malecon 2000

So, this is from the first part of my trip to Ecuador, and the Galapagos. Amazing.

Well, so far our trip has been amazing. After a very delayed flight on Tuesday night from Miami to Guayaquil due to thunder/lightning storms and a malfunctioning bathroom, we finally got into Ecuador around 2am! On Wednesday, we walked down the very modern, new, nice Malecon 2000, a boardwalk along the riverfront in Guayaquil. It is very nice, and I am pretty sure I saw more people cleaning the boardwalk than tourists! There are also Tons of police and security guards around.

Thursday, we took a car up north. We went to Salinas (through Santa Elena), which is considered the "resort" city of Ecuador, though it is a resort resembling Seattle's Rainier Beach. No, I'm just joking, it is very nice, but it is still hardly at a level with any of the "resort" areas in the United States, and really is an eye-opener for anyone not experiencing poverty like this before ( i.e. Claire :) It is so interesting; the huge white hotels are very clean, and the beach area is very nice, but just two or three blocks away are dirt streets and houses with corrugated-iron roofs. Montanita, up north, is also very nice; it has kind of a rasta feel to it, very Bob Marley.

Today, we hiked up the 400+ stairs of Santa Ana and Las Penas, a beautiful hill with brightly painted houses perched on the side. However, it is kind of "disney-esque," in that the facades are beautiful, but if you look through archways and down alleys, you can again see the dirt roads and one-room houses. Everywhere you turn here, it reminds me of how blessed and spoiled, really, we are in the states. The top of the hill offered great 360degree views of the city, as well as a church, a lighthouse, half a pirate ship (fake), and crumbled ruins of an old fort that harken back to the days of pirate attacks on Guayaquil. A very nice climb, very beautiful.

I have learned some things about Ecuador that you may (or may not) like to know. One is that they have an entire language of car honks, and they will honk at you if you are not rolling a little before the light turns green. Very quick to honk, which brings me to my next pearl of wisdom: there are no rules of traffic. There were several times in our taxi trips around the city that there were 3-4 cars lined up next to each other across a two-lane street. Somewhat unnerving, and leads to many a honk. My dinner tonight, too, was great: I had to wear a huge bib, as my steak was served on a sizzling piece of rock. Too bad I hadn't brought my camera! I looked ridiculous :)

Virginia Tech

I'm still having a little trouble digesting everything that happened yesterday. It just makes me so sick to my stomache that someone could just shoot 32 people. Can you imagine how it would feel if a guy with a gun just showed up in your class and started shooting people? Man.

It's made me all skittish, too. I was outside reading by the fountain today, and someone popped a balloon across the lawn. My heart stilled slightly as I saw everyone peer nervously in the direction of the sound; I think we all were thinking about the same thing.


On a slightly lighter note, I started my workout class today. It was great, but honestly, my limbs feel so weak now! It's a good feeling, though.


Now, time for a shower and reading.

And continuing to think about and pray for those at Virginia Tech.

Ciao

progressives and progressivisms

Well... I haven't written in a while. Mostly, this is due to the hermit-mode I went into last quarter, a result of my Ireland class, and particularly because of my Thesis. The beast.


But, the thesis is DONE! Yaaay.


So this quarter is looking up. Waaay up. Spring break in Maui was incredible. Hiked around Haleakala, went and visited Kristin and Kyle on the Big Island, swam with SEA TURTLES!!!!! and had a good amount of frou frou drinks with umbrellas in them (most notably the amazing Guavatini).

