Writing from Bozeman

Hello!!! im sorry for the lack of posting, its been a while but there's a reason :)....it has been 3 weeks away from El Salvador, for the ones who don't know, i'm in Bozeman, Montana USA. I arrived exactly on May 15th and believe it or not, this is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too different from ES. A day before coming, my family/friends came over and made a farewell for me :(, it was a bittersweet feeling since i was happy and sad at the same time. My friends stayed until 11 pm and then i packed;  i did not know what to pack since i knew i was going to come to a different place where the weather is not merceful jajajjaa. It was  hard to find the right outfits and i didnt want to leave my tiny shorts and my lovely dresses :).I woke up at 4am and my family drove me to the airport. I was excited but somehow at that time i didnt realise that i wasnt going to be home for a whole year.

My departure was at 8am and at 7.20am i said chauuu to mi mami papi Raul Tavo Stefani and tia Deisy. When entering to the checking-security spot, i looked back again for a last time and my parents were in the very bottom of the big lounge. I started to feel sadness and lots of memories came to my mind, i cried a lot the first half hour whilst being on the plane, i couldnt hold it anyomre, i had realised i was not going to see my family, friends and pets in a year but i was happy that this year might be a crucial one in my life. The first stop, LA :), big modern city. I had a gap of 6 hours though :(. Luckily, my relatives were waiting for me in the airport, i phoned my parents and told them i was safe, but sadly, time passed by sooo quickly that out of a sudden, it was time for another adios :(... I was off again, second stop: Salt Lake City, Utah!! OMG it was sooo nice to see the Western Rockie Mountains, beautiful view. I arrived just on time, then, time for another plane jajajajaja the final one that was going to take me to my final destination: BOZEMAN!!!

When arrived there, i was scared, the weather here is insanely Coooooooooooooooooooooooooooold!! i was taken to my dorm and barely slept for 2 hours. The next day, i went to the International Department since i was going to be tested, i was placed in level 6 :) which is something good since it tells me that my English  is not that bad jajajjajjajaaja, the teachers told me that had good pronunciation and gracias a Dios i got good results =) . The classes are nice, sometimes tough, though. I have exams, quizzes and presentations  almost everyday which is something that used to scare me the first and second week but now it seems i am getting used to it. I haven't had time to do lots of exercise but I've gone to the gym twice a week, i hope i can organise myself better. It's almost summer here and the weather is freezing  sometimes. I cant imagine what the winter time will be like :S i am going to die literally jajajaja
The people here is kind and warm, they don't look down on you but they always give you a hand :). My teachers are so nice to me, they told me this week that i was doing great in their classes and to keep the same rhythm. Homework is assigned almost everyday which is good sometimes, but  there have been days when i feel quite overwhelmed. It's part of the game, though !!

I have made many friends so far, international mostly. I have learnt  a couple of Arabic, Russian, Chinese, Mongolian, Korean, Japanese and Turkish words. I know how to write Sonia in Arabic jejeje their alphabet is very difficult to learn but i love it. I went hiking with friends the first week, partied a couple of times and yesterday we went to YELLOWSTONE ;) we didn't see the gazers, though, only bear, deer and bizonte foot prints which scared me out jajajajajajaja. My first snow encountering
 was yesterday at Yellowstone hiking, i fell down a couple of times but i expect to be better next time. I have had a good time being here so far and  i just hope that everything works well for me. I just want to thank everyone who helped and supported me, i thank God for giving me this opportunity and hopefully i will be posting more good stuff about this wonderful experience. I miss my country and my family but hopefully, i will be back better prepared and with higher expectations :)

more Pics coming soon ...

