8 days to go...

Hey everyone!

Only about a week left to go - if you count a day of travelling. I am very excited to come home, but also very sad to leave. The fruits, the juices, the atmosphere, the weather, the food, the dancing, easy public transport (although not exactly the most environmentally friendly)...
On the other hand I can't wait to have my own room again, easy access to a washing machine, seeing family, friends, and pets again...

Which brings me to a very blonde moment here. Not blonde in the sense you might be thinking, but being blonde in Colombia, especially Manizales, which is not a very touristy city, is quite the experience. Walking on the street, I feel almost like a movie star (that's at least how a friend told me to think of it). Everyone is staring. Walking alone on the street means at least 25 men (usually on the older side) will say something to you in passing. "Hola preciosa, como estas?" "Buenos dias, hermosa." ... and any other number of ways of saying "Hello beautiful, how are you?" that you can think of. Others just stare. Even if you react in some way to the fact that they are very obviously staring, they don't really care and will happily continue. Lesson learned: looking different than the rest of the population will make you feel like a circus freak. I am still not quite used to it, and I'm not sure I would ever get used to it either. There are also the occasional looks from women, some of which are even kind of mean.

My living arrangements have stayed the same thanks to my great host - despite the fact that he is now gone for an English camp for the week. On Saturday I will be off to NatCo Colombia!!! Time flies when you are having fun :) I must say though, today has been one of the GREATEST days so far. It has a very simple reason. CHOCOLATE. But not just any kind of chocolate, oh no. Kinder Schokolade. And not just that, but, an UEBERRASCHUNGSEI. I have not had one for 3 years! German chocolate... in Colombia.. the USA can learn a lot. The reason I have not had the chance to try this delicious chocolate for 3 years, is because it is not sold in the summer due to it's thin layer of chocolate, which is prone to melting very quickly in even just a bit of heat. Of course, summertime has been the time I spent in Germany...
Either way, this has made me the happiest person alive!!! (and people say I'm not easy to please... ;)

un abrazo desde Colombia

12 Days and counting..

Hey everyone!!

I have been very lacking with the updates here, I'm sorry... Currently I am spending two nights with a friend and will move to an AIESEC family's house on Sunday because we had to vacate the apartment yesterday. I also tried cow udder yesterday... didn't taste too bad. But I couldn't get myself to try cow tongue.

An internship update: My time with the school is over, but I am now coordinating a summer camp for public school children at the Centro Colombo. I have one week left, and so far it has been a lot of fun. It is a summer camp that includes both English and Spanish - so I get to practice Spanish, and the kids get to learn English in a much more fun way than in the classroom :) And, by the by, I practiced my origami skills.. and expanded on them.

NatCo Colombia: I am going to the AIESEC Colombia National Conference next week!! It is from July 8. - 13. I am very excited about seeing how NatCo works in another country. This will also help improve my Spanish more. So if anyone has any questions, things I should bring up while I'm there, or just wants to know more about it - email me and I will do my best to satisfy your curiosity :)

Only 12 more days until I leave, and I am already starting to realize what I will miss.. This experience has definitely taught me a lot, and has prepared me for a new trip! Maybe South America again? Maybe somewhere else.. but I definitely want to go :)

Un abrazo desde Colombia,
Vanessa

P.S.:
Do you love juice? Here, you get a fresh glass of juice with every meal!
Do you like crazy drivers? Better run across the street and make sure you are very visible, because drivers here are insane. On the bright side, buses stop anywhere on the street to pick you up and drop you off. And, taxis are very cheap!
And, now that I finished this blog entry, I wonder what kept me from doing it before... this last week I'll keep a better update and catch up on some storytelling! Oh, but no pics... unless I can connect with my laptop at my new destination :)

TN and living Colombia

It's been a while, and a lot of things have happened since I last wrote. There are some realizations that have struck me.

1. Manizales runs on the sale of umbrellas. At least in the winter.
2. The rest of the world is missing out on the number of fruits that are available.
3. Walking in the mountains takes a lot of energy.
4. Cheap buses are awesome ($0.70), but cheap taxis are even better ($2 for a 5 km radius).
5. I AM in the tropics.. first sunburn of the season - apparently the rainy season is over and sunshine awaits!
6. Coffee is not better here if you still can't get yourself to like it...

My Spanish is rapidly improving, although French is trying to intrude on that. It does help when communicating with the teachers. Unfortunately, the communication is an issue. There are random teacher meetings during class - which I find out about when I walk into a classroom without a teacher present. Other than that teaching at the school is fun. Many of the kids are really enthusiastic about learning English, whilst others are not - not surprising. The internship ends next week, and then there will be a summer camp at the Centro Colombo Americano which 3 other volunteers and I will be organizing.
Planning lessons and planning the summer camp have really reminded me of how important communication is - without it, many things simply never happen.

Aside from work my roommates and I have been having a great time! We've visited Hacienda Venecia (a coffee farm), Salento (a historical town in an amazingly beautiful valley), Chipre (the highest part of Manizales), and of course had numerous experiences with the local life (both night and day).

Un abrazo,
Vanessa

First Day

Thanks Diego :) I hope you guys have a safe trip!

Today was very exciting, but first a quick recap of the weekend:
Saturday was very tiring, but it was great to get to know my new roommates and explore the city a bit. Yesterday we climbed la catedral (113 m high in a city that is ~2500 m above sea level). Amazing view!!



Back to today. It was the first day of my internship, and I met a lot of new people. Angela, my program manager, is very nice. She showed me around the Centro Colombo Americano, which is important for the community because they can learn English from native speakers there. This is where, for the next weeks, I will prepare for the lessons I teach at ENAE (an all-girls school). After noon I will make my way over to ENAE, which is a short walk from Colombo. The kids were all very fascinated by me today, with my blond hair and blue eyes. Tomorrow I will introduce myself to many of the classes and talk to the teachers.





Goodnight,
Vanessa

Hola todos :)

Hey everyone, I got to Manizales, Colombia, today! So far it has been great - great fligh (despite some language barriers), great people, great apartment with great roommates. I've already seen quite a part of the city, exchanged money, and gone dancing. Hope everyone else has the same great time wherever they go :)

xoxo Vanessa