Livin It Large In Ecuador: One Week Down

This past week has been pretty hectic, with a lot of traveling and adjusting to new places. On Wednesday night, I moved into my new house and met my host family. Karlita - my "sister"- is very welcoming, spending the first night showing me all her favorite music, movies, and helping me unpack.

Thursday morning, John and I, with 3 others, went rock climbing in the mountains surrounding Quito. It was my first time rock climbing outside (not in a gym), and I'm positive that I want to go again. For those of you who are worrying, my shoulder was fine!

John's brother, Luke, and friend, Zack, arrived in Quito on Thursday night, and the 4 of us left at 4am on Friday morning for Cuenca. We spent Friday through Sunday in San Bartolome (about an hour outside of Cuenca) with a family that makes guitars. Luke and Zack were filming a documentary about the family and how the guitars are made in order to promote sales of the guitars in places other than Ecuador, where it's difficult for the family to sell the guitars at their full prices due to the poverty. While there, I ate my first guinea pig, a delicacy in Ecuador. Surprisingly, it was very good - kinda like duck. On Sunday, because Luke and Zack finished filming early, we spent the day exploring Cajas, one of Cuenca's national parks. It reminded me of the setting of the Lord of the Rings, only there were a lot of llamas.

This week, I had my first day of volunteering at El Nido ("the nest" in english), the shelter for the girls who are victims of human trafficking. It was very fun to meet all the girls - there are 9 in total right now, and I can't wait to improve my spanish so I can better connect with them. About an hour after I arrived at El Nido on Monday, I was told that I need to teach an English class to the girls - I was given zero notice ahead of time and no guidance on what to teach. I decided to teach the alphabet and numbers, and now I know to always be prepared with a lesson plan for my English class on Mondays. I also helped with art classes, directed the "exercise hour" (we just danced for an hour), and helped with other various jobs around the shelter. I had a great first week and I definitely think I will enjoy volunteering in El Nido.