"It's the altitude!"

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When we arrived in Quito we were met by a very smiley woman called Gaby who would be our in-country co-ordinator for the volunteering project. We trundled to the car with our goofy great backpacks and a lovely Ecuadorian man chucked them in the boot for us. We were then taken to a local house for the next few nights.
On the journey, Gaby told us to navigate by the volcanos that surround the city. If the big one is on your left you are facing North. That's about all I can remember... I was never one for geography!
We had a lovely homestay and although our Spanish was a little rusty we managed to make polite conversation before literally crashing for the night.
At breakfast we were able to enjoy our surroundings a bit more. The house was beautiful - and seemed like a real 'home', cluttered with trinkets and ornaments presenting and covering every surface. One cupboard seemed to display hundreds of sample sized alcoholic beverages, the type you find in gift sets or on aeroplanes. The lady smiled as I admired them on my way upstairs and asked me if I liked the colours...
We then headed to Gaby's office for an orientation meeting before heading with the group to the Equator line or as the locals like to call it 'Mitad del Mundo' ...Middle of the World.
Her office was very plush, a modern and very stylish penthouse with a breathtaking view over the city. Although her flat was nothing like any of the places we'd seen so far in Ecuador (even the airport was looking a bit worse for ware) there were still few tell tale signs that we were far from home - mainly the quirky artwork that I suppose Gaby keeps to remind her of her heritage and her true Ecuadorian roots, despite her Americanised accent.
That and the 20,000 ft active volcano we could see out of the window...
We travelled by bus with the other volunteers to the Equator line and discovered that the locals really do love to use their car horns!
At the line, as standard we took photos and our guide told us to put our thumbs up for good energy - but looking back at the photos I'm sure it was just to make us look even more like tourists. But hey - how often do you get to stand with one foot in the North and the other in the Southern hemisphere!?
On the way back we got to chat properly with the others. It's strange but people who arrived in Ecuador literally only a week before us already seem like locals. They know the streets, they know the bars.
We arrived yesterday, we know nothing.
They already know the running joke that if you say something stupid in Quito as a tourist you can get away with saying "Oh, it's the altitude" ! They know it drizzles in the afternoon so don't be fooled by the bright morning sun into wearing shorts withour a raincoat in your bag....
They knew to take us to the part of the city know as 'Gringo land' where all us foreigners congrugate. We found an Irish pub and with our other team mates of 'The Flaming Gringos' we managed to come second in the pub quiz!

Quito is a large city, surrounded by mountains and the odd volcano. It stretches 610 km yet is only 225 km wide. Learning about how the natives used the sun as a solar calendar, and managed to pin point more or less exactly where the center of the world was, without our technology, I find pretty incredible. Maybe not having to worry about petty concerns (such as clothes...) meant these people could focus on deeper parts of life.

Surrounded by huge parallel volcanic structures and wandering lost through bustling humid streets, having hundreds of cars tear past you every second, you do feel very tiny.
Almost insignificant. But not in a bad way as you'd expect, but lucky that you've been able to see this huge city in all it's glory but know that it works just as well without you being there at all.
Tiny...but not small.
I feel uninformed, but not stupid. And, for perhaps the first time in my life, I feel really English. More English that when I'm sat at home in my wellies eating sunday roast with my mum in her Barbour and her gardening gloves and The Archers on theradio in the background.
Gaby told us we are supposed to be ambassadors. I don't know about that...but you do feel a certain responsibility to be a good example of your country.

Although perhaps that's just being away from home.

Driving fast down the beaten roads in Quito you see the rundown parts; where buildings use bright paint to mask the fact that their shops is falling apart. Or some who invest in a giant Nestlé or Coca-cola sign to express their 'wealth'
Children wait in the street to hail a tattered yellow school bus, whereas we're told not even to go to the bus stations after dark... When schools let out they run in their bright blue uniforms and stare at our white faces (well not Jo's!) because they are not told to do any differently.
And I suppose we shouldn't expect anything more.

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Comments

[anonymous]

I enjoyed your Ecuador post. I have always wanted to go there. My blog is looking for travel photos. If you have the time, check us out at dirty-hippies.blogspot.com Continued fun on your travels, Eric

[daisytg]

At the moment the internet is too bad to upload photos - hopefully when we get back to Guayaquil, Ecuador I will include some in the posts. Glad you like the blog! Daisy