Well actually day three technically. After all the trouble getting here I've spent most of my free time sleeping. But that doesn't mean we haven't been busy. Straight off the plane (after a lengthy conversation about lost bags) we came to the house, did a quick orientation, and did a day long city tour. We visited all the cool places I remembered from last time. The hippy market, the artisan stores, plaza de San Fransisco, the old cathedral and the new, the flower market, the list goes on forever. But it was a blast of nostalgia that really got me excited for the stay here.
Day two was as if not more tiring. It was day one with the kids. The volunteer house is now onsite at one of the orphanages so no bus ride in the morning, which I found I kind of missed. Who'd a thunk I miss a good commute in the mornings. Anyway the great thing is I get off of brushing my teeth and I go straight to brushing kids. We worked our first day in Casas Esperanza and Milagros, where because it is a special needs orphanage, most of the kids there were the exact same as last time. I got to say buenos dias to all the kids I said goodbye to last time, and that was really special. We did all the favorite activities: futbol, musical wheelchairs, and plenty of books. I also got to meet new kids that have come in since, and I'm really excited to get to know them and love them like I do all the kids here.
Now today was kind of a doozy. If you haven't heard of the earthquake here yet, get out from under your rock. Cuenca (the city I'm in) wasn't affected much at all. Maybe a few houses in the city were damaged, but nothing like the coast. And the hurt that was felt there has made it's way here. Today we spent all morning helping with relief efforts. We went up to the food bank (which for some reason is way up high in the mountains and has a beautiful view of the city but that's beside the point) and helped sort, package and send donations. It seems like everyone in the city gave something. Some people wee able to afford enormous 75 pound bags of rice, and some (most) people just took empty water bottles, filled them with water from their own sink, and sent it out to the people in need. It didn't matter if you had nothing. You found something to give. One particular thing I found was a small bag of diapers, that someone had taken a sharpie to and written: There is strength in Ecuador. Now my Spanish isn't that good and maybe my translation was terrible. But it was a cool moment for me to see the whole country work together to help with relief efforts. Anyway, I'll update you guys more as I see it, and I have quite a few pictures to put up when I have the time, but it is not this day.
