Enjoy!
You can also click here
View All about Ecuador in a larger map
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Where in Ecuador am I?
I've started working on a map of all the places and activities I will be up to in Ecuador.
You can also click here
View All about Ecuador in a larger map
You can also click here
View All about Ecuador in a larger map
It's been quite the week
One week has passed since my last blog and I must admit, it was a very, very long week. Let me tell the ways...
First and foremost, Thursday night all the girls arrived between 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. and all of their American Airlines flights were delayed (note to all those traveling to Ecuador on AAL, avoid it). After getting settled in, everyone went to sleep...except three of us. Elysse, Tina and I had lunch on Wednesday at a restaurant that ended up NOT following health regulations very well because we all became very, very sick. On Friday during the orientation we had a section on health where we learned a lot about being healthy and that 90% of all students would get diarrhea. On top of getting diarrhea, some would get an intestinal bacteria infection and as the facilitator put it, "we would know we have lived". I can now say "I have lived". This infection is unlike normal food poisoning and it lasts around 24 hours and will clear and reset your system, but I don't recommend it, especially when in a hostel, attempting to pack up your things and sharing a bathroom with 6 other girls. This is not the type of cleansing I ever want to experience again, but knowing my curiosity, I probably will.
And so you see why it was a long week. On Thursday amidst the runs to the bathroom and curling up on the couch, we got ourselves packed and into taxis to head to meet our host families. I can't thank the other women in my program for supporting us through that wretched time of sickness. We would not have been able to get anywhere without them!
On Friday we had to meet on campus at 7:30 for our first orientation and it went all day long! Imagine three sick girls sitting through a full day of orientation with about 50% of our normal energy, thank goodness we are almost always full of extra energy and we survived the day!
Saturday was the tour of Quito and trip to Mitad del Mundo (Equator!) We saw historic buildings, had delicious food, stood on either side of the equator and saw real shrunken heads! It was quite the day!
That evening Shelby and I headed to the farm with our host brother and his 3 year old son. The house on the farm is a true Spanish Hacienda built in the late 1800s. Many of the features are still original and the family bought the farm and the house when it was abandoned. They explained the amount of TLC the home needed, but it is beautiful now.
On Sunday we woke to an amazing breakfast overlooking all of Quito and went for a short hike further up the mountain. The rest of the day was spent playing with the three-year-old Gabriel, riding horses and eating Mexican tacos with cheese right from the farm. Did I mention our host family makes and sells their own cheese to local restaurants? It is our weakness in our Galapagos swimsuit diet.
The weekend ended on a great note and we went home full, happy and a little more tan thanks to the Ecuadorian sun.
Monday was spent at yet another orientation, but this one was GAIAS related and we got to hear more about our trips to the amazon and the university (GAIAS) on the Galapagos Islands. The rest of the day was spent running errands for our Visas, Censos and other documentation that legalizes us here in Ecuador.
Tuesday was our free day and we decided to make the most of it. After having our pre-paid delicious lunch on campus (crepes and salad). There is a culinary school on campus, you can just imagine how Food Network it is, including the plating and using foods that you wouldn't normally see in Ecuadorian cuisine. The afternoon we ended up watching the movie Ice Age in Spanish at Sarah and Jacquie's house as a storm deterred our trip to the market in Quito. After the storm we went over to a local coffee shop where I had an amazing caramel apple cheesecake and latte. Am I really in Ecuador?
Today was the first day of classes, but just like in the states, you want your hair to look just right. I had mentioned to my host mother that I really would like to get my hair cut as it had only been since December (eek!). She then called her stylist and got us both appointments and we headed out to enjoy a morning getting our hair done! It was so great to get my hair done, especially since I did not bring a hairdryer on this trip. I so enjoy talking with the ladies of the salon and getting some great bonding time with my host mom, Ana Lucia.
That's all for now, check back soon for more random stories and events of a simple life in Ecuador.
First and foremost, Thursday night all the girls arrived between 10:00 p.m. and 2:00 a.m. and all of their American Airlines flights were delayed (note to all those traveling to Ecuador on AAL, avoid it). After getting settled in, everyone went to sleep...except three of us. Elysse, Tina and I had lunch on Wednesday at a restaurant that ended up NOT following health regulations very well because we all became very, very sick. On Friday during the orientation we had a section on health where we learned a lot about being healthy and that 90% of all students would get diarrhea. On top of getting diarrhea, some would get an intestinal bacteria infection and as the facilitator put it, "we would know we have lived". I can now say "I have lived". This infection is unlike normal food poisoning and it lasts around 24 hours and will clear and reset your system, but I don't recommend it, especially when in a hostel, attempting to pack up your things and sharing a bathroom with 6 other girls. This is not the type of cleansing I ever want to experience again, but knowing my curiosity, I probably will.
