First Weekend in Quito

After a fun long weekend in Quito, sitting on this bed sure feels good. A couple of new friends and I went out salsa dancing on Friday night at a “not-so-gringo” salsa club full of incredible Ecuadorian salsa dancers. I had fun learning the ropes and getting to know some Ecuadorians and by the end of the night I had most of the moves down.
Then bright and early on Saturday morning, we took a ride on the Telef­­eriqo (a sky tram) to the top of a neighboring mountain reaching over 13,000 ft. The high altitude and chilly air took our breaths away. Little did we know there was something waiting at the top…What better way to be greeted than by llamas! For only 50 cents you too can have your picture taken in an authentic Ecuadorian poncho with a friendly (or not so friendly in some cases) llama. I could see all of Quito from way up there. It was easy to see the dramatic difference between the city south of the mountain and the untouched grassy hills just north. It makes me wonder what Quito looked like before people came and built their concrete jungle. During our decent back to civilization, we decided to check out El Centro Historico of Quito. Hay muy lindo y antiguo! Sometime between eating lunch at an outside café in the shade of beautiful edifices older than our country and sitting in the park listening to a group of Ecuadorian musicians, I realized how surreal my life is right now. The colonial architecture and the cathedrals surrounding the central plaza practically forced me to whip out my camera and start taking pictures like a “typical gringo.” So much for blending in! To top off a great Saturday, I went to see Enemigos Publicos (Public Enemies) for the low Ecuadorian price of $4 at a nearby movie theater.
This morning, Kristen and I were map-less gringas in the middle of who-knows-where after realizing that we had the wrong time for the church service. The taxi driver had already sped off so we decided to take the bus. But to where? And how do we find the bus stop? After wandering aimlessly through a truly Ecuadorian food market, we bumped into an old Ecuadorian couple that was heading to the El Parque de Carolina. They were so kind and wanted to know all about us and ended up taking us to the park. Once we arrived we realized that this park wasn’t your typical park. It was HUGE. There were people by the hundreds playing soccer, basketball, running, biking, etc. There were botanical gardens, lots of fields, and even a reptile exhibit. And there was a free aerobics session going on with about 200 participants right in the basketball court with the music blaring. How random? The park went on forever and I don’t think we saw even a 1/3 of it. Kristen started up conversation with a woman watching a soccer game whose son was on the team and we ended up talking to her and her son and his friend for over an hour in broken Spanish about everything under the sun. I am continually blown away by how kind and selfless these people are here in Ecuador. I am not sure if the reverse scene would have played out the same in the US.
Another great thing about studying abroad in Ecuador, versus countries in Europe, is the cost of living. Most things are incredibly cheap. A typical full course meal is anywhere between $2 and $3! A taxi ride is about the same. They sell roses by the two dozen on the street for $2! Conversely, anything American is more expensive here than it is in the United States. I was perusing some American clothing shops in the mall and realized the prices for brands like American Eagle, Lacoste, Tommy Hilfiger is roughly 25% more here because of a high import tax.
Well tomorrow I’ve got two classes: Culture of Ecuador and Yoga. It should be a good day!