Where am I?

Our Thanks.....

2009-11-16T20:29:00.002-04:30

I know, I know....I keep doing it! I'm a slacker.

Recently my mom sent my kiddos some amazing chex-mix and some presents (cool pencils and Halloween rings!). The kids were very excited and sent this message:

My First Attempt.....

2009-10-19T21:44:00.000-04:30

Alright folks, trying something new here.....I am using my iPod touch to write a quick entry to see if it will post to my blog. My fingers are crossed......

Isn't technology amazing?

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

My Favorite Night of the Week.....

2009-10-12T20:39:00.002-04:30

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to my favorite night of the week: Monday.

I know, some of you are reading this and wondering...."Monday? Why on Earth would anyone like Monday?"

If you're asking that simple question, then let me introduce you to the best shows on television that you're not watching: How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory. These two shows have brightened my Mondays for the the past two years and I just realized a few weeks ago, that these shows have made Monday, the only night of TV that I won't miss.

How I Met Your Mother (HIMYM) is a comedy on CBS at 8 pm EST on Mondays. The premise behind the show is that a father (Ted) is telling his children the story of how he met their mother (thus the title). So far, the story is on it's fifth year and occasionally the kids joke about how long of a story it is, but the show is hilarious. It's added a ton of new phrases to the American language, including The Crazy-Hot Scale, "crazy eyes", and my personal favorite, The Platinum Rule.

The show costars Neil Patrick Harris, yes--Doogie Howser, and his character is fantastic. For those of you that don't know who he is, he also hosted the Emmys last month, which received rave reviews.

Some of calling the show the Friends of this decade. A show about a group of friends, living in New York City and watching their lives unfold. Don't believe me? Check out this article:

http://www.tv.com/story/18467.html

The other addition to my Monday line-up is The Big Bang Theory, a show about two scientists and their adventures in the real-world. The show is intellectual funny, although more so making fun of the intellectuals than anything else. The show is on at 9:30 pm EST on CBS. For some reason, I feel old because I'm watching CBS, but I'll go with it. For a bit more info on the show, check out this link:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/05/arts/television/05bang.html

Trust me....give them a chance and you'll love Mondays as well!

My Favorite Message.....

2009-10-03T20:38:00.002-04:30

I normally don't do this, but as a teacher, I thought this was hilarious. Luckily most of the parents I've had are fantastic, but this was too good not to pass on to you. Enjoy!

Just click this link and you'll love it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pwghabw4N80

God bless

My Foam Finger.....

2009-09-26T08:13:00.002-04:30

I have to be honest, I love a good pep rally, especially at a small school where everyone is involved. My school down here has roughly 650 students from JK-12th grade, of which 212 are in the Upper School (high school). Homecoming is this week and since we don't have a football program, soccer and field hockey games serve for our HC celebration.

It is our tradition to have the entire school meet in our big gym for a pep rally the day of/before our HC games (which this year will be on Saturday, sometimes they're on Friday). The little kids get so excited for this day because they get to be out of uniform and this year they were allowed to wear blue wigs to the rally. One of my boys even came to school with a foam finger that said "LCS #1! It was fantastic.

So as we're heading over to the gym, the kids are getting so excited.....they're starting to talk, they're getting a little nervous (because we've been talking about being loud and supporting the team) and we get caught in a line outside the gym....which adds to the building of excitement.....we finally file in and the music is loud, the pep club was going nuts....cheering, waving their flags/signs......two students are dressed up as a titan and an amazon (our mascots). It was glorious.

And my kids had huge smiles on their faces. They loved it! They cheered as loud as they could, they yelled, clapped and made their teacher proud. Even when they asked grade by grade who could cheer the loudest, the 4th grade were the winners!!!!

A glorious afternoon it was and my favorite part was my one student, with his retro Collegiate t-shirt and his little foam finger.

God bless.

My Newly Earned Street Cred.....

2009-08-16T20:50:00.003-04:30

Greetings to my two faithful readers that still follow this thing....even after months and months of inactivity!

I played a game of pick-up footy for the first time in years yesterday and had a blast. I met my buddy Clint at Seneca park to kick a soccer ball a bit and we ended up playing a pick-up game with some guys that just graduated from high school. Too be honest, I was quite nervous about the 7 v 7 game, mostly because it had been a while since I played.

Luckily, I held my own for a while.....(although they made us be skins....so it was there fault that a hairy 28 year old was running around the pitch)....until 30 minutes into the game when I was exhausted. Obviously, my fitness isn't what it used to be.

After missing a terrible shot....I got a cross on the ground.....as it came to me, I used my left foot to pop the ball in air and then hit it with my right towards the goal. I hit the ball better than I thought and it blasted off the keeper and into the goal. Needless to say, I was pretty excited. All of a sudden, the young guys were yelling about how "dirty" that goal was (which, apparently, means it was a pretty good strike). After receiving a round of hi-fives....I started to get the ball a bit more.

Sadly, it was the only goal I scored, but I enjoyed my Saturday afternoon. Hopefully, more to come later.

God bless

For A Devoted Reader......

2009-05-19T15:25:00.003-04:30

To be honest, I realize the delay in my posts.....and again, to be honest, there has been one post which I have been neglecting to write. It's not that I didn't think the subject was worthy, because she is more than worthy of her own post....I suppose it's just that I haven't wanted to confront the subject (and that's being truthful).

This Winter we lost a grandmother, mother, wife, sister, aunt, reader (occasional poster) and friend. My aunt Lola Clatt passed away after a long battle with cancer, which had it's ups and downs. Sadly she had been struggling for the past few months and ultimately cancer claimed her life.

To put it simply: Lola was an amazing woman. She was caring, honest and always willing to lend a hand when needed. I'll always remember one of the first times I walked into the office she worked at in Indianola and she asked me if I'd seen her "brown ass" yet. I was a bit taken aback and surprised and then of course she showed me the picture of her new donkey (she had it framed on her desk).....this is one of my favorite memories.

I will also always remember her for her kindness. For two years she would pick me up after high school soccer practice in Indianola and then drive me the 20 minutes home to Lacona (passing her own house 10 minutes into the drive). She did this every Monday-Thursday for two years. Her only request was that I would come and mow her lawn....just once.

Now those of you that know me, know that I tend to procrastinate. I always said, "Sure, yeah, no problem. I'll be there!" And I wasn't. : ) I even tried to get my father to pay my debt for me, but he was paying off his own debt (she let him stay in the guest room when he would come visit and in exchange he would mow and help around the house).

Finally, about two years ago, I made good on my debt. I helped her and Butch bale hay one afternoon. To be honest, it was one of the hardest things I'd ever done. My arms felt like jello and I didn't think I'd be able to lift anything for a week.

I came back for the funeral during the winter and I'll be honest....it was cold (way too cold for me). However, it's not the cold that stood out to me, but instead, my uncle Butch (Lola's husband). Butch was the epitome of strength during that trip. Without a doubt, he had just lost one of the most precious people in his life and he was nothing but humble, gracious and accommodating. He welcomed folks into his home, shared stories, recounted Lola's last moments, all when it could have been much easier to just hole-oneself up and want to be alone. I couldn't believe the strength I saw in him during those days and it will be one of the memories that sticks with me through the years.

I'll be honest, I miss Lola already. Sure, we didn't talk daily, weekly, or even monthly, but I miss her comments on here (telling me to hurry up and post something or sharing her thoughts). I'll miss chatting with her at the family reunions (I actually got the call for my job here in Kentucky at her house on the 5th of July last year). She was always supportive. I hope that the next time I head back to Iowa, Butch won't mind if I stop by and chat for a bit. I also hope he'll let me help with the hay.

God Bless

My Week at the Zoo.....

2009-03-04T19:42:00.002-04:30

Sadly, it's been almost three weeks since my last post.

I'm getting terrible with this!!!

(be excited though, at least it's not four months!)

Anywho, last week my students and I went to the Louisville Zoo, which......was.....AWESOME!!!!

We had such a good time, studying different ecosystems and how animals and plants adapt to those environments. It was a solid week of science that allowed the students to really focus and learn about the world around them. We got to take some behind-the-scenes tours of the zoo and (even more exciting) the students got to pet a ton of animals! They were excited to see a shingle-back lizard, an armadillo, a hedgehog (my favorite!!), a tarantula, a salamander, a sand boa, a HUGE python (probably 16 ft long) and the ever popular box turtle and rabbit.

It was hilarious walking around the zoo with them because all they wanted to do was take pictures with their cameras, while the docents wanted us to keep up with them so they could continue their tour (a bit of a battle of wills really).

The best part: as a teacher, we had planned everything ahead of time, so all I had to do was wrangle students and check any behavior problems (which, sadly, I'm pretty good at).

The worst part: since we were there all day, the kitchen staff made sack lunches for us. I ate peanut butter and jelly sandwiches all week. I had never been tired of PB & J, but that finally happened. Luckily Chelle snuck out on Friday and grabbed me some Wendys!! : )

Well, I'll see if I can find some photos to post this weekend.

I hope things are going well, wherever you are.

Dios te bendiga

My Bench.....

2009-02-15T20:03:00.002-04:30

So, the week of Collecting is upon us! Wait.....you don't know what Collecting is, do you? Okay, quick recap:

Collecting is an annual event on the Collegiate schedule. It usually held on a Saturday night and a silent auction is held to raise money for the school. Anything from jewelry, trips and artwork (created by all the classes) is auctioned off. There is a nice dinner, alcohol and all this, for only $150 a ticket. (It's a very formal event)

Now before I go too far, I love Collecting. I think it's a good idea, the silent auction is a nice touch and you get the opportunity to bid for some amazing artwork by the kids. This story isn't so much about Collecting, but more so a story about our piece of artwork for Collecting: The Bench.

The Fourth Grade decided that each class would decorate a bench for Collecting this year, with each bench having a different ecosystem as its theme (in celebration of our Zoo Week, which is the last week in February). The other two classes took the Grasslands of Africa and the rainforests of South America and you know me: I like to be different and difficult. So I decided that my class would decorate our bench with the animals of the Arctic and Antarctica.

I know what you're thinking: 16 animals, no problem! However, I had to distribute the animals, and then have the kids paint their animal on the bench and have it be as close to realistic as possible. Again, silly, right? Sounds easy, right?

Wrong.

This bench was the bane of my classroom last week. We are finishing up six-paragraph essays on our animals and drawing/painting our creatures on the bench, which took a lot more time than it really should have. Luckily, through a ton of help from Chelle (my co-worker and an amazing artist in her own right), we managed to finish the bench on Friday....a mere 10 minutes before our Valentine's Day party (which was another headache by itself!).

I will try to get a picture of the bench on here for you to see, but know this. We've tried to put these animals on a small, two person bench: caribou, wolverine, polar bear, lemming, arctic fox, albatross, weddell seal, leopard seal, southern elephant seal, walrus, harp seal, narwhal, orca, blue whale, emperor penguin and adelie penguin, all on a tiny bench. (although, we did have a ton of fun with Elf jokes featuring the narwhal, "Hello Buddy!....Hi Mr. Narwhal!")

I'm just hoping our bench is respectable on Saturday (although I'll have to hear about it, because I'm probably not attending....unless someone buys me a ticket! : )

Dios te bendiga!

My Dad's Big Find

2009-02-06T17:55:00.004-04:30

Those of you that have had the pleasure to meet and know my father, know that Larry loves to hike. Those of you that have known me for a while, will remember me telling you about all the fun-filled times my father and I had as he dragged me throughout the wonderful state of New Mexico for the two years that we lived there.

Now, hiking with Pops is an adventure more than anything else. Dad has this tendency to meander about the trail, veering off to check out even the slightest oddity on the trail. Other that killing rattlesnakes (that are always a threat, even though they're 25 feet off the trail!), this is one of the things that he loves and one of the things that I love about him. He loves to explore.

Well, all of Pops hikes and detours finally payed off. A few weeks ago Pops was leading a hike somewhere near Socorro, NM. As he was wondering around the desert, he happened to see a cave just a touch off the trail, so in true Pops fashion, he and the others ventured off the trail to see what they could find. And this is what they saw:

The basket

Now obviously this basket didn't look like this when they saw it, but they found this 1,500 year old basket in the cave! How awesome is that??? They took some pics, left it and then after showing it to his archaeologist in Albuquerque, Pops took them down there the next day. They dug it up and took it back to the big city to check it out. Rumors are that it is almost museum quality and one of the few baskets of its kind found in the area.

Dad and the basket after they found it.

Congrats Pops! I hope that basket makes it into a museum because I would love to wonder through it one day and see your name on the card beside it!

Dios te bendiga

My glorious Saturday

2009-02-06T17:54:00.001-04:30

Good news!!

After working out last Saturday with my buddy Richard....I returned to my house and....

MY POWER WAS BACK!!!

Glorious day! I was so excited. No longer was I Dupree!

My Week Off....

2009-01-31T15:30:00.006-04:30

So it continues!!

I thought that Tuesday was the worst of it....no school, lots of ice and a touch of snow. I was really looking forward to the rest of the week....and then Wednesday came.

We received 3-6 inches of snow on Wednesday, which, on top of the snow we already had and the ice.....meant that school was canceled on Wednesday. This extra snow also did a number on the trees and powerlines down here, which were already burdened.

This was taken outside of Target on Wednesday morning

Then I heard that fateful sound on Wednesday morning: "BOOM" I had woken to an apartment with power, which I had thought a blessing (in the night, before going to bed I made a bag of clothes to "getaway" in case something happened in the night. Tuesday night I had seen a transformer explode and watched as the powerline was on fire on the ground in the snow: awesome). That fateful boom was it for me, the power, went out.

This was the view outside my window on Wednesday morning.

The clean-up has been ongoing for the past 3 days. We received a bit more snow on Thursday, but nothing substantial. Roughly 200,000 were without power and they actually said that this was worse than the wind storm we had back in September (My Buddy Ike). The trees and powerlines just couldn't take it and many of them cracked, snapped and came tumbling down.

To be honest, the city wasn't prepared for it and how could they be? Rarely do they have significant snowfall during a winter and the sun/melting/freezing cycle hasn't helped us too much. Luckily it's supposed to warm up today and it is going to be in the mid to upper 40s tomorrow, which should help significantly.

I was lucky enough that my buddy Richard had power, so I stayed with him and his wife Sarah through all the fun. It was nice having a warm place to stay, so hopefully I didn't wear out my welcome!

Here's to hoping it's warm, wherever you are.....

God Bless

My buddy's baby

2009-01-27T18:40:00.002-04:30

I would like to announce to all my faithful readers, my buddy had a baby!!!

Big congrats go out to Brad Money and Tiff on the birth of Eveah Ann Money.

Thoughts and Prayers are with the new family. God Bless!!

My Southern Snow Day

2009-01-27T18:35:00.002-04:30

You're not going to believe it.....seriously, you're not.

Today....we had a snow day!

It's been crazy. Rumors are that it snowed between 2-4 inches last night and then today we've had sleet mixed with rain all day. I couldn't believe what I heard on TV when they said we could, could get another 3 inches! Could that mean a snow day tomorrow?? : )

The problem with snow and bad weather in general down here, is that Kentuckians have NO IDEA how to drive in this type of weather. First, because they never drive in it and secondly, because all bad weather causes them problems. It drives me nuts to be folllowing someone at 5 mph down the road when the road isn't that bad. Earlier today I was following this Pontiac Vibe that was seriously going 5 mph!!! I was so frustrated. I nearly honked the horn, but then remembered that they don't get weather like this often....so I had to just deal with it while the driver figured it out. (although it was awesome to fly past everyone on the main road-in the lane that wasn't cleared yet. Hilarious!

God bless!

My New Surrounds (a blessing)

2009-01-24T15:11:00.003-04:30

This post is more of a thanks as opposed to a "pity me" type of post, so please, no notes tell me you're sorry....thanks!

Greetings to the faithful few that continue to check this lovely thing, even though I haven't posted in roughly four months (bad, I know).

I know it's been a while and for that I apologize again. I know I need to get better about this and I suppose I can apologize all day long, but actions speak louder than words.

I normally keep my personal life out of this lovely little place, but today I'm going to include it. I had recently been dating a nice girl, but unfortunately that has ended and I'll be honest, I was/am a bit hurt and frustrated about the whole thing. Now I'm not here to talk about that or to put her down, but instead I'd like to focus on what has happened in the past four days, for it has truly been a blessing.

I had been slightly frustrated by everything for about a week and I received a call from my buddy Fitzy on Monday night. It was one of those calls that only a true friend could make, that was difficult at the time, but necessary. Shaun basically called me out. He asked me my feelings, what I thought about everything and then asked me what I was doing still in the relationship. Why was I continuing to go through with it, or as he put it: "If she was Venezuelan, would you still be around?" --Good point

That night I also spoke with Dustin, my long-time friend from high school. He spoke along the same lines as I echoed my frustrations.

When everything went down Wednesday night, I was a bit upset, although I saw it coming through interactions and time spent together during the past week. After it happened, I received an amazing call from my buddy Brad, a true brother of mine and he really picked me up and dusted me off a bit.....telling me not to worry, to just live my life and the woman will come into it....and that I shouldn't spend any more time worrying or thinking about it.

I was irritable at school on Thursday as well, but my teammates, as they always do, had my back. Chelle was her amazing self (filled with anger and some profanity about how she felt towards "that stripper" as she called her....and no mom, she wasn't a stripper). Beth was comforting and reminded me how much that girl didn't deserve me. I have to admit, they really know how to make someone feel good about themselves.

Thursday night I was with my buddy Richard and his wife, who echoed the same thoughts. She wasn't worth it.....live your life and the one will walk into it....just watch.

Last night was the same story....I was with Richard again, as well as my friend Mike and his wife Jessie. Jessie said the same, the girl was selfish, you're awesome, don't worry about it and just live for a bit....it'll come.

