Ecuador Trip

My experience in Ecuador

jenny245 — Tue, 21 Jan 2014 16:00:00 GMT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKVAFEeDhZU&feature=youtu.be

Reflection on Ecuador

jenny245 — Sat, 18 Jan 2014 13:48:00 GMT

My experience in Ecuador has been one of a kind. This trip has opened my eyes to many sides of the world that I have not seen. I have learned so much from the people that I have met. I especially enjoyed learning from the indigenous groups and their viewpoints on the environment and animals. I have learned a lot about myself as well. After hiking in the Andean mountains, I realized my fear of heights. I was able to overcome this fear during my hike, but I have a feeling that the fear will always be there. I also realized my passion for helping animals as well as the environment. I respect the views that the Ecuadorian people have, but I could not accept these views because of my profound passion to help animals. Now that I am back, I plan on pursuing my passion while incorporating all of what I have learned to continue discovering my ideal career.

Time at Orphanage

jenny245 — Tue, 14 Jan 2014 16:08:00 GMT

Today we went to visit and play with many kids at an orphanage in Guayaquil. I unfortunately did not find out the name of the orphanage, but I did have an experience of a lifetime. When I first walked in to the building, kids began to come up to us and hug us. Once we entered the courtyard, I became overwhelmed with emotion and my eyes filled with tears. It was a beautiful yet sad sight to see all the children excited to see us. They immediately began to play with us and were interested in all the toys we brought. After four hours of chasing, playing, and picking up many children, we had to leave. It was one of the hardest goodbyes I have ever had to do. Many of the kids had grown attached to us and began to cry as we started to leave. Before this trip, I never felt a connection to children. I did not enjoy being around kids and avoided it as much as possible. After this experience though, my feelings towards children have completely flipped. I hope in the future to do more work with children. This service learning project was one from the heart. I felt extremely grateful for the opportunity to bring a smile to these children. During my time there, I was told that whenever there are visitors, the children become ecstatic. Someday I hope to eventually find a way to help other orphanages or even go back to this orphanage in Guayaquil.

Time at the Orphanage

jenny245 — Tue, 14 Jan 2014 13:04:00 GMT

Goodbye Cuenca

jenny245 — Mon, 13 Jan 2014 21:08:00 GMT

Today we left Cuenca and our host families to adventure off to Guayaquil. It was sad leaving our families that we have spent the last ten days with them and have gotten to know them very well. We have built bonds that I had hoped for with our host sibilings and mom. I hope to keep this relationship with my family for the rest of my life. The bus ride was a long one and once we reached the bottom of the mountains, the dramatic change of climate could be felt by everyone. it went from 60 degrees to 90 degrees instantly. Once in Guayaquil, we were all tired from the trip and went for a small dinner across the hotel and headed to bed.

Why: Education

jenny245 — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 17:58:00 GMT

Our last lecture was today and it was on education. We learned about the different learning styles, disparities within education, and much more. The professor discussed the teaching styles within the different learning styles and there are four steps that teachers follow. I noticed that our teacher used this method to help guide us while we wrote our blogs. We were to have our experiences, reflect on them, research some of them, and then draw conclusions based on our lectures and notes from class. This method, I believe, works with most if not all the learning styles mentioned in class. I believe that I am a diverger as well as a converger. I enjoy working in groups and trying to understand other people and their perspectives. I also like practical applications as well as knowing the logical side of situations. Throughout my education in America, I have been fortunate enough to have teachers that accommodate to my style of learning. Without this opportunity, I would probably not be where I am today. As we learned, there are many disparities when it comes to education. One being that some groups do not have access to appropriate education and that socioeconomic status is a variable for getting proper education. We can see this in the education system in Ecuador. There are the public and private schools, and generally the private schools offer a better education to students. We were fortunate enough to visit the CEDEI school, which had kindergarten through 9^th grade. This private non-religious school is unique because most private schools in Ecuador are religious. When I first heard about the popularity with private religious schools here, I remember thinking how different it was compared back to the United States. The catholic religion is very prominent here, but back at home it is a controversial issue. I wondered if the CEDEI School is a controversial issue in Cuenca being that it is non-religious and private. Once our tour began and I saw the way the students interacted with the teachers and our guide, it was obvious that they felt safe and trusted the adults at this school.

