August 15

Well, I have spent a week in Ecuador and am finally getting my travel feet on. My host family is very nice. I live with a woman named Patrica and her father, Marco. Her sisters and nieces and nephews are always at the house. The house is beautiful and they are very well off by Ecuadorian standards. THis is a very poor country. The average income per month is 120 American dollars!! However, her home is nice and I have my own room and bathroom. She speaks English which has been very helpful because I do not speak any Spanish. Well, now that I have had a week of classes I am improving and can recognize words when someone is speaking, but I cannot have anywhere near a conversation!! It is very difficult to learn a language but I am trying and studying every night. I now know what it is like for people who come to the United States and do not speak English. It is DIFFICULT!

Quito is a big city and not very pretty. It is extremely unsafe and I have heard horror stories about robberies and muggings, some even at gunpoint. I cannot walk anywhere at night as it is just not safe. I do not really like big cities when I am travelling and cannot wait to leave Quito in four weeks for good.

This past weekend I travelled to Banos, which is a small town in the Andes about four hours south of Quito by bus. It was beautiful, surrounded by green mountains and an active volcano. The city was evacuated for three months last year because the volcano was constantly erupting. BUt now it is quiet and only blows smoke every couple of days. I went with three friends from school and immediately liked Banos because it is quaint and friendly and safe.

We took a bike ride to Puyo about 70 kilometres away, mostly downhill. The ride goes from the Andes to the Amazon basin and was absolutely amazing!! The small dirt road winds around steep cliffs, through small villages, and under waterfalls. I loved every second of it. However, it was hard to breathe when going uphill because of the altitude! Banos is about 10,000 feet above sea level. On Sunday, I hiked up the mountain next to the volcano and forgot about the altitude and the equator factor and got quite sunburned, even with factor 15 suntan lotion on my face!!!

Tonight, I am going to have some salsa lessons. Salsa is the dance of Latin America and everyone can do it very well. It is amazing to watch people salsa. People here dance so much better than people in the United States, the average person that is.

Ok, well I have to go study. It will be easy to update my web page while in Quito. It is only eighty cents an hour and there are loads of internet cafes in this part of town which is called Gringoland by all the people in Quito because it is where all the backpackers hang out. Unfortunately my house is very far away and I have to take a cab if it gets too late. I can actually give the cab driver directions in Spanish to my house. That is an improvement. Especially since I got a zero on my entrance exam! Well, the only place I can go is up from there!! Study Study Study!

August 25

Sunday in Quito...it is the first weekend that have not travelled somewhere. Actually, yesterday, I went to Cotopaxi, the highest active volcano in the world. It is a three hour train ride south of Quito or a one hour bus ride. The train system here is horrible, unfortunately, because I love taking trains as opposed to buses. The volcano is 15,000 feet high. We hired a guy with a pickup truck to take us to the refugio, which is right below the snowline. Well, it was absolutely freezing and the winds were gusting at about 90 mph.. or at least that is what it felt like. Combine that with the lack of oxygen and you realize that the simple feat of walking takes on a whole new perspective. We only stayed there about an hour and I tried to get some pictures anytime the clouds decided to move away from the top of the mountain. Many people here hike up to the top of the mountain, but only with a guy and with some serious ice-climbing equipment. I have absolutely no interest... it is just too cold and too difficult to breathe. It would take me forever. Plus they all have to carry a backpack!!! There are lots of hiking opportunities here that do not involve any equipment and do not have sub-zero temperatures.. I think I will stick to those.

Last weekend, I went to the rainforest via a very small jungle town called Mishualli. I went with three friends from school. We hired a Quechua, the local indignenous group of Indians, to take us into the rainforest for the day. The only problem was the it was all in Spanish, which was okay for my freinds but a bit of a dilemma for me. However, he spoke slowly so I understood most of it. He showed us all the different plants and trees that the Quechua use for medicine and for making various things, like clothing and their homes. It was really interesting and fascinating that he could tell the difference between all the flora because it ALL LOOKED THE SAME TO ME! It was really muddy but luckily he provided us with rubber boots or we would have been a mess. I was filthy anyway because of numerous falls down muddy slopes. We took the bus back to Quito the next day around five o'clock expecting to arrive home around 9.. Well, half way through the trip, in the middle of the jungle, the bus broke down. We heard a loud bang and the bus went dark, and then started rolling backwards down the hill. I thought for sure we were going over the edge and I was ready to jump out of the window! We eventually lurched to a stop and then sat in complete darkness for about 10 minutes. I could not take it anymore and got off to see what was going on only to find a huge piece of metal laying under the bus... apparently the piece that connects the wheel to the engine... just fell off. Obviously, the bus was not going to run again. Of course, the well-prepared Ecuadorians did not have a radio, a tool kit, or a clue as to what the thirty tired people on the bus should do.. After thirty minutes of discussion in Spanish, it was decided we would get half of our money back (after all they did take us half way was their reasoning) and we would all WALK to the nearest town which was six kilometres away along the deserted, dark, jungle road. It took us about a two hours since everyone had bags with them.... luckily, we were able to pay a guy in the town to take us to Quito for a very steep forty dollars. But there were no buses and no cars would stop to help us!! There were lots of children and I felt bad for them and their parents. Well, I arrived home around 1, exhausted, filthy, and starving because all I had to eat that day was a yogurt for breakfast. What an adventure and hopefully my last on a bus that breaks down!!!!

