Two Weeks in a Nutshell

Alright, sit back, relax, and get ready for the longest blog post you've ever seen in your life!

No but really, this has gotta be huge because I'm really behind on writing about my adventures here and I really need to catch up! And I may or may not continue coloring different words to make it more exciting because it takes a lot of time and I don't know how much I have...We'll see.

I keep a list on my phone of things I need to remember to blog about so I don't forget about them. So this is basically going to be really random and sporadic, but it'll be fun! :)

Are you hot, super sweaty, and need to take a shower? Alright jump right in! Surprise!!! No hot water! Yep, the whole first week I was here I didn't have one single hot shower. But really, I was OK with it. I realized that I am in a different country and I can't have all the same things as I did back home. Plus, it wasn't like it was freezing cold ice water. And, if I used my imagination a bit, it kinda felt a bit warm so it wasn't bad at all! I got used to it and it was actually kind of nice. Little did I know, they just had a broken shower and as soon as they got the new one - Wallah! Warm water! It was like magic, minus the magic. So yes, I now have warm water to shower in and it's great.

So we'll be driving around town doing random errands or picking up the kids and I'll be singing along to all the songs and the radio - as some of you know, I do that. If you didn't know - I cannot be in the car and not have the music on. AND if the music is on, I have need must be singing along with every song. If we're having a conversation and a song turns on that I love, I can no longer focus on the conversation or what I'm saying. Well really, I can focus on the conversation as long as I'm not the one talking. If I am, that's when I can't focus. If you're talking, I can sing and listen to you at the same time. I will be in the middle of a sentence and suddenly I'm singing the words to the song and I don't even remember that we were having a conversation. It's pretty bad....Anyway, so I'm sitting there singing to every song when I realize...Wait, these songs are in English... Wait, what? Yes, there are SOOO many songs played here that are in English! It is interesting. I don't know if that is how it is in other countries, but I can almost bet that I've heard more English songs than Spanish songs the whole time I've been here! But it's nice because it makes me feel more at home - singing along to ever song. I'm sure it's annoying as heck, but I don't care. I love to sing and it's who I am... Plus I can't stop, I've tried. It's impossible. :)

There are also like a billion dogs here and every single one is super skinny (minus one that I always see sitting outside of the bakery...apparently people always feed him bread...he's ginormously fat, no joke!) I have yet to see a dog on a leash, except for Princess, the dog of the family I am staying with. All the other dogs just roam around the streets. I'm almost scared of them because I don't know if they are someone's pet or if they are stray dogs. I'm scared they'll have diseases and stuff and if I get too close they'll bite me and I'll die. But really, they are everywhere! From one block to the next you'll see at least 3 dogs walking on the sidewalk, rummaging through some garbage, or sitting watching people pass by. It's crazy.

The food here actually isn't too bad at all. Yes it is definitely different, but I was kind of expecting the worst to be honest... If you don't know me, I am a very picky eater (ask my family, they'll tell you I'm adopted because I don't like anything they like.) So I was really nervous about coming here and not having the kinds of food that I like. Well, I was wrong. So far, I have liked almost everything I've eaten. I promised that I would at least try everything that was given to me. That being said, I also haven't really absolutely loved anything either. After being at school, my eating schedule changed from eating 3 meals a day and snacks in between to eating one meal a day and one or two small ones with maybe a snack. Yes I know this isn't the healthiest thing but it happened, oh well. So I didn't really ever eat that much, but I ate enough to feel full. So coming here, I feel like we're constantly eating. I wake up and eat breakfast, go do a few errands and sometimes grab a snack, then come home and eat a meal - Here, instead of having the "family meal" be dinner like it is back home, the big "family meal" is lunch. So it is the main meal of the day, therefore it is normally a bigger meal than the rest. So I eat that, then go do what ever we have planned, then we come home and eat again! At first I was fine, but now that I've been here two weeks, I think I'm gonna be eating smaller meals otherwise I'm gonna get fat! Haha, I'm not used to eating so much. Also, I don't like rice. GASP! What??? SHOCKING!! Yep, it's true. I never have... And yes, I know I'm weird. That's what everyone tells me. When I was little I hated it but my parents always made me eat at least a spoon full whenever we had it. So I will eat it, but I don't prefer it and I would never make it for myself. Here, they eat rice with every meal! But here, the rice tastes different. I like it a lot more than the rice at home. It has more flavor - but it still isn't my favorite thing in the world. So I was actually eating all of the rice that was put on my plate (which normally took up most of the space on the plate.) I don't like to eat the same things more than once in a week unless I really really like it. I have never been someone who can eat something over and over again, besides chocolate of course. I get sick of it quickly and it then no longer satisfies my hunger. So eating rice for every meal is starting to feel like that. So I've been eating less rice.

