Census, TeleferiQo y màs Guayasamin ...

¡Saludos de Quito!
I have settled back into life here in our barrio after a great few weeks at home celebrating Christmas and the baptism of my twin nieces! I did have a bit of an exciting time trying to leave in December when I was informed by the Migracion worker at the airport that I needed a census card in order to exit the country. After a few brief moments of panic, I convinced her I was coming back in two weeks and she said I must register as soon as I return. I was able to get in with no problems and after Nicole arrived last weekend we made a trip to register for the Census. I felt sort of like Mary and Joseph … haha. We made it to the office and since we sort of knew what to expect (after our last fiascos with the government) we got in and out in about an hour. We are now OFFICIAL! :) With our little laminated IDs in our pockets, we decided to try to hit up a few nearby attractions. First stop: The Guayasamin Foundation – which includes the famous painter’s house, a huge religious and indigenous art collection and some of his own work. We just really like what he does and enjoyed seeing some more of his powerful, expressive art. Since we still had about half the day we made our way (the long way around of course after getting several different instructions on which buses and stops to take) to the TeleferiQo. This consisted of an enclosed cable car taking us up to the top of the Andes for a view of the entire city and surrounding mountain range. It was breath-taking but very windy! We enjoyed the ride almost more than the view.
I was overjoyed to see the kids at school again and enjoyed hearing them say, “Senorita April que linda viene.” How beautiful you arrived … the direct translation doesn’t really do it justice but it’s sweet nonetheless. It has been so much easier to adjust being here this time around, and I’m so thankful for that. The kids are just full of energy and are really excited about the new books, games and toys I brought (thanks to a few generous donors!) I have been deciding I probably don’t want to work with this age forever, especially after the experience with sickness these past few weeks. I’ve seen more vomit at school than ever before in my life. Guácala (yuck!)
Bishop Danielo, came to our house for a visit a few weeks ago. He’s on a quest to visit all the religious communities in Quito, which I thought was really awesome. He is super down to earth and really funny. We enjoyed getting to know him and he recorded each us each telling a little about ourselves and why we were here. (I’m sure its not easy to remember everyone when you’ve been to visit over 100 religious orders!) He celebrated Mass for us in our little chapel and then joined us for supper. He was excited to hear about the U.S. and then kept teasing me about not telling people there about things he did.
I am excited to see what the next few months have in store for us here. I am continuing to enjoy getting to know the community, the country and myself through this experience.
Know that I think of you all often and am praying for you.
Love,
April