Photos of the Beach Hotel

After the trip to the beach, and the curving, nauseating six and a half hour bus ride, I got sick. Yesterday was bad, today was much better, but I am still afraid of eating much and throwing it back up. My family here thinks it may have been something I ate at the beach or possibly the ice in a drink. The danger of ordering a poolside piña colada made with freshly shaved coconut, and covered in freshly cut fruit which is made in a third world country, is the water used for the ice that goes into the blender is not necessarily safe for tourists to consume. In addition to being sick, I am painfully sunburnt, I have midterm grammer exam tomorrow and have to climb back on the bus the next day to head for the jungle on another 6 hour curving, cxlimbing, dropping trip. I have no doubt that it will be amazing, but the thought of getting back on that bus makes me feel nauseous already. On a brighter note, the beach was amazing. There was no blue sky, but when the sun broke through the clouds, it made us very happy that we had the clouds. It felt like my skin would burn off it I spent much more time under direct sunlight. We went on a banana boat ride, which was a blast. You throw eleven people on an inflatable tube, drag them behind a moter boat, and throw them off into the ocean and somebody is bound to get hurt. I am not sure if I hit a knee or an elbow or what, but I have a black bruise on my leg. Could be much worse, though. And it was definitely worth the experience. The ocean water was warm and I tried boogie boarding for the first time. Swimming was great, really nice experience to actually be swimming in an ocean, especially when you live in Oregon. We tried freshly prepared ceviche of concha and of shrimp, went dancing, swimming in the pool and the ocean, lounged in hammocks on the beach, and just had a generally fun and relaxing weeking. Granted, a few people started drinking as soon as they got up and ended their night hugging the toilet, they were the minority. The rest of us had a great time without going down that road. Although I did have my first swimming in a pool after midnight experience, which was great. A group of us went in late and the water was just so refreshing without being at all painful. It was a little on the chilly side when first getting in and when getting out, but overall we had a blast. I am only putting up pictures of the hotel because that is all I took pictures of. I wasn´t willing to take my camera to the beach when we have already had around 6 or 7 people get robbed. One girl had her clutch taken out of her hand right outside the hotel. But I am waiting to get my hands on more pictures taken by other people in my group and I will get them on here as soon as possible. For now, be sure to click on the pictures to see the close up, it is worth it. Wish me luck on my test tomorrow, and cross your fingers that my stomach will knock it off!

Otavalo!

Otavalo was phenomenal! So many colors and people and things to buy! Unfortunately I spent far more than I thought I would, but there are worse things in life, I suppose. An amazing experience...

Quy y Familia!

No pictures of Otavalo yet, because I forgot my camera. Not to worry, though, I will be putting up photos of the market as soon as I steal them from my friends. The only picture I have from the Otavalo trip is of the handmade Marzipan figures that we learned about in a little town. We got to watch the women actually making them! In the mean time, I spent today with my family and met EVERYONE! I put up a picture of me with my Ecuadorian mother and sister, as well as one of more family. We went out to lunch as a huge group, and I ordered Quy. I am not sure if the pictures are big enough that you can see the curled up claws, or the protruding tooth of the guinea pig on my plate, but if you need a larger picture, let me know. It was a great trip and the family is incredibly wonderful and welcoming. I enjoyed listening to singing and guitar, as well as a ballet dance, a dramatic monologue, and a song from my 11 year old cousin. She was incredibly extroverted and her English was fabulous! Hopefully I can get up more pictures tomorrow of the actual marketplace. In the meantime, enjoy these! And if you happen to comment, remember to leave your name. I have comments from people, but I have no idea who these people are!

To Pichincha

We took the teleférico (a little ski lift-like ride) up to a viewpoint of Pichincha, the biggest mountain in Quito, and is actually an active volcano. The view was phenomenal and certainly cannot be captured with my photos, but I tried anyway. It was breathtaking. In fact, that phrase took on an entirely new meaning today, at about 4 thousand meters above sea level, or about 13,123 feet. Just climbing up the stairs and walking up the little hills became far more difficult with the lack of oxygen. It is strange when a simple task becomes surprisingly strenuous. You could see even more of the sprawling city of Quito, and I just can´t believe how huge the city is. I still can´t get over how gorgeous the surrounding mountain are. And if this is as amazing as it seems, I can´t wait until we go to the jungle!!!

