Traveling to Learn While Learning to Travel: August 2012

The title of this post has a dual purpose. I think it's pretty catchy; but my dogs actually do speak Spanish. And while my Spanish has been improving, I'm certainly not fluent yet. Language barriers are a really interesting thing. Even though I only understand half of what people say, there are many universal gestures. I'm not just talking about pointing at one's imaginary watch to ask for the time. A lot of times, people (especially children) stare at me as if I'm the strangest thing they've ever seen. Sometimes I wear sunglasses if I don't want to draw attention to myself. But lately I've simply been smiling at people. It seems to remind them that I'm still a human being.

Pooky.

Molly and Congo.

Friday, my family took me to the pool. It was a lot of fun- there were a few slides, saunas, fresh avocados that fell from the surrounding trees (we ended up diving for these and playing with them like pool toys). It was also pretty amusing, because the pools were so shallow. At the deepest part, it was maybe 5' deep. This just kind of reminded me of how out of place I must look. In fact, I think that I'm one of the tallest people in Ecuador. My friend, Samantha, is probably the tallest, at a whopping 6' 4".

Samantha and I.

Yesterday, my family took me ice skating. Though, ice skating at the Equator is an ironic concept, there are a lot of similarities I'm finding with Quito and back home. Mostly, the similarities seem to be occurring within the characteristics of my Moms. Just to name a few, my Ecua-mamma loves drinking coke. She makes a lot of the same jokes as my USA mom (or so I think, considering that they're in Spanish) and she's always doting on me.

*Note: (USA) Mom, since I know you're reading this, hopefully this can put you at ease. It won't always be feasible to send you a message telling you that I'm alive (especially once I start making weekend trips). So you'll have to start trusting that I have another Mom making sure that I'm okay.

At the ice skating rink.

Today, my family had a BBQ at my Aunt's house. It was interesting meeting the rest of the family. Lunch was really good, with the exception of the cow's blood sausage that I had. I thoroughly believe you have to be willing to try everything once. However, I think it's generally a good idea to learn what you're eating after you've eaten it. After lunch, the entire family went inside and starting singing together. It was more passionate than any camp fire singing I've ever experienced. I constantly have these insider moments where I think, "Wow, I'm in Ecuador and I get to experience being part of an Ecuadorian family first hand." Sometimes I even wonder if they even realize that I'm an extrañjera (stranger). I'm definitely starting to assimilate into the family. I've been assigned my day (Thursdays) to be in charge of the dishes. I suppose I can't complain.

It has taken me a while to get my blog going, but I am finally settled. I made it to Ecuador safely and am just starting to explore the city, language and culture. So far, this has been a very humbling experience. Between the language barrier and the culture shock, I have definitely found myself to be both insignificant and brave.

I am learning a completely new way of thinking and a new set of values. For example, I have had to develop a new definition for what a "hot" shower is. I have also started to master how to judge when cars will stop for you to cross the street and when they won't. A good rule of thumb is that 98% of the time, they won't.

Yesterday was my first day of classes. Luckily, my first class started at 1pm. My host family took me to get a prepaid cell phone, and then we all stopped at a restaurant for lunch. As Ecuadorian timing goes, my family didn't leave the restaurant until 12:40, in which we walked to the bus stop so that I could take my 20 minute bus ride.

I think my host parents' favorite thing to say to me is "tranquila" or "calm." I arrived to school 15 minutes late, got lost finding my class, got bad directions and then got even more lost on campus. Around 1:40, I found my teacher, who happened to have forgotten that we had class today. I was "más tranquila" after that.

A few days ago, the students from my OUS program and I went on a tour of the old historical district in Quito. We saw the main plazas, tons of churches, museums etc. My favorite part was climbing up La Basílica del Voto Nacional. I'll post more photos, but here's a few for now: