USFQ's Unofficial Mascot

I've been meaning to share some photos of the beautiful husky that roams USFQ's campus. He's completely aloof and rarely deigns to acknowledge you, but he can do that since he's just that beautiful. Take a look -

I'm on a mission to learn his name... maybe then he'll love me...

**Update: his name is Nobu. He still doesn't love me :( **

Weekend Update #4: Papallacta Saturday

The weekend before last, myself, Tom, Ben, and Jeff planned a relaxing day hike/bath soak in the nearby town of Papallacta, known for its excellent hot springs.

Buuuut, due to a bus station mix-up, it took us until early afternoon to actually get there - not exactly our 10am start time. We hopped off the bus to a light drizzle, and kind of stood there for a minute. It become eminently clear that no one actually knew where to go to even start hiking. Two of the guys had forgotten rain gear. I'm not sure who said it first (*cough* Jeff), but it wasn't long until...

"So guys.... hot springs?!"

Sounds good to me! So we hopped in a cab, okay, the back of a pickup truck, whose driver said it'd only be a dollar. It was only after we got in we had forgotten to ask where we were actually going... oh well! (No wonder it took us like 4 and a half hours to make the two hour trip...)

Thankfully, after about 10 minutes the truck dropped us off further up into the hills, in front of a very promising looking hot spring resort. Especially promising, we thought, when we saw this sign:

"Admission is restricted to people who have consumed alcohol"

That's when you know you're in the right place... Misleading translation aside, we paid our $7 admission and were soon admitted to paradise.

The entire complex was beautiful, just a series of pools channeling naturally heated water (full of healing properties?) to tired tourists and quite a few locals as well. I can see why this is a popular destination spot. I just have to say - gentlemen, if we ladies aren't supposed to wear miniskirts after 35, PLEASE no speedos after 50. Thank you.

Even the natural streams that ran alongside the resort were mildly warm. No wonder the vegetation was so lush.

Jeff was particularly enthralled.

Instead of cabbing it back down to the bus stop, we chose instead to do the walk ourselves, passing through some of the most beautiful rural countryside I've seen here.

Let's pick on Jeff some more.

My lunch, before...

...and after. (It was delicious.)

We'll have to go back sometime to do some real hiking. Every weekend here is a mini-vacation. Someone told me the other day we only have eight left - it's incredible how quickly this semester is going. This weekend I'm staying in Quito to catch up on work and do some exploring. I'm off to Old Town to scope out the coolest sights for Mom and Dad's visit. Some of the girls are joining me in the afternoon, but right now it's just me and Thomas' guidebook. I'm looking forward to it :) Until next time!

Weekend Update #3: Otavalo and Tom's 21st

Okay, more stories from the past, this time from September 17th-19th. We spent Friday-Saturday in Otavalo, a prosperous indigenous town known for its incredible market, and then Saturday night (and earrrly Sunday) back in Quito celebrating Tom's 21st birthday. Let's do this one through pictures:

Most adorable dogs ever in our hostel, La Rosario

Walking through the town after dinner

The market

Everybody found some sweet deals. Bargaining is part of the culture - only silly gringos pay full price...

Back in Quito for Tom's 21st, I make my first alcoholic purchase (*ahem* it's legal). It was a Smirnoff Ice, and it was legendary.

Tom looks delighted.

Some hours later, Tom is now sporting EVERYTHING he bought in Otavalo. (To be fair, it was really cold in his family's apartment.)

After enjoying a delicious chocolate cake, we headed out to la Mariscal for the evening. Let's just say, it was a fun time. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOM!

Weekend Update #2: Atacames

Okay, so this is embarrassing. This was maybe our third weekend in Ecuador but whatever, it was awesome, so I'm going to write about it now.

We left after classes on Friday for our 4 to 5, okay maybe 6, but definitely-... gosh darnit. SEVEN, if we're lucky, hour bus ride due north to Atacames.

We passed through some incredibly beautiful countryside. This being our first big trip outside of Quito, I was absolutely enthralled. Even now, no matter what I bring with me on bus rides here, I always end up staring out the window. Along with the incredible view came views of incredible poverty, which got Tom and Molly talking about economic development. Then again, it doesn't take much to get Tom and Molly talking about economic development.