I guess there are two points at me telling you this: The first is that Louisville was the right place for me to come. In a matter of months I made some amazing friends that have my back and are extremely supportive. I can't tell you what it meant to me to hear them say those things and to comfort me in a difficult time.

Second: Maybe they're right. I've had four separate people, independent of one another, tell me the same thing: Dust yourself off, live your life and she'll come. Don't worry about, don't push it and when it comes, it will be easy and a good fit.

So that's where I'm at now. I watched some footy today, I'm going to a bball game tonight and I'm going to try and live my life.....not pushing it....but not being totally oblivious to it either. ; )

I hope things are great where you are,

God bless

My buddy Ike.....

2008-09-18T10:43:00.002-04:30

I'm sure at this point, all of us remember that wonderful little Hurricane named Ike that hit Texas last weekend. Well, luckily the remnants of him came through up and through Louisville on Sunday, which was.....well, interesting. I went for a run that morning and noticed that it was a bit more windy than normal.....and then it picked up more.

It was kind of crazy at one point: I saw clouds moving both East and North at the same time. I know, some of you will say, "Yeah, that's called Northeast." But it wasn't!! Some clouds were actually heading straight East, while others were headed due North. It was odd, to say the least.

As the wind picked up throughout the day and the dark clouds came, lots and lots of trees were came crashing down. Power-lines quickly followed and the next thing we knew, 300,000 people were without power. I can remember going out to see if anything was open and three of the major streets around me were all cut off at some point either due to a fallen tree (over a four-lane road!!) or due to power-lines down. A house near me had it's patio crushed by a huge tree in their front yard and sadly, just two houses down, another house had a giant tree simply resting on the roof. Ironic.

Well, it's now four days later and I am still without power. I am still without power and we haven't had school all week! We'll see if that changes tomorrow. Even though we don't have power, we still have a literacy conference today at 1 pm....in the dark. Awesome.

I hope you're enjoying the electricity wherever you are.....

God Bless

My New Home.....

2008-08-31T22:36:00.002-04:30

And so, a month later, I finally blog about this new place. I have to admit, I'm really starting to enjoy Louisville! I've officially been here around four weeks and it's really starting to grow on me. There are some beautiful parks and two of them are near-by, giving me some nice places to run. I also like Bardstown Road, which has a bunch of restaurants. I've even found a pub to watch footy matches at on the weekends!!

To add to this fun, I've started school and we just made it through our first full week, which was a bit crazy, but luckily it's over (and followed by a three day weekend: awesome)....but I will post more on that later.

I'm also a soccer coach. But again, more on that later.

Today I actually volunteered at the Ironman Triathlon here in The Ville. It was a lot of fun!! Roughly 2,500 people decided to try and swim 2.4 miles, bicycle 112 miles and then run 26 miles. While this doesn't exactly sound like the way I'd like to spend a Sunday, I have to admit I was pretty impressed with some of the folks I saw. There were people of all shapes, sizes and age ranges (I saw from 18 to 63).

My job consisted of standing in front of a bump on the course (near where they get off their bikes and then change into running clothes before running the marathon). For 3.5 hrs I said, "Be careful! Watch the bump! Watch the lip!!! and just for fun, when a Spanish speaking participant rode by, "Cuidado!". They'd smile.

There was also a dude with an Iowa Hawkeye jersey on and I cheered for him as he went by. My friend said that he smiled and actually looked back (were we going to have a conversation during the race? I mean, I'm all for chatting about the Hawks, but he still has a ways to go).

Anywho, needless to say, I'm enjoying The Ville.

God Bless

My New Job.....

2008-07-23T22:36:00.002-04:30

Well, I know it's been a while and I haven't told you yet (here at least), but it's official....I finally got a job!!!

Okay, truth be told, I've had the job for two weeks now, but I wanted to finish the Road Trip series before posting it (and I was struggling to finish that.....so that's the delay).

I will be teaching 4th Grade at The Louisville Collegiate School in Louisville, KY. Yes, that's right, I'm staying in the States! I know, I know, some folks are going to be really excited (mom, dad) and others might be a bit disappointed (you know who you are), but I'm excited about this opportunity.

The school is a beautiful little private school in a nice neighborhood of Louisville, Kentucky. There are only three classes in the entire Fourth Grade, each having around 15 students. I will be responsible for teaching Math, Language Arts and Social Studies, which is an exciting prospect (considering Science is my weakest area).

School starts on August 21 and I have so much to do!! If you'd like to check out my new school, the website is now a link on the side. Check it out!

Dios te bendiga

My Springs of Colorado (Final installment of My Road Trip 2008)

2008-07-18T23:54:00.006-04:30

After leaving Albuquerque, I ventured up to Colorado Springs to hang out with my buddy Shaun, who I worked with in Venezuela. He had been hired to work at a new school up there and it was close to his family, so he pounced on the opportunity. Shaun was hanging out while his wife Susan was visiting her family and friends in California and Nevada, so I went to keep him company for a few days.

Dick's Sporting Goods Park, home of the Rapids

I arrived on a Saturday and was really, really excited because Shaun and I were going up to Denver to catch a MLS game, the Rapids vs Houston. I absolutely loved the stadium and the surrounding area was really nice, however our game ended in the infamous 0-0 draw that all soccer fans dread.

Coors Park

Then on Sunday I asked if we could go catch a Rockies game. They were in town playing the Mets and I know that Shaun loves baseball, so I thought it would be fun. It had been years since I attended a MLB game (I think the last one was an Oakland A's game that my dad and I went to 14 years ago), but I was excited. Again, the stadium was stunning and we had great seats, but sadly, the Rockies lost to the Mets and I was officially banned from Rockies games for the rest of my life.

It was then Monday and Shaun asked me what I wanted to do. I had been seeing the stunning views of the Rockies for the past couple of days, so I asked Shaun if he would take me up to the top of Pike's Peak. Shaun obliged and he drove me up to the top of the mountain, passing through many beautiful scenes and some pretty sweet views.

Myself atop Pike's Peak

Sadly though, on Tuesday I decided to head back to Iowa. I had been away for a while and still needed to find a job, so I ventured back. I took the long route, driving through eastern Colorado (kind of flat, not really exciting), Kansas (which was much more beautiful than I was expecting) and Missouri, where I hit a nasty thunderstorm (I honestly couldn't see 5 feet in front of me, but I still didn't pull over!) and finally into Iowa.

Overall, I had an amazing road trip! I went through 11 different states and was able to visit some places for the first time. I hope that I have a chance to do something similar next year, but time I need a co-pilot and I need to venture off to another part of the States!

My Week with Pops (Part IV of My Road Trip 2008)

2008-07-07T11:47:00.009-04:30

So I left Austin very early on a Friday morning and started the 12+ hour journey to Albuquerque to spend some time with my dad. I wasn't sure if I was actually going to make it in one day, but I left around 6 am and crossed my fingers.

Now I'm notorious for making many, many stops when driving, especially if I have a beverage with me. Luckily though, I made it four hours without stopping! I almost shocked myself really.

Secondly, I don't know how many of you have ever driven through Western Texas before, but if you have a long way to go, I don't recommend it. At first, it was great, different scenery, desert everywhere, rolling hills and some plateaus. But after about two hours......it gets really, really, really painful and boring. It got sooooo bad, that I actually changed my route! I decided to come up through Carlsbad, Artesia and Roswell, NM....places that my dad and I went to many, many times as a kid. For instance, once Dad and I spent an entire day (maybe two, I'm not sure, I think I've blocked out part of this memory) in SW New Mexico, searching for the grave of Billy the Kid....which is the source of a legend in itself.

Luckily (and probably with a little divine intervention) I made it to Albuquerque in a day. Awesome. The next day, dad decided he wanted to try and kill me, so we went on a "short" hike up the mountain to search for a plane that crashed 50 years ago. We had tried this same trip 15 years ago, with no luck (I think the end result was me crying in a fit because I was standing and thought I was lost in the woods....again, another memory I've blocked out). He said that he had been there at least 3 or 4 times since that experience.....and that he now knew the way.

Well.....three hours later, many lost calories and lots of rest breaks, we finally found the plane. Score!!!

Sunday was Father's Day and I told Dad that I would go anywhere he wanted....anywhere. Just think of a place he wanted to go and check out and we would do it. At first, we were heading to Taos to check out a museum, but then, he changed his mind and went into classic Larry & Bill mode:

"Bill, have you ever heard of the VLA?"

my response: "The VL-what?"

"It's a bunch of radio-telescopes out in the desert on the Plains of San Jacinto west of Socorro. I've wanted to go for a while, but no one is willing to go."

That said--I'm in. We ventured to the VLA or Very Large Array, located about 40 miles west of Socorro, NM. It was about a two hour drive south of Albuquerque and into the desert. And again, it will go down in the lore that is the Larry & Bill New Mexico trips. Right up there with the search for the tomb, The Lava Tubes, Climbing Sandias, Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde and my personal favorite, the giant rock that lots of people wrote there names on....including Spaniards when they came up from Mexico (I think it's called El Morro, but I'm not sure).

The VLA wasn't too bad. It was a bunch of giant radio telescopes, which look like satellite dishes) in the middle of the desert. They are shaped in a "Y" so that they can provide a better resolution. Unfortunately, we weren't able to go inside one of the telescopes, but we did get to stand pretty close. Good times.

The VLA

After that, we headed back to Albuquerque. To be honest, it was a lot of fun. We spent the rest of the week hanging out, watching movies and playing golf. It was a ton of fun and I really enjoyed it. It was also great to go back to the city that I used to live in and to relive some of the fond memories I have of there.

However, by Saturday it was time to run, with Colorado Springs the next destination.

Dios te bendiga

My Austin City Limits (Part III of My Road Trip 2008)

2008-06-19T14:57:00.005-04:30

As I awoke in my sweet, sweet bed at the Tex Inn, I knew that I had plenty of time on my hands. My friend didn't get off work until 5:00 pm and it would only take me six hours to drive to Austin, so I took my time and cruised through eastern Texas and into the southern part of the giant.

One thing that shocked/disappointed me: it seems as though Dallas and the areas around it are just one giant strip mall. Am I alone in this thought? Am I alone in being disappointed by this? It's almost as if Dallas has opted not to clean-up/develop the inner parts of the city, but instead have allowed it to spread uncontrollably across the landscape, ruining what could be some nice scenery?

Well, luckily I escaped Dallas and made my way to Austin. On the way, I passed probably the town with the worst reputation in the state, if not the US in general: Waco, TX. Is there a town with a worse reputation? I mean, think about it: If you're a random cult or a little odd in the religious department, what better location than Waco!

Okay, enough Texas bashing (for now). I got to Austin with plenty of time and then walked around downtown a bit. I really enjoyed being in the city and being able to wander a bit. We had dinner that night and then walked around a bit.

Me and a sweet statue

The next night we went kayaking on the river with some International students, which was a lot of fun. The last time I was kayaking was in Egypt, so I enjoyed being out on the water again. We saw some sweet turtles and were yelled at by some serious crew teams (rowers). One woman even screamed, "You just lost me 40 seconds!!!" Hilarious.

The International crew

On Thursday night, we had a sweet game of footy with the Internationals. Now if I've every spoken to you about footy with Internationals before, you'll know where I'm going. Unfortunately, everyone wants to be a forward or to try and score goals, which can be very, very frustrating. That leaves myself and anyone else I can convince to play defense, which drives me nuts (because it turns out to be four of them vs. two of us....every time!).

Friday was to be my last day. I got up early and began my 13.5 hour trek to Albuquerque. A long, long road ahead.

Good-bye to the Capital of Texas.

My Journey through the South (Part II of My Road Trip 2008)

2008-06-15T18:31:00.002-04:30

I got up very early after the wedding, had some breakfast with friends and then made my way to Lexington, KY to hang out with my buddy Mike and his wife Lianne for a day. Unfortunately, they had some plans that day, but luckily I was able to tag along to the BBQ. I was exhausted, but I had a good time at the party and enjoyed spending some time with them.

The next day I rolled out of bed and drove to Louisville, where I met a new friend for lunch. I enjoyed a tasty lunch at Panera, was given a couple of sweet CDs and then began my journey south to Texas. Now I knew that I wouldn’t get to Austin in one day, but I wanted to get as far as I could.

As with any road trip, loud music and windows down are a must. I cruised through the rest of Kentucky and then flew through Tennessee as well. I loved driving through these states! The trees and the rolling hills were absolutely beautiful and it would have been nice to be able to go to a park and enjoy some of the gorgeous scenery. But alas…..I had driving to do.

All was going well…..until I hit Arkansas. Now this was the first time I had been to Arkansas and to be honest, it will probably be my last! After cruising through the hills/forest of Tennessee….I crossed the bridge in Memphis and in front of me was nothing but flat farmland. I honestly thought I was going to fall asleep due to sheer boredom…..but luckily I stayed awake.

And then…..I hit Little Rock…..which is when the rain came. I could see the storm clouds building on the horizon and I knew something was up. I thought I had moved past the worst…..but it just kept raining and raining and raining. Finally, when I thought that it was about to stop….it rained some more! For the next four hours it rained on me and at times I couldn’t see anything more than the lines on the road and the tail lights in front of me.

When I started the day, I wanted to make it to Texarkana, TX by the end of the day and luckily, around 9 pm, I made it to Texarkana. However, when I made it there, due to the pounding rain and apparently the college orientation day, all the hotels were full…even the Super 8 and Motel 6! So I called my friend Andrea and I continued on. As we were chatting, I keep driving and driving and after 10 minutes, made it to New Boston, TX and I stopped at the lovely Big Tex Inn, which was just as amazing as it sounds (including a hobbit-like shower-where the shower head hit me in the chest). Good times.

My Buddy's Kentucky Wedding (Part I from My Road Trip 2008)

2008-06-14T23:34:00.010-04:30

I arrived back in the States almost two weeks ago…..and I have yet to really post anything on here. Well, now that’s about to change with a lot of posts…..all in a span of a couple of days. Currently I am on my Road Trip for 2008….which, to be honest, is a really, really long one! Here goes:

Last Friday (June 6th), I took off very early in the morning to head for Louisville, KY for my buddy Richard’s wedding. Richard and I worked together at Blank Park Zoo and we have been friends since high school. He and his amazing wife, Sarah got married last Saturday (June 7th) at a beautiful Methodist Church in Louisville, where they live.

The service was great and it was really nice in the church. The touching moment came during the vows….as Richard was saying his vows, he had to take a moment to compose himself, as he was about to cry. To be honest, that was one of the more touching things I had ever seen at a wedding and it was one of those moments where you can just tell how much they care about each other.

After the wedding, the scene shifted from the church to the official Kentucky Derby Museum, which was pretty sweet. We got to learn about the Derby and then we were seated in the room where they show a short movie and our tables were named after previous Triple Crown winners, which was a sweet touch.

Dustin and I racing horses at the Museum

As we looked around our table, Lianne & Mike Farley, Sara and Dustin Miller, Brad’s fiancée Tiffany and myself were all seated at the same table and there were four vacant seats. After some discussion, we were wondering who on Earth Richard would set next to us, knowing that we were going to be a bit wild (we hoped Brad was going to sit with us, but he was the Best Man, so we weren’t sure).

Sara, Lianne and Mike

Then, after we had some snacks, the wedding party arrived! After a nice intro, we then got to see who was going to sit near us…..Brad and then Richard and Sarah joined us as well! To be honest, we felt pretty special to be sitting with the Bride and Groom.

After some incredible food, we had the usual wedding fun, the bouquet toss and the garter throw. Then….the dancing began. I’m not going to lie, things got crazy. Eventually we were all out there, dancing and having a good time. At one point Dustin was dancing to Thriller, then my leg was used as a guitar, Brad was dancing with his suspenders……I can’t relay all the fun that we had (and some things happened that can’t be spoken of).

Preparing for the "garter toss"

Dustin and Brad are dancing, I'm not quite sure what I'm doing

It had been a long, long time since I’ve had that much fun and it was great to be back with all the guys. It was also a great start to Road Trip 2008! I also made some new friends, one of which I met for lunch on Monday on Day 1 of my drive to Austin, but that’s another story all together…..

Dios les bendiga

Uh-oh.....

oh….by the way….yes, I caught the garter—but I was set up! All the other “single” guys were about 5 years younger than me and then there was Richard’s brother Ryan, who is two years younger. As Richard shot the garter, all the young guys in front of me ducked and low & behold, it landed right in my hand. Thanks Richard.

My slacking ways.....

2008-06-12T16:58:00.000-04:30

Wow...I am such a slacker....again!

So the good news: I'm back in the States.

The bad news: I still don't have a job. : (

Awesome

I've been applying at Districts all over, so hopefully something will come about. At this point, it looks as though I'm going to be in the States next year, but don't worry, we'll still continue the blog....US style.

Currently I'm on my Road Trip, 2008 style. When I have a free moment (and find a coffee shop with Internet) I'll post on the trip so far......

Dios les bendiga!

My Day of Days......

2008-05-21T11:31:00.004-04:30

ah May 21st.....this truly is one of my favorite days of the year!

I'm in a great mood and very excited for today. Very, Very early this morning, the State of Origin Series kicked off in Sydney with the cursed Blues defeating Queensland 18-4. Luckily there will be two more matches, so hopefully Queensland will pull it out.

Then.....there's the big one:

Live from Moscow, the biggest event of the football season kicks off this afternoon (roughly 2:30 pm EST--on ESPN in the States!).

If the European Championships weren't this summer, this would easily be the biggest sporting even in Europe this year. EASILY. Hundreds of millions of people watch this game and not because of the commercials (which are very few), but because they either actually like the teams or because it is to crown the champion of club football in Europe.

I'm psyched for the game, although sadly I have to give a presentation on the Inkas at kickoff (but I'll have it on the bottom of my screen--thanks to Soccernet.com).

