As unbelievable as it is, my time here is coming to its end...
Tomorrow I have my final test and evaluations of the program. Then, I will be off to watch the Huskies play their first March Madness game to distract myself as I await my family´s arrival! We will spend the weekend touring Quito and then head off to the Galapagos Islands next week. Then, HOME! Yay! I can not wait to eat some Chinese food, and Thai food, and teriyaki, and Indian food...basically anything non-Ecuadorian or from Trader Joe´s (how I´ve missed thee).
I have had an incredible experience here. From jungles to ruins to volcanoes to rivers to cities to beaches, I´ve pretty much seen it all! I will definitely treasure all the memories I have made and all the, probably, once in a lifetime experiences I have had. I am glad to have stepped off the normal paths of study abroads, as much as I am sure I would have enjoyed constantly eating gelato in Italy. I´ll still make it there someday! Mostly, it has been a huge growing experience where many times I have had to go outside my comfort zone. I hope I can carry back home the patience, spontaneity, flexibility and spanish speaking abilities that I have grown so much in.
I will look forward to catching up with all of you soon after I get back to the US (the 28th). Hope everyone does well on finals and has a safe and fun-filled spring break! Or that your next week of work goes smoothly if you´re no longer living the college life. Love to you all! Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Sleeping with Scorpions, Spiders and Cockroaches
Believe it! We did find and sleep with (after killing) all these creatures on our class trip to the Amazon. Despìte the creepy crawlies, I had an incredible time visiting the jungle region of Ecuador last week (as in the first week of March, not the week that just happened). School really can´t get much better than that!
We set off on Tuesday and arrived at the Cabanas Alinahui where we were staying for the week. Promptly after getting settled, and killing out first round of bugs, we headed out for a jungle trek with our guide, Pedro. He taught us about medicinal plants, how to identify ant colonies vs. termite colonies that seem to grow like tumors on the trees, how to swing on a liana (vine) and about the ¨walking trees¨that grow there that have roots above ground and constantly grow new ones to move towards the sunlight. We also saw a baby vulture that was nested among the giant roots of a tree. It´s mother was high above in the tree and the baby stays hidden in the roots (about 3 feet high) until it matures and flies out. We headed back for dinner and to get ready for more adventures the next day!
Wednesday morning we got the amazing surprise of being served pancakes for breakfast. We were all super excited and gobbled them up! Then, we headed out for another jungle hike to a waterfall. Along the way, we learned more about how the indigenous people use plants to build houses, eat, clothe themselves, etc. Pretty much nothing goes to waste and they´re pretty creative people, even if by necessity! The waterfall we finally arrived at was beautiful and we could climb on the face of it and behind it while big Blue Morph butterflies fluttered around. Afterwards, we ate a picnic lunch by the river that flowed out of the waterfall. Just another day of school...after lunch we headed to a mariposario (or butterfly house basically) where we saw all the stages of a butterfly and so many varieties it was dizzying try to photograph them all. Way of transport from the waterfall to the mariposario: the TOP of a bus. I have had some crazy bus rides but this by far was the scariest! The bus was too full for us to ride inside so the obvious solution to our guide was for us to all climb up on top. Even our teacher was a little sketched out but we all made it there safely after a couple close calls with tree branches. Our final stop was a small town by the river where Capuchin monkeys live in the city square by day to get fed by the locals and toursists and live in trees by the river at night. These monkeys were super smart and not afraid at all of humans. One guy in our class, Steven, had brought a bag of fruit and was trying to get it open to give to the monkeys when one of them jumped up on him, impatient to get the fruit he knew was inside the bag. Steven freaked a little and threw the bag towards the other monkeys. They all proceeded to open the bag and split up the fruit. One monkey even turned the bag inside out and licked up the mushed banana inside. Crazy smart!
The next day was a blast! We took a motored canoe down the Rio Napo, which flows into the Amazon river, and also got to float down in tubes for part of it. We picnicked again by the river, then visited a museum of indigenous people, where we got eaten alive by mosquitos. Finally, we headed to the AmaZOOnico, a rehabilitation, rescue and release place for animals that have been taken from the jungle as pets or to be sold in markets or are injured. It was sad to hear how people think an ocelot cub will be a good pet and then can´t handle it when it grows up or how birds are carried to markets and even if only 1 out of 10 lives, the smuggler still makes a profit. They had beautiful, rare animals like capaberas, the largest rodent in the world, picture the size of a pig but with the appearance of a guinea pig. We got to see a jagurundi, a small black jungle cat attack a piece of meat for lunch and drink blood!
After our class events officially ended, we all stayed one more night, went on another hike to a waterfall and lagoon and then headed home to avoid getting more bug bites. I must have had 50 or 60 by the end of the trip! Thankfully, they are healing up now! And all the itchiness was totally worth it...
We set off on Tuesday and arrived at the Cabanas Alinahui where we were staying for the week. Promptly after getting settled, and killing out first round of bugs, we headed out for a jungle trek with our guide, Pedro. He taught us about medicinal plants, how to identify ant colonies vs. termite colonies that seem to grow like tumors on the trees, how to swing on a liana (vine) and about the ¨walking trees¨that grow there that have roots above ground and constantly grow new ones to move towards the sunlight. We also saw a baby vulture that was nested among the giant roots of a tree. It´s mother was high above in the tree and the baby stays hidden in the roots (about 3 feet high) until it matures and flies out. We headed back for dinner and to get ready for more adventures the next day!
Wednesday morning we got the amazing surprise of being served pancakes for breakfast. We were all super excited and gobbled them up! Then, we headed out for another jungle hike to a waterfall. Along the way, we learned more about how the indigenous people use plants to build houses, eat, clothe themselves, etc. Pretty much nothing goes to waste and they´re pretty creative people, even if by necessity! The waterfall we finally arrived at was beautiful and we could climb on the face of it and behind it while big Blue Morph butterflies fluttered around. Afterwards, we ate a picnic lunch by the river that flowed out of the waterfall. Just another day of school...after lunch we headed to a mariposario (or butterfly house basically) where we saw all the stages of a butterfly and so many varieties it was dizzying try to photograph them all. Way of transport from the waterfall to the mariposario: the TOP of a bus. I have had some crazy bus rides but this by far was the scariest! The bus was too full for us to ride inside so the obvious solution to our guide was for us to all climb up on top. Even our teacher was a little sketched out but we all made it there safely after a couple close calls with tree branches. Our final stop was a small town by the river where Capuchin monkeys live in the city square by day to get fed by the locals and toursists and live in trees by the river at night. These monkeys were super smart and not afraid at all of humans. One guy in our class, Steven, had brought a bag of fruit and was trying to get it open to give to the monkeys when one of them jumped up on him, impatient to get the fruit he knew was inside the bag. Steven freaked a little and threw the bag towards the other monkeys. They all proceeded to open the bag and split up the fruit. One monkey even turned the bag inside out and licked up the mushed banana inside. Crazy smart!
The next day was a blast! We took a motored canoe down the Rio Napo, which flows into the Amazon river, and also got to float down in tubes for part of it. We picnicked again by the river, then visited a museum of indigenous people, where we got eaten alive by mosquitos. Finally, we headed to the AmaZOOnico, a rehabilitation, rescue and release place for animals that have been taken from the jungle as pets or to be sold in markets or are injured. It was sad to hear how people think an ocelot cub will be a good pet and then can´t handle it when it grows up or how birds are carried to markets and even if only 1 out of 10 lives, the smuggler still makes a profit. They had beautiful, rare animals like capaberas, the largest rodent in the world, picture the size of a pig but with the appearance of a guinea pig. We got to see a jagurundi, a small black jungle cat attack a piece of meat for lunch and drink blood!
After our class events officially ended, we all stayed one more night, went on another hike to a waterfall and lagoon and then headed home to avoid getting more bug bites. I must have had 50 or 60 by the end of the trip! Thankfully, they are healing up now! And all the itchiness was totally worth it...
Monday, March 2, 2009
Viva Peru!
If you ever get the chance, go to Macchu Picchu! I am extremely grateful that I took advantage of my proximity and decided to go. It was AMAZING! The Incas were truly a genius culture and their ruins are incredibly intact because of this. It was crazy to see almost whole buildings still standing after 400 years, including withstanding enormous earthquakes (in the 1600s and 1700s).
Josh and I flew first to Lima, Peru, then to the city of Cusco. From there, we took a number of buses around to other Incan ruin sites, Pisac and Ollantaytambo. One of the train routes to Macchu Picchu leaves from Ollantaytambo, so we stayed the night there. In the darkness of 4:30am we headed for the train station on Friday. The train arrived in Aguas Calientes, a town at the base of the mountain where Macchu Picchu is. A quick hair-pin turning bus ride and we were there!! At 7:30am it was still fogged in which lent a cool, eerie feeling like we were the only ones there and trying to discover what lay beyond our visiblity. Later in the day it cleared up and we were able to take amazing panoramic pictures and the typical postcard pictures too. After trekking around most of Macchu Picchu we hiked up Wayna Picchu, another ruin very close by that is at the top of a very, very steep peak. It was quite the climb! An hour and a half climbing straight up tiny stone stairways but simply astonishing views at the top. It´s so hard to describe in words all that I saw, really only pictures do it justice.