And so you see why it was a long week. On Thursday amidst the runs to the bathroom and curling up on the couch, we got ourselves packed and into taxis to head to meet our host families. I can't thank the other women in my program for supporting us through that wretched time of sickness. We would not have been able to get anywhere without them!
On Friday we had to meet on campus at 7:30 for our first orientation and it went all day long! Imagine three sick girls sitting through a full day of orientation with about 50% of our normal energy, thank goodness we are almost always full of extra energy and we survived the day!
Saturday was the tour of Quito and trip to Mitad del Mundo (Equator!) We saw historic buildings, had delicious food, stood on either side of the equator and saw real shrunken heads! It was quite the day!
That evening Shelby and I headed to the farm with our host brother and his 3 year old son. The house on the farm is a true Spanish Hacienda built in the late 1800s. Many of the features are still original and the family bought the farm and the house when it was abandoned. They explained the amount of TLC the home needed, but it is beautiful now.
On Sunday we woke to an amazing breakfast overlooking all of Quito and went for a short hike further up the mountain. The rest of the day was spent playing with the three-year-old Gabriel, riding horses and eating Mexican tacos with cheese right from the farm. Did I mention our host family makes and sells their own cheese to local restaurants? It is our weakness in our Galapagos swimsuit diet.
The weekend ended on a great note and we went home full, happy and a little more tan thanks to the Ecuadorian sun.
Monday was spent at yet another orientation, but this one was GAIAS related and we got to hear more about our trips to the amazon and the university (GAIAS) on the Galapagos Islands. The rest of the day was spent running errands for our Visas, Censos and other documentation that legalizes us here in Ecuador.
Tuesday was our free day and we decided to make the most of it. After having our pre-paid delicious lunch on campus (crepes and salad). There is a culinary school on campus, you can just imagine how Food Network it is, including the plating and using foods that you wouldn't normally see in Ecuadorian cuisine. The afternoon we ended up watching the movie Ice Age in Spanish at Sarah and Jacquie's house as a storm deterred our trip to the market in Quito. After the storm we went over to a local coffee shop where I had an amazing caramel apple cheesecake and latte. Am I really in Ecuador?
Today was the first day of classes, but just like in the states, you want your hair to look just right. I had mentioned to my host mother that I really would like to get my hair cut as it had only been since December (eek!). She then called her stylist and got us both appointments and we headed out to enjoy a morning getting our hair done! It was so great to get my hair done, especially since I did not bring a hairdryer on this trip. I so enjoy talking with the ladies of the salon and getting some great bonding time with my host mom, Ana Lucia.
That's all for now, check back soon for more random stories and events of a simple life in Ecuador.
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
Cotopaxi
 |
| beautiful evening looking at the Cotopaxi volcano |
 |
| Cotopaxi from The Secret Garden Cotopaxi hostel |
Oh the hostel life
I've been to hostels a bunch in my travels, but the majority of the time, I've been lucky to find low key hostels or find hostels that weren't full. Times are changing and more people are traveling and there are a few token travelers you just hope don't end up in your dorm room. Elysse, Tina and I drew the short straw last night.
To explain a little more about our dorm room, we are located right below the kitchen and the stairs up to the terrace are right by our door. It gets very noisy beginning at 6:30 a.m. with the kitchen staff preparing breakfast. Last night we all went to bed at 11:00 p.m. after working on grad papers, playing on Facebook and creating blogs for our time abroad. The terrace was full of people playing drinking games and when they close it at 11:00 p.m., most people head out for more drinks, such as the four men in our room. Upon going to sleep, we had the token drunk girl, who must have missed the taxi to go out, wandering into our room looking for the four men and then walking over to our windows to look outside. On the second trip into our room, where she was stumbling all over, I asked her not to come back and that all the men were gone. Then we had peace and quiet...
...until 3:00 a.m. At this point the four men returned to the room, intoxicated to that of soaking in bath of rum and unable to form full words or sentences. Ok, no big deal, I thought to myself, they will pass out soon. Nope. They proceeded to turn on the light, which was annoying for us on the top bunk, and attempted to have a drunk conversation between the four of them. The most annoying part at this point was blaming us for waking them up the day before at 7:00 a.m. That's when I decided I was annoyed, because I was woken up by the kitchen banging pots and people standing outside our door talking the morning before.
Needless to say, they were up for another hour, some of which they took outside the room. If they had simply been drunks stumbling to bed, I would have embraced the dorm life and hoped they had a good time out at the clubs. However, when they began talking smack and blaming us for their lack of sleep, I no longer had sympathy and only wished I had an air horn to use in the room this morning. We all took the high road and didn't cause drama or even make a bunch of noise this morning, but the thought crossed my mind more than a few times.
For my someday "round the world" trip, I'll budget extra to avoid sharing a room with those four again.
