My new school, playing baseball, and learning spanish.

BASEBALL

So the past few weeks I havent gotten to be able to go to our games, or when I have havent been put in many of the games. Our team is really good, so its not like Im sulking. But I wanted to get in, and today in the game they put me in. I still havent been able to do well batting, but I didnt do too bad at second base today. heres some photos. It felt incredible to get out there on the field. Its a childhood dream Ive had to pick up baseball again.

I just need to mention it that my real childhood dream is to be a pitcher. Ive been practicing quite a bit. He even had me warming up in the bullpen today, but I still need to control my pitches better before being put in. But Ill keep at it, and Ill be a hell of a pitcher one day.

LEARNING SPANISH

I am beginning to love being here. I am actually blown away that somehow, some way, I am learning spanish. I can have conversations now. I can understand what people are saying. I can respond (sometimes correctly).

Isnt that incredile? In the beginning, I just force myself to talk to people, to struggle thru, even when I didnt get what they were saying to me. I have kept at it every day, and even tho at the end of every day, you cant always see how u progressed just in the past 12 hours, but put those days together, put those conversations together, and, its incredible - you just learn.

Granted, Ive put in hours and hours and hours of studying, looking up words, writing things down, using words in sentences, asking people how to say things, watching movies and reading in spanish. but what amazes me is that before, i just to just hear a lot of babbling words, but now they are ACTUALLY words, that i can understand, that have significance. The human mind is incredible.

MY SITE VISIT - FAMILY AND SCHOOLS, AND BEAUTIFUL VIEWS

I visited my permanent site last week, and it is nothing shy of incredible. This community called San Jose thats surrounded by mountains, and the mountains are like RIGHT next to my community. It looks so boss. And from the baseball stadium, which is at the top of the hill, you can see mountain ranges way off in the distance.

Its surrounded by a community that specializes in milk and coffee production. My mom brews organic coffee every day, and shes an incredible cook. I cant tell you how many cups I had while I was there. so good.

My family there is incredible. The 13 year old boy is one of those rare mixes of a genius who is actually really cool and good looking. i dont know why thats a rare mix, but i feel like it is. my 19 yr old sis is really nice, just super geniune, but i am most impressed by the dad. he is involved in their lives, sits and quizzes his son each night at the dinner table, has a great playful attitude, and is just a lot of fun. There are few fathers who do that (im totally generalizing), but he does it, and he does it well.

I visited 2 of the 3 schools I will be teaching in. They are in rural communities. So show you how rural it is, one of my schools has 10 kids. ten. thats one classroom. the kids are from 1st grade to 6th grade, roughly 2 kids in each grade, but they all get taught in the same room. aka, i will be a teacher of a class of kids from  6 to 12 years old. Talk about a challenge.The other schools are very similar.

ITS CHEAP HERE

hair cut for 80 cents, a coffee for 8 cents, and 12 bananas for 45 cents.

went to the beach, and had 6 beers, a huge lunch, and went horseback riding on the beach (without a guide, they just give u the horse and u go where u want), all for 15 dollars. thats nuts.