To be honest, I highly suggest you check it out....even if you're not a footy fan. The atmosphere should be amazing and to even hear the fans singing and chanting at the stadium should be a site to see. If you want to follow it at work (like me!) you can do one of two things:

http://www.soccernet.com/ They will have a little match center that will allow you to track the game as it goes.

http://www.espn.go.com/ ESPN is showing the game live on ESPN360-where they often show different games throughout the year and they showed a lot of World Cup games here back in 2006 and it worked very well.

As for my prediction, I'm a Red Devil, so I'm looking for Man U to win, 2-1. Chelsea is a good team though, so don't be surprised if they win it.

Before I go, I thought I'd share one of my favorite pictures from last year's final when AC Milan defeated Liverpool:

This is Kaka, the 2007 World Player of the Year and the stud for AC Milan. After his team won the title last year, he took off his shirt, dropped to his knees and gave thanks.

My Goal and my Birthday wishes.....

2008-05-20T10:16:00.003-04:30

I just looked at my blog count and realized that I only posted 64 times last year! What a slacker!!! (especially in comparison to the 111 times the previous year)......

So my goal is to beat 111 this year, no matter where I end up!

and while I'm at it:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!

Hope you have a good day! Love ya and miss ya and I'll see you two weeks from today!!

(on a side note...if today isn't the day....I'm going to be a bit embarrassed)

My Open Doors......

2008-05-15T11:17:00.002-04:30

Again, it's been a while and again, I thank you for your patience.

Things have been moving along rapidly here and now I find myself with less than three weeks till I return to the place I call home. I must admit that I'm very excited to get back to the States, to see some friends, take another road trip, go to a wedding and maybe even bale some hay.

But....onto the latest happenings.....We had an elementary softball tournament here at EA. It was a hot, hot day (my peeling scalp can attest). I was on-hand to help out, especially since the tournament was here. Suddenly, I was asked if I would be a base coach for the EA team.

Now for those of you that don't know, I'm a soccer guy. I never played baseball and I don't entirely understand the game (Dustin and Brad can back me up on that). I informed our coaching staff that adding me to the staff may in fact harm our chances of winning....but I was told to suck it up and go stand at 3rd Base (which I did).

Ultimately, my lack of knowledge didn't harm us, as the EA squad won the tournament by going 3-0 against the competition. It was our first championship of the year and the kids were very excited. They defeated their opponents by scores of 18-3, 13-1 and 21-2 (yeah, it wasn't even close). So congrats to the EA team on that.

Other than that, we have really been starting to bring the year to an end and with that, I've continued to search for a new job. After sending out what seemed like a ton of resumes (and getting no love in response.....kind of like last year!) the doors are finally starting to open. I actually have a couple of phone interviews in the next couple of days and hopefully something will come out of one.

I'll keep you up-to-date.

As for the location of the schools.....I'm going to keep that secret for the time being. I will say that they are in the Northern & Western Hemishperes, which is definitely a plus.....and people speak English in both of the countries/territories/provinces.

Well, that's all I've got for now. This weekend I have a wedding rehearsal and Mr. Fitz and I are going to try and go to the Pirate Bar (how could we not?!?!?!).

Dios te bendiga

Mis Heroes de Hugo......

2008-05-01T12:44:00.005-04:30

A few weeks back we had an amazing field trip for the elementary students....bowling!!!

I know, what do you learn through bowling? How about a short field trip for P.E.? Does that justify it?

No?

Okay...um....what about a Math lesson? We were taking a field trip to work on our Math facts and different types of Math problems. Does that justify it?

No again? Man...tough crowd today.....

Okay, fine. We've worked hard all year and we wanted a break. There, I said it.

So we journeyed up to Ten Pin, a nice bowling alley up in Puerto La Cruz for an afternoon of bowling....Venezuelan style. In signing up, every class had to pick a color for their shirts and I decided to give us a team name, Hugo's Heroes. Our colors: RED (the color of Chavez's supporters).

So los Heroes de Hugo took the lane. It was my 5th graders and myself, bowling for a good time. Actually, the entire K-5 school went and we all really enjoyed ourselves. Sadly, even with bumpers....Isaac was the winner (oddly enough it was his birthday too).

Our winner

My 16 Days later......

2008-04-17T21:44:00.002-04:30

Well, it's been about 16 days since my last post and I've been a bit busy, although it's no excuse to share with you the good times of 'Zuela.

The past two weeks have been pretty busy down here. After the secondary soccer tournament (which I'm still refusing to admit happened, in fact, I'm just going to pretend I never went to Maturin....ever) I got back into the swing at school. For the first time since January, I don't have ANY after school activities!

I've also been searching for jobs over the past few weeks. I've applied in Poland, Italy, Ireland, four schools in the DC area and Pierre, SD....but sadly, no love yet. Hopefully something will come some time soon. It's a funny situation, but everyone says they want a teacher with experience and teaching abroad is always a bonus....but when the time & that option comes along....they aren't willing to take a chance. It's kind of ironic really....

But on to other things.....

I just got to do/experience something new today: a purchase order for my school for next year....and to be honest...it was weird. I thought it odd to be buying the things that I actually thought my school needed. So with the $$ I was allotted, I went for new 5th grade Science textbooks and 6th & 7th grade Social Studies textbooks (which we didn't actually have). I thought it was interesting to have a certain amount of $$ at my disposal and to actually be thought of as responsible enough to take care of these things......

....whoa.....I'm getting old!

As for other things. We have our last break quickly approaching and to be honest, I have no idea what to do. I really don't. I just want to get back to the States, honestly...but I have a little longer to wait for that.

Tomorrow should be a fun day and I'll try to take and share some pics with you...we're having a Bowling Field Trip (to those of you that snicker, it could be justified to work on PE-fine motor skills and some Math skills as well). Good times ahead.

AND before I go...I just discovered something....well....LEGENDARY on itunes. How I Met Your Mother, one of my favorite shows, is now on there. Suit up! (and watch)

-Dios te bendiga

My Dad's Bday......

2008-04-01T12:02:00.004-04:30

Happy Birthday Pops!!!!

I'm so glad that you came down to visit. I hope you have an amazing day and I'll try and call you tonight!!

Love ya

My Machu......PI-CHU! (Bless you)

2008-03-31T19:05:00.011-04:30

So I know that I've been back for a week and have yet to actually post anything from the trip, especially photos, so here you are....some fun pics from a beautiful country: a view of the scenic countryside

Dad and I in the mountains

One of the cathedrals in central Cuzco
The walls at Sacsayhuaman
The Fitzpatricks and myself at Ollataytambo

The classic view of Machu Pichu

Dad and I at Machu Pichu

(big thanks to Fitz for taking this one for me)

As I've said before, Peru is amazing. If you ever get the opportunity, take the chance and go! It's incredible!

Dios te bendiga!!

My Viktor Navorski......

2008-03-23T10:07:00.003-04:30

Well, well, well, we meet again! This familiar feeling that I´ve had before.....not so long ago in fact!

To tell you the truth, over the last 24 hours I felt a lot like Viktor Navorski, the character played by Tom Hanks in the movie, The Terminal. I suppose I´m a bit better off though....I have money....and I had a hotel room....food.....but the feeling of being stuck....in the airport, that´s what I have.

The back story is quite funny really.

As Dad and I were attempting to get onto our flight to Caracas yesterday, we were told we had to have our Yellow Fever Vaccination cards out and ready to be checked before we could board the plan (or else we´d be stuck in the airport in Caracas). Well.....I forgot mine and was slightly expecting this might happen (Susan had mentioned it to me earlier in the trip), but I looked at dad and he said...."What? Yellow Fever? What´s that?"

uh-oh.

So we were pulled off the plane and told we had to stay in Lima. To be honest, this wasn´t a bad thing, as I would much, much rather be stuck here in Peru, as opposed to being stuck at the airport in Caracas.

Well, after an hour of confusion and attempts to book 5 of us on the same flight the next day, we were taken to the Health Center here at the hospital and we each had to pay $22 for the shot and the little card that comes with it (which is now a sweet souvenir). Then I went to see if I could get dad to the States without coming through Venezuela. He didn´t like his 36 hours there anyways and I figured it would be a heck of a lot easier to do this from here (where due to the high tourism, folks actually speak English), as opposed to Caracas. I had to run back and forth from the nice hotel they set us up in because I had to get some info from my gmail account (all of dad´s paperwork was in his bag....which was heading to Caracas).

Well....with the help of some prayers from a friend and I think maybe God himself stepped in to help us out....because the friendly folks at LAN were able to rerout dad through Houston on Continental Airlines and they even redid his connecting flight to Albuquerque for him. In all, he will end up being home 12 hours earlier than planned (although with no bag). To be honest....I was so happy that this was resolved that I almost wept. It was a stressful situation and I was worried that he would have to go to Caracas and then wait a day.....which neither one of us really wanted to do. It made everything soooo much easier.

For me....I´m on the same flight, just the next day. Then after explaining my poor Spanish abilities, I found the number for Aserca Airlines in Caracas and the folks at LAN called them for me, explained my situation and helped me rebook my flight for tonight at 9:30 pm. SCORE!!!

So now I sit here.....at the Jorge Chavez International Airport in Lima, Peru (btw...fun fact....apparently Jorge was the first to fly over the Andes, at least that´s what one of the LAN folks told me).

My friends Shaun & Susan (who remembered their Yellow Fever Cards) helped us out tremendously by grabbing our bags in Caracas and putting them with the LAN lost baggage folks in Caracas. Hopefully they haven´t been broken into over night and will be waiting for me today. I´m hoping to be able to send my dad´s bag to Albuquerque, but if not I´ll try to ship it from Anaco (my fingers are crossed).

I guess one of the lessons that I´ve learned and picked up through this is that patience gets you through a situation. I tried not to get upset with the LAN folks (they were just doing their jobs and it was my fault for not having the card). Thanks to that, I think they were more ready to help me out, just by keeping cool and keeping a smile on my face (or at least trying too).

Another lesson is how...even through the most stressful situations....God provides. He gets you through it and takes care of you...even when you can´t see what´s coming around the bend in the road.

This whole thing worked out soooo much better than I could have imagined. Dad is in the States, I got to spend another day in Peru (at a sweet hotel mind you) and I get to just sit and relax for a few more hours, before hitting the hustle and stress of Venezuela.

On a side note.....I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Easter and if you read this today or celebrate today....just remember that this day isn´t about little white rabbits dropping eggs for everyone. Although I suppose it is about one Man, giving everyone the greatest gift we could ever ask for.

-Dios te bendiga

My Ollantaytambo.....

2008-03-19T20:52:00.002-04:30

Well, well, I didn´t think it would happen....then bam! I found a decent Internet connection in the lovely little village of Ollantaytambo, Peru. It´s the site of an Inka temple, which is pretty stinkin´cool and I´ll try to post some pics when I get back to VZ....assuming my Internet is working. Odd side note....Shaun and I were talking yesterday and isn´t it weird that they can get a better Internet connection in the middle of no where, Peru (in the Andes Mountains of all places) and yet in Anaco, we´ve got nothing. Weird.

Well, we´ve been in Peru for three days now and I must say...I´m loving it! The people are friendly, the food is great (choices....actual choices!!!) and the views are simply stunning. We went rafting today and it was amazing to just look up for a minute and really take in what was surrounding us. Then on our 2 hour taxi ride back to Ollantaytambo, I was napping and I just suddenly woke up to this amazing view of the mountains. The sun was hitting it just right to alight the base and then the top was covered in dark clouds....it was such an amazing contrast and words don´t really do it justice. Neither would a picture, if I took one. I just looked up, thanked God for the view and stared at it until we were off the mountain. Simply stunning.

Things have gone great so far and we´re really having a lot of fun. We saw some pretty cool ruins the first two days, although one of our tour guides was terrible. He spent three hours telling us about how the walls were made/shaped/formed. I mean, after a short explanation, I´m good, but to continually talk about it.....and talk about it....and talk about it. AHHHH!!!! It reminded me of when I worked at the Wildlife Camps one summer and I would take kids on a walk through the woods, attempting to point out mushrooms and insects along the way.....they would ask me a question about something and I would reply.....um.....well I can tell you about this thing here instead, although it has nothing to do with your original question. The wall was his fallback.

Tomorrow though is the big day...Machu Pichu. God willing, we´ll be taking a train up to Aqua Caliente (yes...the town is named "Hot Water", only because there are hot springs nearby) and then we´ll head to Machu Pichu. I´m pretty psyched, as this is one of the places on my list of things to see (maybe I´ll share the list on a later post).

To be honest, this trip has been such a blessing. I haven´t seen my dad since August, so it´s a blast reconnecting with him....even though his Spanish is terrible!!! It´s also been fun to see all these amazing landscapes the God created here. It´s simply stunning to see these high plateaus amongst the stunning mountain back-drops. Hopefully some of the pics I bring back can do it even a bit of justice.

Well....the cafe is closing and the dude behind the counter is staring at me.....so I better run. I´ll see if I can find a café again before we head back to VZ on Saturday.

Dios te benidga!!!

My Whoa! Moment.....

2008-03-15T11:08:00.002-04:30

I only have a whopping 5 minutes of time left at this Internet cafe, so this one will be quick. Sorry for the delay in posting, our Internet at school has been sporadic at best and that mixed with our water problems is making the 2nd semester an interesting one.

The soccer tourney went well. We took 2nd out of 7 teams. My elementary kids were excited and now I´m focusing with the high school kids.

My Dad is here!!! We´re in Caracas today and tomorrow we meet up with some friends of mine and head for Peru. We´ll be back in Venezuela next Saturday.

Okay, times running out......I hope things are going well wherever you are!!!

Dios te bendiga!

My Mis-Match.....

2008-02-26T10:18:00.007-04:30

We are having a "Spirit Week" this week during our Read-a-thon. Each day the students get to dress up or dress differently. Yesterday was hat day, and a majority of the students came wearing hats or crazy wigs.

Today is Mis-Match Day and to be honest, I couldn't be happier. Many of the students look hilarious in their outfits (except for the ones that are, "too cool" to participte....they still have to come in their uniforms).

To go along with the fun, I have dressed up as well. I tried to dress like a famous picture that is on Dustin and Sara's fridge.....hopefully I'm close!

Dios te bendiga!

My Busy Upcoming Two Weeks......

2008-02-25T20:41:00.003-04:30

Wow....I can't believe it's been two weeks....I was doing so well too!

So today was the start of a two week run that is going to really take it's tool on me, both physically, mentally and maybe even a bit emotionally (although I'm not really that emo....I have no heart after working with kids for so long.....).

Today was the first day of High School soccer practice. Believe it or not, I was extremely nervous last night and this morning. In fact, I've been thinking of this day for the past two weeks....trying to get prepared, mentally more than anything else.

See, we have some issues with our Secondary students and without going into any details, there have been some problems with respect, which is a big problem for me. This is one of the qualities that Larry and Agnes instilled in me at a young age and one that I continue to try and pass on to my students, daily.

I was nervous because I didn't know if there would be problems with this during practice. However, I told them first thing, "It's either my way, or the door is right there. All I ask is that you try hard, respect myself and your teammates and we'll get along just fine."

Turns out, it went over pretty well. The few that showed up (another problem) were great and we ran....a lot (I'm sore!). But I think we had a good time and I'm excited for Wednesday.

One of the other things I had/have to address is a lack of commitment. We've had problems with kids showing up for practices and thinking that it's just okay to show up at the tourneys. To me, that's unacceptable and will not be tolerated. I told them today and will repeat it on Wednesday, "If we don't practice or show up for practice.....we will not have a team. Period." Hopefully I don't have to follow-through on that, but I'm willing if things take a wrong turn.

On top of this I have been preparing the Elementary Football team for their tournament on March 8th (although we're still not exactly sure where it is yet!). This has been a bit more difficult because while the tournament is for Grades 3-6, I've allowed the 1st and 2nd Graders to come out and kick the ball around with us a bit.....just for fun and to work on their basic skills.

I'm having a tougher time with the youngsters, only because I find that I'm asking them to do to much, or think outside the box if you will. Some are still at the age of "Bumblebee Soccer", where you chase the ball around and completely ignore things like positioning and space. Hopefully in the next two weeks, we can figure that out!

Other than that, things continue to go well. I'm still searching for a job for the fall and I hope some things will develop soon. I'm also continuing to battle the mosquitoes in my house (one day I actually killed 10 in the bathroom, at one time.....wow).

Dios te bendiga

My Lost in Translation.....

2008-02-11T13:10:00.000-04:30

I don't know how many of you have seen the movie, Lost in Translation, but I had a similar experience just last night. In the movie, Bill Murray is an older actor that goes to Japan to do a commercial for some big bucks. However, he does not speak any Japanese and therefore is utterly lost in many of the conversations......while yes, there is more to it than this (and a good performance by Scarlett Johanson), I recommend checking it out if you're really curious.

Anyways....I had a similar experience at Subway, just last night. I told the gentleman behind the counter the type of sub I wanted, and what type of cheese (which isn't really an option here, even if you don't want the cheese, they throw it on anyways).

He then asked me, "Salsa?" (sauce? meaning Mayo or any other sauce they had)

I replied, "Mayonesa, porfa" (mayo please).

The man then picked up a yellow bottle and I thought to myself, "hmmm....must be doing things a bit differently, or the bottles are all dirty."

No.

He then shoots mustard all over my club sandwich. For those of you unaware, I really, really dislike mustartd.

So I started saying in a raised voice....."NO, NO! Mayonesa! Mayonesa!"

He says, "Oh," and then points to the white bottle. "Si" I respond.

Then he grabs the red bottle and shoots ketchup all over my sandwich!

NO, NO, NO, NO!! NO MAS!! MAYONESA!

He stops and looks at me quizically. "Huh?"

"No mas salsa," I respond. I think looked at the gentleman to my right in line and he was laughing....so I know I said it right.