The only problem with this quarter is: I need to figure out what I am doing next year. *sigh*

At least this quarter should be fun! And my birthday is in two days! Awesome

cheers!

alavert

Back to Seattle,
back to the allergies...


by the way, what is up with the weather here? flying in, everyone was talking about how they didn't want to go home because they had no power. wtf mate? that's crazy. people drowning from flooding in their basements, water-covered cars... geez. regardless, it is WAY colder here than in san diego.

oh, and disneyland was amazing, as always. definitely the happiest place on earth. went on all the sweet rides, and were THE FIRST boat back on splash mountain after it had been closed for a million hours. and the fireworks and snow at night were fabulous. i love that place.

ciao

kiva

I just learned about this amazing organization yesterday. It is called Kiva, and it helps out impoverished people (in Africa, Latin America, Asia, etc.). However, it is not your typical donation "let's give to the poor" organization. Why? Because instead of just giving them money, which will eventually run out, you give them microloans, or small loans (right now they are only letting you lend $25 because of the huge amount of people that have loaned in the past few days) to help them jumpstart businesses. It is a win-win situation, because you're donating to people that need it, and the money you give helps them start businesses, and get on their feet. Plus, your money gets paid back! So, you could set aside a certain amount of money to donate, and, once it gets paid back, you can just lend it to someone else. It's great. And apparently it almost always gets paid back. And, if not, you were going to donate it anyway. At least it's going to a good cause.

So that's cool. Check it out at www.kiva.org

I'm so glad that it is finally the weekend. One more week until Immersion Trip to Tijuana! I can't wait. Next week in my poetry class, we're having a pizza party; how middle-schoolish! Ha, I love it. I really want a smoothie right now... maybe I'll run to Jamba Juice.

ciao

post script

Some pictures from this summer:

Rays

Aww! Jonathan, Me, and Todd at Discovery Park
Todd and I are clearly excited

Moon over Lake Union? Not too sure where this is

Blue Angels!

Golden Gardens!

blue seahorse

I just ate an entire bag of Swedish Fish, Aquatic Life. Mind you, it was a small bag, but I still feel slightly nauseous. Oh well, it was worth it. They were mmmm mmmmmm good. (Blue is the best) Anyway, went to the gym for the first time in forever today, and I still feel like a bum. Maybe it's the weather; it's been cloudy and sprinkly and dreary lately, though the sun did peek through today and there are fairly clear skies now. We'll see. NRAP is tomorrow, which hopefully won't last the entire day. Blah, I don't know why I signed up for it. Oh well.

ciaooo!

candy

Oh, also. Just a little side-note. Last night was Halloween, one of my favorite holidays. However, I was incredibly disappointed, because we had homeless children coming to Trick or Treat in Dunne, and right when they got there, I had to go to my Tijuana Immersion class. Anyway, I ran down to the 4th floor, and got a chance to see the little kids before class. And they were THE absolute most ADORABLE things ever (well, besides maybe my little cousins). So so so cute. There was a mini-Tiger, and a mini-witch. Ah, so cute. I wanted to steal one. So anyway, that made me want a house in a nice neighborhood with lots of kids to come trick-or-treating, and also made me want my own kids to take trick-or-treating (and by now, mom/dad are having heart attacks reading this). Whatever.

So anyway, I was on duty, which sucked, but it really worked out, because I have a midterm today that is going to be terrible. Memorize 16 poems, author, title, etc. She doesn't explain anything to us. Oh well. It'll be fine, I hope. I'm getting a bit disillusioned with Halloween, too. It's just another excuse for girls to dress up as "slutty beer wench," or "slutty alice in wonderland," or slutty whatever. Honestly. Skirts keep getting shorter and shorter. Oh, and one of my residents, Adam, dressed as Adam. Biblical Adam. Id est, he wore a palm leaf. Hahahaha. That was great. Okay, no more rambling. Time to get back to studying.

ciao

real beauty

Everyone should check out this link...



http://youtube.com/watch?v=fZoyfhG0Wwk&mode=related&search=




it is part of Dove's Campaign for Real Beauty. It's really interesting, and really makes you think...

And don't worry, dad. Clicking on it will not give you a virus.

lauren studios

I am so spoiled...


