Siesta Synapse

Okay wow.... Just finished another long application for scholarships to Guildford. I guess it only took me like an hour and a half which isn't bad. But now I'm gonna try to remember all the crazy events that happened yesterday

SIDE NOTE! I don't know whats been happening here but its been raining pretty much every day I've been here and it feels like winter. Its actually been getting pretty cold here too I wish I had my sleeping bag just to curl up with some nights but I'm not that cold so you don't have to worry about me (mom and possibly dora D dog but she worrys about everything)

Well the last two days I've spent here at Quique's ( I got someone to spell it for me haha) house which has been really nice. I enjoy their family and especially their dogs. They have two puppies which are really cute (I'll post more pictures soon don't worry)

These last few nights I've been teaching a small group of students English which has been really fun and hard at the same time because everybody in the group has different levels of English and some just don't want to talk much either because they have Pena. Rafael and his Family are actually very good at English and I can understand them and have a conversation with him and his son and daughter which is really good. Rafael's son Rafael actually has really goo questions and speaks really well but he doesn't want to speak a lot in front of me which I think he will get over sooner or later. I went to the school yesterday and talked with the English teacher and got some strategies for teaching English which helped me remember how I learned spanish and the different games we played and such so it was a good experience overall.

There were many more surprises at the bachillerato tambien (high school also). First surprise was their soccer field was actually quite nice and had stands for people to watch. The next surprise was I met a guy from Maryland there who was salvadoran and a senior at the high school there. They have three years there at the technical school ( I will explain later the differences) and he was in his third year. At first I didn't believe he was from the states because I thought he had just practiced English a lot like some students who talk to me but after speaking to him a while I realized that he really knew his stuff in English. He could have a really intelligent conversation and help me understand things about the school like the technical school and why he came back to El Salvador to visit his family and that he'd only been in El Salvador for 2 months and after he graduates he is gonna go back to the US because he is a US Citizen because his mom is (all very interesting stuff and I hope to visit him sometime maybe) He had great insight about differences in Culture and we both had a question about this water pump that constantly leaked about a gallon of water per minute but for some reason it didn't bother anyone else at the school haha. He's going back to the US after this year but if we visit the school while we are here in El Gigante we can meet everyone.

The difference between General and Technical is Technical has a third year of High School while General is just two years. Both can go onto University and you don't need different grades to get into either its just which ever you prefer which surprises me that the numbers are about equal 50/50 in General and Technical. I would expect that there would be more people in Technical school because its free education and people said its harder and you learn more there. In the third year they have a specilization within the technical school that means some can work in Secretary work (learning typing skills and such ) or general administration. The school is very organized here with a bell system and computers for the technical students to work on in the secretary position and computers to take apart and learn about. All was very interesting.

I visited classes, helped with English (they had a test to sing Yesterday by the Beatles which was pretty cool although songs usually don't have good grammer or make sense half the time haha so you have to be careful with which songs you pick. I also saw different classes like computers, talked with students about their education and plans for after high school, practiced some English with some, and just took in the experiene. I went back the next day to take pictures because I forgot the first day. I was very surprised to see the differences here at this school. There was a much more clear bell system but it still had differences that weren't the same as the schedule in the US (I'm not trying to compare everything to the US but just trying to give an explanation based on what you guys know about which is the US) . One thing that was extremely different at this school that I hardly ever saw in El Bario was relationships. There were a lot of people holding hands, holding each other etc. which is normal for a high school but I was just surprised because in El Bario it wasn't evident at all which is maybe just because people travel from a much farther distance in El Bario? I honestly can't explain the difference but thats what it was.

After that I came back to the Hotel to check my email which is when it started to rain. I forgot my plug and I was going to skype with my parents and the lady was very nice (like all salvadorans) and let me barrow her umbrella. I saw a few people from school waiting under cover for the rain to stop and I have yet to figure out how people here look so nice and clean when they don't have showers (just pilas usually) or use a cement toilet. Don't get me wrong I understand how you can look nice and have that too but its just surprising the different kinds of women you find here because they are in no way girly girls and they aren't scared of a lot which is really impressive. Its also really impressive that they walk on rocky unsteady roads in heels and tight jeans or skirts (and they walk 2 kilometers sometimes in heels is ridiculous! ) I guess it just goes to show you fashion is all over the world even when they have hardly and of the luxuries we have they still manage to have amazing looking women. Props to El Salvador!

To continue with my story I skyped with my parents and then talked with friends on facebook skype for a while. Then I went home after the rain had stopped and ate dinner and went to the bathroom where yep there were cockroaches on the toilet (lovely right?) well my host mother came and rattled a stick to shoe them away so then I went to the bathroom and when I got up they were back but it was an experience and I think this experience is helping me to not be surprised by anything which is a skill you need if you are going to be a peiatrician “what? A kid stuck a marble up his nose? And ate the Q from Scrabble? I've very sorry to hear that... how did you guys finish the scrabble game with out it? Did you win the game? … no yes I know I'll be over there in a bit but its not an emergency this happens all the time last week a kid swallowed the word BAD... yes I know fitting right? Too bad he couldn't swallow the word INDIGESTION but thats okay because it wouldn't have counted in Scrabble anyways cause its more than 7 letters...

Okay so now that the comedic relief has arrived or fallen flat whichever your opinion is, after my bathroom experience I went and had a nice conversation in English with Rafael and his son Rafael in English and some spanish but overall it was a good night.

Sucio- Dirty (laundry) marcador – score like the score of a game. Perrito- puppy!