fly away

My Question 'Why' Fulfilled

katielysehuns — Fri, 10 Jan 2014 18:00:00 GMT

I've been learning information about intercultural communication for two weeks now and have come to understand the Ecuadorian culture pretty well. I have experienced these things through my host family as well as trips to certain parts of Cuenca. These places include their hospital, a CEDEI school with grades 1-9, museums, and Cajas National Park. Each of these presented to me an inside look of what Cuencano culture is all about. Through the hospital and school it is clear to me that they are advancing in technology slowly but surely. Yes, even though they are not as "technologically advanced and updated" as the U.S. or Europe, they are, in their terms, pretty advanced. They lead simplistic lives and get by day to day perfectly fine. There are no high numbers of obesity, no high numbers of bullying at school, and their time spent with family shows how collectivistic they are.

At Cajas, I was able to see the landscapes and trails in which early Incans made their way, creating a lifestyle and culture that is beautifully unique and different from my own. Being surrounded by their lush scenery, different flowers, and their two different seasons, I have come to appreciate their lifestyle entirely. Many of the trees and flowers provide a larger purpose than just scenery and a majority are well known and used for medicinal or artistic purposes. For example, the flowers can be used for herbs in teas and other various plants for weaving or construction. They have beautiful parks in city squares where a decent amount of people will be relaxing for hours and enjoying the little things in life.

All these things are due to the culture that they have been associated with for many years and I applaud them for keeping their culture vibrant and traditional. Even with their holistic approach to medicine and familism to health care, I find it all involving family so much more. To them, this is the most beneficial way of going through health issues and I feel as if having your family involved a lot can promote family values. Their culture in general has value systems that are different from what I have ever experienced like their harmonism and time orientation. Ecuadorians are truly humble people and proud of the everything they have for themselves without being materialistic. The very first day I arrived in Ecuador, I was unsure of all the reasons that made them the culture they are. As of now, I can say I successfully learned the key aspects of their lives with the help of my teacher, peers, and reading materials. Not only did I learn about their culture, but I have come to realize it's importance to the world and it has defineitely influenced my outlook on life a little differently.

An Open Mind to Health Care

katielysehuns — Wed, 8 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

Being a Native American, I have grown up with the advantage of having health insurance that covers pretty much everything. Is healthcare a right or a privilege? This question arose in class and I was interested in what other people who may or may not have healthcare would think about this question. There are so many issues going on with this question in the U.S. because of debates of ObamaCare. In class I saw whole new perspectives of health care and how it effects each and every one of us. Particularly when health disparities were discussed, which involves one cultural group having different health issues than other cultural groups. Access to health care also impacts a person's life through low life expectancy, chronic versus acute issues, and socio economic status.

Another important question was raised in class. Is inequality making us sick? The U.S. spends trillions of dollars on medicine updates and advancements. However, life expectancy is low. How can this be? This really makes me see the benefits of a holistic/natural approach to medicine, which some Ecuadorians use today. The holistic approach views humans and nature as a single system, using treatments that will help the body, spirit, and mind. Although this isn't so common in the U.S., where I will be treated for whenever I am sick, it is something I wish I could lean towards, for it provides benefits. This being unpopular in the U.S. has to do with cultural orientations, especially because of high uncertainty avoidance, meaning there is less tolerance to diversity and not as much openness to change.

I was also lucky enough to participate in a demonstrate of an Andean medicine man who used the holistic approach to medicine. His purpose was to transmit love through his thoughts, speech, and actions. He set up an area using rocks, which represented cosmos and stars. They were all set up in a distinct spot, each representing and carrying importance. He wrote, "Todos somos necesarios. Nadie es indispensale." This means, "Everyone is necessary. No one is indispensable." He made a point that he disagrees with the outlook of people not accepting "outsiders." Humans are the reality, we are all family, we are all connected, we all love one another, and we are all necessary. I saw some of the ways he would diagnose his patients using the holistic approach. He then gave his "patients" a particular kind of plant that would help with whatever ache/issue they had. I was sure to keep an open mind throughout his presentation and although I may be a little doubtful of how reliable this method is, it was without a doubt one of the most intriguing and amazing things I have been able to be apart of. I am blessed to have even been able to experience it, whether I fully believed in it or not.

