Week Two
Week two sure went by a lot quicker than week one! I am well settled into life here in Puerto Rico and am excited to share more adventures with you!
The 7th graders posing with their DNA extractions! They had a "jean day" so no uniforms.
School:
As always, school is going very well! We had off Thursday so it was only a four day week.
In 7th grade Life Science, the students have been learning about Cells and Charactertisics of Life. We explored concepts like cell membranes, cell walls, size of cells, organelles, etc. We finished the week with a DNA Extraction lab where students extracted their cheek cells and added lysis to break the cell so they could see their DNA in the test tubes. We wanted to show them that all of their cells have DNA and though cells are super small, DNA can actually stretch 6 feet long! 7th grade is such a fun age, they LOVE to learn and enjoyed it a lot.
In Anatomy class with the 12th graders, they worked on creating an article on tissue diseases. They have been learning about Tissues and we wanted to create a project that explored what happens when those tissues are damaged... issues with the tissues. The articles were great and of course I had them use Canva!
We have a whole week of Thanksigving break and the students are done school Dec 14th for Christmas break, so I only have three more weeks at the school, which is hard to believe. Perhaps I will have to come back next fall and stay longer ;).
A snipet of the a pair's article on Eczema!
Home:
This week my brother, Kyle, and his friend, Jack, came to visit! I had a lot of fun showing them around and I think they enjoyed island life before they move to cold Minnesota when they return home. We explored more beaches, the city, and traveled to the west side of the island to see even more beaches and a waterfall. It only takes about 2-3 hours to get to the other side of the island so we did a day trip. All Kyle wanted to do was "jump off things" so he was doing flips off of the rocks and of course got applauded by the crowd.
Kyle (left) and Jack (right)
Cascada Gozalandia (spot Veronica and I!)
Food:
How can I update the blog without talking about food??! The food here has been great! Puerto Rican cuisine consists of empandaillas, other fried appetizers, tostones, plantains (sweet and savory), rice, beans, etc. I have loved the empandillas which is similar to a small calzone, but fried, with various fillings. I have had them them with beef, chorizo, cheese, etc. Also, I have found that many places sell chicken cordon bleu bites. If you know me well you know that chicken cordon bleu is my FAVORITE meal at Messiah's dining hall (they have it for brunch every other Sunday). I am so tickled they have them here, in bite form how fun! Popular desserts that I have tried include quesitos (a flaky cream cheese filled pastry), flan (custard type cake covered in caramel sauce), and tres leche (cake covered in heavy cream).
There any many similar restaurants and fast food places here as there are at home. I even saw a Duck Donuts the other day (for my Messiah friends!). I would say that Burger King is definately the most common fast food restaurant... but I heard they are opening the first Chick-fil-a on the island in January, perhaps an incentive to stay... sorry mom.
Phone eats first! French fries are always a go to!
Empanadilla (I found this online, I guess I eat them too quick to snap a pic!)
Chicken Cordon Bleu Bites
palm tree pics are a required part of the blog :)
Highlights of the week:
We went to some new beaches: Crash Boat Beach in Aguadilla and Playa del Dorado
I purchased a large flamingo float and it has been so much fun to float in... except the wind took it into deep sea and we drove and walked a mile just to retrieve it! The currents are pretty bad right now, some say not to even go in the water.
Puerto Rican flag at Crash Boat Beach
spot the flamingo at sea