Hello from Cuenca,

Our blogging has fallen off lately and for this we apologize. We were never "bloggers" before and we're still trying to figure out how this peculiar form of communication fits into our lives here. Sheilah has additional thoughts she may wish to share on a separate post.

We took another hike with the Andinismo Club last weekend. The trail was rigorous, steep and rewarding. This route was accesible from the outskirts of town and by public transport. Unfortunately, we had to turn around before we finished the hike because Ailish got an upset stomach. I plan to go back one day soon and finish the climb to some high altitude lakes.

Sheilah and I have just completed 6 weeks of 4 hour/day spanish classes and will, starting next week, reduce the schedule to about 4-5 hours/week. We love the school and want to stay connected but feel like it's time to do some other things. We're looking into some local volunteer possiblities.

A couple of days ago Ailish came home from school with a cute story. The boys septimo grado had a soccer contest with the sexto grado boys (A & L are in septimo grado here). The girls were cheerleading and had this catchy chant:

Si ves un avion de Miami, es el sexto grado con su mami

Si ves un avion de Europa, es el septimo grado con el copa

I love imagining Ailish on the sideline with the other girls and jumping right in. The girls' game was rained out today so we are still waiting to hear what chants the boys can come up with.

School is not all fun and games but overall the kids are doing well and making friends. Ailish already went to her first afterschool party (where the 12 year old girls tried on the host mom's lingerie (which she apparently sells as a hobby)) and had a great time.

Mark