It is incredible that I have been in Ecuador for over two weeks now. On one hand, it feels like I've been here forever, and I am really missing my family and friends.. But on the other hand, it is insane that after years of talking about going to Ecuador, I am finally here. It has hit me a couple of times recently that the time is going to fly by, even though right now it feels like it is lasting forever. With this time warp in mind, I have decided that I really want to take advantage of my time and opportunities here. I have so many opportunities to grow in my faith in Christ, because I am being tested and stretched on a daily basis. I also have a lot of opportunities to grow in my Spanish fluency, because I am surrounded by Latin Americans who can help me improve my Spanish if I choose to spend time with them. When I first decided to come here, I thought that I would grow in both of these areas whether or not I made the effort. It seemed inevitable. However, now that I have lived here for two weeks, I have realized that all I have are many opportunities. And the definition of an opportunity is simply this: a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something. It is possible to grow in Christ, just as it is possible to grow in my Spanish fluency. But, it is also possible to have a bad attitude and develop bad habits of gossip, irritability, and selfishness, just as it is possible to spend more time speaking English with my American friends than speaking Spanish with the natives. I could easily waste this entire opportunity that God has given me. But I pray that I don't. And I hope you will be praying the same for me while I am here.
I will write more of an update later, but for now, thank you for your prayers! :)
Sincerely, The Girl with Yellow Hair
Ecuador
Chimborazo
Saturday, January 28, 2012
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Flooded Pants, the Language of Bartering, and Dirt Roads.
The title of this blog will make sense after you have read this entry in its entirety. To say the least, this weekend was enlightening in many aspects. If you hope to read it all in one sitting, I suggest you clear your schedule, make a cup of coffee, and find a cozy chair. You are in for quite a ride.
Our weekend began on Thursday afternoon when classes ended. A few of the girls and I took a short trip to Carcelén, the nearby city, where I bought a couple of Disney DVD's for verrry cheap (The Lion King, Mulan, and The Emperor's New Groove- a dollar a piece! If you know me, this should not be a surprise.) Then the girls and I spent our afternoon getting some of our homework done and later watched Rio & The Emperor's New Groove. :)
On Friday morning, we all decided to wake up late (skip breakfast at 7) so we could "sleep in" (til 7) and pack our bags before our big trip to Otavalo!
--Just to fill you in... Otavalo is a city roughly an hour to two hours from where we are staying in Quito in the sierra (mountainous region of Ecuador). Otavalo is best known for its large indigenous market that claims the title of the largest indigenous market in South America! I was informed by our study abroad directors that they expected us to spend a lot of money there and encouraged us to bring as much as we were willing to spend, or else we would regret it later... So with that in mind, let us continue. --
We were advised to take medicine if we have a tendency of getting car sick. Although I have had a few situations where I experienced this, I truly believed that "mind over matter" would work, and that I would not have any problems if I kept myself busy talking to my friends. To my surprise, within half an hour of driving through the winding mountainous roads, I became extremely nauseas. The girl next to me was also feeling sick, and she had the courage to announce it to the driver; whereas, I did not. Thanks to her, they pulled the car over, and I was able to get some fresh air and take some medicine. I also moved further forward in the sprinter (our little caravan that we drive everywhere), which gave me the opportunity to pretend I was driving, keeping me from getting sick any further. Although these things helped a lot, the ultimate solution to my problem was found in a small shop on the side of the road... It didn't look like much at first, since the shop was tiny and not very clean. But when the worker handed me the complimentary cup of sweetened Ecuadorian coffee and a biscocho (bread biscuit), I felt knew that I was finally cured of my car sickness. The coffee was delicious, and the biscochos were too, especially dipped in coffee! We finished the rest of the trip with ease, as each of us were energized by our fresh dose of caffeine. :)
As we neared our hostal in Otavalo, we detoured through some of the cities surrounding Otavalo. Each of them contain one specific trade that they all specialize in, such as leather or wood. We stopped at "Wood Town" first, where we found a main square and a plethora of shops that contained wood carvings (lots of crosses, naked people, and Don Quixote's). Next we went to Leather Town, where we found lots of shoes, purses, leather jackets, and other leathered goods. I bought a black belt for four dollars! (You will not find that kind of pricing in the States--- especially since the lady adjusted it to fit me perfectly!) We then made a quick trip to Cuicocha....