This is fried fish, patacones, and rice. It was actually really good!

 As I said before, I haven't really absolutely loved anything that I've eaten yet. OK I lied, there was one thing that was so delicious! We ate this chicken that was baked... I think...I'm not sure how it was made but it was so good!! Can't wait until we eat that again because I loved it. But besides that I haven't loved anything. Most of the time I just eat what is on my plate because I know it is time to eat and that I need to eat or I'll get sick or something. Most of it isn't super satisfying but it's food, I'm a "living being", so I eat it. I'm sure I'll soon find something else that I love and I slowly keep finding more things. There has only been one or two things that I have not liked at all. One was this...I don't know what it is called but it was wrapped in this corn husk looking thing. On the inside it was like...mashed corn and flower and potatoes and I don't know what.. but I tried it. Yep, definitely didn't like it one bit. It tasted and reminded me of baby food. Haha!

**Important note!! I am not complaining about the food. I'm not saying this as a "hint" to anyone or anything along those lines. (Karen I know you read these posts so please don't feel bad about this) It's just my thoughts about the food. This is a great adventure and I want to remember every little detail about it and the food is a big detail :)

Another thing that is interesting is that they drink warm milk. Most of the time they put chocolate powder in it to make like it hot chocolate, but to me it is very strange. I actually don't mind it much, because I do love hot chocolate. But, it is weird for me because at home, I drink hot chocolate when I am really cold - like on a snowy day in the winter. Yeah, it's definitely not even close to a snowy day in the winter here and I haven't been even the least bit cold yet. It's incredibly hot and humid every single day and yet, they still drink hot chocolate! Silly people :) I love them. The only time that I really didn't like the warm milk was when it was made and put into my cereal. I definitely won't be doing that again... I'm not a huge fan of soggy cereal and it was like my cereal was instantly soggy. I barely got it down. Lesson learned :)

So I told you all about how Sarita asked me if I was a princess - so cute! So the other day me and Karen were going to the mall to run some errands. We were walking through the parking lot when Karen started laughing - she randomly starts laughing a lot. I feel like most of the time it's because of something I did. Anyway, so I asked her why she was laughing and she said that the man who had just walked past us was singing to me that I was a princess... What?? Apparently things like this have happened a lot. Almost every day she says something like, "those men were whistling at you," or "those guys were trying to get your attention," or "you were making that guy nervous and he was super distracted by you." I think she's making it up because every time she tells me something like that I am like...What? Who? When? Really? . I have yet to notice anything even remotely similar to it. I do notice that people do kinda look at me funny, I've come to the conclusion that it's because I'm gigantic here (honestly, like a foot taller than everyone.)

Mother's Day was great. It was fun to be here and see Karen's kids and husband appreciating her and showing her that they do. It was also my first day going to church and it was a great experience. It is honestly the only thing that is exactly the same as it is at home (besides the fact that it's all in Spanish.) Everyone was so nice and really tried to make me feel welcome, which I felt very welcome. At the end of relief society all the primary kids (there were 3 of them, two of which were Sammy and Sarita) came into the class and sang to all the women. It was cute. They then handed out cards to all the mothers. I got one too. I felt a bit awkward because of the fact that I'm not a mother, but they all insisted that I got a card anyways. That was the day that we came home and ate that amazing chicken. Yummy! I was also kind of a sad day because I couldn't be home with my own mom. I felt really bad because I really wanted to be with her. I then found out that she was actually really sick and that made me feel even worse. I was planning on Skyping with my family that night but it didn't end up working out. I still hope my mom had a good Mother's Day even though she was sick.

