Climbing Mt. Cotopaxi.

Cotopaxi from our apartment in Quito.

Last Saturday some of us went to Mount Cotopaxi, one of the highest active volcanoes in the world. It's actually only about 38 miles from Quito, but it takes somewhere around two hours to get there because travel in Ecuador is just plain slower. As a matter of fact, this afternoon is unusually clear and I can see Cotopaxi looming in the distance as I write this. On a cloudy day you'd never know it's there!

A little about Cotopaxi, courtesy of Wikipedia...Cotopaxi has erupted more than 50 times since 1738! Apparently it poses a high risk to the local population, and the most recent volcanic activity was observed in 2002, although it hasn't erupted since 1942. The name "Cotopaxi" supposedly means "Neck of the Moon" in Quichua.

Okay, enough history. This was the first time the semester abroad people took students to Cotopaxi, and that adventure is always a risk. The weather around here is so unpredictable, and if it's a cloudy day you won't see anything for all your trouble. Like I said, Cotopaxi can be seen from Quito, but usually it's hidden by clouds. Often people spend hours trying to climb the mountain and don't even see the darn volcano or the view because of the clouds. It also hails, sleets, and snows up there. 

Can you see our group?

Sure enough, it was cloudy and raining as we approached the national park. We kept our spirits up though, because the weather can change very quickly. And sure enough, it cleared up really nicely! Once we arrived, we hired a guide (because you have to if you're not Ecuadorian. Somehow being an Ecuadorian national makes you a Cotopaxi expert) and stopped for some coca leaves to ward off altitude sickness. In case you didn't know, coca leaves are used to make cocaine but are traditionally used to make tea in this part of the world. Coca is very important to Andean culture and is not always made into drugs. Anyway, to use coca you roll up some of the dried leaves, stick them in your cheek like tobacco, drink a little bit of water to wet them, and then keep them there for awhile. It tastes like green tea, so it's really not so bad. I couldn't tell you for sure if they helped me or not, but I can say I did it. :)

As soon as we started to climb the mountain, we could feel the altitude. Even though I felt like I was moving slow, my heart was racing and I was breathing as though running a brisk three miles. Since coming to Quito I've learned that the altitude does some crazy things. It makes you nauseous, light-headed, makes your head and chest hurt, and can even give you gas. Who knew? Lucky for me, I never had these symptoms in Quito and didn't get them on Cotopaxi either, even though we went up from 9,350 feet in Quito to a whopping 16,000 on Cotopaxi (the whole volcano is 19,400 feet tall). I've also noticed that sealed bags and containers fill up with air and even explode when they go from low to extremely high altitude, and that my ears hurt a lot when I fly now because somehow I got used to living in Quito.

It was definitely a haul to the refuge where we stopped to have lunch, although our guide said we climbed super fast. Normally it takes 1.5 to two hours for foreigners to climb that stretch, but the last of our group were up there in 35 minutes! Guess living in Quito helps. After lunch we kept climbing to the glacier, which was a little more treacherous but totally worth it. We got some sleet and snow as we got closer, but it didn't bother me. The excitement of seeing a real glacier and the gorgeous view made it all worth it. By the time we started climbing down my legs were shaking from the lack of oxygen, but it was an awesome day. Once again, another thing I've done in Ecuador that I never thought I would do in my life.

Looking into the future!

For the past couple months (and especially weeks) I've been experiencing the stress and anxiety that is probably normal for many soon-to-be college grads. I'm moving to a brand new part of the country to be with my husband, and I have absolutely zero connections there and don't know anything about the city. So not only am I graduating college, I'm starting post-grad life on completely unknown turf. That's a tiny bit scary.

When I visited El Paso last December another Army couple told us about New Mexico State University, which is located within commuting distance from our apartment. In my previous search for graduate schools I had never thought to look in different states, so this was a pleasant surprise for me. My original plan was to just show up in Texas and try to find a job from there, because the only graduate school I had found was not really suited to my interests. Long story short, I sent in an application to the MSW program in New Mexico really last minute, just to say that I tried.

