Ben has been very busy down in Colombia since he arrived. I told him I would post this email he sent us as an update for you all. Enjoy!



Hola mi familia,



My exchange so far has been absolutely amazing! My family is super nice, my friends are funny and exciting, and the country is beautiful. I don't have pictures of my house yet but here is the view from the front "porch".

I've been going to school since my second day, so by now I have made friends with all of my classmates. Instead of the teachers moving classrooms like I was told, the students as a class move to different classrooms (which makes more sense). Almuerzo (lunch) is the largest meal of the day here, so my school starts at 7:30, has two 1 hour classes ad then a 15 minute break when I play games with my friends in the courtyard, 2 more classes and then a 2 hour lunch break from noon to 2. I go home for lunch and then relax for an hour, and go back to school for 2 more classes.

Nancy is the housemaid so she cooks lunch and it is delicious. All of the food is fresh from the farmers market on Saturdays and we have fresh juice each day.

After school I usually hang out with my friends around town and at our houses sometimes we have jam sessions and its really fun. On the first Friday that I was here I went to a fiesta and I learned a couple types of dances. It was a lot of fun.

Two weekends ago I went on a hike with my host dad and sister and the view was amazing.

Last weekend I went to Tunja (the capital of Boyaca) to get my foreigner ID and for Sergio's [Ben's host brother] college exam (like the SAT's). I really liked that there was s much to do there.

That's about it for now. I love you all and miss you. I hope that life is going great in McMinnville.


With love, Ben


P.S. Have you ever heard of panela? Because I hadn't and it's really common here and it's mixed with hot water to make a drink that you can put cheese in and dip bread. Also there's only one kind of cheese here??

And So It Begins...

On September 1st, my year on exchange, my life in a year, finally started. I left with my family at 7am, checked my bag, met with my Rotary Officer, said my goodbyes, and was on my way.

After countless hours of travel, from Portland to Dallas, Dallas to Miami, and Miami to Bogota, I arrived in Colombia! When I exited baggage claim I was met with a warm welcome with a lot of hugs and "Bienvenidos" from my host family!

I then got my first taste of Colombian coffee and it was the best coffee I've ever had!

Next came a 6 hour drive from Bogota to Soata through the beautiful Colombian countryside.

After a long couple of days of travel it was nice to get some rest in my home.

Introduction

My name is Benjamin Sparrow. I am from McMinnville, Oregon and I was selected by the McMinnville Rotary Club to represent my school, my city, and my country on a year long exchange to Colombia in South America.