I can’t believe it is already June. I’m into my final month here in Bolivia. So much has happened since my last update. Once again I feel like I have too much to share. Here are some highlights. February was yet another action packed month. I celebrated my 18th birthday and my family and friends both here in Bolivia and back home in Canada made me feel special. It was a little weird to have my birthday so far away from my family but my family here made my day wonderful. We celebrated with a great party with all my friends. There was pizza, music, dancing and cake. What more could a girl want? My family in Bolivia knows me well.
February also meant starting back at school after the summer break and I am now in the Promo Class (graduating class). I will only be with this class for the first half of their year and then I will be heading back to Canada. I spend every second day working with the grade three classes. I’m really enjoying the kids and it is sure helping my Spanish. As far as my promo class days I love the social times of lunch and breaks. I have made very good friends and my Spanish has improved to the point that I understand almost everything that is being said. When it comes to class time I much prefer hanging with the grade three’s.
We also celebrated Carnival in February. This was a wild and crazy time. It was for sure my favourite week here in Bolivia. I have never experienced anything like it. Carnival is usually celebrated in countries with a strong Catholic representation. It happens on the days leading up to Fat Tuesday which is the day before lent. In my mind Carnival can only be described as a huge party. My family, Michael’s family and Meghan partied in the plaza along with thousands of others. The first night we went to a big parade until around 3am. It was amazing to see all the costumes, music and big floats. The next day we went out into the streets where we threw water, paint and ink at everyone! I mean everyone. There was music and huge crowds. The time went by so fast. I wanted to stay all night. The next couple of days were spent with family, which I loved.
I have grown very close to my family here and I enjoy every moment I get to spend with them. My host family and I and usually Michael (he and his host family come almost everywhere with us) went on several trips and have experienced tons of things. I will have so much to share with you when I come home. I couldn’t ask for a better host family.
Another new thing since my last update is I have seriously started dance. I am dancing 4 days a week with an amazing group of dancers. It is mostly ballet with some Latin jazz. My class is 15-21 year olds and our teacher is an exceptional dancer with a very strong accent. Thank goodness I have my ballet terms down because at least I understand him when he speaks in French. We dance in a garage and I actually sweat to the point that I can’t even feel my face when I touch it. That took a bit to get used to but I am having so much fun.
One of the biggest changes that has happened for me over the last few months is in myself. I recognize how much I am growing as a person. I am grateful for having the opportunity of exchange. To see things I would have never seen. Meet people I would never have met and experience things I may never have had the courage to experience. I no longer feel like I am a tourist visiting a new country. I feel like I live here and I fit in here. I have been here nine months and time is flying by.
The past few weeks I’ve also had to experience some of the most difficult days of my exchange. It’s the time of the exchange where we have to start saying good-bye to some of the exchangers. Some of the best friends I have made while in Bolivia have been other exchangers. There were twelve students from around the world in my host city of Santa Cruz and so far I’ve been to the airport twice to send my friends off. No one can truly understands what you are experiencing while on exchange except another exchanger and because of that we have all become very close. Over the next weeks we will be saying goodbye several more times. There will be goodbye parties, and hugs at the airport. It’s making me realize how soon my exchange will be over and I want to take advantage of every last second I have left here. So I will Be Present, Be Grateful, Be Engaged and Be saying Yes to every opportunity presented to me. Most importantly I will be spending as much quality time with my host family as I can.
Chau. See you all in July.
Kate
Blogivia 