**Shout out to my mom! I love you so so much. I appreciate everything that you've done for me and everything that you are still doing for me. You are one of my biggest heroes. I couldn't have gotten through some of the hardest and most challenging times in my life without you and being able to talk to you and having you to go to for advice and support. I know I'm not the perfect daughter, I mean, I am me... so that comes along with a lot of crap that I'm sure you could definitely live without and still be perfectly happy, but you've been there by my side though it all. I know things are hard for you and I can't even imagine what you're going through. You are amazing, and you are so strong. You are such a great example to me, to all of us kids, and to everyone who knows you. People tell me all the time how lucky I am that I got to have you as my mom and I always tell them I definitely know how lucky I am. I don't care what other people say about their own moms. I'm sure they are great, but you really, truly are the greatest. I love you more than I can explain and I will always continue to try to do my best to show you how much I appreciate you. Thank you for all you do. I love you!!

So at the beginning of last week me and Karen decided we wanted to go get our nails done. I have never had a manicure or a pedicure before in my life. I have always thought they were too expensive. OK, I lied again, sorry. I just remembered that I got a manicure once when I was in 7th grade... Yeah not the smartest decision I've ever made. Definitely way too expensive and I was too young to appreciate it. Oh well! So Karen took me to the place she normally gets her nails done. So I sat there and enjoyed having someone else paint my nails and rub my feet for a bit. I got to pick out two really cute colors too! The best part about it was that to get both a manicure and a pedicure, it only cost $8.00!!! Crazy right??? I know! I couldn't believe it! I'm definitely going to be going back :) Totally worth it.

So the original plan was that I would come here and work for Karen and Rolando for their business. But I soon found out that there isn't a whole lot that I can actually do there since my Spanish isn't that great. So we came up with a new plan. I am going to be tutoring some kids and a few adults in English. I am excited to do it, but at the same time I don't feel at all qualified! It is still really hard for me to have a conversation with people in Spanish, then add on that I am going to be trying to teach them in English, a language that they don't really know or understand. It's going to be a challenge and I'm hoping it will work out and be really fun and be a good experience. I'm sure it will be. I have actually already started tutoring Sarita with her homework and it has been quite fun. The thing I've found that takes the most time is the pronunciation. Instead of saying "five" she says "fi" (I think that's how most of the people would or do pronounce it here.) She said "free" instead of "three". It's going to be interesting, but fun at the same time. It is great to hear her practicing on her own and when she gets to five she slows down and says it louder so I can hear that she is pronouncing it the way I taught her. I love it. She is so cute.

Drinkin' the coconut milk!

Me and the coconut lady! I can't remember her name, but she was really nice!

Basking in the sunshine!

So the first weekend I was here we went to the beach. So much fun! We left Friday morning and it took about an hour and a half to get there. The beach we went to was called Las Playas, which means The Beaches. We stayed in a cabin. It was so warm! I loved it! I absolutely love the sun. I could sit in a chair all day and just soak it all up. It's great. So when we got there Karen was putting sunscreen on all her kids. I thought it was funny because she was putting SPF 100 on them and herself. I didn't even know there was  such thing as SPF 100! So I took out my SPF 30 (which I absolutely never use at home since I rarely burn) and started putting it on my face and she insisted that I put on the SPF 100 because the sun is different here. So I ended up putting that on my face, arms, legs, and feet. Yep, I got absolutely no sun. Haha! A lady also came around and was selling coconuts so we bought one. She was very nice! She cut it open for us so we could drink the milk that was inside. I liked it, it wasn't super great, but it was good. Then she cut it the rest of the way open and we ate the inside. Super interesting... at home when ever I ate coconut it was dry and hard. This was wet and gooey. I didn't like it very much, it was alright tasting, but I felt like I was eating raw fish! I'm not a huge fan of the slimy texture...

