. I waited ages for a bus to come. When the bus came, I didn't think of asking if it passed by the terminal because I thought I knew where the terminal was. Turns out, I didn't and the bus also didn't pass even close to the the terminal and I had to hectically take a taxi to get to the bus terminal-late. Luckily, the bus waited for me and I joined my colleagues for a six-hour bus ride.
I slept most of the journey, so when we arrived in Guarayos at about 2:30 in the morning, I felt like time had flown by.
I found myself in a small village with dust covered roads, small stores that lines the main street, and yellow street lamps that illuminated the scene. There was not a single person on the streets, very different to the busy night life of Santa Cruz.
We met up with the other artists that showed us the "Casa de cultura" - the culture house- where we would all sleep in a small room on mattresses on the floor.
The next day we started planning the mural. it took us rather long to figure out an connecting image for the whole mural. The theme was to describe the culture of the Guarayos, if I understood correctly, a tribe in Bolivia that has their own language and customs.
After dismissing many ideas, we decided to paint the face of a Guarayen woman in the center of the wall ( a huuuuge wall of 45 meters), and her outstretched hands on both ends of the wall. In between, we planned out multiple elements of Guarayen legends, cultural elements, flora and fauna, and typical handicrafts.
I thought we would start painting right away, but we took a long Siesta to walk around the town in the hot sun.
Once the sun set (beautiful!! see fotos!!) **Have I said how wierd it is for me that the sun sets at 6pm?? I feel like I should be in bed by 7pm every day!!** we started projecting the drawings we'd made onto the wall and painted until the morning. I didn't feel comfortable at first to paint and stuck to taking pictures--my task--but after a while helped to paint as well.
After about three hours of sleep we woke up the next day to even more heat. we continued painting as long as there was still shade and then went to go to a "swimming pool". Instead of taking a taxi there, or maybe a bus, we took motorcycles. Waaaaaaa!!!1 The roads were completely unpaved and I was so scared of falling off and held on to the driver super tightly but the view was amazing!!!!!
I loved it by the water, it was some kind of natural swimming pool where everyone bathed with there clothes (thats normal here :) ).
We returned to the Casa around 5 pm and had a reunion. Bad news: there was a strike on the highway because the government wants to raise the taxes. We had to stay longer and no one knew how long, that scared me a little.
The sunset that evening was the most beautiful I have ever seen. I didn't take pictures because I wanted to take in the last rays of sun. At first the sun was behind clouds, but a few rays illuminated the sky. It's hard to describe, but it was beautiful. Everything glowed.
In the evening we went to the plaza. The 24th of September is the day of indipendence of Santa Cruz, so the night of the 23rd the plaza was filled with people. All the schools of Guarayos took part in a huge march through the town and then around the plaza. the heat of the day was subsiding and it was very windy, much nicer than the unberable heat. it was amazing to see all the children carying hand made lamps in the form of stars and in identical costumes.
The next day was cold and windy. We finished painting and rested. In the afternoon we went to the house of one of the people that helped us organize and paint. It was rather far from the town and we drove there on the back of a jeep. What an adventure!!
The house itself was a self built hut, very pretty, and in the middle of a palm tree forest. I really, really loved it there. with the sun it would have been even more amazing. We ate Yuca with soup, chicken, and rice. The chicken was a challenge for me, but overall the meal was very yummy.
that evening we were told that the strike ended and we could go home at 12 am. On the way back our bus broke down, but I slept through it so I'm not sure what happened exactally. We arrived in SC at 8am, super tired and exhausted.
Overall I had an amazing experience and am very glad I ent to Guarayos. Onward to the next adventure!! We have a big party coming up this Saturday.........
Besos,
Lena
Friday, September 20, 2013
Traveling...
Hola Queridos!
life's good, work's good, and it's warm again.
I'm going to Garayos, a "pueblo" about 6 h from S. C. for the weekend, I'll write more when I'm back.
