español.

Ahora, mi clase de español ha terminando.  Me gustó mucho mi clase de español.  Creo que es divertido aprender español, pero es dificíl aprender si no se estudia mucho.  Es necesario estudiar y hacer tarea y practicar español para aprender mucho. 

Mi parte favorito de mi clase de español es hablando con otros estudiantes en mi clase.  Aprendía mucho cuando nosotros hablamos en español.  Hablamos sobre muchos temas como el machismo y el marianismo, el divorcio, los relaciones, los mineros, el Photoshop, y más. 

Otro parte que me gustó mucho era mi profesora.  Rocio es muy bondadosa y chistosa.  Ella hablaba sobre el Dios en todos nuestros clases y preguntaba preguntas difíciles.  Ella es muy inteligente y me gustó su clase mucho.  

interview #2.

My interview subject:  my favorite Ecuadorian, the one and only Diana Yepez.

Hearing about Youth World from a friend who worked for Quito Quest during the summer, she knew she couldn't pass up the opportunity to be a part of the Youth World Team, so she quit her job at the airport and spent a summer working for Quito Quest.  At the end of the summer, she was worried about what would come next.  After quitting her airport job, she had no job to go back to after her summer at Quito Quest.  On the last day of that summer, Christy Stumbo offered her a job on the Semester Abroad staff.  She excitedly accepted the offer and has been working with Semester Abroad ever since.  Diana described to me that becoming a part of the Semester Abroad and Youth World Staff was something that took a lot of prayer and was a decision that contained clear guidance by the Lord.

When I asked her about her favorite part of her job, she described to me that she loves the way Youth World and Semester Abroad bring people to Ecuador to serve and enjoy her country.  She also told me how each time she experiences things that are new for students, she is reminded of the beauty of her country.

Getting to know Diana this semester and learning about the things God has done in her life has been a blessing and a half.

interview #1.

Zach Brown:  a crazy, smarty pants, adventure loving semester abroad staff member who makes people feel incredibly comfortable in his presence.  I hung out with him at one of my favorite local coffee shops to get the scoop on his journey to Ecuador.  What started as a casual conversation about video and photo editing turned into a three hour conversation about how God leads us exactly where He wants us.  I found out that Zach had been to Ecuador in high school before leading a team from Azusa for a five week trip in college.  He described how God started giving him a longing to go somewhere international after college during his Junior year.  It was so cool to hear how God prodded his heart to come here.  He talked about having a really difficult time deciding whether or not to leave behind the familiar home with his friends in So. Cal., and how he ultimately decided that God's calling was greater.

So now he's almost done with his second semester as a Resident Coordinator in Ecuador, spending time not only developing relationships with semester abroad students, but also working to develop the program during his time here.  I appreciated his perspective and his openness to share his heart and his life with me. That's definitely one thing I've appreciated about him all semester--the way he so easily relates to people and makes them feel comfortable.  While he's not sure where he's going next, he's sure God will take him where he needs to be.  What a great encouragement and example.  So thankful for Zach Brown.

food.

One of the biggest fears I have about traveling and visiting new places:  the food.  I've always been open to trying new things, but I have also always been a picky eater.  

Since being in Ecuador I've tried a bunch of new foods, from ceviche (the cold sea food soup that almost caused me to puke) to empanadas at La Rhonda (which I could eat for days and days).  I have yet to try Cui, and am not particularly excited to do so.  Something about the idea of a household pet from the States being cooked and set on a plate in front of me just freaks me out...and I'm not even an animal lover!  Being in my homestay I also got the opportunity to try some Venezuelan food, mainly arepas.  We often had arepas, dense bread like food that is most often filled with meat and cheese.  After about the fifth time we had them for breakfast, I decided I liked mine best with jelly...which wasn't exactly Venezuelan, but made my parents laugh.  

And also on the food front...I think I've eaten enough rice to last me a lifetime.  

the galapagos.

People say a picture is worth a thousand words.  I like pictures.  Aaaaand since I can't even begin to describe how wonderful our trip to the Galaps was...I'll tell you in 35,000 words worth...

[Day 1:  hiking through Las Grietas, swimming in a cove, and my personal favorite...cliff jumping.]

[Day 2:  a couple mile hike to Tortuga Bay through a forest of cacti.]

[kimmie, me, lys, & sarah at Tortuga Bay]

[making fun of high messy buns in certain situations AND loving the fake wildlife.]

[janie, alyssa, me, christy, ben, sarah, & rene.  walking the town.]

[janie, lys, kim, me, ben, sarah, rene.  seriously loving the Galaps.]

