January 2011
1 post
December 2010
18 posts
i will miss...
waking up in the morning to diego or my dad singing loudly in the kitchen while making breakfast
walking up the stairs to my room and seeing the andes mountains in clear view
eating bon bon’s-and only paying 1 boliviano for each one.
drinking obsessive amounts of coca cola.
seeing a humming bird every single day in the flowers by our front gate.
buying gum from jimmy
playing cards or cacho...
“you get this strange feeling when you’re about to leave a place, like you...”
“si tan solo uno pudiera detener el tiempo para evitar que una parte muy...”
– one of my favorite people in the world.
final speech
for those of you who speak spanish, feel free to read. i really just wanted to put it on my blog to remember it though, so don’t feel obligated!
Cuando alguien me pregunta cuál es mi pasión en la vida, le digo relaciones sin una pausa para pensar. Las relaciones en mi vida son las que me motivan a despertar en la mañana, lo que me inspiran a aprender cosas nuevas y lo que realmente me...
last day of class?
done and done.
tomorrow we have our closing ceremony/talent show/BBQ and dance and then it’s goodbye to the institute and all the wonderful people that work there until i come back to visit. it’s a strange feeling to be closing this chapter of my life….i have a feeling the goodbye’s are going to be tough. wish me luck!
we have the weekend here in cochabamba and then ken...
“we live in a wonderful world that is full of beauty, charm and adventure. there...”
– jawaharial nehru. kate may thank you so much for this perfect quote.
summer
today for lunch we had fresh watermelon juice (absolutely incredible) and then in the courtyard set up a baby pool for diego’s son sebi to play in. we all sat in the sun and splashed around with the water while we listened to music. it felt just like summer time should. we went back inside afterward and started decorating for christmas. i am now extremely disoriented.
“i am so thankful to be alive -
breathing, moving, sensing,
wide-eyed,...”
– ted loder
“don’t ask what the world needs. ask what makes you come alive, and go do it....”
the beginning of the end
how much do i hate that title? SO MUCH.
updates:
ken and i have decided not to go to peru with our extra week. we haven’t been to sucre (second capital of bolivia) or potosi yet-both of which are incredible historical and recommended….so we’re going to do those two places instead and have a couple more days in cochabamba with our friends and family. both of us were just really...
“the only thing more unthinkable than leaving is staying, and the only thing more...”
– elizabeth gilbert
“imperfection is beauty; madness is genius. and it’s better to be...”
November 2010
15 posts
swinging
you know when you have those days where you just wake up with a heavy heart for some reason? i woke up this morning and immediately felt “off.” i went to school and got asked like a million times what was wrong (which i love because it makes me feel loved and known, but i also hate because i can’t just have a bad day without anyone noticing) before i even got to my first class.
...
thanksgiving
“forever on thanksgiving day, the heart will find it’s way home.”-wilbur d. nesbit
so obviously thanksgiving (or “el día de acción de gracias”) is not celebrated in bolivia….due to the fact that it is a purely american holiday. however, it’s my favorite holiday of the year and means a whole lot to me-so i wasn’t about to let it pass by without...
red-hot.
i was just reading the lecture in my book for grammar class tomorrow on immigration/migration and this word came up: “candente”. i didn’t know what it meant, so i looked it up and the translation that came up on google translate was, “red-hot.”
just wanted to make sure that you all know that the phrase “red-hot” apparently has a direct word translation in...
the double kiss....
most of the time when we are out at night (especially during the week) we are around the same area of town. one place in particular-café caracol-we spend a significant amount of time at. melissa has been working there for the last 3 months-so we would always go hang out while she was working…which led to getting to know everyone else that works there…which led to recognizing all of the...
updates
i am feeling much better!
it is HOT here. i keep reading facebook status’s talking about snow or cold weather or curling up by the fireplace drinking hot chocolate and it is throwing me off! it is straight up summer here and i love it. for sure going to be an interesting transition coming home to snow!
