So much has happened since I last wrote! Time is flying by. I will try to give you an update...
Visitors
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| With our host family from training in Tumbaco |
In June Eric's mom, aunt, cousin, and a friend came to visit us. They were only here for a week and they flew into Quito so we decided to spend some time up north instead of coming to our site. It was a good time. We spent some time in Quito and 2 days in and around Otavalo where the 3rd largest artisan market in South America is located.
During their visit we began to realize how integrated we were into Ecuadorian culture and lifestyle. There were things that we don't even think about any more that were really different for his family. For example, you can't throw toilet paper in the toilet here (you throw it in the trash), which is something that was difficult for them to grasp, but we don't think twice about it now.
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| In the Basilica church in Quito |
Another thing that we have grown accustomed to is walking. I don't know if it's because we are cheap or like to walk, but we walked A LOT. I only know this because our visitors mentioned it. ;) In our town we don't have buses so we are used to walking a good amount in one day and maybe it seems frivolous to take a taxi when we are able to walk in a short amount of time. Being in Quito it was necessary to take taxis at times because it is much larger. Along with that, we were careful not to get ripped off by taxi drivers, vendors, etc. In the moment it seems like it is only $.50 or $1 and maybe it's not a big deal. Really the money doesn't matter, it's the fact that we don't want to send the image that we are gringos to be taken advantage of. We should be charged the same price as everyone else and the service giver should have the respect to do so.
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| A little rain on the double-decker bus. Good thing they brought their rain jackets. |
We also have gotten used to getting what you get. In the US we are used to making special orders (without onion, extra cheese, lots of ice, etc.). We have really gotten used to eating what's given to us. In the beginning it was difficult to make special requests and we weren't really sure if it was culturally acceptable. When we usually eat in a local restaurant where they have 3 choices for lunch it is not polite or possible to ask for something else as it is made in bulk and ahead of time. In bigger restaurants it is of course different, but not a type of place we frequent. The most notable of these changes in food is with ice. In the US we loved our drinks to be cold, but here we had to quickly get used to room temperature juice and water. Ice is harder to find, and if you do find it, you may not want it because it's probably made with tap water.
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| A little fun on the bus tour of Quito |
All in all, we had a good time with family. They were able to buy some souvenirs, visit some tourist sites, and see our beautiful Ecuador.
Happy Birthday to Me!
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A beach in Bahia and Eva's first time at the beach. She was afraid of the water :(
but she loved running around on the beach. |
I passed yet another birthday here in Ecuador. This year we spent the week in the coast on the beach! The beach is far from our house (6-10 hours in bus) so we haven't had the time to visit yet. On my actual birthday we went to Los Frailes, a beach near Puerto Lopez. It is said to be one of the most beautiful beaches in Ecuador (on the mainland, these beaches don't compare to what we saw in the Galapagos). I have to say, though it was overcast and a little rainy at times, the beach was beautiful. The waves were also gigantic! We had to be very careful when we went swimming because they would throw you around. Being a Great Lakes kid, I still am not used to the salt water, but on the plus side the water is warm and you don't have to wait for a "big wave day" to enjoy the waves.
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| The walk to Los Frailes in Puerto Lopez |
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| Some friends playing frisbee at Los Frailes beach |
On the fourth of July we took a tour of Isla de la Plata. We went on a little boat for about an hour to the island which is also known as the "Poor Man's Galapagos" named for the many birds there. I have to say there weren't many birds at all! The guide told us that the mating season was much earlier this year then many of the birds left and no one knows why. There are some ideas that they sensed something was off this year because of "El Nino" which causes steep temperature changes and large rip tides. After the hike on the island and on the way back to the mainland we participated in the whale watching part of the tour. Since on the way to the island I only felt moderately sick and I thought I would be distracted by the beautiful humpbacks, I decided not to take anything for motion sickness. BIG MISTAKE! To my dismay we didn't see many whales; hardly any at first which ruined my whale distraction plan. Then there came a point where the motion sickness got SO bad I didn't know what to do. "Mind over matter," I told myself. That worked for a while. Then we stopped to see some whales. As soon as we stopped everyone looked to the other side of the boat and said, "Woooooaaaahh" as I vomited out the other side. On the bright side no one was staring at me and I felt better after. Luckily the whales came up again and I was able to see them. Wonderful creatures.
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| Emily and Pamela on the boat to Isla de la Plata |
Travel, Travel, Travel, and Travel Some More
A challenge we are facing right now is how much we are out of site. Those two trips that you just read about were each a week long and with only a week of work in between. Peace Corps also has us traveling to do trainings and English Camps with the Embassy. Then we have more trainings and workshops to give teachers in Quito and Cuenca. This makes it difficult to have consistency in our site work with our teachers which we have found is CRUCIAL in making any progress. In these next months it will continue to be a challenge we will need to overcome.
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| Luckily Eric didn't get sick and was able to take pictures... |
We have been reflecting on how lucky we are to have this experience. There have been many days recently where we look at each other and say, "What an amazing life we lead." It is truly great. Even through all of the tough times and cultural differences we still feel incredibly lucky to have this experience.
Thank you for all of your prayers, love and support.
Much love
Emily
"Live the life you love, love the life you live."
-Bob Marley
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You can see how close the whales get to some boats
in this picture. We weren't as lucky, but still pretty close! |
