Two months later
Two months ago I stepped off a plane in Cali, Colombia. It’s incredible that so much time has passed already; I have learned so much and somehow fallen into routine as a Christian school English teacher.
I have faced a number of challenges but have also experienced a ridiculous amount of joy. The students here are beautiful, warm and … sometimes inattentive, but we’re working on that.
The church here has welcomed me with open arms and the customary kiss on the cheek. Here’s some of my new friends.
Sarah, Luis, Magda, Lorraina and Julieta (with Cali in the background)
Eight more months to go …
Recap: Oct. 11 – 17
It has been a crazy week. I think this is the longest I have gone without blogging, and I apologize, but life is busy. To prove it, here’s my recap of this week.
Sunday – A group of my new friends here took me out to San Antonio, a really historic and artsy part of Cali. There’s a church hundreds of year old up on a hill, with a great view over the city.
The church in San Antonio with crowds of people hanging around inside and out.
We also wandered down one street with lots of locally-made crafts and jewelry before stopping for some shaved ice, which was basically a huge glass full of fruit with some ice at the bottom. Yum!
Monday – My incredible cousin and close friend got engaged to her Mr. Right and I am so excited for her … and the honour to be a bridesmaid in her wedding.
Tuesday – After our first day back in class, a friend drove me back to the government agency to get my passport stamped. I’m now allowed to stay in Colombia for another month.
Wednesday - There was a massive thunderstorm just as class was finishing, and my Grade 6 students freaked right out. They were asking me to pray and practically hiding under their desks. It was pretty much chaos but kind of hilarious at the same time.
Thursday – I’m finishing up the first unit with most of my classes, so we played some fun review games.
Friday - I gave my first test to Grade 11. Apparently it was really hard; even my best students had trouble with it. Well, now I know what not to do.
Saturday - I just spent the last two hours on skype talking wedding plans with my cousin and a trip to Peru with my friend, Sheri. There is plenty to be excited about in my world. But now, I should probably get some work done. I have tests and homework assignments to grade, tests to write for next week, and lesson plans to do.
Chao, chicos!
Recap: Oct. 4 – 10
Last week’s post on my weekly activities seemed like a hit, so I decided to make it a regular Saturday feature. There were no classes at Ekklesia this week, as it’s a national school holiday. Instead, we teachers spent our days updating the standards, definitions and purposes of the core courses we teach for the school’s files. Good times.
Sunday – Emilse prepares communion for the church every month, so I decided to help out. It was the usual grape juice and crackers … but we actually made grape juice. As in, throw the little guys in the blender, strain out the seeds and skin, and pour the rest into little plastic cups. Delicious.
Monday – My nephew had his first day of preschool! Unrelated to me, yes, but noteworthy all the same.
Tuesday – The pastor’s daughter, Sarah, drove me to the north end of the city to apply for a visa extension. We had to do some running around to photocopy paperwork, pay fees, etc, but it went well and I enjoyed exploring more of the city.
Wednesday - I discovered the test booklet I have that goes along with my English curriculum is the student version … as in, I don’t have the answers. Looks like I’ll be writing all my own exams this year …
Thursday – The education laws in Colombia changed recently, so a few teachers spent several days writing an entirely new evaluation system for the school to comply with the legislation. They presented it to the rest of us professors; it’s clear and thorough, but also means more work for us especially since we’re already a month into the academic year and now have to adjust how we are grading our students.
Friday – For the third time in the week, someone I was supposed to meet with to discuss curriculum and lesson planning didn’t show up. I guess this is the Colombian way?
Saturday – My mom sent running shoes I left behind, so I attempted a jog around the makeshift basketball court here. It was hot, but I sweated it out for a half hour or so … it definitely felt good to be running again.
Snapshots of South America
I can hardly believe I’ve been in Colombia for seven weeks already. Here’s a few more photos of my experiences in South America.
Lightening flashes across the sky during a thunderstorm over Cali.
Mangos ... yummy!
A view of the city from dieceocho, a highway through the mountain range.
Playing pictionary with some new friends.
Siloe ... probably the most dangerous area in the city but it's beautiful at night ...
... bonita, no? I quite enjoy the view.
News flashes
Here’s some recent headlines that caught my interest:
- We all knew it, but this week Canada was once again recognized as one of the best places in the world to live. My home and native land turned up forth on the UN human development index. Norway topped the list, the US of A came in 13th, and Afghanistan was second last with only Nigeria behind it.
Former British president Tony Blair might be the new EU leader.
- Last week, Ireland ratified the Lisbon Treaty, bringing the agreement much closer to reality in the European Union. Among other things, the treaty will create the position of EU president and make the group more like a federal nation. There’s a pretty good chance former United Kingdom president Tony Blair will be given the first term as leader.
