Finally settling down in Guayaquil!!

Hey Everyone!!! Im finally in Guayaquil. Im a little sad that our tour through the Ecuadorian countryside is over but at the same time Im glad to finally be in once place and stop living out of a suitcase!

On Saturday we got up early and headed out to Salasca to visit the Peguche tribe in Ecuador. We stopped on the way at an old Hacienda, which are the big plantation like establishments where the Spanish used to enslave the indigenous people. It was very interesting. We toured the building which was complete with a chapel, stables, gardens, etc. and had some of the best coffee Ive ever had while an indigenous band played some traditional music for us.

Afterward we visited another indigenous house in Peguche where we were shown how to weave on a loom. They use white bugs that live on cactus plants to die their yarn. Each of us were given a bug in our hand and when you squish them they exert a vibrant red dye. The color of the dye can be diluted with lemon juice to change the tint. It was kind of gross but very cool. Haha. We ate lunch there as well and were served a delicious all vegetarian meal of corn, beans, potatoes, yacas, and vegatables all of which were grown right outside in their garden!!

On Sunday we had our earliest start yet… we had to be down at breakfast by seven… I was less than thrilled. But it turned out worth it. After driving two hours we came to the base of the largest volcano in Ecuador. We climbed up to the second shelter at 5000 meters! The altitude made it really hard to breathe but we were given  some traditional tea made of cocoa leaves. I got snowed on in Ecuador!

Tonight was a huge change in climate. We got to UEES around six to meet our host familys for the first time. It is VERY hot and humid here. My host mom had a very nice man named Hector pick me up from the school and show me around the house. I think she is working or out of town somewhere… I cant quite figure it out. What Im guessing is the housekeeper, named Norma, was trying to explain it to me… but she talks really fast. From what I could piece together I think she may be visiting a daughter in New York... But the house is really nice, complete with my own room, a small study or lounge area, a pool table, and a pool in the backyard that I am welcome to. Hector said he would take me to the grocery store sometime this week to pick out food and Norma made me a great salad dish with fresh squeezed fruit juice for dinner!! Still a little confused about what exactly is going on but I guess I will figure it out in the next few days!

I have a guided tour of Guayaquil scheduled tomorrow at 930, followed by class registration and my first day of classes! Everything is happening immediately! I still don’t even know how to get around the city yet!

La Hacienda that we visited. It doubles these days as a hotel. You can rent the master suite and have full access to all the gardens for 180 a night!

This is the whole group down the road a little from the Hacienda.

An indigenous villager showing us how to weave.

Traditional indigenous lunch! I loved it but there were a lot of complaints about the lack of flesh.

The group of us in the bar downstairs at the hotel in Riobamba. The bar was actually in an ancient cave that used to connect the hotel to the church. Sort of like an underground tunnel for the priests. The bartenders and servers loved us and wanted to use our picture for their website!

Me and two new Australian friends. Taken from the roof of the hotel!

Far away view of the volcano that we hiked up!

Me and Alberto standing on a rock about halfway up the climb. Hes from Mexico and had never seen snow before!!

The group of us celebrating that we made the climb up to 5000 ft.

Will post again when I figure things out a bit more.