So that night we went back to the cabin, took a quick shower then headed over to the new mall that was just barely built in this small town. As we walked around they saw Carl's Junior. Apparently Carl's Junior is HUGE here... Everyone loves it! So we ate dinner there then went back to the cabin. We were all really tired from the long day driving and being at the beach so we were very happy to be going to sleep. Yeah, that didn't really happen. The cabin we were in was right next to a road that was under construction. Right where our cabin was, there was a speed bump. So all the big trucks carrying machinery and rocks and stuff were slowing down and speeding up and going over the huge bump all night long! It was incredibly loud! So in the morning when we all "woke up" we all looked like zombies. I walked out of the cabin to sit on the porch and watch the kids play and Rolando saw me and said.... Looks like you didn't sleep at all either! (But obviously he said it in Spanish)  Haha, it was pretty bad. But we didn't let that stop us from having a really fun day! We headed off to go to this mountain. We drove on this really narrow dirt road for about 10 minutes and then walked up this flight of like 200 stairs! At the top was a statue of a woman. Apparently she is the Virgin "Something" (don't remember her name) and a long time ago people would go to her to confess their sins or something like that.... I don't know. But it was cool, and it had a really pretty view!

Me, Sammy, Karen, Sarita

There she is...

What we climbed up to see her.

On the boat :)

Here is one picture of a dolphin. I have better ones but they
won't load right now...

Sarita fell asleep on the way back from seeing the dolphins.

We then drove for about another half hour before we reached our destination. We were going to see DOLPHINS! I was really excited. So we got into this little boat and drove around for about 30 minutes and then started searching for them. Apparently the people there take care of these dolphins and make sure they stay in that area so they can take people out on tours to see them. So FINALLY after about an hour of searching and whistling (I guess they whistle and the dolphins then come...yeah that definitely didn't work) we found them! It was awesome! They were so close to the boat! They were too far away to actually touch, but I don't think we were allowed to touch them anyways... but I would have been tempted had they come closer. We watched them for about 45 minutes before we had to go back because we were almost out of gas. I really liked being on the boat. It was really relaxing and really fun. I vowed that one day I would own a boat....but that is super unrelated... So then we went back to the cabin put our swimming suits on, and drove back to the beach. I didn't put the SPF 100 on again because I wanted to actually look like I'd been to the beach. Haha! I put SPF 30 on my face and that's it. I laid out in a chair and soaked up the sun! Still didn't have enough time to look like I'd been to the beach.. Oh well! It was still great! We swam in the water, watched fish jump 10 feet in front of us, played in the sand, drank coconut milk, and had tons of fun. Then we packed up and headed back home. We were exhausted! Or at least I was. It was a great weekend! I was so glad we went. :)

This weekend we went to the ZOO! I have only ever been to the zoo once before in my entire life and I absolutely loved it! So I was really excited to go! When we got there the first thing we saw were the parrots. Oh my gosh it was so fun! I started taking pictures of them because they were so pretty. But apparently one of them was really angry. I didn't know he was... All the other parrots you could get really close to and they didn't care. So I walked up to this parrot, and was about to take a picture of it when it did this huge...."SQUAWK!!" And basically tried to bite my head off, I'm lucky to be alive. Scared me to death!! Everyone started laughing and my heart was beating so fast! So I decided to go take pictures of the other birds. There were these two smaller green parrots that could talk! It was so cool! The lady that was there was saying her name - Vanessa - and they were repeating it back to her. Then they would walk around saying "Hola" and other words. The coolest thing I heard them say was "Vente por aca!" which means "come over here". It made me laugh. I got some good videos of it :) There were some other parrots too that were really big and so beautiful! It made me want one... Mom...?? :D Haha just kidding.

The bird who tried to kill me...

These are the beautiful parrots. These ones did not talk. 

 So then we began walking around the zoo. It is nothing like the zoo in Salt Lake. It is through this forest of these certain type of trees. I cannot remember the name of them... I think it starts with an "M"? But anyway, they grow around the rivers here. They are really dense and lots of crabs live in them, well the crabs dig holes in the mud around the trees... Anyway so there is basically this huge bridge through all the trees that you just follow from cage to cage. There were sloths, flamingos, deer (which I didn't think were that exciting to

 see since I see them in my backyard all the time)
more parrots, alligators and crocodiles, pigs, goats, monkeys (they were so so cute! And posed for pictures) and lots of other animals. It was really quite small, but it was really fun too :)

The monkeys that came running over when I started taking the pictures! I want one!