We were told that this school rarely had issues with bullying, which was a shock for me to hear because it is so prevalent in the United States. It felt great hearing that the students all got along and helped one another, especially in the Special Ed program. I think that this was the most interesting to me because the Special Ed programs at most of the schools I have attended are usually kept separate from the rest of the school. I remember when they were not separate in elementary school and the kids from the Special Ed program got bullied. The CEDEI school, though, has managed to turn this around and create a great program that they are extremely proud of. One other disparity within the education in Ecuador is that reading is not a leisure. In fact, we learned at the CEDEI school that the kids do not know how to take proper care of books and cannot take them home because they do not understand how to care for them. Reading is something that is overly-emphasized in the United States because of all the good that can come out of it.

To be bilingual in both Spanish and English is tremendously valued in Ecuador. This skill can open many opportunities for people and because it is mostly available for those of privilege, many poor Ecuadorians cannot compete with those that can afford a better education. The CEDEI school incorporates English into their curriculum and the guide told us that the school’s students have the best English skills throughout their region because of the large amount of English used within the school. Also, the school has a population of immigrants from the United States that have varying levels of English skills. These varying levels often cause problems for the school, but they have found ways to overcome them.

One interesting topic that we discussed in class about immigration and education is the Dream act. I was unaware that this existed, and honestly surprised because of the strong negative attitude towards illegal immigrants in the U.S.. I hope that this passes through and the children of illegal immigrants are able to get the education they deserve. They should not be denied the right to education because their parents made the decision to enter the United States illegally. This topic of Education in Ecuador and the United States was interesting to learn about and I hope once we go back to our lives at home, I can be less naïve about the world of education and how it affects not only me, but those around me.

Cajas national park

jenny245 — Thu, 9 Jan 2014 20:24:00 GMT

Today we had our hike to Cajas national park. Our tour guides knew many facts about the park and during our first hike they were quick to tell us about many plants and flowers that we passed by. While on the trail, we were stopped by a massive set of trees that had fallen and blocked the trail. With one guide in the front, and the other in the back, we fought our way through the Andean forest to go around the tree and continue the trail on the other side. One interesting plant that I asked about turned out to be a natural remedy that was used by the locals to treat skin cancer. This plant was called “human flesh”. I felt excited that not only were we able to experience Ecuador’s natural beauty through a hike, but our guides were extremely knowledgeable about the forest and happy to share their knowledge with us. Another fact that they had mentioned which I thought was interesting was that Cajas national park is the most well preserved park out of all the parks in Ecuador. Our second hike was longer, and much more muddier than the first, which made me thankful for the rain boots. I decided to go with the group whose trail was focused more on the lakes. Some highlights from this trail were once again, our guide’s knowledge about the plants and environment; the side of the mountain that looked like a gorilla; the ground with a river flowing underneath it; and the wonderful forest that we entered halfway through our hike. I have always been a fan of gorillas and so when I saw this mountain that looked like one, I saw the gorilla face instantly and was amazed at how we were able to see a perfect outline of an ape’s face, it is hard for believe that nature does not do this on purpose. I looked for other natural formations that may look like a figure, but was unable to find one throughout the rest of my hike.

The forest that we entered was made up of paper trees and was beautiful. We all agreed that it looked like the forest from lord of the rings and took many pictures while inside of it. It was an experience that seemed unreal because of how beautiful the trees looked. After finally convincing ourselves to leave the forest, we stopped for lunch and soaked in the wonderful view from our lunch spot. Towards the end of the hike, we encountered ground that was similar to a trampoline. We were able to jump on it because it was very soft. Later we learned that the plants on this ground soak up and filter the water of the rivers, which allows for the ground to be soft. We were able to see the filtered river that ran underneath this soft ground and I was grateful to be able to see this collaboration with the water and plants. Since I am a Biology major, I enjoyed all the facts of the environment that were given. It was a good feeling knowing that there are people that care about nature and work hard to conserve it. Another thing I noticed during our hike was that there were not many man made trails which seem to disrupt the nature within Cajas. Although there were mud trails, many of them were difficult to walk through, and blended in well with the environment. Today was most likely my favorite day from the whole trip thus far because of the interaction with nature that we experienced.