I have been to 13 countries so far in my life... 13. Soooo many people have never even been outside of the United States. The really sad and ridiculous part is: I miss travelling. A lot. I was just looking at all of my Europe pictures, and it made me want to go back. There are so many more places that I could have visited but didn't. It makes me all sad and nostalgic. It was really cool being over there and having so many awesome places right there. Ah. Wouldn't it be nice if I had limitless amounts of money to spend on just travelling around and seeing everywhere? I decided that I really want to travel to Russia. And Australia. And hike through Peru and South America, eventually ending up in Patagonia. So much I want to do. And so little time. And money.

But where there's a will, there is a way. For some reason, I see myself in 10 years as dirt poor, and hiking my way around some random countryside through the mountains. Is that weird? Hopefully I'll have a llama or puppy to keep me company.

Ciao

critical essay on "say yes"

Staff meeting last night was not as horrible as expected; we even got out half an hour early! Sweet. And on rounds, Josh played the theme for Ducktails on his phone, so that was amazing. Mondays are always really busy, though, and Tuesdays will be about the same level of busy-ness, now that we're meeting Tuesdays for Historical Perspectives. Honestly. Why did I say that I would co-edit this thing? I already have no time at all. At least today isn't a day that the Tijuana course meets. Then I would be insanely busy. And I haven't started editing the poems for class tomorrow. Or written my poem. I seriously dislike my professor in Poetry Writing. Seriously. She is terrible. She is so, well, pompous and arrogant, to use the words of a certain drunken someone. She thinks that she is the end all in poets, and makes us do these ridiculous writing assignments that really cramp my writing style. Eh. Oh well. C'est la vie, et I will deal avec ca. Bien sur.

Au revoir

latin american origins

I have discovered the amazingness that is Annie's Mac and Cheese Single Servings. My life is now complete.

Otherwise, not too much going on with me. Still just up to my ears in work; 5.5 classes was not a smart move... 25 units? Yeah, no problem. :) Honestly, it's not bad at all. I actually enjoy reading for my classes; they're all really interesting. Aaand, the best part about overloading this quarter is: I only have to take three classes (including capstone) next quarter, and three spring quarter! And the spring quarter ones are all for fun, because I've basically completed my requirements for graduating. So, an awesome, no pressure, fun-filled last quarter of senior year. I can't wait. Now, I just have to get through my capstone. Hahaha.

Haven't been sleeping at all lately, because of ye old lungs. I really think I have sinus problems as well. Not cool. I honestly think that I just need an entire pulmonary system transplant. Anyone have any extra lungs to spare? Sweet.

ciao

stockholm

So, had my 5-8pm class again last night. I seriously feel like my prof is constraining my poetic tendencies. Honestly, that woman makes us write these poems from models that are just ridiculous. I mean, it's one thing to write a villanelle, or sestina, or sonnet, but she makes us do these weird contemporary/modern style-poems that have a mold, and I thought that the entire point of modern poems was that they didn't really have a set style, etc. Ridiculous. Oh well, though. I'm over it.

Finally got some sweet old posters for my room. It's pimpin' now. That's right. Pimpin'. Clearly.

Ciao

bursar

Well, Welcome Weekend went well, with no major mishaps or anything. It has just been so busy and hectic around here, with everyone trying to get settled in. My wing is crazy, of course. I heard some residents talking the other day, and one said "Oh yeah, I totally hear that Dunne 5 is the party floor." Great. Out of control. Oh, and I got a parking ticket. Perfect. We had to move our cars out of the lot for Welcome Weekend so, since it was a weekend, I moved over by Alvisos in a 4 hour lot. However, Monday was crazy busy with convocation and such, and I totally forgot to move it. Dang it. Stupid parking around Santa Clara. It sucks. Ahh, oh well.

My classes look good so far. I'm taking 5, plus the Immersion Trip class that goes along with the trip we do over Thanksgiving, which I'm really looking forward to!

Oh, and last night, Mary, Gabs, Chris and I were in Chris' room watching a movie. I happened to glance at the room right next to mine, and thought I saw red cups. So I said something to Chris, and he looked, and right at that second, we saw some people making out. That was hilarious, and we were going to wait for clothes to come off and then go knock on the door, feigning a 'noise complaint,' but it never happened. Haha. Oh well. How easily we are entertained. Oh, and close your blinds people. Honestly.

