I woke up at 7:15. My throat seemed really dry and swollen like yesterday. However, it was so much better by the afternoon that I forgot to write about it yesterday. It doesn’t really hurt too badly, but it is hard to swallow. Sandy was here making oatmeal. I asked her what was going on with the moving around. She said that the apartment people told Gabby yesterday afternoon that they had to move to another apartment because the owner is going to use this one as an office. She said that I will move into the new apartment with her when the girls next door move out (tomorrow?). I am still kind of confused, but she said that she will keep cooking here in our old apartment until I move and we are totally kicked out of this apartment. She also gave me a banana and bread for breakfast. I saved the banana for later and got ready for school.
I arrived a few minutes early and talked with some people while I waited. There was not any tea made which was unfortunate for my throat. Carolina and I went over my homework and then we reviewed the perfect tenses. All of this was accompanied by a lot of conversation. During the break, I went with Carolina to the market to buy carrots and green beans already cut and some onions and peppers for the dinner tonight. Each person has to pay Q15 to come and the teachers are going to prepare all the food. When we got back, it was time for the fair trade conference. A man came and spoke about the coffee cooperatives. He said that out of 100 pounds of raw coffee beans, a coffee producer will end up with 12 pounds of beans ready to brew. He talked about some of the obstacles of fair trade and the difference between conventional trade and fair trade. It was interesting to hear him talk about the certification of fair trade because he said it is very costly so some fair trade organizations do not pay to have their products certified, yet others are not fair trade producers but they pay the people who certify the products so they get the certificates. The conference lasted an hour and a half. A man from the Canada group translated the lecture into French, but there was no English. After the conference, we returned to our table and began reviewing the conditional tense. We didn’t finish before it was time to go. I checked my email and when I went downstairs, everyone was gathered in a circle and they were giving Bernadette her certificate from the school because she is leaving before the dinner. When that was over, I paid Olga for my second week of school. Then I headed back to the apartment.
Sandy had something similar to fettuccini alfredo (with American cheese mixed in also) waiting for me. After eating my lunch alone, I grabbed my book and journal and headed up to the terrace for an hour and a half of peaceful reading in the sun (mostly). There were lots of big white clouds in the sky and sometimes the sun would disappear for a bit. It is amazing the difference in temperature when the sun is out and when it goes under a cloud. I headed inside and washed some clothes in the sink and took a long shower. Afterward, I did some stuff in my room while listening to music. Then I did my homework. I wrote my summary of the fair trade presentation and I read one of the short stories in my Eva Luna book. Then I got ready for the dinner. It had warmed up a lot during the day, so I wore my long black skirt and I wasn’t too cold.
I headed over to the school at 6:30. Carolina was making the ensalada rusa (Russian salad) with the vegetables we had bought during the break. I talked with the group from Canada (in Spanish) for a while. Then we went upstairs to my classroom for the dinner. Olga gave a speech and then each teacher presented his/her student with a diploma and said something nice to the student. Then the audience began to clap and chant, “Que hable, que hable, que hable,” and the students each had to give a speech. It is good to know this now before it is my turn! When all the diplomas had been given out, it was time to eat. A few of the teachers served us. We had two tacos and the ensalada rusa (see photo below). There was not anything to drink and I had not brought my water. I went downstairs to fill my mug with water and surprise! There was not any water! I was so thirsty I had to drink something so I had some hot tea. I am hoping that it will not keep me up all night. I only had ¾ of a cup, but I was so thirsty and the tacos were kind of salty. I talked with the Canadians while I ate. I especially enjoyed talking to Mari Eva, a 32 year old teacher. She has only taken four days of Spanish classes and so she can’t speak very well, but we both tried hard to communicate and another Canadian would sometimes help her if she got stuck. It was hard because she spoke with an accent and pronounced most words incorrectly. We celebrated when we understood each other. I like hanging out with people who don’t speak English. (I know that they speak some English, but what I mean is that they were not speaking English in the school.) When I am with Americans or Holly, it is too easy to break into English. I need to be banned from English except when I am writing my blog or communicating with people who don’t speak Spanish (i.e. my family). Tammy, when I get to your house, let’s try to be really good and speak lots of Spanish, okay? It was all too soon time to clean up, so we moved the tables and chairs back to their correct locations and we washed our dishes.
I headed back to my apt. When I got here, Sandy and Kristen were watching House and Alvaro was eating at the table. However, they have all moved out. I am actually the only person left in the apartment and I suspect I will be evicted tomorrow. There is no more room in Sandy’s new apartment. I hope those girls do leave so that I can move in! Sandy and Kristen and I had a massage train and then I went to my room to write my blog and get ready for bed. It is only 9:40, but I am so tired and I hardly did anything today!
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