Besos,
Lena
life's good, work's good, and it's warm again.
I'm going to Garayos, a "pueblo" about 6 h from S. C. for the weekend, I'll write more when I'm back.
Besos,
Lena
Monday, September 16, 2013
Weekend adventures and the first day of work
¡Hola compañeros!
Yesterday was full of surprises. I slept in because we had
stayed up so late the night before. I ate breakfast and discovered oatmeal in
the kitchen!! My mornings are saved :) (And today, Yoyi told me that there's
coffee...my mornings are getting better and better!)
I was supposed to meet Chicoly in the city to tune my
Charango, but we canceled that plan because we tuned my Charango the night
before.
Instead of going to the city, I decided to decorate my room.
After about an hour or so, I stood in a very Lena-y room -- ˃ i.e. the picture
below.
Around noon Daniela and Ricardo started preparing Lunch.
Daniela was making Arabian meatballs of some kind. I made tomato salad and then
watched as she deep fried the little balls. Yoyi joined us just as the "Kive"
was ready. The food was really good. I spent my afternoon relaxing in the sun
and writing. I still have to find a good bookstore so I can read some Spanish
literature :)
Later in the day I went to a birthdayparty of a family
friend's daughter with Dani, Ricardo, and Sofia, and Dani's nieces Anita and
Tati. I had a hard time following the conversations, so I mostly kept quiet and
tried to understand what everyone was saying. Throughout the evening, the party
hosts organized games for kids. Anita and Tati dragged me to play Limbo with
them, and I survived (more or less :D).
We came home around nine. I was going to go to an open air
concert in the city with the other volunteers, but they told me as I got on the
bus that they had changed their minds and were going to a bar instead. Eduardo,
a family friend, had asked me whether he could join me and I agreed, so we
walked around in the city for a while, giving me a very different view of Santa
Cruz. I enjoyed walking around in the streets with a "cruceño" (a
person from Santa Cruz). I also enjoyed to get away from the other
volunteers--not that I don't like them, they are all really nice and fun to be
around. But I want to experience Santa Cruz and the Bolivian culture; in order
to do so, I have to communicate and mix with people other than the volunteers.
Eduardo brought me home around 12am and guess who was sitting
at the table? Chicoly!! We joined him, Daniela, and Ricardo in a few (many)
games of "nova". I had to understand and learn so I wasn't too good
at first. The game consists of nine cards, two decks of cards in total that are
dealt to each player. One card from the deck is placed openly onto the table
and the first player either uses the card or takes one from the deck. He then
tries to put down an esquilera with the same symbol of +3 cards or three cards
of the same face but different symbol. At the end of his turn he puts down the
card that serves him the least and the next player uses this card or picks up
one from the deck and so on. The objective is to get rid of your cards as fast
as possible. Once one player finishes, the others count the value of their
cards. The player that reaches 100 pts first looses.
A very fun card game
Sunday I relaxed and went to a game of the local soccer team
"Bloomings" wth Chicoly and Ricardo. Sadly the team lost, but we still
had a good time. Today the weather changed and it was pretty cold. I survived
my first hours of work; cleaning and organizing the workspace and discussing the
plan for an upcoming party. I hardly have a structured workday, the hours are
very loose, and I think it will be an act to find something to do day for day.
But I feel welcome and intigrated in the team, that's the most important thing.
Right now I am lying in bed with my hot water bottle (Danke Oma!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and 4
thin blankets because it is so cold. I almost regret not having taken my winter
jacket, because if it's this cold (it probably just feels cold to me......) in
the spring, how is it going to be in the winter??? But that's a question I
don't have to think about yet :D
Un beso
grandisimo,
Lena
P.S.: fun fact -- ticklish in Spanish means cosquilloso/a :D
Sunday, September 15, 2013
PIctures!!!
