Long Time, No Write

The end of the first semster is DONE. I cannot believe it, but month five is approaching- - rapidemente. In the beginning, I thought a lot about how the hell I was going to make it so many months without seeing my favorite little buddies and meeting the new buddies, whose births were expected after my departure, but with time flying so quickly,I'm now bogged by the thought that I only have 6 more months. Susan and mom are helping to ease the issue, reminding me that new babies won't be talking or walking by January, and the others won't be too different, nor will they have forgotten their favorite auntie Doods (sorry kathy).

Life is great here, for the most part, but it's just as mundane at times, as anywhere else might be. HOWEVER, I love my job here, which is a completely new experience for me. Aside from tending to the old folk's entertainment needs in San Francisco, I can't say i've ever really liked my jobs in the past. Hooray for me! Seriously, my students this semester were phenomenol and played a huge role in my decision to stay (I just hope I have such luck next semester). What stresses me out more is not knowing what i'm going back to. I totally sympathize with Mr. Benny and know exactly why he doesn't want to leave Korea. Unfortunately, I'm too easily distracted and can't follow a plan so well. A straight and narrow is hard to follow when you have ADD.

Speaking of paths, my immediate one is taking me on an exciting journey to the north of Chile and then to Machu Picchu. I'm going with two teacher friends, Megan and Renee at the crack of dawn on Friday morning. We're flying up north to Calama, then going to San Pedro de Atacama for four days, where I cannot wait to experience a nighttime desert sky. Among the few things I miss about Lancaster, the night sky tops my list, so it'll be a rare treat. When Shannon was visiting, we went with Rafael out to the country for the weekend, where his aunt and uncle (Anita y Lauta) have a place. They took us on a little drive out to the middle of nowhere to see the southern cross and the sky was AMAZING, but Lauta insisted it wasn't anything compared to San Pedro. We'll see. There's an observatory that I want to check out, if the prices are reasonable. On top of stargazing, I'll head to Valle de la Luna (Valley of the moon), which is meant to be viewed at sunset to maximize the light display on the rocks. It's all supposed to be incredible. . .

On Monday we head out on our EPIC bus journey to Cusco. . . this I CAN wait for. I will say that in my other trips, the bus journey proved to be really rewarding when scenery was nice- even the hellish 13 hour trip to Mendoza that should've taken 8. We'll leave from Calama to Arica, the northernmost city in Chile. From there, we'll take a colectivo (taxi) across the border to avoid time constraints with a busload of people at the border. In Peru, we'll take a bus from Tacna to Arequipa, then transfer again to get to Cusco. I have no idea how long these trips are going to take and kind of dont want to. It is a oncce in a lifetime opportunity, so I'm thinking posetively. I know my butt will be sore and crying, not thinking in those terms, but for now I'm excited. Once we get to Cusco (I hope by Tuesday) we'll do some 'sploring there and on Friday we take the train to Machu Picchu. I know, I know, I talked a lot of smack about train riders, but 1: all permits for hiking were sold out until September and 2: it's beneficial for the trails. . . . We'll spend the night at a hostel just below the ruins on Friday, where I hope we'll enjoy an evening of natural hot tubbing while celebrating Megan's 30th birthday. On Saturday morning, we get to actually see the ruins, then head back to bus tour hell (or heaven, who knows). Please cross your fingers that none of us suffer from altitude sickness while traveling- if you pray, ask for our protection =).

I hope this finds you all well. To the Seattleites, I'm damn happy for your sunshine. . . FINALLY!