At the end of the bridge was kind of this "Old town". It was similar to the one at Lagoon. There are these huge houses that were from the first people who lived in Guayaquil and they were really cool. There were also very small houses made from tree branches (I don't know how else to describe them...) and things. They were cool and apparently people still live in those type of houses now, but it is in really small areas with small populations. I cannot believe people live in them. It made me really appreciate the house I am in now and my apartment back at school and my own house. I don't know how I would survive if I lived in one of those huts. I felt very fortunate. Then after that the kids played at the park for a little while. I found a teeter-totter! I haven't seen one of those in SOO long! So I took pictures on it. It was fun. 

                                                               

 I loved this piano. It was gorgeous. One day I will own one of these. 

The Teeter-Totter at the park! It was a lot of fun!

I thought this was a cute picture of their family walking on the rails from the train :)

Sorry didn't really get a good picture of the house, but these people put on a short show type thing. They were really funny and so sweet. Notice that man is holding a machete! 

Then we came home and Rolando had to go to some meetings for church so we decided to have a small party. We (Karen, the kids and I) made mac-and-cheese and ate it on her bed in her bedroom and had a movie marathon. We watched "The Impossible" which is such an amazing story! I would definitely recommend watching it if you haven't. Just make sure to have a box of tissues handy. And then we watched "The Odd Life of Timothy Green" which is a very cute movie. It was a great weekend.

Last night I went to the gym. Yep it definitely almost killed me again. We went to the spinning class. It was in this tiny room with about 20 bikes. And there were two small windows open. It was SOOO hot! I hardly made it through the work out! I didn't do everything everyone else was doing because when I stood up on the bike I almost passed out... so I just sat the whole time but kept peddling as much as I could. Hopefully next time we do that it won't be quite as hard. I, once again, was literally dripping! I left like I had jumped in a swimming pool with my clothes on! I looked like that too... It was nasty. But I guess that's good because it means I'm working hard! Haha, it was still fun though, but very draining. I also went again tonight and it was really good and fun. Funny story though, I was alone in the weights section of the gym, which is incredibly intimidating since its basically all guys, and I was on one of the machines. I was keeping to myself more than usual because I didn't have my interpreter (Karen) there to help me if I didn't understand someone. I was listening to my iPod and had just finished a set of reps on the machine when this guy walks up and starts talking to me. Keep in mind I do still have my ear phones in... so I pull one out to try to understand him. Yeah, still didn't understand, there was too much noise. So I stand up, get closer to him, pull the other one out, and ask him what he said. Once again, I didn't have a clue what he was saying. So I then told him "I'm really sorry, but I am just learning Spanish and I can't understand what you're saying." He then looked at me, started nodding - with a somewhat awkward, almost embarrassed look on his face - and walked away. I started laughing! I still have no idea what he was saying.

Say Cheese!! I'm in Ecuador! This was on a train car that was made into a internet cafe... or what ever those things are called. Karen had the idea to get a picture next to the map of the country!

Congratulations!! You made it through the whole blog post!! Great job!
 So I think I'm all caught up now!! Super exciting! I'll try to stay caught up too so my posts aren't novels. We'll see. :)

Until next time,

Chau!

-McKaye

P.S. I will be posting another soon with more pictures that for some reason wont load. Also I have videos of the dolphins, birds, and a extra special video you won't want to miss! Stay tuned...

Off to a GREAT Start!

After a somewhat decent night of sleeping I woke up excited to start my new adventure. The kids were already at school so I went with Karen to their office. Rolando and Karen own their own business. They sell security systems. After going to the office we came up and the kids were already home from school. They were so excited to see me. Apparently before I got here, Samuel and Sarah were fighting over who was going to play with me more. Samuel was very proud and was bragging to Sarah that he already knew me since he came with his mom to Utah (he was 2 years old and the only thing he remembers was playing in the snow with my dad.) So, when I walked into the house Samuel was really excited at first but then just stared at me... definitely didn't remember me at all... Haha! Sarah was in the shower and ran out before she was done because she wanted to see what I looked like. SO funny. 

