busy! busy! busy!

So, only 45 days left in Ecuador, and time just keeps passing faster and faster! April was by far the busiest month I've had all year, which makes time pass even faster. Although I've been super busy this last month, I'm not quite sure what to write about, but I am so joyful. I use the word joy instead of happiness because it really captures these last months. Happiness is in the moment and can disappear in an instant, while joy builds up inside of you, and can still be found in the dark moments. The amount of joy that has been piling up inside of me has come from friendships, family and new experiences, and I will never be able to express it completely to anyone who hasn't been on exchange themselves. Knowing just how limited time is with the people I love here has made me make the best of every second and appreciate the relationships I've built. 

Now for some of the fun things I've been up to over the past month. Well, for teacher's day here, the school did a breakfast and some students presented songs or poems, and I was asked to say a short speech in front of everyone. I also had the chance to go to a professional soccer game! Me and one of my best friends planned a surprise 18th birthday party for a classmate. I celebrated a host brother's birthday by making pizza and spending the day with family. Last but definitely not least, My best friend's family and I went to hot springs in the mountains. this past Friday i went with a group of friends and on a McDonald's run afterwards . If you can't tell it's been busy yet, don't worry, I have more to tell. 

Me and Mabe at the hot springs

ice skating with Anita 

The last week of April, we had different open houses every day at school. Open houses here are projects that students have to do in each subject and present for parents who come to see what kinds of things we've been learning. The projects are supposed to be impressive, and since there are 9 of them in what week, they are done in groups. To give you an idea of what we did, here's a sort of schedule. 

Monday each group had to recreate one of the 9 circles of hell and present it in costume for literature. I had the 4th circle and dressed up as a centurion

On Tuesday each group had done mathematic games and phisics projects, and had to present a town of Ecuador for History. My group presented Salasacas, which was accidently assigned to 2 groups, and mine forgot, so it was a little bit crazy, but we mentioned to put it together. 

Wednesday, we had to present products we had come up with ourselves for a business class, and chemistry projects that were group specific and canvasses we had painted for art. 

Thursday was the last day, and was the open house for English and P.E. which was a class choreagraphed dance. Our choreographed dance was a bit of a hot mess, but it was fun for sure. 

So even though there are lots of fun stories missing from this, (I will write some of those next time) I hope you enjoyed! 

Semana Santa & life

Fanesca

So, As I mentioned in my last blog post, I was hoping to try some traditional foods of Semana Santa (Holy Week) here in Ecuador. Well, I am happy to say that I was able to try the traditional easter meal twice, and it was delicious! The traditional meal for Semana Santa is Fanesca and sweet figs with cheese. Fanesca is a soup made from all different types of grains that grow in the Andes of Ecuador, topped with boiled eggs, empanaditas, crunchy balls similar to croutons, fried bananas, and cheese. I tried two versions of the soup, one in a restaurant and one homemade, and as usual, the homemade one was so much better. Other than the food, Easter was just a normal Sunday that included church and lunch with the family. I hoped to dye Easter eggs, bu

Carolina Park

t didn't end up doing so.

This past week, I have been busy practicing a dance with part of my class for a school program, and still volunteering at the orphanage every Tuesday and Thursday. Although there aren't many exciting things going on in my life, I am more content than ever. I have grown closer to my classmates, and some of them have seen my crazy side and my very... special dance moves. It's been nice to come out of my shell with my class mates, because even though I've been myself around my family and church friends since the beginning, for some reason it took much longer for me to feel as comfortable in school.

Supercines//The movie theater

This past Saturday, I went to Carolina, which is a huge park in the center of Quito. I decided to walk around for a bit, and enjoyed watching people play football, basketball and volleyball, as well as a dog show, and people simply enjoying the sun. After a week of rain, it was nice to walk in the sun and enjoy some time alone with a delicious all-fruit smoothie. After almost an hour in the park, I had my monthly Xplorer activity; the movies! I was able to choose the movie, and of course I had to see Black Panther, as all my friends had seen it and couldn't stop talking about how good it was. It was a relaxing and enjoyable day... And a great movie!

Time keeps flying faster and faster, and I think it's because I am enjoying myself more and more! I hope you enjoyed reading some small updates, and I will continue to write in the 2 1/2 months that remain in my exchange.

Zoo you like baking?

