Waterfall!

So I went to Giron which is like an hour away by bus, super fun stinky bus! Anyway it was a rainy day, but I got even more wet after hiking up to the waterfall. With all the rain it was a super strong waterfall and the mist was crazy. In one of my pictures yo can see me fighting against the wind. Anyway I ate hornado! Roast pig is delicous. Especially when you eat it with your hands. So that was a fun day trip and the muddy roads really made me apreciate the truck we were driving up in. A couple times I was like please don't get stuck, cause I didn't want to get out and push.

Recently I have begun to Monopoly. The other day Roli and I searched like 6 different stores all over town for it. Of course we cold have bought the 25 $ version, but we're cheap and bought the 6 $ version. So now we play it like almost every night, and I basically almost win. It's all about getting the monoplies early, but they've caught on to my sneaky little game and now won't sell me anything, so I need a new strategy. It just makes me think of playing when I was little with my brothers on the floor and the banker was under the table with the bars so we couldn't get to the money. Good times Good times! Anyway, I go home in like 3 weeks and I'm realy excited! July 16th I come into the Salt lake airport at like 9 am. all night flights rock! Anyway here are some pics from the waterfall! and a video!

kay sorry I will have new post, it just deleted it all so tomorrow there will be new stuff, sorry

Birthday!

So I had such a great birthday and good friends to share it with. On my actual birthday I went out with roli to a fancy restaurant. On saturday I had a party in the apartment and went out dancing! wahoo It was fun and I was tired after. I got sick the week after and am still harboring some phlegm. yuck! Anyway I am coming home in about a month and am excited to go home, but sad to leave my friends. so here are some pics of it all!

Beach TRIP!

So I went to the fabulous beach here in Ecuador. In the city of Montanita. I took a 6 hour bus trip with my friend Jasmine and we made it during the night. Can I just say I hate national music here in Ecuador and movies that have so much action there is no dialogue and there is a reason they didn't make it in the box office. I was subjected to both on my trip there and back. But, it was great once I was there. I stayed in a house with some guy friends the first night and a hotel next door the next night. It was super fun. We had mosquito netting that looked like it was a princess bed. Double purpose! looks cool and protects you! haha. Anyway, I got a lot of beach time in the morning, it was so nice! I even found a couple sand dollars! Some were still alive so I threw them back. I could have learned to surf because apparantly there are no sharks here, but I didn't feel like eating seawater up my nose that day, so watching the amateurs was fun! I got a trenza in my hair too! It's when they rap hemp and some beads around a piece of you hair. The guy said it could stay for up to a year! haha. We'll see. I like it though. I got a fake tatoo as well! I had a lot of fun walking around and buying jewelry. I stayed in the actual town called Olon, which is like 2 minutes away from the action in Montanita, so We HITCHHIKED! wahoo! It was a first, but we ended up doing it like 5 times. I think the bathing suits helped, just kidding(well one time I was wearing my bathing suit). Anyway, there aren't really frequent buses and taxes are people in old cars say taxi. So you can just flag someone down and sometimes they charge you a quarter other times they think you're cute and just drop you off. It was fun. I stuck my thumb out and everything, finally I can use my hitchhikers thumb!
Anyway, I got sunburnt, but it has turn to a lovely bronze color! haha. I want to go back, I couldn't remember why I had to come back to Cuenca when i was there. It was like there was a memory block on the reason to come back. So me staying with the boys created soem jealousy issues with the boyfriend since I had a fiasco with two, before. basically they were fighting over me like a teenage flick! Que ridiculo! Anyway, it was worth it and invite anyone who wants to come visit me to the beach! love you all and hope to be planning a trip to a waterfall nearby to show you the pics!

PS the llama pictures were great cause I was thinking ¨llama face!¨from emporer´s new groove. it was great at the time, don´t worry I laughed!

I´m still alive!

