Hola Amigos!
(Look at me being all spanish...!)
A few things you need to know about Quito right off the bat. Pedestrian crossings are not predestrian crossings as we know them....here they are white zebra-crossing lines on the road (as you would expect!) that advise you this is a place to cross the road, should you wish to dodge the speeding Quito drivers after looking both ways, behind you and in front of you - cars come from EVERYWHERE and they will not stop for you. Drivers generally have one hand on the wheel and the other on the horn - reminds me of Cairo and that place terrified the pants off me! When walking around Quito, LOOK DOWN. There are potholes on the pavement the size of bowling balls and its not uncommon to have the footpath rise and fall by a foot - thats just normal apparently (those who know how clumsy I can be when I walk will no doubt not be surprised that Ive already tripped numerous times).
Yesterday I went to mass with Susana, my host mother. She sings and plays guiter - it was in a beautiful cathedral in central Quito and whilst I didnt understand a word the Padre said, it was amazing just the same. By her own admission, she is ´´crazy like a goat´´ and I would have to agree! She is loud, charismatic and full of laughter and it makes my house a very fun place to be. Since Im struggling to understand much of what she says, Im generally just smiling and laughing like a lunatic. On the walk back from mass she said to me ´´Becky, I think you must have swallowed a clown. You are always smiling and happy!´´ If only she knew it is because Im laughing at my complete lack of ability to communicate! Teo, my host father is equally as lovely, but a bit more laid back and quiet, and just tends to let Susana get on with it - good man! Ana Cristina is their 13 year old daughter and just such a beautiful kid. Her english is very good, but she is a little shy to converse with me - I can already see that she will be my port-of-call though when the communication breakdown between me, Susana and Teo gets to breaking point!
Today was day one of spanish school, and involved orientation to Quito, a walk around the old town, visits to various museums and basilicas, and an introduction to various other members of my class. Its pretty intimidating to learn that 23 year old Xavier from Belguim speaks Dutch, French and English and has a better grasp of spanish than me. Caroline is french canadian so already has French and English under her belt, Lisa is from Germany so speaks German and English...and so the list goes on. I think I am the only person with one language so yeah, feel like a bit of a retard (I know thats not very pc, but Im sooooo tired and its the first word that my fingrs typed...!).
Its only 12deg C here, but a bit warmer in the sun, and the nights can be freezing. My Galapagos info tells me that I will be working in ´´hot humid conditions´´ so I dont really have the approprite warm clothing with me for Quito - if you notice me in the same pair of trousers and long sleeves tops all the time...you will know why.
My host family live a 30min walk from my spanish school, so Im off now to try and find my way back home. Teo walked me to school this morning...fingers crossed those landmarks I tried to ingrain into my brain remain...otherwise its a cab for me. Oh...had lunch today for US$2.30 and bought a bottle of water this afternoon for US$0.30 - handing over a US$20 note is NOT a good idea though, so I will ensure next time I have appropriate change!
Havnt had time to re-read this, but assume it is more interesting than throats, forms and small ecuardorian couples...
See you on the flip side!
Chao
