Today was the field trip. The students were so well behaved! There were about 10 adults and 35 kids. Any time a signal was given the kids ran back to their spots in line and grabbed their partners' hand. The zoo was one of the neatest places I have ever been. The lions, jaguars, and tigers' cages were close enought to stick your hands in and touch them(nobody did though). We were also able to catch feeding time. The big cats were eating 1/2 sheep bodies while we stood watching. It got quite uncomfortable as we were close enough to hear the bones snapping and tearing...sorry for those of you with weak stomaches! :) We all jumped about 5 feet off the ground when the male lion, who was about 6 feet away, let out a roar. Thank goodness most of the kids had moved, because the ones still watching were a little scared!
It was so neat to be able to see and learn how this ministry operates from the inside. A school like this one is my dream ministry. The head teacher gets a list in August of the families in the surrounding community that are on their form of welfare. After home visits and some investigating, the pre-school class is formed. When the school year begins the 5-year old students are on the level of a 2 year old. When the students begin kindergarten the next fall they will be the top of the class!
I have a funny story for y'all...Katie (who is from Hartselle, AL) and I were sitting out on our balcony last night talking, just as we were getting into the conversation a gun was shot on the next street over. Let me give you some background, guns are shot INTO THE AIR for many reasons here. Celebration is the main reason guns are shot here, for weddings multiple guns are shot repeatedly. But when we heard the gun shot, all of that culture stuff went out of the window! Both of us "hit the deck" and crawled into our living room! As soon as we got into our living room we both erupted into laughter, as we realized what we had just done. Thank goodness we had no friends from the area over, because we looked like fools. Jessica, who was still awake, got quite a kick out of us dropping and crawling in the door! So if nothing else, it looks like I can amuse y'all this summer with our stories!
I wanted to go ahead and thank all of you that wrote cards for my Momma's project! They are the high-light of my day! I love reading them in the mornings! Especially those of you who like to add a little extra. When I opened Whitney Bryant's card this morning I was surprised to see an old picture of Me, Whit, Mark, and Marcus Hatcher, not looking so good might I add! Thank goodness we grew out of big bangs and overalls!!
Well this is the first time I am writing a blog so lets hope this works! I have been here 5 days, and I am STILL not entirely used to the time change! We are going to bed earlier and earlier every night. Tonight our goal was midnight and it doesn't look like it will be met being that it is twenty after midnight! My Daddy told me to make sure I didn't make it sound like a vacation, so I won't.
Things are a little crazy here beacause there is a presidential election Sunday afternoon. Elections here are not like elections at home, there have been several assassination attempts between the political parties in the past few weeks. We are on a level one for safety(the levels are zero being the safest and four being the most dangerous). After Sunday, we should go back down to a level zero. The rallies and violence do not affect us much because it is on the other side of town, meaning across the river. We are just sticking close to home at night to be safe.
My team and I are already building relationships with our neighbors. We had lunch with our landlord's wife and children yesterday. Funny thing is you can't leave the table until the platter in the middle is almost empty (if you empty it, they bring more). You also can't clean your plate or else they will put more food on your plate. It is a very tricky process! It was a traditional dish and was delicious, but we had to fill every empty spot in our stomachs so we could be excused! We laughed about it with our bosses once we got home. You also eat with your hands, don't get napkins, and the entire table shares two glasses of water! This is no culture for germ-a-phobic people! Haha!
Our English classes begin next Monday night. Katie and I will be teaching the advanced class and Tuyet, Monica, and Jessica will be teaching the intermediate class. We have been working on lesson plans and stocking up on materials for the past two days. We are trying to be prepared for everything. We also trying to follow Bro. Teddy's trip advice to always be FLEXIBLE! This culture follows Guatemala culture with their belief that time has no importance. Tea and coffee visits last 2 hours!
Tomorrow is a big in the lives of 40 kindergarteners and 5 English teachers! We have been invited to be honored guests for a field trip to the zoo. It should be fun...and a little hectic! Those of you who know my preference is 5th grade and above will get a kick out of this! Please remember us tomorrow morning as you wake up, we should be well into the field trip by then! :)
Hopefully this blog is something I will be able to do daily. I am sure my Momma will read this and find the grammar mistakes! I'll go ahead and appologize!
