I would never do that in the U.S. but in Ecuador...

Adam and I finished our time in Puruhantag. We had our Family Appreciation Celebration (where Adam and I squeezed 100 lemons for lemonade, along with Tiffany and Tom!) over the weekend and it was a great way to end our time. On our last night, we had cake with the families in our community, and our host dad Edwin said some very nice words. We hope to visit them sometime in the next year when we are in the area. Our host dad said it wasn`t goodbye...just hasta luego. I think that sounds pretty good to us too.

We are now in Quito, where we are 2 days away from getting sworn in on August 19 at the Ambassador´s house as official volunteers. We are excited to get started as volunteers, and to start our lives in Loja. We are a bit nervous since it is a new stage in our lives and it has felt like life has been on hold for 2 months. Wish us luck as we begin connecting with our communities and figuring out what it is that we will be doing for the next 2 years.

Speaking of Loja, I have posted information about our new mailing address to the right. I know that it is expensive to mail things, including letters...but we would love to receive mail if you feel the urge to send stuff including letters of what you are up to. And not that this is a hint, but we will be posting a wish list of things that we can`t get in Ecuador. Look for that in the future on the side bar. :D

I´ll try to keep folks posted on what we are up to via email as well. Just haven´t really had much time to think of what to share, since sometimes it feels like daily life here. But as I think about things, I realize that there are definitely things that we have done here that we would never do in the U.S. Such as...

1. Pay $1.15 for a Snickers bar

2. Ride in the back of a pick up truck down the highway. Yes, it is kind of scary.

3. Eat a burger at the bus station...and really, really enjoy it

4. Throw used toilet paper into the trash can...it can be dangerous to put it down the toilet here

5. Ride in a car without a seatbelt

6. Buy ice cream sandwiches on a daily basis

7. Text message

8. Sleep talk in Spanish (Adam mumbles a lot in his sleep)

9. Drink instant coffee because everyone here loves the Nescafe. I have heard that Loja is different so I am looking forward to that!

10. Not take photographs because you don`t want to look like a tourist. I hope that in Loja I can do a photo project with the kids. I just have to figure out where all the cameras are in this country!!

Ok that is all for now!! More photos later!!