Ecuadorian Pursuit of Happiness

katielysehuns — Mon, 6 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

January 6

If there is one thing I have noticed myself doing a lot on this trip, it is comparing the U.S. to Ecuador. When I go out to eat in a restaurant, the quality of food, peoples' habits, their clothing quality. At first I thought of myself making observations but I have come to realize that making all these comparisons often led me to making judgements. I know it is common for everyone to compare themselves with others; however, today I realized that I am in fact jealous of Ecuadorian culture. I walk to school every day and walk to places to eat for lunch, and always see Ecuadorians outside. Their enjoyment in spending a day in the park without technology and only their family is very admirable.

In America we strive to become less focused on technology and push towards spending more time outside and enjoying things in life that we don't have to pay for. Yet, we still are such a materialistic country and don't take advantage of the beautiful scenery and opportunities around us to spend more time with family. These are things we've tried steering towards for a while now but we aren't nearly as successful at this than Ecuadorian people. In my eyes, yes, people in the U.S. can be wealthier, but Ecuadorians are rich in personality, environmentalism, and a pursuit to a truly happy life. They are content with simplicity and happy without a little screen of social media in their faces 24/7. I've truly come to see how special their customs and culture is and how much of it involves their family. I certainly have been given a wake up call of all the things that our "powerful nation" is lacking.

It is hard to imagine, however, a world with so much limited rights to freedom of speech. President Correa has given the government control to cease, surveillance, intervene, and punish private broadcasters. This is seen as a fascist regime and is certainly something very extreme. In other parts of the world, TV, newspapers, radio stations, etc., are allowed to express their opinions, whether it be negative or positive about politicians or the President. This is not the case in Ecuador, and I do find this hard for Ecuadorians to be able to express themselves. It allows the media to tell people what to think, limits information and "facts", and doesn't let other groups of people tell their side of the story. I think it would be hard to live this way because it does not allow people to fully express their thoughts and feelings when it comes to governmental issues, which effect the way you live your life through laws and beliefs.

Tourist or a Student?

katielysehuns — Sat, 4 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

Today was our first "free day" for the trip, which basically meant we were able to spend the day however we pleased. Nine of us planned a trip to go ziplining at a place called Cuenca Canopy. I thought this would be an interesting and new experience that would keep pushing me to try new things. It was one of the coolest things I have done here in Cuenca. Having a fear of heights, I was easily distracted by the wonderful views around me of lush, green mountains and small, colorful village houses a town over. With a warm breeze in my face, and spending time with the other students, zip lining was definitely a great option. After, they served us horchata con limon tea and served us a delicious corn tamale. So used to their food now, it was the best snack I ever had. The tea smelled like lavender or some sort of sweet flower and the corn tamale smelled like cheese as steam rose from it as it cooled down. It was the perfect way to relax after the adventerous zip lining shanegins.

After ziplining, we made our way to Piedra de Agua; a spa resort that offered massages, mud baths, pools, and hot tubs. When we got there, it was clearly there to attract tourists; it was simplified and beautiful but typical to something you would see at a hotel in the U.S. We stayed for about 45 minutes and left due to the weather starting to cool down. I've noticed it's getting colder and I think they are entering their wet season. Clouds grow larger and darker every day.

Overall, both places we went to today were hot spots for tourists. Both places I saw Americans, who would talk to us in English and ask our opinions about the places as soon as they saw us. I've also noticed that not only do they speak in English to us, but Ecuadorians try to as well. When I'm with the group, they see causasians so they instinctively label them and speak to them in English. When I'm alone, a lot of people will try talking to me in Spanish. I think this shows the effort and labeling that Ecuadorians do when they see Americans. It'd be ignorant not to acknowledge that plenty of people in America do this as well. I think overall, people need to stop generalzing and make assumptions about someone else's culture. This will in turn, set up ways to communicate easier and not insult the other person's culture, although it may be unintentional.