Cuicocha (kucha = lake) is a 3 km (2 mi) wide caldera and crater lake at the foot of Cotacachi Volcano in the Cordillera Occidental of the Ecuadorian Andes. (-Wikipedia)
It is essentially a volcano that imploded, and now contains a large crater at the top, which has filled with water and become a lake. The only wild life that is found in the lake is grass and ducks. The ducks dive under the water to eat the grass that grows there. There are also mountainous islands that are in the middle that used to be used for hiking trails and tours. Now this location is a national park and cannot be toured except by boat.
Before we boarded our boat, some Ecuadorians saw us and began taking pictures with the "gringas!" It was funny to see how fascinated they were by us! Then we finally went on the boat to see the beautiful scenery! We had a great time, until the second half.....when it started to rain... Allow me to say, that in the mountains, the rain is COLD! So we froze just a little bit. When we got back, they gave us a "cider," which I am pretty sure was a cinnamon tea. It was fairly good, but it surprised us when we first sipped it!
Then we then headed to the hostal in downtown Otavalo! It was fantastic! We walked in, and the middle of the hostal was outside, so they had beautiful plants and hammocks in the center with rooms surrounding it. We were told that we had a few hours to do whatever we wanted, so (since Taylor and I shared a room) we put all of our stuff down and went out with Emily Grace and Maranda to the market to take a tour before the market was fully set up on Saturday. I ended up buying a decorative blanket and coat made from llama wool. It is fantastic! We got a lot of discounts because of the insane downpour that was occurring while we walked around! They were actually packing up the smaller market for the day as we walked around, and many were poking the tops of their tents to unleash the pools of water that had built up during the storm. We did a great job of navigating around the mini waterfalls, until the very end... when a man poked his tent right as Maranda walked under it! She was soaked! Although we felt terrible, it was still somewhat funny to see... :) We all laughed about it later. But that entire evening was a very cold one. I learned the idea behind "flood pants.." Because of the day at the market on Friday, the only pair of jeans that I brought for the weekend was flooded... I had to peel the wet, cold pants off that night in order to attempt to dry them for Saturday morning. Thankfully, I had warm, dry sweat pants to wear.. My friend forgot to bring any sweatpants, so she had a cold evening.... haha :(
We all went to bed extremely early Friday night, so we would be ready for our big day of shopping! And let me tell you, that was a brilliant decision....
The next morning, we woke up and ate breakfast as a group, which was provided for by the hostal. I had a chocolate pancake with fruit and café con leche. It was delicious. Taylor loved the coffee so much that she accepted everyone's offers and took five cups of coffee. It was after they placed them all on the table that she realized how much coffee she had! We had a good laugh at that. :)
Then we went to the market.. The market we had visited the day before had been expanded to stretch across every side street within two blocks of the main market square. The tents were linings the streets and sidewalks, so there was scarcely room to walk! They had everything from clothes to purses to bags to food to jewelry to blankets and more! I wish I would describe it to you, but it was just too magnificent to understand unless you experienced it. I will be posting photos soon. :) I bought a ton of warm clothes, because yes... it gets VERY COLD HERE! (Don't be too jealous!) The weather in the mountains is extremely strange. I bought a bunch of souvenirs for family and friends as well! I had a very successful day at the market, where I learned the language of bartering. It was difficult at first, but with time we all became experts. There were many times when we would state a price and walk away if they would not go that low.. but they would usually call us back. :) We grew so much in our Spanish and our bartering during that day in the market.