So I know it´s been a few months and it is all my fault and I´m sure some of you were wondering if I got lost, but nope, just lazy. So one major festival I have to relate is the one calle dCarnival. It is in the beginning of February. The problem with this is that the natives are so zealous about the activities they start in January. THey throw water baloons. It doesn´t matter old, young, dressed up or not, they will nail you. I got hit 9 times! Yes, I counted. One time after church in the back of the neck. It hurt a lot the next day. the problem is they throw them from moving vechicles so it adds a bit of velocity. Cowards. I had a few choice words when I got nailed, but what can you do. So the days of carnival, if you are smart you hide in your house. I went to play despite the freazingness. The first day Rolando got me soaked head to toe, I got him back plenty, but in less time. Thanks to my skills learned growing up with vengeful brothers always trying to catch me for something my evasive maneuvers worked quite well. Roli only caught me cause I came back towards the house. One of the days I went to Gualeceo(a town) where they throw you in the river and then throw flower on you so you have to go back in the river to wash off. Some places they throw paint or rocks, I like the place they throw flowers. Anyway I planned ahead and brought a change of clothes and was going to change to my swimsuit there. Bad mistake, I was in the back of a truck and everyone started throwing water baloons at each other before we got there, therefore, soaked freezing Jessica. Oh well.

End of February I did two things, I went to Inca Perca ancient inca ruins, and I joined a gym. Still going by the way. Some of the pics below are of those ruins. I went with my two buddies Myra and Tatiana. we had fun. We´re kinda the 3 musketeers we go to the gym and do lots of stuff together. That was fun. I faked being a college student and so I kinda look latin I got in for a buck instead of the 6 dollar gringo price!

In January I started classes at the university again and it´s more fun now that I know what I´m doing. I also moved out of the house and got my own apartment! It´s cool, although I had to learn how to adjust the propane tanks for hot water. You learn something new every day. I also took another trip to a place called chobshi. It is ruins of the people who were here before the incas called the canaris. The river pics are from there. It was great but lots of climbing. As usual in all the pictures I am being a dork and had a lot of fun at the same time.

Latest news is that roli made me dinner and there is a picture of how he arranged it so fancily. cool, I know, don´t worry he isn´t coming home with me although I wish he could meet everyone. Except for that whole not speaking english part. Anyway that´s about it for now. General conference was fun, I chatted with the gringo missionaries and made chocolate cookies which turned out really hard, I blame the altitude. i did make my first apple pie though, that was a success. I didn´t get seconds. anyway I love you all and can´t wait to visit and talk to all of you again in July when I come back!

Left:my kitchen Middle:stove and stuff Right:Roli and me

Left:food he made for dinner Middle: LLamas!llama face! Right:Claiming territory

Left: cool trees in the canyon. Middle: On top of the wall Right: Canyon
Roli cooking and to the right me posing! cute!


Top left: cool mud wall

In the canyon to the left

Below being sacrificed by Tati

Right bottom: I am indiana jones!

Below: Face of the Inca, Can you see it? Middle: hanging on for dear life.

then I repeated the pic, oh well i'm not perfect

I love christmas, but goodness it was too short. Only a week and then I came back. New year's was good here. They burn human size manican's that represent all the bad from the previous year. Kinda feels like home since my brother's are piros and there were a bunch of fire works. Oh I got my first midnight new year's kiss, wasn't as cool as I though it would be since I can kiss my boyfriend whenever, but it' s a check on the list of the things I've wanted to do my whole life.

So I'm finishing up finals at the university and I get a month of till the next cycle, but I still teach in the afternoons. Hopefully I get to go to the beach for the weekend to hang out in a couple weeks. There is a thing called Carnival here where they just eat and throw water baloons at poor unsuspecting streetwalkers. It doesn't start till first week of February, but yes they like to get a jump on the baloon throwing early! ugh. yes I've been hit in the leg! I was so mad, but what can you do when they drive away in a car? Any way here's a picture or two of christmas and me and roli! Hope to write more when something exciting happens.

Oh I did go to the hotsprings again, still gross,but cute little town and great french fries after!