So, just a quick update about what I've been up to this past week. It hasn't been super exciting, but time continues to fly by and it's hard to keep up with everything! I just want to start this post by sharing how much my exchange changed from the first half of the year to the second. The first half of my exchange was great, but I wasn't putting in the effort to make friends, get involved and have the best exchange possible. Around December, my attitude changed, I immersed myself deeper into the culture, found things I enjoyed about Ecuador, and started inviting friends to go out, even for something as simple as lunch. Little did I know that in a couple of months, the rewards of my actions would really begin to show. I have built life-changing relationships, gained new opportunities and learned more about myself than I could have imagined. You are the main factor of your exchange; the relationships into which you put your time, the attitude you have about trying new things, and the courage to say yes when opportunities arrive!

Me, Nati, & My host Mom at the zoo!

Now, some of the things I've actually been doing recently. On Saturday, my host family took me to a town near Quito to the zoo. It was such a unique experience, as the animals in this particular zoo are native to Ecuador. We found animals like the oso de anteojos (spectacled bear), tortuga Galapagos (galapagos tortoise) and many more that you just wouldn't encounter in a zoo in the United States. I got to spend time with my host family, see animals that I had learned about in biology class here, and the only not so positive part, get eaten by mosquitoes. The day was wonderful, but because Guayllabamba is a bit lower elevation, it is much warmer and more humid, and nobody remembered bug spray. So I got exactly 79 bug bites by which I can remember the day a bit more. Even so, it was a great day that will always be a fun memory.

Me and the oso de anteojos

After the zoo, even though it was late, I decided to make something that I've wanted to bake since I arrived... My famous cinnamon rolls! Me and Nati (my host brother's wife) started the process at about 7, and finished up at 10. It was tiring, just like the rest of the day had been, but also extremely fun and delicious! Everyone enjoyed them. and I'm sure I'll be making them again one day soon.

As for the rest of the week, I got a cold, and have simply been resting every day after school (we don't have spring break) and today is a holiday for Semana Santa, which is the week of celebrating good friday and easter. There are some specific foods I am hoping to try this weekend and also hoping to dye some easter eggs! I hope you enjoyed this post and I will do my best to keep you all updated with my adventures in these last few months!

On the left are the cinnamon rolls, fresh out of the oven, and on the right is the same pan, but with the delicious cream cheese frosting.

How many days left!?

So, as you very well know, time passes faster and faster as you get older. This year, I feel like I must be getting up there in years, because time is flying by! It feels like a few weeks ago I was stepping off the plane and misunderstanding every other word in Spanish. Now, I can converse better than I ever expected, and sadly, only have 100 days left in this beautiful country. I don't have a specific theme to this post, as it is more of a general update as to what I've been up to and what is to come.

As I've written about before, I have been spending a good portion of my time building relationships with Ecuadorian friends. This past weekend, I spent the weekend with two friends from church who have been on my blog a few times before; Anita and Mabe. As usual, we had a sleepover, and as we have done before, we decided to cook! We made hamburgers and talked into the night. The next day was relaxing, including KFC for lunch, and a movie. In the evening we decided to do something a bit more active and go swimming. It was a fun weekend, all wrapped up by church and lunch with my host family on Sunday.

Other than spending time with friends and in school, I've continued volunteering at an orphanage near my house, as well as spending time with my host family. Some of the smallest things can be the most encouraging and uplifting on exchange, even when you don't necessarily need encouraging or uplifting. For example, one night, my host brother that lives with us had his sons over, who are 3 and 9 years old. They decided to join me while I watched a movie, and both fell asleep on me, and it was such a simple happy moment. I have also babysat the 3 year old, and he has told me to come and live with him, so even though I don't have young host siblings, it sure does feel like I do.

This was a bit of every aspect of my life, but i hope you enjoyed and will continue reading my updates as they come!

Friends at last!

So this is a post about one of the major parts of every exchange student's experience; Friends! Now, I just want to say that making friends is also difficult for almost all exchange students. Although I've felt like I had friends all year, I haven't made the effort to have close Ecuadorian friends until around Christmas time. Since friendships generally take months or even years to form, it's a bit of a sped up process for someone who is only living in a country for 10 months total. In saying all of that, this past week I started to see the results of relentlessly inviting friends to do things, inviting myself to group outings, and putting myself in conversations when I had no idea what people were talking about. So,  I guess it's time to let you know exactly what I've been up to!