Why?

katielysehuns — Sat, 4 Jan 2014 10:00:00 GMT

With the week coming to an end, I have certainly learned a lot about intercultural communication and how it has effected identity. Identity with intercultural communication involves interactions, perceived stereotypes, and experiences. While participating in class lectures and reading articles about the economy, immigration and migration, it is easy to see why the Ecuadorian culture is the way it is. We each have all these different aspects that make us who we are such as, a daughter, a student, a female/male, our ethnicity, etc. All these impact the way we live our lives and how we perceive others around us. For example, me being a female as well as a daughter differs a lot compared to my host sister. My mother pushed me throughout middle school, high school, and college to chase my dreams no matter how epic they were; such as studying abroad, being thousands of miles away from home. She also encouraged me to go to Chicago to obtain my bachelor's degree even though it meant being half way across the country and only coming home to see her about four times a year. Although these trials are hard, it is something I have been brought up with for a long time. On the other hand, Silvana, my host sister, is encouraged to stay home and/or get a part time job. This lifestyle seems a lot more simplistic and less motivated or inspired to pay money and take time to go to college. When having a conversation with my host family, the couldn't believe how much time (or far less time) I didn't spend with my family. They believed it to be crazy and I don't think they really understood my reasoning for having these kind of desires. However, I also didn't really understand their reasoning as to why they weren't pushing Silvana to fulfill her education to the most of her abilities, because she is an intelligent young woman who could receive a better job than the part time job she currently has. Of course, it's important to note the availability or unavailability of wealth that they have to put Silvana through college. I have come to accept and acknowledge the identity differences between us. I find her identity entirely her own and unflawed.

This also topic also relates back to the article we read about the little opportunities women have in Ecuador. This could also be why Silvana is not in college, because of the few opportunities she has in her country. People not being able to receive benefits has been around for awhile and continues today throughout Ecuador, although it has started to improve. In class we discussed the political strength men have and the way that society is socially constructed. Because of this, groups in Ecuador struggle with their identity and these cleavages sets up a negative division between people. This is always tied to history and is constantly changing, although at times they can be stagnant. Equal opportunities for women in Ecuador continues to grow and maybe someday Silvana's children or grandchildren will all be able to given the advantage to go to school and get an education.

Empathy for Ecuadorian Migrants

katielysehuns — Fri, 3 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

Today we went to Museo Remigio Crespo Toral, which was an art museum where I learned about various aspects of Ecuadorian culture. This particular museum mostly consisted of paintings that were old and others semi recent. For about an hour, we walked through the museum, which was a beautiful building containing 90 or so rooms within in. It was under construction but the level we were on contained the art. It was old, with creaky wooden floors, and several different types of flowers painted on the walls of each different room. We learned the history of infamous Ecuadorian paintings. It was evident that Catholicism played a big role in their history and still flourishes today. The paintings were mostly of religious figures. I saw all sorts of sculptures of baby Jesus and a large nativity scene with small, fragile dolls that represented their religious views. This nativity scene is similar to the one in my host-family's house, which has gold christmas lights running through it and a little larger in size. It is a tradition Ecuadorians do to maintain the prosperity of their traditions towards their religious faith. In this museum, it was apparent that their religious traditions and beliefs have been a center aspect of their lives that emphasizes their faith, beliefs, and history.

The second part of today consisted of a lecture on Ecuadorians migrating and how it can effect their children. This lecture was very fascinating, full of information that made me empathetic and get a new point of view. I was captured throughout the whole lecture and it made me put into consideration how hard being an immigrant and being related to an immigrant can be. I learned that about 500,000 Ecuadorians leave to the United States every year. A large reason why they leave is to earn money to send back to Ecuador for their families they leave behind. However, the process isn't pretty. Sometimes, they know that they won't even be able to reach the U.S., risking their lives. Other times, they are simply there for too long. It takes about three years to work to pay back the people who got them across the border, plus another three years to earn enough money to go back and raise a family with a sufficient amount of money. In these six years, the mother and the father may just move on with their lives, or the father may not even return back to Ecuador. It was not only this that made me empathetic, but all the negative impacts it had on the children that were left behind. They are often left to take care of their grandparents, older siblings taking care of younger siblings, or children without their mothers, which is said to be more traumatic if the mom leaves. These children suffer with negative emotional, social, health, and affection effects. I really saw all these problems with family ties being broken through this lecture. It was like a looking glass that made me see a whole new side of the struggles that Ecuadorian families are facing. It also helped me want to diminish the little stereotypes/generalizing that occurs in the U.S. about immigrants, who are simply just trying to work hard and support their families.

