Just...Inconvenient.

So...about 10 of the 15 volunteers we have here left this weekend. I think that by the end of my time here, I will be pretty darn good at adios-ing. I´m sure there will be new volunteers very soon, but still it feels pretty weird.

This weekend definitely had a theme of bad luck. On Friday night, we all went out and we were sharing drinks all night. A few hours later I hear someone say "Man, my throat´s been hurting SO BADLY this week." So, of course, about 3/4 of us developed a cough, sore throat, stuffy nose, etc. this weekend. I basically slept the day away yesterday. No fun! I can´t imagine that Quito pollution helps the situation very much either....

Despite the sickness, etc., a few of us volunteers and my host mom took a day trip to Otavalo on Saturday. It´s main attraction is a very famous market, supposedly one of those things you have to see before you die. We all had a good time, but I´m not sure it is all that it´s hyped up to be (none of us were very happy campers when we got there, either, because we thought it would take 2 busses and 2 hours to get there, but it actually ended up taking 5 different busses and about 3.5 hours). I only bought one thing--a pair of earrings for $1--but I had a great time watching Aude, master negotiator, bargain everything down to about half of its original price. When we got back on Saturday night, Aude and I met another friend in Mariscal (called "Gringo Landia" by many natives) and splurged on...Italian food?? No rice! No meat! No bananas! By the way: by "splurge," I mean it cost us about $4 each to eat.

I also washed all of my clothes this weekend with my pink towel. When I took the load out, almost everything I owned was covered in light pink fuzz. And I can´t get it off! So...I may or may not be walking around in fuzzy clothes...forever. The end.