Luckily the rest of the sandwich was without any problems, but I was not pleased. I ate the sandwich because, to be honest, I don't know what he would have done! He may have given me crab or something!

(sigh)

Dios te bendiga

My Sudden Surprise....

2008-02-07T11:26:00.000-04:30

So I know that I'm supposed to blog about some pups....but as I'm sitting in my class, talking to my kids about weather.....I heard this noise from the ceiling....like something was walking above us.

I looked up and saw what looked like something putting pressure down upon our tiles. Then suddenly:

CRASH!

THUMP!!

MEOW!!!

Turns out a cat was walking across our ceiling tiles, fell through one of the tiles and slammed its head on the desk, then hit the floor. It was amazing! (although I was worried that with the force of the blow to the head, I was going to have a dead cat on my hands).

Suddenly the cat jumped up and ran to the corner...attempted to jump onto our bookcase (failed attempt and fell to the floor again). Then it ran to another corner and sat on top of our shelf, attmepting to figure out how to make the 7 foot jump back up to the ceiling tiles.

Shocked (and giggling on the inside while my students lauged hysterically), I opened the classroom door and used a meter stick to guide the startled cat out of our room and it then sprinted back outside.

Only in Venezuela.

(seriously....this just happened 10 minutes ago)

(seriously)

My Long Weekend at Home.....

2008-02-05T10:33:00.000-04:30

This is Carnaval, a Latin American tradition that celebrates.....well, I'm not quite certain what! From what I can tell, there are parades, drinking and dancing....but everyone seems to enjoy themselves!

I had wanted to travel over this long weekend, but to be honest, I was a bit late in trying to plan it out and having just returned from Valencia last weekend (a 9.5 hour bus ride there and 7 hours returning), I was a bit tired and could use a break. I was really looking forward to a weekend here in Anaco (did I really just say that??) and possibly getting a chance to do some grading, work on my resume and maybe start applying for a job in the Fall.

Well, then the water problems started. We have essentially been on water-rations over the past five days, including today. Guys were supposed to come and fix it yesterday, but it's Carnaval and obviously, no one was going to come (I mean seriously, working on a holiday? Did we really expect that?). Luckily they are here today and I managed to get a shower in this morning during one of our "on" periods.

I was really hoping to do a lot of sleeping and resting over this break, but to be honest, it hasn't quite worked out that way. Don't get me wrong, I've been staying up late, it's just that I can't sleep in.....at all. I volunteered to take care of our campus puppies (don't worry, pics and another post to follow soon) and their mom, Asabatchi, has a feeding schedule that starts at around 7:30 am (though I usually made it by 8). I know, I know, this doesn't seem to early, but when their last feeding time is 5 pm at night....you start to feel bad around 7 am and it weighs on the mind and doesn't allow me to sleep any later.

Aside from this, we have also had some electricity problems, because the city is working on the power lines on this side of town. On Saturday we had no electricity for most of the day. Luckily things were okay on Sunday and Monday, but again, it's a Sunday AND Carnaval, who's really going to work?

So today I'm crunching in everything that I meant to do over the past four days. I've just graded some tests and now I have to do some research on renewable energy sources for some reports that we are writing this week.

Good Times.

Dios te bendiga

My Rough Thursday.....

2008-02-01T13:26:00.001-04:30

Basically put, yesterday was a difficult day. It was a tough day. It was a rough day.

I should have known that something was up when I awoke and found that I didn't have any water in my shower. I thought maybe it was just here, but I tried the sink in the bathroom--no love. I tried the kitchen sink and the other bathroom....no love there either. No worries, I figured. I took a washcloth style shower with the drinking water I had and called it good. A little extra deodorant, little cologne and I'll be good to go.

All was well until first period ended. I started creating a math test when suddenly....the power goes out. Now I'm sitting in the dark, creating a test. This happens quite frequently, so I didn't think much of it. I figured that in a couple of minutes, the power would be back on....no worries.

By the time 3rd Period started....no power. Now I'm teaching out in the cafeteria because my room doesn't have any direct sunlight (lots of trees outside the window and a gym as well).

So for the rest of the day, I taught my classes outside in the cafeteria. No power also means no A/C and no fans....so by the end of the day I was sweating like crazy (in my dress shirt, dress pants and shoes).

At the end of the day we had soccer practice, which isn't too bad, but our field is basically dirt and a few weeds....which gets one extremely dirty. I figured I was in for another wonderful wash-cloth shower....but I waited and waited.

I was talking with Susan and Shaun when suddenly...the lights came back on! Score! Now I can sit in the A/C and at least I'll be comfortable while I'm dirty. We had ordered pizza, so I was able to sit and eat my pizza with the A/C and the TV....excellent.....then I had a knock at my door. To my surprise it was my boss....who had yet to visit me since I arrived in August. After commenting on my amazing interior design (think bachelor-pad), he told me that we had purchased a tank of water and that I should get a shower in while I could. SWEET!!!!

The shower was nice and I finally felt clean (after a sweaty and gross soccer practice). However the bad news came today.....the pump on our well can't be fixed until Monday at the earliest. This means that we have to continue to purchase tanks of water until then. Luckily most of the school is leaving for Carnaval this weekend, so it will only be myself and a few other teachers here.....hopefully we can make it last!

Dios te bendiga

My Jinx.....

2008-01-28T13:51:00.000-04:30

Okay....so I don't know if I'm jinxing myself or not but I just got back from Valencia yesterday and.......I found milk again!!!!

(it makes my Oreos taste soooo much better)

I suppose it's the little things that keep us happy isn't?

Hopefully there's milk wherever you are.....

Dios te bendiga

My First Student Departure....

2008-01-21T13:15:00.000-04:30

Sadly last week we had to say good-bye to one of our students, Mark, who moved to another city in Venezuela. While normally this isn't a big deal, as many students across the world switch schools everyday and people are constantly moving from one place to another. But for us, it's a bit different.

With only nine students in the entire class and barely 70 making up our school, the loss of one student has a huge impact. For me, it wasn't the first student I've had move part-way through a year, but I was a little sad with this one. Mark was one of my four 5th Graders and with a class that size, we really have a chance to bond and get to know one another.....seeing him go was like losing one of us.

We have a tradition at the school, a Despedida for anyone that is departing. They show some photos and then a teacher speaks about the leaving student and subsequently anyone in the school can come up and talk about that student as well. This is followed by everyone, literally EVERYONE having the chance to either shake hands, hug and say good-bye personally with the student.

I spoke and almost got a bit choked up....but I survived. Then however, one of my other students, a 6th grader, stood up and said some great things about Mark. This is what really got me. I could see Mark, who is normally a quiet kid that keeps to himself, starting to tear up, but fighting it and....I don't know, it was just tough to handle.....difficult to watch.

After the Despedida, everyone went home. On Saturday, Mark came back to school and met up with nine other students and myself. We had a good-bye football match (soccer). It was a last chance to see him, talk and wish him well for the future.

Mark, if you get a chance to read this, good luck buddy. We miss ya.

Dios te bendiga

My Missing Class....

2008-01-16T14:50:00.000-04:30

So I've been back for a little over a week and oddly enough, I had a really quiet week last week....none of my 5th Graders were here! I expected two of them to be gone (they were out of the country), but then I found out that one of them was moving and another was missing in action! I was a bit surprised to come back and not have any 5th Graders, although I'm not going to lie....it was pretty nice to have one or two extra planning periods each day!

Things aren't as giving this week. Three of my 5th Graders showed up, with only one still in the States (and he returns on Saturday, although to be fair, he is doing his homework via the Internet). My student that is moving is here until Friday, when we will have a Despedida for him (a good-bye or going away ceremony) and then we'll hang out in class a bit too.

It's sad to see Mark go, but this is also the way it is at International Schools. Often kids come and go and they also have a tendency to either return a bit later from a break, or sometimes they leave early too. Sadly, there isn't too much we can do about it, but shake our heads, and keep moving along with the curriculum.

My Mozzies....

2008-01-11T14:31:00.000-04:30

So aside from the wonderful assortment of tasty goods at the grocery store, I had another amazing surprise in store for me when I arrived at my house. I had pretty well been bug free for the last couple of months, except for the occasional cricket or spider that crept in from under the door.....ah but now.....the mozzies have returned.

Just to give you an idea of how many mosquitoes there are, I killed four last night before I even got into the shower. AND this is supposed to be the dry season, when there are less of them.

The good times just keep on coming!

Dios te bendiga

My Milk.....

2008-01-10T13:28:00.000-04:30

Wow....has it really been that long? I suppose after a while you really lose track of time right?

Well.....let's see, where to start! The end of the first semester came rather quickly, especially preparing for Christmas break and getting ready to head home. I managed to make it back to the States for a little while, although the trip to Iowa consisted of 3 delayed flights, 1 missed flight, a night in Caracas-including 7 hours in a hotel that was more like a hostel, one canceled flight because it was "too cold" to land in Des Moines, and ultimately I flew into Cedar Rapids, met mom and drove home. Incredible really....and that was just getting back into the States.

My break went well. I spent a lot of time in Des Moines, visiting family and hanging out with my friends. I was only in Iowa City for a night, so I apologize to all of you I didn't get to see. Hopefully we can reconnect this summer.

The trip back here was less eventful. 3 flights, only one delay (of course in Venezuela....these people can't depart on time, it's just not possible) and another 12 blissful hours spent trying to sleep overnight in the airport in Caracas.

Eventually I made it back to Anaco and got a chance to go to the grocery store, where I was greeted with the usual lack of supplies: No milk (it's been hard to find since September and I had yet to find any since then), no flour, no sugar, no yogurt and no bread. What a welcome back!!

Luckily I went to Farmatodo (think Walgreen's) across the street and found some yogurt and the last loaf of bread. Then as I was walking home yesterday, I stumbled upon a grocery store that....dare I say it....had milk!! So now milk is sitting in my fridge for the first time in months. I'm so excited to actually open it up and take a sip!

Other than that, I'm busy getting back into the swing of things. I'm trying to plan our MUN trip to Germany for April, plan two vacations and finish my report cards. Ah, and I'm helping the boys bball team practice and get ready for their tourney in February (which I have to if we are going to have 10 players and actually scrimmage).

In short, sorry for the delay and I'm going to try to get better with my writing this semester.

Dios te bendiga,

My Angel (Falls).....

2007-11-29T12:51:00.000-04:00

On the morning of Thanksgiving, we awoke in a little Posada outside of Ciudad Bolivar, a large city in Southeastern Venezuela. I didn't grab any breakfast because I was hoping for some sort of empenada or arepa at the airport. When we arrived there, I managed to find a small hole-in the wall store, where I picked up a tasty little chicken & veggie empenada and we waited for our flight. (Shaun, another teacher, managed to have his first real doughnut in months at this same time...."real" doughnuts are tough to find down here).

After sitting around and getting checked in, we waited for about another 25 minutes until our pilot told us it was time to go. So the three of us (Shaun, his wife Susan, and myself) boarded a little single engine crop-duster with an Englishman and German and flew to Canaima, the launching point for any trip to Angel Falls.

In there air we had some spectacular views of the countryside as it slowly went from slightly occupied, to uninhabited jungle in the span of an hour. Suddenly on the sides, we saw these huge mountains, rising straight out of the ground. They are called tepuis (te-poo-e) and are supposed to be some of the oldest rock formations on Earth. The plant and animal life on top of these things are sometimes only found in that one spot....and oddly enough, these were also the inspiration for The Lost World, written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Eventually we landed in Canaima, on the bumpiest runway (and saddest airport) I've have ever seen. The airport was essentially a small shack with locals selling souvenir jewelry and other items and another small shed, where you payed your entrance fee to the park.

From here we went into the city, got a brief chat from our guide, split into two groups of 10 (thus losing our German and English passengers) and began our tour. We were in the lucky group: 7 Germans, 3 Yanks and a local guide....we were to board a long wooden boat with a single motor engine and head for the falls immediately. The other group would follow the next day.

The boat trip lasted for ever. 3.5 hours on this little boat, meandering our way up river. Luckily this was broken up by a 45 minute hike (while the boat went through some dangerous rapids) and lunch. Still, I was ready to get out of that boat when we finally hit the camp site.

From there we rested for the night and were given some brief views of Angel Falls from our side of the river. Sadly, it was cloudy and there really wasn't a good view, so we instead played cards, read books and relaxed for the night. Our Thanksgiving dinner composed of a quarter of roasted chicken, yucca, and some cheesy rice w/ veggies....not bad really. That evening we all slept in hammocks, which to be honest wasn't too bad, once you adjusted to it.

The next morning we awoke early and were treated to scrambled eggs, a slice of ham and cheese and two arepas, each weighing roughly a pound (and that is without anything inside). Normally you stuff the arepas with the eggs, meat and cheese, which is what I did and the meal will sit with you for about 8 hours, at least. It's very heavy, pretty filling, pretty tasteless and simple/cheap to make.

Next we got in a boat and crossed the river to begin our hike. The hike wasn't too bad and only took about an hour, possibly a little longer. Our trek took us from a rocky river, into a damp and muddy jungle and then we began going up in elevation, hitting a more dense forest. Eventually, after many slips, near-falls and almost twisted ankles, we came upon this view:

Stunning.

I won't lie....it was pretty impressive. After taking a few pictures and staring at it for a while, I was ready to go back to camp. I mean, what else can you do so far away from a huge waterfall? But we stayed for roughly 30 minutes, until finally Shaun, Susan, Tina (one of the Germans) and myself decided to start heading back.

The return trip was a lot faster (aka downhill) and it was much easier. Once we reached the river, we were really far ahead of everyone, so we took the opportunity to soak our weary feet in the river.

At this point, two incredible things happened. One, Shaun saw a river otter playing on the opposite bank of the river and pointed it out, which was pretty amazing to see (I always loved the otters at the zoo). The second thing was that we turned around to look at the Falls one last time and were blessed with this view:

After that we went back to camp, had lunch and then went back to Canaima. The boat ride back only lasted 2 hours, which was much more bearable. Then we got to spend the evening at a little Posada just on the outskirts of town. My bed wasn't as comfortable as the hammock, but it worked.

The next morning we awoke and had to pack everything in preparation to head home. We were going to eat breakfast, then go see Sapo Falls and the lagoon and finally come back for lunch before heading back to Ciudad Bolivar.

Sapo Falls was beautiful and the lagoon was pretty impressive as well. We ended up walking behind the falls, which was cold and wet, but a blast. After Sapo Falls, we ate lunch and tried to head home. Sadly, we had to board a larger plane (carrying 14 passengers) and when everyone was ready and waiting.....we had to head back to the "terminal" (the hut). Suddenly no one could find our pilot, although we think he was playing cards with some of the locals.

A 45 minute plane ride later, we were back in Ciudad Bolivar. We boarded our mini-bus, made a stop at Wendy's (which is a real treat since we don't have one in Anaco) and then began our 3 hour ride home. All-in-all, a good trip, even though I was ready to jump out of the little boat at one point.

God Bless and I hope things are well, wherever you are.

My Thanksgiving in the Falls

2007-11-21T09:41:00.000-04:00

Greetings to all! I hope this finds you well. I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! We are having a feast this afternoon at school and then this evening I will be leaving with two of the other staff members for Angel Falls. I will get to spend my Thanksgiving traveling to the largest waterfall on the planet....how cool is that?

We will be returning to Anaco on Saturday, so hopefully Sunday I will be able to put up some pics for you.

Again, Happy Thanksgiving!!

God Bless

My MUN Experience....

2007-11-16T11:16:00.000-04:00

Greetings to all!

The good news is that we have returned safely from a wonderful little MUN experience in Caracas. Luckily there weren't any major problems and believe it or not, all of my kids behaved extremely well. To be completely honest, I was extremely impressed with their behavior and I think they represented our school and our community very well.

MUN was a really intense experience at times. I learned a lot about how it works and about how the UN works as an organization. During the GA (Generally Assembly) meetings, three of my students got up and spoke in front of everyone. One was a Freshman having her first MUN experience, another was a Sophomore who had never spoken at MUN before. Finally (and probably my happiest moment) was when one of our Seniors, who has some difficulty with her English, got up and defended her resolution. Unfortunately, I was at the US Embassy, attempting to get my passport and I missed her speech, but from what I was told (by numerous sources), she did very well.

Politically, there wasn't a lot going on in the city. There was only one demonstration by the Opposition, but it was quite small and lasted only a few minutes.

Overall, it was a fantastic experience and it has laid the foundation for our trip to Germany in April. We will be heading to a city in northeast Germany called Lubeck for a conference and we are very excited about it.

Dios te bendice

My Visit to the Other Side.....

2007-11-11T10:34:00.000-04:00

Once in high school I had the opportunity to take a trip on a bus with a bunch of other students. I remember how much fun I had with my buddies and how much mischief we managed to cause without being detected by the teachers/adults.

Now I'm the adult.

It's awkward for me being on the other side. I remember what we used to do and I KNOW what happens on trips like these. How does one manage to watch over their seven students, while at the same time, attempting to give them the freedom that a high schooler needs to make their own decisions and learn from their mistakes?

I remember staying up late, sneaking out of my room, listening to loud music, ruining the group photos by looking in different directions (if not straight up in the air)....and those are just the things I feel as though I can post.

I've been very honest with my kids. They know the rules, they know the repercussions. I just find it hilarious that now I find myself on the other side of the hotel. The guy trying to stay away from his students, so that they can do what high schoolers do and I can continue to see them as the innocent students that they are.....

2007-10-30T13:45:00.000-04:00

One of my kids took this picture one afternoon in Puerto La Cruz.

(No, he did not receive extra credit for it....but it is a sweet pic)

My Foot on the Gas.....

2007-10-30T13:10:00.000-04:00

It seems as though the past 22 days have flown past. I'm sorry for leaving anyone hanging and I had one or two emails asking me if I was still alive! Luckily, I am.

