First of all, I need to thank all of you who have been reading my blog. I really appreciate you. It's comforting to know that people are investing their time into reading this because it helps me feel more connected to the outside world. Also, I really enjoy sharing my experiences because I think that people still tend to have some misconceptions about Colombia (and don't we have those about anywhere?) and I want to change both my own misconceptions and hopefully others as well.
The other topic I absolutely must address is Avianca Airlines. Avianca is Colombia's largest air carrier, and it is phenomenal. I mean it. Honestly, I was really worried about flying with them before we got on the plane (there are those misconceptions again!). I expected something sort of like a (really) ghetto version of RyanAir, or maybe a really old plane that was dirty and gross. Let me just say, I think Avianca on its own is enough to change misconceptions of Colombia. The plane was literally the nicest plane I have ever ridden. It was new, the seats were extremely comfortable (and a big bigger than usual), every seat had it's own touch-screen TV, the food was fantastic (there were even artichokes in the salad!), and the flight attendants were incredibly kind. The movies/television shows/documentaries/music available for in-flight entertainment were up-to-date and well-chosen. (They had Slumdog Millionaire, a documentary about food, Milk, that Benjamin Button movie, and a number of other Oscar nominees.) They played a game with the entire plane where 1 person one a free trip, and everything was incredibly pleasant. Also, the flight attendants spoke English and were very helpful. Overall, the flight was the best I've ever taken. I can't believe they offered so many nice amenities just for a four hour flight.
Okay, I'm done advertising. (But seriously, if you ever have the chance, take an Avianca flight!
Today was fun. It was slow, as was yesterday, but I'm very grateful for that. We're only here for 6 weeks, so I don't want it to go by too quickly. We spent most of the day preparing for the screening tests we will be administering. We start screening the kindergarten tomorrow, so that should be interesting.I think one of the best parts of our day was riding the school bus. It took us home yesterday, but today it picked us up too! We got to ride with all the little kids, and they are absolutely the cutest kids I have ever seen. All the students at LPV have begun to warm up to us, and we've begun to have extended conversations with many of them. Justin is Warren's favorite. He sat with us at lunch and near us on the bus today. The child talks more than any kid I know, but he is really sweet. He sang me a song today when we were riding home, and HE MADE US CARDS! They are cards welcoming us and telling us that he is glad we are his friends. We've also been invited to Ricky's house on Saturday. Ricky, was one of our students at Camp Bear International last summer, but he was a handful then. Now, he is very mature and polite, and he sat with us at lunch and talked for a long time. He's grown up a lot since we last saw him.The other fun parts of the day:
1. Spanish/English lessons with Gabriel, the bio-chemistry teacher at LPV. We learned a lot of words, few of which I remember, but he's a lot of fun to talk to, and he really wants to learn English.
2. Spanish/English lessons with D-ita!!! We walked around the entire apartment, and she would point to things and say the word in Spanish, and then we would teach her the English word. I'm definitely learning the most Spanish by speaking with D-ita. She's very patient with me, and she is easy to comprehend. Even if I don't always know what the words mean, I usually know what she wants to tell me.
3. Going to the bank! Believe it or not, we managed to go over 48 hours without having a single Colombian peso. That's how nice everyone in Colombia is! We just never needed any money. We really want to go to the grocery store, though, but to get there we have to take a taxi, and to take a taxi we needed cash. Andrea was kind enough to pick us up and take us to a bank. She dropped us off downtown, and we walked around a bit, but we want to go back tomorrow and explore during the day. We had to take a taxi back to our apartment... guess how much it was?! 3,175 pesos, which is roughly $1.75, $2.00 with tip. It wasn't a short trip either, it was definitely over a mile!
Showing posts with label D-ita. Show all posts
Showing posts with label D-ita. Show all posts
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
I have a maid.
Hello everyone! We FINALLY made it to Pereira, Colombia today. After lots of delays, lost luggage, confusion at the airport, and missed flights (due to Delta's staff, not us), we made it here. We were supposed to arrive yesterday, but we ended up spending the night in Atlanta. We caught a flight to Miami this morning, and then we flew to Pereira.
On the way to Pereira, we were able to see (from the air): Cuba, Jamaica, Cartagena, Medellin, and a great deal Colombian countryside. We flew on Avianca, which is Colombia's own airline, and it was fantastic. The plane was very new and had amenities I haven't ever seen before (like a jack for a USB stick, a touch screen for movies, and a coat hook!). It was a great flight, and we didn't have any problems.
The airport in P---- is very small. It only has one arrival area, and I'm fairly sure customs and border control had no idea what to do with us. We got through everything just fine (I even answered a question asked in Spanish without any help!). After we finished with border patrol, the baggage claim, and customs, we simply walked outside. There wasn't even a door! Andrea, one of the Colombian teachers from Camp Bear last summer, was waiting to pick us up.
