I am living.

I would like to preface this post with a ‘cheese’ warning. If you are not in the mood or even remotely in the mood to read something to read something that is a bit cheesy, then read no further and save it for another day. Enough said here.

Anyways, I have been in Cochabamba for almost 3 weeks now and it’s hard not to reflect at all on past experiences or life in general. This is a life changing experience and it would be difficult not to do so.

So far, the phrase ‘vivir bien’ has continually reappeared everywhere since I have been here. In articles, books, lectures, and everyday conversations, and most especially everything related to President Evo Morales. He swears by ‘vivir bien’.

Vivir bien instead of buen vivir. Meaning, live well rather than better living. Better living implies living with more possessions and more money rather than living well with everything we already have; striving for personal happiness rather than personal wealth.

All these discussions remind me of one of my favorite quotes by Henry David Thoreau. Of course I have to share it with you.

“I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, to discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience, and to be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion.”

So often we become absorbed in our everyday routines... sometimes that routine becomes our life.

I think it’s INSANELY important to take a step back from your everyday everything and think… why am I doing what I am doing now? Am I really living life?

I know we all have goals… Make more money, get a promotion, get good grades, etc. I want to be a doctor and that goal will be very difficult to achieve. But honestly, what is the point of a goal if you are not enjoying the process of getting there?

It’s one thing to go on living with your everyday routine, but are you really living?

Question:

What do you live for?

What keeps you alive?

What keeps you passionate about life?

What makes you truly seize the day and milk every moment out of a situation?

Do you really live deliberately and suck out all the marrow of life?

These things can be big or small, insightful or superficial… just anything.

I would just like to take this time to kind of reflect a bit… What do I live for?

I live for…

My family.

An unforgettable adventure, big or small.

Rowdy dinner conversations with my friends.

The feeling I get whenever I am on top of a mountain in Colorado, especially the Continental Divide.

Long bike rides through unknown places or through Denver metro on the bike path I could bike with my eyes close…

Huevos rancheros from Annie’s Café in Denver.

Creative soccer plays and seemingly impossible shots on goal.

Escaping awkward situations by getting flustered.

My sister, Laura. She is everything to me.

The feeling of arriving in a new country… the overall combination of jet lag, unmatched enthusiasm, and curiosity.

The complex simplicity of music… rock n roll, metal, oldies…

All nighters with Caitlin.

The first meal at my abuelo’s house in Chicago and the company that comes with it.

Academic epiphanies.

Cuddling with Santi and Chula. Not simultaneously… oh if only.

The amazingly delicious Orgasmic Chai tea at Uncommon Grounds in Minneapolis

The moments when you feel like a puppy or a new born baby where everything around you is something new and exciting to explore…

Inside jokes.

Paneer Masala.

Having an amazing insightful conversation with my abuelo… solamente en español.

Backpacking.

Finding something you have in common with someone…

The first bite of a Chipotle burrito bowl, with chicken, brown rice, black beans, sautéed peppers, pico de gallo, corn salsa, sour cream, cheese, lettuce, and, of course, the GUAC.

The excitement of a new Harry Potter movie, when the title of the movie slowly zooms in and everyone screams in excitement… or maybe it’s just me who screams ha.

The moments where you realize again and again that your friends are family.

The stillness of sitting next to a lake in the mountains or in my backyard or somewhere calm and the realization that comes with it… that life is good.

Never-ending feasts at Kalyn’s or Julia’s home.

The Friday night restaurant dinners with my family… the contentment of the drive home when my dad plays oldies music and sometimes we sing along or just sit and listen… Just that overall feeling of comfort, from a full stomach and being surrounded by the most important people in my life. Nothing comes close to this.

Laughing hysterically.

Kathy Kim’s one liners.

Rowdy interactive Apples to Apples, Scattegories, and Catch Phrase games.

Making something insanely delicious with no recipe while listening to some chill music…

My friends… I would do anything for you all. Landy, Caitlin, Kalyn, Julia, Maya, Kristen, Kathy, Bailey, Joe, Marshall, Clara, Katy, David, Jane, Olivia, Eric, Jeremy, Moose, Igor, Kaitlin, Allison, Machal, Sam, Mac, Seth… I am so lucky to have you all in my life.