After a little while of awkwardly walking around staring at me they started asking their mom all kinds of questions about me (while I sat there.) They thought it was so odd that I didn't really know Spanish. They are constantly asking Rolando why Karen always starts speaking English when she is talking to me.

**I actually do know Spanish. I understand almost everything (when they talk slowly) but I have a harder time actually speaking it. Slowly I am getting better...well at least I think I am, maybe they thing I still sound the same... who knows??

The kids are the fastest Spanish speaking people I've ever met in my whole life! No joke!! I seriously couldn't hardly understand a word they said! Now it has gotten a lot easier because I have gotten used to the way they talk but sometimes when they get talking, I have to stop them and tell them to speak slowly. Plus, Sarah cannot say her "R's" so when she says words that have R's in them she says them like an "L" - Example the word "otro" (another or other) she says "otlo". So sometimes I have to sit and think about what word she is trying to say. It's insane how fast they can talk! In the states (or at least Orem) people think that teenagers talk fast... yeah, no, come to Ecuador...Welcome to the land of people who don't even know how to speak slowly! Just kidding, but not really.

So one of the first things Sarah asked me was "Are you a princes??" Here, everyone has brown eyes. To me, everyone looks very similar. So (like the guy that I met in Florida told me) I stand out. She thought that I was a princess because I have big blue eyes like princesses do! How cute, Right?? Oh it made my day. Later she told me I was very tall. Everyone here is quite short. There haven't been very many people at all who have been taller than me. So I was in the bedroom with Sarah and she asked me "Have you seen that movie that has the giants in it? Yeah you're like one of them!" I started laughing so hard... Oh, the innocent thoughts of a child. But it's true, I feel somewhat like a giant here.

Riding in a car is a completely different experience! There are basically no rules of the road here. There are lines on the streets, but no one uses them. Everyone weaves in and out of tiny little spaces that I swear are barely big enough for their cars to fit into. Cars stop in the middle of the road to let people out or pick people up. There are people running/walking through traffic. I always feel like we're going to hit someone. Karen and Rolando are actually pretty good drivers. So far, I haven't had to clenched the seat with my fingernails and my life hasn't flashed before my eyes, but with that said... I have only been here 1 week. I still have 2 months and about 3 weeks ahead of me. To go along with everyone driving like lunatics is that fact that you constantly hear people honking. At first I thought that it was because people were angry or whatever  because in the states, when someone honks, that is usually the reason why. I soon found out that was not the case. I guess there might be a few reasons, but these are the ones I have figured out so far. 1) They honk to let people know they are coming. For example, if there is an intersection coming up where once side has a stop sign and the other doesn't, the driver that doesn't have a stop sign honks to let the drivers at the sign know they are coming down the road so they don't pull out in front of them. 2) They are super impatient! No joke, AS SOON as the light turns green drivers start honking their horns to make the cars in front of them go. For example, there are 10 cars at a light. The light turns green and the 3rd person in line immediately honks, then the 6th person honks right after, then the 2nd, etc. Yeah, no patience whatsoever. I may be wrong, but that is what I have observed so far. They definitely still honk out of anger but most of it is just random honking... 

All the houses here look like little boxes. They are all connected and are square. There aren't many houses that have 2 stories. At least not where I am at. They are all colored as well. There are orange houses, yellow ones, blue ones, red ones, etc. And the colors are very bright. They are also quite small. But it's kind of nice. There isn't all this extra space. There is enough space to have the basic necessities and feel comfortable. It is very different. Also, there are tall gates with sharp points on the top surrounding every house. To get in and out you have to have a key. There are no doorknobs - just keyholes. Once the gate or door is unlocked you just push on it and it opens. Same thing with the doors to get into the houses, there are handles on the inside of the door so you can pull it open. But there is no getting in if you don't have a key. There are also bars over every single window. If there was a fire and I couldn't get out of the door, everything I learned as a child about opening or shattering the window and climbing out would "go out the window" and I'd die. Lets hope for no fires! ;)  Haha