Things at school are moving along quickly, but at a better pace. Our Director returned safely (with his family and new daughter Ocean). We got a new high school science teacher (who also teaches PE on the other days) and we picked up an ESL teacher. This means that those replacements we have been hoping for have finally arrived and things are moving a little more smoothly.

In other interesting events, one of the local companies down here, H & P, are celebrating their 50th Anniversary this year and decided to hold an Olympics to celebrate. I entered the volleyball, bowling and basketball competitions. Bowling was fun (and I got a free polo--awesome) and volleyball was a bit disappointing, losing in the 2nd round. Basketball though was hilarious!

We were waiting and waiting for the bball tourney to start and every time we were told to show up, no one was there. So finally, after our volleyball match we were told to go over to the basketball courts and our first game would start right away. So Shaun, Bill (the Director) and myself went over and waited.....and waited. Still nothing. Then three locals showed up and wanted to play, so we played for about forty-five minutes....just for fun.

Suddenly a man that looks like he could be a ref comes over and says we're about to begin. "Begin what?" we asked? The tournament. So sadly, we were exhausted and near death and our game had yet to start. The odds were not looking good.

The tournament was played on a court that was a little bigger than half a normal court and it had a hoop on both ends. So it was 3 v 3, full court, if you will. The other team had a big guy that was pretty good. I'd say he was about 6'3" or 6'4" and he was solid. He had decent post moves and you could tell that he could play. Sadly the rest of his team wasn't as solid, so we tried to defend him and let the others do what they would. We ended up winning by 14 points, which was hilarious because I thought I was going to vomit after the first 7 minutes (luckily, only two 10 minute halves).

We then waited and waited to play our second game. Last Wednesday was rained out. Last Thursday--rained out. Last Friday--rained out. So I went to the BBQ Picnic Finale assuming that the bball tourney had been scratched. However to my surprise, as they were handing out medals, the representatives from Escuela Anaco took first place!!! Sadly, I was the only one from our team at the picnic and I laughed to myself the entire way up to collect our medals. I even got my picture taken with the three young ladies that handed out the medals! So to sum up, we went 1-0 and were the champs. Hilarious.

With everything that is going on, sadly the ride isn't about to slow up. This week is short, due to our Halloween Celebration Thursday night, Friday night I head to Puerto with my MUN students for a workshop and then on Saturday we have the elementary bball tourney in Puerto. Next week I head to Caracas with the MUN students on Friday for five days and then the week after that is Thanksgiving (and a trip to Angel Falls). Needless to say, I'm going to be a little busy.

I'll try to find some time to post some pics and other fun-filled stories during the next few weeks. I hope all is well wherever you are.

God Bless

My Beat-down.....

2007-10-08T10:32:00.001-04:00

I'm tired....we're all tired. I don't really know how else to put it. It seems that over these past two weeks, we've all been run ragged. All of us really. It's almost as if we are a unit of soldiers, repelling wave after wave of attacks......but we're short-handed. Some of our crew have left, others have been wounded or sick at times and some just disappear, right when you need them most.

Luckily, we've all pulled through. Everyone has played their part and filled in where needed. Some have battled through illness, others fatigue and still others have fought through the frustration. All we need are some reinforcements....two or three, heck, even one would be a blessing right now.

Luckily one is coming......one. Just having that one will free up so many others. Maybe some of our crew can rest........

soon.

God Bless.

My Fun Experiment.....

2007-10-04T18:26:00.000-04:00

You may not have heard, but something really cool happens when you drop a sleeve of Mentos into a 2 liter of pop. My students brought it to my attention and since I was wanting an experiment for science class, we decided to try it today. Here's what happens:

How cool is that!?!?

I know, now we need a brief explanation. According to Steve Spangler science, what happens is the carbon dioxide in the bottle (put there when the bottle was bottled) attaches itself to the Mentos when you drop them in, forming bubbles on the tiny pits that are on each Mento. The Mentos sink to the bottom and when the gas is released, it pushes the liquid up and out of the bottle. I'm not going to lie....it was a lot of fun.

I hope things are great wherever you are!

God Bless....

My Deserted Island (Three Books version).....

2007-09-27T08:57:00.000-04:00

Since I haven't been feeling well for the past couple of days, I've been able to watch a lot of TV from the comfy confines of my couch. While watching an episode of The Office (which I've come to really enjoy) I saw the gang from Dunder Mifflin playing Deserted Island while waiting for the firemen to clear their office. The topic was, "What three books would you like to have with you on a deserted island".

This question made me think a bit. What three books would I want? I've always wanted to read The Idiot by Dostoevsky, but I haven't had the chance. I've also wanted to finish Don Quixote by Cervantes, but I got bored 200 pages in and just couldn't finish it. There are many others that I would like to read, but what if I didn't like them and became bored with them? Then I would have wasted one of my three choices on what would soon become firewood (and in the immortal words of Dwight, "....keep myself warm for like seven seconds."

I've decided upon these three:

1. The Bible (maybe I can finally get to some of those Old Test. books I've been meaning to read....)

2. The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis: I really liked this series, except for The Horse and His Boy, which I didn't think really fit in with the rest of the series. Possibly a few months on the island will help me get a better feeling for it (or remove it from my copy of the book entirely and use as tinder).

3. The Lord of the Rings series, by J.R.R. Tolkien. I really enjoyed the movies and when I started reading the books, it actually helped me get interested in reading again (a part of me that Middle School, High School and some of College destroyed).

Those are my three, take it or leave it. Feel free to post your three choices!

God Bless

My First Washboard Solo (intro....)

2007-09-25T15:50:00.002-04:00

So this weekend we had our first Bible Study Fellowship (or as I refer to it, the Fellowship Jamboree). I was chatting with my friend Emily and she suggested a tambourine for the Jamboree. I thought, why stop there? Lets add a woodblock, triangle and a washboard. I played a mean triangle in high school and since then I've really been improving on my washboard skills and I'm not going to lie....I'm probably the best washboarder in Venezuela. Probably.

So Emily thought it would be fun for me to post a video of my rockin' solo from Sunday (It was around 10 minutes long, but I was just feelin' it). Unfortunately, we can't go back in time, so last night the Jamboree crew and I got together outside the school and had a bit of a concert. You'll see me, looking a bit different here (I have on a cowboy hat and a wig) but it was a lot of fun. The video is right below here....enjoy.

My First Washboard Solo (video)....

2007-09-25T15:50:00.001-04:00

My First Washboard Solo (the truth).....

2007-09-25T13:10:00.001-04:00

(Okay, so truth be told, this is a band called Rocking Dopsie performing at the Crawfish Festival in Biloxi, MS back in April. It was the best washboard video I could find. I was really hoping to find some old bald man with a long beard playing the washboard, but no luck...)

My Entertainment.....

2007-09-23T19:25:00.000-04:00

It's funny sometimes living down here. I spoke with Agnes (my mom) not three hours ago and told her how it hasn't rained for the past three days or so, which is rare at this time of year. However I told her not to worry, I'm sure it would all be resolved soon enough.

Now I'm sitting in my classroom, soaking wet because I had to sprint outside to save our class tortoises, Jennifer and Ariana, from nearly drowning (again). I had accidentally left them outside one day and as it poured for a couple of hours, I was just happy to be inside. Then I realized they were still out there, sprinted up to where I keep them and sadly found them wading in a few inches of water with their little heads barely above it. Luckily they were still alive so I took them home, dried them off and let them sleep inside for the night.

But I continue on to the real purpose of this fun-filled post. One of the best parts of living abroad is all the amazing television shows and movies that we get. Last year in Egypt, we were able to watch some fantastic movies, like The Castle, which is one of my personal Australian favorites. We were also blessed with such sitcoms as Sister, Sister (possibly popular in the early 90s, but that's questionable), Reba and many British shows that I had never heard of.

I thought with the addition of direcTV, the entertainment would be a bit of an upgrade from last year and while yes, there is an improvement (Scrubs, Seinfeld and The Simpsons on almost nightly) there are still some awesome additions to our entertainment package.

For example, this evening I noticed one of my favorite movies from 1987, Harry and the Hendersons! Add to this spectacular movie, Vice Versa, Too Wong Foo (on VH1?) and, dare I say it.....nightly episodes of Quantum Leap (!!!) and you have an entertainment package that is second to none.

Honestly, who wouldn't want to watch this hilarious adventure?

However, I truly can't complain. There have been some absolutely amazing things on lately. I recently caught Bon Jovi Unplugged (awesome). I have also become addicted to La Prueba de Todo, or better know to you as the Discovery show Man vs. Wild. While the translation isn't anywhere close to the American name, usually most shows are. However there are some titles that are just hilarious because of the translation. For example: Brokeback Mountain, or which has been translated to something like: The Incident in the Mountains. Seriously, I sometimes crack up just checking the TV Guide. I hope things are as entertaining where ever you are.....

God Bless

My Bday pics.....

2007-09-18T13:16:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I borrowed some pics from my Director's flickr page. Here are some pics from my bday picnic for you to see.

Here is a pic of me and the yummy chocolate cake that Alejandra made.

Here I'm reading a card from Sherri.....

And finally a nice group pic!

It was a lot of fun and big thanks to all the staff for throwing it and bringing some tasty food (including the 2 liter of Coke...they know me so well!).

My Second Birthday Abroad......

2007-09-12T07:49:00.001-04:00

So birthday number two abroad has come and gone and I am officially 27 now. The staff here had a nice little picnic for me on Sunday night and then we just sat around and talked for a while. It was very low key (much like myself) and a lot of fun.

The next day (Monday) was great. All of the teachers said cumpleanos feliz (happy bday) and my 6th graders even sang to me, although that was probably just to waste some time in Math!!

I was talking with Gary, one of the other ex-pats here, and came to a funny realization. When you're young, birthdays are great and you get so excited because of the cake, the party and most importantly.....the presents!!! But as I've become older, I don't really look forward to a party or even gifts (cake however, is always great), but it's more of hearing from people that I haven't talked to in a while. I had a lot of messages on Facebook, and even a few on the blog, which was great. It's very humbling to know that there are people out there that want to wish you a happy bday, even though you may be on another continent and haven't been able to connect with them for a while.

I hope your day goes well,

God Bless

My Address and Adjustment.....

2007-09-07T07:49:00.000-04:00

I've been here for roughly one month now and sadly the adjustment period continues! I've been up for part of the night twice this week due to something that I ate. Sadly I didn't actually get sick (which would have made me feel better), I just didn't feel well at all. So the adjustment to the different foods and ingredients continues.

I'm also still attempting to adjust to the mosquitoes. They still have a taste for my new flesh and blood and they continue to leave spots all over me. Sadly, one of my students thought they had the dengue earlier this week, which is a pretty serious fever. It is passed by mosquitoes and if left untreated can eventually lead to death. Fortunately, my student is on antibiotics and he's doing fine now. For more info on dengue, here's a link to the Center for Disease Control's page on the fever:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/dengue/facts.htm

On to other news: I finally have an address!! We only get mail once a week, on Thursdays, but if you would like to send anything down here, this is the address:

William Flinn

Escuala Anaco

c/o Jet Cargo International

H & P de Venezuela

PO Box 020010, M-42

Miami, FL 33102-0010 USA

I know that will result in many, many questions, but that's the address. More info on a cell phone number to come soon (hopefully...I have it, but I need to get it activated).

I hope to hear from you soon!

God Bless

My Wildlife.....

2007-08-26T14:20:00.000-04:00

One of the great things about living here in Venezuela is seeing some of the amazing wildlife that lives in and around our little school. Aside from my two tortoises, the workers found a rare naked tailed armadillo on the school grounds last week. I've decided to call him Dillo (though the school is having a vote on what they want to call him). I've spent the past couple of nights with my flashlight searching for him, but I can't seem to find him. After showing him to the kids, he was released on the school grounds, but it is possible that he got out or was on a different side of campus from where I was searching.

Aside from Dillo, I've also seen some HUGE iguanas running around the campus. One was easily about two feet long (not counting a majority of his tail). We also have a large number of other little geckos and other types of lizards.

Then there are the large number of birds that reside here. I've seen so many colorful birds that it's really amazing. Little yellow and red birds are flying around and sometimes you can even see a humming bird flying near some of the flowers.

Then there is the large ant and insect population. While I'm sure you've heard and read about my battle with the ants, the true battle is with the leaf-cutter ants. These ants literally climb up into the trees, cut off some leaves (which fall to the ground and are picked up by others) and take them back to their nest, where they use it to grow fungus. According to one website, the path that they take to their nest can be as long as 250 meters (think yards). One of our colonies has an extremely long path that they take nightly and it includes climbing over a nine foot cement wall!

When I get a computer, I'll try to post some pics for you, but until then, you can do an Internet search for the pics!! Until then, you'll just have to picture this amazing place in your mind. Until next time....

God Bless

My First Week in Anaco.....

2007-08-16T17:15:00.000-04:00

Greetings friends!!!

Yes, despite the rumors circulating on the Internet, I am alive and well here in Venezuela. I have yet to die, although the mosquitoes have banded together and are trying to give me dengue (seriously, there are thousands and they NEVER DIE).

School has begun and we are almost finished with our first week (only 176 days till school is out--yes!!). I have a grand total of 9 students in my two classes and one student is leaving in mid-September, so I will have four 5th graders and four 6th graders. The drawback is that the public schools start in September, so we'll probably pick up a few more students in the next couple weeks.

Life in Anaco is pretty interesting. There is really only one mall type of place, called Unicasa (I swear I've been there almost daily). There is a grocery store, some clothing shops, two Internet cafes and a shwarma place (reminds me of Egypt!). There is also a McDs across the street, which isn't too bad (I know, I broke my boycott after getting sick in Egypt).

I live on campus, which is pretty cool. We have some mango and cashew trees growing around the houses, as well as some banana trees and a coconut palm. You can even find a lime tree, if you look closely.

My class is also the proud caretakers of a tortoise named Jennifer (the boys voted for it). She is a native species that the locals eat as a delicacy around Easter. The director here is looking to save some and start up a little reserve at the school, which would be pretty cool.

Other than that, life isn't too bad. Soccer is on all the time (sweet) and I finally figured out my stove. A brief note though, the president here has said that any foreigner that bad mouths his regime will be expelled from the country. I don't really wish to test that statement, so don't expect too many negative comments coming from here. They own almost every utility and even the Internet provider that we use and I'd prefer to stay out of trouble for a while. Although if you want an interesting read, check out BBC.com and read about his speech to the national assembly yesterday. Awesome.

God Bless

My First Venezuelan Night.....

2007-08-08T11:28:00.000-04:00

Well....I´ve made it! I´m currently sitting in a tight little Internet cafe in Anaco. I don´t have a computer yet, so postings will be infrequent until my Mac gets here (sorry about that) and I don´t have a cell phone yet either, so you´ll have to wait to contact me.

The first impressions are interesting. I was greeted by a beautiful storm last night and the lightning was quite impressive. I arrived at my house and the door was left open for waaaay to long, which meant I had to sleep with my sheet over my head to protect myself from all the mosquitos. Then this morning I had a battle with a bunch of ants trying to come in through the opening near one of my ACs. It was a lot of fun.

The people here seem pretty friendly and all the teachers at school are great. I´d love to post more, but we are here to get some supplies before heading back to school.

God Bless!

My Upcoming Departure......

2007-08-05T21:30:00.000-04:00

As I'm sitting in Agnes' computer room and trying to make sure all of my bags are within the current weight requirements (so far, so good)....I was trying to think about all the amazing things that have happened over the past month. I went on an amazing road trip. I was able to spend a week with my dad, seeing movies, going out to eat and taking some fun walks around DM (I also got to pick on mom a bit here and there too!). I made brief 23 hour trip to Minneapolis and back with my friend Jennifer to visit our mutual friend Laura (and to get some textbooks that someone is letting me borrow....I owe you big time!!!). I even went out and baled some hay for the first time, in an attempt to get back into my aunt Lola's good graces (although I still have a lot of work to go). And finally, I made some new friends at Ephemra, an awesome little store at the intersection of Grand & 4th St. in the East Village (GO VISIT THEM NOW!!!).

The one thing that I loved the most though is just being here.....home. I had the opportunity to see so many friends and family members (thanks for the bbqs Burgins!), that it truly made one both humble and grateful. I was able to see my grandpa Flinn for the first time in years and I saw Aunt Lola and Uncle Butch too. Lola had mentioned that she followed the blog and it made me recall how many people actually said that they kept up with this thing (I'm still in a state of shock really) and for that I would like to thank all of you. I really had fun hanging out and visiting everyone that I was able to and for those of you that I didn't get to see, I'm sorry and I hope to see you at Christmas.

This all reminds me of when my buddy Dustin used to live in England. I remember that he would come home for around 2 weeks and he would be booked solid for the entire time he was home. I never understood why he had to see everyone, or even how he knew so many people! Now I understand though buddy, and I'm sorry if I was ever a jerk about any of it.

And now I'm about to begin the next adventure. Tomorrow morning I leave for Miami and then on Tuesday afternoon I fly down to Venezuela. I don't know how long it will be before I have Internet access again, but I will try to get online and update you with my contact info as soon as I can. In the meantime, I want to leave you with some lines from a song that has really been hitting me over the past few months. It's from the new Linkin Park album:

When my time comes,

forget the wrong that I've done

help me leave behind some,

reasons to be missed.

And don't resent me,

and when you're feeling empty,

keep me in your memories,

leave out all the rest.

You've all left me with some great memories from this summer, so thanks a ton and I'll see you on the other side!!

God Bless

My Road Trip (Part 2).....

2007-07-28T23:24:00.000-04:00

After a short drive to Lexington, KY, I arrived at the home of my friends Mike and Lianne. I arrived early in the morning (only an hour drive) and was able to relax for the afternoon in their beautiful home. It was great to have a chance to just relax for a little while.

