Note to Self: Don't flip off the perverted men here

Sorry I haven't updated my blog in so long! Honestly, after spending a month here, Ecuador is starting to feel more like a home rather than a vacation (especially with all the homework and classes). 

So you may be wondering what the title of this blog is about. WELL... I have four classes today aka I am in class for about 7 hours. After my last professor kept us 20 minutes late therefore making class nearly 2 1/2 hours long, I was in a horrible mood, especially since I was running late to lunch. As I was standing at the bus stop, fuming flames, this old man in a truck decides to pull up next to me. He did the whole blowing kisses and yelling "Ayeee mami! Sexy chica!" act that Ecuadorians like to do to all white girls. I ignored it (even though the stoplight was green and he was still stopped...) THEN HE PULLED OUT SOME PELVIC THRUSTING. It was absolutely disgusting and crossed the line. As some may know, especially my mother, I am the most irrational person alive when I am in a bad mood, therefore I flipped this old man off. Bad idea. Immediately regretted that decision as he yelled some Spanish words I don't know and began to pull into a parking spot. Luckily a cab was headed my way so I jumped in and escaped the crime scene safely. I hope to be in a good mood the rest of my 3 1/2 months here because men like him are very common.

For some big news:

I forgot if I wrote about this last blog, but the past two weeks I have been interning at the Center of Justice and Equality. I work in the judges office which is always entertaining since lawyers and such are coming in every few minutes, usually yelling. So far my job is somewhat monotonous as I only organize restraining orders and police reports. Once my Spanish improves I will be able to do more exciting work, although it is interesting to read the reports.

I also dyed my hair! It's going to wash out in 20 days, but I love it. I've never really done anything cool with my hair and everything here is so cheap so my friend and I had a dying hair date. My hair is really dark with a slight tint of red in the sun. I've been told it makes me look older...which is the best compliment anyone can ever tell me. 

This past weekend my group didn't travel because the University here offered to take us on a "volcano hiking trip" Saturday. FAIL. We all woke up at 6 am to do a 1 hour hike through a park and then wait 2 hours for the buses to come pick us back up. The Ecuadorian guides were very nice in trying to keep us occupied the 2 hours we had to wait....but making us play duck duck goose was a little kindergarten. But it is all good- we realized our mistake and are currently planning a BEACH TRIP for this weekend! I cannot wait! 

So, school has really kicked into gear here. My Spanish is improving much quicker than before. I do have a confession- at Trinity everyone who studies abroad always talks about how they barely did any school work and were just out having fun the whole time. Oh boy, were my expectations wrong. Doing homework here takes 3x as long since I spend a lot of time using Google Translate to figure out what half of the words in my readings mean. But hey, you have to learn somehow. After I finish this blog, I am off to write my Spanish essay. Oh boy!

Sorry this blog entry is borderline lame. Here's a funny picture to make it better:

There was a 10k here this weekend. For no particular reason at all, these men decided to walk around the street in stilts and funny costumes to celebrate it. ALSO- in front of the KFC near my school, there was a giant dance party where they were handing out masks and dancing in circles to crazy music. I love the randomness here, it really is special. Haha.

Last thing before I go off to do homework the rest of my life- I CAN SALSA! Well, kind of. It does have a lot to do with how good my partner is. We had one salsa lesson 2 weeks back and decided to go to a salsa club this past Saturday. It was a blast as Ecuadorians here love to show us gringas how to dance. By December I should be pro, so if anyone wants to know how to salsa, let me know! It won't cost too much...jk.

The above picture is of La Plaza Fosh. It is in La Mariscal aka "Gringo Landia" where all my friends and I meet up to go out and salsa. It's actually really neat! I would describe it as a Times Square for a 3rd World Country. In the plaza is a large television, lots of bars, restaurants, clubs and casinos! It's lit up at night and is a blast. 

I really need to begin my homework now, but I promise Sunday, I will post an AWESOME blog with lots of amazing pictures from the beach this weekend! Chau!

Otavala!

Yesterday was quite an exciting day! We all woke up early and headed over to the IES center to travel to Otavala, an indigenous market (although it's fake indigenous and more of a tourist attraction lol). The market was a lot of fun and I had a blast bargaining! Definitely got some amazing deals. It is going to be rough coming back to America and paying $15 for a scarf when I can get it $3 here. This is the perfect place to buy Christmas presents! Many of the goods are handmade, and some are very interesting (flask out of a bull horn, swords, crafted knifes, chairs). Pictures:

Oh heyy fake shrunken skulls, you sure are freaky deaky looking. 

