Thursday, July 25, 2013

less than a month!

Alright so the big news first of course!  I have a job back in the states!!!!!  I will be a HIV-Aids case manager working for the Aids Network in Madison.  I had two interviews with them and really a great connection with the people that I talked to in the interviews.  I think this job will help me grow professionally and personally as I learn new things about being a case manager.  This position will really feed my passion for working with and helping people living with HIV-Aids.

I will be moving back to Madison and staying with the lovely rents for as long as I need to adjust and find a place, probably a couple months.  Im excited to get back into madison and really explore the city more.  I def thought that it would be close to impossible to find a job from here in Ecuador, but it worked!  After all that time applying, doing interviews and waiting, I've found something that I think I will not only be great at, but enjoy!!
***********************************
Yesterday I went on a paseo (trip) with our DIBESAU office to a place called Nariz del Diablo (Devil's nose)  We drove about 2.5 hours to Alausi where the train station was, and then took a train down about 500 meters to the valley of one of the mountains. There we saw a mountain that supposedly looks like the devil's nose (using a LOT of imagination).  Apparently the railway was one of the most dangerous train tracks in the world to make because of how it needed to be carved out of the mountain.  Over 2500 people died in the 2 year span of making 12 km of tracks.  This area also used to be the home of many condors.  Sadly after all the explosions and pollution from making the train tracks the condors died or left and there are no longer these birds in the area.  The indigenous called this mountain the condor's place.  Quite honestly the mountain looks more like a condor head than it does a devil.

After the train ride we had a lovely lunch in the town of Alausi and drove up to the San Pedro monument and took photos of the city etc.  On our way back to Ambato we passed the laguna de Colte, which apparently is one of the largest, deepest lagoons in Ecuador.  We also went into one of the first churches built in Ecuador (1534)!  We arrived back around 7 p.m.

All in all it was a great time to spend together. It was interesting though to see how Ecuadorian adult paseos have some things in common with Ecuadorian college paseos. Alcohol. We left the University at 7 A.M and by 9 A. M people were serving "puro" (moonshine).  Then on the way back several people wanted to stop in Riobamba to go out drinking!  When we decided to head back straight to Ambato, we had to make a stop so that they could buy beers to drink on the way back to Ambato.  It just amazes me that even as adults there always has to be alcohol involved.  Now Im not saying that people got completely drunk or anything, but this was a short day trip, is it really necessary that alcohol was involved???

Im starting the process of moving out of my apartment.  Trying to see if I can paint my apartment with my own money instead of the landlords taking out an unreasonable amount of my deposit for them to have it painted.  It will be the last stresser on my mind.  On wednesday I leave for Argentina.  I still don't believe that Im going but Im sure once I'm on the plane it will kick in, lol

After Argentina I will have about 10 days left in Ecuador!!! So amazing how fast the time has flown here.  Never would have thought a month into site that time would go by this fast.....

No comments:

Post a Comment