ELIZABETH ANNE GRIFFITH, my best friend is COMING tomorrow morning to visit! i could...
sick
so the last week has not been my best…i’ve been feeling under the weather on and off since last monday…not the most fun thing in the world-especially because i’m panicking these days about my lack of time here.
it hasn’t quite been sick enough to keep me from doing things most days-although today i came home early from classes only because in the middle of class my...
“if only…those must be the two saddest words in the world.”
– mercedes lackey
“travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness.”
– mark twain
3 images.
ONE: today i’m in my grammar class with my professor anita. she was tired, i was annoyed and we were talking about the subjunctive tense-more specifically, the differences between the imperfect subjunctive, the pluscuam subjunctive, and the preterite perfect subjunctive. not a great combination. she puts her book down and looks at me and goes, “you know the olympics?” i’m...
just a normal dinner...
our conversations tonight covered the following topics:
how my fathers facial hair gives him sex appeal (his comment, no one else’s)
how nobody can ever quite live up to my mom’s cleaning expectations, but she’s the best…so that’s okay.
how much a new computer modem would cost
how my dad just wants a computer that will read his mind (stemming from the problem that...
October 2010
21 posts
yikes.
my coca cola addiction has gotten so bad that when diego asked me tonight if i wanted a glass of coke after dinner and i said no (because i’ve already had about 10 today) his mouth dropped open and he said, “are you serious?”
then 10 minutes later when i changed my mind and wanted a glass anyway he just laughed in my face.
anti-racism law
on october 8th evo, the president of bolivia signed a law called “the anti-racism and discrimination law.” talk about controversial…
the first thing that came to my mind when i heard about this law was, wait-great intentions…but what about freedom of speech? i was obviously not the only one to bring up this question. the press has been going crazy. there has been protests...
“en bolivia, cada día es viernes.”
– my cousin yazmin
la paz, copacabana & isla del sol
i.had.the.best.weekend.ever.
this is going to be so long, but i just have to write it out so i don’t ever forget it…don’t feel bad if you don’t read all of it…totally understand.
thursday: ken and i got to the cochabamba airport just in time to slurp down a milkshake and enjoy an empanada before jet-setting to the capital city of la paz. we landed in la paz...
but seriously...
after dinner with diego and my mom tonight we went to pick up my dad than the 4 of us went to the grocery store. my mom and dad went around getting everything they needed while diego and i just messed around and laughed and made a huge scene among the other shoppers. when we finished we went to pick up my sister from volleyball and all came home. we were all around in the kitchen-my mom unpacking...
raw?
today i walked into the kitchen for lunch and my mom said…
“listen caro, today we have something to eat that is a little bit raw…so if you want the leftovers from yesterday you can eat those instead.”
to which i answered, “well, what is it? CAN i eat it?”
and she said, “yes….well, just try it”
so i tried it…with the whole family...
today
today it POURED rain while i was walking home from school and it made me giggle, and feel alive.
today i helped a 12 year old girl at the shelter with her homework for an hour, and it made me grateful that i chose a career path that i love so passionately.
today i watched glee, and laughed out loud during the whole episode.
today i’m going to dinner with some of my favorite people, and...
LIZ IS COMING TOO!!!
life just keeps getting better and better….my best friend liz just booked her ticket to come to cochabamba too! I AM SO EXCITED! goodness gracious i am blessed…
“a process cannot be understood by stopping it; understanding must move with the...”
– frank herbert
the need for attention
today at the orphanage i was blown away by the amount of love that these kids need in comparison to the lack of love they are actually getting. i realize this sounds like an elementary statement given the definition of an orphanage…but this reality hit me hard this afternoon. one of the little girls was crying because one of her arms had come out of her sweater arm. i went over to her and...
MY BABY BROTHER IS COMING!
JOHN OFFICIALLY BOOKED HIS FLIGHT AND IS COMING TO VISIT ME FOR THANKSGIVING!!!!! clearly, could NOT be more excited. World’s most dangerous road…here we come! I AM SO BLESSED!
family
there is a woman that works in the administrative office in the institute named teresa that i have gotten to know quite well throughout my time here. she is a good friend of my host mother, and went on one of our weekend trips with us. she always picks me up when i’m walking home from school to give me a ride, and constantly makes time in her day to stop me in the hallway and ask me how...