- Brazil was awarded the 2016 Olympics on Friday, with Rio de Janeiro beating out Chicago, Tokyo and Madrid. It was a big moment for the nation and especially its president, the much-loved Lula da Silva. I, for one, am thrilled to see the Summer Games coming to South America for the first time. I’ve heard the argument that the millions of dollars to be spent on building projects and other preparation for the international event could be spent on poverty and crime initiatives for the country, I think the construction and other jobs this opportunity will create will be a huge plus. The Olympics will put the spotlight on Brazil and South America as a whole, both highlighting its positives and hopefully offering new solutions to its problems.
- Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi is in trouble. Today, a judge overturned a law granting the leader immunity from prosecution, a law that got him out of a corruption trial in 2008. The court decided the legislation was unconstitutional, as it gave special privileges to specific politicians – an opinion I heartily agree with. Just because someone is a head of state does not mean they should not have to face consequences of their actions, or even alleged actions. In fact, being in that position should mean they provide additional transparency; after all, they make decisions for the entire country and must possess a measure of integrity. There is a lot of pressure on Berlusconi to resign because of the charges against him, but so far he’s said he plans to stick around.
Let me know what you think and leave your opinions and/or other interesting news bites in the comments section.
Hockey season
So I’m apparently part of my first regular-season hockey pool, despite being on a different continent from all the teams, players and other members of the pool.
My former coworkers at Metroland added me to their pool and picked a team for me since I was unavailable to chose my own. Somehow the Ottawa Senators were unfortunately excluded (and the Flames, my second-favourite team), but on the flip side, there are thankfully no Leafs. Hopefully my internet co-operates enough for me to catch a few games online; the NHL sked has already been dutifully bookmarked.
I managed to find a radio station broadcasting the Sens season opener online on Saturday; despite their loss, it was a patriotic moment for me to listen to the hockey game while sitting under a palm tree in Cali.
Here’s my team:
Forwards
Ilya Kovalchuck – Atlanta Thrasers
Brian Little – Atlanta Thrasers
Pavel Datsyuk – Detroit Red Wings
Jeff Carter – Philadelpia Flyers
Corey Perry – Anaheim Ducks
Bobby Ryan – Anaheim Ducks
Devon Setoguchi – San Jose Sharks
Jason Pominville – Buffalo Sabres
Defence
Sergei Gonchar – Pittsburgh Penguins
Zdeno Chara – Boston Bruins
Lubmir Visnovsky – Edmonton Oilers
Ryan Whitney – Anaheim Ducks
Goalies
Jonas Hillier – Anaheim Ducks
Semyon Varlamov – Washington Capitals
I’m currently tied for fifth place in the pool of eight people … but the season has only just begun.
Recap: Sept. 27 – Oct. 3
Here’s a quick recap of the events of my week:
Sunday – had a skype conference call with my entire family … we’re currently in four different countries, four time zones and three continents.
Monday – forgot to collect homework I assigned my eighth grade students. I was handed two pieces of mail when I arrived at school in the morning – yay!
Tuesday – helped kindergarten kids build sand castles.
Wednesday – had a mini Bible study with ninth grade and was impressed by their insights.
Thursday – met with the other high school teachers after classes to talk about how to prep the graduating class for the national exam (the Colombian version of the SATs). After a diagnostic test, we discovered they are all struggling in physics but rocking the mathematics. As for English, I have almost a completely split class – half are practically bilingual, half can barely carry a conversation. It will be interesting.
Friday – played a game in the English elective in which I had to chose the ideal job out of five options; I picked president. In the evening there was a lightning storm that lasted nearly three hours and I set a new personal record: 1,800 photos in 45 minutes. Four or five of those captured lightning, and there is one I’m super proud of (to be posted at a later date).
Saturday – the day isn’t over but I’ve spent most of it so far writing out my class plans for October. I’m really hoping I have some internet tonight so I can listen in to the Ottawa Senator’s season opener. GO SENS!
No confidence
Members of Parliament are voting on a Liberal no-confidence motion today. It won’t pass, since the NDP has already promised to support the Conservatives until the EI bill is through.
Michael Ignatieff says he believes Canadians deserve a better government, which is why he is trying to bring down Stephen Harper. It may be true we deserve better, but I also think we deserve a year without an election.
What do you think?
If I had 36 million dollars
If I won the lottery, say $36 million or something like that, I know exactly what I would do with it.
I would travel to space.
The billionaire founder of Canada’s Cirque du soleil will rocket to international attention after blasting off into outer space to host one of the most unique spectacles in human history …
He started as a street juggler and fire-eater and, because he was the best at math among his group of performing friends, Laliberte was put in charge of a little performing troupe that would eventually become the world-famous Cirque du soleil.
That business venture helped Laliberte become wealthy enough to plunk down $US35 million for a seat on an old Russian spacecraft and a stay aboard the International Space Station.
This guy is definitely my hero of the day. How cool would staying on the International Space Station be? Even just the travel to and from earth would be freakin’ amazing. I may have to make my list 101 things to do before I die … or 102, cause I don’t actually play the lottery.
The only problem with an adventure like this: you could never do anything to top it.
Cheryl