The Equator field trip

Today was pretty exciting. We had our first field trip! We went to the historical center of Quito, to the ecuator, and to a gorgeous, guilded, baroque church. We traveled to see Mary, who sits on top of one of the hills and looks over Quito. I saw shrunken heads, boas, and some gorgeous flowers, some of which I had never seen before and didn´t necesarily look like flowers. This evening 22 out of the 25 of us met up at the school and went out to one of the districts with a lot of bard and discos. Cocktails are around 4 dollars, and a taxi which dropped three of us off at different spots cost a total of three dollars. A few of the students stayed out later, but I was happier just having the experience and then leaving before it got too late. Tomorrow is the official first day of classes, and I am definitely looking forward to that. In the mean time, I have been speaking a lot of spanish. It is really dificult to see this level of poverty. Many of the houses are falling down or have collapsed roofs. The streets are full of children selling things, and people sell things, wash windows, or breath fire in the middle of traffic to make money. We are not supposed to take any type of paper, pamphlets, or coupons from anyone on the street because they can be laced with drugs which take away your will power, but leave your ability to lead a thief to your house and offer them your money. Two students have already been pick pocketeted. It isn´t an issue when you are safe and aware of your surroundings, though. Here are the photos of the day, featuring Ismael and DiDi, who are also in my group. Friday we go on our first big trip, to a huge marketplace. In the meantime, everything is still pretty darn wonderful. Especially the food!

Well, I wrote this once, then didn´t post it before I logged out, and lost everything. So, keeping this short since I am about to eat lunch with the family, I will give the highlights. I met my older sister, who lives with her husband nearby. I learned that Ecuadorian roses are the most beautiful because the sun strikes the ground perpendicularly and makes them grow super long and perfectly straight. Two dozen roses cost about a dollar here. Tomorrow I go to the ecuator, and yesterday I ate the strangest fruit I have ever encountered. More to come!

First full day in Ecuador

I finally made it! Only an hour and a half to get through customs :( But I was warmly greeted by my Ecuadorian mother, Margarita, and went home to meet my sister Camila. They are wonderful! I had freshly made fruit juice with breakfast from a fruit I have never seen before, but it was delicious. Today is election day in Ecuador, so we went to go vote. It is mandatory here, and you are required to carry your voter confirmation card to travel and do other things. The streets were packed with voters! We had an amazing lunch of shrimp cebiche, and cheese and plantain empanadas. The food has been amazing so far. But not as amazing as the views! Quito is in the middle of/ on the edge of mountains. There are just incredible views, and my Spanish is already improving. I can´t believe how amazing this experience is and I am only on my first day! Classes start tomorrow, and on Tuesday we take a field trip to the Equator. Look for more pictures soon!

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The view from the house!

Here is my room, it is big with my very own bathroom! You can see the street through the window.

Before departure

Welcome to my blog!

Rather than sending out lots of email and pictures, I am going to put everything on here. I will try to keep things updated, and put up some good pictures when I get there. For now, here is my arrival and departure information. Next time I post, hopefully I will be in Quito!

FLIGHT INFORMATION
Day, Date	Flight	Class	Departure City and Time	Arrival City and Time	Aircraft	Meal
Sat, 13JUN09	CO242	S	PORTLAND OR (PDX) 10:50AM	HOUSTON/IAH (IAH) 5:01PM	737-800	Snack
Sat, 13JUN09	CO653	S	HOUSTON/IAH (IAH) 5:45PM	QUITO ECUADOR (UIO) 11:03PM	737-700	Snack
Fri, 17JUL09	CO654	S	QUITO ECUADOR (UIO) 6:30AM	HOUSTON/IAH (IAH) 11:53AM	737-700	Breakfast
Fri, 17JUL09	CO1012	S	HOUSTON/IAH (IAH) 3:55PM	PORTLAND OR (PDX) 6:20PM