Mike in front of the WWI Memorial in Lexington.

That evening, Mike came home and we hit the town! Okay...not really. He showed me around the city a bit and took me to a fantastic pizza place. I was really impressed with the town and it was really beautiful and easy to get around.

The next day I spent reading and watching TV again, as well as trying to figure out the washer/dryer (they were new and I was having some trouble). That night Mike and I went out to eat again and tried to figure out how to build a retaining wall. He had everything measured out, but then we got a little worried that we might hit some type of line, so he called the people to plant the flags and we had to delay the construction project for another time.

The next day we took some pics around the city and had lunch with Lianne before I had to begin my drive to Washington D.C. to see my buddy Dustin and his wife Sara.

It took around 8.5 hours to drive to DC, but luckily I was listening to A Walk in the Woods the entire way. It was really a nice drive, through the mountains and wilderness of West Virginia, a state that I had never been through before.

Sara and Dustin

In DC, I was staying with Dustin and Sara, who were staying with a great family that Dustin knew from his time in England. I won't lie, I had a blast in DC. I was able to see some great sites and Dustin and Sara took a few days off, so we were able to cause a bit of trouble in the area.

We saw a couple of Smithsonian Museums (Natural History and the Air & Space), a ton of memorials, Mount Vernon and we even had a tour of the US Capital Building, where we saw a sweet statue of the first king of Hawaii.

King Kamehameha of Hawaii

Sadly the trip had to start winding down....so on Wednesday night Dustin and I went to a SuperLiga match between DC United and Monarcas Morelia of Mexico (more in the next post). It was a fantastic game with an amazing atmosphere. Whenever I decide to move back to the States, I would love to live in a city with an MLS team. There were 14,000 people at RFK Stadium and we had some great seats to watch an entertaining game. It was a pretty sweet bday gift (even though it's a month away...thanks buddy!!)

The next day I decided to try and drive all the way from DC to Iowa City (the most foolish decision of the trip). After stopping in Pittsburgh to have lunch and chat with my cousin Sarah, I was back on the road and I made it back to Iowa City at 11 pm after a long and exhausting drive. The next day I visited with my friend Megan again and then I drove back to DM the next day.

Overall the trip was a blast!! Thanks to everyone that let me stay with them and for spending a bit of time with me before I have to take off again.

My Road Trip (Part 1)......

2007-07-28T22:42:00.000-04:00

While I was in Egypt, many of my friends decided that they were going to travel to different parts of the US to either continue their education or to do an internship for the summer. So, I figured that since I was home for almost a month, I would spend a few weeks driving around and visiting them.

Now I love road trips. I love to drive. I love to put my ipod on the radio and jam out to whatever music I'm loving at the time. If I was able to throw all of these things together and see some great people in the process.....how could that not be fun??

The trip began with a short 90 minute drive to Iowa City. I used to live in IC, so I knew a few people and was able to see a lot of friends in my two days there. I visited the Before and After School Program at Lemme (where I worked for 3 years) and some of my kids that were so small when I started (as kindergartners) are now huge 5th graders (and I subsequently felt really old). I then spent the rest of the day visiting with some friends. I hung out with my friend Kim and her daughters Fiona and Sophie. I was also able to see my friend Kandi and two of her kids and my friend Susie. That night I hung out with my friend Megan before leaving the next day for Elmhurst, IL.

Fiona and I hanging out.

After an eye appointment in Iowa City, I made the foolish decision to begin my drive to Elmhurst, IL with my eyes dilated. Probably not the best decision that I've ever made, but it probably wasn't even the most foolish on the trip......(no, really).

Travis, outside of Portillos

While there I was able to stay and visit with my friend Travis. Travis and I met while he was working in Youth Ministry at a church in England. I was there visiting my buddy Dustin, whom Travis (or Captain Independence, as he prefers) was working with. Travis and I took a day and went into the city to visit the Imperial War Museum and from then on, we've become friends. Travis and I had some wings, then hit the batting cages and go karts before calling it a night. Then next day we went to Portillos, where Travis explained to me how being able to eat at Portillos is the essence of freedom.

After Portillos I left Travis and drove 5 hours to Louisville, KY to see my friend Richard. Richard and I worked at the Blank Park Zoo for a couple of years together. He was the manager and I consider the Zoo as one of the best jobs I ever had. We had a ton of fun at the grill and it had been a few years since I went to Louisville to see him, so I figured this would be a great opportunity.

We had a good dinner and I was able to chat with him and his fiance Sarah (another teacher) as well as Mike and Lianne (more to follow on them). Then Richard and I went back to his place to chat and he gave me the audio book, A Walk in the Woods, by Bill Bryson, a DM native (which is hilarious, I recommend reading it or listening if you get the chance).

In the morning it was off to Lexington!! (see Part 2)

My MLS hopes.....

2007-07-13T14:34:00.000-04:00

As some of you may know, this man has just arrived in the US to play soccer for the LA Galaxy. Today was the day that David Beckham was officially welcomed and announced as a player for the Galaxy.

His face has been plastered all over the place in recent weeks. Billboards, the Internet, ESPN and he is even on the cover of Sports Illustrated. Even as I write this, he has an Adidas ad playing on ESPN News. If you didn't know who he was before all of this, it seems almost impossible for anyone to ignore his presence now.

I am not a big fan of Beckham (my buddy Dustin can confirm this). I think that he is a good midfielder. He is well known for his ability to cross the ball, take free kicks, set up his team mates and he is in amazing shape and can defend well. He is also very marketable and I've heard that a few women find him attractive. He has already helped bring unprecedented publicity and exposure to the league and LA has even changed their jersey, logo and team colors (for the first time ever) just before his arrival--and have sold 250,000 jerseys of since.

While all of these positives are great for the league, I still have a few concerns about his arrival. Yes, Beckham will bring people into the stands and will get people to watch MLS on TV. But I hope that people aren't thinking he is going to come in and save the league. Beckham is not a goal-scorer or a highlight machine. Looking back at his stats since 2001, he scored 16 goals that year....and it has fallen since. He had 11 in 2002, four in 2003, four in 2004, four in 2005 (but 13 assists) and three goals and five assists this year at Real Madrid.

I will admit that he has battled some injuries, including some this year and during one or two of the last World Cups. These numbers however are not exactly impressive and he is coming into the league as the highest paid player.....ever (roughly $6.5 million/year not including endorsements which push it to possibly $25 mill). That's a lot of money for a guy that plays wide, defends well, sets up his team mates and takes free kicks.

I am optimistic however that Beckham will improve MLS' standing in America. I've already seen other former stars from Europe and Mexico coming over to play in the States and get a high pay-day while doing it. Juan Pablo Angel is having a great year in NY and Cuauhtenoc Blanco agreed to play in Chicago. There are rumors of other big names coming from Europe in the near future and as long as they are coming over to play (not just to be payed), I welcome the additions, but I don't want MLS turning into a western version of the league in Qatar, where players go for one last pay check to finish their career.

So the attention turns to Beckham. His first game is on July 22, an exhibition against Chelsea oddly enough. Normally this game might get highlights on Sportscenter, but because of Beck's debut, the game will be shown live on ESPN. Beckham as already began to put the wheels of change in motion.....

My Visitors....

2007-07-13T14:01:00.000-04:00

For my last few days of Egypt I had my first two visitors coming in from the States. My Mom and my cousin Sarah came over to see what Egypt was all about (and possibly to check out some of the cool sites).

There visit was pretty crazy. The first day we saw a lot of pyramids, including Saqqarra and the pyramids of Giza, as well as the Sphinx. Then we went to the Egyptian Museum for the afternoon (ahhh.....air conditioning). Mom was looking a bit pink and possibly starting to overheat, so we then went back to my place for the night. We had to get up early the next day to start our cruise because we had to fly to Abu Simbel (see picture above).

The cruise was a blast and I would just like to thank my friend Abi for helping me set that up. We were on a nice boat and we were able to see a ton of sites:

The Philae Temple

Kom Ombo

Edfu

Karnak Temple

and the Luxor Temple

After a few days of the ship, we took a flight back to Cairo late one night. This gave us two full days in the city before they had to head back to the States. So we met up with my friend Reham and we took them to experience Khan-al-khalili market one day and then we took a felucca ride the next night as a final good bye.

I hope they enjoyed their time here and I hope that if you are at least interested in seeing these things, go to Egypt and see them. The people are very friendly and willing to help you out with any problems that you may have (if you need it ;-)

His Story

2007-06-30T05:27:00.000-04:00

On the eve of the eve of my departure, I could hardly contain the joy I found exuding from my spirit (as evidenced in the look on my face in the above photo). It's been an incredibly difficult year, and my exodus is upon me. But before I go, some wiseacring about the year behind me...

Having come to Egypt almost on a whim (that's too long a story to add here), my time here might have been marked before I even arrived. This fact--that I turned my life upside down in a two week period of time just to come to Egypt to teach--sounded the first note in a sordid and dischordant octave that has been my year here. I become almost physically ill when I think about all the insanity that has befallen my professional life here this year; but I will think of it here for the sake of you readers out there. (Actually, so much craziness went on this year, I'm finding it hard to make a starting point on this point. I think I'll just make a top-ten list for ya!)

10. (admittedly not a professional matter) Our Christian housekeeper greedily begging and pestering for us to give her all manner of items before we leave the country for good (i.e. shoes, clothes, kitchenware, school supplies, electronics, etc.). Topped by the fact that she definitely stole several albeit inconsequential items such as hand soap and an extention chord.

9. Second term of school starting with an impromptu field trip to the Citadel (this one was just dropped in my lap when I got to school that day!)

8. A student poking a hole in the bottom of my water bottle with a compass point without me noticing Of course, he lied about this multiple times later, despite many reliable witnesses. (stupid punk)

7. Having a taxi driver preach and proselitize to us about the necessity of converting to Islam lest we burn for all eternity in a fiery pit.

6. Being accused and blamed for both punching and tripping a student. (police involvement was threatened for one of these.)

5. Having to change a student's grade because the parents called and complained.

4. (a general one) Having my salary used as a threat against me if I didn't do some irrelevant task for the school.

3. Being one game away from winning the softball tournament in the league I played in, and then losing it in a shameful fashion. (The other team had to beat us twice in a row to win the tournament, which they did on one day, each game decided by no more than two points.)

2. Getting a bout of the Pharoah's Curse two days before leaving Egypt for good! (blasted country just won't let me forget about this one)

1. Watching some excellent students (and my best one) get terribly disappointed at not being able to participate in a spelling bee because the bus driver got us there almost two hours late! (This was a result of the transportation manager at the school completely dropping the ball with directions and planning. We drove for over three hours looking for the spelling bee site, wound up way out in the desert by the Darshur pyramid--a trip which should have taken no more than one and a half hours. This experience was the most crushing as an educator, and a prime indicator of the essential problem in this culture, or at least the strata of it that we taught in this year. The problem being, namely, that those who are responsible and hard working tend to get punished for these very virtues.)

And so, it is with little regret that I leave this land for what probably will be the last time. However, the year has not been filled with only non-positive experiences. I'll sum up:

Around September, I became friends with a shop owner in a huge mall here in Cairo, a souvenir shop for oils, papyrus paintings, statues of all kinds, etc. He and all his employees truly welcomed me into their world; I graciously entered. Over the course of the year I have spent many many hours just hanging out in the shop, talking with the employees or Saber, the owner, or with customers, or watching the painter paint, or the metal engraver engrave metal, etc. I became friends with all these guys (and one gal). So when I left the shop for the last time the other night, these folks were genuinely sad that I was leaving not to return. And the biggest hug I got was from the guy who spoke the least amount of English (and consequently with whom I conversed the least this year). He really bear hugged me, and hesitated with letting go. I walked out of there feeling like a part of a family of friends in the truest sense. My heart was touched, and I shall take that with me along with all the other madness touched on above.

It's been a pleasure being a guest in Mr. Flinn's blog here. Hope you enjoyed!

Bill's greatest roommate ever,

Alex

My last entry in Cairo.....

2007-06-30T05:14:00.000-04:00

School is finally out (YES!!) and since things are starting to wind-down here, we are beginning to pack and get ready to depart this oven. We will be losing our Internet access today and so this (and the subsequent surprise post) will be the last ones for nearly two weeks.

My mom and cousin are arriving tonight, but before that I will be attending another wedding (my second in two days) and hanging out with my roommate and some local friends for one last time before everyone departs for the summer and to greener pastures.

To be honest, I've enjoyed my time here in Egypt. I had a lot of misconceptions when I arrived and I was scared to death the very first time I stepped outside my flat. I thought I would be harassed, bothered and I didn't think anyone would be able to speak English. I was also worried that I would receive some sort of harassment due to my faith....but this has not been the case. Many Egyptians are amazing and extremely kind. I can't tell you how many people have assisted me in finding a shop, or trying to purchase something or even some people that just wanted to talk. I have been so impressed by their hospitality that I sometimes wish that places in the US were more like this.

Now don't get me wrong, there have been some negative experiences, but overall the positives completely out-weigh the negatives. I was so worried about not finding any Christians here, but I have been pleasantly surprised. There is a small, but strong Christian population here and one great thing is how well the Christians and Muslims get along. Unless you are dating (or about to date), no one gives a second thought about your faith. I was very worried about this when I came over, but now I can see that it was only ignorance, and nothing more.

I will miss my coworkers, my students and the amazing friends that I've made since I've been here. I hope to keep in touch with many of them (thank God for Facebook) and hopefully I'll be able to come back and visit Cairo one day in the future and who knows, maybe one or two will come and visit me......wherever I am.

My Good News.....

2007-06-25T08:22:00.000-04:00

May 24th? May 24th? Has it really been an entire month since I've posted anything??

To be honest, I held off posting for a while because I was frustrated looking for a job. I was having some difficulty finding anything and I didn't want to say the exact same thing in two or three consecutive posts, so I held off. But now I'm back.

First off, the good news: School is almost over. It's been extremely hot in Egypt for the last week and today we went to the pool. Imagine how nervous I was that my pale white body was going to come back looking like a lobster, but luckily I seemed to have made it out without a scratch. We only have three more days left and one of those days we are having a 2nd vs 3rd Grade football match, followed by a dish party. Needless to say, I'm excited.

Then comes the other good news.....I finally got a job!! I accepted it last weekend and I know I should have posted sooner, so my apologies. In August I start teaching 5th Grade at Escuela Anaco in Anaco, Venezuela. I'm pretty excited for the opportunity. The pay is better and I get the chance to coach football (soccer) and possibly basketball. I will also be the Model UN sponsor for my school, which is a program that allows students to represent a country in a setting similar to the real UN and try to solve global issues. It's a great program and it should be fun. The best part about my new job though.....I only have 6 kids in my class right now!!!!

Now before I get any silly emails or messages about how scary Venezuela is, I want you to know that I've already researched it and I'm fine. The city I will be in is only 100,000 people and it is pretty far from Caracas (the capital). I'm also only about an hour from the beach (sweet) and the people at the school seem extremely nice.

I will try to post more soon about the school and possibly get their website on the links section so that you can check it out. In the meantime, I only have a few weeks left and my mom (Agnes) and my cousin Sarah are coming to visit in less than a week! I better get cleaning.....

God Bless

My Pictures.....My Old City Streets

2007-05-23T23:35:00.000-04:00

This is a shot of one of the streets of the Old City, Jerusalem. It was taken in the Jewish Quarter (a lack of shops and the overall cleanliness of the street is a clue). I loved wandering around on these streets. It was truly like a maze with something new waiting to be discovered around every corner.

My Search.....

2007-05-22T14:37:00.000-04:00

My job search for the upcoming school year is in full swing and the answers that I'm receiving are roughly the same:

"Sorry, but we need more experience."

"Actually, we're almost done with the interview process."

"No."

And my personal favorite:

....................... (the no response....awesome)

To be honest, as I said before, it has become a bit frustrating. I know that God has a plan and that what He wants is what will happen, but it's just the waiting that is disheartening. Possibly the spot that He wants me in isn't open yet.....possibly I'm supposed to sub for a year......possibly I'm supposed to end up in Guam, where I'll learn a life-long lesson or meet a life-long friend or have an impact on one specific student. Perhaps I'm supposed to learn the lesson that schools start doing interviews in Jan and Feb for the following school year (learned that the hard way).

I've told Him that I'm prepared to go anywhere (and I mean anywhere) that He wants to send me with this thingy called an Elementary Education Certification. So far it has put me on three continents in the past year and possibly a fourth next year....who knows.

It's times like these that my faith is truly tested. I know that He'll take care of me and that I'll be okay wherever I end up.......but can't I just know now??? : )

Here are the recent results:

Woodward Granger-No, (filled)

5th Grade in WDM--No, (filled)

Waukee------No, (almost done with interview process)

Japan------No, (lack of experience)

5th Grade in KY----No, (filled)

Aruba-----No, (lack of experience)

Venezuela------........

2nd Grade Clive---........

I have recently applied to schools in Quito, Ecuador and Hong Kong and I'm continuing to watch for openings around the DM area (however many schools do not have vacancies). I may have to expand the search to other areas in the States that I would consider moving to, which might not be a bad thing to be honest.

All-in-all, my faith continues to hold strong and knowing that He is in control is what gets me through times like these, especially when the unknown lies ahead.

I hope all is well, wherever you are,
God Bless

My Lengthy Absence.....

2007-05-19T07:43:00.000-04:00

Greetings to friends, family and folks that just happen to drop by!

First off, sorry for the long delay in writing. To be honest, it's been a bit busy here in Cairo. The school year is winding down and I'm working with my 3rd graders on our production for the annual show. We have around 4 weeks until we perform, so hopefully all will go well.