After our day of shopping, we went to a Chinese restaurant in town for dinner, but it seemed like we walked in on a family dinner! A cute little girl brought us to our table with our menu's, calling us "gringitas" the whole time. When we ordered the food, she continued to walk into the room and climb on our chairs the whole meal. Taylor took pictures with her, but the girl then took her camera and wouldn't give it back! We all eventually got frustrated with her, except Taylor.. lol
After dinner, we went back to the room and played cards by the outdoor fire place! It was a great evening of relaxation, competition, and good conversation. :)
Today we went to a small church in Otavalo, and it was a great service. The message was about Peter and how he was saved by Christ in the sea, but then denied Christ three times. The people there were really welcoming and sweet, and I really enjoyed the service, even though the church consisted of about 30 people total!
We left right after church to return to the seminary, and on our way, we found a huge traffic jam! We ended up turning around and taking some dirt roads through the mountains to get to the other side. There were some huge busses doing the same thing, so there were a few moments where I thought we weren't going to make it! But we prayed before leaving, and God was faithful in keeping us safe all the way back to the seminary!
Praise the Lord! Nowwwww.. onto homework.... wooot!
Thanks for reading! Love you all!
Sincerely, The Girl with Yellow Hair
Our weekend began on Thursday afternoon when classes ended. A few of the girls and I took a short trip to Carcelén, the nearby city, where I bought a couple of Disney DVD's for verrry cheap (The Lion King, Mulan, and The Emperor's New Groove- a dollar a piece! If you know me, this should not be a surprise.) Then the girls and I spent our afternoon getting some of our homework done and later watched Rio & The Emperor's New Groove. :)
On Friday morning, we all decided to wake up late (skip breakfast at 7) so we could "sleep in" (til 7) and pack our bags before our big trip to Otavalo!
--Just to fill you in... Otavalo is a city roughly an hour to two hours from where we are staying in Quito in the sierra (mountainous region of Ecuador). Otavalo is best known for its large indigenous market that claims the title of the largest indigenous market in South America! I was informed by our study abroad directors that they expected us to spend a lot of money there and encouraged us to bring as much as we were willing to spend, or else we would regret it later... So with that in mind, let us continue. --
We were advised to take medicine if we have a tendency of getting car sick. Although I have had a few situations where I experienced this, I truly believed that "mind over matter" would work, and that I would not have any problems if I kept myself busy talking to my friends. To my surprise, within half an hour of driving through the winding mountainous roads, I became extremely nauseas. The girl next to me was also feeling sick, and she had the courage to announce it to the driver; whereas, I did not. Thanks to her, they pulled the car over, and I was able to get some fresh air and take some medicine. I also moved further forward in the sprinter (our little caravan that we drive everywhere), which gave me the opportunity to pretend I was driving, keeping me from getting sick any further. Although these things helped a lot, the ultimate solution to my problem was found in a small shop on the side of the road... It didn't look like much at first, since the shop was tiny and not very clean. But when the worker handed me the complimentary cup of sweetened Ecuadorian coffee and a biscocho (bread biscuit), I felt knew that I was finally cured of my car sickness. The coffee was delicious, and the biscochos were too, especially dipped in coffee! We finished the rest of the trip with ease, as each of us were energized by our fresh dose of caffeine. :)
As we neared our hostal in Otavalo, we detoured through some of the cities surrounding Otavalo. Each of them contain one specific trade that they all specialize in, such as leather or wood. We stopped at "Wood Town" first, where we found a main square and a plethora of shops that contained wood carvings (lots of crosses, naked people, and Don Quixote's). Next we went to Leather Town, where we found lots of shoes, purses, leather jackets, and other leathered goods. I bought a black belt for four dollars! (You will not find that kind of pricing in the States--- especially since the lady adjusted it to fit me perfectly!) We then made a quick trip to Cuicocha....
Cuicocha (kucha = lake) is a 3 km (2 mi) wide caldera and crater lake at the foot of Cotacachi Volcano in the Cordillera Occidental of the Ecuadorian Andes. (-Wikipedia)
It is essentially a volcano that imploded, and now contains a large crater at the top, which has filled with water and become a lake. The only wild life that is found in the lake is grass and ducks. The ducks dive under the water to eat the grass that grows there. There are also mountainous islands that are in the middle that used to be used for hiking trails and tours. Now this location is a national park and cannot be toured except by boat.
