Let's go back in Time...

Currently my job has changed since i've been here and now instead of developing an outdoor ed program, I will be developing the backpacking program. This week I have been developing systems to be used for the program and next week will be going backpacking to use those systems.

So Two weeks ago I got to go climb on Guagua Pichincha. When I was coming down from the summit this is what I saw... it was even more amazing being there. All the volcanoes were peaking out of the clouds.

The 2nd weekend in Ecuador I got to help with Huarasinchi, the adventure race. This was one of the checkpoints.

This is my cabin. If the internet would let me I would show you some of my visitors

who like to stand right outside my door, they include:

horses, llamas and bees (the bees like to come in though)

Rewind back to my visit weekend here. I got to do alot of site seeing and saw mitad del mundo (the middleof the world), basillica and other wonderful sites.

Lo siento, tengo solo palabras y no fotos!

Well I have meant to update this blog with some pictures but each time it just doesn't want to for some reason. And currently I am on dial up so I am done trying...for now.

Well my weekend was amazing I get to be apart of Haurasinchi, an adventure race (orienterring, kayaking, hiking and biking). Which all took place within 3 days! El Refugio (the place that I work at) was helping organize the race and at the last minute i got asked if i wanted to go along and help...um heck ya i did! So I got to see Ecuador in a whirlwind but it was so amazing! I got see lots of volcanoes and mountain ranges ( I would tell you which ones but at the time I can not spell them correctly). I got to see my great love, Cotapaxi! Someday we shall meet! I was squished into the back of many cars and trucks, got little sleep, experienced all sorts of tempuratures and terrians, lots of rain, very crazy roads with huge pot holes and loved all of it!

During the weekend Carnaval was going on. Which in Ecuador is kind of like Mardi Gras. It's a national holiday and the monday and tuesday before ash wednesday everyone gets off work. Basically it's a huge water fight (well for the kids who get everyone wet) for the adults especially in the indiginous towns it's a huge party. I got to experince the friendly side of it only and didn't run into any horrible drunks. It was fun being able to experince it through the different areas.

This weekend is our my first retreats. We have 3 groups coming in and i'm still unsure of what I will be doing. But I am excited to be doing something. I had today off which I spent the whole day reading...it was glorious! Minus the fact that I am quickly going to be left with no booksto read, boo! I also lost power for the whole day and was very happy when I was finally able to do my laundry :) If you can imagen I really needed to do some after a 5 day camping trip where i changed my clothes once.

O my Spanglish is amazing! My Spanish so so and my English is so so ;) haha For some reason in my trying to learn Spanish i am losing a little of my English. At times i don't know if people are talking English or Spanish, ether way i don't understand them. My brain hurts from constantly trying to translate things in my head. But I am still practicing and hopefully am slowly improving.

Well I shall write more when I can post pictures which will hopefully be sometime next week.

Brilla Jesus

Now I came up with the title of this blog last Sunday. I went to an all Spanish Speaking Church and I just prayed that I would know a song that they were singing and then bam Brilla Jesus came up, aka Shine Jesus Shine (they even clapped!) haha it made me very happy.

Anyway I made it to Ecuador. I spent my first days haning out in Quito. I got to go to "the middle of the earth" aka the equator, the Brasilica (a beautiful church)-i got to climb on the roof of it and just walk around Quito. I stayed with the Jensings. They are missionaries who are here to take care of the interns that come to Quito. They are amazing people and I loved getting to know them and their kids.

Finally I went to El Refugio. It is in Calacali, Ecuador. I am living in a cabin by myself which i mentioned before. I am for the most part moved in but i haven't decorated yet. I found out why they let me come and be an intern. I was told I was hired for my high ropes and outdoor education experience (no pressure or anything haha). My main job will be developing the outdoor education program which they are just starting. We are working on making a bird class. I was a little nervous that they would be disappoitned about my high ropes experience but thankfully my memory served me well. I got to repel for the first time and I loved it!

Some random things that I have done since I got to Ecuador: I went to a curves class haha it was great. One of my coworkers had a birthday this past week and had a crash course in Spanish and tonight I am going dancing.

My Spanish is improving alot everyone has shown me alot of grace. Since alot of Ecuadorians are learning English we practice together. It's hard but good.

