Camp: Day 1

Lesson learned: Team building exercises only work if you work together as a team. Also they are easier to explain if you speak the language. So the human knot game is really really rough in a kids camp in the Dominican Republic just for future reference.

But seriously working at this kids camp has been really great, given today was the first day of camp. I am working with kids who are older but at about a 3rd grade level. They are very energetic but I think that hopefully they will like summer camp. Also my spanish needs to get better so get better it will. Direct quote from one of the teachers- You will be severely blessed for working with these children




These are the cute children right when camp was starting.

Okay, peace out.

Life lessons learned through surfing

Hola from the DR! We haven't had tons of time for computering and it doesn't seem like we will have that much time in the future but I am having quite an enjoyable time here. My chaco line is great after only one week.

We also have the chance to go surfing every morning if we want to. I decided to get in on this even though last time I surfed I was not too successful. So the German teacher picked us up and took us to the beach at sunrise. The first thing he did was take us to this bench where the sun was rising and told us to look at the ocean and that we should never be in a rush to get in the water but that we should sit and look at the waves and enjoy it before going into the water.

How was the surfing you might ask? I got up nearly everytime... with a push from the teacher. A much better experience than last time. Tomorrow's goal: get up without a push.

Then after a brief on land lesson he explained that just like in life, you should never look backwards or sideways- always forward on the surfboard. I quite enjoyed the life parallels. While I am on the subject of life I have an announcement. I was going to wait until I had my call but I was expecting it today and it did not come... I am going on a mission! So I am pretty excited about that.

The spanish is going pretty well. I mean I understand almost everything I just need to work on talking more. I am excited to start camp next week. I will be working with children age 11-14 who are behind at least 2 years in school. The kids are so cute and energetic!

Thats all for now.

PS sorry about there being no pictures... I haven't taken too many and it doesn't seem to be working!

The United States of America

Turns out I kinda like it here. But not enough to stay for an extended period of time. I am over half way done with my time in Utah before I head to the Dominican Republic for 6.5 weeks. I am pretty excited that in 2 weeks I will be living the dream.

You might ask, What have I been doing in my month off?
Please see the list below:

Working an average of 10 hours a day. (note: that is the majority of what I do)
Seeing and chatting with friends in all of my "free time"
Bridal showers. Love 'em.
Being completely crazy in a not-as-funny-as-you'd-think sort of way.
Learning to drive a stick shift. Yeah, turns out that is harder than I thought. I can drive approximatly 1 mile as long as there is less than one stop sign and it is not on a hill.
Driving to provo. love construction.
Running (of course).


Well, I think that about covers it.

Dear Cuenca: I miss you

Dear Cuenca,

I liked you a lot. You are home to many cool people. Also I enjoyed your not so ancient history (note: Cathedral finished cerca de 1930)and flower market that was just 2 short blocks from the hostel. Your Spanish school was really great and I enjoyed my cultural lessons everyday. 6 hours a day was just the right amount to not make me crazy but also make me learn. I also liked your small quaint streets.

There are somethings that I wont miss about you... Like the scrambled eggs Hostel Castallana served EVERYDAY. The receptionist at the hostel who glared at me every time I walked past her. And last but not least, the lady who sold lottery tickets right under my window.

The view of the street from our hostel room.




Also, one thing I never tried, but wanted to was one of these guys:

But you only sell them by the whole cuy (guinea pig) and some members of this group did not want to try cuy.

All in all, I think you are a pretty great city and hope that you are well without me (though I don't really see how that is possible). Please tell your friend the Amazon that I am looking forward to getting to know them this weekend.

Warmest Regards,


The now, almost conversational in Spanish,
Amelia Wegener

Today we are back in Quito, which I like, but not as much as Cuenca. Tomorrow we are headed to the amazon jungle for the weekend and then it is back to the States for us (for a month!). Also I finally got my plane tickets to the DR. turns out it is super hard to get there from SLC, I am flying on a red eye to atlanta which should be pretty fun.

