With adorable photos flooding my facebook feed of tiny children heading back to school, it's safe to say it's that time of year again...time to sharpen the pencils, pack those lunches, and hit the books! #firstdayofschool Here in Colombia, we have been back at it since August 12th, as South American schools do not abide by the post Labor Day start rule (sigh...Colombian Labor Day is May 1st). Even though it is our 6th year of teaching, Conor and I still had our fair share of first day jitters. What should I wear? Do these earrings make me look strict, but also fun? Having one year at Colegio Bolivar under our belts helped a lot, and it was comforting to return to a school we knew, full of people we love. Despite this, the first day was still an adrenaline heavy blur as Conor and I tried our best to pronounce our new students names right on the first try, and lay out the protocol for our classes in a cool but"we mean business" kind of way.
For some obvious reasons, returning to Colombia for year 2 has been a much smoother transition. Not only do we now know the ins and outs of Colegio Bolivar, but we're also much more comfortable living in Cali in general. Small things like the fact we both speak much better Spanish than we did a year ago, and know which grocery store has the freshest produce really do make a big difference. Cut to cute montage of our calm current daily life in Colombia, spliced with a hectic montage of us one year ago, struggling to have our internet installed and accidentally ordering strange food due to misinterpreting menus in Spanish.
During year 1, I tried to make our settling in process both transparent and entertaining, hence this blog title- "Getting Schooled." I know we will continue to have many cringy, yet funny moments learning the Colombian culture, but I think it's safe to say we've come a long way since last August. When we returned this year, Conor and I tried to "pay it forward" by welcoming the all new teachers with a pool party our our apartment. We are still so grateful for the people here who reached out to us when we were brand new, and for those who gave us such good advice. For anyone going through a transitory period in their life, or more specifically, people who are thinking of moving to a new country, here is a short compilation of the best advice we have received and given:
1. Try new things, and laugh at yourself whenever possible. Humor keeps you humble and helps you remember things going"perfectly" is overrated. :)
2. Socially, you might feel out of place at times, and that's okay. Making new friends doesn't happen instantly, so try to have patience, and keep putting yourself out there.
3. Getting comfortable in a new workplace can be hard. You might suddenly miss your old workplace routines, even if you were happy to leave. This is normal. Give it time.
4. If you have a long list of "to do" items, try to do ONE task per day. Colombian services move much slower than those in the States. If you try to run multiple errands in one day, you will end up frustrated.
5. Spend time in nature, soaking in the sun and the sights. You will be amazed by the beauty that surrounds you. Kicking back by the river is a great way to process and appreciate all the changes in your life.
This month, we also returned to some of our favorite traditions and activities here in Cali. I hit up the aerorumba dance class with many other Bolivar teachers, Con and I returned to the gym, and we enjoyed the annual teacher party at the waterfall. However, my favorite moment was when Conor and our friends Owen and Dylan took over the tradition of plotting the trail for the first Cali Hash Run of the year.
What is a Hash Run, you ask? It's a kind of running/social event in which a few people plan a route (usually about 5km in distance) which takes a big group of runners, joggers, and walkers through a fun and interesting part of a city. First, everyone meets up at a local bar or restaurant to socialize and drink beer before the "hash" officially begins. The planners, called the "hares", leave for the run about 15 minutes before everyone else, marking the trail using sidewalk chalk. Then, when the 15 minute waiting period is over, everyone else chases after them. The hares use many symbols to indicate the direction for the group to run in, and also make false trails along the way to slow everyone down. The goal of the run is for the group to catch the hares...which is easier said than done.
Last year, Conor and I ran the hash together with the group of runners trying to catch the hares. I loved it because it felt like The Amazing Race or a giant game of Adult Hide and Go Seek, which is right up my alley. Since Conor was one of the people we were chasing this year, it was the first time I was running without him. Although I was a little nervous (can I even run without his constant encouragement?), the route ended up being awesome. This time, the running group was me, our friend Merri, and two of the new teachers, Kesli and Pete. The route included lots of detours through local parks, in which were had to go down slides and run through other playground equipment before moving on. Per tradition we marked all the trick trails as "false trail" and all the right trails as the "true trail" with our own chalk so the joggers and walkers could finish in a reasonable time. I figured Conor, Owen, and Dylan were way ahead of us...but they actually only arrived at the finish about ten minutes before us! Look out boys, next time we're coming for ya!
August Favorites:
-Hosting the first official teacher book club meeting at the container park to discuss "Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
-Chasing the Bolivar Iguanas around campus...I know they missed me!
-Floating down the San Cipriano river in giant inner tubes with friends Jess and Owen, and riding a brujita – a motorbike attached to a wooden platform with benches, placed on a train track, to reach the river
-Decorating our classrooms and prepping for year 2 at Bolivar
-Cheering on the Senior class as they did the traditional Senior Entrance at the first day of school assembly...cue rocking music and a bunch of PUMPED teenagers
-Flying kites with our friends Nikki and Diego and their adorable dog, Grunge (see photo of Grunge flying a kite below)
-Soaking in the sun by our pool and revisiting our favorite neighborhood spots
-The annual teacher party at the local waterfall, Chorera de Indio
Getting Schooled:
A few weeks into the school year, the high school hosts its annual open house. As we said before, our Spanish has improved a lot since last year, so Con decided to do his entire presentation in Spanish. Go Con! I stuck with saying the opening in Spanish, and then let the National Honor Society member I was assigned translate for me. Most of Conor's presentation was smooth sailing (besides a few minor grammar mistakes), until he got to the part where he explained to parents that his wife (ME!) taught their children last year in 10th grade. At this point, Conor gestured to a picture of the two of us and attempted to say "my wife and I have been married for two years." However, instead of using the Spanish word, "casados" (married), he accidentally used the word, "cansado", which means tired....which means he pointed to me and said "my wife and I have been tired for two years."Con, if you're tired we can let up on our gym routine. Cue lots of laughter from the parents, and his translator jumping in to save the day. Whoops!