[me, kim, & lys.  stopping to play with animals on the way to the Darwin Center.]

[lys, sarah, me, & kimmie.  modeling.]

[lys, me, sarah, & kimmie. had a blast with these lovelies all weekend.]

[tried coconut milk for the first time!]

[out for dinner with christy, ben, alyssa, sarah, diana, & bonster.]

[Day 3:  2 hour boat ride to another island, Isabela.  the boat ride was BREATHTAKING.]

[everywhere we went we had to take tiny boat taxis.  alyssa, me, & hannah.]

[sightseeing boat tour on Isabela.]

[the Galapagos famous blue foot boobies!]

[could look at this for the rest of my life.]

[hannah, kayla, kim, me, lys, bon, aaron, michaella, scott, christy

sarah, janie, rene, bridgette, diana, & ben]

[LOVE THESE BABES.  bon, lys, me & kimmie.]

[we saw sharks on the walking island tour.]

[don't worry folks, it's not alive BUT we saw tons of little critters like this one.]

[one of my favorite parts of the weekend:  snorkeling.  always a good time with these two.  

alyssa, me, & bonnie.]

[our last activity on Isabela (after the beach of course) was stopping to see flamingos in the wild!]

[and of course i made everyone stand like one.]

[boat ride back from Isabela.  alyssa, me, & scott.]

[lys, me, scott, & ben.  cheesin.]

[sunset on the boat back from Isabela.]

[out for dinner and dessert.  me & diana.]

[Day 4:  on the way to the airport we stopped to see giant craters.  our last funtivity in the Galaps.]

[probably the best airport i've ever been to. waiting for the plane, looking at the ocean.]

[wanted to stay for the rest of the semester.]

[take. me. back.]

We got to see some pretty amazing sights and do some really incredible things.  It was such a blessing to have a break from normal life in Quito and get away for a weekend.  I loved every second of it.  

homestay.

Homestays.  I can't believe there's only one week left.  One week from today the homestay experience will be over.  I have such mixed feelings about that.  I'd be lying if I said I wasn't absolutely excited to live in the apartment again with the girls.  I can't wait to be comfortable, be myself, not worry about stressing over the language, come home when I want, eat what I want, and live with some really great people.  BUT that being said, I have learned so much in my homestay.  I have been challenged, stretched, and stressed, but also joyful.  It has been a complete joy getting to know my family.

My parents, Dani and Nery, are missionaries from Venezuela.  They met in Ecuador in college, moved back to Venezuela, got married, and moved back to serve on the mission field in the place they fell in love.  They are active members in their church, where Dani sings, prays, and preaches.  They so clearly love Jesus and have committed their lives to serving him.  After seven or eight years of trying, they came to terms with the reality that they could not have kids, and adopted my baby sister, Anita.  She is so incredibly sweet, having seven months, two teeth, and a killer smile.

My house is nuts.  My parents are incredibly hospitable and have people over ALL THE TIME, whether it's just a group from church or relatives from out of the country, the house is always full.  Sundays are family days in our house.  We go to church together, eat a meal, and spend the rest of the day watching movies...no joke...usually 4 movies every Sunday.  It's been a crazy experience learning how to fit into a family that functions so differently from mine.

My Ecuafamily may not speak English, eat family dinners, go out for Mexican food, play games, or do happy/crappies at the dinner table like my family in the States, but I have been so blessed to be adopted into this family.

[my baby sister, Anita...that girl eats ice cream like it's her job]

 [La Ronda with the fam for a late night adventure]

ecuador the country.

Ecuador, home of the Galapagos Islands, home of LDU Quito, home to over 15 million people, and semester home to me.  

Ecuador gained independence from Spain and was recognized as an independent country in 1830.  Some of it's major cities include it's capital city, Quito, along with its largest city, Guayaquil, and its historic center, Cuenca.  Ecuador's President, Rafael Correa, has been in office since 2007.  

Ecuador contains three main geographic regions, along with an insular region in the Pacific Ocean, known as the Galapagos Islands.  The other three regions include the coast, the mountains or highlands, and the jungle, or Amazonia.  Because of such drastic differences in region throughout Ecuador, the climate varies by geographic region.  

One of the most surprising things I found out about Ecuador is that it uses the U.S. Dollar.  After the financial banking crisis at the turn of the century, Ecuador began to use the U.S. Dollar and the use of the sucre became nonexistent shortly afterward.  

Because of its great variety in climate and culture among regions, Ecuador is a country that is exciting to learn about and explore.