Why immigration & Ecuador

jenny245 — Wed, 8 Jan 2014 20:54:00 GMT

Today in class we learned about migration in Ecuador. Our guest speaker in the morning told us a few facts that I found interesting. First, she compared migration to the migrations that birds do from the north to the south. She said that they don’t do it because they like it, but because they have to do to it survive. This connection to the animal world made me understand the concept of migration better. It can be an extremely sad or joyous time for the family of those migrating, but none-the-less, it is done because it simply has to be done. Another topic that our guest speaker discussed was of the different cooperatives. These organizations are often women and they make these groups so that they can support their family. I remember thinking how surprised I was that these cooperatives existed. It was amazing to hear that groups of indigenous women were working together to provide income for one another. These organizations do not only help the women financially, but also educate them on business and other academic areas. They provide workshops for various topics such as domestic violence. Hearing about these organizations gave me hope for the 27.3% people under the poverty line. Knowing that there are organizations such as Tejemujeres and Centro de Cordados Cuenca that help women and their families is a great feeling. I remember thinking to myself that in the future, I shouldn’t bargain as much with the women and men in the Ecuadorian markets that work hard to make their items. I began to feel worse as I thought about the few times that I went to the markets and bargained until I got the price I wanted. I am aware that they raise the prices for tourists, but in the end they are just trying to support their families and will do anything to put food on the table. Our guest speaker ended her lecture with saying that through these organizations, women gain a voice and their skills are valorized. Hearing this statement once again gave me a positive feeling because there seems to be hope for many of those under the poverty line through organizations like these cooperatives.

During the facilitation, one fact that was said and interested me the most was the large immigration of Ecuadorians due to the economic crisis in the late 1990s. I cannot imagine all of the suffering that must have occurred in Ecuador during this time. It was amazing to hear that the cooperatives mentioned earlier in class survived through this large economic crisis, but my guess is that the women must have really suffered since many men were immigrating to find work. In a lecture we attended the week before, the speaker focused on the affects the immigration has on children. It was said that the immigration of family members led to the disintegration of the family. I thought about this fact and realized that this occurred within my own family. My father along with half of his brothers immigrated to the United States from Mexico and this affected his family because of the distance and lack of communication. Currently, we often talk to our family in Mexico, but there will always be a feeling of separation between us since we (my immediate family) did not grow up with them.

The speaker then went on to talk about the negative effects that immigration has on children academically due to their grief period. When we went to visit the CEDEI school today, we learned that there are many children there who have been affected by immigration. Although the director did not focus on the grief that immigration can cause on the children, we did learn from the lecture that most kids end up feeling socially isolated and may never reach a scholar level of academia. As we passed by each classroom, I wondered if any of the children there were currently suffering from a loss of a parent due to immigration.

Immigration can be psychologically damaging to a child, and I am glad to hear that schools do work hard to help those children that are affected by it. It was also heartening to hear about the cooperatives and that many families who are affected by immigration get the help and encouragement that they need.

blog #8

jenny245 — Tue, 7 Jan 2014 18:46:00 GMT

Today we learned about healthcare in class. The two different types of healthcare are public and clinical. During our discussion, I pictured different scenarios for the both. In clinical, I pictured a clinic where a patient comes in with a problem, gets prescribed medicine from the doctor, and leaves the clinic feeling better about his or her problem. In public health, I pictured all the television, billboard, magazine ads that encourage exercise and eating right. I also pictured the campaign that Michelle Obama has for healthier school lunches in public schools. I agreed with both approaches to health because preventing health problems is the key to living a healthier life, but sometimes our biological genes can disrupt our lives and this is where clinical healthcare comes in to help. As for the three general approaches to medicine, I have witnessed all three and the two I have personally tried are the wholistic and biomedical western approaches. I believe that the natural remedies and encouragement of the overall health can sometime be better for a person than constantly taking medicine for pain. Positive attitude can be medicine in its self and I have seen more people recently turn to wholistic medicine than go directly to the chemicals of biomedical western medicine.

Healthcare and insurance was another hot topic that we discussed. It was a depressing topic because I always forget how many people are not fortunate enough to have health insurance and receive healthcare when needed. It was a harsh reality to admit that healthcare really is a privilege and not a right in the United States. Almost everyone in the world views the United States as a superior country, but yet it does not provide the need of affordable healthcare for its citizens like many other countries do. This went along well with the low life expectancy in the United States since many people do not have health insurance. This is a work in progress, but I believe healthcare should be a right in the United States considering its status in the world. We then talked about the three different beliefs in healthcare and how they may affect a person in the healthcare setting. It was interesting to hear how hospitals currently work with shamans and other medicine men to understand cultures and do what is best for the patient.