We spent the rest of our time in Peru in Cusco, a beautiful, very Spanish influenced city and also very touristy. We saw gorgeous churches and some more astounding Incan ruins where the stones fit so perfectly together you can barely see the creases where they meet. In the Cathedral there, we took an audio tour (super unseen here in South America! we were shocked!) and learned a bunch about how the Spanish mixed indigenous ideologies into the architecture and art to appeal to the native people. Also in the Cathedral is the first cross to ever arrive in South America which was brought on the expedition of Francisco Pissaro in the 1500s. For lunch one day, we tasted alpaca, an animal like a llama that is very popular in Peru. It was actually really good! Kind of like a more tender and juicy pork chop?
Well, I would love to write more but I´ve got to get going and pack for a school trip tomorrow to the Amazon jungle! Pray that I don´t get eaten alive by mosquitos!
Josh and I flew first to Lima, Peru, then to the city of Cusco. From there, we took a number of buses around to other Incan ruin sites, Pisac and Ollantaytambo. One of the train routes to Macchu Picchu leaves from Ollantaytambo, so we stayed the night there. In the darkness of 4:30am we headed for the train station on Friday. The train arrived in Aguas Calientes, a town at the base of the mountain where Macchu Picchu is. A quick hair-pin turning bus ride and we were there!! At 7:30am it was still fogged in which lent a cool, eerie feeling like we were the only ones there and trying to discover what lay beyond our visiblity. Later in the day it cleared up and we were able to take amazing panoramic pictures and the typical postcard pictures too. After trekking around most of Macchu Picchu we hiked up Wayna Picchu, another ruin very close by that is at the top of a very, very steep peak. It was quite the climb! An hour and a half climbing straight up tiny stone stairways but simply astonishing views at the top. It´s so hard to describe in words all that I saw, really only pictures do it justice.
We spent the rest of our time in Peru in Cusco, a beautiful, very Spanish influenced city and also very touristy. We saw gorgeous churches and some more astounding Incan ruins where the stones fit so perfectly together you can barely see the creases where they meet. In the Cathedral there, we took an audio tour (super unseen here in South America! we were shocked!) and learned a bunch about how the Spanish mixed indigenous ideologies into the architecture and art to appeal to the native people. Also in the Cathedral is the first cross to ever arrive in South America which was brought on the expedition of Francisco Pissaro in the 1500s. For lunch one day, we tasted alpaca, an animal like a llama that is very popular in Peru. It was actually really good! Kind of like a more tender and juicy pork chop?
Well, I would love to write more but I´ve got to get going and pack for a school trip tomorrow to the Amazon jungle! Pray that I don´t get eaten alive by mosquitos!
CARNAVAL baby!
Let´s just say that there is no comparison in the US to Carnaval here in South America. Never ever would American people tolerate, nevertheless enjoy, getting water balloons, buckets of water, eggs, powder and other various amunition chucked at them by total strangers for 4 days.
For Carnaval me, Josh and a bunch of our friends from our program headed to a beach town called Canoa. Distance wise, it´s probably only as far away as Spokane, but the bus ride took 21 hours! You can imagine what state of Madeline I was in by that time...long story short, a ton of rain here washed out highways to the coast so we had to travel all the way south thru the center of the country and then back up north along the coast. Buses here are not efficient and the drivers aren´t really too worried about getting you there as quickly as possible. If they get hungry, they will stop and pick up some food or have a smoke. I have learned here that patience is more than a virtue, it is a means of survival!
We arrived in time for a beautiful sunset which only tempered my inner rage a tad bit. We settled into our hostel, full of ¨character,¨ including a bar next door that played music at top volume until 3 or 4am every night that pounded into our room thru the bamboo slat walls. I spent the days laying on the beach, surfing, or getting rocked by waves more in my case, people watching and reading. After the first day I was FRIED despite reapplying sunscreen probably every hour. The sun is killer here! Thankfully, the beach was lined with little tents you can rent for $1 a day, so I gladly coughed up my coin and hid out. At night, there was the Reina (Queen) de Carnaval contest during which a bunch of ladies were put through rigorous amounts of dancing and included a token white blond girl who apparently immigrated to the Ecuadorian beach life from the US.
All in all, it was a blast, 99% worth the horrid bus ride there in my opinion. And the flight home was worth every cent!
For Carnaval me, Josh and a bunch of our friends from our program headed to a beach town called Canoa. Distance wise, it´s probably only as far away as Spokane, but the bus ride took 21 hours! You can imagine what state of Madeline I was in by that time...long story short, a ton of rain here washed out highways to the coast so we had to travel all the way south thru the center of the country and then back up north along the coast. Buses here are not efficient and the drivers aren´t really too worried about getting you there as quickly as possible. If they get hungry, they will stop and pick up some food or have a smoke. I have learned here that patience is more than a virtue, it is a means of survival!
We arrived in time for a beautiful sunset which only tempered my inner rage a tad bit. We settled into our hostel, full of ¨character,¨ including a bar next door that played music at top volume until 3 or 4am every night that pounded into our room thru the bamboo slat walls. I spent the days laying on the beach, surfing, or getting rocked by waves more in my case, people watching and reading. After the first day I was FRIED despite reapplying sunscreen probably every hour. The sun is killer here! Thankfully, the beach was lined with little tents you can rent for $1 a day, so I gladly coughed up my coin and hid out. At night, there was the Reina (Queen) de Carnaval contest during which a bunch of ladies were put through rigorous amounts of dancing and included a token white blond girl who apparently immigrated to the Ecuadorian beach life from the US.
All in all, it was a blast, 99% worth the horrid bus ride there in my opinion. And the flight home was worth every cent!
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Long Overdue, I know!
Sorry for my lack of posts lately: at first, there was nothing really exciting happening to report on and then it´s been a whirlwind!
After Cuenca, I had a chill week of classes, nothing interesting. The following weekend, the weekend of Valentines day, Josh and I stayed in Quito for the first weekend since we have been here. On Valentine´s Day we went to Volcan Cotopaxi, the second highest peak in Ecuador. The peak of the mountain is the place furthest from the center of the earth in the world because the earth bulges at the equator and it is so close plus so tall equals far far away from the center of the earth =) We didn´t quite make it that high but we did manage to hitch a ride to 4000m (12000 ft) and then climbed to 4800m (almost 15000 ft). Quite the hike! We were past the elevation line where plants stop growing and it was snowing hard. So, basically, I climbed higher than the top of Mt. Rainier! Who would have thought, Madeline?! We met a couple our age at the entrance to the park while contemplating whether to walk in to the mountian. We decided on asking them for a ride (yes, I am also a hitchhiker now...) and good thing we did! It was a crazy long way to walk, the drive took probably an hour thru bumpy dirt roads and streams. The couple were from Quito and are students at the nicest university here, Universidad Catolica, so I didn´t think they were trying to rob or kidnap some gringos. We listened to awesome American rock music the whole way up. We hiked up with them, shared some mugs of hot chocolate and came back down. They offered to give us a ride back to Quito, which we gladly accepted. On the way back, the guy asked us if we minded stopping by his house so he and his girlfriend could change their shoes. Basically, we got to see the Yarrow Point/Cylde Hill area of Quito - if not nicer! It was crazy! All gated community with enormous houses with huge walls around them. When we drove thru this guys gate to his house is was like a compound with a courtyard in the middle and I was in total shock. Then, he told us the US embassador is his neighbor! I guess there are always rich people no matter where you go in the world...
At night, we went out to dinner a fun restaurant with funky chandeliers and paint on the walls and amazing food!!
Last week was another week of classes all in anticipation of being done and vacationing for Carnaval! More on that to come because I am running out of time and have to catch my flight to Peru...this weekend: Macchu Picchu! Miss you all!