Arrival in Santa Cruz Sept. 10
Sofia!! Sept.10
Sunset in Santa Cruz Sept. 10
Cathi (volunteer, now in La Paz) and me Sept. 11
Linseeee :) Sept. 11
Sofia Sept. 11
El Christo Sept. 12
La Plaza 24 Sept. 12
La Plaza Sept. 12
Linse Sept. 13
Courtyard in the pouring rain Sept. 13
My room Sept. 14
Anita and Sofia Sept. 14
Saturday, September 14, 2013
The first steps of my adventures 2
And the adventure goes on!!
The first evening with my family was an overload of people, kisses on the cheek, and tired hello's. We arrived at my new house after an impressive car ride consisting of a long conversation with Daniela about the flight and my first impressions. Because I was talking throughout most of the car ride, I didn't see much of the city at first. when I started paying more attention to the outside, I saw a colorful, very flat, beautiful city. Although, compared to Chicago and most other cities I've seen so far, Santa Cruz is very dusty, I still enjoy all the colors, little street vendors, and even the crazy, crazy traffic.
After about 20 minutes on paved roads, we turned a corner onto a very uneven dirt road. I was curious where our house would be, and was pleasantly surprised when we stopped in front of a house with a huge cactus in the front yard.
Most of the houses here have little gates and/or walls around the outer perimeter of the houses--I assume to protect from animals and people.
The house itself is stretched out and all of the rooms border the courtyard. there is one bathroom and four bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room. On top of these rooms there is another part of the house that the family lease. At the moment Katia, a maybe 22 y.o. biology student lives there with her brother. I've talked to her a few times and she's really nice and interested in what I have to say, although I sometimes don't understand what she is asking.
Back to the evening with my family:
we went shopping and I saw some more of the city. then I helped to make dinner-Tacos and sausages. as we prepared dinner, more and more family members arrived at the house; cousins and siblings of Daniela. I was really tired, so after eating I anted to just fall into my bed.
My host mom Yoyi arrived and welcomed me to the family. I immediately felt like I was part of the family. Then I went to bed.
The next day I got up and the neighbor that had picked me up at the airport with my host family (I hadn't known that he was a neighbor) drove me and Daniella and Sofia to one of the projects in Santa Cruz so that I could eat breakfast with the other volunteers.
I enjoyed eating with everyone for a last time, because after visiting another project and lunch in the center, the volunteers with projects in La Paz and Sucre would leave.
The project that we visited was incredible. It was further away from the center and in one of the "ugly" parts of Santa Cruz--as I learned today. Based completely on the work of volunteers, the project consisted of small workshops to teach children and teenagers about the internet and computers. alongside the workshops, the volunteers had built a garden with vegetables and a recycling system.
All the volunteers drove back to the center of Santa Cruz to eat lunch. After lunch I stayed in the center with Theresa, Vero (the other volunteer in my project), and two other girls. We bought cell phones, exchanged our dollars into bolivianos, and relaxed at the beautiful plaza. A
After an exhausting day, Theresa brought all o us home with the bus--the "micros". Because my house was the farthest out, I brought the other girls home with her. It was an adventure by itself to find the way to all the houses and the take the right micro to the next house.
In S.C. there are no bus stops like in the US or in Europe. Here, the buses have their routs, and if you want to get on a bus you stretch out your hand and wave. If you want to get off a bus, you must have to say "Para por favor" :D
It's quite easy as long as you know where you want to go and how it looks--I don't yet.
I can't even remember what I did in the evening--oh yes. I do!! We went to the house of my "aunt" to celebrate her birthday. The people were very nice and the food was delicious. I even liked the meat that they put on my plate!!!!!!!!!!
We had rice with some sort of egg soufflé, and meat(I have no idea what kind) with carrots inside. Very intersting but yummy. As a dessert we had some sort of Vanilla mousse drink with alcohol and cake. I was so tired that I couldn't follow the conversations, but luckily the family had two puppies that I played with.
OHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! MY FAMILY HAS A DOG!!!!!!!!!
I'm so happy!!!!!!