After a few hours in the wonderful market, we headed over to an underwater volcano! The area was gorgeous. The hills/mountains around the crater/lake created a beautiful landscape. A few pictures later, we hopped on a boat and rode over the volcano!

Story about the last picture: Our tour guide was telling us to observe the gas in the water. I immediately started taking pictures of that greenish substance in the water, thinking it was the gas coming from the volcano. WRONG. It's algae. The gas he was talking about was tiny bubbles emerging from underneath. No offense to the volcano, but the cute ducks and baby ducks surrounding the boat were more exciting than the bubbles lol.

As we trekked back to Quito (Otavalo was a good 2 hour drive) we stopped by a beautiful waterfall! It was really pretty and I enjoyed walking around. My friend Erinn and I climbed up some rocks to get a view from up high which was neat. We all also crawled through a cave! I really enjoyed that part until I stood up too quickly, hit my head, and lost quite a few brain cells. It happens. Prettiness:

Super awesomeness. Well I have to go to bed extremely early tonight because although I don't have class until 4:00 p.m., I have to wake up around 6:00 a.m. to prepare for my meeting with the Department of Justice & Equality. This is my first REAL WEEK of classes, so nothing exciting will be going on until the weekend. Hopefully we plan a trip of some sort.

¡Chau!

Hail Storm

So, I was not planning on updating my blog until tomorrow after the indigenous market, but yesterday was quite eventful. As I was waiting for the bus, the sky was clear and sunny. Just as I entered the bus, all hell broke loose.  Think thunder is loud? Try experiencing a thunder storm nearly 10,000 feet high haha. Also, since I am so high, it got FREEZING when it began to rain and the thunderstorm turned into a hail storm. Seriously, all the cars that drove past me were really icy. Unfortunately, where the bus stops is a little far away from my school. I had the wonderful opportunity to walk to school through a hail storm. It was pretty painful haha. ALSO- I used to think my street in Houston flooded easily. I don't know what is up with the Quito sewage system, but it is terrible. To get to school, I had to walk in water KNEE DEEP while being hit on the face with ice. Oh what an experience. I am going to hate wet season here if that is what it's always like (Quito's weather is the same all year round temperature wise- they just have wet and dry season, and wet season begins in October). 

Also, I got to experience my first protest last night! I took a cab to La Plaza Fosh (it's the main hangout place for gringos here) to meet with my friends. On the way there, there was a protest! People were standing in the street yelling, holding signs, and some were dressed up in crazy masks. Honestly, it was pretty amusing. I've never seen a protest before. I think it may be a common thing because my cab driver just started laughing. 

Well I'm off to go buy a new cellphone. My friends and I went to a discoteca last night. The phones here are TINY and it slipped out of my mini purse while I was dancing (I get really excited when a song is in English and dance like a crazy person) Will update my blog tomorrow after the market! But seriously, if there is something specific you would like from Quito, please let me know today because tomorrow will be the best time for me to buy gifts and such! Chau!

First week of school! ...kind of

¡Hola a todos!

I am super excited at the moment because I have finally finalized my schedule for the semester! 

Monday- 4:00-5:00 Internship Class

Tuesday- 8:00-9:15 Andean Literature

10:00-11:30 Advanced Spanish Grammar

12:00-2:00 Politics and Society of Latin America

4:00-5:30 Cultural Diversity of Ecuador

Wednesday- Same as Monday

Thursday- Same as Tuesday

Friday- NO CLASS!!

I know my Tuesday and Thursdays suck and my head will be ready to explode (especially since all classes are in Spanish) but in order for me to take the Politics & Society class, that is how my schedule will have to be. They weren't going to offer the Politics class because there wasn't enough interest and I was originally enrolled in an economics class on Mondays and Wednesdays, but I am stubborn and pushed for it. Ta daa! 

So although this week is my "first week of classes," only my internship class (not the actual internship, we have a class where we talk about issues in Quito and how we can apply solutions in our jobs) and cultural diversity class started. Next week will really be when school mode kicks in. I am super excited for my internship! If all goes as planned (things here are a little unorganized) then I will be working for the Center of Equality and Justice in Quito. HOW COOL IS THAT!? It will be a little intense as I will be working with victims of violence and discrimination, but I feel like it will be a very fulfilling experience. If that doesn't work out, because the woman in charge didn't seem 100% on me working there, Graciela (my host mom) has a niece who works at a law firm! She is calling her niece today to see if they need additional help. Either way, I would be happy. 

