First Week

It has now been a week since I arrived in Ecuador. The first few days felt a little weird at times from being in this new place and knowing that I will be here for 8 weeks. But now it is starting to feel like my new home. Even though it has only been a week, I feel like I have been here for a while.

This past week, I have been doing various thing with the Ecuadorian people here. A lot of these families that I have met go to the church that we are staying at. They are all very welcoming and friendly even though I don't know very much Spanish. On Monday, I worked with a man named Jaime (pronounced "Hi-may") doing carpentry work. Being a carpenter is his full time job and I helped him make some stools. I spent most of the day at his house. Him and his family know very little English, but I still was able to spend a great day with them and effectively help Jaime make stools. On Tuesday, I helped out with a kids' camp event by helping set up various things and on Wednesday, there was a change of plans so we ended up having a free day. We went back to Otavalo to go to the Indian street market again. I bought a sweater made from llama wool. Today, we painted part of the church and helped out at another kids camp event. I had to be a part of a skit that we did for the kids which was all in Spanish. I was a little nervous beforehand because I had to remember what my lines were in Spanish. Also, for these past two days, we have been given Spanish lessons by Julie Pozo, who is the wife of the head pastor of the church. The pastor's name is Washington. He and Julie are wonderful people and they have made us feel welcome from the start. I have really enjoyed getting to know them and their family. They have three sons, the oldest which is 17 years old. They are all really funny and have a great sense of humor. I really look forward to getting to know them more during these next weeks. Also, since we are given Spanish lessons, I am confident that my Spanish will be a lot stronger by the end of the trip.

One of my concerns about this trip prior to coming was not knowing much Spanish. I realize now that it's not too much of a problem and it's also creates an interesting experience. It's not a problem because there are a some people here who know English but definitely not the majority. And like I said before, the people are very kind and welcoming to me even if I can't speak much to them. They treat me like part of the family. It seems like in America, there can be prejudice towards people who don't know English, but here that does not seem to be the case for people who don't know Spanish. One of the interesting things about not knowing Spanish is that even though I can't speak much to them, I still feel like I can understand who they are as a person and really get a sense of their personality. It's evident that language is not 100% of communication. I still feel like I know them. It's really cool.

As I expected, this is a trip where things can change and there is not a strict schedule to our weeks. You kind of have to take it one day at a time. During my first few days here, I felt a little weird at times. I wondered and worried if I will fit in and be able to accomplish things. I would even maybe ask, what am I doing here? I've learned that you have to take things one day at a time and live in the moment. Enjoy everything in the present even if it's something simple like looking at the view of the volcano. This makes it easier to not worry about what's ahead. Each day there are many things to enjoy and live in the moment here.

We have some cool potential free day plans ahead. This Saturday we might go hike around a cool volcanic lake. We were also told that it is possible for us to drive to Colombia and cross the border and apparently there are some touristy things to see there. The border is about a 2 hour drive from where we are. There is also some town nearby that has 40% of the population of Ecuador's birds and butterflies. We might get to do that eventually. Also, Washington's cousin owns a paragliding company so that might be an option too. I'll keep you all posted on my adventures and experiences!