After Cuenca, I had a chill week of classes, nothing interesting. The following weekend, the weekend of Valentines day, Josh and I stayed in Quito for the first weekend since we have been here. On Valentine´s Day we went to Volcan Cotopaxi, the second highest peak in Ecuador. The peak of the mountain is the place furthest from the center of the earth in the world because the earth bulges at the equator and it is so close plus so tall equals far far away from the center of the earth =) We didn´t quite make it that high but we did manage to hitch a ride to 4000m (12000 ft) and then climbed to 4800m (almost 15000 ft). Quite the hike! We were past the elevation line where plants stop growing and it was snowing hard. So, basically, I climbed higher than the top of Mt. Rainier! Who would have thought, Madeline?! We met a couple our age at the entrance to the park while contemplating whether to walk in to the mountian. We decided on asking them for a ride (yes, I am also a hitchhiker now...) and good thing we did! It was a crazy long way to walk, the drive took probably an hour thru bumpy dirt roads and streams. The couple were from Quito and are students at the nicest university here, Universidad Catolica, so I didn´t think they were trying to rob or kidnap some gringos. We listened to awesome American rock music the whole way up. We hiked up with them, shared some mugs of hot chocolate and came back down. They offered to give us a ride back to Quito, which we gladly accepted. On the way back, the guy asked us if we minded stopping by his house so he and his girlfriend could change their shoes. Basically, we got to see the Yarrow Point/Cylde Hill area of Quito - if not nicer! It was crazy! All gated community with enormous houses with huge walls around them. When we drove thru this guys gate to his house is was like a compound with a courtyard in the middle and I was in total shock. Then, he told us the US embassador is his neighbor! I guess there are always rich people no matter where you go in the world...
At night, we went out to dinner a fun restaurant with funky chandeliers and paint on the walls and amazing food!!
Last week was another week of classes all in anticipation of being done and vacationing for Carnaval! More on that to come because I am running out of time and have to catch my flight to Peru...this weekend: Macchu Picchu! Miss you all!
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Cuenca
Last weekend was fantastic! Josh and I visited the quaint, colonial, old fashioned city of Cuenca. It had cobblestone streets and pretty squares and churches. It was a very walkable and safe feeling city which is a nice change from Quito. It is the 3rd largest city in Ecuador with a population of about 400,000. We took a 10 hour overnight bus which, thankfuly, I spelt almost all the way through. We arrived around 7am after a bit of a scare that we got off at the wrong city! We found an adorable hostel with a kind of courtyard cafe in the middle - real brewed coffee, not Nescafe! It was perfectly located to walk to see everything, which we did after getting settled. We visited a factory where they make panama hats, which actually originated in Ecuador. They are still all handmade, which takes 15 days-1 month depending on the quality and shape and style. I tried on a few, and even though I usually think I look awful in hats, I found a gorgeous, red-banded, Audrey Hepburn-esque one I couldn´t resist. We ate a great lunch at a Colombian restaurant and then very unsuccessdully tried to find an orchid garden. After 1 hour + on the bus and walking we gave up and went to a museum instead. They had an ethnographic exhibit, including shrunken heads, which used to be made by the Shaur people in the Amazon region oftheir enemies heads. The heads are shrunken down to about the size of a mans fist. Strange to see! For dinner we went to a beautiful, 2 story restaurant with twinkle lights all around and a fireplace. The food was so good! Me: chicken mole and Josh: coconut curry. I miss ethnic food tons!!
Saturday we had scrumptious omelets before heading out to hike in Parque Nacional Cajas. We took a cab to where Lonely Planet indicated we could catch a cheaper cus. It seemed like kind of a random corner so I started praying we wouldn´t have a repeat orchid garden experience. Well, God answers prayers! A green bus came around the corner, the one we thought we needed, so I waved to the driver to stop but he shook his head like he wouldn´t! I took off running after the bus with Josh behind me. Finally, halfway down the block it stopped and I asked if it was going to the park. No, the driver said but if we got on he would take us to where we could get the right bus. He took us to a bus depot where the right bus left in 10 mins. Plus, he didn´t even want the $1 we offered him for his help. Our guardian angel!! The hike in the park was beautiful and quite remote. I am growing in my adventureousness, that is for sure!
Saturday night we went out to a salsateca, club with salsa dancing, to test out our skills from our lessons at school. We were quite a bit out of our league but it was amazing to watch the really good couples and try to imitate them.
Sunday we relaxed before heading to the airport for our gloriously short 35 minute flight back to Quito. Totally worth the extra $50 more than a 10 hour bus!
Now I am all updated on my blogging! I love hearing how everyone is at home so let me know how you are! I miss you all! All my love!
Saturday we had scrumptious omelets before heading out to hike in Parque Nacional Cajas. We took a cab to where Lonely Planet indicated we could catch a cheaper cus. It seemed like kind of a random corner so I started praying we wouldn´t have a repeat orchid garden experience. Well, God answers prayers! A green bus came around the corner, the one we thought we needed, so I waved to the driver to stop but he shook his head like he wouldn´t! I took off running after the bus with Josh behind me. Finally, halfway down the block it stopped and I asked if it was going to the park. No, the driver said but if we got on he would take us to where we could get the right bus. He took us to a bus depot where the right bus left in 10 mins. Plus, he didn´t even want the $1 we offered him for his help. Our guardian angel!! The hike in the park was beautiful and quite remote. I am growing in my adventureousness, that is for sure!
Saturday night we went out to a salsateca, club with salsa dancing, to test out our skills from our lessons at school. We were quite a bit out of our league but it was amazing to watch the really good couples and try to imitate them.
Sunday we relaxed before heading to the airport for our gloriously short 35 minute flight back to Quito. Totally worth the extra $50 more than a 10 hour bus!
Now I am all updated on my blogging! I love hearing how everyone is at home so let me know how you are! I miss you all! All my love!
Field trips still exist!!
Last Wednesday and Thursday my class of 5 students, including me, and our professor took of in a minivan to travel through the Zona Norte, or the area north of Quito. We visited an Andean music workshop where we watched a woman make Andean flutes by hand and heard an Andean band. Kind of a tourist trap, I think, but still authentic and interesting.
Next, we travelled to the city of Cotacachi. It is very well known for its leather so I bought a purse as a momento. Only $39! Also, we spoke with the director of the Casa de Las Culturas (House of Cultures) who told us about all the development programs their mayor has initiated over the past decade. The mayor is an indigenous man who studied economicsin Cuba. It is a big deal that he is mayor and indigenous because indigenous people are at the bottom of the race hierarchy here, per se, sadly. The city has programs to develop tourism, virtual schools for people to learn to read, write and use computers, music programs to record music, and videos to teach more rural citizens literacy. Also, many programs are proposed first by citizens and then supported with government money. It seemed really successful and innovative.
Then, we headed to the indigenous village of San Clemente where the Caranqui people live, half an hour outside of the city of Ibarra. I was a bit skeptical as we drove past shanty houses on a tiny dirt road. However, when we arrived, the experience was truly magical. We stayed with families in their homes, which have been fixed up to have tourists with regular bathrooms and lights. My family´s dad is the president for the year of the whole communityof 600+ people so I really lucked out with learning a ton from him while dinner was prepared. We had a delicious dinner of soup with quinoa, then chicken with beans, rice, veggies, avocado and corn kernals and a sweet, jelly-like orange something for dessert. After dinner, the mom offered for me to put on her traditional clothes to head up to a music and dance presentation. I was thrilled! They wear skirts, intricately embroidered blouses, gold bead necklaces, a ponytail wrap and slip on moccasin like shoes. They usually buy only one new outfit a year because the whole thing costs about $200. Talk about limited retail therapy! We trekked up the hill to the main meeting building while watching tons of fireflies flicker in the fields. So beautiful! When I arrived, I found the other girls in my class also dressed up and the boys had on pants made of llama fur and ponchos. We listened to music for awhile and then were persuaded to get up and try dancing with them. It was basically hopping in a circle one direction until the leader whistled and then you switched directions. Afterwards, we had an early bedtime in order to get up at 6:45am to help make tortillas for breakfast. After breakfast, more yummy fruit, we got to see how the women do borderos or embroidery by hand. Pretty tricky! Next, we went on a nature walk to learn about medicinal plants. Super amazing how much they know and how much it made me realize us Americans love drugs! Then, we heard from the leader of the tourist department of the community how the community is organized and operates. Their whole mindset is of community and sharing, so some families produce dairy products, others clothing, others host tourist, etc. and they all share with what other people lack. Although they are not Christian, it made me think of how the Bible speaks of many people having different gifts. It was truly touching to hear about and made me wish more people in the world could be so unselfish, including myself. When they want to construct a road or someone needs to build a house, they all do it together for no money and share in a huge lunch while they are working on the project. We got to experience a taste of these lunches, called minga. A wonderful experience, something truly unique!
On the way back to Quito, we stopped in Ibarra, famous for its handmade in copper tub ice cream, or helado de paila. Yummy!!
If only US universities believed in fields trips...I guess that´s why there if study abroad!
Next, we travelled to the city of Cotacachi. It is very well known for its leather so I bought a purse as a momento. Only $39! Also, we spoke with the director of the Casa de Las Culturas (House of Cultures) who told us about all the development programs their mayor has initiated over the past decade. The mayor is an indigenous man who studied economicsin Cuba. It is a big deal that he is mayor and indigenous because indigenous people are at the bottom of the race hierarchy here, per se, sadly. The city has programs to develop tourism, virtual schools for people to learn to read, write and use computers, music programs to record music, and videos to teach more rural citizens literacy. Also, many programs are proposed first by citizens and then supported with government money. It seemed really successful and innovative.