Also completely unrelated, some people are idiots. I just have to say that to the world. There are very few people who I can't stand, so chances are pretty good that you aren't on the list. But seriously. idiots.

Amelia Wegener: Wild Stallion Tamer

Okay.. Not really. But, we did go horseback riding in the countryside today. It is one of the prettiest places I have been and it was nice because there was no noise/cars.



Also, unlike a lot of tours on horses, it was just us and the guides. Also my guide happened to love galloping (which I found out today, so do I!) So we got to gallop through the green countryside. It was pretty amazing. I think that I am going to be sore for weeks, but I guess thats the price you pay right?


I might have accidentally fallen in love with my horse. Whoops.

Also we got to wear these huge mud/rain boots, which made me wish I lived in a rainy city so I could rationalize buying a pair of rain boots. But it did start pouring mid ride and they kindly provided ponchos for us to wear.
What is the first movie to pop into your head?

The guide (Juan) and I both thought it looked a little Lord of the Rings-esq. Regardless, it was a lovely day, and only rained for a couple of minutes.
Well... Thats all for now.

No, I am not catholic.

I am not apologizing for not blogging in forever because it drives me nuts when people do that. I hope that you don't mind but I am going to blog a little more about Ecuador because there is one specific thing that I have been wanting to talk about.
So, I said I had a very unique experience, and I can finally upload the pictures to tell about it.
So we were going to spanish school, and in the evenings they offer cultural classes. We decided to go to the one about the Chamanismos because we knew very little (or some of us, nothing) about it. So we went and learned about the healers in the amazon tribes, called chamanismos. They would diagnose and heal the people in the tribe. They especially were used in "cleaning" of people (mostly children) who had caught bad air.

Our teacher actually had some practice in this sort of cleansing, though she is not a Chamanismo, she is a corendera (women who still practice the cleansing) So at the end of learning about it, she demonstrated on me.

The cleaning consists of using a beautiful bouquet of natural plants.


First, she breaks the plants just enough to release the smell and the person inhales 3 times to help them relax. Then the bouquet is used to hit (for lack of a better word) the patient with bad air, all over the body.



Next they take an egg and rub it all over the body. It is seen as a life, and it is absorbling the bad air out of you. The egg is then cracked in a glass of water to show the condition of the person's spirit. Don't even worry that mine was tranquil. Yeah, what can I say?



After that, they take this water/flower/alcohol mixture and spit it all over you (gratefully for me, I just put flower extract on my hands and ran it through my hair and we called it good)



Finally, to finish up they draw 3 crosses made of ash and water on your forehead, back and stomach. Sorry for the inappropriate-ness, I had to capture the full experience.

Don't worry, we asked and its not dark magic and I am not catholic now (at least not to my knowledge).

I actually really loved getting to expericence this and learn about a whole new culture and way of thinking. Big shout out to the little boy who let me take his picture for this blog. His mom said that he loves to be cleansed and everytime they are in the city he asks to go there.

Why my major ruins traveling

Okay, maybe a bit of a hyperbole but seriously. I might be a little obsessed with dietetics, and it may have taken over my life this past year. Still under debate. But I wouldn't change my major for anything. So this is where we come to the problem of it ruining my travels. One word: Food Safety.

I mean I am all about trying new foods. As long as that food hasn't been in the 'danger zone' (41-135 degrees F) for more than 4 hours. I also would prefer if the food was made in a sanitary environment and that the employees washed their hands for 20 seconds with hot water after touching their hair/face or going to the bathroom. I really don't think that is too much to ask.



But apparently it is. In one of my Spanish classes I had to explain what food safety was. I don't know if I could really drive the point home in my broken Spanish.

But every time I sit down to eat I have to think "don't think about how this was made or how long its been sitting out, or how it is probably not the safest thing to be eating, just eat it." And it usually tastes just fine, and so far only a few upset stomachs.

Also a fun little Ecuadorian trend; they don't ask you if you would like potatoes, fries, or rice- because your meal comes with all 3. So when I come back 10 lbs heavier, please don't ask why.