Well, turns out I got accepted! I'll have to complete my MSW in two years instead of the ideal one, because the Advanced Standing program starts in the summer and I wasn't able to provide a field evaluation fast enough. However, the school has decided to waive several courses I've already taken so it's more worth my time to attend for two years. Which means I just get to take more electives that actually interest me! This may be the unconventional option, but this decision was made with a lot of prayer and I do believe it's best suited for me. I'm going to be really busy, but I'm thrilled to at least have this summer off to get to know my new home and be a full-time wife to AJ. I love that. :)

Some people have already asked me why I would decide to go to a two-year graduate school if I'm not sure that my husband will be in Texas for that long. Yes, it's true that AJ could get orders at any time at all, and that we really don't know anything about when the Army will move him. However, AJ thinks that if we get out after four years that we'll be able to stay in Texas for two years, so we're trying to operate on that rough estimate. 

Still, the real reason is that I'm not comfortable with putting my life on hold just because I'm afraid AJ will get orders. Yes, our life is pretty uncertain, and we know that. We also can't control where we live and when. But if I worried about that all the time, I would be afraid to put down roots in Texas and pursue the things that make me happy apart from AJ, and that's not okay.  This perspective may seem strange to someone outside the Army way of life, but among military families it's very normal for spouses to live apart because of careers, deployments, or other things (although you bet we'd rather be together if at all possible!). This is a part of what AJ signed up for, and so we just have to make the best of it. And trust that God's got it all figured out. Everything I do is with AJ's encouragement, and both of us have already made some sacrifices for each other's dreams and for our marriage. We're still rookies at balancing the military, our dreams, and our marriage, but so far I think both of us would say that we have no regrets about our choices since getting married. And we'd both say that we're beyond excited for me to graduate so I can be in Texas!

All that to say...I'm so excited to be back with my husband again, and to keep moving forward in my profession. Now I can truly look forward to a life in Texas, and I can't wait to be there!

This week in field.

(From the week of April 1-7...)

This week was a great week in field. The longer I'm there, the more the girls and the staff amaze me. In all seriousness, it would still be a dream to actually have a position in a house like that someday. 

Monday was a pretty ordinary day, although I had my first experience of really disciplining a couple girls! Thankfully my Spanish has improved a lot, so I felt confident in talking with them about how they disobeyed us staff and what should be done about it. As I reflect on what I chose to do, I feel pretty confident about it, so that felt like an accomplishment for the day. 

Tuesday was a really fun day, because another missionary group came for two hours in the afternoon. This time they brought a short-term team of young women from the U.S., England, Finland, Scotland, and Australia. When they came in the room, my first thought was, "There so tall!" (People are a little shorter around here.) These missionaries just came to hang out with the girls, sing a few songs, and encourage them, so it was a very relaxed and enjoyable time. Once they finished singing I turned to the young college student next to me and asked her a question in Spanish, and her confused look told me she really didn't speak the language. After that I noticed that most of these women didn't know Spanish, so I offered to translate for them as they prayed with the girls. At first they said no, but it didn't take long before they figured out they couldn't communicate and asked for me! The entire rest of the afternoon I was summoned from one corner of the room to the next, translating for almost everyone. It was actually a lot of fun to be an integral part of the exchanges between the missionaries and the girls, and it made me realize that I speak more Spanish than I realize! I loved understanding both cultures and languages that were mixing that day. I'm also gaining a new perspective on missions through my time here in Ecuador, and especially in field, which is super cool. It's important to understand missions from the host culture's point of view.

On Wednesday I started a new project in the office, which means working in the client database all day. Honestly, I really don't like office work too much. I hate sitting in front of a computer all day and much prefer interacting with the girls and the change in the routine every day. Thursday I had a lot of one-on-one time with the girls and got to hear some of their stories for the first time. Guys, the things these thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen year olds will tell you are unbelievable. You just can't fathom some of the suffering they have endured at the age of my little sister. Stories of being kidnapped, drugged, and sold to a brothel at age twelve; nearly dying in childbirth; losing their baby girl when she was six months old; having no family except their child who is the result of a rape; stealing pistols and escaping from guarded brothels...It's so unbelievable. And yet, the girls who will tell me these things are some of the most mature, joyful, and grateful girls in the home. It's such an honor and a privilege to be able to listen to their pain, when I know they don't share it with anyone.


So, that's field for me. The longer I'm there, the more grateful I am for such an experience.

AJ visits Ecuador. Part Two.