The next day (yesterday) I had to get up early to meet the other S.C. volunteers at the Interpol building. I got there early and decided to walk around for a bit because it didn't seem safe to just wait there. It's really extreme how many cars honk and guys shout after me (or us "Europeans" in general). I discovered a little "park" in the middle of a roundabout and sat down for a while until the others got there.
We spent our morning trying to get one (ONE!!) of the documents that we need for our visa. At the moment we have a visa for a month, we need a visa for a year and it's more than complicated to gather together all the documents. At around 12pm we went to eat lunch and then strolled around the city a bit more. We opened up a PO box and I now have an address. If interested, please shoot me a message or email and I'll tell you the address :)
While at the post office, Theresa came up to me with a huuuuuggggeeeee package. I was really confused and hesitant to open it. When I did, it was a Charango, a typical Bolivian instrument, similar to a ukulele!!!!! I have the best mom in the whole wide world!! <3
After a few more hours at the plaza we ate ice cream and then took the micro home, this time alone!! Everything went fine, and we would have a free day the next day, so overall there were good vibes in the air.
I spent the evening playing guitar with Chicoli, (or Eric) and talking. Later, when Yoyi came hoe, I showed her the pictures that I had brought with me from home. I went to bed happy but very tired.
Oh. That's another strange thing: the sun rises at 6am and sets around 6pm!!! CRAZYYY!!
Today I woke up to a rainy morning. I ate breakfast and finally had time to un[ack all my things and sort everything into a closet!! I haven't taken cloths out of a closet in almost 2 month!! It still rained terribly at around 1pm when i sat down to eat lunch with my family (minus Yoyi and plus Chicoli) for the first time.
I met up with the other volunteers around 3pm and sat in a cozy cafe with them because the sun still hadn't decided to come through. We talked and drank tea until about pm and I took the micro home. It was already getting darer and as I sat in the micro I was really scared that I'd missed the street where I had to get out because all of a sudden I didn't recognize the neighborhood anymore. But after a minute I saw my corner and arrived at home safely.
Daniela introduced me to her cousin who plays guitar really well. He sat down with me to learn Charango!! Now I have a more or less tuned Charango and a chart with the chords. YAY!! :D
Right now it's 1:22am and I'm sitting in the living room with Daniela, her two sisters, her little brother, Ricardo, and Chicoli. They're playing cards--earlier we were playing guitar and singing and it's time for me to go to bed. I think. It's still raining, who knows, maybe it'll stop by the morning.
¡Un beso grande y cansada a todos!
Lena
The first evening with my family was an overload of people, kisses on the cheek, and tired hello's. We arrived at my new house after an impressive car ride consisting of a long conversation with Daniela about the flight and my first impressions. Because I was talking throughout most of the car ride, I didn't see much of the city at first. when I started paying more attention to the outside, I saw a colorful, very flat, beautiful city. Although, compared to Chicago and most other cities I've seen so far, Santa Cruz is very dusty, I still enjoy all the colors, little street vendors, and even the crazy, crazy traffic.
After about 20 minutes on paved roads, we turned a corner onto a very uneven dirt road. I was curious where our house would be, and was pleasantly surprised when we stopped in front of a house with a huge cactus in the front yard.
Most of the houses here have little gates and/or walls around the outer perimeter of the houses--I assume to protect from animals and people.
The house itself is stretched out and all of the rooms border the courtyard. there is one bathroom and four bedrooms, a kitchen and a living room. On top of these rooms there is another part of the house that the family lease. At the moment Katia, a maybe 22 y.o. biology student lives there with her brother. I've talked to her a few times and she's really nice and interested in what I have to say, although I sometimes don't understand what she is asking.
Back to the evening with my family:
we went shopping and I saw some more of the city. then I helped to make dinner-Tacos and sausages. as we prepared dinner, more and more family members arrived at the house; cousins and siblings of Daniela. I was really tired, so after eating I anted to just fall into my bed.
