So I taught my second class today, which was fun. We did an activity called My Life in Ten Years. I´m going to f¡nish reading them all tonight and I can´t wait for it! Anyway, I thought I´d throw down another episode cuz I had a bad ass weekend. So Saturday was started off with 7:45 rendezvous for a nine o´clock class in the capital (standard approach considering that our classes have started at eight o´clock every day since we´ve arrived). My group is apparently not taking anymore classes because we are in the ¨Advanced Section.¨ I don´t buy it for second and almost wish we could take more classes. Although I suppose this is one of those first things the peace corps does to force you to learn on your own.

After class on Saturday I went home, had my gallopinto (Local mixture of rice and beans famous throughout Nicaragua) and went to the local market to buy a new shirt. It ended up being an interesting adventure weasling our way through mange-infested dogs. I bargained my way into a pretty cheap, decent shirt, though... mission accomplished. I went back fully intending on going to one of our towns biggest parties of the year, but promptly passed out. The next morning I woke up at seven thirty to go on a nine thirty hike down a trail in a near-by town with some fellow aspirantes. We hiked down to la Lagoona de Apoyo, which was gorgeous. Some fourteen of us spent the midday in the sweltering sun, enjoying the water in profoundly deep volcanic abyss. We took the bus back to Masatepe and had a traditional dish called bao. Bao is a rich mixture of platanos maduros and verdes, carne, and yuca steamed in a banana leaf. It´s served over rice with a vinegar rich salad... ricisimo!

After that I met up with a bunch of out of town aspirantes to watch the bull-fight/rodeo barrera. The entire afternoon was framed by a downpoor of tropical proportions (funny, huh?) I bought a beer, and a local drunk bought me another. From what I understood of his slurring, he liked Americans and wanted his son to learn English. I doubt any of that will come to fruition, though.

So although this was a much more active weekend than usual, I just realized how different my life is. I thought this weekend and my allocation of free time might highlight that. I never thought I would turn down a party cuz I was tired, and I never thought I would be teaching high schoolers... My next couple of weeks will more than likely be filled ith a lot more reading, so feel free to send the books! My e-mail is ogreynolds@ameritech.net if anyone wants to send any direct questions.