hola a todos!

Everyone has told me that el sauce is an incredible experience but I couldn't really picture what it was like until i actually got here. As meaghan had posted previously, once arriving in el sauce, we drilled Kellan, Vanessa and Yacarely for specifics about what we would be doing at every specific time of the day (disregarding all of their advice that in el sauce, one needs to be flexible with schedules).
I spent the first day at the colgate conference with all the teachers. It was really cool to be here and see how everything all came together for the project. Kellan and Yacarely worked so hard to bring all of this together and it was so cool to see the impact of the work that I did with Dr. McEwen and Paula Bill (Thankssss) at geneseo in el sauce. The colgate meeting was held in Mi Rancho (a local disco/bar) and there were over 200 teachers there (I will put the pictures below). This was my first experience with the heat of El Sauce and it was quite an experience. I am working on building a tolerance and applying sunblock more often.
Anyway, so i've been here for 4 full days in El Sauce and I really like it here. Once you get over the first day or two of being a bit awkward with your host family and getting used to how to take showers here, it really is a lot of fun. I love my host family and talk with them any chance I get. I feel like my spanish is already improving quite a bit (i just need to get out of the habit of only using the present tense). I know everyone has said it and I will say it again: Los saucenos are extremely friendly and Kellan and Yacarely are so accommodating. The first week is almost over and I already can't wait for the next!