Later, we went to visit a level one Ecuadorian hospital, which provides consultation and care for minor medical situations. This clinic was the only one that had a domestic violence facility, which contained doctors, psychologists, and social workers to help those who have fallen victims to domestic violence. It was unfortunate to hear that domestic violence is common, especially among young children, and that there is only one center in the area that offers help for it. Another interesting room we saw was the labor and delivery room. This clinic allows for the mothers to give birth in any setting that they are comfortable in whether it is with or without family in the room. The hospital also offered equipment so that the mother could give birth in a position she is comfortable in. The doctors are there to offer anesthesia and monitor the birth so as to avoid and assist in complications if they arise. This hospital does not do c-sections or any other major types of surgeries, which worried me because the mother would have to be transported by ambulance to the nearest hospital if a serious complication occurred. We later were told that any service that the hospital offers is free because it is government funded. This helped me make better sense as to why mothers came here to give birth. One of the last sections we saw was the emergency room, which we learned was usually filled with pediatric patients. It was a much smaller room than I had pictured and therefore, it made sense as to why it was usually filled. One of the last questions asked was about the natural medicine and if the hospital worked with shaman. Our guide had told us that they did have an intercultural center since the hospital was in a rural area and they received many indigenous patients. Our guide said that they do work with local medicine men to give the patients the care that they are most comfortable with. This hospital seemed more like a small clinic to me. However, I believe they are considered a hospital because the do have a labor and delivery section as well as an emergency room. It was fascinating to hear that all their services are free because of the large population of people that are part of the lower class. Although this hospital seemed much different than the ones back in the United States, it offered many needed services to the public and every employee we encountered seemed to enjoy their jobs.

Blog 7

jenny245 — Mon, 6 Jan 2014 18:26:00 GMT

We focused our day today on media and the effect that it has on the Ecuadorian people. In class we learned that Media has three key components. The first is production, which if we go back to the transactional model, is the sender. Within production can be found ideology and agenda setting. We learned during the group facilitation that the government has the right to surveillance any media and punish those that say something against the government. I was not as surprised as I expected to hear this because of the strong presence of the government that can be seen throughout the city. The next key component is the message, which involves encoding. In Ecuador, the messages are homogenous and the subjects hardly ever change. The last component is reception, which is what the receiver interprets. As we have learned, though, the government controls what the media portrays which restricts the Ecuadorian freedom of speech. After class we went to visit a local television station, which only airs shows in Cuenca. It was fascinating to see a live cooking show, as well as be filmed as part of the show. The space where everything is filmed in the studio was versatile and the backgrounds changed when they needed them. This specific station was privately owned by a corporation, and was known as a Christian station. Many of their shows were aired live such as family and cooking shows. Our guide had told us that there were some shows which non-Christian people were asked to come in, and he said that most of these needed to be edited. It would have been interesting to ask if they had run into any problems with the government. Overall, it was interesting to see the constant work that goes into running a television station.

Later, during the group facilitation, someone said a quote stating, “It is a death certificate for freedom of speech”. After this conversation I thought to myself how unfortunate it is that the Ecuadorian people who work in the media have to be extremely careful with their information that they give out, while back at my college, our newspaper writes many appalling things about the school and its president. I also viewed this as a scenario from the Hunger Games. Anything bad that is said against the government can be punishable and although it is not as extreme as the movie, without freedom of speech a person can be living in fear of saying the wrong thing. This is a scary thought to have because even a joke may get someone thrown in jail. Freedom of speech is a right that I do take for granted and I hope to appreciate this more from now on.

Blog #6

jenny245 — Sun, 5 Jan 2014 20:00:00 GMT

Zip-lining through the Andeas Mountains was at first an intimidating activity for me since I am afraid of heights. After some persuasion, I managed to sign up for it and on the morning of January 4^th, 2014, I did my first zip-lining trail! The zip-lining center was about 30 minutes from CEDEI, and it was high up in the mountains. Our course consisted of seven lines and the first few were not too high. The last couple of lines were in between the trees and we had one long one that gave a beautiful view of the mountains as well as a nearby town. During this experience, I felt excited and blessed that I was able to overcome my fear of heights and do an adrenaline-filled activity. Each line gave me larger rush of adrenaline and once it was over, I found myself wanting to do more. Once we got back to CEDEI, a few of us decided to go to the hot springs. We went to a spa called Pierda de Agua, and decided to do the steam baths and hot springs. The hot springs seemed to be man-made, but they were warm and relaxing. After an hour at Pierda de Agua, we made it back to our homes and called it a night.