Then, we headed to the indigenous village of San Clemente where the Caranqui people live, half an hour outside of the city of Ibarra. I was a bit skeptical as we drove past shanty houses on a tiny dirt road. However, when we arrived, the experience was truly magical. We stayed with families in their homes, which have been fixed up to have tourists with regular bathrooms and lights. My family´s dad is the president for the year of the whole communityof 600+ people so I really lucked out with learning a ton from him while dinner was prepared. We had a delicious dinner of soup with quinoa, then chicken with beans, rice, veggies, avocado and corn kernals and a sweet, jelly-like orange something for dessert. After dinner, the mom offered for me to put on her traditional clothes to head up to a music and dance presentation. I was thrilled! They wear skirts, intricately embroidered blouses, gold bead necklaces, a ponytail wrap and slip on moccasin like shoes. They usually buy only one new outfit a year because the whole thing costs about $200. Talk about limited retail therapy! We trekked up the hill to the main meeting building while watching tons of fireflies flicker in the fields. So beautiful! When I arrived, I found the other girls in my class also dressed up and the boys had on pants made of llama fur and ponchos. We listened to music for awhile and then were persuaded to get up and try dancing with them. It was basically hopping in a circle one direction until the leader whistled and then you switched directions. Afterwards, we had an early bedtime in order to get up at 6:45am to help make tortillas for breakfast. After breakfast, more yummy fruit, we got to see how the women do borderos or embroidery by hand. Pretty tricky! Next, we went on a nature walk to learn about medicinal plants. Super amazing how much they know and how much it made me realize us Americans love drugs! Then, we heard from the leader of the tourist department of the community how the community is organized and operates. Their whole mindset is of community and sharing, so some families produce dairy products, others clothing, others host tourist, etc. and they all share with what other people lack. Although they are not Christian, it made me think of how the Bible speaks of many people having different gifts. It was truly touching to hear about and made me wish more people in the world could be so unselfish, including myself. When they want to construct a road or someone needs to build a house, they all do it together for no money and share in a huge lunch while they are working on the project. We got to experience a taste of these lunches, called minga. A wonderful experience, something truly unique!
On the way back to Quito, we stopped in Ibarra, famous for its handmade in copper tub ice cream, or helado de paila. Yummy!!
If only US universities believed in fields trips...I guess that´s why there if study abroad!
Monday, February 2, 2009
Sun, sand, sea...
I spent the weekend before last at the beach with Josh and 4 other girls and guys from our program. The beach is called Tonsupa, and is on the northern coast of Ecuador, not too close to Colombia though! It was very very small, but also felt very safe and tranquilo as they say often here. Being so small, it was also quite poor with dirt roads, kids walking around barefoot and many stray dogs. Once you got off the main strip of 3 blocks facing the beach, the houses were old, decrepid and there was not much to see. We got around in little open air taxis that were pulled by men riding their motorbikes. Mostly, we just hung around on the beach and ate freshly made ceviche (shrimp mixed with onion, tomato, lime juice and yummy spices) and other seafood for really cheap ($3.50 for ceviche -$6 in a restaurant for a big plate of fish, calamari or shrimp). Nothing else too exciting to report. A basic beach trip with not much else than the sun, sand and sea. Definitely not the tropical beach we were all expecting but a good time nonetheless!
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Last Weekend in Banos
Whew! This week has flown by! Each week seems to go by faster and faster. Today marks 3 weeks that I have been here. I am heading out soon for a weekend at the beach, so I thought I should write about last weekend before I get too behind. Sorry for my tardiness!
If I thought I was stepping way out there in Otovalo, little did I know what was in store for me. A group of us took a 4 hour bus to Baños, definitely my favorite place so far. The town is known for being touristy, full of activities, and for its hot springs, or Baños, baths. It was a touristy town but not without losing its Ecuadorian charm and authentic feel. Baños is in the middle of a gigantic valley, so the little town sits nestled in mountains with the Rio Negro (a river that dumps into the Amazon) nearby.
Our whirlwind of activities began Friday morning with renting bikes ($4 for the day, no helmets…) to ride down a road where you can see the river and many waterfalls. The road goes all the way to a town called Puyo, 60km away. We went as far as 20km to the biggest waterfall, Pailon de Diablo, which we hiked into and then could climb a narrow crevice to get behind. Gorgeous! Along the way, we had some fun at a bridge where you can go “Pendulum jumping.” This entails standing on the edge of the bridge with a climbing harness on, attached to a long rope that is attached to the bridge and diving headfirst off the bridge railing. After the dive, you come upright and swing like a giant swing (pendulum) under the bridge. Josh took the first plunge! After watching most of our group go, the guy who was harnessing people up came to me holding out his harness and said, “No piensalo!” or “Don’t think about it!” So, in my life’s biggest moment of spontaneity and daring, I harnessed up! The guy at the bridge who helped you dive off said he would count to 3 and when he said 3, I had to dive. In my head the only thoughts were, just pretend you’re diving into a pool, and don’t think about it. …1…2…3…and I dove! It was an amazing feeling, such a rush! I still don’t think I could jump out of an airplane but this was a crazy fun experience. Can you believe it?!? I have video proof, if you don’t!
Upon returning from our biking/hiking/bridge diving/death defying morning jaunt, Josh and I rented 4-wheelers to drive up the nearby mountains. We zig-zagged up a dirt road, finally reaching about 11,000 feet to a beautiful view of the nearby volcano, river and Baños. The guy in the rental shop must have sensed that I had never driven a 4-wheeler before, so mine was somewhat “The Little 4-wheeler That Could.” I would have the gas all the way down going uphill and simply roll along while Josh blasted up the turns. He would have to stop every so often so I could chug up and meet with him, pretty funny.
After all that excitement, we cleaned up and then had a fantastic dinner at a tiny Argentinean restaurant filled with charm. For $14, we had salad, potatoes, corn, 4 types of sausages, 2 types of pork, chicken breast and a beef fillet. SO much food! The funnest part was forking it out of the big wooden bowls they brought everything out in onto our wooden cutting boards that served as plates. Delicious!
Saturday, Josh and myself plus 4 girls from our group headed out to go white water rafting. We rode a chiva, a truck with rows of benches in the back, to the river, got a lesson in paddling and headed for our Class 3+ and 4 rapids. Our raft was being mocked because Josh was the only man, all the other rafts maybe had 1 or 2 girls, and everyone was teasing us about flipping or falling out. I’m proud to report that our boat was the only one that didn’t have any problems! It was a total blast!
After all this hard, physical activity, Josh and I decided to go to the Baños to relax our sore bodies. Haha, picture a motel pool like setting with tons of little kids running around and water that is brownish yellow with “minerals.” Ick! Highly disappointing and un-scenic, so we left after 10 minutes. Basically, don’t go to Baños for the baths, ironically!
As much as I loved all our activities, Sunday was my day, spa day! See, I haven’t changed much. I scheduled us for the Baños de cajon and hour long massages. Upon arriving, we found out we had to go on some sort of nature walk before beginning out treatments. It turned out to be a bizarre, spiritual kind of metaphor walk during which we had to walk barefoot across rocks and gravel, scream from the top of a set of stairs and finally, crawl on our hands and knees in a circle 3 times. So weird and hilarious at the same time! The spa experience was worth the strange prelude, though. For the Baños de cajon, you sit in a wood box that only allows your head to stick out. The bottom is covered with amazing smelling leaves and junk and you turn on really hot steam- ahhhh! Felt so good! Then, they take you out and douse you with freezing cold water – yikes! You go back in, then when you’re done, you stand in a corner and they spray you with a garden-style nozzled hose. Sounds painful but it felt so cleansing. Then, our massages were divine, with some hot stone massage at the end. All this for $50, total! If only spas were this inexpensive in the US…
So, that was my weekend last weekend! A super fun time, I hope the beach can live up to its competition. I’m really having a good time, finally feeling more settled and adjusted. Also, my host mom keeps commenting on how my Spanish is improving and I am talking to her more than I used to. Yay!
I hope you are all doing very well! I think of home and my family and friends often. No adrenaline rush or incredible spa day can replace the feeling of the people and places you love most. Sending all my love!
If I thought I was stepping way out there in Otovalo, little did I know what was in store for me. A group of us took a 4 hour bus to Baños, definitely my favorite place so far. The town is known for being touristy, full of activities, and for its hot springs, or Baños, baths. It was a touristy town but not without losing its Ecuadorian charm and authentic feel. Baños is in the middle of a gigantic valley, so the little town sits nestled in mountains with the Rio Negro (a river that dumps into the Amazon) nearby.
