Day 9: I didn't want to get out of bed. School was boring but I met a student in my class named Pamela for the first time because she had been sick all last week. She has become one of my closest friends from school. The other good thing at school was watching the girls in my course beat their rival team in soccer- apparently last year’s game was rough and they wanted revenge. I started riding in a taxi today because Jorge took back the little temporary car and their other one still isn't fixed. In the evening I went to my first Rotary club meeting in Machala. Each inbound presented their banners and the rebounds presented 10 minute picture presentations about their own trips. It was nice to talk with my new exchange friend Simone from Switzerland. She knows English and it is nice to revert to that every once in a while. The meeting was long and Lorgia and I left early. When I got home, I sat down and watched yet another action movie (that I never watched before) Superman Returns. When I went to bed after the movie it was 1:30AM.
Day 10: As a result of little sleep and the pizza at the Rotary meeting, I was sick and exhausted all day. I went with the one girl in my class who speaks decent English to the health room where the doctor gave me some anti-acid stuff and advil, but it didn't help much. We went on a field trip to a nearby sports field facility where the boys in my course had a soccer game against a team from a different school. They lost in a shoot-out. After school I went to Pamela's house and we talked for an hour before going out to walk around. She brought me to her cousin’s cell shop to see if they could get my phone to work. I let them keep it to try a software update but I was pretty sure the state of my phone wasn't going to change. Then I went with Lorgia and Jorge to Chili's for a birthday of a friend’s daughter. These friends I hadn't met before, and the whole thing was awkward on top of how exhausted I was feeling. I seriously had never felt so tired before in my life; I couldn't keep my eyes open, but they didn't seem to notice or care because they sat there talking late into the evening.
Day 11: I got up in front of my class and translated 6 or 7 facts to Spanish about the US involvement in World War 2. I gave two boys in my class lyrics to Bruno Mars' "Locked Out of Heaven" and Journey's "Faithfully" because they wanted me to help them with the lyric pronunciation. They were so excited- it was cute. I told my literature course teacher that I love to sing, and he had me get up and sing in front of the class. I sang "Amazing Grace", "Locked Out of Heaven" and "Somebody Like You". The whole class was impressed with my voice. I took out my NH state pin to show a couple students who had asked about it, and then everyone ended up wanting one. I ran out of pins and promised to bring more the next day. I took a much needed nap today- four hours. Then I watched Soul Surfer in Spanish and had a grilled ham & cheese for dinner- this has become my favorite dinner.
Day 12: I rushed to get ready as my alarm didn't go off for school. I was still late for school and had to sit in the library for the first course of the day. Woops. It was yet another boring day at school. I handed out more pins to my class and handed some to my course teachers too. They have been wearing them ever since. After school I hung out with Pamela again and went back to see if my phone was fixed. It didn't work- so I bought a new phone and she helped me set it up. It was worth the purchase.
Day 13: Friday was a good day at school. I brought my camera and took pictures of my school and my class. I also ended up trying this huge hot dog thing at lunch because a course had made them as an experiment. That night I was invited to shop and go to Chili's with some girls from my course. They said to meet in front of the theatre at 7. But when I got there, one of the girls named Rosita messaged me to say "donde estas" and when I told her I was there, she said "okay we are leaving now". In the meantime, my exchange friend Sarah invited me to the movies with her and another friend from school at 7:45. I decided to see the movie and meet up with my other friends after since they didn't arrive till 7:50 anyways. We watched The Conjuring- it was one of the scariest movies I've ever seen.
Day 14: I slept late and packed for my language camp. Then I met my Swiss exchange friend Simone by the church in the center of Machala. We bought some ice cream and walked around. I had to make a copy of my passport, so I did that. We got manicures for only $3.50 and then went to buy chips before coming back to my house to watch some movies on my laptop (because Jorge was watching tennis on tv). I was proud of myself for getting to the center and back in a taxi all by myself- especially when going to my house because there aren't actual house numbers so you have to say the street and direct the driver from there.
After two weeks I am developing a routine and becoming more comfortable and familiar with my surroundings. I have tried more food and my body is getting used to the heat. There are still things that I must adjust to though, like the sound of car horns and car alarms (the most obnoxious alarms ever!). I also have to get used to new habits at home, especially when it comes to security. I have to close the window, lock the door, make sure I close the gate tight, etc. I have to get used to later nights, and how quickly it goes from light out to dark. Lastly, I have to be patient. Translating Spanish in my head all day long is very tiring. After a long day- I am tired and usually frustrated about not knowing how to say things or not understanding more. But it will come. My exchange has only just begun.
Pictures from my second week: https://ayearinalife.shutterfly.com/pictures/8
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