Salsa-ing My Way Through Cali

I'm still alive! Apologies for my lack of posting, but things have been busy and we finally just got REAL internet (we've been stealing someone else's wireless for the past few weeks...shhhh).

The ladies on our city tour of Cali- (top left going clockwise: Lenee, Jennifer,

 Me, Mandi)

So after browsing through my blog, I realized that I talk about dancing A LOT.  Well that's not going to change, because I'm going to talk about dance some more!  I started salsa classes this past Monday, and I am loving it!  We are going to a place called El Manicero which is just a 20 minute Mio ride away (the Mio is the awesome, but overcrowded, transit system here).  It's totally like the movies- a one room dance studio above some stores, large windows open to the streets, lots of locals, people of all ages and all levels.  There are probably about 60 or 70 people in there at a time.  We all do a warm up together, then split off into different levels.  I haven't done partnering yet, but we'll be moving up to the next level soon according to our really cute instructor, Luis Angel (who Mandi got to dance with- JEALOUS).

Anyways, it's a rigorous 2 hour workout.  But the music is intoxicating and the dancing is awesome!  We are doing an intense package- 70 hours in just over 2 months (and it's only $50 USD!!!  What a deal!).  The classes are Monday- Thursday for 2 hours right after school, and I'm going to try to make most of them!  I'M SO EXCITED.  This past week has been great and I'm loving every minute!

But besides dancing...

SCHOOL.

I have now been an official teacher with my own classroom and real kids for a week and a half now!  I have 17 students who are full of energy, curiosity, and smiles.  I love them already.  Their English is pretty good, and when they don't know words, they describe it to me in English or the class helps us figure it out.  By doing this they are helping me learn some Spanish too!  This first stretch has been tiring, but good!  And I have such great support from my other Grade team coworkers.

My little reading nook and my outside bulletin board!  I am class D of 3rd grade..ie 3D!

NIRVANA.

Last Saturday we went to a nature reserve a few hours north of here called Nirvana.  It was absolutely beautiful and I saw so many plants and flowers that I had never seen or even

 dreamed of before.  The colours were captivating, the hike was exhiliarating, 

the view was breathtaking (even through the fog from the mountains).  A great experience!

Pretty flower, me in a tree, my housemate Rita and I in front of a waterfall, COOl butterfly!

Petronio Alvarez!

On Friday some of the teachers went to the XIV Festival de Musica del Pacifico "Petronio Alvarez", and what an experience! This festival celebrates the afro-colombian music from the Pacific coast of the country. It is very percussion based music- lots of different drums, shakers, and xylophones with people singing over top. The rhythm is contagious, it was hard for anyone to stay sitting in their seats!

Angie, Mandi, and I with the big head guy outside the stadium!

The festival was free, and the stands were packed. It took place in the Plaza del Toro (where the bull fights happen) and the energy in the stadium was unreal! As it is a competition that lasts for 5 days, we got to watch quite a few different groups perform. It was a concert-type experience like I've never seen before! Everyone was there for the love of the music, there were no fights breaking out like at North American concerts- everyone was so friendly!

So many people out to celebrate the Pacifico!

The absolute best part of the festival (besides the music) was the dancing!! People were up dancing, waving their bandanas (of which I bought a neon green one, of course), swinging their hips, feeling the beat the drums. When a song really had the crowd going, the entire stadium would simultaneously erupt in, "Hey! Hey! Hey!", throwing their hands and bandanas up in the air.

And it gets better.

For those who know me, you know that I love choreographed dancing. And you know that it would be a dream come true for people to just break out into spontaneous dance routines. IT HAPPENED. In the pit of the stadium in front of the stage, groups of people would just break out into dance! It wasn't completely choreographed, but everyone seemed to know what the moves were. Someone at the front would start it, and more and more people would join in! Sometimes there were groups of up to 50 people all dancing the same thing! Sometimes there were up to 4 different groups doing different dances at the same time. IT MADE MY NIGHT!! I wanted to go down there so bad, but you had to be VIP, and I didn't feel like trying to seduce the guards to let me in :)

Check out the people dancing in the pit!

