REAL World: Ecuador: Quito: Day 1

Sabado, 7/12/08

Wow. That’s about all I can say for my first day in this beautiful city. I’m obsessed with my host family—they make this place feel like home. I live with a mother, Mary, the father, Nixon, and two adorable children, Alexandra (12 yrs) and Daysi (11 yrs). I’m forced to speak Spanish, and I feel bad because all I can say (besides si and bueno, which has not taken me very far) are basically “tengo veinte y dos anos,” “me llamo Serena,” “gracias,” and “me gustan los perros.” I have never had to rely on body language so much before in my life, but I’m gradually picking the language up after hearing it 24/7. The family owns a small gym downstairs, and a cute little restaurant/snack bar upstairs. There are stray dogs literally everywhere—many of them knocked up. The family has a hyperactive boxer appropriately named “Shakira” that lives on the roof.

La ciudad de Quito has one of the highest altitudes in the world, so acclimating may take a few days/weeks. I met with the rest of the Manna group this morning—Jocelyn, Holly, Dunc, and Eliah—the other four Program Directors that I will be working with. The rest of the group, Mark, Seth, Craig, Annie, Zac, and Luke, will be training us for the next few weeks to get us ready for work in August/September. Mark and Seth will be staying an extra year with us. Everyone is so simpatico, cool, laid-back, humorous, low-maintenace, and adventurous. I am so thankful to be working with such a fun and passionate group. We all cliqued immediately. It’s the Real World without the lame people, superficial materialism, and petty drama.

I will be living with my host family for the next 3 weeks and receiving intense 1-on-1 Spanish lessons as well as Manna training sessions before moving into the Manna house located in Conocoto, which is a 30-40 min bus ride away (30 cents) South of Quito. We will be visiting the house tomorrow. I don’t think I’ve ever been so excited for Spanish lessons before in my life.

A mi me encanta Quito so far! (Be prepared for the Spanglish… or maybe even Chinspanglish). Holy hombre. Las calles kind of remind me of San Francisco—they practically run vertically up and down, and like China, pedestrians never have right-of-way. My thigh muscles are definitely feeling it after lunging up the 70 degree hills every morning, but I’ll need the extra exercise on top of the pounds and pounds of pan, rice, empanadas, beans, phe city comes alive as soon as the sun comes out, ollo, plantains y pig skin fat I am inhaling every 1-2 hours. The view is breathtaking. Every morning, after being awoken by canine mating calls and local bus patrollers, I am greeted by a 360 degree view of vast mountains that seems to come right out of a painting: oil on canvas. It is so surreal. Taround 6am. Pigeons don’t even flinch when you run towards them.

We explored a few typically famous touristy sites today: la Basilica (an antique, HUGE castle-like church that was never finished due to some sort of curse--please see slide show), la Plaza Grande, la Plaza Roch y la Ronda. La Basilica was definitely my favorite. Talk about breathtaking, in the most literal and figurative way. We climbed all the way to the top. (This would never be allowed in the US—way too much liability.) Air is overrated anyway. You can see the entire city from up here—simply fantastico. Of course, I found a perfect view on the top edge of a gargoyle (or maybe it was an iguana), and took in the moment with full force. Not a bad start.

Lunch (almuerzos) was a whopping $1.70 for chicken soup (you never know what part you’re gunna get…ANY part is possible. Always a surprise, and tastes different in every restaurant), rice with avocados, salad, and chicken or beef, plus jugo with some sort of fruit. Not a bad deal (although this was considered expensive). We explored a few more markets and touristy places, the “white” house where the Ecuadorian President Rafael lives, and had some café y te at a cutesy little restaurant in La Plaza Foch.