Our first Couchsurfing experience!

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We are definitely speeding through Ecuador...one week is definitely not enough but after our bad experiences we just need to get out of here...

So we got to Cuenca on Sunday the 4th of July and met Brigette and Elisa in the bus terminal with perfect timing. Then I gave Jaime a call and he came to get us since his place is about 40 minutes out of the city center. I was a bit nervous initially to couchsurf for the first time, but since we were a group of 4 and Brigette and Elisa are avid couchsurfers, I was put at ease.

The ride to his pueblo was quite a ride out of town, but I absolutely loved it after being in so many cities. I thought his place was great because the cabana was really cozy with 5 beds so all 4 of us could stay comfortably. I kind of felt like I was camping because the bathroom was like a 2 minute walk on the other side of the house and they didn't have a hot water shower. Sim and I showered the day before so it didn't bother us, but Brigette and Elisa were in desperate need of one after staying at a nasty couchsurfer's place in Riobamba. They were a bit like negative nancys because of this, which was frustrating to be around because they were being so critical of our current situation. However, Jaime was super sweet and accommodating. We met his family, who were very conservative and traditional, but nonetheless very friendly and welcoming.

He told me about how he is studying tourism and is doing an ecotourism project for school so we are like his guinea pigs for his future masterpiece. Apparently his family lives on 18 hectars of land and he wants to create this massive lodge for foreigners to come and do treks and explore the beautiful areas just outside of Cuenca. He said his brothers are in the States working and they are going to invest in his project. Moreover, he explained that Ecuador's economy is so low because nobody want to invest in projects or ideas because they don't want to fail. This is so interesting to compare to the American culture of taking risks to reep rewards without fear of failure. It's all coming full circle as to why America is considered the land of opportunity....Moreover, the differences in education also contribute the low struggling economy. For example, it is not mandatory for children to go to high school. After checking out the historical center of Cuenca, we met Jaime's friend, Elvira, who is trying to get into the Universidad de Cuenca for Psychology. She got a model entrance exam that was pure algebraic word problems like percentages and fractions and the two of them didn't know how to do them! So in the afternoon, when it was raining outside, we a break in the cafe upstairs above the Panama Hat Museum, and explained to them how to do each problem. It was definitely a refresher for me too since it's probably been over a decade since I've done long division!
I asked Jaime why they were struggling so much and he told me that high school is optional in Ecuador and you can still graduate even if you fail a course that is not in your concentration. He said he failed math but still graduated because his focus was in the social sciences. If so many Ecuadorians don't know how to do simple math, no wonder the economy is so low!

Unfortunately, by the time we finished the test and went back to the center, Brigette and Elisa found another couchsurfer to stay with so they could shower and Sim and I decided to take the overnight bus to Mancora leaving at 9pm. So we ended up rushing back to Jaime's place to get our bags and get back to the center in time. I think Jaime was a little sad that we were leaving so soon and abruptly, and I felt bad that we were going in a such a rush. I had just enough time to write a thank you card and gift him one of my necklaces from Mexico, but it didn't feel like a good proper goodbye. I'm still happy to say that our first couchsurfing experience was a success!

However, I wish we hadn't rushed through Ecuador the way we did... it was pretty exhausting...but unfortunately it had to be done. I think we missed out on a lot of the natural beauty like the Galapagos, Parque Cajas, and Cotopaxi, so our opinion is a bit skewed from all the cities. However, even after our bad experiences I definitely want to come back.

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