I'm also trying to find a job! I applied to a few districts in the Des Moines area (Waukee and West Des Moines). So if anyone out there knows a principal in Waukee or at Clive Elementary or Westridge Elementary in West Des Moines, put in a good word for me!! (Please?)

I've also contacted a few other schools about a teaching post for next year. To be honest, the job hunt is a little frustrating, especially when you are doing it from another continent. It's difficult to get all the paperwork turned in and to have ANYONE actually take notice of you. Good Times.

Other than that, I've just been hanging out here. The weather has become extremely warm (borderline hot if you will). It was so warm today that I had to let the cold water run in the shower for a while before I got in.....it was hot!

Alright, more to come later. I hope all is well. God Bless.

My Pictures (cont).....

2007-04-30T14:23:00.000-04:00

This is a picture of The Monastery, a huge structure carved into the rock at Petra. It was pretty impressive. The only drawback is that you have to walk up 850 stairs, cut into the stone to get to the top.

My ANZAC Day (a year removed).....

2007-04-25T07:59:00.000-04:00

Happy ANZAC DAY!!

This post goes out to the Aussies, because today is a special day for them, ANZAC Day. Today is the day that Australia celebrates and honors the fallen soldiers of her past. It was on this day, back in 1915, that Australia and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) landed at Gallipoli in Turkey during the First World War. It was the first major military action fought by the Australian and New Zealand troops. Over 8,000 Aussies were killed at Gallipoli and it's on this day that they remember those who have fought in battle. It is a very important holiday in Australia and I was introduced to it at 4:30 am, one year ago in Brisbane.

The ceremony was incredible. Before dawn, a fire was lit at ANZAC Memorials all over the country. I was at the one in Brisbane with John, the man I was staying with. Truly a special memory for me.

My Pictures......My Five Sided Adventure

2007-04-23T00:58:00.000-04:00

Here is a shot from the Pyramids that was taken earlier this year. Yes, that is the Sphinx on the right and the building next to the Pyramid is where a Solar boat is kept.

My photos......My Golgotha......

2007-04-21T14:30:00.000-04:00

Since I'm now able to actually upload some photos on this thing, I thought I would share some over the next couple of days/weeks from my travels. I thought of this one first, since it is the one that I wanted to share all along....

This photo is of Golgotha, the Place of the Skull, located just outside the Old City of Jerusalem. It was here, according to my NIV Bible, Matthew (27:33), Mark (15:22), Luke (23:33) and John (19:17) say that Jesus was crucified, here....on this hill that overlooks Jerusalem.

For me, this was a somber, but exciting place. To see where Christ was crucified is something that I will never forget. To be able to sit and look upon this hill, to see what looks like a skull in the hillside (which is truly amazing and how it got it's name) and to think that I am able to stand, to sit and to pray in the place where this all took place......where the Son of God was crucified for me, for us, was incredible. I hope that all who wish too, can experience it one day.

I had feelings here that I have never felt before in my life.....almost as if I finally realized the sacrifice and the significance of that day, so long ago.

.......(the sound of sand being blown through the air).....

2007-04-17T13:03:00.000-04:00

Here's a picture from bbc.com of downtown Cairo today during the sandstorm.

My taxi driver in Jordan.....

2007-04-17T09:10:00.000-04:00

For some reason, I'm being allowed to upload pictures right now, although I have to do it one at a time. Here is a picture of myself and our taxi driver from Aqaba to Wadi Musa. He's pointing out Petra in the Jordanian countryside.

My First Sandstorm.....

2007-04-17T09:04:00.000-04:00

So we've experienced a lot of wind here before and definitely enough to have a layer of dust in the apartment, but today was the worst so far.

I should have known something was going to happen this morning when it was extremely cloudy, but I didn't think anything of it. I left the windows open in the kitchen, dining room and one other window in the entry, thinking that it would allow the apartment to stay cool.

A few hours later, I was changing classes at school when one of the teachers came in and asked me why I still had the windows open.....I had yet to notice that there was sand blowing everywhere outside. We can usually see beyond the school wall and all the way to some buildings that are pretty far away, but they weren't there. To be honest, I couldn't see another building that was a hundred yards away.

Suddenly, I got really excited when I realized what was going on. The wind was so strong that it had blown over one of the trees on our way home. It even knocked down some of the signs that were on the road. Awesome.

When we got home, there was a nice thick layer of dust over everything. If only I had remembered to shut the windows.....

My Challenge......

2007-04-13T09:25:00.000-04:00

I've been doing this blog for over a year now and many folks have said that they are, "living through my experiences" or that they are seeing these places through my eyes.....

Well, now I have a challenge for you.

I would like to challenge everyone to leave the United States at least once a year, if possible. If not, go for once every two years.

Some of you might be thinking that this is impossible, that you can't do it. Well, to put it frankly, you're wrong. Canada is very close by and if that's all you can do, do it. Mexico is a pretty cheap place to go, so you can always visit there.

My point is, I feel as though many Americans don't actually try to get outside their comfort zone.....to go out and experience and see what the world is actually like. We instead stay at home and let the television tell us what it's like and we say to ourselves, "oh, that's a nice place, but I'll never be able to get there." That's crap, in my opinion. Save up and go. See the world and bring it back with you and educate others on what it's really like.....not by what CNN, Fox or the Travel Channel tell you. What are the people like? Do they actually like Americans? Is it a friendly place? How is the food? These are all things that people want to know and that you would be able to tell them, just by going.

I have accepted the challenge as well. God willing, I plan on trying to leave the US at least once a year. Even if I don't end up settling in the US, what ever country I live in, I will try to leave at least once a year, to visit new places, new cultures and to discover new sites (at least new to me).

And if at all possible, go some place where YOU are the minority. It has been a crazy experience here in Egypt. I get stared at.....a lot! Sometimes because of my shorts, sometimes it's my bald head and other times it's because of how pale I am. It's awkward, it makes me uncomfortable, but most importantly, it allows me to see how people feel in the US when the roles are reversed and it makes me realize that maybe I should try to be a little more friendly to those people, after all, they helped me.

So please, take the challenge, get out of your comfort zone and see the world. Don't get me wrong, I'm flattered that some people read this and love where I go....but wouldn't it be more fun to experience it on your own?

The Western Wall in Jerusalem.

My Breaking Point II......

2007-04-13T08:56:00.000-04:00

After arriving in Sharm, we were both tired and a little frustrated about the events of the day, so we ate and then went back to the room. Alex went to sleep and I went for a walk and then played some pool till midnight before going to bed.

The next day was alright. We went to a beach, got some sun and then went to Na'amba Bay, the tourist/shopping/party part of the area. Now, those of you that know me know that I do not party. I do not drink and I don't like really loud music that prevents you from having an actual conversation with the people you are with.....all these things are what Sharm is known for, so it's not a wonder why I was ready to leave. Don't get me wrong, we had some fun for the brief time we were there, but it was enough.

The hotel that we stayed at was very nice. One of the other teachers at school is the daughter of the man who owns it. It's called the Uni Sharm Hotel and it actually has a lot of Russians and Estonians that stay there. Someone thought that I was Estonian one day, which was a little weird.

One of the highlights was speaking what little Arabic we knew with the workers. They seemed to be excited that some tourists actually could speak some of their language and we were treated very well once they knew that....so that was a plus.

One of the drawbacks to Sharm though were the taxi drivers. Twice we got a driver that had no idea where he was going and that trend continued the morning we left. We knew where to go and told the driver, who then thought he was headed in the right direction. I told him that in fact he wasn't and that the bus station we needed to be at was across from the hospital. He shrugged me off and said okay, then asked a local. I then pointed in the direction of the hospital, saying "HOS-PI-TAL, the International Hospital, it's right there! Go to the Pyramid" (the hospital was shaped like a pyramid...awesome). Again, he ignored me and asked another local, who pointed him in the right direction. At this point, our bus left in 15 minutes and I was a bit frustrated.

We arrived with 10 minutes before the bus left and we then got out of the cab. The bus driver looked at us and said that the ride would cost 50 LE (Egyptian Pounds). At this point I lost it because the ride was only 20 LE, probably 15 or 10 for a local. I told the man he would get 20 and that's it. He said no, 50....and so it began. As I was yelling at the man, telling him that is was bull what he was doing to us. I said again and again, 20 is what you will get, just take it and we'll leave. He would reply, "No, okay, 40 LE".

"No, you don't get it buddy. You're ripping us off because we're tourists and you think we're stupid. This is bull____ and I'm tired of it. You get 20." (this phrase was repeated a lot by me).

The man said he would take thirty and then tried to look at Alex for help. Alex was having no part in this argument because he had never seen me like this. I'm not proud of it by any means and I handled it the wrong way, but you can only be taken advantage of so many times before you've had enough....I was at that point.

I finally told him that he could either take the 20 from me, or I would throw it in his car and we would walk away. He again said 30, at which point I threw the 20 LE note in his car, said "Ha-laas" (or finished) and walked off.

This ended our fun-filled time in Sharm. The bus ride back to Cairo was actually quite nice. We rode on a Super-Jet, which is much cleaner, more spacious and actually has a bathroom in it that is relatively clean. I will probably never go to Sharm again (not my scene), but I had a lot of fun in Jordan and I would like to go back one day.....

My Near Death Experience.....

2007-04-13T08:40:00.000-04:00

We left Wadi Musa on Sunday and headed south to Aqaba. We were supposed to meet the taxi driver at 10 am, but he was a little late due to car trouble, which should have been our first warning sign for the day.

After attempting to get the taxi started again, we finally got going 15 minutes later. We had made it through the King's Highway and half-way to Aqaba on the Desert Highway before the taxi died again (warning sign #2). Luckily, after letting the car rest again, we were able to go another 10 km before the car died for a third time (after previous deaths in Wadi Musa and on the highway).

This time the driver called another cabby, who came to meet us. By the time he got there, our taxi back in action and we had continued our journey. We only had 10 km until the border stop before the car died for the fourth and final time. What should have been a 90 minute trip, ended up taking around 2.5 hours. All this time we were a little worried because the last bus to Sharm el Sheikh left Taba at 3 pm (in Egypt), which was only 2.5 hours away and we were still in Jordan and had to clear customs in two other countries!

Fortunately, the Jordanian Customs went pretty quickly, but we then had to wait for a taxi driver to come to the border. We got some 26 year old kid, to drive us to the Taba border, where we were feeling pretty good because we had 2 hours until the bus left.....then we saw the Indians.....

Sure enough as we hit a group of Nigerian pilgrims heading into Israel, we met a group of Indian tourists leaving Israel. Of course the Egyptian authorities weren't prepared (again) and it took forever to get across the border. Luckily, after an hour, we made it across and quickly walked to the bus stop in Taba (which has probably the second worst bathroom in Egypt, next to the one at the Giza Zoo in Cairo).

We then realized that we gained an hour when we came into Egypt (time change) and so we actually now had to waste 90 minutes, at an empty bus station....awesome.

Finally the bus left at around 3:10 (even though it had been sitting there longer than us, it still was late departing). The bus was actually pretty empty, which was a change from the norm....buses here are usually extremely crowded and smelly, but not this time. Our bus driver was cruising down to Sharm, which is supposed to be a 3.5 hour trip.

After stopping in Nuweiba and at numerous resorts and random places along the way, we were flying down to Dahab, another resort town. This was when it was starting to get scary because the bus driver was going fast, in a beat-up old bus and it was getting dark. See, here in Egypt, the lines on the road for lanes are more suggestions than anything else, so when we take a corner turning left, we are usually in the left lane when we do it (you know, the lane where the cars are coming at you). After avoiding a few cars and having to stay in our own lane, we then nearly got into a few accidents while trying to pass other large vehicles, all the while other cars were coming at us.....it was a little scary at times, but we survived.

Finally 4.5 hours later.....we arrived in Sharm. We were both really excited to be off that bus and I couldn't wait to get a bite to eat and go to bed.

My Second Day in Petra......

2007-04-13T08:24:00.000-04:00

On the second day, we decided to check out some of the caves and tombs that were off the beaten path. We started out by heading to the Mughar an-Nasara, which were some Christian caves and tombs a little off the track. It was a lot of fun because most of the people that visit the site don't actually make it out here. We were all alone to climb around on the rocks and check out the tombs, which were pretty cool. We were trying to make it to the Al-Wu'eira Fort, a Crusader fort that is really far away from everything, but unfortunately, we didn't find it, so we settled for this area. One of the highlights was that as we were coming back and following some other caves along the basin, some camels were grazing around 300 yards from us. It was pretty cool.

After having lunch, we decided to hike up to the High Place of Sacrifice, a little area at the top of Jabal Madhbah (a mountain I believe). The hike was pretty steep and it took a while to get up there, but once we did the view was amazing! You could see the surrounding valleys on every side and it looked spectacular. We took some fun pics before beginning our decent.

Then we decided that we had enough for the day. We had done a ton of hiking and it was time to leave Petra. Truth be told, I didn't actually get to see everything that I wanted to. The tomb of the prophet Aaron is supposed to be near-by and I would love to be able to see the Crusader fort one day as well. Maybe next time.....

My picture from the first day....

2007-04-12T19:17:00.000-04:00

The view from As-Siq as the Treasury is coming into view.....

Sorry, but it took a lot of screaming and patience to even get this one picture up for you. I wish the connection/computer/internet were working better so that I could upload more, but this is what we get for now....sorry!!

My First Day in Petra.....

2007-04-10T12:15:00.000-04:00

(Quick note...this is part two of the Petra Series and if you haven't read the first post, scroll down and do that first!)

We decided to sleep in before starting the first day of Petra. After buying a two day pass, we started the walk down As-Siq, the 1.2 km long entrance to the city, most of which is a canyon that was created by many, many earthquakes. It was a good start and the inside of the canyon was amazing. The canyon walls were extremely colorful, filled with different shades of reds and browns.

Then suddenly through the canyon walls you see a bright light and what looks to be a huge building and As-Siq opens up and you suddenly have Al-Khazneh (the Treasury) staring at back at you. This building is the one that you usually see when looking at pictures of Petra. It is an amazing site. It is absolutely huge and carved right into the sandstone walls! You really start to wonder how these people were actually able to do this 2,000 years ago.

After taking some pictures, we turned and headed down the Street of Facades, a little street that has the remnants of tombs on either side. A short walk later and the street opens up to the Theatre, a 7,000 seat, Roman style amphitheater in the city. It was stunning.

From there we continued down the path and then veered to the right to check out some tombs high up on one of the mountains. We then went back down to the path and it lead us to the Colonnaded Street (an ancient street) where you can see some old pillars and the remains of what were probably stalls for vendors. We then passed the Qasr al-Bint (the only free-standing structure left after thousands of years of floods and earthquakes). We stopped to have lunch before beginning the next leg of our journey.

After lunch we began the ascent to Ad-Deir or The Monastery, which is probably the second most popular site in Petra. It is an 850 steps up a long rock-cut staircase, donkeys that carry up tourists (not to mention the remains of what the donkeys had to eat earlier). It took us around 45 minutes to climb up, but when we did a huge building was awaiting us. Ad-Deir is a bigger building than The Treasury and it is very well preserved. After taking a few pics and stopping for a Coke, we went back down the mountain (this time only taking 25 minutes).

We were exhausted at this point and decided that we would call it a day and we walked back to the Treasury, As-Siq and eventually out of Petra. Luckily our hotel wasn't very far away (roughly 300 m from the entrance) and we were back at the hotel pretty quickly.

My Trip to Wadi Musa....

2007-04-10T12:03:00.000-04:00

Okay, so since we have finally returned from Jordan, I am now able to actually write about it. So to make it easier to read, I'm going to post about it as a few different topics, that way I can recall what happened easier and since there is a lot of information, it will make it easier to read (hopefully). We'll start with the trip to Wadi Musa...

Since I am not able to actually go on a trip in which actually getting to the destination goes as planned, we (my roommate and I) started off this trip by taking a bus to Nuweiba, a little resort city on the eastern part of the Sinai in Egypt. We left on a big East Delta Bus at around 11:15 pm on Wednesday night, assuming that we would be in Nuweiba around 6:45 am the next day. The bus was dirty, smelly and it was so cramped that even a sardine would feel suffocated. But alas, hours later (and a terrible Arabic movie), we arrived in Nuweiba.

After arriving there, we sat and remembered that we would have to wait for around 3 hours just to buy a ticket to take a ferry to Aqaba (in Jordan). The ferry wouldn't actually leave until noon, if it left on time (and this being Egypt, that wouldn't happen). So after being offered some roasted pigeon at 7 am, we went with plan B. We decided to find a taxi driver to take us back up to Taba, cross the border into Israel and go through Eilat, where we would cross the border again into Jordan.

Surprisingly, this worked pretty well (and ended up being a little cheaper than the ferry ride). Alex and I took a taxi to Taba and began our walk across the border. We figured in about 20 minutes we would be in Israel and 4 hours ahead of schedule.....then we met the Nigerians....

I knew that it was Easter weekend, but I didn't realize what that meant.....pilgrims. We met a tour group from Nigeria at the Taba border crossing and we were caught between two (possibly three) tour buses of Nigerian pilgrims heading to Jerusalem. The Egyptians were not prepared and so it took about an hour and a half to cross the border and finally get into Israel. Where we were quickly able to catch a cab and we were dropped off at the Jordanian border crossing 30 minutes later.

After a short exit process and entrance into Jordan, we were quickly able to find a cab that took us the entire 2 hour trip to Wadi Musa, where Petra is located. We made it to our hotel (the Petra Palace) around 3 pm local time, hours ahead of where we would have been if we waited for the ferry in Nuweiba.

My Next Trip.....

2007-04-01T12:36:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I've kept you waiting long enough and now that the next trip is here (we leave this week!), I feel as though I should inform you of where we are going......

But first, just to let you know, we means Alex (my roommate) and I. Just wanted to clear that up!