Bendiciones

Adios El Salvador, see you next year

Last day in ESA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!For the ones who don´t know, there is something i need to tell you! one of my biggest dreams have finally come true; i just cant explain how i feel now, there are lots of mixed emotions inside me.
 Tomorrow i will be leaving my country to study in the United States  a whole year :), i must accept that mi mami y mi papi were right. They used to tell me "hija, tenes que ser paciente, Dios siempre tiene un proposito para cada uno de nosotros, no te desesperes / Be patient, God has always a purpose for each of us", and in the twinkling of an eye, these words became a reality .
 Exactly a year ago, i was struggling against many situations that put me very vulnerable physically and emotionally: injuries, sickness, problems with sports authorities, etc. i remember myself feeling sooo depressed seeing a lot of corruption, zero support  and unfearness towards us, my dad´s horrible illiness that  thank God at the end was controlled, and a final irreparable situation that blacked the first half of 2010, the passing of my closest cousing  =(, i was devastated and frustrated, there were moments where i felt useless and  worthless, a fit of anger seized me because i couldnt do anything to make things work out again; at the same time, it seemed that all my efforts were not paying off, at that momment i couldnt understand that you cannot do anything to avoid those situations, it´s something out of human control. I always tried not to dissapoint my teachers and get good grades, i reminded myself i  wouldnt let these situations break me down because i was determined to put aside the problems and move forward with my life. 
My parents were always very supportive, their advise is always a key ,helpful and wise, they are the only ones i owe so much, i owe them the person i am now . They always enophazised me to be patient, not to let anything nor anyone put me aside the right path and keep the humbleness that i was taught since i was a kid.  It´s been a long journey with ups and downs,though. I think life is a balance between what is or isnt right to be done, you choose the right desitions in order to succeed in it, it´s all about learning new experiences that make us grow as professionals as well as persons. 
Today, things seem very different, a new challenge is coming and i am going to get the best out of this new blessing! I am quite scared though, i havent been so long away from home, but i bet this experience will be unique.I feel soo grateful with the people i have been surrounded by: family,  uni friends, teammates , neighbours, coaches, teachers ,  Marta, Fernando, Carolyn and World Learning who made this possible. I´m looking forward to this experience and I promise i will try to learn as much as possible... The only message i would like to give all my readers is not to give up, please, believe in yourself and your capacity and as San  Francisco de Asis  quotes "Start by doing what´s necessary then what's possible and suddenly you're doing the impossible" , NADA ES IMPOSIBLE, NUNCA LO OLVIDEN.


I will be updating as soon as i start my journey... okey my friends pray for me and wish me luck :) 

community work :)

Last Wednesday??

Wednesday has been the chosen one definetely!! The whole semester weekly duty was done on that day, it seems that at the beginning i used to pray for not to face this day jaja, but now it seems i`m afraid no more.
Wed, 5th was a very particular day since i arrived at the Uni acompanied =). My younger brother Raul offered himself to film the class; i would have rather not to but somehow i was a bit curious about what my performance looks like, i think it`s like when you are either swimming or running and you think you are doing the right technique but when seeing yourself in a video, you`re actually not.
Well, at the beginning, i just begged the students to behave naturally, that message was reminded me also because i felt quite nervious. By the way, i am not sure whether this was going to be my last class. I  was just determined to do the best i could, not because i was being recorded but i wanted to have a higher score since last weeks one wasn`t that rewarding for me, nevertheless, i was confident this class should be way better than a week ago.
This time, i could notice more participation which is something i like. I hate to be ignored by the students. Even though the class was based only in grammatical stuff, the guys seemed quite interested in my explanation. I have to say that these people are really catchy, a single explanation is enough sometimes. I think i managed myself  to have a good performance, i didnt roll my toungue as last class` explanation (a total disaster) and my nervousness dissapeared. This time i was more careful when giving directions, my brother told me that sometimes i speak too fast though he understood my explanation.
At the end of the class, my tutor asked me to stay a while. He kindly congratulated me for my trip to Montana in front of the students. It feels super nice when a person stands out your qualities and achievements. I gave the students some pieces of advise to take advantages of the opportunities life can offer, you never know what the future will be like,therefore, there are always chances to get through the obstacles we may have in order to succeed. I encouraged them never to drop out University and to think ahead. I empasized them that   intelligence , determinance, willigness, courage and humbleness is what really counts at the end of the road. Just give it a go, and keep trying. Impossible is nothing!!

25 sec of my duty ;)  





9 min

Almost...

welcome winter !! posting whilst raining :)

Awwwwwwwwwww!!! what a sensation :) winter is finally here, it´s pouring down here in Santa Ana and i bet it is in the rest of ESA.. i love to end up a insanely hot day with a refreshing gift..Thanks nature!!!

Btw i promised to write something regarding to last week---> Semana Santa. I certainly cant ask for more, i had so much fun!! these have been one of the best Semana Santas i have ever had i promise!! here there are some pics about it.