Andrea drove us to the apartment where we are staying. The city itself seems crowded. We drove through very nice areas and some not-so-nice areas within a few feet of each other. In Pe----, the transportation method of choice is a taxi (or your own car), but there are also regular buses, the Megabus, and lots and lots of motorcycles. Apparently, P---- has such a problem with traffic that the city has instituted a law restricting when people can drive. Depending on the number with which your license plate starts, you cannot drive one day of the week. For example, on Mondays vehicles with license plates beginning with 0 or 1 cannot be on the road. (Of course, Andrea's vehicle began with a 1, so she actually had to borrow a car from a friend just to pick us up!) On the way to the apartment the car in front of us got into a fender bender. Andrea explained that those were normal, and we had to laugh as everyone honked their horns and negotiated how to get around the accident through by yelling through the car windows.
The place we are staying is unbelievable. It's in a nice apartment buil
ding up on the hill, in the nicest part of town. It's huge, and we have our own room. I've posted a picture of the living room and the hallway. I'll try to post more pictures tomorrow; the ones I have from tonight aren't very good. The apartment has 3 bedrooms, a living room, a study, a wide hallway, a dining room, a kitchen, and... 
the maid's quarters. We have a maid that lives with us! It's so strange! She has already been taking very good care of us, but it feels very weird to have someone constantly serving me. She is supposed to do the laundry, clean, and cook. Her name is D-ita, and she doesn't speak any English, but Warren does his best and we've been able to communicate a little bit. She showed us her room, which is really small, and we tried to get her to sit with us out in the living area, but she said no. I think we probably did something that was socially unacceptable, but it just feels to weird to have someone sitting in a little tiny space when we have such a large living area! Also, besides D-ita, we are the only ones living here right now. It is the principal's apartment, but she is in Buenos Aires this week. She also has a house in the country, so we aren't expecting to see her very much.
Other than that, there isn't much to say. We start working at LPV tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. Andrea is going to give us a ride tomorrow, but after that we get to ride the school bus with the kids!
The weather here is wonderful. Not humid, just warm. Andrea told us that it rains almost every day, but it's usually just a light rain that ends quickly.
I know this was really long! I apologize. Tomorrow, I'll try to get up some good pictures... especially of our view from this apartment. It's incredible!
Good night!
On the way to Pereira, we were able to see (from the air): Cuba, Jamaica, Cartagena, Medellin, and a great deal Colombian countryside. We flew on Avianca, which is Colombia's own airline, and it was fantastic. The plane was very new and had amenities I haven't ever seen before (like a jack for a USB stick, a touch screen for movies, and a coat hook!). It was a great flight, and we didn't have any problems.
The airport in P---- is very small. It only has one arrival area, and I'm fairly sure customs and border control had no idea what to do with us. We got through everything just fine (I even answered a question asked in Spanish without any help!). After we finished with border patrol, the baggage claim, and customs, we simply walked outside. There wasn't even a door! Andrea, one of the Colombian teachers from Camp Bear last summer, was waiting to pick us up.
Andrea drove us to the apartment where we are staying. The city itself seems crowded. We drove through very nice areas and some not-so-nice areas within a few feet of each other. In Pe----, the transportation method of choice is a taxi (or your own car), but there are also regular buses, the Megabus, and lots and lots of motorcycles. Apparently, P---- has such a problem with traffic that the city has instituted a law restricting when people can drive. Depending on the number with which your license plate starts, you cannot drive one day of the week. For example, on Mondays vehicles with license plates beginning with 0 or 1 cannot be on the road. (Of course, Andrea's vehicle began with a 1, so she actually had to borrow a car from a friend just to pick us up!) On the way to the apartment the car in front of us got into a fender bender. Andrea explained that those were normal, and we had to laugh as everyone honked their horns and negotiated how to get around the accident through by yelling through the car windows.
The place we are staying is unbelievable. It's in a nice apartment buil
ding up on the hill, in the nicest part of town. It's huge, and we have our own room. I've posted a picture of the living room and the hallway. I'll try to post more pictures tomorrow; the ones I have from tonight aren't very good. The apartment has 3 bedrooms, a living room, a study, a wide hallway, a dining room, a kitchen, and... the maid's quarters. We have a maid that lives with us! It's so strange! She has already been taking very good care of us, but it feels very weird to have someone constantly serving me. She is supposed to do the laundry, clean, and cook. Her name is D-ita, and she doesn't speak any English, but Warren does his best and we've been able to communicate a little bit. She showed us her room, which is really small, and we tried to get her to sit with us out in the living area, but she said no. I think we probably did something that was socially unacceptable, but it just feels to weird to have someone sitting in a little tiny space when we have such a large living area! Also, besides D-ita, we are the only ones living here right now. It is the principal's apartment, but she is in Buenos Aires this week. She also has a house in the country, so we aren't expecting to see her very much.Other than that, there isn't much to say. We start working at LPV tomorrow morning at 7 a.m. Andrea is going to give us a ride tomorrow, but after that we get to ride the school bus with the kids!
The weather here is wonderful. Not humid, just warm. Andrea told us that it rains almost every day, but it's usually just a light rain that ends quickly.
I know this was really long! I apologize. Tomorrow, I'll try to get up some good pictures... especially of our view from this apartment. It's incredible!
Good night!
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