Baños

Yesterday afternoon my family took me to Baños! Baños is a town about an hour from Ambato at the foot of the Tungarhua volcano. It's big attraction was originally the hot geothermal springs, which is a trade off seeing as it's under constant threat from the volcano and everyone has to be evacuated during eruptions. It's a tourist town, a hangout for foreign backpackers (wow do Americans stick out) and a vacation spot for Ecuadorians.

Disclaimer: I didn't take this.

On Saturday night the place was super busy in a good way. There were street performers and people selling all kinds of souvenirs and kids playing everywhere. At 9 we took a chiva, which is a kind of open-air party bus, up to a stop that overlooked the city. Up there there was more carnivalesque fun, made even better by the fact that I had no idea what was going on or what we were doing. We spent the night in a hotel.

This morning, we got breakfast and went to a gorgeous waterfall. You could zipline across the canyon, which sadly I'm almost sure I'm not allowed to do, and I'm not going to push the rules one week in. We took a cable car across.

They don't call me Steven Spielberg for nothing.

After the waterfall we drove up a mountain to some spots where you can get a good view of the volcano. Unfortunately it was cloudy, but I didn't really care because we got to go to this treehouse.

Hundred Acre Wood architecture.

Naturally there was plenty of good food and sweets, and I got to try sugar cane for the first time. The town is built around fun and some day I'd like to return with friends to take full advantage of the party.

One Week

When you go and apply for an exchange program, they talk a lot about how you'll find yourself. But after one week, what's palpable is what I now realize has to happen before the finding: I've lost myself. Back home I had a whole established identity; here I am essentially dependent on my host family. The independence I so prided myself on is gone. The language I used to express myself is gone. All the people I have ever known are on another continent. I feel a little bit like I was born last Wednesday.

It's frightening, in a sneaky way. I don't feel scared or nervous anymore. But already I have moments of awareness where I realize that already the pattern of my thoughts is different, that I don't sound like myself in my head. When you lose all context, you have an incredibly strange moment where you're forced to confront what's left. And now I see that so much of who I was was only just context. That's freeing, but also daunting.

Things have happened outside of my soul searching and I'll write about them soon!

The Villacreses Constantes

Today was my first full day with my host family in Ambato. I don't want to jinx myself, but so far things are going really, really well.

Ambato from above.

I took this picture today when we went to a park up on a mountain. I'm going to have to disagree with the Lonely Planet quote posted earlier and say so far I have warmed up to the city pretty quickly. It's very modern but very Ecuadorian. Also, it is very much in the mountains. 

As for my host family, I cannot overstate how incredibly kind and welcoming they have been. On the bus ride to Ambato I was so nervous I thought I was going to throw up. But the instant I met them we all hugged (and my little brother gave me flowers!) and I felt so much more relaxed. The entire family is adorable and caring, from my 8-year-old sister to my 106-year-old great grandmother. 

Host mom, brother, sister and me.

The house is very comfortable. My host mom had told me that it was not luxurious, but I think it is a good size and I have my own room and even a bathroom to myself. As my host dad told me, "Small house, big heart." And they really do have a big heart. For example, today I got a little homesick and was worried that I would offend the family or they would think I was unhappy with the arrangements. Instead, they were totally understanding and supportive. I feel lucky that I have them.

I start school in two weeks! I'm glad I have some time to adjust before, though I am really excited to go. My grandma told me that I should relax and enjoy the rest of summer vacation and that's what I plan to do.

On the Precipice of Adventure

24 hours from now I plan on being at the one-and-only Lambert Airport. Today has been a really fun mix of goodbyes and errands. I even got the chance to go to my favorite place: the bank! Sarcasm aside, I don't think I can not cry for too much longer and I feel like a small man is continuously kicking me in the stomach. But that's okay, because then I remember that this is what I have wanted for literally years and oh my god, it is actually happening.

Maybe I should pack.

The Day After the Day After Tomorrow

I was on vacation in Florida last week and I finally found out my host family placement. I'm going to Ambato, which is pretty much in the center of the country. To quote trip advisor, "Ambato takes a little warming up to. Compared with nearby Baños, it offers little for the traveler, except the chance to experience a totally nontouristy Ecuadorian city. And it’s actually an interesting place. The Monday market, which fills the streets downtown, is one of the biggest in Ecuador. Above town, there are fabulous views of the puffing Volcán Tungurahua (5016m), and Ambato’s parks and quintas (historic country homes converted into parks) are lovely. The ambateños (people from Ambato) themselves must be some of the best-dressed folks in Ecuador."

Tungurahua, which is apparently erupting right now.

Good news: my host mom has been emailing me and I'm getting the impression that she's a really nice, warm person. She says they have a very close family and I really am so excited to meet them. When I was in Florida I had my aunt, who speaks Spanish, help me write my emails. Today I received one and sat down to write a quick response. Fingers poised above the keyboard, I had a moment of hesitation, suddenly remembering that my Spanish doesn't even touch "proficient." The brief email took 30 minutes of dictionaries, conjugators, and google translate. I'm a little nervous by that whole language barrier thing, but here's to hoping I'll learn some Spanish in the next ten months.

Also, I'm almost sure that the picture below is of students at my new school.

Plaid skirts, here I come.

The next few days are to be devoted to frantic preparation and quality time with my friends and family. That and quietly freaking out.

Well, hola.

I'm Grace, and I'm taking a gap year in Ecuador through Youth for Understanding.
Some things:

• I'll be living with a host family and will essentially be a senior in high school
• As of this moment, I don't know who my host family will be or where in the country I'll be living
• I failed the AP Spanish test
• I leave a week from tomorrow

I don't know if I'll have internet access once I'm there, so we'll see how far this blog goes.