This week has been even more exciting than the last. I went to the regular hospital, Vernaza and watched some surgeries. I also went to the ICU for a day and the ER. In the reanimacion room I saw someone who did not look like she was breathing so I took her pulse and she was cold. I asked a doctor if the patient was ok and she said it had been 20 minutes and someone from the morgue was on their way. We met lots of medical students there as well. Tuesday was Nurses' day and we had a booth at Vernaza. I helped with an ACLS class with the Bomberos(firemen) and a CPR class at the police academy (los transitos). My Spanish is getting a little better...I can't speak much more but I understand more. I should probably study that. We went to the history of guayaquil museum which was full of miniatures and pretty cheesy. Then we were sitting in the jungle-like park on the malecon, and someone wanted a picture of us with her baby. It was funny. For dinner, we had empanadas, and batidos which are like smoothies. I had pineapple-mango. Friday, I went to the maternity hospital, then we went out for desserts and some shopping. I got some new makeup for the dance. We also went to the iguana parks and I was feeding the iguanas chips when one got overexcited and bit me. They don't really have teeth but I bled a little. It healed quickly and I think I will not be diseased, so don't worry. We had a health fair in the evening at the stake center where I took several blood pressures. Afterwards, we went to a single adult dance. I ripped my jeans pretty bad when I struck a pose for a photo. Good thing I brought a dress with me as well. The bad thing about the dance was that everyone was fast dancing, but we kept pairing off. I did not want to dance with boys, only with my friends. So, a traditional greeting is to kiss the cheek of the person you are meeting. On friday, I forgot that men can do this to and that it is supposed to be on the right cheek. I was meeting a mission friend of Christie Sue and made the mistake of turning my head. It was very nearly a kiss and so embarrassing. We spent Saturday in Las Playas, boating to see the dolphins, then swimming on the beach all day. I got roasted last week so this week I decided to forgo attempts at getting darker and wear sunscreen. I got some more cute earrings at the beach as well. I love the jewelry here. Today was our last sunday in the ward here. Next week we will go to Otavalo and the next week I will be in Utah with Landes. This trip is going by so fast. I am loving it. Trying to enjoy every moment.

Guitar.... this week's hobby

The video may take forever to load because it is so big...

I have a new obsession with playing the guitar. Who's to know if this will be short-lived, but at least it's fun for now. :) I just learned how to play this song (it's actually the first song i've ever played, and I happened to learn it two hours ago), and I wanted to see what it sounded like. So I took a video of it. And now I'm just posting it here cause I have a video of it now and i thought that would be neat. I stopped a lot and messed up a few times, plus I paused every once in awhile to scroll down on my computer screen to see more lyrics. So yeah, it's not perfect one little bit. Maybe not even good. But let this serve as a warning to all those whom I shall live with this summer-- I may still be on a guitar kick. (I didn't know whether to write who or whom...)

I love you guys. Oh, and happy mother's day! I know that mother's day was yesterday, but it's pretty much still Sunday night to me... I love you mommy.. You are wonderful. You are my hero. :)

Can't wait to see everyone soon!!!

christine

Ecuador

I've been in Ecuador for a little over a week and am loving it. Here are some things I have done so far....

baptisms at the guayaquil temple, swam at a beach on the equator, held an iguana, saw some macaws, ate empanadas, ate platanos, ate lots of seafood, beans, and rice, bargained for some earrings, ate breakfast at a buffet(each day), taught nutrition in the community(in Spanish), took a lot of blood pressures, measured the height of 60 kids, sang songs in spanish, bought a purse, had delicious ice cream, went for a walk by the river, looked at 2 cathedrals, built a house, stood in the back of a truck on the freeway(and lost my hat while I was at it), rode in a landrover ambulance, toured a boat, accidently attracted a sailor, attended church in Spanish(twice), got sick for a day, took lots of Immodium, talked to school children about brushing their teeth(spanish), helped with a CPR class, washed clothes in a bathtub, saw more poverty than ever before, and had a lot of fun at the same time. This is a pretty incredible experience.

P.S. Happy Mother's Day!!!!!

I got Marie's wedding announcement yesterday. It was so beautiful and made me so proud that I just had to hang it on our fridge.

Yesterday for Cinco de Mayo we made crepes. Dessert crepes with strawberries, bananas, whipped cream, sour cream and powdered sugar. Dinner crepes with some kind of sauce. I was the one who made the dinner crepe sauce, but I don't remember what it was called, it was a white sauce with swiss cheese and ham. And then for dessert I decided to (attempted to) make fortune cookies. We watched Nacho Libre in the spirit of Cinco de Mayo. Overall it was a very fun day.

Bekah has been looking for some houses for us to move into next semester. She has found some four bedroom ones so maybe it would be me, Kalo, Bekah and some fourth person to be determined. I am very excited about it.

I can't wait to come to Fairfield. I am excited about going to Mom's graduation as well. It is going to be a good summer. :)

Marie, I miss calling you... I hope that you are having fun though. Partying it up in ecuador-- you are so lucky.

I love you all.

bean