It was a tough decision in the end. The prices for Cyprus skyrocketed recently and a couple of alternative options came up at the last minute. We almost went to Malta, an couple of islands south of Italy, but we couldn't get the deal we wanted on the airfare. It was around $200 more than I wanted to spend.
There were even thoughts of India, since I managed to find flights for around $600 from Cairo. However here the problem was that the hotels are super expensive and I just don't quite trust and Indian hostel for some reason.....

So we will be leaving for Jordan on Thursday morning. I would like to tell you what time, but of course we haven't purchased the bus tickets yet. The goal is to bus from Cairo to Nuwieba (where we've been, if you recall from some posts back in October). From there we will take a ferry to Aqaba, a resort town in SW Jordan, right on the Red Sea. Once in Aqaba, we'll have to find a minibus that will take us the remaining 2 hours to Wadi Musa and ultimately Petra.

For those of you that may not know, Petra is an ancient city built around 3 BC. You should definitely Google it.

After spending two days in Petra, we're going to ferry back into Egypt and head down to the resort town of Sharm el Sheik. I've been told that the snorkel sites there are better than the Great Barrier Reef, and since I've done the latter, I'll let you know.

The current plan is to spend a few days in Sharm and then Bus back to Cairo (or possibly catch a ride with some of the other Nefertari staff members that will be in town) by next Monday or Tuesday. We'll see.

God Bless!

My Dad's Birthday.....

2007-04-01T12:35:00.000-04:00

....is TODAY!!!

Happy Birthday Pops!

I miss you and I love ya big guy!

My Mother's Day.....Egyptian Style!

2007-03-22T09:45:00.000-04:00

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Yesterday was Mother's Day here in Egypt and since I can't really send you anything, I'll put up a picture of a gift for you. Happy Mother's Day (Egyptian style). Love you Mom!

My trip to Giza.....

2007-03-02T15:41:00.000-04:00

Okay, so I know that you are awaiting the decision on where I will be heading for the break. Unfortunately, I haven't decided yet! Jordan sounds okay (and it's cheap). Cyprus sounds alright as well (however, not so cheap). To be honest, I haven't decided yet. Sorry!

In the meantime, I finally made it too the Pyramids of Giza. The last surviving of the 7 Wonders of the Ancient World, the Pyramids were pretty cool to see in person. Looking back on it, it's almost unreal that I have actually been there and actually touched the Pyramids. Awesome.

The whole experience in its self was interesting. The fact that there are a ton of souvenir salesmen wandering around really takes away and cheapens the experience. Also there are a bunch of guys that want to take you on a camel or horse ride.....which was fun, don't get me wrong, but after an hour on a camel, my butt hurt.....badly.

Overall though it is an amazing site to see. The Sphinx was smaller than I thought, but it was still pretty cool. I went with a friend from school and her daughters, so I teased her about the size of the Sphinx. I believe I said it was as big as two school buses, from front to back. Obviously it was a little bigger, but not much.

AND sadly, as predicted when I was able to upload the one picture from the Pyramids, now I can't upload anymore. I'm doing this at home, so I guess I should have expected it.

My Poll......

2007-02-13T14:20:00.000-04:00

Having returned from a fantastic trip to Jerusalem and now feeling as though there isn't anything else that I truly need to see in the area, I thought I would put out a poll for my next vacation. That's right ladies and gents, I want YOU to help me decide where to go on the next vacation.
Now, I'm not going to completely rely on this vote, so if some of you band together and manage to push something like Iraq or Iran into the victory circle, I may have to over-ride the decision. However, here are the current options:

Jordan--a lovely little country to the east of Israel. If I venture here, it would be a short trip over to Petra and back. Petra is an ancient city that was actually built into the rocks and the countryside. It is rumored to be an incredible site. The plus on this trip is that it shouldn't cost too much and it's the site that Indiana Jones visits in the Last Crusade.....awesome.

Back to Israel--there are some things that I would like to see in Israel that I missed last time. For instance, Masada, the Dead Sea, Jericho and Northern Israel, where Jesus spent a lot of time. It would be fun to go up there and walk in His footsteps a little more. The plus here is that it's not too expensive and I already know some of the route. The drawback is that I've been to Israel and it might be cool to get another stamp in the passport.

Cyprus--okay, I know what some of you are thinking....."Why Cyprus?" My response is, Why Not??? It's a little island in the Mediterranean Sea. The weather is pretty nice and it has some cool archaeological sites. The flight is pretty cheap out of Cairo ($250+) and the accommodations shouldn't be too bad. The drawback of course is that.....well, it's Cyprus.
(*editor's note: This possibly could be combined with the trip to Jordan...just a thought)

Europe--Some where in Europe, possibly Germany and Central Europe. The positive here is that I would get to explore a little more of Europe. The drawback is that this is the expensive option out of the group.

That's it, that's all I've got. Of course if you have an idea, feel free to submit that as well and see if you get the votes!! However, keep in mind that I will not be allowed into some Arab countries due to the Israel stamp in the passport (sorry Libya, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon).

My Pilgrimage.....

2007-02-07T08:37:00.000-04:00

Okay, first off, I know, pictures....I'll try to post some soon, but I have to find a coffee shop or something with a faster connection, because mine is too slow, anyways, back to business......

Now that I have returned to Cairo, I can finally sit and truly think about the experience of the Old City. To be honest, this was half the reason I came to Cairo. To be able to travel to Jerusalem, to see where Christ was Crucified and where He Resurrected was a trip that I will always remember. I was able to walk where He once walked and that is one of the biggest thrills of my short life. This is something and a place that I have always wanted to visit and I can't wait to go back again in the future.

Besides seeing Golgotha, I also enjoyed Bethlehem and the Church of the Nativity. This is one of the oldest churches still in use today (the tour guide said the oldest, but he also took us to his "family's" souvenir shop which was conveniently close by) with parts dating back to the late 6th Century. Seeing the old mosaics on the walls and floor were amazing and the painted pillars that are credited to the Crusaders was also a thrill.

At the same time, the trip saddened me a bit as well. I don't like the souvenir shops, stalls and the pushy sales people that line the cramped streets of the Old City. I understand that there were stalls, shops and everything else back in the time of Christ, but I felt as though it cheapened the experience. To be walking down the Via Dolorosa, deep in thought and then to be asked, "Hallo, Where ar you from?" was very distracting and ultimately disappointing. Not just on that path, but all over the city. I realize that people live there and that they too need shops for food and other necessities, but I wish the city was more like the Jewish Quarter, a quiet and comfortable little place.
It was also disappointing to walk along the wall and through the historic sites and see how people have treated it. Walking through the Archaeological Park, filled with remains from over 1500 years ago and to see the part near the street looking like a garbage dump is upsetting. When will we learn to treat not only these places, but our own cities, towns and environment with a little respect? Are you telling me that these locals and tourists couldn't hold their trash for another 10 minutes tell they came across a garbage can?

Enough rambling, overall and incredible trip and one I will remember for the rest of my life. To see, read and pray where Jesus lived is truly amazing and nearly brought me to tears on a few occasions. I will return.......one day.

My Last Day.....

2007-02-05T17:02:00.000-04:00

Okay, I know I'm cheating, two posts in one day, but I head home in the morning and I want to get it out of the way.

The morning started with a walk through the Jewish Quarter, probably the only part of town that truly seems like a normal city. It's so laid back and it has a fantastic atmosphere that it's just fun to walk in.

I then went to check out the Dome of the Rock and hopefully the Temple Mount, the place it is believed that Abraham nearly sacrificed his son because God told him to. The Dome of the Rock (the big golden dome associated with Jerusalem--not the one in South Bend, IN) is a sacred Muslim site and can not be entered by any Jewish person. It is a huge complex that consists of another mosque where worship takes place, a lot of trees and open space, the Dome of the Rock (which covers the Temple Mount come to find) and the Golden Gate, where the Messiah is supposed to enter the city when he returns. Unfortunately the security folks foiled me again by stopping me from entering the Dome of the Rock, so I was unable to see the rock that Abraham nearly sacrificed his son upon.....so that was a bummer. The bonus was that I made a friend, Natasha, from Utah and we spent the day checking out sites together.

We then headed to meet with David, a student at Hebrew University (in town) and someone she met the day before. The three of us went to the Israel Museum, which would have been incredible, but the archaeological wing was closed....so we had to settle for just seeing the Dead Sea Scrolls. That was pretty sweet and totally worth the hour long walk.

After that came the highlight of the day. We took a bus to Bethlehem, birthplace of Jesus. We crossed over into the West Bank (Palestine) without any problems and took a taxi from the border to the Church of the Nativity. It was truly an awesome site to behold. There are three churches in one on the site, the oldest dating back to the 500s (at least that is what the tour guide said, I haven't checked his facts yet). There were some beautiful mosaics in the church and some pillars that had been painted during the Crusades. It was amazing to still see some of the paint on the pillars and to actually be able to see what they looked like.
We then visited the other churches, which was neat and then we were lead to a souvenir shop nearby. Then as we were leaving, the guide invited us to his family's shop (there's always one of these) and we were told to look around. Today only, the entire store was.....you won't believe it.....50% off!! Just for us! (uh-huh).
After this we took a taxi to what was supposed to be Rachel's Tomb, but we could find it, plus we wouldn't be able to get in since we weren't Jewish. So we walked up to the border crossing to head into Jerusalem. The crossing was insane. You would have thought we were leaving a detention center or just getting released from prison. If you aren't familiar with what has happened.....
........Israel has created a giant wall all around the West Bank and Gaza, to keep the Palestinians in and out of Israel. The problem is that this wall is huge....at least 20 feet of cement in some places (I had thoughts of the Berlin wall dancing in my head). On the Palestinian side, you see all sorts of Anti-American and Anti-Israel graffiti and you honestly feel bad for these people. Walking from on side of the fence to the other is literally a night and day type of experience, they are that different. Once we crossed back into Jerusalem, it was as if we were back in the West. However on the Palestinian side, it was almost as if I was back in Egypt.
Palestine says that the Israelis have taken some of their land in the building of the fence. The Israelis say that they are keeping terrorists out of Israel. Ultimately, the people losing out are the citizens, the everyday folks like you and I that just want to work, earn money and help their families. Hamas (the Palestinian Gov) hasn't paid their Gov. workers for the past year, so the Postal workers in Palestine are on strike. It's truly a sad situation.

After returning from Bethlehem, we took a walk downtown to eat at Burger King again, I know two days in a row but we don't have it in Egypt and I won't see it again till July!!!!
Then we walked around downtown before Natasha and I headed to the Central Bus Station to check the schedules for tomorrow. I'll be headed to Eilat tomorrow, probably around 10 am. Then I'll try and catch the 4:30 pm bus to Cairo from Taba in Egypt. Hopefully I'll get home around 11 pm Tuesday night......but as I've learned on this trip, some things don't go as planned.

My Second Day.....

2007-02-05T16:49:00.000-04:00

Day two in the Old City (okay, technically this was Sunday, but I was a tad busy) was pretty sweet as well. I started off the day by trying to head to the Western Wall, aka the Wailing Wall, which is the last remaining wall from the Second Great Temple of Jerusalem and is the most sacred site for the Jewish people.
As I walked in that general directions, I took the long way around the wall and around the Armenian Quarter, which is pretty empty. I then stumbled upon a sweet archaeological park in the corner of the city, next to the wall. It was fantastic and I'm surprised that it wasn't that busy. It has remains from Palaces built in the 7th and 8th Centuries, as well as some remains from basic houses at the time. The park gives you a basic history of the city and area through the years, so if you're over here, it's worth the stop.
And then decided that I was going to try and get into the wall, since it was nearby. I had been thwarted on two early attempts by the local police and the IDF (Israeli Defense Force) agents that patrol the city and the site. (Brief side note--Many IDF folks are just teenagers serving their time in the military, so imagine if you will 17 yr old high school students, guys and gals, with automatic weapons and really big guns--good call).
This time, Success!!

I managed to get through security and I was able to say a brief prayer at the wall. Next I wandered into a little room to the left of it where many people were praying, because I thought this was the Wall Tunnels.....but no, it was a bunch of men praying. I was stopped at the entrance and asked if I was Jewish....upon replying no and asking if that was a problem, the man said, "No, no problem at all, you just need to smile as you walk through."

So I walked around as these men prayed and then I left that area and found the tunnels. The tunnels were pretty interesting. I bought my ticket at 1:30, but was told that I should have been on the 1:20 group, so I hurried through and looked for the English speaking group around the corner....or at least these were my directions.
Upon not finding the group, I decided that I could wander around the tunnels solo, which looked a bit shady no doubt, but it was still fun. You got to see a lot of the wall, so arches and some pretty cool cisterns. Good times.

After this I made my way back to the hostel for a brief rest and falafel (awesome) and then I took a taxi to check out Jerusalem's best shopping area....the Jerusalem mall.

It sucked. Totally not worth the money....but they had a Burger King and you bet I ate there, since we don't have it in Egypt.

Then I came back to the hostel, walked to the bus station to check out bus rides to Eilat for Tuesday and returned to the hostel where we dissected US Marshals, a fabulous movie, for the remainder of the evening.

My First Day....

2007-02-04T03:20:00.000-04:00

My first day here was amazing. It was so busy that I actually got a blister from my shoes on the back of my heel!

I started off by taking in half of the Rampart Walk, where you get to walk on the Old Walls that surround the Old City. The walls were last reinforced in the 1500s, so it is a pretty cool experience. You get to see almost the entire city and it makes you actually realize that people do live here! I saw a couple of schools, a daycare center and even a high school, not to mention the various churches and mosques.

After that I took a stroll down the Via Dolorosa, or the "Sorrowful Way" (I think). They believe that this was the path that Jesus walked with the cross through the city. It's poorly marked, so I managed to get lost and I appeared near my hostel again, which was a plus because my camera batteries died.

In the afternoon, I took in the Garden Tomb and Golgotha, or Skull Hill, where according to the Book of John, Jesus was crucified. The Tomb was nearby and it was truly an incredible experience. I had my Bible with me and read the two chapters in John about The Crucifixion and Resurrection. I was a little upset because so many people just clicked a picture and walked away, possibly just thinking this was another "Tourist" site. I thanked God for allowing me to be here for this truly is a blessing and an amazing experience.

After that I began to wander up the Mount of Olives, stopping at the Grotto (where Jesus often went to pray), the Tomb of the Virgin Mary, and the Garden of Gethsemane. The top of the Mount provides an amazing view of the Old City and the Golden Gate. On the Mount, I read from Matthew 24 before I began to walk back down to the city.

Then it started to rain and I didn't have my jacket, so my sweater is still wet today (Day 2). It is actually still raining outside, which is funny because I haven't seen this much rain since the summer.

Funny side note, the Hostel I'm in doesn't have hot water right now, so I barely got wet before deciding I could wait to shower. Awesome.

My adventure to the Old City......

2007-02-02T15:15:00.000-04:00

As I was walking to the bus station in Cairo this morning, I was thinking about how smoothly this trip was going to work out. Bus to Taba, walk across the border. Bus to Eilat and then bus to Jerusalem. Pretty easy right?

Little did I recall that today is Friday and that everything in Israel shuts down at 4:30 for Shabbat. Uh-oh.

I didn't make it to Taba until around 12:15 pm (after leaving Cairo at 7 am. It was supposed to be 6:30, but Egyptians are always late). Standing around at a tiny bus stop, I was unsure where to go. So I started walking toward what I assumed was the border and I got lucky.
After a few minutes with the border patrol, I was able to actually leave Egypt. Then I had to get into Israel. I had to convince them that I was coming for tourism. They asked where I was going and I replied Jerusalem, the Old City.
She then asked, "What are you going to see?"
"Um.........everything?"

And with that she let me through. The drawback was that I discovered on my way to Taba that the last bus to Jerusalem from Eilat was at 1 pm on Fridays. I arrived at 1:28 pm (after paying 40 NIS for a 10 minute taxi ride). So now what???
I got lucky. There was a bus to Tel Aviv leaving at 2 and I started thinking about it. If I waited for the next bus, I would be in Eilat till 4:30 pm Sat and I'd basically miss out on a day. I decided to head to Tel Aviv and try to either stay there or get a cab/mini-bus to Jerusalem. So off I went with no where to stay and knowing full well that almost everything would be closed.

After many, many stops (Be'er Sheva and numerous bus stops ON the highway) we finally arrived in Tel Aviv. Now I was confused, do I wait till tomorrow or push my luck? Well, I pushed it. I spoke with the first guy knowing full well that it was going to cost a ton, but I just wanted to be in Jerusalem tonight. Period. Luckily (again....divine intervention?) he agreed, although it cost a ton, more than the two bus trips and previous taxi ride combined. Heck, more than my hostel for the four days.

It was worth it though. I spoke with an Israeli man that was very interesting. There was a little talk of politics and he basically has a one track mind--women. He asked many times if I was looking for women (pimp?). I said no, to which he replied, "Why not?"

An hour later, we arrived in Jerusalem. We had to ask for directions, but we finally made it. The streets are cramped, but I'm finally here........

My Conference Day...Part 2.......

2007-01-27T11:22:00.000-04:00

My second official conference day has come and gone....fortunately without any incidents!

This time it was a lot easier than the previous. I didn't have as many parents show up, although there were still a lot. It was nice to be able to spend more than 5 minutes with a parent. Usually by the time you sit down and start talking, it's time for them to leave, but that wasn't the case this time.

Luckily all the interactions were positive. No one told me that their child was scared and actually many said that their child liked my class (which was the opposite the first time because I was still being the mean teacher, establishing my routine and expectations).

Sadly though, I began to wonder if this is to be expected, at least while I am here. The kids that are truly struggling and the parents that I've tried and tried to contact, weren't there. These are the ones that I need to talk to the most, but no luck. I wonder (and slightly assume) that this will be the case in the future as well, which makes it even tougher to try and reach some of my students (and future students).