Center of the World

The music is from this Ecuadorian group called "Janan" who play traditional music as well as Bolivian/Colombian-style music. We got to hear them live on Wednesday night and danced for close to two hours. It was entertaining since none of us have danced like that before. It was awkward sometimes because we just stood there clapping our hands because no one wanted to be the first to dance. On Thursday, we had a "Drop-Off" activity as a part of our last orientation activity. The directors leave us at Rancho Alegre in San Antonio and split us up into 4 groups. Each group had to travel to a different city on the outskirts of Quito: Nanegalito, Pifo, El Quinche, and Guayllbamba. My group went to Nanegalito, and because the monument of "La Mitad del Mundo" was on the way, we stopped by and took pictures. It was so cool!! I don't know why.. The monument isn't that big of a deal and the equator is just an imaginary line that goes through the middle of the Earth. In actuality, the monument isn't really on the equator; it's a little off, but I felt so giddy and accomplished that I was able to straddle the equator line! I was able to put one foot on the Northern Hemi and another on the Southern Hemi. Sweet.

Yesterday, I met my host family. It was so nerve-racking, and the whole morning and bus ride to Capelo I was really anxious to meet them. A part of me was scared because I'm living with two brothers, and I've never lived with any guys before. The princess part of me was also afraid that I would have to share a bathroom with the entire family, and I would have to be super cautious around them. I was scared that they wouldn't know what to do because it was their first time, and I would feel really left out. But as soon as I met them, they were really friendly and treated me as their real daughter. Of course it was different and I did feel like an outsider, obviously, but they tried their hardest to make me feel comfortable. My dad, César, is a retired newspaper editor for "El Comercio" and now has his own business. My mom, Rocío, also used to be a magazine editor but now works with her oldest son, Diego - 28, in something to do with the government(?). I couldn't understand what she was saying... to be honest. Haha. Daniel is 22 and recently graduated with a degree in publicity/advertisement. He now works with a small agency doing digital advertising for various companies in Quito. Diego moved out today because he said he wanted to have his own place and be more independent of the family, so it's the four of us living in the house. The family situation is very different than in America because here the children live with their parents until they get married. And even then sometimes they live in their parent's home.

But my family is a little different than the traditional families we learned about during orientation. Although Ecuador is a very gender-biased country, my parents here are - if you would - liberal. Because both Rocío and César work, they have a maid/cook who comes Monday through Friday and cooks and cleans the house. On the weekends, each person just makes their own food whenever they have time, and sometimes Rocío works. Haha my family is so cute, especially the way they interact. César is 15 years older than Rocío, and he treats her like a queen. He cooks and does the dishes often because Rocío doesn't like to do housework, and he's very friendly and caring. Today Daniel was doing karaoke when César and I came home from watching a bullfighting event, WHICH WAS REALLY CRAZY AND SAD AND A SUPER COOL EXPERIENCE. Que chevre! (How cool!) But it was really sad.. It was for a five-day fiesta originally in honor of the Virgin Mary, but now it's more commonly known for tourism and corn. There were multiple men that were muy chumado (very drunk) and are almost dead/might be dead/seriously injured.. Pictures on my smugmug.com account.

Ecuador is very dusty. Especially at the bullfighting arena. There was so much dust that rose up from the bull pounding at the ground, and the strong wind blows it into our faces. I think I became allergic, or there was so much dust that it clogged my lungs, because I started sneezing every 5 seconds and coughing nonstop. To the point where soon it hurt to breathe in, and I felt as though my bronchi were closing up... I really need to be more careful. I think I had a slight fever for a while too :( And now I'm in bed on my computer because my host parents wouldn't let me go out - I was supposed to go play soccer with Diego and Daniel and their friends. But César made me this good hot water with cinnamon and sugar, which helped with the airway situation. I still have a super stuffy nose and my throat aches a bit, but I feel much better.. What a long freaking week!!! Time really needs to go quicker.. I still haven't even had my first class of the semester yet.

I'm sort of excited to start Spanish classes because I really want to improve. I understand the majority of what people are saying around me/to me, but I want to be able to respond back with something other than "Ah! Sí!" LOL ... Sad. I can't wait to speak more comfortably so that I can really communicate with my family. They are so sweet, and I want to share my thoughts with them too! I'm also super excited for our excursions.. AHHH!! I'll upload the schedule soon.. I promise!

With love from barrio Selva Alegre in Sangolqui of Los Valles de Los Chillos, Equador,
Gina