The other interesting part of the night? Crema de viche. Colombians like to make their own type of "moonshine" by fermenting sugarcane. There are a few different types, but we got the one that was creamy and had some sort of other peanut extract. This stuff is absolutely repulsive. You're supposed to just take shots of it, and every time I did I almost gagged. Why did I continue to take shots you ask? Because 1. I felt like I wouldn't have a 'true' Colombian experience if I didn't, and 2. Everyone else was doing it...haha. But seriously, it's crazy because there were so many different people selling this stuff. They make it from home, you don't know who these people are, and they're just allowed to sell it publicly at the venue.

Holding the (disgusting) crema de viche and a sweet fan they gave out to the ladies. It had a "mirror" on one side just in case you wanted to check yourself out- too bad it was like looking at foggy aluminum foil.

The Patronio was such a fun experience, and I'm so happy I was able to go! Good music, good company, AMAZING dancing!

Dirty Dancing: Colombian Nights

As the bouncers open the wooden doors to the club, you cross the threshold into an entirely different world. Walking up the stairs, the salsa music grows louder and your heart can't help but synchronize with the captivating Latino beats. You walk through the crowd of hot, sweaty couples getting their salsa on across the dance floor and make your way to a table. In the dimly lit room you watch the dancers move- hips swinging, twirling, spinning, hitting every beat with such passion and making it look so easy. This is when you realize that you are in love with Salsa.

This is going to be ME soon!!

Last night was our first real night out on the town in Cali, and it was phenomenal. Rita and I made our way up to San Fernando to have a few beers at Mandi and Mike's place. We then met up with Kristin and Kelsi across the parque de perro (I only got us lost once) and headed out to Tin Tin Deo, a wicked Salsa dancing club! http://www.tintindeo.com/ It was just like I had imagined it, possibly even better- people dancing for the love of dancing and giving themselves up to the music. I couldn't sit still and was dancing in my seat all night! The way it works is that if you're a girl you wait until a boy asks you to dance. Unfortunately I don't know how to salsa. Fortunately Kristen and Kelsi's friend Jefferson brought me out to dance and showed me some of the basic steps! He says I'm a natural :p So I had my first real Salsa experience last night and now I'm hooked!! I'm hoping to start lessons early next week and I'm determined to be a Salsa star haha!

In other news, I am officially moved in to my new apartment! It's beautiful and it's been fun decorating and putting things in place. My room isn't fully done yet- I still need to hang my curtains and put some stuff up on the walls, but here's a sneak peek!!

Colour theme inspired by my garbage can! There is sure to be more cow themed decor coming!

I also got a new phone. It's a touch screen that cost me 10 000 pesos (about $5). I'm not sure how I like touch screens, but it's kind of cool and I have a sweet ring tone called "Zoo".

School starts tomorrow for the teachers, and I'm excited to get things started and meet everyone. So far this has been a great start to my new Cali life, and I can't wait to see what other adventures come my way! But right now, I just can't wait to learn how to SALSA!

Sam xo

Being a gringa

A "gringa" is a foreigner, usually referring to an American, but I still consider myself quite alien to this country. I do not speak Spanish yet, but I'm learning! (Todavia no hablo espanol, pero estoy apprendiendo!) Learning to speak the language is something that I'm very excited for. I took a semester of Spanish in my undergrad and I'm using Rosetta Stone right now as well. Lucky for me, some of the other new teachers are pretty fluent in the language and are very patient and wonderful teachers! I've learned so much already!

So today we went shopping for house stuff, and I thought it would be a good idea and a challenge to go off by myself and find a tool kit for the house. Keep in mind that I had no idea how to say "tool" in Spanish...and I didn't ask any of my English speaking friends first. I found the tool section of the store and couldn't find one on my own, they were only drills, drills, and more drills! So I said to myself, "Self, the best way to learn spanish is to get in there, try, and hit the ground running." I approached a sales associate and said, "Permiso, donde es..." At that point, I think my face kind of froze in a deer in the headlights kind of way. I then continued on to say, "...tool kit?"