Sorry there are so many words and no pictures. I waited so long to blog because I wanted pictures. Soon I will show some.

Mutliple Languages Beautiful or Frightening...both

I loved my time in Chicago but it was way to short. There are too many people that I love and not enough time to see all of them. I'm sorry if I didn't get to see you (or if I missed a lunch with you). I wanted more time to just stare at people (sara & heather you know what I mean). But soon I will be back and be back to watching Felicity in the U.P. And for those of you who I missed perhaps I shall see you this summer or next fall.

When I was repacking I thought I did such a great job of not over packing too many clothes. It doesn't look like alot right? But by the end of my packing adventure I had to rethink my previous thought.

This was my view sitting at O'hare waiting for my flight to Miami International. Please note how awesome the Chicago skyline is in the sunrise.

I stepped off the plane into another country. Which one I'm not sure there were two many different languages to tell because I was actually just stepping off into Miami International. A Miami newspaper is featured below (I understood about half of it)

But I have already been able to test my Spanish. And by test my Spanish I mean I hear people speak Spanish and then I translate it in my head. The first phrase that I heard and understood was Estoy frio, mucho FRIO! (she yelled it) Also I was able to pick out the word tomorrow in a fast pace sentence...oh I know haha. I'm going to do great in Ecuador they will love me.

Well I can't believe that by tonight I will be in Ecuador. I go through waves of thinking man I'm going to Ecuador, this is really happening. I'm not real anxious or nervous I am really just waiting... so the next time that I blog it will be from Ecuador!

Knowledge is Power

So this past month I have been kind of wondering about Ecuador. Thoughs such as, what will I be doing, where will i be living, do they know that I am coming? I thought it was a little weird that the organization had not tried to contact me to double check my plans. Little did I know that they have been trying to contact me. I changed my email address to a grown up email address and I thought I let them know what the new one was but all of the emails where going to good old ilkat24 and not cool mjmoberly. So Yesterday I recieved a call from a woman from Ecuador wondering if I was still flying in on Friday and I said YES! So it's for real a go (just in case people where wondering haha)

Also hear are somethings that I have learned since I have gotten those lost emails:

• I will be living in the town Casilla. In a newly remodeled cabin, with a full kitchen.
• I will be living in the cabin by myself except on weekends when some Ecuadorian facilators will be sleeping at the cabin (there is a wood stove for heat aahhh comforts of the UP)
• I am in charge of basically all my meals (Yeah grocery shopping in Ecuador)
• My main job will to help develope the outdoor education program
• And the biggest and best news is that my Spanish level is not crucial to my contribution to my mission down there. I will be able to practice it of course but they aren't going to have me take formal spanish lessons down there (although I wouldn't mind taking formal lessons being that i'm a nerd who wants to go to school anyway)

On a seperate note I am currently in Chicago (my 2nd leg of this journey to Ecuador). I feel like i'm just visiting a will be back in the UP soon (just a few hops away). My UP family had a little dinner celebration for me. Which was wonderful, thank you all! I will miss all of you!! Here are a couple pics that we took after the dinner:

Crunch Time

The past two days school has been canceled because of cold weather. Which sad for me because I was scheduled to sub of those days.

But living in Iron River is never dull even with cold weather. Last Sunday the Sr High youth group went up to the Paulding Light. We had alot of fun with the light. Many theories were construde about how the light came to be. We surprisingly kept warm (hiking toward the light helped). Here is a picture of everyone enjoying some hot chocolate out of the back of the van.



So last weekend I realized that I had not gotten any of my vaccinations yet. Whoops! Of course, this past week has been me scurrying to figure out what I needed to get and where I could get them. I have to get many shots: hep. a & b, yellow fever & tyhpoid (i decided to skip out on the rabbis one) and some yummy malaria pills. The vaccinations have been a little bit stressful to think about because they are so expensive but I suppose less expensive then if I was to actually get one of the diseases they are protecting me from.

here are some pictures

So one of the many fun things I have gotten to do during my time in the UP is shoot a gun...i shoot twice and my shots are the bottom two. :)















I also get to hang out with Laurel...we are friends. This is Laurel being the West Iron Wykon mascot at a football game this fall.















So there you go (Kevin), I have now posted pictures! YAY i'm a great blogger!!!