Let's see, what else? The pictures at the bottom are of Banos, the place that I love and cannot wait to go back to. THe other is of cuye, or roasted guinea pig, a specialty everywhere in Ecuador. I do not think I can eat it - I have a big problem eating anything with the head still on. But is supposed to be quite good. They look like they were tortured right before they were put on the fire...yuck.

Other notes.. the money situation here is desperate. As of September 9, the whole country is switching to using American dollars. Right now it is a mix of dollars and sucres. Most people are still having difficulties converting the amounts and getting correct change is a nightmare. Trying to add the mix of sucres and dollars while attempting to interpret the Spanish that is rapidly being fired at me leaves me in a state of confusion... add to that that Quito has NO street signs and I am constantly lost and you have an idea about my state of mind here!!

One of the best things I have done is take salsa lessons!!! It is soo much fun. I have taken five hours and have already gotten better!

Going to the Galapagos on Wednesday until Sunday --it should be great and I am really looking forward to it. It is extremely expensive - 850 dollars for five days. Considering that you can stay in a hostel for 3 dollars, have lunch for 1.50 and take the bus for 12 cents, that is pretty steep. But it is the going rate and if you go cheaper, the trip can be really horrible. Ok, that is all for now. I will try and update after the Galapagos!!

September 5

I just added pictures from the Galapagos and the rainforest. The first is in the Galapagos with a turtle, no it is not dead, just sleeping; the second is with one of the very tame sea lions, and the third is with the Chilean television crew that I was adopted by. THe next two are in the rainforest. The first is me getting my face painted with natural "make-up" from the rainforest. The next is taken near the waterfall that I almost broke a leg getting to. The last is with the Chilean guys in the Galapagos. It is free to scan in pictures at this internet place. Unfortunately they do it for me and I cannot tell what order they will be in.

The Galapagos Islands were amazing... beautiful, tropical, and sunny. The islands are a 3and a half hour flight from Quito. You can take a boat but it takes about three or four days and the sea is extremely rough. As it was, I spent all day on the boat and felt very unsteady at night, like everything was swaying. I took seasick medicine during the day and it did the trick, or I would have been very ill. The seas are pretty rough. For example, one afternoon on the way home, we were all up on the sundeck in lounge chairs and they kept sliding all over the place because of the rocking of the boat. It was pretty funny actually. As for the other people on the boat, well, there were only 7 others and only one spoke English. I ended up hanging around with a television crew from Chile who were making a documentary of the islands. They kind of adopted me and let me come on their private tour. It was great because we went places that the others did not, but it also meant waiting sometimes for them to make a shoot. It was interesting watching how a film is made. They were all very funny and sarcastic and if only I spoke Spanish I could have kept up. Between the rocking of the boat and trying hard to comprehend rapidly spoken Spanish, I was exhausted at night. Not to mention, that the departure time every day was at 6 AM!!!! But we had to go at least two hours to each site and getting up early allowed us to have more time at each place. The most amazing thing about the islands, other than I got my tan back, is the tameness of the animals! I practically stepped on some animals before they even opened their eyes. Obviously, from the pictures below you get the idea. The most amazing were the sea lions. They are beautiful and amazing to watch. In the sea, they are playful and swim very near the dinghy trying to pull on the rope. On land, they are sleepy and could care less if you are 1 foot away taking a thousand pictures. All of the animals and many of the plants are unique and endemic only to the Galapagos. Hence, Darwin´s theory of evolution was created after his visit to the Galapagos. The animals and plants have adapted to the unique conditions of the island climate. I also went snorkeling and saw tons of fish, one white-tipped shark, and some eagle rays - pretty awesome. Diving would have been a treat but it was ninety dollars for one forty minute dive and after spending 1,000 dollars just to be there, I just could not do it. Maybe next time when I am independently wealthy! The water is gorgeous and rivals any Caribbean beach. Unfortunately, the water is a bit cold, but the sun is scorching. After all, the Galapagos are right on the Equator. Major sun tan lotion was a must.