So yes. My exciting life right now. Perfect.

Ciao

aranciata

Some Switzerland pictures, as I know that you all have been dying to see...

Harbor in Lac Leman, and a purty swan








Mmm, Fondue... :) ha. Obviously, I am excited







The Jet D'Eau at night...








Fountain at night







Me and Lac Leman in Lausanne... And you can see the storm rolling in... About 2 minutes later, we were soaked and running as fast as we could uphill towards the train station... Awesome

pubquiz

I feel like I am constantly starting posts these days with, "Well, I haven't written for a while..." I feel lame for not posting more often, although it is probably good of me to actually be out doing things than constantly in front of my computer updating my blog.

Let's see, what has been happening. Well, for starters, I went to Switzerland for about 5 days. It was amazing, of course, as Switzerland always is (haha, what a jet-setter I am). The flight over, might I say, was awful. Stupid Lufthansa switched my seats, so instead of a nice, comfortable seat, they sat me next to a terribly obese man who had to put the arm-rest up because his fat was spilling over into my seat. Now, normally, I do not care one cent if a person is obese; that is their health problem, not mine. But when they are taking up half of my seat on a 10 hour flight, then I get angry. I really should have complained to a flight attendant and made them give me a different seat, but, being the passive person that I am, I didn't and got stuck with half a seat for the duration of the flight. Plus, there were a million Spanish students on the flight, being obnoxiously loud, and two Italian males with the worst B.O. I have smelled since I was abroad that would waft back to my seat every time anyone walked by. Needless to say, it was not a pleasant flight.

But Switzerland was awesome. Dad had his little meeting in Lausanne, so I got to wander around Geneve by myself all day on Thursday. I went to St. Pierre, which was beautiful, and then I got to go down to see the archeological ruins underneath; apparently there has been a church of some form or another on that site since 380 C.E, and it was a site of pagan worship before that. So I got to see some really old wells and gorgeous mosaics that are still fairly well-preserved. It was awesome, you know me, the history nerd. So that was neat, went to the Museum of the Reformation too, which was interesting. Then I just wandered around the old town, and by the waterfront with the Jet d'Eau, which was really cool, but kind of random. Friday, dad and I took the train to Zermatt to see the Matterhorn. Zermatt is a very sweet, beautiful, quaint town, with lots of cool shops. We got a fondue lunch, and I had a lot of fun, although it was frustrating because it had just rained, and it was clearing up as we were getting into the town by Clogtrain. But, there was one, solitary cloud in the sky and it was RIGHT over the Matterhorn. So I couldn't really get a good picture. But right as our train was pulling away later, I got a glimpse of it, and it was awesome.

We stopped in Lausanne on the way back to Geneve, and got caught in a freak thunderstorm. We were down at the waterfront eating ice-cream and we could see these black black clouds rolling up, so dad's like, we need to leave NOW. So we're running up the hill to the train station as fast as we can when it starts to POUR. Not just rain, but RAIN, like in Forrest Gump when it's coming sideways and up from under you. The trees were all swaying and leaves were blowing all over the place, small bits and pieces of them getting lodged in my eyeballs. Now, I'm wearing a skirt in an attempt to look Euro-fabulous, so I'm running up the hill with the wind blowing my skirt up. I'm pretty sure I flashed about every Swiss male and female that we passed. So, we're running up the hill, my dad yelling shit! shit! as his silk shirt and glasses are getting wet, my skirt is flying up around my ears, and I am essentially running blind because of the massive amounts of debris that are lodged in my contacts. So I start laughing maniacally as we're running. I am pretty sure that we looked insane. It was good times though.

The flight back wasn't nearly as bad as the flight over, although they did change my seat from an aisle to a center seat (Don't ever fly Lufthansa. Ever). And we made it back in one piece. All in all, an amazing trip.