On Sunday January 5, 2014, we went to see Incan ruins. During our ride there, we made a stop to the Canar market. We first walked through a narrow tunnel of people selling their animals and then made our way to the fruit portion of the market. As soon as we walked into the large building with the fruit section, the smells completely changed. There was a fruit and herbal smell in the air that seduced me into wanting to buy and eat all the fruit. There seemed to be a much greater selection of fruit in this market than at the other one we saw in Cuenca. This market occurs every Sunday and the sellers stay there all day to sell their goods. I successfully found Guava, which is the fruit that I had been looking for since my host family told me about it on New Years. We left the market and continued our journey to the Incan Ruins.

We drove into Ingapirca and once we went inside the ruins, one of the first things that our guide mentioned was the poisonous angel trumpet flower. We then were warned not to accept any papers from people because the poison from this plant is almost instantaneous and can cause a person to black-out. We continued our walk through the ruins and something that interested me was that there were a lot of broken pieces on the ground from ceramic bowls and cups. These were often broken because of their fragile state. It was also said that the king would drink or eat out of a cup or bowl only once and it would be broken right afterwards. No one else was to consume from the same cup or bowl as the king. Another fascinating part of the ruins was the aqueduct system. I was able to see how the Incans cleverly engineered small tunnels to irrigate the entire area. Throughout my years of school, I remember reading about the advances in the Incan people, and to be able to see their water system in person was an exciting event.

We then went on to see the moon temple and inside of it was a grave that was dedicated to a woman. A large stone was put there in her honor. Our guide had told us that the graves were usually dedicated to men. The bones of the graves found in this temple were all in fetal position and there were baskets with food also found next to the graves. The Incans believed that people were born again so they must be put back in a fetal position and once they died, they had a long journey to go through so they buried food along with the bodies. Their heads were facing the East and their backs to the West. Next to these graves, a kitchen was found which, according to our guide, the archeologists had a hard time explaining. We proceeded to go to another section of the ruins, which had a large rock that had multiple holes facing up towards the sky. Our guide told us that these holes were perfectly aligned with the stars and constellations. I cannot imagine how long this must have taken for the Incans to make. We finally made it to the sun temple and were told that the sun rose and set on certain sides of the temple. This was also the only temple in South America that has two rooms, which perplexed the archeologists.

I enjoyed this trip and being able to walk through a historical landmark was thrilling. However, today I did experience a struggle with the Ecuadorian culture. Up until this point on the trip, I had come to terms with the way that most Ecuadorians view animals. The stray dogs and cats concerned me, but I did not let it affect my enjoyment of this trip. When we were taken to the market and had to walk between the narrow passage of people and animals, I saw malnourished, mistreated, and uncared-for puppies in cages and in string leashes being sold by the locals. I saw the poor conditions that they had their chickens and guinea pigs and a horrible feeling come over me. My only thought at that moment was I urgently wanted to leave this section of the market. Once I pushed my way out, I had a great feeling of anger and sadness overwhelmed me and I couldn’t talk or listen to the guide for the rest of my time at the market. Up until this point, I had made it my goal to not let the neglect of proper animal care within this country affect me. But today I reached my breaking point and after having a day to reflect and slowly recover from the feelings of this morning, I am much better. I learned that there is only so much I can take when it comes to the treatment of animals and I hope once I return to the United States, I can join some type of organization that helps animals in foreign countries.

The why #1

jenny245 — Sat, 4 Jan 2014 21:08:00 GMT

We had our first class on the morning of Thursday January 2^nd.We learned about some concepts in class that can be applied to many of the activities that we have done so far. In the transactional model, constant feedback is provided to the sender and the receiver and there is a shared meaning between the two. This model can be applied to communication with our host families. Although we do not share the same language, there is always a sender and a receiver with constant feedback and an underlying shared meaning. Personally, I do share the same language, but the dialect difference makes it hard for me to understand any Ecuadorian I encounter. As each day passes, I am beginning to understand the dialect better, and maybe by the end of this trip, I may begin to speak with the dialect. Along with the constant feedback between me and my host family, I can also see gender roles.

