Plaza Barranquilla

... lush rainforest and it was looking very promising. Once we got to the park they informed us that it would be US $59 for us to enter the park, with our van, and camp for 2 nights. Well, that’s a little out of our price range. We spent so much on the shipping that we really wanted to stick to a tight budget for a few weeks. Also, we weren’t too sure how great this beach would be ...

... und sogar ins Stadion nach Puerto Colombia gefahren hat. Wir haben uns mit bis zu 25 leuten in sein Auto gequetscht und er hat Taxi für uns gespielt, und das fast eine Woche lang ohne irgendetwas dafür zu verlangen!! Es war echt unglaublich, ein riesen Dankeschön an Gustavo und seine Familie! Da ich aber zuviel Fürsorge und Planung nicht lange aushalte, habe ich mich zwischendurch abgesetzt und bin zu den Jungs ins Hotel gefahren. An unserem ersten Abend haben wir eine Gruppe ...

... a nice night dancing with a few girls who were about but there was this small group of gay guys who turned up. They seemed to want a dance and so we danced with them for a song or two (I with this small guy, Bill with a 7ft transvestite and Kaas with a Mick Jagger look-a-like). It was all quite fun until we tried to leave. Then they kept grabbing us in places we didn't want to be grabbed and wouldn't let us go. They kept trying to drag us to leave with them and wouldn't take ...

... the mud off the best we could, and walked down the stairs and to the lake to wash off. There, we were actually cleaned off by some ladies, who helped tourists for a tip. The people working there were all very content, happy, and I contribute this to the energy of the volcano. We made it back to the highway at exactly 4:30 and waited. It was starting to get a bit darker, and the bus still hadn't come. I followed Lili's advice, and we took two motorcycle taxis to the ...

... and dinner parties at Andrea and Monica's. And next week I get to attend my very first Thanksgiving dinner,which I'm very excited about. Just the mention of food and I'm there. Apparently we're even trying to find a briscot/briskit/biscuit/whatever the heck that meat is we're supposed to be eating because Monica doesn't eat turkey (honestly,just like Chandler from Friends ...

... line is - I had much less self-confidence just because of the clothes I wore, and how I styled myself. This made me think a lot about IMAGE. How do other people feel about themselves? How does society and individuals unfairly stereotype people just based on image? How do I unfairly judge other people based on what they wear, what they own, what religion they are, what the color of their skin is, what gender they are, what work they do, what language they speak, and so on?   

... well, I think I hit the nail on the head with the idea of expectations. We have expectations of ourselves, which arose from somewhere from the outside. This could be a direct expectation from a family member, friend, colleague, or enemy, or indirect from society through media such as TV, the internet, magazines, and people of course. We start believing that these expectations must be met, without thinking about the validity of these ...

I talked in a previous entry, about the dire situation people have to deal with in the neighborhoods that Futbol con Corazon is currently working in, and wants to work in. We have recently started to engage with a new community, en el barrio la Chinita, and I made a quick video of the soccer field and our meeting with community leaders, and local school teachers. Last week we hosted a visitor from a beer company in ...

... to speak Spanish. I need to get a dictionary though.. and maybe a travel book about Colombia. Those were not on the top of my list of priorities when getting ready to move all my stuff in the states. The hotel, called Valleclaire, is simple, but nice, and even has a pool and WIFI. I am very happy about the WIFI!!!!!!!!! That's my connection to my family and friends, news, music (although Pandora doesn't work here L), etc. So, my main responsibilities are, to help with ...

... of just how far away I am from home. But things are picking up here and in the coming weeks I'm going to be a busy bee! I've been given another class, this one is Level 4 on the extension programme, which means it's mostly older students learning English for their careers. It's an evening class, so I'll be working late 2 days a week. I've also been asked to give English classes to a very prominent political figure who lives here in ...