My host mom Yoyi arrived and welcomed me to the family. I immediately felt like I was part of the family. Then I went to bed.
The next day I got up and the neighbor that had picked me up at the airport with my host family (I hadn't known that he was a neighbor) drove me and Daniella and Sofia to one of the projects in Santa Cruz so that I could eat breakfast with the other volunteers.
I enjoyed eating with everyone for a last time, because after visiting another project and lunch in the center, the volunteers with projects in La Paz and Sucre would leave.
The project that we visited was incredible. It was further away from the center and in one of the "ugly" parts of Santa Cruz--as I learned today. Based completely on the work of volunteers, the project consisted of small workshops to teach children and teenagers about the internet and computers. alongside the workshops, the volunteers had built a garden with vegetables and a recycling system.
All the volunteers drove back to the center of Santa Cruz to eat lunch. After lunch I stayed in the center with Theresa, Vero (the other volunteer in my project), and two other girls. We bought cell phones, exchanged our dollars into bolivianos, and relaxed at the beautiful plaza. A
After an exhausting day, Theresa brought all o us home with the bus--the "micros". Because my house was the farthest out, I brought the other girls home with her. It was an adventure by itself to find the way to all the houses and the take the right micro to the next house.
In S.C. there are no bus stops like in the US or in Europe. Here, the buses have their routs, and if you want to get on a bus you stretch out your hand and wave. If you want to get off a bus, you must have to say "Para por favor" :D
It's quite easy as long as you know where you want to go and how it looks--I don't yet.
I can't even remember what I did in the evening--oh yes. I do!! We went to the house of my "aunt" to celebrate her birthday. The people were very nice and the food was delicious. I even liked the meat that they put on my plate!!!!!!!!!!
We had rice with some sort of egg soufflé, and meat(I have no idea what kind) with carrots inside. Very intersting but yummy. As a dessert we had some sort of Vanilla mousse drink with alcohol and cake. I was so tired that I couldn't follow the conversations, but luckily the family had two puppies that I played with.
OHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! MY FAMILY HAS A DOG!!!!!!!!!
I'm so happy!!!!!!
The next day (yesterday) I had to get up early to meet the other S.C. volunteers at the Interpol building. I got there early and decided to walk around for a bit because it didn't seem safe to just wait there. It's really extreme how many cars honk and guys shout after me (or us "Europeans" in general). I discovered a little "park" in the middle of a roundabout and sat down for a while until the others got there.
We spent our morning trying to get one (ONE!!) of the documents that we need for our visa. At the moment we have a visa for a month, we need a visa for a year and it's more than complicated to gather together all the documents. At around 12pm we went to eat lunch and then strolled around the city a bit more. We opened up a PO box and I now have an address. If interested, please shoot me a message or email and I'll tell you the address :)
While at the post office, Theresa came up to me with a huuuuuggggeeeee package. I was really confused and hesitant to open it. When I did, it was a Charango, a typical Bolivian instrument, similar to a ukulele!!!!! I have the best mom in the whole wide world!! <3
After a few more hours at the plaza we ate ice cream and then took the micro home, this time alone!! Everything went fine, and we would have a free day the next day, so overall there were good vibes in the air.
I spent the evening playing guitar with Chicoli, (or Eric) and talking. Later, when Yoyi came hoe, I showed her the pictures that I had brought with me from home. I went to bed happy but very tired.
Oh. That's another strange thing: the sun rises at 6am and sets around 6pm!!! CRAZYYY!!
Today I woke up to a rainy morning. I ate breakfast and finally had time to un[ack all my things and sort everything into a closet!! I haven't taken cloths out of a closet in almost 2 month!! It still rained terribly at around 1pm when i sat down to eat lunch with my family (minus Yoyi and plus Chicoli) for the first time.