The second night of being here I went with Karen to the gym. I was excited because we planned on going almost every night. Holy Cow!! I just about died! I was working out a bit before I left, so it wasn't that I was in bad shape or anything but at home when I went to the gym, it was inside, there was AC and fans, and there was a drinking fountain to fill up my water bottle. Here... yeah, it's still inside, BUT there are no fans and no AC, then add the immense heat, then add humidity. Also, once you're out of water, you can't go fill it back up anywhere, if you want more then you gotta go buy a bottle. It is very different! So we started doing a circuit training program and it really wasn't that hard at all. But after the second time around I had to stop! I was over-heating so bad! It was only my second day in Ecuador and I wasn't even remotely used to the heat and humidity. I had to sit there the rest of the time to try to cool down. After the circuits we went to the dancing class. 

**I don't can't dance! I feel really awkward and out of place when I dance. It usually takes me a long time to loosen up and start having a good time.

I was completely lost! Everyone already knew the dance steps and they were dancing to all the songs and and having a great time and there I was, standing out like crazy because when everyone spun I stood straight forward, when everyone dropped to the ground I stood standing. Awkward right??? So I didn't know if I was going to go back or not. I didn't want to get sick and pass out or something from the heat. But then I decided that I just needed to get used to the heat and humidity more before I went again. Last night we went again. It was SOO much easier! We did another circuit training and it was great. I didn't have to sit out at all and it was a great work out. But, I swear that have never sweat so much in my entire life! I was literally dripping. My skin was shinning as if I had put oil on it - you know, like they do to the people on those muscle building commercials. That's what I looked like (minus all the muscle.) Then we lifted a few weights and headed to the dancing room. I danced for about 2 songs then decided that I would get a better work out if I did the bike or the elliptical. So I went and did those instead of dancing. It was a lot of fun and I didn't die again from the heat! Now I'm hoping to keep going and get in great shape! 

Anyway, I've got a lot more adventures to write about and a lot more adventures ahead of me so watch for more posts!

Chau!

-McKaye

Samuel (Sammy), Me, and Sarah (Sarita). These two are the cutest kids :)

Me and Sarah

Silly faces!!

Me, Sarah, and Sammy! I couldn't make this face because I had to take the picture... Oh well, they got it down!

This picture just made me smile, isn't she so cute?

Ecuador Bound!

ECUADOR!!!

Well, I finally made it here! I was actually pretty very nervous about getting here because I was flying all by myself and I had to make 2 different plane changes. I kept thinking I was going to miss a flight and then be stuck in an airport somewhere not knowing a soul and not knowing what to do. Luckily nothing like that happened.

I left Salt Lake at 8:15 a.m. and flew to Dallas, Texas. The flight seemed really short, but I was also reading my book the whole time so I kind of lost track of time. When I landed in Dallas I had to take a train to the next terminal, which was a bit stressful because I didn't have any idea where I was going. BUT, nonetheless, I made myself stay calm and not freak out because I do fine with directions and finding things when I am calm, but as soon as I start stressing out, I lose all sense of direction and common sense and suddenly have absolutely no idea how to get anywhere (my mother would %100 agree with this). So I kept calm and was able to find the terminal.

The flight from Dallas to Miami was a bit longer but again, I read my book the whole time so I lost track of time and when the announcement was made that we would be landing soon I was surprised at how fast we made it there. When I looked at the time it was 5:30 pm. I didn't know what time my next flight left so I decided to check my ticket. That's when I started to panic, on my ticket it said that my flight from Miami to Guayaquil left at 5:55 pm. I was toward the back of the plane and we had just barely landed. No one had even started getting out of their seats yet. I was freaking out because I thought I was going to miss my plane and I had heard stories of people missing planes then having to stay the night in the airport or in a hotel or something and I was terrified of having to do that by myself. I said a quick prayer that by some miracle I would be able to get off the plane in time so that I didn't miss my flight. At 5:50 pm I was finally able to stand up and grab my carry-on bag. I practically ran to train and then to the next terminal so I wouldn't miss it. It was obvious that I was at the right terminal. It went like this, I passed a ton of terminals and every single one was mostly occupied by Americans (white - not being racist) when I reached where I was supposed to be I was the only American there. All the rest of the people were Ecuadorian, I stood out like a sore thumb! I was confused though, it was past 5:55 pm and everyone was still sitting there. So I went and asked if I was at the right terminal and they told me I was. So then I asked what time the plane was supposed to leave and they told me 6:55 pm!! I about died right there in the airport! I was very grateful, but at the same time I was a bit upset because I was so stressed thinking I was going to miss the flight all because it had Salt Lake time instead of Florida time. OH WELL, I had an hour to "de-stess" :) I talked to a very man who told me I had really pretty blue eyes and that I was going to stand out in Ecuador because everyone has brown eyes.