Going to a Mariner's game tonight, then pubquiz at the Ram, so it should be a good time. I'm still trying to figure out all the good places to go out in Seattle. Any suggestions? haha. Anyway, that's about it.

Ciao!

band of gold

So... haven't written in a while. I am a huge huge bum, this is understood.

San Diego was amazing, and it was good to finally (finally!) see Jeff again. 6 months is a long time to go without seeing your boyfriend. But yeah, anyway. Went to the Wild Animal Park, which was really fun. We took the little monorail safari thing right around sunset, so it was beautiful, and all the animals were frisky and frolicking around after a day of heat and sun. We saw some massive rhinos up close. It was sweet times. AND we had an "animal encouter" with some Serbylls. Or however you spell that. They were pretty cool little whild cats that are somewhat like mini cheetahs. So we did that, went to the beach, went to Old Town, had a nice dinner downtown. A very good, fun week. 24 too, of course. Haha.

Oui, so seeing Jeff was good, and it was sad leaving him for another two months. Oh well. I just don't want him to go do his fellowship in Israel now, what with the whole "war with Lebanon" thing. You know, minor issues such as missiles being launched, etc. etc. We'll see what happens.

Oh, and Kristin, did you get my email? I emailed you back from my email address. Let me know if you got it, becaues I haven't gotten a response yet.

Yeah... so that's it... Oh, and I'm going to Switzerland for a few days at the end of the month. Sweet! Can't wait....

Ciao! Forza Italia

mariani mangos

Soo...


Fiorentina wine-night reunion next week?? Ashley better get her butt up here to Santa Clara. Or is it down? I don't really know where she lives... But it's close...


I'll bring the Vino Verde. Or Spumante? We'll see

Thetoric, Identity, and the Radical Imagination

Okay okay okay


Mi dispiace...I haven't posted in forever, I know...


Not really anything new down here in ye old Santa Clara. This quarter has been ridiculously busy, and this week is especially a week from hell. Let's see, I had two papers due today, 11 and 6 pages, respectively, an annotated bibliography due on Thursday, and two papers due on Friday, a 15 pager and a 4-6 pager. I think (and pray) that the 4-6 pager on Friday doesn't actually have Friday as a fixed due-by date, so we'll see how that goes. Other than that, I am in miserable shape for my 15 pager. Oh man. So, I'm just hoping that I will survive this week, and then make it through next week as well. I can't believe we only have three more weeks left of the term. What?! What happened, were did all the time go? The Haus is graduating... wtf, mate? I am not prepared for this.

Hof just sent out an email about a potential trip to Yosemite this Friday and Saturay. I think it would be awesome, but we'll see who else is going; I don't want to end up the third wheel to Hof and KD, if you know what I mean. Hahaha.

Okay, well, I probably should get back to researching. Although it sucks that I'm not a senior and couldn't go to senior ball this weekend, it was probably for the best, because I spent most if it in the library. Oh joy. Oh, and my English class today got cancelled because only 3 people showed up. Honestly, how much do we pay for this education? Go to class. Seriously.

K, will update more exciting details on my exciting life later....

Early Republic

Wow, I have been such a bum about updating this thing. I have had massive amounts of reading from my two English and two History classes, but I guess it is no excuse.

Let's see, what to write. Well, the guys are all graduating at the end of this quarter/ have graduated already/ are only taking one class, so their senioritis is kind of annoying. Because I still have work. Lots of it. And it makes me sad that they won't be around next year anymore. Okay, no more depressing thoughts...

Yesterday was a busy day. I was busy doing stuff during the day, like meeting up with Hayley, class, a Phi Alpha Theta meeting, and then had my class from 7 to 10 pm and THEN had a volleyball game at 10:30. Which we won. I hadn't played in a year... Wow did I blow. Oh well, we won anyway. But, needless to say, I was exhausted when I got home last night.

I'm happy, though, because it has been beautiful out yesterday and today. Hopefully it will stay this nice!

ciao