Before we boarded our boat, some Ecuadorians saw us and began taking pictures with the "gringas!" It was funny to see how fascinated they were by us! Then we finally went on the boat to see the beautiful scenery! We had a great time, until the second half.....when it started to rain... Allow me to say, that in the mountains, the rain is COLD! So we froze just a little bit. When we got back, they gave us a "cider," which I am pretty sure was a cinnamon tea. It was fairly good, but it surprised us when we first sipped it!
Then we then headed to the hostal in downtown Otavalo! It was fantastic! We walked in, and the middle of the hostal was outside, so they had beautiful plants and hammocks in the center with rooms surrounding it. We were told that we had a few hours to do whatever we wanted, so (since Taylor and I shared a room) we put all of our stuff down and went out with Emily Grace and Maranda to the market to take a tour before the market was fully set up on Saturday. I ended up buying a decorative blanket and coat made from llama wool. It is fantastic! We got a lot of discounts because of the insane downpour that was occurring while we walked around! They were actually packing up the smaller market for the day as we walked around, and many were poking the tops of their tents to unleash the pools of water that had built up during the storm. We did a great job of navigating around the mini waterfalls, until the very end... when a man poked his tent right as Maranda walked under it! She was soaked! Although we felt terrible, it was still somewhat funny to see... :) We all laughed about it later. But that entire evening was a very cold one. I learned the idea behind "flood pants.." Because of the day at the market on Friday, the only pair of jeans that I brought for the weekend was flooded... I had to peel the wet, cold pants off that night in order to attempt to dry them for Saturday morning. Thankfully, I had warm, dry sweat pants to wear.. My friend forgot to bring any sweatpants, so she had a cold evening.... haha :(
We all went to bed extremely early Friday night, so we would be ready for our big day of shopping! And let me tell you, that was a brilliant decision....
The next morning, we woke up and ate breakfast as a group, which was provided for by the hostal. I had a chocolate pancake with fruit and café con leche. It was delicious. Taylor loved the coffee so much that she accepted everyone's offers and took five cups of coffee. It was after they placed them all on the table that she realized how much coffee she had! We had a good laugh at that. :)
Then we went to the market.. The market we had visited the day before had been expanded to stretch across every side street within two blocks of the main market square. The tents were linings the streets and sidewalks, so there was scarcely room to walk! They had everything from clothes to purses to bags to food to jewelry to blankets and more! I wish I would describe it to you, but it was just too magnificent to understand unless you experienced it. I will be posting photos soon. :) I bought a ton of warm clothes, because yes... it gets VERY COLD HERE! (Don't be too jealous!) The weather in the mountains is extremely strange. I bought a bunch of souvenirs for family and friends as well! I had a very successful day at the market, where I learned the language of bartering. It was difficult at first, but with time we all became experts. There were many times when we would state a price and walk away if they would not go that low.. but they would usually call us back. :) We grew so much in our Spanish and our bartering during that day in the market.
After our day of shopping, we went to a Chinese restaurant in town for dinner, but it seemed like we walked in on a family dinner! A cute little girl brought us to our table with our menu's, calling us "gringitas" the whole time. When we ordered the food, she continued to walk into the room and climb on our chairs the whole meal. Taylor took pictures with her, but the girl then took her camera and wouldn't give it back! We all eventually got frustrated with her, except Taylor.. lol
After dinner, we went back to the room and played cards by the outdoor fire place! It was a great evening of relaxation, competition, and good conversation. :)
Today we went to a small church in Otavalo, and it was a great service. The message was about Peter and how he was saved by Christ in the sea, but then denied Christ three times. The people there were really welcoming and sweet, and I really enjoyed the service, even though the church consisted of about 30 people total!
We left right after church to return to the seminary, and on our way, we found a huge traffic jam! We ended up turning around and taking some dirt roads through the mountains to get to the other side. There were some huge busses doing the same thing, so there were a few moments where I thought we weren't going to make it! But we prayed before leaving, and God was faithful in keeping us safe all the way back to the seminary!
Praise the Lord! Nowwwww.. onto homework.... wooot!
Thanks for reading! Love you all!
Sincerely, The Girl with Yellow Hair
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