First Week of Classes

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How’s it going everyone? Wonderful I am sure.

I have survived my first week of classes in Quito, which is excellent news if I do say so myself. Right now I am taking two classes. The first on will only last for 3 weeks and we meet everyday from 2-4ish. This class is called wildlife management and conservation. It is quite interesting. We have been learning about the wildlife, ecosystems, and biodiversity of Ecuador. Ecuador has four different regions, the Amazon, the highlands, the coast, and the Galápagos Islands; because of this they have a ton of species diversity. We have also been talking about all the conservation that needs to be done not only in Ecuador but in the whole world. Almost any environmental class I leave, I am a little sad after. There are so many problems it breaks my heart. Fortunately there are a lot of people who want to help!

My second class is a class that will last throughout the semester. This is my class through the program that sent me called International Partnership for Service Learning. There are only 7 people in this class, so it is very personal and intimate. During the few weeks that we are in Quito we are meeting everyday for an hour and discussing various readings. So far we have had very interesting discussions about political systems and relativism. Once we go to the Galápagos we will be placed in a volunteer position and as part of the class we will keep a journal and talk about our experiences. I really enjoy this class and I’m excited to see what I will be doing on the Islands.

Also this week I had my first salsa dancing experience! On Wednesday night my group and I went out to a place called Aguijón, which means “sting” in English. It was a very cool place. Latin music all night long and a lot of people dancing, AKA perfection. Watching the people dance is amazing. There is so much technique and skill involved in salsa dancing. By the end of this trip I have made it a goal to be at least decent. A couple local students that are in our class took us there and tried to teach us to dance. It is a complete new style, so it was a little difficult but pretty funny to watch. One day we will get it down, maybe.

Yesterday, as part of my wildlife management class, our whole group went to Paluguillo. Paluguillo is an area with some of the many mountains that surround Quito. We drove to the top of the mountain and hiked down 11k. At the top of the mountain it was pretty chilly, however not nearly as bad as my homeland of Minnesota right now. My mom tells me its 16 degrees there, so sorry. Anyways, it was also very windy at the top but the view was gorgeous. The mountain we went to was an ecosystem called a páramo. Los páramos hold a lot of water due to the mass amount of organic matter in the soil. There were small lakes everywhere as we traveled down the mountain. The specific páramo that we went to was the one that the entirety of Quito gets its water from. There were also tons of beautiful plants. Most look like they were out of a fairy tale. We hiked for about 5 hours and our bus met us at the bottom. The bus took us to hot springs at the bottom of the mountain where we got to relax for a couple hours. I was expecting the hot springs to be all natural and to be sitting in dirt holes with hot water, but this place was more like a spa. It looked like a bunch of pools but they were filled with the thermal water and spring water from the mountain. The cold pools were ice cold, but surprisingly refreshing. The cold made my entire body tingle. It was definitely a day in the life of a true tourist, but a great one as well.

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Photos

The Top
This was the beginning of our hike. The highest altitude I have ever experienced (besides planes) at 11,000 above sea level.

Troopers
Some of us getting ready to hike. It was really windy at the top and pretty chilly.

Coral
Most of the plants that we saw reminded me of coral out of water.

My favorite
This plant was everywhere and I really liked it for some reason. It also reminded me of coral.

Purple Flowers
There are a ton of tiny flowers that grow really close to the ground for protection from the cold.

Mucous Filled Plant
I forget what this plant was called, but the center where the new leaves were forming was filled with a clear mucous like substance. It is an insulation mechanism.

The Mucous
A little gross I know, but also cool. It also makes your skin really soft.

Spike
Very cool cactus like plant.

Jump!
A traveling jumping picture to add to my collection.

Fairy Tale
This was the fairy tale area I mentioned. Doesn't it look like fairies should live here?

Una Laguna
The water was so clear in every one, you can see right to the bottom.

Favorite Plant Picture of the Day
I just love this picture.

Mountain?
The 4th largest mountain in Ecuador, Antisana, is in the middle of the picture but of course the clouds are perfectly covering the glacier on top.

Comments

[Nancy]

Fabulous Darling! Simply fabulous pictures. Thank you for sharing them. It is beautiful there, eh?

[Elena]

wow danielle these are all really beautiful!

[Jenna vagts]

I miss you so much!!
This is so cute Danielle! I am so glad you are having a fun time and learning a lot!! Your pictures are beautiful! It must be your new camera! I miss you! I have so much to tell you about life here! You are so awesome!