So, I have FINALLY conquered public transportation in Quito! Thus far, this has been my greatest accomplishment. Being thrown into a huge city of over 3 million from the suburbs took quite some adjusting. My host mom thought I was silly because at first I refused to ride the bus and only took taxis. Well...that quickly became way too expensive and my host mom nudged me to try the bus. She rode with me the first two times too because I was really nervous haha. The bus system here is absolutely chaotic. Early in the morning and right before the sun sets is when the buses are insane and so packed, that the majority of people in the bus are standing and don't have seats. I get nervous when this occurs but always stick to the front so I can get off quickly when needed. Manners? Whats that? People literally push you out of the way haha. I've learned to be much more aggressive here, because that is just how it is. One other thing I am proud of, as strange as it sounds, is being alone! Most of my friends live in walking distance of each other and ride buses or taxis together. I am a complete outlier and live far from everyone haha. By myself, I walk 10 minutes to the bus station, ride the bus, and walk 5 minutes to school. Because of this, I feel more comfortable in the streets and don't need to rely on others which is always good. 

The streets in Quito are so interesting. I'd say the funniest part of walking down them is how many people stare, and how they are not subtle at all. Especially after class when my friends and I all walk together to the mall or shops, cars will slow down and stare at us "gringos" blatantly. Unsure if it is a compliment or if they are gringo haters haha. Another interesting fact about the streets of Quito is that cars do not obey any traffic laws and will run you over. You know how at crosswalks in America, a little orange man walking appears to show you that you can cross? Well here in Quito, the sign that you can cross is a green man running. It's very accurate lol. 

Sorry that this blog was a tad bit boring- probably won't blog until after the indigenous market we are going to on Saturday so I can post cool pictures! Super excited. Also my friends and I are currently planning a trip to the beach soon for swimming and whale watching! Gotta love 3 day weekends.   

 ¡Chau!

Mindo, Ecuador

¡Hola a todos! I am sorry it's been so long since I've updated! This past week was very busy as it was our last week of orientation and we had a lot to squeeze in. Went to many lectures, a museum, the university ect... But nothing we did last week compares to the amazing weekend I just had, so that's what this blog will be about! We had a three day weekend celebrating the independence of Quito so some of my friends and I decided to go on a weekend trip. We hopped on a bus and two hours later arrived in Mindo, Ecuador, the forest.

The top photo is our hostel. It was very jungly and super cheap! We also had our own personal cab driver...except the cab was a trunk bed haha. The last picture is in the bathroom. Instead of a window, there was just a large hole. It was an interesting concept haha. My sheets were also spongebob which I found hilarious and all the beds had mosquito netting around them. 

Anyways, the first day in Mindo was the most exciting! Except 10 minutes after arriving to the city, an incident occurred. We were all walking down the street...AND THESE STUPID KIDS SWARMED ME!! I was really frightened at first because there were about 8 young children yelling at me and grabbing my hands. Good thing all my money was hidden in a secret pocket. I swear, kids here are the absolute worst haha. 

After that whole ordeal, we jumped in our "taxi" and took off to go hiking and visit waterfalls! We got into a "gandala" and rode high over the forest. After arriving on the other side, we walked around and visited a few different waterfalls. The forest was so lush and green, it was beautiful. Here are some pictures:

The water was so pure, it was amazing! After the waterfalls, we headed over to a zip-lining company. THIS WAS THE COOLEST THING EVER. We were zip-lining through the jungle, it was beautiful. We were really high up as well. Although I never saw a monkey (my favorite animal), I heard them while flying through trees! The funnest part of zip-lining was when our guide let us go UPSIDE-DOWN! It was extremely scary, since we were so high up, and maybe not as safe, but it was legendary. Unfortunately, there was no way for me to take pictures for this part. After zip-lining we had the choice of doing an "X-treme Tarzan Swing." Basically you climb to a platform, free fall and then swing around. I screamed bloody murder, I was so terrified haha. But, it was awesome and worth it. It was a little like bungee jumping but less extreme. Pictures! 

Wheeee! After dinner, we went out to discotecas to complete a wonderful day. Saturday was also very cool. We first went to a butterfly house. I got to see a butterfly emerge from its cocoon! It took three minutes and I took a lot of pictures showing the progress, but unfortunately every photo I post on here takes about 5 to 10 minutes to load so I can't put up many pictures that I want to. If we are facebook friends, check out the album called Mindo, Ecuador to see it. Anyways, in the butterfly house we put this mushy substance on our finger that attracted butterflies! It was fun, walking around with a butterfly hanging out on my finger. Warning- be aware of hummingbirds. They will fly into your face. Haha. After the butterfly house, we walked over to the river for some tubing down rapids! It was a blast and our guide was hilarious. He saved is from flipping over a few times lol. Here are some pictures from Saturday:

The water was freezing because it was a chilly day! Later that day it rained so we went out for hot tea and then napped haha. 

