Back again! After a retrospective first blog post about pre-departure, I would like to now share some of the emotions and overall impressions of arriving in Quito, Ecuador.
With my previous weeks of preparation, I went into this experience with an open mind. Mentally, I considered that the next four months of my life could be anything from a luxurious vacation to an overwhelming, unenjoyable experience. The nerves of leaving home came to a peak just before and during the trip to the airport. After hopping on the first plane, there was no turning back. In my mind, the most reasonable thing to do in those moments was to accept everything. Upon arriving at the airport, I reached out to my host mom, went through customs, and grabbed my luggage. As soon as I left the baggage claim, there she was—my host mother! I quickly found out that Spanish would be our primary language for communication. We hopped into her car, accompanied by her mother and granddaughter. Everyone was very friendly and curious, asking me many questions in Spanish, which, to my surprise, I handled quite well. Despite a 16-hour travel day, after getting settled in and being shown my room, reality sank in. My adrenaline kept me up for another two hours, just soaking in the fact that I had arrived. There were no more nerves now, only excitement.
The first two days were spent adjusting to the altitude, as Quito is the 2nd highest altitude city in the world! Luckily, I wasn’t terribly affected or sick, so my host mom took me to a local park, called “Parque Los Algarrobos” to hike and see some of the gorgeous views of nature and the city. The second day we went to the mall for a traditional Ecuadorian lunch and shopping at the supermarket. The first school-week at USFQ was spent attending orientations and a 5-day intensive Spanish class. This class was very productive for such a short duration, and I gained some confidence in my Spanish speaking. Getting to know my classmates has been wonderful. Socializing has been very natural, and everyone is eager to get to know each other.
Gorgeous views from Parque Los Algarrobos near Cumbaya, Ecuador (east of Quito)
I have enjoyed meeting all my peers in the program. Everybody has been so excited and happy to be here. In the group, our majors all have something to do with biology, the environment, or marine science and this coincides with a ton of shared interests in nature and adventures. After morning classes, the students usually meet up to eat lunch, play volleyball or Frisbee, go to the gym, go shopping, or whatever we decide. It’s easy to join the group in whatever they have planned, or to tell the group what you want to do, chances are a few other students will split off to join you. Companionship is always available, and I don’t find myself spending much time alone. Between classes and group activities, there’s always something to do.
Despite a relaxed 9 - 12 class schedule, we manage to always stay busy. On the weekends, we almost always have an excursion planned; when the school doesn’t have an excursion, we usually plan one ourselves. The first trip was a city tour of Quito, hosted by the school. We had the pleasure of seeing the historic side of Quito, including the iconic Panecillo, and walking around the historic cathedrals. A few days later, the group went to Otavalo, a smaller town about a 3-hour drive north of Quito. There, we explored lake San Pablo, went to the regionally famous Otavalo market to barter for souvenirs, and then hiked a local park to a waterfall before catching a bus back home.
Photo 1: Group picture during city tour at the iconic "El Panecillo" in southwest Quito
Photo 2: Hike at the Teleferico, near Guagua Pichincha and Rucu Pichincha (west of Quito)
The scenery and nature of Ecuador has truly blown my mind. For a country only the size of Nevada, Ecuador contains two major mountain ranges (with 17 glacierized peaks!), several beach destinations, parts of the Amazon rainforest, and the Galapagos Islands. The climate is so diverse that you could risk frostbite climbing a mountain in the morning and catch a bus to Guayaquil and nearly suffer a heatstroke. There is always a changing gradient from one landscape to another. With so much elevation and climate diversity, it’s no wonder that Ecuador is known for being among the most biodiverse country in the world! My experience so far has been nothing short of incredible.
View from the top of the Iglesia Católica San Francisco (Catholic Church of San Francisco) in Quito's Historic Center
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