It’s hard to believe, but the semester is already over! I got home last week after a busy month. A lot happened between Peru and Home, so here’s a quick update to wrap this up...
Presidential Elections
Sunday, April 26th was Election Day in Ecuador. The President, Rafael Correa, was reelected, as was expected. The week leading up to elections was crazy – there were somewhere between 12-15 candidates for the presidency alone, and each party had their propaganda all over the city. Every day, on the traffic circle outside my window, there was a different “team,” with their brightly colored flags, posters, flyers, late-night concerts (I’m talking LOUD music til 1 or 2 am – I think that candidate lost the votes of everyone in my building!), marching bands, parades of cars honking and trailing balloons (see below for the 20 minute parade that went by my window), and more. Besides Correa, there did not seem to be one candidate who was especially strong. The way I perceived it, people either voted for or against Correa, not for another candidate.
The voting system is very interesting, and different, from ours. First, the entire country is under “ley seca” (dry laws) starting 48 hours before the elections and going through the day after. For a country that drinks with everything they do, it was strange to not be able to buy or sell alcohol for an entire weekend! Many restaurants and bars were closed on Friday and Saturday night because no one could go out. Also, voting is obligatory for citizens age 18 and up and optional starting at age 16. No one is excused from voting, and there are serious consequences if you don’t. You can be fined, prohibited from leaving the country, etc.
Canoa
The following weekend, a few friends and I joined what seemed like the rest of the country on a trip to the coast. Everyone in Ecuador has off on May 1 for El Día del trabajo (a labor day of sorts), so they all naturally head to the beach. We went to a small town called Canoa, a mildly touristy beach with surfing, nightlife, and cheap hostels. The clouds and little bit of rain couldn’t keep us off the beach. Our first night, we stayed at a friend’s house in a neighboring town, Bahia. We went out to dinner to celebrate Hallie’s birthday and came back to the house to find that a block away; all the locals in the town were gathered to celebrate the reelection of the mayor. We crashed the party, danced in the pouring rain, and were definitely the only non-townies there. It was so much fun!
Pre-Prac
The last week on April, I had my last day of pre-prac at Colegio Menor. The teachers were so nice – they got a cake, pizza, and gave me two books to read! It was the nicest goodbye I’ve gotten at a pre-prac so far, which is funny because I feel like I contributed less than I have in other schools. Cultural differences, I guess! I enjoyed observing the Spanish Literature department and getting to see 4 different teachers’ styles, though I was obviously under qualified to teach many lessons, as I am learning more or less the same things in my own courses!
Finals
Obviously the best part of the semester was the last week…finals! Or not. The exams and papers I had to write were certainly stressful but went smoothly. Some papers were actually fun – for my children’s lit class, I worked with a partner to write our own children’s story. We had to write the story and then a 10 page analysis of it, which was time consuming, but interesting! Exams went well, and though I was glad the semester is academically over, I learned a lot after reading so much in Spanish!
Last days in Quito
During the few days after exams, I packed up my room and got ready to move out of Maqui’s house. We enjoyed the last few nights in the city with the BC group, complete with a discochiva and all! The chiva was essentially a party on wheels – a truck with a dance floor on the back and a DJ that took us around the city for two hours. On Saturday, I spent my last day with Maqui and the girls. Unfortunately, Maqui’s brother-in-law’s father passed away, so we went to the vigil, mass, and burial. All three ceremonies took place on the same day he passed, only 5 hours later. Everything moved quickly. The vigil was very different from vigils at home because there was no formal or organized system to pay respects to the family. Instead, everyone was gathered in the room together, just being present. The mass was in the same room, and then the burial was in the catacombs of a church in Quito.
Zippilli’s in Quito!
Saturday night, my family arrived in Quito. We spent Sunday introducing them to my families here – Amanda and Bony hosted up for breakfast and then Maqui’s mom hosted us at her farm in Guayabamba for lunch. It was strange having them all together, but I’m so glad that my real family got to meet the people who had been taking care of me for five months. I was also grateful that Amanda & Bony and Maqui’s family speak English - it was the only time all week I didn’t have to translate! The next day, we went to Otavalo and Cotocachi, two towns I visited earlier in the semester. We did some shopping at the markets and took advantage of the opportunity to buy gifts (and grad presents for Em’s friends!). On Tuesday, we went to Mindo for some ziplineing and a great lunch. On the way home, we stopped at the classic tourist site – Mitad del Mundo. This monument marking the equator is just north of Quito and home to museums, shops, restaurants, and sundials. Though it’s not exactly on the equator, it was determined without super advanced technology and is only 800km off. Our driver, Fabrizio, knew a lot about the site, the history, and the science, so it was great to learn from him. This was actually my first time at Mitad del Mundo also, but then again, it’s something you only need to do once in Quito. On Wednesday morning, we went to the center of Quito and did the historical bit. In the afternoon, we hung at the hotel, relaxing after a few very busy days. The next morning, we checked out and headed for TeleferiQo, a cable car that goes to one tops of one of the mountains o the west side of the city. After climbing 1000m in 8 minutes, you can see much of the city. It was beautiful…and huge! The contrast between the city and the mountains is fascinating. Dad and I climbed to the top, which was 13,000+ feet above sea level! That afternoon, we went to the Guyasamin museum and then hung at a café until it was time to head to the airport. All in all, I’m sure my family had a great trip and enjoyed seeing the city and meeting my family. I was ready to come home, but enjoyed a fantastic semester and unforgettable experience in Quito!
El fin.