I met up with the other volunteers around 3pm and sat in a cozy cafe with them because the sun still hadn't decided to come through. We talked and drank tea until about pm and I took the micro home. It was already getting darer and as I sat in the micro I was really scared that I'd missed the street where I had to get out because all of a sudden I didn't recognize the neighborhood anymore. But after a minute I saw my corner and arrived at home safely.
Daniela introduced me to her cousin who plays guitar really well. He sat down with me to learn Charango!! Now I have a more or less tuned Charango and a chart with the chords. YAY!! :D
Right now it's 1:22am and I'm sitting in the living room with Daniela, her two sisters, her little brother, Ricardo, and Chicoli. They're playing cards--earlier we were playing guitar and singing and it's time for me to go to bed. I think. It's still raining, who knows, maybe it'll stop by the morning.
¡Un beso grande y cansada a todos!
Lena
Friday, September 13, 2013
The first steps of my adventure
Hi everyone!!
It's been three days since I arrived in Bolivia and my first impressions are amazing. I feel so at home here I can't even believe it's only been three days--not even--since I landed.
Our flight(s) were exhausting, but overall it was fine. Because we didn't fly directly to Santa Cruz, our journey took us almost 24 hours. Nevertheless, all 26 volunteers arrived safely.
Our plane took off in Frankfurt (which was perfect for me since I was there anyway) and from there we flew 12 hours to Sao Paulo. I slept almost the whole way. I even slept through the (very dramatic!!!!) turbulences.
Once we were in Sao Paolo, we had to wait about 4 hours until our flight to Asunción took off.
After the 2 hour flight to Asunción we had another two hours until our plane that would take us to Santa Cruz arrived. I realized that I had forgotten my pencil case in the plane from Sao Paolo to Asunción and was a bit frustrated because the airplane staff said they didn't find it on the plane and I couldn't find it in my backpack.
We were all tired, hungry and most of all thirsty, and none of us knew whether it was safe to drink the water from the fountain so no one dared.
Finally, our plane arrived. After another 1 1/2 hours, we landed safely in Santa Cruz. All of us were anxious to get out of the airport, and after only a little while of waiting at the immigration and for all of our suitcases to arrive, we finally walked out of the airport.
The air felt like summer, warm and humid, but very refreshing after such a long journey. Most of the volunteers left to go to their hotel--they would continue their journey the next day to Sucre, La Paz, and Montero.
I stayed at the airport with 3 other volunteers that also stayed in Santa Cruz like me.
My "regional coordinator" Theresa also stayed with us to make sure that we all got home safely. My host family had sait that they would pick me up from the airport, but, as it is a Bolivian stereotype to be late to everything, they arrived late. But, they arrived.
My host brother Ricardo picked me up with his wife Daniela and their daughter Sofia. They greetet me with open arms and I immediatly felt welcome and happy.
There's more to come this evening!!
un beso grande,
Lena
It's been three days since I arrived in Bolivia and my first impressions are amazing. I feel so at home here I can't even believe it's only been three days--not even--since I landed.
Our flight(s) were exhausting, but overall it was fine. Because we didn't fly directly to Santa Cruz, our journey took us almost 24 hours. Nevertheless, all 26 volunteers arrived safely.
Our plane took off in Frankfurt (which was perfect for me since I was there anyway) and from there we flew 12 hours to Sao Paulo. I slept almost the whole way. I even slept through the (very dramatic!!!!) turbulences.
Once we were in Sao Paolo, we had to wait about 4 hours until our flight to Asunción took off.
After the 2 hour flight to Asunción we had another two hours until our plane that would take us to Santa Cruz arrived. I realized that I had forgotten my pencil case in the plane from Sao Paolo to Asunción and was a bit frustrated because the airplane staff said they didn't find it on the plane and I couldn't find it in my backpack.
We were all tired, hungry and most of all thirsty, and none of us knew whether it was safe to drink the water from the fountain so no one dared.
Finally, our plane arrived. After another 1 1/2 hours, we landed safely in Santa Cruz. All of us were anxious to get out of the airport, and after only a little while of waiting at the immigration and for all of our suitcases to arrive, we finally walked out of the airport.