My new friends on this amazing adventure in Bolivia… Annie, Nora, Molly, Charlotte, Matt, Seth, Clair, Stef, Catie, Cam, Genna, Allegra, Adina, Liz, Katie, Alex, Maddy, Claire, Amanda, Jenna, Deanna, and Yunni…

The now.

Life.

What have you done today? Whatever you have done, can you really say you are living?

I challenge whoever may be reading this to take a moment and make a list. It can only do you some good.

I am proud to tell my parents that I am doing exactly what they asked me to do while in Bolivia: live everyday as an adventure and treasure it. I know, it’s kind of cheesy to think about it that way, but how else can you??

I am living. I am living in the now, the present. I am living with purpose. I am living deliberately. I am sucking out all the marrow of life right now.

Here’s to the now and the present.

FINALMENTE!!!!

OK!! FINALLY!!! A post. Sorry to all who have been (patiently) waiting for posts. I will not have internet very often but I will do my best from now on to update this more frequently.

Anyways, I’ve decided to not write in paragraphs. It might get boring. As many of you know I often remember little/random things about places, people, etc so I will do kinda the same thing in this blog. I guess I will write random statements, facts, observations, sentiments, etc. This will keep it A LOT more interesting for me… and hopefully for you too!!

Grammar and syntax is not my goal in this blog. I want to recount everything as I see fit. Sorry to my professors/bosses who are following this blog…

FYI photos will likely not be posted just because it will take FOREVER to load a single picture.

I love Bolivia.

Ok I’m done!

Just kidding.

Ok, here it goes…

I waited 6 hours in the Miami airport for my connection from Miami to Santa Cruz, Bolivia. During that time, a gazillion people in my study abroad group showed up at the terminal.

I love awkward first impressions, mainly because I love making first impressions a little awkward. Ha

I waited for my flight in DIA with my friend Leigh Bercaw, who is now in Madagascar!!! INSANE! (Pat you should a note in her file that says, “Leigh is JUST AWESOME and an all around amazing person.”)

This girl Annie from Conifer, CO was on all 3 of my flights. She is the only person in the group who appreciates my weird face making skills AND random sound effects, probably because she does the exact same thing.

In total, I got 3 hours of sleep from when I left my house at 8am in Denver to the following night in Cochabamba. Everyone else was in the same boat.

There are 23 students in my group (including myself), 21 girls and 2 boys. (HA!) Everyone in this group is AMAZING!!! I don’t say that lightly.

I have never gotten along SO WELL with each and every person in a group this large since my high school club soccer team.

Pepto Bismol is a life saver. TMI maybe?? (TMI = too much information hahaha)

I love my host family. I have a mom Danitza, a brother Sergio (25years), and a sister Denise (22). My abuelos (grandparents), an aunt, and a great aunt live next door.

My Bolivian mom reminds me of my real mom; she’s always very excited about everything and excited to see me. I can’t imagine a home without that type of enthusiasm.

We live in a nice neighborhood called Sarco. It’s a 30ish minute trufi ride outside the centro of Cochabamba or a 10 minute car/taxi ride.

I don’t know what fluency is exactly, but I know I’m pretty close. I can feel it. 21 years of work to get to that point and I’m ALMOST THERE!!!!!!!

My brother is extremely protective of me. I think I kinda know how you feel Laura… It’s weird being the youngest sibling in the house…

Yacua is the name of the first Bolivian food I learned. It’s a really spicy salsa-like sauce. LOVE LOVE LOVE!!

We have a few chickens, 2 dogs, and an iguana living in the backyard. They are my brother’s. He loves animals.

Every day I take a trufi to and from home after each 3.5 hour class (one in the morning and one in the afternoon). I guess it’s about 2 hours of commuting each day.

My family laughed hysterically when I told them we have a dog named Santiago. Apparently, that’s a name only for humans…

I have learned so much about Bolivia from books and articles, but it is nothing like the books. It's one thing to read something and it's another to hear someone tell you about it from there perspective.

