Leaving Ecuador

I’m sure every post at this point in the semester is going to say the same thing, but I can’t believe how 5 months has come and gone so fast. When I got here, it seemed like time would stretch on forever, that I had all the time in the world to live in, get used to, explore, and fall in love with Ecuador. And I did. Except time, as always, snuck up on me, and December hit me square in the face. I spent the first part of December in Lima, Peru, visiting friends from the place I worked at this summer. It was wonderful, but as soon as I got back, I had 2 final tests, 2 presentations, and 3 papers all to do in 2 days. As soon as that was over, we had our farewell dinner at a nice restaurant in the north part of Quito, where our directors said some heartfelt parting words, a student sang a song she wrote about her time in Quito, and we ate, reminisced, and talked about how much trouble we are going to have with our English when we return to the States.

Some students leave tonight, I still have a few days left to relax, do some last minute gift shopping, say goodbyes, and go on one last hike in these beloved mountains.

Looking back, I am astounded at all the amazing opportunities I had this semester. Some of these include:

Hiked from the mouth of a volcano to a tropical forest

Saw Justin Bieber in concert. In Quito. (What??)

Learned how to keep bees with my host dad

Accidentally ate cuy (guinea pig)

Rode through the Andes on a horse with no name

Snorkeled with sea lions, iguanas, sea turtles, and sting rays

Hiked through the Andean paramo

Saw and hiked more volcanoes than I thought I would in my lifetime

Saw the stars and constellations in different positions

Stood on the equatorial line

Slept inside of a volcano crater

Stood in a clearing where something like 30 hummingbirds flitted around

Got more homesick than I thought I would

Had more fun than I thought I would

Became fluent in Spanish and learned un monton of Ecuadorean Spanish

Hiked to and swam in a waterfall in the Amazon, lead by a little indigenous man…and then got caught in the famous torrential downpour

Had the best meal you can get for $1.25

Ate fruits I never even knew existed before

Mastered the art of crossing crazy South American streets, taking the bus from anywhere in the city and knowing where it will drop you off on the other side

Learned to treasure the little things, and appreciate what I took for granted pre-travels.

Designed a line of t-shirts (www.zazzle.com/kristianachan) for my internship

Slept in a tent at almost 16,000 feet above sea level…and our water turned to ice. So did our toes.

Woken up in a tent to the sound of bears, and alpaca waiting outside.

And so so so so so much more. The last five months have been some of the five richest, most challenging, most rewarding months of my life. So much has happened, I doubt that I will be able to process much right away; it’s definitely going to take some time. Something that struck me last night at the dinner was that it really didnt feel like goodbye. I know my time here is coming to a quick close, but somehow, it just doesnt feel like a final “adios”.