Our whirlwind of activities began Friday morning with renting bikes ($4 for the day, no helmets…) to ride down a road where you can see the river and many waterfalls. The road goes all the way to a town called Puyo, 60km away. We went as far as 20km to the biggest waterfall, Pailon de Diablo, which we hiked into and then could climb a narrow crevice to get behind. Gorgeous! Along the way, we had some fun at a bridge where you can go “Pendulum jumping.” This entails standing on the edge of the bridge with a climbing harness on, attached to a long rope that is attached to the bridge and diving headfirst off the bridge railing. After the dive, you come upright and swing like a giant swing (pendulum) under the bridge. Josh took the first plunge! After watching most of our group go, the guy who was harnessing people up came to me holding out his harness and said, “No piensalo!” or “Don’t think about it!” So, in my life’s biggest moment of spontaneity and daring, I harnessed up! The guy at the bridge who helped you dive off said he would count to 3 and when he said 3, I had to dive. In my head the only thoughts were, just pretend you’re diving into a pool, and don’t think about it. …1…2…3…and I dove! It was an amazing feeling, such a rush! I still don’t think I could jump out of an airplane but this was a crazy fun experience. Can you believe it?!? I have video proof, if you don’t!
Upon returning from our biking/hiking/bridge diving/death defying morning jaunt, Josh and I rented 4-wheelers to drive up the nearby mountains. We zig-zagged up a dirt road, finally reaching about 11,000 feet to a beautiful view of the nearby volcano, river and Baños. The guy in the rental shop must have sensed that I had never driven a 4-wheeler before, so mine was somewhat “The Little 4-wheeler That Could.” I would have the gas all the way down going uphill and simply roll along while Josh blasted up the turns. He would have to stop every so often so I could chug up and meet with him, pretty funny.
After all that excitement, we cleaned up and then had a fantastic dinner at a tiny Argentinean restaurant filled with charm. For $14, we had salad, potatoes, corn, 4 types of sausages, 2 types of pork, chicken breast and a beef fillet. SO much food! The funnest part was forking it out of the big wooden bowls they brought everything out in onto our wooden cutting boards that served as plates. Delicious!
Saturday, Josh and myself plus 4 girls from our group headed out to go white water rafting. We rode a chiva, a truck with rows of benches in the back, to the river, got a lesson in paddling and headed for our Class 3+ and 4 rapids. Our raft was being mocked because Josh was the only man, all the other rafts maybe had 1 or 2 girls, and everyone was teasing us about flipping or falling out. I’m proud to report that our boat was the only one that didn’t have any problems! It was a total blast!
After all this hard, physical activity, Josh and I decided to go to the Baños to relax our sore bodies. Haha, picture a motel pool like setting with tons of little kids running around and water that is brownish yellow with “minerals.” Ick! Highly disappointing and un-scenic, so we left after 10 minutes. Basically, don’t go to Baños for the baths, ironically!
As much as I loved all our activities, Sunday was my day, spa day! See, I haven’t changed much. I scheduled us for the Baños de cajon and hour long massages. Upon arriving, we found out we had to go on some sort of nature walk before beginning out treatments. It turned out to be a bizarre, spiritual kind of metaphor walk during which we had to walk barefoot across rocks and gravel, scream from the top of a set of stairs and finally, crawl on our hands and knees in a circle 3 times. So weird and hilarious at the same time! The spa experience was worth the strange prelude, though. For the Baños de cajon, you sit in a wood box that only allows your head to stick out. The bottom is covered with amazing smelling leaves and junk and you turn on really hot steam- ahhhh! Felt so good! Then, they take you out and douse you with freezing cold water – yikes! You go back in, then when you’re done, you stand in a corner and they spray you with a garden-style nozzled hose. Sounds painful but it felt so cleansing. Then, our massages were divine, with some hot stone massage at the end. All this for $50, total! If only spas were this inexpensive in the US…
So, that was my weekend last weekend! A super fun time, I hope the beach can live up to its competition. I’m really having a good time, finally feeling more settled and adjusted. Also, my host mom keeps commenting on how my Spanish is improving and I am talking to her more than I used to. Yay!
I hope you are all doing very well! I think of home and my family and friends often. No adrenaline rush or incredible spa day can replace the feeling of the people and places you love most. Sending all my love!
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Adventures abound
My past weekend in Otovalo held many firsts for me. Where to start?!? The hostel, the cock fight, the 3 hour hike at 11,000 feet or the ride in the back of a pick up truck?
My steps outside my pretty little comfort zone began at 6:15am Saturday morning as Josh and I waited on the side of a major road in Quito waiting for the bus that my host mom had told me supposedly stops there on its way to Otovalo. Sure enough, after only a few minutes waiting, we jumped on for the 2 hour ride thru the Andes. Arriving in Otovalo, we headed to the hostel where a few of our friends had stayed Friday night.
Sidenote: we stayed in Quito Friday night to go to dinner at Josh’s host parents’ house. The menu: tacos! Slightly different than in the US and probably from Mexico, although I’ve never been. Taco meat with bacon bits anyone?
We got una habitacion con bano privado, meaning a room with a couple beds and our own bathroom. Hey, I was staying in a hostel for the first time and for 2 bucks more, I could have the luxury of my own bathroom. It was a cute place with a little square in the middle with hammocks hanging throughout the trees and all wood and jungle-lodge like. Really not bad at all – I think the saying is “lots of character.” After dropping off our stuff, we headed to the sprawling market that has put Otovalo on the tourist map. It was HUGE with loads of alpaca sweaters and blankets, Panama hats, wood carvings, colorful beaded jewelry, bright paintings and tons more trinkets. I definitely honed my bargaining and Spanish speaking skills while buying souvenirs. Once we had spent all our money, we headed for almuerzo (lunch) in the rain that had begun pouring down. The rain didn’t let up the rest of the day so we played cards and hung out with our friends.
Then, that night came my scariest moment yet in Ecuador, really not that bad but in the moment, freaky! We decided to go see a cock fight, about 8 blocks away. Not far, but when you don’t know which streets have lights and which don’t, you may end up walking through a completely dark street and thinking, this is the kind of street they warned us about getting robbed on. And, once arriving, finding out that the cock fight doesn’t start for another hour or two and having to walk back. We were 3 guys and 3 girls, so the odds were good but I’m not one who enjoys the thrill of a good dark block of walking. Anyways, I’m here and fine!
The cock fight was an experience, for sure. We were close up to the action, sitting in the front row with a 3 foot wall separating us from the most vicious looking roosters you’ve ever seen. It was not as gruesome as I thought it would be. None of the roosters actually died from the fights. Everyone in the audience except girls from our group was men. They were crazy into it, yelling out the designated color of the rooster to egg it on (haha, no pun intended). So seeing a cock fight is now on my list of things done in life and also on my list of things not to do again.
Sunday, we woke up bright and early to a much nicer day. Our group wanted to visit Lagunas de Mojando, a lake, about 9 miles away. I spoke with the receptionist woman at our hostel to figure out the most economic way to get us there and back: una camioneta – a pickup truck! $55 for the guy to drive us there, wait 3 hours and bring us back, divided by the 8 of us was an awesome deal. So, we piled in! I had read earlier in my Lonely Planet guidebook (thanks Michelle!! My almost Bible here!) that taxis charge extra for “wear and tear” on the drive. Picture a narrow, cobblestoned, windy road climbing a thousand feet. And, as I spoke with the driver on our way up, he mentioned that he hoped the road wouldn’t be washed out from the rain the day before. Hm, yo tambien (me too)!! Finally, we arrived at a gorgeous royal blue lake surrounded by green Andean hills. So picturesque! We all hopped out and started hiking down the road that lead around the lake. I’ll make a long story short to say that after about a 45 minute hike, I was ready to head back while the group wanted to hike the rest of the way around the lake and after going along with it for another hour or so, I was about to cry at the unendingness of the hike and Josh and I turned back before I broke down. All in all, I’m glad I went and got to see this beautiful place. I could’ve just appreciated it from all the angles I saw in the first hour =) Finally heading home, we arrived back at our hostel, sore, sunburned and starving. Josh and I changed (I was a bit muddy from falling), ate some food and trudged our tired selves to the bus station for Quito. Despite the crying baby, repetitive and loud Spanish music playing, and erratic movements of the bus, I crashed almost the whole way home.
So, our first weekend trip! Full of firsts and challenges for me, but I kept telling myself that’s why I came here, to challenge myself, grow, see and try new things, expand my view of the world. Well, then by that measure, I feel I am succeeding. Next weekend, maybe the spas and hot springs at Banos…
My steps outside my pretty little comfort zone began at 6:15am Saturday morning as Josh and I waited on the side of a major road in Quito waiting for the bus that my host mom had told me supposedly stops there on its way to Otovalo. Sure enough, after only a few minutes waiting, we jumped on for the 2 hour ride thru the Andes. Arriving in Otovalo, we headed to the hostel where a few of our friends had stayed Friday night.
