So Excited!

I am so excited to be travelling to Ecuador!  The excitement never really sunk in until I finished exams last week! One reason I am excited to go on this trip is for my own personal development, I want to understand my own strengths and weaknesses and recognize where I can improve in certain areas. Some of my other goals include utilizing my critical thinking skills to think about the social issues affecting the people of Ecuador and to create new friendships with my group members. There are so many amazing opportunities that we will be able to be apart of! I can't wait! Let the last minute packing begin! See everyone Friday!

See you soon, Ecuador!

Growing up in Vancouver, I could see the mountains from my bedroom window and I still have yet to go an entire year without being in the ocean. These two pieces of information are central to my idea of home, so in just five short days I will be venturing off, with new friends, to a new version of home for the first time. Quito, a beautiful city in Ecuador, is surrounded by mountains and a few hours from the coast. As I travel, some of my goals are to build new relationships, think critically, try new foods, and put a real effort into learning Spanish. 

I can't wait to meet you, Ecuador. See you soon! 

Ecuador, here we come!

Less than 2 weeks to go time!  I've been looking forward to this trip to Ecuador for months now and its finally almost here.  Now that I'm 3 days from finishing my final practicum block in a school in Winnipeg, I'm excited to see what a school in Ecuador will look like and experience the education system there.  My favourite part of travelling as always been experiencing new culture, so I'm excited to try new food, meet new people, and hopefully learn a little Spanish along the way!

I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!!!!!!

I have seen the sea, rivers, lakes, beaches, grasslands, swamps...and soon I'll have seen forests and mountains. I am on my way to Ecuador, a country that possesses some of nature's most spectacular sites. I believe Earth is ardently beautiful and one has not truly lived, until we have discovered and tasted all of its spectacles. Sometimes  I wish  I could dip a paint brush in the rippling sunrise, or bottle the smell of the Mediterranean Sea. Ecuador is home to the Amazon Rainforest, Andes Mountain Range, and Galapagos Islands.  I can't wait to visit a country and meet all its beauty whether in its animals, vegetation, people, or culture. Stay posted, and I'll take you on a journey of what beauty truly means. Until then....remember to look up.

Welcome to the Ecuador Service-Learning Experience (ESLE) 2014 blog. The ESLE is a program organized by the Student Life Office at the University of Manitoba in which participants volunteers as language assistants in three different schools of the Municipality of Quito.
Students work alongside teachers from the Quito Municipal School District, our partner in Ecuador, during the month of May, and learn first hand about the public educational system and the culture of Ecuador.

During their placement students will contribute with their stories in this space.

Make sure to check our blog regularly to read more about what they are seeing, learning, and experiencing!

DA