Before we had to leave today, we decided to go on an adventure! We found a 4 wheeling company and rode 4 wheelers throughout the jungle. I guess I forgot to mention this- EVERYTHING during the trip was in Spanish. Instructions for zip-lining, tubing, jumping off the platform, how to work a 4 wheeler ect... so I was feeling a little nervous often as I don't understand everything and we were being told safety rules lol. But it all turned out fine, no injuries! The 4 wheeling was fun, except my 4 wheeler broke down! It wasn't my fault (thankfully), the chain disconnected and I had to ride back on my friend Erinn's 4 wheeler. Oh well. 

After packing up, we headed back to Quito! I have been really lucky this trip as many kids in my group have had altitude sickness or have had to go to the doctor for stomach problems due to adjusting to the food. However, I have had no sickness...until our stupid bus! It was so bumpy and crazy, I felt horrible and had a bit of motion sickness. To make matters worse, we opened the windows in the bus so I could get fresh air, and an ugly beetle flew in, and went down my shirt. The beetle was a pervert and went into my bra, it was disgusting. I freaked out immensely. 

Quick funny random story: One of the guys in my program is named Mitch. He is from Japan, studying abroad in America for college and double studying abroad in Quito for the semester haha. Anyways, we love him and his adventurous attitude because he is new to both Spanish and English (speaks English quite well though). Saturday morning we woke up to a conversation outside of our window- a jehovah witness snatched Mitch up when he was walking around and was preaching to him for a long time. He had no idea what was going on lol. Then this morning, while we were all sleeping, apparently Mitch went on another walk, trespassed onto someone's property and was yelled at in Spanish. He walked in the room later and told us he met someone in a bad mood who made him leave his property haha. Mitch is awesome- what an adventurous guy!

Well, this is the longest blog ever. Classes start tomorrow so I should head off to bed shortly. College classes are hard enough, I am extremely nervous about being taught in a different language. My schedule works out nicely though and I don't have class on Friday! Yay. Will update soon about how school is going and the status on my internship (they are trying to make me do volunteer work rather than an internship, but I am being stubborn and want my way). Also- this weekend coming up we are going to a indigenous market! If anyone has an idea about what they want, please let me know!  

¡Chau!

p.s. If anyone has any home remedies for mosquito bites or itchy bug bites, please let me know. I counted and have 19 bites on my legs. And yes Mom, I DID use repellent, maybe the mosquitoes and bugs in Ecuador have some strange immunity to normal American repellent.  

Ohh Ecuador

Wow, it has been crazy the past few days! 

Culture Shocks: They don't flush toilet paper here! Because we are so high, the drainage tubes are very small and we have to throw toilet paper in the trash rather than flush it. Also....there is so much kissing! Whenever you meet someone or say bye to someone or say hello to someone...or basically anything...you kiss them on the cheek. When I first met my host family, I tried to shake hands with them but they just kissed me haha. I am still getting used to the whole kissing people you just meet thing, it seems strange to me. So, I forgot to mention this last blog but everything is in Spanish. My host family and the staff at my program don't speak English. I was a little concerned when they went over safety information and important documents in Spanish because I don't understand everything yet but this is the best way to learn the language. Also- in America we are always taught to say adios for goodbye. Here...that is a terrible thing to say! Everyone says chau or hasta luego. Adios in Quito pretty much means goodbye forever. I just learned this so I feel really bad because I have said adios to many people haha. 

Anyways, Friday our program went on a tour throughout the older part of Quito. It was very pretty and there were many many churches. One church we entered was created solely out of gold, but we weren't allowed to take pictures. After a long lecture over how important religion is here, we got to explore! Our guide took us on roofs on top of roofs on top of roofs on top of roofs. It was insane...we were so high! And the stairs were a little sketchy haha. Here's some pictures!