Martin, Michelle, and I

On Wednesday, I went to the movies and to eat with two classmates, Michelle and Martin. Although I have gone out with classmates before, I've never felt as comfortable or included as I did that day. We saw Game night (Noche de juegos in Spanish), had shawarma, and I ended up staying the night at Michelle's house. Even though it may have just been hanging out with the exchange student to them, it meant so much more to me. 

Roberto, Anita, Mabe and of course me!

Two of the closest friends I've made here are sisters from my church; Anita and Mabe. They've made a few appearances in my previous blog posts, and I've felt comfortable with them since day 1. That being said, we've grown closer and closer, and I truly feel like we could be sisters now. On Saturday, they invited me to a party (not to worry, it was more like a dance) and I spent the night at their house afterwords. On Sunday, us and one of my classmates (Roberto) went to eat hornado, a typical Ecuadorian dish. I got to see an Ecuadorian market and spend time with amazing friends. 

At the dance with Anita <3

Getting ready for the dance with Mabe

 Although I've heard that the first 4 or 5 months of exchange are harder and the second half is the payoff, I've never truly understood it until now. Time continues to pass faster and faster, and I am cherishing every moment of my last 3 and 1/2 months in Quito. I hope you have enjoyed reading about some of the friendships I've made here. Until my next post!

Picture post all about... Food!

As stated in the title of this blog post, I decided that for my 6 month post, I would share some of my beautiful food pictures with all of you! And yes, I actually have been in Quito for over 6 months! Although that on its own is pretty crazy, what's even crazier is the fact that I only have less than 4 months left! After ending every sentence with an exclamation point, let's get to seeing some pictures of food!

This is sugar cane! I was able to try some in the Amazon.

This is a huge lemon that we found in the amazon... Bigger than a normal orange!

A typical restaurant in Quito serves rice, meat, soup and juice

A typical amazonian plate; smashed, fried bananas, fish, rice (separately), and guayusa; a tea indigenous to the amazon with many health benefits.

These taste a bit sour with sweetness like candy!

An entire crab in a soup made with yuca, a common root vegetable here, eaten with chifles (savory banana chips) and something similar to salsa or pico de gallo. 

Caldo de pollo; chicken soup with a boiled egg, potato, and rice

This, surprisingly enough, is what cocoa looks like before they turn it into chocolate. The white part can be sucked off and is delicious! then the seeds are toasted inside the shells, the shells are removes, and the seeds are ground into cocoa powder or paste depending on how hot they are when ground. 

Now, I am missing some key typical Ecuadorian foods like ceviche, Fritada, and locro. I will for sure do another food post once I have taken pictures of/tried the foods I'm missing. But for now, I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the foods I've been able to taste in the last 6 months!

VICTORY! ...In the small things

This is going to be another random post like the last one, but in a different way. I'm just going to talk about some of the small victories I've had on exchange, and surprisingly, a lot of which have come about recently!

Mabe & Me <3

One of the big things I want to mention is that for the last 3 weeks, I have been the only exchange student with my organization since the other girl was a semester student. Although I miss Jordan and all the fun things we did together, I love that I am completely submerged in speaking Spanish.
It has also helped me grow closer to my classmates, because when I want to go out and do something, I ask them, instead of my fellow American. Don't get me wrong, I think other exchange students are awesome and make great friends, but it's also nice to have an experience where there is nobody there to lean on but Ecuadorians, since I came to make relationships with Ecuadorians.

Some of the traditional food from the Amazon. Delicious!

Something else I want to share is that I think I've finally adjusted to the food! I think what made adjusting to the food so hard is that I didn't expect to have any problems with it, since I'm the exact opposite of a picky eater. But with exchange comes surprises of all kinds, and not being a huge fan of the food was one of my not-so-nice surprises. But, as time has passed, I've learned not to focus on the heavy salt, or lack of variety, but on the mouth watering soups, thirst-quenching juices with every meal, and the wonderful conversation. I've also learned where to find some foods from home and have loved cooking. So, I am more than happy to say that I've learned to love some their food, tolerate others, and when it's best to cook for myself.

So, although I'm sure I have more to share, I will do so in a later post. I hope you enjoyed and feel free to ask questions or let me know what aspect of my exchange you would like to hear about!

This, That & the Other

Well, I have been able to relax lately, as we are on vacation between the two semesters. That being said, I will share just a few little things that have been going on, or that I missed in other posts.

Me and my friend at the concert

First of all, I went to a concert a few weeks ago with a friend from church, and we saw San Miel Marcos. None of you probably know who that is, but I knew a few of the songs and we had a wonderful night that ended with McDonald's at midnight, because what good day doesn't?

