Puerto Lopez!

Hello! I’m sorry it has taken me far too long to get this post up…I am in the middle of 2 weeks of midterms and projects. I have to study while I’m here? Oops. : )

After our trip to the selva, I stayed in Quito for the weekend. I spent all day Saturday and Sunday holed up in my room reading Cien Años de Soledad for my “El Boom latinoamericano” class, and Alicia en el pais de maravillas for Chilren’s lit. Classes are going well, though I must say I don’t really have a brain for Art History, so the paper and midterm were a bit of a struggle.

On Wednesday, March 4th, we had off classes for a professional development day. (I don’t quite understand why they do that the week after vacation for carnival, but I will not complain.) We took advantage of the very convenient timing (that week was also BC’s spring break so we had about 10 visitors come to Quito) to take a 5 day weekend trip to the beach! We took a ½ hour flight to Manta, a coastal city and home to the smallest airport I’ve ever seen in my life – only one terminal! – and then a van ride to the small town of Puerto Lopez. We stayed at the beautiful Hosteria Mandala (check it out if you have time: http://www.hosteriamandala.info/) through Saturday night.

After we arrived on Wednesday, we hopped on a boat to Isla de la Plata, an island about an hour off the coast that was “discovered” by Sir Francis Drake. Obviously, he didn’t actually discover it…indigenous communities and Incas had known about it for centuries. The island got its name because some historians believe it may be the site of the undiscovered treasure that Drake buried, but no one knows. The island has been a national park for about 50 years. We took a 2 hour hike across the island to look at the animals and plants that call this little paradise “home.” The hike was exhausting, especially in the direct sunlight, but absolutely worth it. We hiked to the beautiful cliffs and beaches, saw some really cool birds, and got a great workout! Afterwards, we ate lunch (of delicious watermelon, white pineapple, and sandwiches!) on the boat and then snorkeled on another side of the island – where there was no threat of sharks – for a while.

On Thursday, we went to Los Frailes, another park and probably the most beautiful beach I have ever visited. There was not a single rock, shell, piece of seaweed, or jellyfish and the water was perfectly clear. The sun was strong, the clouds were few but fluffy, and the sand was beautiful (and hot!). Really, it was heaven on earth. The only downside was the lack of shade. Needless to say I am “bien bronceada y un poco quemada,” despite the amount of sunscreen I used.

Friday and Saturday were spent in a hammock in a cabana on the beach at the hostel, reading, napping, and enjoying relaxation. I felt quite grown up in the sense that I was appreciating a relaxing “vacation” away from the “real world,” although it is still quite a stretch to call my life here the “real world.” While, yes, we are learning about the serious issues that Ecuadorians face and yes, I have seen a lot of this in action over the past two months, I have been very blessed to be able to travel so much, to study at such a beautiful university and to life with a great family.

On Sunday, we spent the morning on the beach and then went back to Manta for our flight home. Leaving the sun of the coast for the clouds of the Sierra (the mountains in the middle of the country, where Quito is located) was a drastic climate change, and a bit sad.

A few other thoughts:
It’s a Small World, Take II: Though the hostel we stayed in is owned by Italians, the manager while we were there was from the US (being here makes me hesitant to say American to identify US citizens...South Americans rightfully identify as Americans as well!) who has a niece who goes to Brandeis, which is only a few miles from BC and where Jackie goes! (I didn’t get her name…sorry Jackie!)

Paths Crossing in Florida: In the next two weeks, all 6 members of my families – host and real – will be in Florida for some time. Maqui is there now, for work, and will be joined tomorrow by her daughters and entire extended family for a cruise celebrating Maqui’s mom’s 85th birthday. The Zippilli’s will also be there, at different times, for senior trip, a visit to Marco, and work! ¡Que coincidencia!

Salsa update: We had our last salsa class on Wednesday! I enjoyed it so much, despite the teacher being a bit tough on us, and am looking into more classes. I liked having an “after school activity” a couple days a week and enjoyed learning the moves. Now we just have to test them out at the salsa club…

Making new friends: One of the notoriously hardest parts about studying abroad in a big gringo group as USFQ is making friends with native students. We perceive the Ecua students as cliquey and they say the same thing about us, which is probably due to the clumps of international students always hanging out on the appropriately named “gringo grass.” Last week, a girl in my Children’s lit class, Diana, offered to make me a copy of what I missed when I was at the beach, which was so nice because we had never spoken before. Next thing I knew, I was at her house yesterday for a few hours working on our project together and chatting. She gave me lunch, which I wasn’t expecting at all, but is quite pretty much protocol for hosting visitors, and it was delicious!

Halfway Begun: I dare not say halfway done, but that’s the truth. Can you believe it? I certainly cannot. I have will be done exams two weeks from today, and then here for another week with MY FAMILY! (I’m excited they’re coming, if you can’t tell!).

Anyway, that’s all for now. Sorry it’s kind of a lot! I have some great pictures, but can’t put them up until I get my camera cord back, so check back in a few days to see some beautiful beaches and sunsets!