So pretty! After the tour, I went out to discotecas with my host sister Stephanie (she speaks English, I love it) and the other exchange student in the house (he leaves today though, he also speaks English so he will be missed haha, I love English time). We went to La Mariscal (gringo landia- I am a gringa aka English speaker) The plaza is crazy! It's similar to New York. There is a giant television and lots of bars and restaurants. One of the places is called tapas y vinos and it's $15 all you can eat and drink! Things here are so cheap, I love it! The next morning Stephanie, Sebastian (other student) and I went to the teleferiqo. We rode little trolleys high into the mountains and hiked and rode horses! The view of Quito was amazing! Pictures:

Que lindo! After eating like kings- because the food here is AMAZING and I am pretty sure I have already gained 20 lbs, I met up with my friend Kyle. We decided to travel the city and La Mariscal. Last night really opened my eyes up to Quito because as we were walking down a street, these guys distracted Kyle while they tried to steal my purse. I was holding on to it tight though and pretty much kicked them. Definitely not in America anymore haha. In Quito they really target "gringos" so you have to always be aware. It's also a little sad- there are many kids about 5 or 6 years old sellings cigs or gum on the streets. It's hard to say no to them, but I guess that is how the system works. Kids here are also the most aggressive! They grab your shirt and put on a pouty face! Anyways- I absolutely adore Quito. Everyone here is so friendly and patient because I don't understand half of what people say to me lol. My family is the absolute best and I couldn't be more thankful to live in such a beautiful home with amazing people. I also am in love with the food here. Lunch is the best meal ever as it is pretty much a fancy 5 course meal! I seriously can't get over the awesome food here. I've tried so many different things and love it. Fruit and potatoes here are a big deal. Well I am off to nap and then explore more! I have a big Spanish test tomorrow to determine if I can enroll in an Ecuadorian University or not so I should study as well. Will update soon as this next week is full of more orientation and exploring! 

Day One!

Today was my first full day in Quito and it was absolutely amazing! I arrived late last night after much delay. My host family, Graciela & Luis, picked me up from the airport. Last night was my first experience in Quito's streets...and boy are they different than American streets. I am pretty sure there's not a speed limit, and if there is..nobody cares haha. Everyone is driving super fast and cutting people off...and people tend to jump in front of cars trying to sell fruit or candy. Oh and Quito is a giant mountain range so streets tend to be very steep. I just pretend it's a rollercoaster lol. Anyways, my host family is the absolute best and very experienced. Upon arriving to the house, they had already bought me many large jugs of water and made me soup & papas fritas! Luis gave me the great advice of drinking hot green tea after every meal to aviod altitude sickness...and thus far it has worked! Have felt totally fine despite being 9,200 feet higher than I'm used to. The home I am staying in is absolutely beautiful! It is illuminated by windows and very green. Here is a picture of the dining room from the kitchen!

This morning I woke up really early and chatted with Graciela. For breakfast I had a plate filled with pineapple, papaya and bread. Yumm. She then took me to the IES center where we all began our first day of orientation. The staff was great and we went over a lot of important information....but they talk so fast I probably comprehended only half of what was said. We then went out for lunch, which is the main meal over here. When we first sat at the table, there were cups filled with popcorn so I was quite confused. After eating bread, we were brought giant bowls of soup where everyone threw the popcorn or "canguil" in it. I thought it was interesting and took a picture.

After la sopa, we were served a giant plate with veggies, a baked potato and STEAK WRAPPED IN BACON! Delicious. Dessert was a pie with fruit fillings, also delicious. After lunch we went outside and took some pictures because the restaurant had a beautiful view of the mountains. The picture below is my group and our head staff member (we are missing one guy from our group because he missed his flight in Houston yesterday and has yet to arrive to Quito. Ayayay.)

After lunch we went back to the IES center to start Spanish classes (already!?!?) and study. Graciela picked me up later and we went to the supermarket (located in a shopping mall) where I saw the strangest escalators. They don't have steps....the escalators here are flat because people go up and down them with shopping carts haha. Anyways there is still much to do- more documents to fill. I also need to study Spanish HARDCORE because I am currently terrible at it and have a big white girl accent I need to get rid of haha. Tomorrow we go on a tour of the city so I will probably post more pictures. This weekend is also a big weekend in Ecuador because they received their independence August 6th so there are many fiestas and concerts planned!

Tomorrow is the big day...

Ever have one of those moments where you wake up at 6 in the morning and realize the next day you are leaving for another country where you don't know anyone and don't speak the language fluently? Because I sure did this morning. Can't believe the time has already come to embark on my Ecuadorian adventure! Today will consist of more laundry, packing, a slight freak out every once in a while, and a lot of studying Spanish. I have a feeling my first conversation with my host family will be very awkward. But it is a-okay.

Although I am living with a family my 4 1/2 month stay in Quito, IES (my program), says to send all mail to the IES center. Here's the address:

Katie Budinsky

República de El Salvador N34-229 y Moscú

Edificio San Salvador. Piso 3

P.O. Box 17-21-1967

Quito, Ecuador

Yay. Okay I am off to wake up my sister and drag her to an early morning breakfast at iHop with me! Next time I post, I will be in Quito and can hopefully add some cool pictures!

¡Adiós!