That's my story and I'm stickin' to it!

The GIRLS out on the town in Lecheria (our town)!!!

LOVED this mural from El Yaque in Margarita Island...it is my computer screen saver now!

PHOTOS BELOW are from Margarita Island as well....my happy place=)!

DISCLAIMER: if you are looking for a true life account of my adventure-read on. If you are looking for embellished stories or flatly fictionalized anecdotes-stop now and never return to this site. This blog is about my life as an international teacher-nothing is made up, nothing is imagined, no identities are concealed...no need to play hide and seek to separate fact from fiction-IT IS ALL TRUE=). Enjoy!

MARGARITA ISLAND!!!... is the paradise pictured in the photos here. I spent last weekend lounging on that beach, eating seafood and fish so fresh it literally came right off the boat and onto the grill, drinking coconut based drinks straight from the trees you see, and learning to kiteboard from a tall, dark and handsome professional kiteboarder named Luis! TRUE STORY!!! It was the best way to end three weeks of meetings and adjusting and our first week of school. Seven new teachers (including me) and our Venezuelan "adopted-new-teacher", Keyla, all took the ferry Friday night to the island and returned late Sunday night. We stayed at the world famous wind surfing and kite boarding (world championships were held here in May of 2009) beach called El Yaque. We came back tanned, tired, and itching to get back to the island!

Earlier in the week we had our first day/week of school. I have 17 6th graders who hail from over 11 countries. Many have Italian heritages via some Latin American nation, and thus speak English with a cute Italian accent-while they are also fluent in Spanish. The students are AMAZING-not a single discipline problem. When I make an assignment and tell them to write one page-they write one and a half. If I tell them to research a few facts about China, they come in with typed notes that they have memorized to present and color coded, hand-drawn maps of ancient dynasties. The challenges are keeping everyone learning at deeper levels and making sure that everyone is understanding the English I speak since only about 25% are native English speakers.

Another challenge is that this is rainy season so there are daily afternoon storms. When storms hit, the power goes out. That means the AC goes out and the computers do as well. Unfortunately, teachers are very dependent on their computers....so this makes planning a bit trickier. It hasn't really annoyed me yet-I just have to always have a back up plan for planning in place.

Also, although I LOVE LOVE LOVE being in a small school (it is my favorite type of teaching situation), small schools carry the additional challenge of having to wear many hats. So, for example, I am the 6th grade Social Studies, PE, English, and Math teacher, the HS personal fitness teacher, and the grade 4-6 cheer/dance coach. I also am helping with yearbook and with the school's preparations for our upcoming SAACS accreditation review next year.  I am sure that as the year rolls on, I will continue to amass even more "jobs". The great part is that our superintendent encourages us to create clubs and sports to offer for students that are things we know and love. Maybe I can start a kiteboard club...hhhmmm????

Driving is not as nerve wrecking as I anticipated. The memory of police stops from my years in Benin makes me very nervous when I see police here (and they are EVERYWHERE). I thought I would faint if one ever stopped me but I was stopped this week and it went well. Thankfully, my principal was in the car when it happened or I would have cried. Not speaking spanish is certainly to my advantage when that happens again-a crying, blonde-haired gringo who can't speak spanish is something no policeman wants to deal with. One up side of driving is that gas is so cheap that I filled up my tank in my truck for 80 cents!!! TRUE STORY!!!

Other good news is that I have a cell phone, cable TV, a maid once a week who cleans my house and does laundry and dishes, and the lunches at school are so good that egg and toast in the morning and peanut butter at night is all I need. The food here is terrific-rice, plantains, or potatoes with shredded meat of some kind (including terrific fish), lightly sauteed fresh veggies, soup (pumpkin, fish, vegetable cream), and fresh salad. It is not spicy but is well seasoned. And the coffee...oh, the coffee...mmnnnnnn=).

Oh, and lest I forget...last weekend we went out and enjoyed local nightlife on Friday. Then we went on a boat with fellow teachers to an island on Saturday. We swam and wake boarded (yep, I even got up on the board...after 6 tries) and ate fresh conch ceviche' (meaning they walked up with shells right out of the water and pulled out the conch, chopped it up, and marinated it in lime right there in front of us) and enjoyed cruising around the islands of the national park that are scattered over this corner of the caribbean. That night, the board of directors hosted the new teachers and put out a spread of food that was delicious and plentiful. Everyone is so nice and soooo laid back! They sent us all home with "doggy bags"=).

If you want my stateside forwarding address, my cell number, or instructions on how to call me from your computer to my computer via SKYPE or on your computer to my phone for 3 cents a minute (it is only 2 cents for me to call you, though)....then send me an email or message. If you have any questions you want me to answer in my future blogs...ask away!!! 

Until next time...PEACE.....

-.lovin' life in Venezuela!!!!