To end the day, I got to learn a fun aspect of Ecuadorian culture, which was merengue dancing. On the top of the school in a room with one large mirror and a large window with a gorgeous view, I was given the opportunity to learn how to dance merengue. The music was fast paced, energetic, and beautiful in its varieties of tempo and instruments. We shook our hips, learned how to hold our arms correctly, and also learned intricate feet placements. It was fun experiencing this with a few of my classmates because we struggled, learned, and became pretty decent merenge dancers by the time the class was over. We laughed and had a blast bonding through this important part of Ecuadorian culture, feeling a sense of accomplishment when we were done. Although some were hesitant about trying it at first, we all put in as much effort as we could together, which made the experience unique and vivacious.

No me gusta Ethnocentrism

katielysehuns — Thu, 2 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

Visiting the Museo de Culturas Aborignenes today really gave me the opportunity to learn about the main indigenous groups in Ecuador. This beautiful museum was full of artifacts and displays of all the different peoples in Ecuador that are from other geographical regions. I saw their specific influences on Ecuador, festivals, religious traditions, ancient practices, and the way they used to live their lives daily. It was definitely the largest and most in depth museum tour we went on and I was very intrigued by their practices. It gave me a greater explanation and look at the way they do the things they do, and why. We also were able to see very old archeological ruins, as well as birds that are native to Ecuador.

I've noticed as I spend time walking around and exploring parts of Cuenca, that there are differences in personality and values that I am not used to. For example, I am a very friendly person and like to say "hello" when passing someone by on the streets, or smile as we walk by one another. I've noticed here in Ecuador, people do not do this. I will smile, and often times receive no kind of acknowledgment in return. If I smile, I just get stared back at and if I try to start a small conversation, I will get ignored. I have to admit it's a lot different from what I'm used to, for I usually get some kind of feedback. This is just something I'll have to get used to.

I've also noticed the way people in Cuenca present themselves in public. Cuenca is very conservative. They do not wear shorts, skirts, or tight clothing. It's interesting to see the differences in the way Ecuadorians present themselves through the clothes they wear. For example, about half the people will be wearing more traditional clothing and the other half will be wearing more modern clothing.

Today really helped me be able to see the negative effects of ethnocentrism. Ethnocentrism is the inherent belief in the superiority of our own culture versus others. I know that I would never want to look down on other cultures because I've started to really learn about the beauty in Ecuadorian culture. By doing this, I have began an interpretive approach to communication, which allows me to get to know Ecuadorians better through talking and descriptions told by the Ecuadorians I have been in contact with. I think this qualitative approach helps me understand their unique culture and avoid labeling and generalizing. All the interactions I have had in Cuenca have each been unpredictable, yet very amusing and educational. My culture is both similar and opposite from Ecuadorian culture in some ways. However, I have come to appreciate the differences and have respect for their traditions and history. When it comes down to it, no culture deserves to be a victim of ethnocentrism and I hope to bring my experiences and lessons learned from this trip back home and remember the importance of all the cultural diversities in the U.S.

New Year's with Host Family

katielysehuns — Wed, 1 Jan 2014 22:00:00 GMT

When I woke up this morning, my painful feelings of culture shock and being homesick had eased a lot. I was excited to begin my process in getting to know my host family and getting a better glimpse of their personalities and lifestyles. Today was also the first day in a while I got to sleep in. I woke up at 10:30 and was invited to a small breakfast with my family downstairs. We at a simple, yet delicious breakfast of peach yogurt with cocoa puffs in it, with a delicious juice that my host mom made, and a roll of sweet bread. It was at this occasion that my host family and I were able to learn the basics of one another. They asked about my school, my family, my home, my interests. Although it took a while for each of us to communicate and get a message across, we were able to understand each other. It was odd how I was learning all these things about this family, when half the time I couldn't understand their words. We expressed ourselves through a game of sherades pretty much. It was difficult, but also very new and fun. After about two hours of conversation, I felt comfortable with my host family and their friendliness definitely put me at ease.

