Made it to Ambato!

 Hello everyone! I am so sorry for the delay in my blog posts. I know it has been a long time and I apologize! I have made it to Ambato and so far I really really like it.

My last couple of weeks in Quito were really good. Where  did I leave off? I think the last blog post that I wrote was over 2 weeks ago. A couple of weekends ago I went to Otavalo with my family in Quito. My host grandma (who is only 58) named Mariana grew up in Otavalo. Her parents still live in Otavalo. First let me explain what Otavalo is like. Otavalo is a mid sized city that is famous for its markets. In the Lonely Planet guidebook it is number three in the top ten things to do in Ecuador. It is described as,

“The modern world comes crashing up against the old in a sensory assault of color, smell, and sound. Under the cloud-covered shadow of the Imbabura volcanic peak, virtually the whole town is transformed into a street market. From the spectacularly colorful, locally woven textiles to the carved wooden trinkets; from the food vendors selling hot snacks from hand-woven baskets to the colorful watercolorists from the Peruvian school painting and selling their scenes of local folklore.”

And let me tell you, it was just that. It was beautiful. Situated at the foot of a volcano Otavalo had a beautiful backdrop. On the drives in and out I kept thinking to myself, “this is so beautiful”. It was breathtaking. I will definitely be taking a trip back to Otavalo this upcoming year. Plus Mariana’s family was so sweet. Her parents are both 86 years old, have been married for 68 years and had 10 children. When I talked to the mom, she kept telling me how proud she was of their children, “todos mis hijos son educativo y profesionales” All of them are educated and have are professionals. She also called me mijita which is a term of endearment that means my little daughter. That is one thing about Ecuadorians, they are so friendly and take you under their wing without hesitation. In both families I became mija just like that. All of the family came over and we prepared a big lunch that came from the market just outside of their house. The abuelitos have an internet café that leads to their house in the back. It was such a cool house that opened up to a courtyard that lead back to their room and kitchen. Then on the 2^nd, 3^rd, and 4^th floor of the house were all the extra bedrooms for their 10 children. This house was awesome! They have also told me that whenever I want to come to Otavalo I am welcome to stay with them in their house. It was a really nice day.

Orientation continued in Quito for another two weeks. We started learning how to become teachers and learned quickly. We also had the opportunity to teach English in a free 2-week course offered at the local SECAP, or professional trade school. We each had 2 or three days to teach and get all of our jitters out. It was very helpful. I know what works and what doesn’t. And if I might say so, I think it went really well. I was pleased with my 3 days of teaching. At first I was a little discouraged because I was given advanced students and had no idea what to teach them, but by the end I was excelling. We had a party at the end of the course and gave them certificates at a restaurant and had beers. It was great. I really enjoyed myself and now have some people to hang out when I return to Quito (besides my fellow World Teach volunteers, of course).

I finally arrived in Ambato yesterday afternoon. There are 6 WorldTeach volunteers including myself here in Ambato. Usually volunteers just take a bus to get to Ambato when they move from Quito, but luckily one of us had an in with a tour guide company because he knew the guy from when his family visited earlier.  Anyways, long story short I thought that we were going to get a 12 passenger van and was pleasantly surprised when there was a private tour bus in front of the hotel. The $20 bucks was worth it with a private driver who took care of our luggage for us and delivered us to each of our houses.

I haven’t seen much of Ambato yet, but it seems like a really nice city! It was destroyed in an earthquake in 1949 so it was rebuilt from this. The buildings don’t really match and the city isn’t all that pretty, but I don’t really care. It is surrounded by the Andes and the volcano Tungarahua is close by. There is a town center with statues, a square, churches, and government buildings. Tomorrow I am going to try to conquer public transit to find my way to SECAP where I will be teaching English for the year.

My family in Ambato is great! I live with my host parents, Elvia and Nestor who are both in their 50’s. She runs the family store that is literally right outside of her house. You can step into the store from the hallway. The store is full of random items that she buys in Quito, Cuenca, and Guayquil to sell here in Ambato. I thought Nestor worked for the University here in Ambato, but he said he does something different. I still haven’t quite figured that out yet. They have 4 children, 3 boys and 1 girl. The oldest son lives and works in Spain with his wife and I probably won’t meet him. Girleza is the daughter in her 30’s and she is quite the powerhouse. She is the manager of a clothing store here in the local mall and in other branches in Ecuador. She is definitely the cool older sister. She is totally glamorous, beautiful, and  so smart. She lives here in the house with her 11-year-old daughter, Milena who is quite the chatter bug. She has shown me everything in the house and taken me on a tour of all her stuffed animals and photos of the family. She is welcoming and gives lots of hugs! She is the little sister that I never had. I met the other two sons and they were very nice. Daniel, comes home on the weekends but studies in Quito during the week, he was really nice. Nestor is the other son who is a high school English teacher here in Ambato. He lived abroad in England for 4 years and is fluent in English. He promised that when he gets back from a conference in Guayaquil he would show me around Ambato, so that is really cool!

I live in a big beautiful house in a centrally located and safe neighborhood. The house is so beautiful. I have my own room, and share a bathroom. I arrived yesterday afternoon with a nasty cold, but it hasn’t deterred me from anything. I absolutely love this family. Last night they took me to a professional basketball game where Ambato beat Quito! I am calling that a good omen for the year! Pro basketball here is pretty interesting. It was kind of like high school basketball in the states. Nonetheless, it was really fun and I had a great time with my new family. After sleeping for 12 hours last night, The family went on a walk in the park here in Ambato. It was a really cool park that had tons of trees and a nice walking trail. I think I will be going there often this year. After our walk I tried a local dish of cooked pig skin (yum! . . .not) with chochos (a type of bean), tostadas (toasted corn kernels), and an onion and tomato salad all topped off with orange. I wasn’t a big fan of the pig skin, it was really chewy and didn’t taste all that great, but I am glad that I tried it for sure! After we came back and had a big lunch we went outside of the city to see where Girleza and her boyfriend are building a house, had ice cream, and then returned back to the house. Then I discovered that I had wireless internet! If I had to choose between wireless internet and hot water, I would definitely choose internet so that I can be in touch with all of you! After I skyped with mom and my best friend Alex, we went to the mall and watched a movie. Man, I lucked out. What an awesome day! I am so happy to be in Ambato and to be with this family! Sorry for the obnoxiously long post! If you are still reading, know that I think of everyone of you often.

Sending all my love from Ecuador,

Caitlin