Wow

            Wow, a lot has taken place since my last blog. I’m officially in the 2^nd part of my three part trip, teaching at the high school. The day after posting my last blog I packed up everything I had with me and moved into a new apartment. This apartment is about two blocks away from the high school and is very nice. Ironically the place is too big for us; we only use about half the space that we have. Brady and I each have our own rooms. This has allowed me to spend a lot of time in reflection and talking to my Daddy.

            The catch to this nice apartment is that there is no internet. This has also been a good thing allowing me to eliminate the distractions that surround me. However, without internet, communication back home is scarce to none and the moral support I received through it has diminished. Still, this has made me find more support from my Daddy. Although I do want to admit that I still miss home, friends, and family.

            Teaching at the high school has been a blast for me so far. Brady and I teach all our classes together. Our first class every morning starts at 7:35 and we are done before noon every day. We then teach a much more open and free class called English corner at 5:10. Hanging out with the students is a blast. They love to talk English with us and take our pictures. I haven’t played any hacky sack because there hasn’t been a good spot to. However, I have been playing basketball with some students on a regular basis.

            Even though it has been a blast hanging out with the students, we don’t get to spend much time with them. High school is considered the hardest time in a person’s life in this country. I once went to the school at 1:00 during that huge break we have to play basketball with the students and no one was there. They have classes from 7am to 5pm and then they have study session from 7pm to 9pm. So the only time I get to hang out with them is from 6 to 7. This has caused an awkward amount of free time which I have spent doing school work, playing on my computer, and reading lots of books.

            Now that I have gotten in the mode of high school another curve ball has come. This next week is a national holiday and the students have school off and are asked to go back home. So Brady and I are going on another back packing trip during that week. Then when they get back we go on our midterm visa run. The visa run is only a couple days but we are going to spend our cultural (vacation) days afterwards. That means for the next two weeks we won’t be doing any teaching at the high school.

            However, I am very eager for the next couple of weeks and the rest of our stay at the high school. This has already been a very blessed time here and I believe it will only get better. I apologize if communication will be sketchy the next couple months but just know that I’m doing what I love to do. Thank you all again for your support; even reading a blog like this helps me know that I have people back home that love me and support what I do. You are all very wonderful and precious to me. Thank you.

Why So Soon . . .

. . . well it’s because there are some things I wanted to tell you and I didn’t know when I would get a good opportunity to share them again. You see Brady and I are moving this weekend into a new apartment that is closer to the high school and I don’t know if it has internet access. So here are a few things I wanted to mention before we leave.

            We got to talk to the head English teacher the other day and we will officially be teaching at the local high school starting this next Monday. We will have about three classes in the morning, some we will teach separately some we may teach together. After lunch we will have a break and then come back in the afternoon for an English corner were we get to discuss anything we want with the students. After dinner we are free to hang around the high school and hang out with students until they have a study hall at 7:00.

            I really hope to pour into these students lives over the next nine weeks or so. This is honestly the part of the trip I’ve been looking most forward to. However, due to our housing situation I have no idea how well I will be able to update you guys through email or Facebook. You guys really are the third man on our team and I’m sorry that you might have to play bench for a while but just know that things are still going great down here. Thank you guys again for the support I love ya.

Thumbs Up

            Hey guys haven’t talked to you in a while and I had a few things I’ve been looking forward to sharing with you. Things have certainly gotten familiar down here and there is not the same awesome culture shock that I had at the beginning of this trip. This blog may not be as enthusiastic as my others because the outrageous has become normal to me now, however, I will do my best to share what is going on. Our homestay / language study is coming to an end. Although I have enjoyed the time I’m excited for the next part of the journey.

            Talking about the next part of the journey what lays ahead for Brady and I is probably the most fun part of our semester abroad, high school. We are leaving next Friday to go live in an (air conditioned) apartment just outside of the local high school. Details are not official and are general but from what we can tell we will teach two classes a day and have an English corner each day where we will talk to the students. We also will be living close enough to the city to visit our favorite drink shop on a regular basses. On a personal note I’m going to start playing hacky sack again and hope to get some locals involved.

            As far as things are going right now is a time scheduling mess. Last weekend we went out on a trek and our schedule was packed prior and during that trip. With language nearing the end there are no new lessons and we are reviewing the material we’ve learned, so that is easier. Also with language nearing the end both Brady and I are trying to get school papers written before teaching so we can be freed up to talk with the students. Then stuff has happened were we have entire days off or we have a day that was supposed to be off and then it ends up being busy. Needless to say we are just enjoying the journey one step at a time.

            As for our trek last weekend it went really well. We were able to get to different locations and order hotel rooms by ourselves with the language we’ve learned. We walked down some paths until we reached a village and then watched a film with the people who lived there. Certainly some received us better than others but we left each village with no bad feelings. The trek gave me time to really grasp my current situation and it helped me understand Brady a little bit more.

            As for my last blog I would like to tell you that most of those things have been resolved. The weather has cooled down as we are entering fall season, and sleeping has been better as a result. My thoughts haven’t been getting to me and homesickness has decreased. Brady and I have become a more effective team as we have learned how each other works. I’m not putting on an act in front of you guys things are really getting better. Thank you so much for your prayers and support it has really made a difference.

I wish I could make this a more emotional blog and drag you guys through the struggles and joys of living here but honestly things are just going good as usual. In the end I guess that’s the best kind of report I can give you in this blog. Here’s a big thumbs up from the other side of the world. Thank you guys again for the support, I love ya.