My host family is made up of a mother and her son and daughter. Although this family unit does not contain a father, the machismo aspect of the Ecuadorian culture can still be seen. My host brother rarely cleans his plate and puts it by the sink when finished with a meal, and my host sister does this after every meal. My host brother often talks about working out and his many achievements in life, while on the other hand my host sister is extremely modest. This may also have to do with the age difference. The son is 23 and the daughter is 12. My host mother will do all the cooking and caring for her kids. We do have a housemaid, which does all the cleaning and cooking during the day. Although she does not clean, my host mother does have an extremely loving and caring personality for her children, including her host children. Although my host brother does have a machismo nature, he is also “mom” when his mother is working late. I have seen him leave to pick up his sister from his grandparent’s house and cook dinner for the family when needed. Although there are very well identified gender roles within the Ecuadorian society, these roles are put aside for family when needed.

In class, we also discussed the marginalization of the indigenous groups. Indigenous groups are constantly being marginalized because they are not considered part of the dominant group. The indigenous people are misrepresented and excluded and we saw this first hand at the Mindala Workshop. The owner told us how he has many artifacts that had been found on his street, but that it was probably illegal for him to have these. His town had tried to ask for a museum but was denied one and so the people of the town took it upon themselves to conserve their culture. The owner told us that if discovered, his artifacts would most likely be taken away to a museum in Quito. This is the unfortunate outcome of marginalization and now the owner of the Mindala workshop must keep his museum a secret to keep his history alive within his town. Another example of this could be seen in the museum of Oswaldo Guayasamin. It was said in class that he gave a voice to the marginalized through art. In all of his art, he chose darker colors and his figures all looked unhealthy with bony bodies and large heads. He showed the suffering and pain that many minority groups went through in the past as well as in the present. An interesting point brought up in class was that Guayasamin never showed those in power, which could be assumed that all of those in power are the cause of marginalization.

All the concepts that we discussed revolved around identity and how labeling can be broken down to avowed vs. ascribed. Within avowed labeling, this can include a person’s personality and likes and dislikes. Ascribed labeling is given by society and is dictated by power. This type of labeling is what causes the marginalization of non-dominant groups. The biological part of identity always stays the same, but there is a dynamic type of identity, which is what we focused on in class. It is socially constructed and tied to history. It is seen in the Ecuadorian culture that the older a person is, the wiser and more respected they are. Its is the role of the daughter to take care of the older parents and this is not seen as a burden on the daughter because of the strong family bonds in Ecuador. In the United States, aging is not seen as a positive characteristic. Grandparents are not as well respected, like in Ecuador, and are often placed in retirement homes.

Throughout this trip, I have to constantly remind myself to remain open-minded and remember that the values and identity within the culture are much different here than in the United States.

Blog #5

jenny245 — Wed, 1 Jan 2014 10:51:00 GMT

Today we had the much-dreaded six hour long bus ride from Riobamba to Cuenca. I continued to feel ill throughout the first half of our bus ride but luckily was able to sleep for most of the trip. When we stopped for lunch, the environment was very foggy and because we were still at a high altitude, we essentially were in the clouds. Once we reached Cuenca and the altitude was less than in Quito, I began to feel much better and got excited to meet my host family. Once we arrived at Cedei, we finally got to meet our host family. Our host mother was there to greet us and seemed to be extremely excited to meet us. We left promptly and met our host brother, Andreas, at the car along with his friend. They packed our suitcases onto the car and we went off to our home. When we arrived, Margaree and I decided to share a room. After unpacking for a bit, Andreas and his friend gave us a tour of the city on foot. They showed us where it is safe to go and all sorts of places to hangout. We walked to a mall that was across a river that runs through the city. This river is famous because it used to be very large and a powerful but it dried up over the years and is smaller now. Once we ate sandwiches and made our way back to our home, we got ready for the New Years party. We went to our host mother’s parent’s house. We celebrated by having a dinner and spending time with the family. The dinner included ham and turkey with a cabbage salad and rice. They had a dragon fruit sauce that was put on the ham and made it taste sweet. For dessert, we had bonuellos with a sweet and tangy sauce. Every bite produced a funny face from both Margaree and I. It was nice getting to know the family learning more about their traditions. At midnight, we made 12 wishes and at 12 grapes. You were supposed to eat the 12 grapes within the first minute of the New Year, but I unfortunately could not eat that fast. If you ate the 12 grapes within the first three strikes of the clock, it is said that all your wishes will come true. We then burned the large doll that signified the previous year, 2013, and lit fireworks. Each person is supposed to jump over the doll on fire for good luck, but only one person from the family did that. They had previously put fireworks within the doll and these went off towards the end. To end the night, we then drank champagne and went back to the house to sleep. It was a tradition filled night and I was very glad to have this experience.

