Ecuador | My Journey Begins
When I left home for South America, I thought I would blog each day, or at least each week about my travels. It's hard to believe I've been gone nearly four weeks and this is my first chance to sit down and write about my journey. After a three day snow delay in St. Louis, I arrived in Quito, Ecuador to be greeted at the airport by my warm and friendly Spanish teacher, Mariana. I was welcomed into her home along with a young man from England and a retired couple from Colorado. Living with Mariana, her husband Frank, and children Jon Pierre and Marie Jose was a wonderful experience.
Their home is in the Los Chillos Valley with a beautiful view of Quito and the mountains. I felt a little like a kid at camp as I settled into my bed and slept soundly to the sounds of clicking frogs, barking dogs, and roosters (who seem to think 4 am is a good time to rise).
One of the noisy roosters in the neighborhood.
I especially loved being so close to the every day lives in this quaint little town.
The dining table is definitely the heart of this home where everyone gathers three times a day to share meals prepared by Mariana or one of her family members.
Most mornings start with Mariana sending one of her students down the hill to get fresh eggs and bread sold at a neighboring home. My favorite part of breakfast was the freshly blended fruit juice we had daily.
The soup for lunch was usually being started on the stove as we ate breakfast. There was always plenty of food followed by hot tea as we continued to sit around the table and enjoy each other's company.
In addition to four hours of studies in Spanish each day, we were "not allowed" to speak anything but Spanish at mealtimes - a feat that often proved quite amusing. I especially loved the prayer box on the table. We took turns pulling a card to read before each meal.
Prayer Box
Besides teaching Spanish, Mariana was a great tour guide and I was fortunate to take a couple of day trips with her to Old Town Quito where we watched a colorful performance by Grupo Folklorico Sareymanda and The Otavalo Market. If you ever want to learn or improve your Spanish in Ecuador contact Mariana.
My Spanish teacher Mariana and our driver at Cuicocha Lagoon
Some things I had to get used to:
Not understanding the language
Having change available to pay for public bathrooms.
Not to flush the toilet paper (there is a small trash can next to the toilet for placing your used toilet paper).
No phone
Slow internet connections, when they are available.
Hanging my clean undies on the line for all to see.
Walking uphill - If I wasn't eating so well I would definitely be losing weight!
Biggest mistakes so far:
Bringing too much luggage
Not learning more Spanish before I left home
When I left home I thought this would be easier, but I have to admit I nearly had a panic attack as the doors of the plane closed to leave Miami, Florida for Quito, Ecuador.
Am I glad I did it? YES! I still feel out of my comfort zone at some point every day, but the experience I am having and the people I am meeting is worth every bit of the occasional anxiety. The journey so far is not what I expected, it's even better.
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