A bit of a bigger deal here in Ecuador is that it's Carnival! Most people only know about Brazil's amazing parades and parties, but just about all of South and central America celebrates in some way. Here in Ecuador it's a bit like a water fight, only you are free to use whatever you like! This may include eggs, flour, or in my case, dirt. I "played carnival" after school one day with my classmates and had so much fun that I forgot to take any pictures!

Helado de Paila

Me, my host brother's wife, and her mom

Because of carnival, there is no work until tomorrow, and no school all week! (also for semester break) Anyways, my host family took me to a town about an hour from Quito on Sunday, and another one about 40 minutes away on Monday. On Sunday we walked around, watched other people "play carnival," and enjoyed helado de paila which is a type of ice cream similar to sorbet, but more artisan and delicious. On Monday, we were in Tumbaco at my host brother's mother in law's house, with the whole family. It was an amazing day of enjoying crab, more artisan ice cream, and spending time with family.

So, there's a little update, and I hope to have more to share in the next post. Until then, thanks for reading!

We're half way there!

Well, today's the day! I have been here for a couple days shy of 5 months, and have yet to be in Quito for the exact same amount of time. I'm already half way through my ten month exchange! Instead of making this a post with updates and stories, I'm going to share something a little different with you. When I was feeling homesick back in November/December, someone (my amazing mom) suggested that I make a list of all the positive things about being here. I didn't get around to making until a bit later, but I decided I'd share with all of you some of the little things that I love about being here!

1. Speaking Spanish
          I knew I wanted to become more fluent in Spanish when I decided to come to Ecuador, but I had no idea how much I would enjoy practicing my Spanish!

2. The constant view
          Quito is a city high in the mountains, but it is surrounded by even higher mountains and volcanoes that make it a beautiful place to stay.

3. Fruterias

A fruteria

          Fruterias are little fruit shops that can be found just about anywhere, and because Ecuador has different regions with such a variety of growing conditions, they have every fruit and vegetable I've ever heard of, and so cheap! This is probably one of the things I'll miss the most when the time comes to return home.
4. Quito
          While I don't know if I would like to live in a city permanently, I sure do enjoy the fact that I can always find something to do when I'm feeling bored or homesick. There are parks, malls, public transportation, and everything else that a normal city has, only I've never lived in one before.

5. My Host Family
          Of course the best for last! If i didn't have such a great and caring host family, I know I would have struggled so much more with being here for so long. My host mom is the person with whom I talk about everything, I tell jokes with my host brother, and my host dad is the one I sit in silence with awkwardly, but I know he enjoys my presence.

Me and my host parents out for ice cream one night

Although my entire list consisted of more like 30 items, I think these 5 are some of my favorites and I will have plenty of time to share more. I hope you enjoyed and will continue reading my posts, thank you!

Baños and the Amazon

Yep, you read that title right. I took a trip to Baños, which is actually a cute little town surrounded by mountains on either side and full of tourists. Because of it's touristy nature, it is also filled with restaurants and activities to satisfy any kind of tourist. They have everything from white water rafting, to hot springs, and hikes of every level. Of course, we did a little bit of everything and made sure to squeeze in as much as possible in our 4 day trip. When I say we, I am talking about me and Jordan's (the other exchange student) parents from the US who came to visit for the end of her exchange, since she is a semester student. As you might realize, it was a very eventful trip, therefore this post is quite a long one, but I promise you they are fun and interesting stories and I hope you'll take the time to enjoy them!

Our camp in the amazing Amazon

Now that you know what Baños is, and who I went there with, I'll get on with details about our amazing time there! The first day, we settled into our hostel, which was very nice, and walked around the town, eating dinner and simply exploring. The next day, however, we were all up and ready bright and early, as we were to begin our 2 day trip into the Amazon that day. After breakfast and a quick trip to buy flashlights, we were off! We started the day off by stopping at a local swimming hole, followed by a delicious traditional amazonian lunch of fish (eyes and all), fried bananas, rice, and fresh pineapple for dessert. After lunch, we took a quick rest in some hammocks, and headed for a traditional amazonian village to learn how to use a blow dart, have our faces painted using natural paint, and buy some souvenirs made by the locals. After we had all learned to dance with their palm skirts, we headed out in a canoe to meet up with our guides, who had taken a truck to meet us. We hiked to a beautiful viewpoint, explored some caves, and headed to my favorite thing yet... A chocolate farm! Although it is advertised as a chocolate farm, this farm grows all they eat and has all the animals needed to provide themselves with food throughout the year. We tried all of their fresh fruits and even some herbs, and then were able to harvest the cocoa seeds, toast them, remove them from their shell, and grind them into a bar of 100% chocolate. Then we finally headed to our camp to eat dinner, but day one continued. After dinner, we changed out of shorts and into sweatshirts, as it was time for our night hike! We weren't lucky enough to see snakes or monkeys, but spotted giant spiders, beetles, and even a cricket shedding it's skin! After the disappointment of not having spotted a tarantula on the hike, I actually found one on my way to the bathroom that night, and that concluded day one. 

