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