My sister wants to be a doctor too!! She is sooo much fun to be with!

We all come home for lunch because it is the biggest meal of the day.

I don't understand how people do not support human rights organizations like Amnesty International or the Human Rights Watch. It's easy for people who sit at their desks as privileged people and claim human rights as a Western perspective. I totally understand because I used to think it too. But HONESTLY, can you really say human rights don't exist for some people?!? Only people of Spanish decent, but not indigenous? Only Israelis, but not Palestinians? Only 'Americans', but not American Indians??? WE ARE ALL HUMAN BEINGS!

Sorry, for the rant. I just found out more than I needed to know about the School of Americas and its effects on Bolivia, but more importantly on one of my academic directors.

I am craving beans, rice, and tortillas right now. Ok FINE!!! I’ll be more specific… Peruvian beans, long grain brown rice, and corn tortillas from the Mexican grocery store near my abuelo’s house in Chicago.

A trufi is a big van with a set (well kind of set) route that only costs 1.5 Bolivianos per ride, no matter how far you go. (~7 Bs per $1)

I tried to explain the American expression “duh!” to my Bolivian family. It didn’t work.

Every night I go to sleep listening to crickets sing, fireworks going off, security whistles blowing, horns honking, and dogs barking. I love it.

Majority of the vocabulary I am learning here (SO FAR) is either the name of a food or somehow related to food.

Traffic lights don’t mean anything here. Ismael (one of the two academic directors of the program) says they are decorations.

I have 13 connections with the people in my group, aka 13 “oh I know _(a person’s name)_ too!!!” HAHA

Every morning I wake up to something delicious smelling coming from the kitchen and dogs barking (even more), roosters crowing, and even more car traffic.

My first Sunday in Bolivia, also the first full day with my Bolivian family, we made bread. Sounds simple?? Yeah right!! We were baking from 2pm to 11pm!!!!

I’m eating meat everyday here. Weird...

So far I have 3 nicknames from different groups of people here. My brother's girlfriends family calls me Eriquita, my teachers and academic directors (ADs) call me chistosa (the girl who is always making jokes and laughing), and this girl in my group calls me charming. Apparently I am charming!!! haha

I saw the Disney movie “Tangled” in Spanish the other day with my sister and a friend from the group named Katie, who lives a block away. I understood everything except some of the song lyrics… Gosh she has such LONG HAIR!!! Ew…

I saw many cheap violins in La Cancha last Sunday. I wanted to buy one so I could play a violin while I am here, but I didn’t buy one…

I really miss my family in the US. I love you all very much. I get kinda homesick when there isn't much to do, which has happened like a half of a day since I've been here.

I washed my jeans by hand last Saturday.

Sometimes the markets or streets in Bolivia smell like cheese or body odor or fried food or a combination of it all. Perfection, I’d say.

I am personally organizing the next Macalester group to go and protest the School of Americas next year. Caitlin and Marshall, you in??

My goal is to not faint while I am in Bolivia. I think that’s a legitimate goal.

La Cancha is the biggest market in Cochabamba.

I still think I will be a vegetarian when I get back from Bolivia.

I am in heaven.

Hope this first post satisfies your cravings!

"I don't do blogs."

That's what my dad said when I told him I was going to keep a blog while studying abroad. Well, I guess I don't "do" blogs either. They're not really my thing, but hopefully some of you, other than my dad, will read about some of my adventures in Bolivia.

So here it is. My blog. I would like to pre-apologize for any future non sequitur posts. As many of you already know about me, my train of thought tends to be all over the place when I get excited about something! And, hopefully, I will be insanely excited every time I write about some little or huge adventure. SOOOO GET READY! I'll do my best to make it interesting and make it seem like I'm telling you the story like I would in person, with the Erica-isms and everything!

Just so you know, I will arrive in Cochabamba, Bolivia at 7:45am on Jan. 26th. Until then, I will be packing. URGH!!! I've already unpacked and repacked a few times. Gosh, I can't wait to FINALLY unpack in Cochabamba.

Nos vemos!