It's been a lazy day, consisting of resting, reading, and watching tv. My host parents' other daughter and son-in-law came over and the house became full of life as their children ran around the house, playing tag, hide and go seek, and playing with their toys. The rest of the family and I all sat in the same room, sharing stories of the events of New Year's Eve. It was during this time when I noticed their use of facial expressions and hand gestures when talking to one another. Their facial expressions really portrayed their stories and how they felt about such and such experience. At times I had no clue what they were saying to one another, but could tell exactly how they were feeling because of the way they used their facial expressions. They also used their hands almost dramatically when explaining stories, which reminded me of a weatherman you would see on the news. It was a way of communicating I wasn't entirely used to but I was content with sitting there and observing.

By the time dinner came around, I had made a few more observations about my host family and the way they interact with one another. First of all, I can already tell by last night and tonight that gender roles are very much prevalent in the household. Considering my host mom is a housewife and my host dad is a working artesan, I had already known that my host mom did most of the tending around the house. While my host mom and sister were making dinner, my host dad and the son-in-law were literally just standing behind the counter watching them. They had no prepping, cooking, or cleaning role; all of that was done by the women in the house. I didn't find this curious, for this is how it can often be in the U.S. and isn't something I find entirely different. Although, often times a man in the U.S. will cook or prefers to cook but my host sister said that each and every meal is done by either her or her mother; never the father. It is this way for a majority of their family members and people in Cuenca, according to my host sister.

Overall, today was the first day I was able to really connect and learn about my host family. I'm excited to see what else I can learn as well as teach to my host family and am eager to see where our relationship can end up.

A Toast to the New Year

katielysehuns — Wed, 1 Jan 2014 03:00:00 GMT

Today mostly consisted of a 6 hour bus ride from Otavalo to Cuenca where I slept most of the time as we passed through steep mountains and curvy roads. It wasn't until we got to CEDEI center, the school at which I will be attending, that I became really nervous. I was nervous for several reasons. First, my host family spoke barely any english. Second, I thought that I was going to have a roommate staying with me but I will not have one. Finally, I knew I was in for a bit of a culture shock.

My host mom was announced to me and accepted me with open arms, saying "Hola, mucho gusto" then giving me a small kiss on my right cheek. I then met my host dad, Alejandro. Our ride to my home stay house was a little confusing. I began to notice that I couldn't in fact understand a lot of spanish. Both my host mom and host dad do not speak English, just small words here and there. Once settled in the house however, I then met their youngest daughter, Silviana. She's in her mid twenties and is able to speak some English, I have to admit it was a big relief.

We made our way to a town where their family lives about half an hour away where we would be celebrating New Years. I met endless amounts of people. Uncles, aunts, cousins, etc. They all knew in advance who I was and tried their best to communicate with me. I could smell delicious scents of meat and vegetables cooking and all night I heard Spanish music blasting. After eating a massive meal, we took a family picture and all the cousins (about 12) and I went to explore the city. We all sat on the edge of the back of a trunk, this was our seat for about an hour and a half. Wind and small rain drops hitting my face every know and then as we traveled through the city seeing all the other dummy/dolls.These would be set on fire or attached to fireworks and set off at midnight. It's been a tradition of theirs for a long time.

Towards the end of the night, I danced with the whole family, ate desert and enjoyed a cup of coffee, and got to see their fire be made with the dolls. I noticed that they are certainly collectivistic because of their interaction between family members and the way they celebrate together all night with hardly any use of technology to distract them. All the cousins were very comfortable with one another, all the sisters and brothers laughed and danced together, and they made me feel apart of the family as much as they could. One of the cousins brought around a platter of shots every 15 minutes or so. At first I was hesitant because it was rather large, containing whiskey and coca-cola mixed together. They could see I was hesitant but reassured me that it was okay and all the cousins and uncles toasted many times as part of their excitment and celebration for the New Years. In the end I toasted with them a few times and enjoyed watching some of them drunkenly sing karaokee. By the time we made our way back home, it was 2 in the morning and I was exhausted.

However, I have to admit that I felt the most homesick that I ever have before. I've studied abroad a longer amount of time and did not feel the loneliness that I felt on New Years Eve. Perhaps it was the fact that I was away from my family for the first time on this holiday, or because I wasn't used to how hard it would be to express myself through words, or because I felt like an outsider looking in. It could've been all of the above and most likely was because I felt really alone for some of the night. I started missing all the things and people I would usually have this time of year and honestly wanted to go home. I thought this would shake off after a good night's sleep and told myself to keep an open mind.