The air felt like summer, warm and humid, but very refreshing after such a long journey. Most of the volunteers left to go to their hotel--they would continue their journey the next day to Sucre, La Paz, and Montero.
I stayed at the airport with 3 other volunteers that also stayed in Santa Cruz like me.
My "regional coordinator" Theresa also stayed with us to make sure that we all got home safely. My host family had sait that they would pick me up from the airport, but, as it is a Bolivian stereotype to be late to everything, they arrived late. But, they arrived.
My host brother Ricardo picked me up with his wife Daniela and their daughter Sofia. They greetet me with open arms and I immediatly felt welcome and happy.
There's more to come this evening!!
un beso grande,
Lena
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
The Adventure Beginns
Hi Everyone!
Now there's only four days left until I take off to Bolivia, and even though I'm not sitting in the plane quite yet, the adventure for me has, in some ways, already started.
I've been in Germany since almost one and a half months, touring around, visiting relatives, and catching up with friends. And, of course, taking part in a manditory Seminar to prepare us volunteers for Bolivia.
We did a lot of team-building activities to gain strength as a group, as well as activities to get to know ourselves better because that is a huge part of the year abroad. Not only are we in Bolivia to help the people there and use our knowledge to make improvements, but we are also in Bolivia to learn about a culture completely different from ours and, throughout the year, learn more about ourselves.
Last week I read an amazingly inspiring book (in Spanish!!) by Paolo Coehlo called The Alchemist. It's a great novel about finding your main goal in life and fulfilling that goal - very fitting to my year abroad. All in all, a very recommendable book.
"Cada momento de búsqueda es un momento de encuentro." (Every moment of searching is a moment of finding)
Throughout my time in Germany I've traveled form north to south and east to west,and eve to Amsterdam.
Amsterdam might be the most beautiful city I have ever been to. With the small, narrow streets and old houses it doesn't feel like a big city. And the channels - the "Grachten" - are absolutely stunning.
I also went on "vaccation" from my travels to a small island in the North Sea with my grandma "Oma". I loved the peace and quiet of the dunes as well as the busier beaches. and the sunsets were beautiful.
Until I fly off, I am staying with my best friend Pia in my old home town, Friedrichsdorf near Frankfurt.
Peace
Now there's only four days left until I take off to Bolivia, and even though I'm not sitting in the plane quite yet, the adventure for me has, in some ways, already started.
I've been in Germany since almost one and a half months, touring around, visiting relatives, and catching up with friends. And, of course, taking part in a manditory Seminar to prepare us volunteers for Bolivia.
We did a lot of team-building activities to gain strength as a group, as well as activities to get to know ourselves better because that is a huge part of the year abroad. Not only are we in Bolivia to help the people there and use our knowledge to make improvements, but we are also in Bolivia to learn about a culture completely different from ours and, throughout the year, learn more about ourselves.
Last week I read an amazingly inspiring book (in Spanish!!) by Paolo Coehlo called The Alchemist. It's a great novel about finding your main goal in life and fulfilling that goal - very fitting to my year abroad. All in all, a very recommendable book.
"Cada momento de búsqueda es un momento de encuentro." (Every moment of searching is a moment of finding)
Throughout my time in Germany I've traveled form north to south and east to west,and eve to Amsterdam.
Amsterdam might be the most beautiful city I have ever been to. With the small, narrow streets and old houses it doesn't feel like a big city. And the channels - the "Grachten" - are absolutely stunning.
I also went on "vaccation" from my travels to a small island in the North Sea with my grandma "Oma". I loved the peace and quiet of the dunes as well as the busier beaches. and the sunsets were beautiful.
Until I fly off, I am staying with my best friend Pia in my old home town, Friedrichsdorf near Frankfurt.
Peace
Amsterdam at night
"Gracht"
Sunset on Wangerooge
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)