Blog #5

jenny245 — Wed, 1 Jan 2014 10:51:00 GMT

Blog #4

jenny245 — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 21:24:00 GMT

I woke up to a beautiful view of the fog surrounding the Andes mountains and went to the breakfast served on the 7^th floor of the Quito hotel. It was interesting to see how we were completely surrounded by fog and then it disappeared within a matter of minutes. We then visited la Hosteria La Cienega, which is an old hotel that used to be a mansion. This hotel was full of old furniture and paintings of what I assumed belonged to the previous owners. All the decorations seemed to be carefully placed throughout the whole hotel and it had an almost perfect feeling to it. We then were surprised with an Ecuadorian band that came in while we drank our hot chocolate and tea. The music they played was filled with excitement and culture. I observed the joy and laughter that the men had while sharing the Ecuadorian music with us. It made me feel very welcomed. After the music was over and being unsuccessful in finding a llama, we continued our journey to the Comunidad Salasaca. This group of people is indigenous and work hard to hand-make blankets, scarves, sweatshirts, etc. using and old technique. This technique was similar to the one we saw in the Mindala workshop. They use a wooden structure and strings to make the blanket. I was then dressed up in their traditional women’s clothes that felt warm and light. The cotton hat was heavy and was made so that the person wearing it must balance it since the head cannot fit inside of the hat. After observing for some time, we were then directed to a table for lunch. They served fresh vegetables with a traditional tea. The tea tasted somewhat like chamomile. I enjoyed the piece of corn that they served which had to be chewed more that the corn served in the United States. After the meal, we were given a demonstration of a traditional dance done for a specific event. After they demonstrated it, we were able to join. We then departed for Riobamba and arrived at our hotel. Upon our arrival, I unfortunately became ill and was only able to attend a few minutes of the welcome dinner.

blog #3

jenny245 — Mon, 30 Dec 2013 13:47:00 GMT

Today we left Otavalo and began our travel to Quito. Along the way we stopped at the equator and were able to put each foot in one of the two hemispheres and take many pictures. It was hard to grasp that we were actually on the equator. After learning about how the earth really rotates and how the point that we were standing on was the exact center, the feeling slowly began to settle in. The mountains surrounding this spot help to identify the time and when the summer and winter solstice occur throughout the year. I was also surprised to find out that the Ecuadorian government does not support the program that educates people on the equator. After this stop, we made it to Quito and went to the museum of Oswaldo Guayasamin and were able to learn about his artwork. Most of his pieces were about despair and suffering of poor countries. I had never gone on a tour in an art museum and I enjoyed learning what each piece meant from the artist’s point of view. We then went on our walking tour throughout the city. We managed to walk up and down a steep hill and avoid the crazy driving. This city did seem very conservative and church oriented. We saw many churches throughout our tour and I was able to observe a group of nuns eating ice-cream. There were older women and very young girls as well. I did not see any middle aged nuns which surprised me. One of the churches that we entered looked as if they were made of gold, but in fact it was just wood and the architectures covered it with gold leaf. It was interesting to learn about the history behind many of the statues and architecture of the church. I enjoyed looking at the different styles on the walls and the French balcony. We then traveled to the top of the 10,000 ft mountain which had a statue of virgin Mary in labor and in chains. I never heard what was meant by the chains, but I found it somewhat odd that a statue like that would be made. Although it was hard to breathe and extremely windy and cold, the view was beautiful and it was well worth being cold. We finally left and made it to hotel Quito safe and sound

blog #2

jenny245 — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 21:34:00 GMT

Once the flight from Miami left for Quito, it still had not hit me that my study abroad adventure had begun. I knew going into this trip that the Ecuadorians do not view animals as Americans do and I felt prepared to accept that there are stray dogs because I was exposed to this same attitude in Mexico when I visited my relatives. When we finally arrived and were on our way to our hotel in Otavalo, I think the feeling finally settled in. It was when I looked up at the sky and could see the same stars I saw back in the rural areas of Illinois when I realized I was in Ecuador. I could not sleep on the way to the hotel because of the excitement.

