Where am I?

The spanish teachers decided to use today as their holiday so I got to sleep in this morning! After a nice morning of sleeping and hanging out, I headed to Maximo to wait for Arielle so we could head to our site. While I was waiting there, I started talking to a boy from Costa Rica who was taking English classes at Maximo and wanted to practice. We chatted for a while and I helped him with vocabulary and pronunciation. Eventually he had to head to class and I had to head to Rayito. I still hadn't found Arielle so I decided to just go. It was a bit frightening doing it all by myself, but I just needed to trust in the fact that I do know what I'm doing.

While I was riding the second bus and staring endlessly out the window, I started getting nervous. I had no idea where I was. I kept dozing off and I was really afraid I had missed my stop. I didn't recognize anything and I was nervous I would end up in a neighborhood I didn't know again. Luckily, right as I was about to call Maximo for help, I saw Rayito and jumped off the bus.

As I walked in, I noticed there were no other volunteers there, just the women who work there every day. I was late getting to work because I had to wait for a bus for about a half hour, so I assumed the other people would already be there. I did my best to play with as many kids as I could and we all ate lunch together. Eventually, two other volunteers showed up and we split the job. I headed across the street with some kids and we played in a big field. While the kids were playing football, I saw a big group of people walking down the street. As they got closer, I noticed they were carrying a casket. "It's a funeral," one girl told me. She speaks English really well and helps out since the owner is her aunt. We watched as the group slowly walked down the street.

When work was done, I headed home. Before I took the second bus, I stopped at the Artisan market again. I loved being there and I chatted with so many people. I found gifts and clothes and I could not get over how much I loved it. A lot of the venders know English, so I enjoy hearing about their lives. I was sad to leave again.

When I got back to Maximo, I found Arielle. She had gone to a volcano the night before and had just gotten back. We went to Mundo Loco and got some food and some drinks. It was really nice chatting and after a little while, my roommate Paige also met up with us! I loved chatting with them and hearing about experiences.

It was a nice day, and I'm glad it's Friday. I'm excited for the weekend. We plan on having a girls day tomorrow since it's Arielle's last day. I don't know what I'm going to do without her! We were together all the time and are so similar. It's sad, but I'm so excited for our day tomorrow.