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Published: August 18th 2009
Ok! So after I’ve been in Quito for a whole week, I thought I’d write about some of my first impressions:
1)Right now, I am living in Gringolandia and it really is full of gringos (go figure…) I am so excited to get out of here! I am only taking Spanish classes here through Friday and then will be heading to northern Quito (away from the tourists) to live and work in El Centro del Muchacho Trabajador.
2)Quito is a city of 2 million people but it is very clean (there are even trash cans here !!! 😊
3)Cost comparison:
1)Lunch (fresh juice, soup, entrée, and dessert) = $1.50 - 2.00
2)One-on-one Spanish classes = $5.25 per hour
3)Private dance classes = $5.50 per hour
4)Public transportation (el trole or el bus) = $.25
5)Makeup (imported) por ejemplo, una mascara = $20!!!! Yes, $20!!! Crap.
6)Taxi after bar = $3
4)Men don’t cat call as much here (I’m comparing this to Guatemala), but they are still just as forward as ever. According to Sarah, there are three types of men here (each of which we’ve seen)
1) The men who come over to our apartment and ask our host mom for permission to invite us to pizza (muahahah too cute 😊
2) The creepy neighbor man we can see from our kitchen who frantically gestured for our phone numbers… and who, when we didn’t give it to him, came over to our apartment and rang the door bell for a good 10 mins (we didn’t answer…).
3) And finally, the worst type of all, the man who walks around on the street exposing himself to everyone…. NOT cool.
5)“Oh my got!” Heard this the other day from some guy we passed on the street… I guess I’m not the only one who can’t pronounce things 😉
6)You CAN see the stars here 😊
7)Quito is surrounded by mountains and when the clouds roll over them, the view is breathtaking.
8)My host family is one of the best families on the face of the planet. Patti is a single woman who lives in a giant apartment. Her parents visit often and they are beyond cute. Patti is a great cook and loves to chat (she even played drinking games with us before we went out 😉 Patti also has a cat… it’s name is shisuka… it’s half cat and half devil.
9)WE HAVE HOT SHOWERS!!!! Enough said 😊 (I had ONE hot shower the whole time I was in Guatemala…)
10) At first, I didn’t think that being 10,000 feet above sea level had that much of an effect on me, but I found out yesterday that working out = disaster.
11)Sunday, we went on el teleferiqo (like a giant ski lift) that brought us up another 5,000 feet into the mountains. There, we attempted to hike around for a few hours. Now that was hard. But it made me really appreciate being a measly 2 miles above sea level down in Quito.
12)I am in love with all musica de Salsa, Meringue, Bachata, y Reggaeton. The Andean Pan Pipe music is also super chevere (sweet).
13)El Centro Historico is beyond beautiful. It’s full of plazas, churches and people just out enjoying life. We went here last Saturday to visit and were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of an Ecuadorian wedding. Also, we went up to one of the plazas, listened to live music, and people watched. The whole experience was kind of surreal. It was one of those experiences that remind you just how wonderful life is and how important it is to just take a deep breath and experience what the world has to offer 😊 I think this will be one of my favorite places to be.
14)My Spanish is coming along. Things are starting to click again, but I still have a LONG way to go.
15)The women here are beautiful. I mean seriously gorgeous. Sometimes I just can’t help but stare at their thick black hair and huge dark eyes. HOWEVER. Lots of women here wear clothes that are way too tight. Now I don’t just mean that their clothes are too sexy or low cut or something… but it’s that their clothes are 2+ sizes too small. They just look really uncomfortable and like things are shoved in or falling out. It’s kind of disturbing.
16) Sounds of Quito: Our house is right smack in the middle of Gringolandia which means that we are only 1 block away from all of the bars. In comparision to MN, things are really loud (music, cars, people) but I am getting used to the sounds of the city. However, there is some crazy dog in our building that sounds like a roaring dinosaur all day long....
Ok, well, I feel good, I haven’t gotten robbed yet (YAY!), no creepy men have my phone number, and most importantly… I’m excited to start doing something useful 😊
Hope all is well!
Cuidense!
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patty
non-member comment
loved your writing
Devil cat and roaring dino dog. made me reir. so glad you can see the stars. don't forget to watch the sky 12-2 am. for the 2nd full moon. mascara is overrated and overpriced.