Sidenote: we stayed in Quito Friday night to go to dinner at Josh’s host parents’ house. The menu: tacos! Slightly different than in the US and probably from Mexico, although I’ve never been. Taco meat with bacon bits anyone?
We got una habitacion con bano privado, meaning a room with a couple beds and our own bathroom. Hey, I was staying in a hostel for the first time and for 2 bucks more, I could have the luxury of my own bathroom. It was a cute place with a little square in the middle with hammocks hanging throughout the trees and all wood and jungle-lodge like. Really not bad at all – I think the saying is “lots of character.” After dropping off our stuff, we headed to the sprawling market that has put Otovalo on the tourist map. It was HUGE with loads of alpaca sweaters and blankets, Panama hats, wood carvings, colorful beaded jewelry, bright paintings and tons more trinkets. I definitely honed my bargaining and Spanish speaking skills while buying souvenirs. Once we had spent all our money, we headed for almuerzo (lunch) in the rain that had begun pouring down. The rain didn’t let up the rest of the day so we played cards and hung out with our friends.
Then, that night came my scariest moment yet in Ecuador, really not that bad but in the moment, freaky! We decided to go see a cock fight, about 8 blocks away. Not far, but when you don’t know which streets have lights and which don’t, you may end up walking through a completely dark street and thinking, this is the kind of street they warned us about getting robbed on. And, once arriving, finding out that the cock fight doesn’t start for another hour or two and having to walk back. We were 3 guys and 3 girls, so the odds were good but I’m not one who enjoys the thrill of a good dark block of walking. Anyways, I’m here and fine!
The cock fight was an experience, for sure. We were close up to the action, sitting in the front row with a 3 foot wall separating us from the most vicious looking roosters you’ve ever seen. It was not as gruesome as I thought it would be. None of the roosters actually died from the fights. Everyone in the audience except girls from our group was men. They were crazy into it, yelling out the designated color of the rooster to egg it on (haha, no pun intended). So seeing a cock fight is now on my list of things done in life and also on my list of things not to do again.
Sunday, we woke up bright and early to a much nicer day. Our group wanted to visit Lagunas de Mojando, a lake, about 9 miles away. I spoke with the receptionist woman at our hostel to figure out the most economic way to get us there and back: una camioneta – a pickup truck! $55 for the guy to drive us there, wait 3 hours and bring us back, divided by the 8 of us was an awesome deal. So, we piled in! I had read earlier in my Lonely Planet guidebook (thanks Michelle!! My almost Bible here!) that taxis charge extra for “wear and tear” on the drive. Picture a narrow, cobblestoned, windy road climbing a thousand feet. And, as I spoke with the driver on our way up, he mentioned that he hoped the road wouldn’t be washed out from the rain the day before. Hm, yo tambien (me too)!! Finally, we arrived at a gorgeous royal blue lake surrounded by green Andean hills. So picturesque! We all hopped out and started hiking down the road that lead around the lake. I’ll make a long story short to say that after about a 45 minute hike, I was ready to head back while the group wanted to hike the rest of the way around the lake and after going along with it for another hour or so, I was about to cry at the unendingness of the hike and Josh and I turned back before I broke down. All in all, I’m glad I went and got to see this beautiful place. I could’ve just appreciated it from all the angles I saw in the first hour =) Finally heading home, we arrived back at our hostel, sore, sunburned and starving. Josh and I changed (I was a bit muddy from falling), ate some food and trudged our tired selves to the bus station for Quito. Despite the crying baby, repetitive and loud Spanish music playing, and erratic movements of the bus, I crashed almost the whole way home.
So, our first weekend trip! Full of firsts and challenges for me, but I kept telling myself that’s why I came here, to challenge myself, grow, see and try new things, expand my view of the world. Well, then by that measure, I feel I am succeeding. Next weekend, maybe the spas and hot springs at Banos…
Friday, January 16, 2009
New posts
See my two new posts below!
Just so you all know how much keeping you updated means to me, I stepped in a HUGE pile of dog poo in my hurry on the way to the internet cafe. That´s how much I love you all! Let me know how you´re doing and what you´re up to too!
Just so you all know how much keeping you updated means to me, I stepped in a HUGE pile of dog poo in my hurry on the way to the internet cafe. That´s how much I love you all! Let me know how you´re doing and what you´re up to too!
In case I was missing winter in Seattle...
Well, the last 24 hours have definitely cured any homsickness I had for Seattle – only the city of course, and not all you wonderful people who make it my home! I still miss you tremendously!
Last night, the power went out twice. No one I have asked is quite sure of the reason but all parts of the city were down at various times and even as far out as into Columbia. The first power outage was at about 5:30pm. Since there were no lights and it gets dark here around 6pm, I thought I might as well take a nap. After a long day of school, Josh and I had riden up the Pichincha Mountain on the TeleferiQco, a tram that takes you up from Quito’s 9000ft elevation to close to the top of Pichincha at 13,500ft. And I thought I was getting acclimated! The funniest part of the trek was the couple people smoking at the top. Since your lungs aren’t struggling already…Anyways, the lights came back on by the time I woke up from my nap but went out again while we were eating dinner a bit later. They popped back on a bit later but by that point I had been frightened enough by my host parents who said it’s super dangerous to go out if the power is going out since then there are no streetlights. So, I had a nice night studying Spanish and reading books.
Today, we set out for our city tour under a mass of grey clouds. The rain held off until we went inside for lunch and had stopped by the time we came back out. Then, on my way home from the school, while waiting on a street corner for the bus, the rain came. Home sweet home Seattle-like rain – bouncing off car windshields and making bubbles in the streets rain. Along with the rain pounded down thunder and lightning, which seems much louder at 9,000ft closer to the sky.
I thought I came here, in part, to get away from the Seattle winter. So, for all of you out there who think I am basking in a tropical jungle paradise, let me tell you, you’re picturing it all wrong. If I can’t have the people I’m missing at home here with me, at least I have my good old familiar and comforting friends rain, clouds and winter power outages. Thanks for sending them my way to lessen my homesickness, but I think I’ll send them back up to you now.
Hope you’re enjoying the posts. I’m heading to Otavalo early tomorrow morning for the famous market there and whatever else the wind blows me towards. Check back Monday for a review of my trip!
Ciao!
P.S. The thunder just set off about a dozen car alarms…
Last night, the power went out twice. No one I have asked is quite sure of the reason but all parts of the city were down at various times and even as far out as into Columbia. The first power outage was at about 5:30pm. Since there were no lights and it gets dark here around 6pm, I thought I might as well take a nap. After a long day of school, Josh and I had riden up the Pichincha Mountain on the TeleferiQco, a tram that takes you up from Quito’s 9000ft elevation to close to the top of Pichincha at 13,500ft. And I thought I was getting acclimated! The funniest part of the trek was the couple people smoking at the top. Since your lungs aren’t struggling already…Anyways, the lights came back on by the time I woke up from my nap but went out again while we were eating dinner a bit later. They popped back on a bit later but by that point I had been frightened enough by my host parents who said it’s super dangerous to go out if the power is going out since then there are no streetlights. So, I had a nice night studying Spanish and reading books.
Today, we set out for our city tour under a mass of grey clouds. The rain held off until we went inside for lunch and had stopped by the time we came back out. Then, on my way home from the school, while waiting on a street corner for the bus, the rain came. Home sweet home Seattle-like rain – bouncing off car windshields and making bubbles in the streets rain. Along with the rain pounded down thunder and lightning, which seems much louder at 9,000ft closer to the sky.
I thought I came here, in part, to get away from the Seattle winter. So, for all of you out there who think I am basking in a tropical jungle paradise, let me tell you, you’re picturing it all wrong. If I can’t have the people I’m missing at home here with me, at least I have my good old familiar and comforting friends rain, clouds and winter power outages. Thanks for sending them my way to lessen my homesickness, but I think I’ll send them back up to you now.
Hope you’re enjoying the posts. I’m heading to Otavalo early tomorrow morning for the famous market there and whatever else the wind blows me towards. Check back Monday for a review of my trip!
Ciao!
P.S. The thunder just set off about a dozen car alarms…
Megadiversity of Ecuador
So, some info on my school…After all, I suppose I am here (in part) to go to school and learn!
There are 5 students in my Spanish program, including me and Josh. So far, my Spanish classes are my favorite, even though we have only had one. Our “professor” is Luis or “Beto,” which is the nickname for all names –berto (Alberto, Roberto, etc.). Of course he will be teaching us but he is very laid back and more wants to be a friend to us than above us in the teacher sense.
Tuesday afternoon we had an amazingly knowledgeable and English-fluent speaker on the megadiversity of Ecuador. It was by far the most interesting and impressive seminar we have had, and the most understandable! Here are some incredible facts about the environment of Ecuador:
¡ First, 10% of the world’s surface holds 70% of the world’s diversity in plant and animal species.