Otavalo

katielysehuns — Sat, 28 Dec 2013 08:59:00 GMT

Getting to Ecuador I am mostly nervous about communicating. Since the class is an intercultural communications class, I know that I will progressively become better at my knowledge of symbols, accent, and communication abilities overall. Walking in the streets of Otavalo, I felt like I (and the group) was constantly stared at. It was like they knew we were foreigners and there isn't too much cultural diversity in Otavalo. If there was someone who didn't look Ecuadorian, they looked like a tourist. This is also something I hope to diminish a little in the short time while I'm here. My goal is to blend in, that way I can get a better feel for the people and the ways they interact.

While walking around the market all of my sensors were going off. I could smell a lot of meat, which was being cooked in the open market. I walked through hundreds of different meats like pig heads, live chicken, intestine, and flies hovering over them. In the market I also saw a lot of stray dogs; most in very poor conditions searching for food. I also saw a lot of loud colors that were on scarves, instruments, and clothing. These colors were colors I haven't even seen on a rainbow before and were beautifully unique. It was tempting not to buy something at each vendor, for most of the souvenirs were no more than five dollars. As for taste, my first eating experience was in a small Ecuadorian restaurant that served the same lunch for everyone in the restaurant. First we were given soup, which had a dark broth with cilantro, onions, potato, and chicken. It wasn't until a few bites in when I discovered two chicken feet in the soup. At first appalled and taken back, my first instinct was to stop eating. However, I realized that it was perfectly tasty prior to finding the feet so ate a little more until I thought about it more and had to stop. The second part of the meal was rice, beans, and fried chicken, which was exceptionally good. To say the least, it was an interesting first meal. As for sounds, I heard noise constantly in the market place. I heard people at vendors shouting out prices, dogs barking from afar, conversations in the park, foods frying on mobile cookers, and children playing in every direction. It was an explosion of sights, sounds, and smells to take in and was definitely unlike anything I had ever walked through.

Photos: Ecuador

katielysehuns — Fri, 27 Dec 2013 08:15:00 GMT

Prior to Ecuador adventure

katielysehuns — Mon, 23 Dec 2013 10:14:00 GMT

1. Culture is what makes all of us who we are. It is all of the values, beliefs, and morals that we learned through deep culture and our families. Generations upon generations have had culture, in which made them unique to other cultures. We all have culture that influenced how we were brought up, what we choose to believe in, the norms in which we lead our lives, and impacts our entire existance.

2. Some dominant values Ecuadorians have are the way they greet people in a more formal way, their differences in values due to regionalism, and the traditional gender role outlook where the man brings the bread home and the wife looks after the home. They also seem to have strong family ties making them collectivistic and use a holistic form of health treatment. Some of their behaviors include their gift giving and dining etiquette, which is a little more formal than the United States. Even their business etiquette seems to be more professional than other cultures. Some Ecuadorian traditions are impacted by their religion. The Roman Catholic Church plays a large role depiciting what holidays they celebrate including Christian-based festivals.

3. A few assumptions I have about about Ecuadorian culture would be their formality and collectivism. These assumptions stem from research I have accumulated recently. Their formality seems to exist in most aspects of their lives and their family seems to play an important role. Their collectivism seems to be prominent because of how close knit they are with their families.

4. One of the most intruiging aspects of Ecuador would be its environment. It's environment is very biodeiverse; however, with its thousands of different plant specicies and birds and hundreds of reptiles, its deforstation rate is high leaving them all at risk. Problems that are affecting deforstation include logging, road building, and oil exploration that have caused serious issues for loss of rainforest. The roads that are being bulit have resulted in burnings and hundreds of logs being cut down resulting in negative pressure for agriculture. Unfortunately, the Ecuadorian government has debt to pay and since oil is their main export, they will gain 800 million barrels of crude. This decision has an extermely negative impact on the environment.

This past year, the environment in Ecuador has become a large case called the Environmental Contamination Case. It was a trial between Ecuadorian plantiffs and the American oil company Chevron. This was a $19 million environmental contamination case, which involved Ecuadorians accusing the Chevron oil company of destroying the local environment and damazing the health of people in surrounding areas where Chevron was drilling. The trial still continues today and the president of Ecuador, President Rafael Correa has called for a global boycott of Chevron.