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.