Finally, I got on the plane and took a big sigh of relief because I wasn't going to have to do any more flight changes and in just a few hours I was going to be in Ecuador. 

**A little background information - My dad served in Ecuador (the exact place I am living) on his mission. My parents came to Ecuador in 2001. My dad, Corinne, and I wanted to plan a trip when we were younger and come visit. It never actually happened. Years later (a.k.a. this February) I had just recently decided that I wasn't going on a mission, at least right now. I prayed about it and for me, it just didn't feel right. Whether it was that it wasn't the right time or that the Lord has a different plan for me, I don't know, all I know is that I decided not to go. So I went back to school at Snow College. So in February, all my friends had been opening their mission calls and it was really exciting and I was feeling a little left out. I was also feeling a lot of pressure to go on a mission even though I had already decided against it. I knew a lot of it had to do with that I thought it would be really cool to go to a different country and have a really cool experience. I knew that wasn't the right reason to go on a mission. That's when I got thinking, "It would be really cool to go to Ecuador." I thought it would be a great learning experience, I'll become fluent in Spanish again, and I'll have a great time and I'll learn a lot. That was on a Wednesday. So I went home that weekend and talked to my mom about it and she told me "GO FOR IT!" So in just 4 days, I made the decision to come to Ecuador. About 3 weeks later, in the beginning of March, I made it official and bought the plane ticket. I was so excited to come. It was something I had always wanted to do. I really wished that I could talk to my dad about it and have him tell me everything I needed to know, and be excited for me. Although I wasn't able to do that, I knew that he was excited for me and I knew that he was proud of me and that he'd be with me the entire time.

After a 5 hour flight, a gross plane "dinner", half a book, and an episode of Friends later, the captain announced that we would soon be landing!!! I looked out the window to see Ecuador. That was when it hit me. I WAS IN ECUADOR! It couldn't be real. I had been wanting this for so long and suddenly it was happening. I honestly couldn't believe it. It was a lot easier than I thought and it came so fast! Karen (My dad baptized her family when he was on his mission. Her family has lived with my family in the past) and Rolando, her husband, were there waiting for me after I got my bags and we drove to the Temple and took a few pictures then drove to their home. I didn't feel tired at all even though I had been in a plane all day, it was 12:00 am, and I had been awake since 5:00 am. I was too excited and overwhelmed to be tired. I went to bed anyway knowing that I had to get on their time schedule (only an hour ahead of Utah.) Plus, Karen and Rolando were both very tired, the kids were already in bed. I would have just sat up all by myself anyway, and that is always awkward in someone's house that you don't know well. 

A lot more has happened. I mean, I have been here 5 days already (it feels like a month), but I'm going to save that for another day.

Chau!

-McKaye

 My puppy was very nervous when I brought my suit cases upstairs. He climbed right into it. 

 He wanted to come with me I guess.

             

I know this is a bit hard to see, but this man was all dressed in colorful clothes and stilt shoes. It was very odd so I snapped a picture. Then when I got onto the plane in Dallas he was sitting right behind me. His wife (??) was dressed somewhat normally, but was breast feeding her baby on the plane with nothing covering her and she didn't say a word or make a sound the whole time. I don't know where they were from, what language they were speaking or what religion they were, but he was painting on the napkins, singing, and crying the whole trip. It was really odd.

The airplane "dinner". Chicken and rice, salad, a roll, and a weird oatmeal cookie thing... 

Me and Karen at the Guayaquil Temple!!