On Saturday we took our time in the morning, enjoying a later breakfast before stopping by the apartment for some sunscreen for poor sunburned AJ. After visiting with my friends for a bit we walked down to the market, where I showed AJ around and bought him a granadilla, or "snot fruit". Once he'd finished his fruit we walked up to a cafe for an almuerzo, or a typical Ecuadorian lunch. Here restaurants offer a "menu of the day" for lunch that's a really good price for a lot of food. This time we enjoyed noodle soup, salad, pureed potatoes, chicken parmesan, juice, and a fried banana. 

After lunch we hopped on the trolley to another market that specializes in souvenir-type things. We had a good time browsing through the stalls and thinking about what we'd like to have in our apartment together. AJ ended up getting a t-shirt, and we now have a painting, an alpaca blanket, and a table runner for our apartment. I can't wait to be using all those things in the home we'll finally share again. 

After a quick break in our hotel (which involved calling the airport once again to try to find his suitcase) we went back to the mall for Crepes and Waffles, a nicer restaurant that sells exactly what it says in the name. AJ loved the waffle with ice cream, caramel, and whipped cream, even more than our chicken crepe!

On Easter we decided to just take it easy, since it was our last day together. We got such a late start that we ended up just getting lunch to start the day. AJ tried hornado, which is pork (with the crunchy skin), avocado, llapingachos (potatoes), and mote (kind of like corn, but not really). After that we got some dessert from an ice cream place called Corfu and took it to the park to eat. We spent a lot of time in the park just people-watching and talking. We didn't do much for the rest of the day, and just had dinner in the food court again (which is better than it sounds! AJ got a steak that came with a bunch of food). We both agree that it's more important for us to just have time focusing on each other than trying to see and do a lot. That night we tracked down his suitcase (of course they take down your information yet never let you know they have your stuff) and decided he'd just pick it up before he checked in to leave. Which means I never got the stuff he brought down for me. :(

Sunday night was an early bedtime, as we had to be up early to take a taxi to the old airport so AJ could get on the shuttle to the new one. We said goodbye there, because I needed to get back to the apartment to get ready for field. It's still so hard to let him go. I'm pretty sad today because of it--honestly, after these seven months, I'm so tired of spending three days at a time with my husband before saying goodbye for another month or more. We're really ready to be living in Texas together. But at least we were blessed to see each other this weekend, if only for three days. And in a month and ten days, we will be together without having to worry about saying goodbye.

AJ visits Ecuador. Part One.

Over Easter weekend I was so blessed to have my very own husband visit me in South America. This was something we definitely had not planned, but the missionary I spend one-on-one time with first encouraged me to see AJ over Easter about a month and a half ago. Of course, I later told AJ about this and said what a crazy idea it was. And well, it didn't take long for him start formulating some plans! I'm starting to wonder if this is how God speaks into our lives...somebody gives us this "crazy" idea to get married a year sooner or visit Ecuador, and before we know it the idea isn't so crazy!

AJ flew in on Thursday night, unfortunately without his suitcase. We still don't even know what kind of crazy journey that poor suitcase has had. Anyway, the dean of students for semester abroad drove me to the old airport to meet him, and then we got to our hotel in the center of the city (which was really nice by the way!). The next morning we got up to have breakfast at the nearby mall, just because it was easiest. AJ tried a chain called El Espanol, which serves sandwiches and coffee, while I tried Dunkin' Donuts in Ecuador for the first time. After that we hiked up the hill to the girls' apartment to fill our water bottles before hopping on the trolley to Old Quito, where a Good Friday processional was going to take place. So, AJ now knows why I hate the trolley, although he didn't mind it as much! We fought the crazy crowds for awhile before getting a decent spot to watch the men and women in purple hoods carry crosses, whip themselves, and carry religious symbols through the streets of Old Quito. This processional is part of the Catholic tradition here and recreates Jesus's journey to the cross.Some people even go so far as to wear barbed wire wrapped around their bodies, whip themselves, and wear chains. It was very interesting to experience such a unique part of Ecuadorian culture. 

After the processional passed us by we went to a cafe, where AJ got to try empanadas and more fresh-squeezed juice. We took our time just enjoying the shade and talking before walking up to the Basilica. We climbed all the way to the top, and the weather was great so AJ was treated to a wonderful view of the city. Once we'd had enough of that we walked back to catch the trolley to return to our neighborhood just in time for ceviche for dinner (AJ got the "mixto" kind, which is full of octopus, shrimp, fish, and who knows what else!).