To explain a little more about our dorm room, we are located right below the kitchen and the stairs up to the terrace are right by our door. It gets very noisy beginning at 6:30 a.m. with the kitchen staff preparing breakfast. Last night we all went to bed at 11:00 p.m. after working on grad papers, playing on Facebook and creating blogs for our time abroad. The terrace was full of people playing drinking games and when they close it at 11:00 p.m., most people head out for more drinks, such as the four men in our room. Upon going to sleep, we had the token drunk girl, who must have missed the taxi to go out, wandering into our room looking for the four men and then walking over to our windows to look outside. On the second trip into our room, where she was stumbling all over, I asked her not to come back and that all the men were gone. Then we had peace and quiet...
...until 3:00 a.m. At this point the four men returned to the room, intoxicated to that of soaking in bath of rum and unable to form full words or sentences. Ok, no big deal, I thought to myself, they will pass out soon. Nope. They proceeded to turn on the light, which was annoying for us on the top bunk, and attempted to have a drunk conversation between the four of them. The most annoying part at this point was blaming us for waking them up the day before at 7:00 a.m. That's when I decided I was annoyed, because I was woken up by the kitchen banging pots and people standing outside our door talking the morning before.
Needless to say, they were up for another hour, some of which they took outside the room. If they had simply been drunks stumbling to bed, I would have embraced the dorm life and hoped they had a good time out at the clubs. However, when they began talking smack and blaming us for their lack of sleep, I no longer had sympathy and only wished I had an air horn to use in the room this morning. We all took the high road and didn't cause drama or even make a bunch of noise this morning, but the thought crossed my mind more than a few times.
For my someday "round the world" trip, I'll budget extra to avoid sharing a room with those four again.
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
First Week of Adventure
Its been a week and change since my arrival to Ecuador and adventure it has been! My first day was met with some beautiful views of Quito on our approach to the airport, which was unlike anything I had ever experienced. The airport is at 9,000 ft elevation, its in the middle of the city and only has one runway, which could be longer for the elevation of the city.
After arriving to the city, I did the normal customs and immigration, caught my taxi to the hostel and checked in after climbing 4 flights of awkward steep stairs. The hostel, Secret Garden Quito, is an adventure hostel with a wonderful terrace with two amazing Ecuadorian chefs! The next few days were full of lounging, sightseeing the Basilica del Voto Nacional (really high towers with 100 year old rebar), trying local cuisine and then catching a cab/transport/bus (depending on how you look at it) to Cotopaxi.
The lodge/hostel in Cotopaxi is Secret Garden Cotopaxi (branch out already!), where I spent 4 days and 3 nights enjoying a small farm located at 11,000 ft elevation. While in Cotopaxi, I had delicious cured ham, went on a waterfall hike, met some amazing people, was out drank by a Polish woman and ended my trip horseback riding up to around 13,000ft on a horse that had no rhythm trotting and stirrups that were wooden clogs (weird!).
Now I'm back in Quito and accompanied by two classmates, whom I also refer to as friends. Tomorrow the final four roll in and we will be reunited once again. On Monday, Tina and I headed up to the world's highest Gondola, which starts at 9,000 feet and takes you up to 13,325ft! From that point Tina and I hiked further up, slowly I might add, and had some amazing views of the city of Quito. The gondola ride is something I recommend to everyone, especially if its not windy.
Ok, back to these things we call grad school papers.
(Photos will follow when the internet is better)
After arriving to the city, I did the normal customs and immigration, caught my taxi to the hostel and checked in after climbing 4 flights of awkward steep stairs. The hostel, Secret Garden Quito, is an adventure hostel with a wonderful terrace with two amazing Ecuadorian chefs! The next few days were full of lounging, sightseeing the Basilica del Voto Nacional (really high towers with 100 year old rebar), trying local cuisine and then catching a cab/transport/bus (depending on how you look at it) to Cotopaxi.
The lodge/hostel in Cotopaxi is Secret Garden Cotopaxi (branch out already!), where I spent 4 days and 3 nights enjoying a small farm located at 11,000 ft elevation. While in Cotopaxi, I had delicious cured ham, went on a waterfall hike, met some amazing people, was out drank by a Polish woman and ended my trip horseback riding up to around 13,000ft on a horse that had no rhythm trotting and stirrups that were wooden clogs (weird!).
Now I'm back in Quito and accompanied by two classmates, whom I also refer to as friends. Tomorrow the final four roll in and we will be reunited once again. On Monday, Tina and I headed up to the world's highest Gondola, which starts at 9,000 feet and takes you up to 13,325ft! From that point Tina and I hiked further up, slowly I might add, and had some amazing views of the city of Quito. The gondola ride is something I recommend to everyone, especially if its not windy.
Ok, back to these things we call grad school papers.
(Photos will follow when the internet is better)
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)