¡Bienvenidos a Ecuador!

Welcome to Ecuador! I am going to use this blog to update everyone about my adventures in Ecuador this semester! I arrived to Quito, the capital of Ecuador, late on January 1 and I will be taking classes here at a University until May 15. However, I will be here for a few weeks after classes end to travel with my family and show them all the wonders this country has to offer. A little bit about Quito: we are at 2850m, which is about 9,350 feet above sea level, a little bit more than Denver! The city lies almost directly on the equator and is surrounded by the beautiful Andes Mountains. To the west is Pichincha Mountain – so I can still orient myself using the mountains! It rains every day here so I don’t leave the house without my umbrella; but during the day it is sure to be sunny and it feels marvelous.

Like I mentioned, I will be taking classes from la Universidad San Francisco de Quito (USFQ) this semester and the school is in the city of Cumbayá which lies in the valley. It is much warmer in the valley and my campus is beautiful! I have signed up to take: History of the Pacific, Ecuadorian Stories, Contemporary Art, Anthropology of Religion, and Anthropology of the indigenous groups in the Andes. I’m excited to start classes to see how well I handle learning in Spanish, and to meet more Ecuadorians!

This is my family, la familia de Navarrete-Vaca: The first picture is of my mamí and papí. Martha Vaca is 38 years old and the boss of the house :) She used to work as a beautician and take English classes, but now she just stays at home and takes care of everyone and the house. She is very caring and is always making sure I’m not too cold or hungry. She helped me get a cell phone, slippers for the house, an umbrella, and a map of the city. Oswaldo Navarrete is a commercial engineer and is currently managing a project to build a kind of luxurious neighborhood by the Thermal Waters. He takes such good care of me by taking the bus with me to the IES center and making sure I am safe wherever I am!

And these are my brothers, which makes me the only other girl in the house beside my mom! From left to right: Daniel, who goes by Dany, is 21 and lives in this house. He was enrolled at a University in the opposite valley as mine, but wasn’t sure what he wanted to major in so he dropped out after two years and joined the military academy. However, his time at the military academy was even shorter and he quit after 3 months. He showed me pictures and it looked very intense! Right now he has the semester off and is working as a phone person for a company, and he is trying to get back into his old University to become an environmental engineer. If you can tell, he is the tallest one in his family which is not normal for Ecuadorians! He also takes the bus with me when papí can’t. In his lap is Mateo who is 7 years old. He is the cutest thing! He has loved me since I entered into the house! He holds my hand whenever we go out shopping and waits for me at the door when I come home for the day. I help him finish his homework and then we like to play. He loves the Lego robot I gave him and we pick targets on the box to shoot at until someone hits it. Then there is Oswaldo Israel who is 11. His nickname is Balito and he is a really fun kid. He likes to ask me all about the States: how much things cost, what’s the name of this song (since they commonly listen to the same music we do), how to say words in English, and what I like to do there. He is the one who teaches me the most new words and he likes to beat me up in PlayStation games! And then on the other side of Martha is Carlos Alberto. He is 18 years old and lives with his dad. Dany and Carlos are from Martha’s first marriage, and Mateo and Balito are from her marriage with Oswaldo. Carlos graduated from high school last year and is taking this year off. He wants to go to the police academy so he is training and preparing for that. I haven’t seen too much of him, but I love spending time with my other brothers! Everyone is very loving in this family and I feel right at home!

So far I have just been spending my days in orientation from the IES Abroad program, eating, and spending time with my family. Eating is such a big part of life here! Breakfasts are normal with juice or hot chocolate, bread and either yogurt with cereal or eggs. But lunches are the main meal and I am still trying to get used to that. We usually have a big bowl of soup, followed by rice usually with potatoes or a vegetable/fruit and some kind of meat. It is a huge plate of food. And just in case that wasn’t enough, there is the option of a dessert at the end. My little brother Mateo can eat more than I can! But I have successfully eaten one entire lunch (ok, it didn’t have the soup) and I was very proud of myself. I have not tried cuy yet which is guinea pig, but my family says it is absolutely delicious. I have tried Granadilla which I think is like Passionfruit, and I’ve had Guanabana juice which is very sweet! The fruit here is fantastic. I have already eaten four slices of tomato, and today for lunch: fish. I’m trying to learn to like both of them! Wish me luck! Chao!