¡ Ecuador is not first in terms of number of different species, although it is up in the top 3 or 5 for most. What is truly astounding is the number of species per 1000 square kilometers – Ecuador ranks first by this measurement in almost every species group. For example:
o Plant: 19,000 species or 74.11 species/1000km2
o Mammals: 389 species or 15.17/1000km2 (of mammals, 170 are bats!!! Only 3 bats here are blood eating and only 1 of those goes for large mammal blood; the other 2 eat fish or other bats)
o Reptiles: 14.5/1000km2
o Amphibians: 15.68/1000km2
o Butterflies: 8.58/1000km2
o Birds: 1600 species
**sidenote: a kilometer squared is about 3000 square feet. That means in an average size house in the US, the different species you would find include 74 plants, 15 mammals, 14 reptiles, 15 amphibians, 8 butterflies and a ton of birds. Full house?! Just to put that in perspective.**
¡ Why there is so much diversity jammed into a country the size of Nevada:
o Location: on the equator, a tropical belt plus the Andes mountains
o Geography: some many types of environs; altitudes ranges from 0-20,700ft
o Climate: more intense sun gives a higher amount of energy to each square of earth here (see Exhibit A: my forehead)
So there’s your biological and ecological lesson for the day!
There are 5 students in my Spanish program, including me and Josh. So far, my Spanish classes are my favorite, even though we have only had one. Our “professor” is Luis or “Beto,” which is the nickname for all names –berto (Alberto, Roberto, etc.). Of course he will be teaching us but he is very laid back and more wants to be a friend to us than above us in the teacher sense.
Tuesday afternoon we had an amazingly knowledgeable and English-fluent speaker on the megadiversity of Ecuador. It was by far the most interesting and impressive seminar we have had, and the most understandable! Here are some incredible facts about the environment of Ecuador:
¡ First, 10% of the world’s surface holds 70% of the world’s diversity in plant and animal species.
¡ Ecuador is not first in terms of number of different species, although it is up in the top 3 or 5 for most. What is truly astounding is the number of species per 1000 square kilometers – Ecuador ranks first by this measurement in almost every species group. For example:
o Plant: 19,000 species or 74.11 species/1000km2
o Mammals: 389 species or 15.17/1000km2 (of mammals, 170 are bats!!! Only 3 bats here are blood eating and only 1 of those goes for large mammal blood; the other 2 eat fish or other bats)
o Reptiles: 14.5/1000km2
o Amphibians: 15.68/1000km2
o Butterflies: 8.58/1000km2
o Birds: 1600 species
**sidenote: a kilometer squared is about 3000 square feet. That means in an average size house in the US, the different species you would find include 74 plants, 15 mammals, 14 reptiles, 15 amphibians, 8 butterflies and a ton of birds. Full house?! Just to put that in perspective.**
¡ Why there is so much diversity jammed into a country the size of Nevada:
o Location: on the equator, a tropical belt plus the Andes mountains
o Geography: some many types of environs; altitudes ranges from 0-20,700ft
o Climate: more intense sun gives a higher amount of energy to each square of earth here (see Exhibit A: my forehead)
So there’s your biological and ecological lesson for the day!
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
My first days in Quito
Buenas dias de tu amiga en Quito! Good day from your friend in Quito!
It’s been a whirlwind few days getting settled here so I am finally getting a chance to post. After the slight detour I wrote about, we made it to Quito on Thursday afternoon. We went to our hotel, ate a real meal (pizza, por supuesto! Of course!) and got to know the other students. Josh and I ventured around “Gringolandia,” as it is called, basically white people land to buy Ecuadorian cell phones and water. For those of you who know my American cell phone, I got a major upgrade for only $50! Haha! I rested before we all ate dinner at the hotel together. Then, we all had a fun time getting to know each other and went to a “regaton” dance club.
All my peers in the program seem really cool, fun-loving and easy to get along with so far. I don’t think they’ve quite figured out the situation between me and Josh and it’s kind of entertaining. I’m sure the cat will be out of the bag soon, but for the beginning it’s good to all hang out as a group and not have people think of us as being separate and a couple.
Friday was a looong day: orientation at CIMAS (our school) – todo en espanol y fue dificil escuchar por muchas horas! (all in Spanish and it was difficult to listen for many hours!) Then, the BIG moment of meeting our host families. I found mi mama Elsa y hermano (brother) Sebastian who rushed me with big hugs and helped me lug my life in bags for 3 months to their car (gracias a Dios que no tuvimos que ir en el bus – thank God that we didn’t have to go on the bus). As we headed to our house, Elsa pointed out different things and we chatted about the basics of me. Our house was surprisingly nice and my favorite feature, SO safe! (Mom that’s for you!) It has a garage gate/wall thing that we pulled in to plus a heavy-duty gate across our front door. I have 3 keys and even with those things I have a hard time opening the locks sometimes! The downstairs is the living room, kitchen, dining room and office. Upstairs is my bedroom, and their two bedrooms plus my own bathroom, with plenty of hot water (a luxury in Ecuador). Elsa immediately made me feel at home. She is super hospitable and kind and warm. Continuing, we took Sebastian to karate (go figure, haha). Elsa and I walked around while we waited and I ate my first empanada (basically an elephant ear sans cinnamon) and morchada (a hot milk drink with morchada, a rice like grain) from a street cart. I prayed I wouldn’t be running to the bathroom in a half hour…and I was fine! The rest of the night I got settled in mi casa nueva (new home).
Saturday was a brand new day! Elsa, Sebastian and I walked around Parque La Carolina (park). We all kicked around a soccer ball (futbol here) and then Sebastian tried to play volleyball with me despite my best efforts in Spanish to tell him I was terrible. Well, language barriers are beaten down by actions and he quickly realized what I had told him. We also walked around a centro commercial (mall) which was pretty American, minus the prices, so cheap. They have tons of TGI Fridays, KFCs and McDonalds here! In the evening, Josh and I met up for dinner and then went on to meet our friends in “La Mariscal Sucre” aka Gringolandia. It was really good to reunite with Josh because the first couple days felt like a time warp with so many new things to absorb. For all you Huskies out there, we basically found an Ecuadorian Earl’s called Sutra, made much classier-seeming by the salsa dancing in one corner. $1.50 vodka tonics that seemed to lack the tonic part!
Sunday was a full but awesome day. Josh came to my house and all four of us went to the Centro Historico (Historical district). Elsa and Sebastian waited with us in line to go into the Palacio Presidential ( I bet you can figure that one out…) but Elsa forgot their IDs so they couldn’t go in with us. So, after asking her about 8 times to make sure I understood how to get back home, they left and Josh and I walked around. There are gorgeous churches galore, government buildings, open squares – like you would expect to see in a European historical center. Beautiful, especially compared to the general run-downedness of Quito. After a lunch for $2.50 each (Dad you would love it here!), we visited the most thrilling place of the day – La Basilica. A HUGE, no longer in use, church where you can climb to the very very top. And climb we did! We went to the very top of the tower, right under the steeple point which is at 78 meters (about 250 ft). And people, this is not America or Europe in terms of restoration and upkeep. There were chunks of the wall ornaments on the ground and one “floor” we came to was only made of beams and rebar. In another part, we walked across the tops of the pointed ceilings of the main part of the church on a suspended wooden board “bridge” to reach the far tower. Really, you have to see the pictures and even then, I don’t know if they do this justice!
After plenty of exploring, our last brave act for the day was attempting to get the bus back to my house. Buses here don’t really like to stop all the way and a guy leans out of the doorway and yells where the bus is going. We hopped on when it came by, almost leaving Josh halfway between the platform and bus steps. I nervously peered out for our stop and when I saw it coming, we jumped out of our seats and flung ourselves down the bus steps. Thankfully, there were a number of people getting off so the bus pretty much did stop. Quite the adventure!
Back at my house, Elsa was thrilled to meet Josh. She taught us to make empanadas. I tried not to watch while she put huge chunks of butter in the dough! Que rica! (Literally, “how rich” and what people say when something is yummy!) It was a blast, great memories. Elsa loves Josh and says we are “una pareja muy linda” or a beautiful couple. I was nervous about how my family would react to me having a fiancé here and wanting to hang out with him but it turned out perfectly. Elsa wants Josh to be a part of our family too and come over whenever, like it was his house. Like I said, she is so kind-hearted and genuine!
I know this has gotten super long, so I will wrap up. So far, it’s been a great experience. I’m much relieved to have a family that I click with and feel so comfortable with. It’s definitely an adjustment and way different place here. Just being in a place that is so poor opens your eyes. I’m looking forward to getting into a routine with school and traveling to all the amazing places around Ecuador on the weekends. More on all those to come! I miss you all and hope you’re all well!
Un besito! A little kiss!