The associate had no idea what I was saying, and replied back to me in Spanish- to which I didn't understand! I recited my well rehearsed lines, "Lo siento, no hablo espanol. Estoy apprendiendo." He laughed, but looked like he was thinking really hard on how to communicate with me. I ended up pointing at a drill kit, making the shape of it with my fingers and saying "kit". Then pointing at the screwdrivers, then running to a different aisle and pointing at the wrenches, miming a hammer etc and trying to gesture that I wanted a kit with many different tools in it. Finally, as I was surrounded by 5 different employees who had all been involved in the process at some point, we (kind of) found what I was looking for. It was a decent kit that would do. It would put my desk together.

As I walked away, I repeated, "mucho gracias" over and over, as well as "Que tenga un buen dia!" (Have a good day). A minute later, one of the employees runs up behind me and says, "Is this better?" He had found a better tool kit, exactly what I had been looking for! What a sweet man! It was an extremely stressful experience, but I'm glad I did it!

I now know how it feels to truly be at a loss for words, and how frustrating it is not to be able to express yourself. For all of those ESL students out there, I give them MAD props for overcoming the language barriers! And I know if they can do it, then I most certainly can!

We don't get to move into our apartment until Friday now. I was really excited to get out of the hotel and really LIVE in Cali, but while I'm in this 4 star hotel with a pool, hot tub, and free delicious breakfast, I will take advantage and enjoy it!

<--Shopping for house supplies
Fueling up between shopping trips with a calzone bigger than my head! Everyone was impressed that I ate the whole thing, no big deal-->





xo Sam

P.S. Today a local asked if I was latina! How sweet is that? Mandi then told her I was Chinese and Jamaican and the lady said that now she saw that I had Chinese eyes and dark skin. Yay for being tanned!

Que tenga un buen dia!

Hola amigos!

Today we took a tour of Colegio Bolivar. It is the most GORGEOUS campus I have ever seen! Everything is so green, there are so many types of plants and trees everywhere, it's like paradise! All of the staff is extremely friendly and the atmosphere of the school is so welcoming.

The sunflowers of Colegio Bolivar and one of the outdoor gyms

My classroom is adorable! There are only 3 walls, with the fourth side open to the outside. It has a white board, lots of storage, and a bathroom! As soon as I saw it I started imagining how I was going to decorate it...I can't wait!

Yup! That's my name on the door sign already! This is my empty classroom...for now!

This afternoon we had some time off to rest and lounge by the pool at the hotel. I skyped with dad and had a 3-way skype with Stacy and Katie! (Does anyone know how to have a skype conference call with video??) A few of us then went back to the poolside for a drink and some food, followed by another trip to the hot tub.

Overall, a great day! I'm looking forward to Wednesday when Rita and I get to move in to our new apartment!

xo Sam

Hola Cali!

After spending a blissful two days in Miami for orientation with the new staff of Colegio Bolivar, being wined and dined by the school administration, and lying out on the beach, I am now in Cali, Colombia!

Our view from the hotel room of the beach we spent many hours on in Miami.  The water was so clear and warm!

I am happy to say that I had no trouble at the airport, the flights were smooth, and I was in good company.  I got to fly to Miami with Tim Clutton which definitely helped to calm my nerves!

Tim and I arrive in Miami!

Right now we are staying at the Radisson in Cali and we spent all day house hunting!  The great thing about Bolivar is that they are letting us pick our own places and housemates!  Most schools have housing pre-arranged for you, but this way we got to tour the city and choose a place that we really liked!  I'll be living in the south part of Cali closer to the school in a beautiful apartment with another teacher named Rita (who is awesome!)

This is the new staff attempting a jumping picture when we finally arrive in Cali!  We failed...haha

The city is beautiful, and in the north end there is a district called San Antonio that is gorgeous!  The hilly roads remind me of San Francisco, but the houses and buildings are so cute!  I love that the city is surrounded by mountains, the view is breathtaking.  The weather was perfect this afternoon, sunny and warm with hardly any humidity.  It gets dark here early though, right now it is 6:30 and it's dark! 

The hilly streets of San Antonio

We finally get to see the school tomorrow morning which I'm very excited about!  I've heard so many great things and seen all the pictures, but I hear that they don't do justice to its beauty.  Can't wait!

xo Sam