BAÑOS& English teaching

Hello my dears! I haven't been in touch for a little while because I was a bit sick for two days.
Nothing serious, but I needed some time to recover. I think last week was just a bit overwhelming, but I wouldn't change anything!
After the exciting Amazon trip, I went straight to Baños, a popular city for travelers here in Ecuador, the very next morning. After a 4-hour bus ride, we finally arrived and checked into a very nice hostel with a rooftop bar. The night, including breakfast, costs ten dollars - 😌
Then we explored the city together; Baños is known for its nice shops and beautiful nature surrounding it. We visited a small waterfall and then had a delicious lunch. In the evening we met many young people at the hostel, with whom we went to a bar :)
Since we were all quite tired from the journey, we went to bed early. Unfortunately, I only had one night in Baños, which is why the second day was already my departure day! However, it was only in the evening that I returned, so we made the most of the day by visiting the most famous and largest waterfall in the area. It was truly impressive, and the entrance fee of $2 was fantastic compared to the entrance fees in Costa Rica ($15-25)
Afterwards, we drove to a garden area at almost 3000 m where you could swing in a very cool way. The pictures turned out really beautiful.
In the evening, Marion and I returned to Quito, as we both started our volunteer work on Thursday. I switched my project in the meantime; just a week ago, I was still on the bird farm, but unfortunately, there was the problem that I was the only one doing the project, as all others had already left.
The way to the bird farm is manageable together, but alone it’s not really safe, and I didn't feel comfortable! An hour and a half travel time, three buses, and getting off in the pampas seemed too risky for me, which is why I'm now at a secondary school here in Quito, where I can walk there in the morning.

Here, I help with the English lessons for children aged around 12-14 years.

Per day, I have 4-5 hours of lessons, but there are also small breaks in between.

The children are all super nice and welcomed me very warmly!

The school is modern, and the lessons are not really different from those in Germany. We read texts together, sing songs, and practice the children's pronunciation!

Unfortunately, as the teacher explained to me, incredibly few people in Ecuador can speak good English, as many do not see the point in it. They will always remain in South America for work, and only Spanish is needed.

She believes that this is a reason why the economy is not performing as it could be, as job opportunities are limited when one cannot speak English. If more people spoke good English, one could stand out more internationally.

I haven't really noticed this; many of the children speak an average level of English, and some are even very good.

However, this is also a school that places particular importance on English lessons!

After two days of school, I had a quieter weekend, during which I met a new German girl!! She lives only 15 minutes' walk from my house, and we really get along very well. I'm looking forward to spending the next week with her :)

Until then, I wish you a nice first Advent,

For me, it's hard to think of Christmas with 31° and radiant sunshine :)

Best regards,

Your Paulita 💞