siga no mas

Well, last time I said I wouldn't go so long without updating...oops. It's been five weeks! I really can't understand how fast the last two months have gone by. By now it will be kind of difficult to recount the last five weeks so I will sum it up.

In October I traveled a lot, nearly every weekend I believe. I finally went to the coast with my friends Kristin, Katherine, and Chantal and we stayed in Tonsupa for a few days. I usually don't like the beach but there's just something very enticing about the Pacific Ocean in South America. Afterwards, Katherine's friend Anna came to visit from the states so we all went to Baños where I kind of felt like a dad taking my family on vacation since I had been there previously. We stayed there for two days and had a great time. The day after we got back I left for the Amazon and the Tiputini Biodiversity Station owned by USFQ. There were about twenty international students in total and we all got along so well and had an awesome weekend experiencing all the crazy stuff the rainforest has to offer.

In other news, the weather in Quito has become a major downer the last couple of weeks because of the combination of the La Niña current of the coast and the fact that it's typically "winter" during November and December. We're talking torrential downpours and frigid cold every day...weak. Luckily, the last few days it's been improving with less lluvia and more sol. Since this is not much of an update per se, I thought in the spirit of Thanksgiving I would make a list of things that I am both thankful for and love about living in Ecuador. Let's see:

-speaking spanish every day and actually seeing improvements in my capabilities
-chifles (plantain chips) & creamsicle ice cream bars
-going out to random places with friends and ending the night dancing til we're exhausted
-bus rides to and from school
-learning new dances like merengue and salsa
-running in La Carolina with my iPod on a sunny morning
-Liga soccer games
-my classes, professors, and people in them
-my favorite $1.50 pirated DVD store
-shooting the breeeze with taxi drivers
-my "family" who makes each day interesting
-my host family's antics that never cease to make me laugh

That's all I can come up with right now, I'm sure there's tons of little things I forgot. Right now I'm just preparing for the final stretch of the semester filled with tests, presentations, papers, etc. I'm looking forward to December 9th when I will be done with school and free to do whatever with friends until most of them fly out on the 19th. After that I will only have another semester of school until I'm officially a graduate (hopefully) of Virginia Tech...it's about time. Until then, I better get to work! Hope this finds everyone doing well and enjoying Thanksgiving with friends and family...I'm thankful for each of you! Hasta luego!