Late Friday night we arrived at the Atacames bus stop and snagged a few moto-taxis (I'm going to try to find a picture to borrow from a friend, I didn't take any) which was, at the time, the sketchiest method of transportation I had yet to take, and headed to our hostel. Our hostel was awesome:

The beach was awesome:

And Jeff almost killed himself in the middle of the night trying to get a glass of water:

The beach itself was a fascinating juxtaposition of the timelessness of nature, and the transient existence of humanity. Just look -

in comparison to

Looking down the beach, to one side lapped the ocean, as enduring and imposing as ever. To the other, a string of tacky tiki-bars lined the beach, beyond which ran a crowded street bordered by concrete-and-rebar buildings that were in permanent need of a new coat of paint (or a structural inspection). The people were a very strange mix of kids like us, tourists who probably didn't know what they were getting themselves into, and locals. And when I say "locals," the crowd ran the gamut from prostitutes to toddlers. Seriously.

During the day, families and kids flocked to the beach while various vendors hawked their wares (cornbread? choclo? sunglasses?) to uninterested tourists. Chairs, sandcastles, and a lot of litter was left scarring the sand at the end of the day as the beachgoers retreated home. Returning hours later for the evening frivolities (the tiki bars had their appeal), the tide, already high at 4pm, had retreated, leaving the beach pristine and fresh, almost as if the tide had absolved it of the earlier transgressions of its careless patrons.

I didn't take too many pictures here. Everywhere I looked, it was just too beautiful or too depressing to photograph. It was a lovely weekend dancing, exploring caves and playing in the surf, but this is probably the only place in Ecuador I've seen to which I wouldn't return.

Gringo Starr

We won! ...best name. Really we placed fourth or something, Tom/Ben/Jeff/Meaghan/Mike's team did better though. Next time, we'll be in the money, I'm sure of it. Regardless, Meaghan's awesome name already earned us a free meal to a restaurant in la Mariscal - woohoo!

This week for the first time, I'm actually buried under work. A paper and group project due in Econ on Friday, two tests and a large presentation for Monday, and still we're planning a big trip this weekend to Baños... oh man. And this Thursday, Thomás hooked us up with awesome tickets to some sort of Brazilian music festival... or so I gather. Whatever, I bought a ticket. It's called Cappallera I believe, but it would obviously be in Portuguese so who knows how you actually spell it. (Spanish, among its other wonderful qualities, happens to be completely phonetic and therefore very easy to spell. Not so much when you start mixing in French.) Lots to do in the next few days!

In related news, I'm kind of behind on blog posts. I'll get some pictures up tonight and hopefully share some past adventures over the next few days :) As always, thanks for reading!

It's Tuesday night, and you know what that means!

...Quiz night at Finn McCools, everyone's favorite Irish bar owned by a Canadian but frequented by gringos right here in Ecuador... well you get my drift.

Last week

Last week, we *almost* won. I mean, we placed fourth. But we were SO CLOSE. This is going to be our night. I can feel it.

Tuesdays are by far my favorite day. After an exhausting 5 1/2 hours of class on Monday, I wake up early to check emails and read the news on the oh-so-wonderful wireless at home. Make it to school around 9:15, grab a cup of the most delicious organic coffee at the place across the street from campus and catch up on reading for classes. The first classes of the morning are weaving and diving - hello, study abroad. (Stay tuned for recent revelations about how I'm better at weaving than literally anything else here, including Spanish, unfortunately...) After diving ends at 1pm, I meet Mariel, Amanda, and whoever else is around for a relaxing lunch at a local Ecuadorian restaurant - huge bowl of soup, rice, some kind of veggie, some kind of meat, a desert and delicious juice. For $2.50. Amazing.

mmmfood.

The next 45 minutes or so until my next class I spend lazing in the sun by the laguna, doing more reading and/or avoiding my overly attentive conversation partner (oops). The last class of the day is environmental entrepreneurship, possibly my favorite class here (other than weaving of course). After heading home, a good workout in my apartment building's tiny gym, shower, dinner, and some homework, it's time - for trivia night.

Ciao!

Addendum to Post: Tom Got Bit by a Dog.

CAN'T believe I forgot to mention this. Tom, in a hiking endeavor on Saturday, managed to get himself bit by a dog. He is okay and is going to continue being okay, thanks to a battery of five rabies shots over the course of the next month. We are now free to make fun of him. Yeah, Tom!