It’s been a whirlwind few days getting settled here so I am finally getting a chance to post. After the slight detour I wrote about, we made it to Quito on Thursday afternoon. We went to our hotel, ate a real meal (pizza, por supuesto! Of course!) and got to know the other students. Josh and I ventured around “Gringolandia,” as it is called, basically white people land to buy Ecuadorian cell phones and water. For those of you who know my American cell phone, I got a major upgrade for only $50! Haha! I rested before we all ate dinner at the hotel together. Then, we all had a fun time getting to know each other and went to a “regaton” dance club.
All my peers in the program seem really cool, fun-loving and easy to get along with so far. I don’t think they’ve quite figured out the situation between me and Josh and it’s kind of entertaining. I’m sure the cat will be out of the bag soon, but for the beginning it’s good to all hang out as a group and not have people think of us as being separate and a couple.
Friday was a looong day: orientation at CIMAS (our school) – todo en espanol y fue dificil escuchar por muchas horas! (all in Spanish and it was difficult to listen for many hours!) Then, the BIG moment of meeting our host families. I found mi mama Elsa y hermano (brother) Sebastian who rushed me with big hugs and helped me lug my life in bags for 3 months to their car (gracias a Dios que no tuvimos que ir en el bus – thank God that we didn’t have to go on the bus). As we headed to our house, Elsa pointed out different things and we chatted about the basics of me. Our house was surprisingly nice and my favorite feature, SO safe! (Mom that’s for you!) It has a garage gate/wall thing that we pulled in to plus a heavy-duty gate across our front door. I have 3 keys and even with those things I have a hard time opening the locks sometimes! The downstairs is the living room, kitchen, dining room and office. Upstairs is my bedroom, and their two bedrooms plus my own bathroom, with plenty of hot water (a luxury in Ecuador). Elsa immediately made me feel at home. She is super hospitable and kind and warm. Continuing, we took Sebastian to karate (go figure, haha). Elsa and I walked around while we waited and I ate my first empanada (basically an elephant ear sans cinnamon) and morchada (a hot milk drink with morchada, a rice like grain) from a street cart. I prayed I wouldn’t be running to the bathroom in a half hour…and I was fine! The rest of the night I got settled in mi casa nueva (new home).
Saturday was a brand new day! Elsa, Sebastian and I walked around Parque La Carolina (park). We all kicked around a soccer ball (futbol here) and then Sebastian tried to play volleyball with me despite my best efforts in Spanish to tell him I was terrible. Well, language barriers are beaten down by actions and he quickly realized what I had told him. We also walked around a centro commercial (mall) which was pretty American, minus the prices, so cheap. They have tons of TGI Fridays, KFCs and McDonalds here! In the evening, Josh and I met up for dinner and then went on to meet our friends in “La Mariscal Sucre” aka Gringolandia. It was really good to reunite with Josh because the first couple days felt like a time warp with so many new things to absorb. For all you Huskies out there, we basically found an Ecuadorian Earl’s called Sutra, made much classier-seeming by the salsa dancing in one corner. $1.50 vodka tonics that seemed to lack the tonic part!
Sunday was a full but awesome day. Josh came to my house and all four of us went to the Centro Historico (Historical district). Elsa and Sebastian waited with us in line to go into the Palacio Presidential ( I bet you can figure that one out…) but Elsa forgot their IDs so they couldn’t go in with us. So, after asking her about 8 times to make sure I understood how to get back home, they left and Josh and I walked around. There are gorgeous churches galore, government buildings, open squares – like you would expect to see in a European historical center. Beautiful, especially compared to the general run-downedness of Quito. After a lunch for $2.50 each (Dad you would love it here!), we visited the most thrilling place of the day – La Basilica. A HUGE, no longer in use, church where you can climb to the very very top. And climb we did! We went to the very top of the tower, right under the steeple point which is at 78 meters (about 250 ft). And people, this is not America or Europe in terms of restoration and upkeep. There were chunks of the wall ornaments on the ground and one “floor” we came to was only made of beams and rebar. In another part, we walked across the tops of the pointed ceilings of the main part of the church on a suspended wooden board “bridge” to reach the far tower. Really, you have to see the pictures and even then, I don’t know if they do this justice!
After plenty of exploring, our last brave act for the day was attempting to get the bus back to my house. Buses here don’t really like to stop all the way and a guy leans out of the doorway and yells where the bus is going. We hopped on when it came by, almost leaving Josh halfway between the platform and bus steps. I nervously peered out for our stop and when I saw it coming, we jumped out of our seats and flung ourselves down the bus steps. Thankfully, there were a number of people getting off so the bus pretty much did stop. Quite the adventure!
Back at my house, Elsa was thrilled to meet Josh. She taught us to make empanadas. I tried not to watch while she put huge chunks of butter in the dough! Que rica! (Literally, “how rich” and what people say when something is yummy!) It was a blast, great memories. Elsa loves Josh and says we are “una pareja muy linda” or a beautiful couple. I was nervous about how my family would react to me having a fiancé here and wanting to hang out with him but it turned out perfectly. Elsa wants Josh to be a part of our family too and come over whenever, like it was his house. Like I said, she is so kind-hearted and genuine!
I know this has gotten super long, so I will wrap up. So far, it’s been a great experience. I’m much relieved to have a family that I click with and feel so comfortable with. It’s definitely an adjustment and way different place here. Just being in a place that is so poor opens your eyes. I’m looking forward to getting into a routine with school and traveling to all the amazing places around Ecuador on the weekends. More on all those to come! I miss you all and hope you’re all well!
Un besito! A little kiss!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Estoy in Quito, I am on Quito
Hello. Just want to give everyone an update that I made it to Quito and am doing very well. I wrote a long post about my time here so far but it is on my laptop and I a writing now from an internet cafe with no way to transfer what I wrote. WiFi is not common here and my host family has a 15 year old computer with no internet. Thankfully, this cafe is only 70 cents an hour so I can get my technology fix for cheap. I will post the longer post from my school tomorrow.
Quito is very interesting and very different from the US. Itçs taking some adjusting and by the end of the day I am exhausted from trying to speak and understand Spanish. But that is what I came here for. Everyone here is super super kind and hospitable, my host mother and the staff at the school. I feel very safe and that I have lots of people to help me with whatever I need.
At our first day of school today, we had a very interesting speaker who astounded me with some facts about Ecuador. Here are a few...
Unemployment is 10 percent but subemployment, people who do little jobs or work on the street selling junk and begging basically, is 60 percent. So, there are 70 percent of people without real jobs here in Ecuador.
From 1996 to 2006 they had 8 dofferent governements. And from 1979 to 1996 they had 17 different governments.
The current president has basically denounced old debts as being illegitimate because past governments did nt use them for the people. So, he wonçt pay their huge debts to the International Monetary Fund.
Watch for my post on this past weekend tomorrow.
Much love.
Quito is very interesting and very different from the US. Itçs taking some adjusting and by the end of the day I am exhausted from trying to speak and understand Spanish. But that is what I came here for. Everyone here is super super kind and hospitable, my host mother and the staff at the school. I feel very safe and that I have lots of people to help me with whatever I need.
At our first day of school today, we had a very interesting speaker who astounded me with some facts about Ecuador. Here are a few...
Unemployment is 10 percent but subemployment, people who do little jobs or work on the street selling junk and begging basically, is 60 percent. So, there are 70 percent of people without real jobs here in Ecuador.
From 1996 to 2006 they had 8 dofferent governements. And from 1979 to 1996 they had 17 different governments.
The current president has basically denounced old debts as being illegitimate because past governments did nt use them for the people. So, he wonçt pay their huge debts to the International Monetary Fund.
Watch for my post on this past weekend tomorrow.
Much love.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Darn Fog!
As soon as it seemed we were going to land in Quito last night, the fog deterred our landing. We were re-routed to Guayaquil (40 mins flight south of Quito). After waiting for 2 hours to see if the weather would clear, it didn't. So, we were all bused to a hotel for the night. As much as I would love a cultural experience and don't want everything to become Americanized, thank America for Hiltons!! I had a 4 hour nap and am now back at the Guayaquil airport - free Wifi! Hopefully we can take off soon...hasta luego!
Monday, January 5, 2009
Packing to go!
Welcome to my blog!
I will try to update this regularly about my travels in South America this quarter. I will be based in Quito, Ecuador for my study abroad program. So far, I know I have a host mother, Elsa, and host brother, Sebastian, who is nine years old. I will be studying spanish language and Ecuadorian history and culture. At this point, that's pretty much all I know! I have no idea what to expect so stay tuned for my adventures...
I will try to update this regularly about my travels in South America this quarter. I will be based in Quito, Ecuador for my study abroad program. So far, I know I have a host mother, Elsa, and host brother, Sebastian, who is nine years old. I will be studying spanish language and Ecuadorian history and culture. At this point, that's pretty much all I know! I have no idea what to expect so stay tuned for my adventures...
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