The Chilean guys were entertaining and fun. They wanted me to learn how to converse in Spanish in only five days and continually tried to explain everything to me in Spanish. VERY DIFFICULT after only four weeks of Spanish. I know I keep saying this but I cannot explain how difficult it is to try and understand a conversation in another language, especially when everyone is laughing and having a blast. I wanted so badly to understand everything. But poco y poco as my teachers say. Unless you try and learn another language in a foreign country you can not really comprehend. Many times it the States I hear people say, "I cannot believe they do not speak English", when they themselves only speak one language and have never attempted to really learn another one. It certainly changes your perspective!! ok, enough about the Spanish situation.

I have one more day of school and took my final exam today. Unfortunately, I now have to learn more Spanish on my own. But, now I am FREE to travel and explore South America which is what I have been dying to do. My friend, Wendy, arrives on Thursday for a week to travel around Ecuador with me for a bit. I am very psyched about that. And of course, psyched to get out of Quito......

September 7

I added some new pictures. The first one is of my teachers at school and the next two are with my salsa teacher at my dance school. Obviously, salsa classes were a lot more fun than Spanish classes, if you cannot tell from the smile on my face!!

September 17

I am currently in Cuenca which is about 10 hours south of Quito and is the third largest city in Ecuador. However, it is beautiful and safe and much nicer than Quito and Guayaquil. Wendy left two days ago and I miss my travel partner, translator, and laugh companion. We had a great time, albeit too short.

Highlights of my travels with Wendy

1. Catching a ride with a military truck to Guayaquil from Huigra. We made new friends and had an armed escort into the most dangerous city in Ecuador. Plus, we learned about the power and kindness of the Ecuadorian soldiers.

2. Dancing salsa on the beach in Montanita under a full moon - absolutely gorgeous

3. Meeting Nestor, a kid selling peanuts on the bus to Banos. He said he was 9 but he looked 7 and was on the bus by himself at 9 at night. He was so sweet. We saw him the next day and bought him lunch, ice cream and what he said was his first toy. I have never seen a kid so happy with so little given to him. He works everyday selling stuff on the bus to help the family survive. A big difference from most kids in America!

4. Taking a nine hour train ride on the roof of an old train to see the Valley of the Volcanoes. Beautiful landscape and a bit scary because the train derailed TWICE and they fixed it with old tools and pieces of an aloe plant if you can believe that. Oh, and we did not have get off the roof even though it was our car that derailed. Once it was right before a huge ravine with a very rickety bridge across it.

5. Our many bus rides..... meeting people everywhere and making them laugh

6. Seeing Banos again and taking a health steam bath in the hostel we stayed in- not better than a Turkish bath but very refreshing!

So, I am sad now and travelling alone but I am sure I will meet people soon enough. Everyone here is so friendly, helpful, and kind. Whenever I am lost or confused, someone always helps me. Yesterday I went to a museum in Cuenca that houses antiques of the Aboriginal tribes in Ecuador. I was the only one there and the owner gave me a guided tour and took out several pieces that were over a thousand years old and let me hold them. I guess he had no idea what a clutz I am. It was very interesting, albeit in Spanish!!!! The only negative thing so far is I keep losing things....

1. the top to my bathing suit - very worrying as I cannot even find a store in Cuenca that sells bathing suits nevermind what they will look like on me... pesadilla -- nightmare

2. the top to my Oil of Olay bottle - have it wrapped in plastic but it is a mess. Had the brilliant idea today to buy a cheap bottle of something else and transfer it... a no-brainer!

3. Numerous clips

4. My jewelry bag - only had two other pairs of earrings but I liked them. I bought another pair in Montanita and lost one that day...

Hopefully, that is all I will lose. Nothing important but just annoying. I will stay in Cuenca for a few more days and then keep heading south. I will probably be in Peru sometime next week!!

October 2

I am currently in a small town two hours north of the Peruvian border. I am travelling with three English girls now who are very fun and it is good to have friends. We had to take a bus for eight hours to get here on very dusty, very bumpy mountain roads. Travelling in the Andes is slow and difficult and sometimes hair-raising. Although the drivers are going rather slow it still feels as if you are going to sail over the edge to the cliff to who knows where!

I am sad to leave Ecuador but am excited to see a new country!! The people here have been so friendly and helpful. They have more nationalism than most Americans and they all want to make sure that I enjoyed Ecuador! Despite the fact that most people do not have the same amount of material things that Americans have, most are happy, or seem to be with their lives.

I spent the last week in paradise in a village called Vilcabamba in the south of Ecuador. It was gorgeous and I did some great hiking and horseriding. I also met some great people and had many laughs!!!!! I stayed at a hostel called Madre Tierra which was 6 dollars a night and included an amazing breakfast and dinner!! We even had pate every night before dinner and it was lovely! Spent a week there and had to tear myself away or I would have never left. But my visa expires on Thursday so I have to go.

On to Peru!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"I like roads less travelled, and I like people who go down them."

Brett Butler