The view from one of our hikes on day one... Such a beautiful country!

Our waterfall hike in the Amazon

Day two! We woke up from under our mosquito nets, had breakfast, and headed off for a waterfall hike. Of course, our guides took us the long way, and we were able to spot some of nature's other wonders; spiders, "monkey tails," and edible flowers. It was a fairly easy hike, and the waterfall was amazing, and although a bit chilly, wonderful for swimming. As we headed back to the camp to eat lunch and pack our bags, we found a lemon the size of a grapefruit, and of course took it as a snack on our way to camp. The afternoon was simply a time of rest and wandering around the camp, to swim in the river if one wished. It was relaxing and beautiful, but eventually the time came to return to Baños. We were all pretty tired when we got back, but took some time to relax in the hotel pool, and went out for dinner at 10:00pm, which is not uncommon here. At about midnight after dinner, which was delicious at an Irish pub, we decided to head back to our hotel and get some rest before another early morning. 

"El Pailon del Diablo"

Day Three was also very exciting! We were up and at it early again to go white water rafting! none of us had any idea just how white the water would be, but it was one of the most fun, crazy and awesome things I've done here in Ecuador. After riding the waves, quite literally, we headed back and for the hot springs! After rafting we all felt like doing something a bit more relaxing, and the hot springs were the perfect choice. After some relaxing and a little snack, we knew we had to hike the "Pailon del diablo," which is one of the most famous waterfalls around. It was well worth it, but afterwords we were all but falling asleep walking to the car. We got back to the hotel at about 7:30, and thanks to Jordan's dad, had pizza for dinner and were able to just chill. 

Day 4 was more of a half day, but then again so was the day we arrived. Although it was short, it was nothing near uneventful... We had decided the first day that if we had time, we would go bungee jumping, and the last day provided the perfect amount of time to do just that! The fear, adrenaline, and excitement was almost too much, but as soon as I stepped onto the platform, I knew I had to jump. 3... 2... 1... And it was go time, I dove with all my might, knowing if I tried the falling strategy, my fear would overtake me. And it was awesome! It was the kind where you hang from your harness and swing after you jump, instead of hanging upside down, which made it even better, swinging over a river, knowing you had just checked off a huge bucket list item. There are no words to describe it. 

So, this is definitely was a longer post than usual, but I hope you enjoyed it as much I enjoyed sharing about it! Until next time!

It's already 2018!?

Time has passed so fast over these last four months, but especially over the last month. It's hard to believe that 2018 is already upon us... So for this post, I'm going to focus on how they celebrate New Year's Eve here!

First of all, I've always thought of New Year's Eve as a holiday to spend with friends, playing games and eating snacks, but not in Ecuador. Here, it's almost a bigger deal than Christmas! All the family comes over and there is a big dinner, like our Christmas dinner, followed by fireworks and dancing. (We danced until 2am!) It's a bit different, but I may have enjoyed it even more than in the US! Of course, there are beautiful decorations, and everyone does their part in making the meal... And I made the best garlic mashed potatoes ever! 

Some of the biudas in Quito

Now, for some more  specifics of New Year's Eve... While the evening is spent with brothers, cousins, aunts and uncles, the afternoon is spent driving around looking for "biudas." Basically, biudas are men who dress of like women, just for one day, and joke around with the people in the cars. This includes dancing, talking through the window, or just making faces. It may sound inappropriate or wrong, but it really is just innocent fun here. This tradition is not meant to degrade either gender or be sexual, it is simply something that has been a part of their culture for years and makes the people laugh. 

This post was a bit shorter than usual, but there will be another one coming up soon about my trip to Baños and the Amazon jungle, so stay tuned!