The next morning, I was ecstatic when I heard we were able to go off to the market on our own. The beautiful town of Otavalo has so much to offer on Saturday mornings and we were lucky enough to be here just on time to see it! When I finally stepped outside and was able to take in the busy streets and shops, it reminded me a lot of Mexico. There were a large amount of people and although they all looked similar, there was a difference in their clothes. There were many women and men who wore traditional attire, or what I assume is the traditional attire, and others that wore more Americanized clothes. I could hear indigenous languages being spoken and smell different types of foods. The most unique street food I saw was a bucket full of shells. I assumed they were snails and the women selling them had many sauces laid out for customers to choose from. After buying countless alpaca scarves, my group and I went to lunch at a sandwich restaurant and I ate one of the most delicious sandwiches I’ve ever had. We left the market and traveled to a home-made museum in a small town. Once there, we learned about the four main indigenous groups in Ecuador and were able to see how scarves are made from sheep wool. The technique seemed to be very hard to learn, but it was an experience I will never forget. It was a beautiful technique and it was unfortunate to hear that these methods aren’t being used as much anymore.

We then went to another museum that makes the Ecuadorian traditional instrument, the pipettes, and actually saw a woman make them! She made it in a matter of minutes. She then demonstrated songs on different traditional instruments from other cultures. It was a unique experience that allowed us to learn about the different instruments and learn about where they are from. I found it interesting that the woman who made the pipettes knew how to play the other instruments from various cultures. After a demonstration of a traditional Ecuadorian folk song we left and made it back to the hotel safe and sound!

Blog assignment #1

jenny245 — Sun, 22 Dec 2013 17:50:00 GMT

Culture is what defines and unites a group of people. It involves traditions, language, and a sense of community. Social norms also play a role in defining culture. Culture can be seen everywhere and in many different groups of people. Cultures can be separated geographically from each other. An example of this is the western culture which is usually associated with the Unites States and Europe. The Latin culture is linked with Spanish-speaking countries and includes central and south America.

I identify with the Western/American culture. Although I am Mexican, I grew up in America and the Western culture dominated its influence in my life. The primary language in this culture is English. The dominant values in America are respect and wealth. The people within this culture believe that money brings power and respect to you and your family. Although everyone works for a better life for themselves and their family, the value is not placed on the family. The behavior in America can be described as cold and unfriendly. There is always respect for one another, but people do not smile nor greet those that they do not know. There is a high amount of stress within this culture because of the emphasis on the need to be successful. Some typical traditions are found in holidays. Fireworks for Fourth of July, turkey for Thanksgiving, and a holiday break during the month of December.

After reading many of the documents sent to me to prepare for my trip to Ecuador and incorporating my own knowledge of Latin cultures, I have developed a few assumptions. I assume that my experience there will consist of many friendly smiles and spending a lot of time with my host family. I also assume that the work environment will not be as stressful as it is in the United States because of the long breaks taken to eat and spend time with the family.

Of the options given, I would like to focus my brief research on the environment in Ecuador. I have learned that there are four ecological regions in Ecuador. There are the highlands, rainforest, coast, and Galapagos Islands. The highlands are in the Andeas Mountains and are home to Quito which is 9,200 ft above sea level. The main crops that are grown in the highlands are rice, corn, soybeans and potatoes. Next we have the Coast, home to Quayaquil which is the largest city in Ecuador. Many crops are grown on the coastal region including bananas which is one of the larget exports of Ecuador. also along hte coast, occurs fishing. The rainforest is the third region of Ecuador, and along with this region comes many issues. These problems include deforestation, habitat destruction, oil mining, and hunting. As time passes, more destruction is being done to the rainforest and unfortunately, little is being done to stop it. The galapagos islands are famous for having species that can only be found there and no where else. The animals that have inhabited this region have been well preserved because the islands are 600 miles away from Ecuador and people. Recently though, more people have been moving to the islands.Along with people comes damage to the environment such as waste, and polution from vehicles of transportation.