If It's the Beaches

This Monday I finished my junior year of college. With two finals in my two most difficult classes, I ended things with great joy, of course, but it was also a bit difficult to celebrate because I was bleary-eyed and unable to see straight I was so tired. I have no one to blame but myself, though, because this past weekend instead of locking myself in the Gasson library and studying until all hours of the night like I would have at BC, I chose to do the study abroad thing and spend a few days at the beach.

After serious debates and many passive aggressive moments, 6 of us decided to go to Atacames for the weekend. It’s a small beach on (what I found out was) the Pacific just six hours from Quito and Nghiem's Ecuadorian aunt runs a hotel out of her former home there, so we were all set with a place to stay.

We caught a bus from Quito at 11 on Friday with all of the necessary supplies: bathing suits, PB&J ingredients, not quite the “6 bottles” that Nghiem had requested but something along those lines, and plenty of sunscreen. The bus ride there was rough times, they played ‘Taken’ in Spanish (quite possibly the worst movie of all time to watch in the middle of the night on a dark bus where anyone could steal something/you at any moment), and as Ryann pointed out I am “too long” to sleep on vehicles like that one.

Anyways, we arrived around 7 in the morning to a drizzly morning which cleared up as soon as our heads did and we started to enjoy the gorgeous house we were staying in. We each had a double room with air conditioning (Ryann and mine would later break, though, and our toilet would clog, it wouldn’t be an Ecua trip without things like this happening only to us, claro), a kitchen as well as a living room, a pool and our own little slice of the heavenly beach.

Greatest casa of all time

Leila, Ryann, Brianna and me

Beachin' it.

We really enjoyed the miraculous weather that came after a solid week of rain there in Atacames as well as a delicious dinner made for us by the hotel workers. At night Ryann started feeling a tad ill (also wouldn’t be an Ecua trip without this component) but rallied in order to go out for the night. I won’t expand on this, really, suffice to say that night life on the coast is something out of this world and is completely different to what we are used to here in Quito. I will reduce it to the following words: sweat, domination, dirty dancing air lifts.

Before heading out...

....and after. Please note Brianna and Ngheim's shirts and realize that it is not water.

Anyways, we spent hours on the beach the following day working on the tans we all promised ourselves we would return with. Nghiem and I finally had to turn to our studies after a brief dinner, a horrible thing to try to attempt when your greatest friends and a phenomenal sunset are all there to distract you. We left that Sunday at midnight and got back to Quito at 6:30ish, after an hour of studying, a brief nap and almost crying because I didn’t have the right change for the bus in the morning, I had my finals at 11 and 2. I can’t quite say how they went, nor remember them clearly due to the lack of sleep. What I can say for certain, though, is that I’m done!

Nghiem and I hit the books

Now we have a bunch of ‘last week in Ecuador’ activities planned and it is shaping up to be a hilarious and fitting string of days here. Ryann and I set up a Jeopardy game for everyone last night with questions related to all of the group members and tomorrow we have our final dinner with Amanda. It is going to be incredibly hard to say goodbye to everyone and to this country so I’m trying to keep that at a distance despite the fact that the end is in the very visible future. In any case, I’ll try to update again once I’ve left and am exploring the continent with Jacqueline N. Draper. All I have to say is South America better watch out.

Amor!

Vacation, All I Ever Wanted

Our week in Peru was one of the greatest of my entire life. I had been focusing on my mom’s visit for so long that I had barely thought about it when the time came to pack so when we finally made it to Lima it was somewhat shocking to be in another country but amazing at the same time.

Overall, the trip was truly indescribable. The country itself is so wonderful and so different from Ecuador that capturing it in words is a task that I don’t think I can handle. That being said, here is a lovely photo summary for all of you.

Nghiem, Leila and Ryann look out over the Cusco salt deposits.

Cusco at nightfall

Mom you missed out on some serious shopping in Peru, it's a whole other ballgame over there. Guess you'll just have to come back!

In Peru they say that if it doesn't have snow at the top, it's not a mountain. I'm so glad Talcott makes the cut at least in the Winter.

We did a little practice in Incan ruins before Machu Picchu and from the way we were all breathing, I didn't think we were going to survive the next day.

Train to Machu Picchu. Because of the floods in Peru two months ago, this train was wiped out up until 5 days before our trip. Perhaps that explains the nervous look on my face.

Machu Picchu. Lot's of gradas.

Honestly, this can't be put into words. Also, I'm so happy I decided to rep UConn on the most epic day of my life.

Lima Lima with the girls!

Nghiem makes break-dancing friends on the Lima boardwalk.

Things I Liked:

• Lima and the weather there. I don’t know why but it constantly reminded me of Stone Harbor, which I loved. It was humid and beachy and the shopping was just like 96^th street…almost.
• Our Cusco guide, Tomas. Everyone made fun of me for my strange love for this 40 year old Peruvian but I was really interested in what he had to say about the history of the country
• Machu Picchu itself has every right to be one of the wonders of the world. It was unfathomable, really. The fact that 500 years ago people knew how to manage these gigantic rocks, get them to fit perfectly together and have their temples and houses survive centuries blew all of us away. Being there for the day is something that I will never forget and that it is a trip I would highly recommend to anyone even remotely considering it (except for those who are stairs-wary, LMH).
• The plane ride from Lima to Cusco where we convinced Leila, who had been asleep for hours, that we had made it to Cusco when really we were back at the Lima airport due to poor weather. When we took off again, it was quite a shock for the poor sleeping beauty.
• Spending 6 full days with our group. I love them.

Things I Could Have Done Without

• There were lots of airports, lots of bus rides and lots of times where we wanted to kill our guide, Javier. He was constantly stressing us out and making us feel like we were late wherever we were going. It really bothered the majority of us but, as Brianna said, he was probably jealous of the fact that we were all friends because he was definitely the weird kid in high school.
• Sharing hotels with Jess (actually had the flu all week) and Ryann (nicknamed “Pukey” for her history on this type of trip) in which not a single toilet fully functioned.
• Our hotel in Machu Picchu itself. The beds looked like something out of 1980s Las Vegas. Sarah had to wrap herself in towels in order to sleep and the smell of the rooms is absolutely going to haunt me for years to come.

Tough Mama

So, taking a page out of Emily's book, I present the work of my mother. We had an incredible 6 days together and she captured that (as best she could) here. I'm really going to miss having her here, but I'm so very thankful that she made the trip and stuck it out this week, I know there were parts where deep breathing was definitely necessary, but I'm sending her back to the states a cultured woman.

So far, so good. Off the plane, made it through customs, got my luggage, walking towards the exit. Good, good, good. A uniformed man walking towards me. “boleto, Señora” Huh? “ticket?” Oh, shoot. Laura told me about this…my baggage claim ticket. If I don’t have it they will think I am stealing this luggage. I can’t find it. Where did I put it?? I don’t have it. I will be arrested. Laura will never know what happened… no one will ever see me again. “Americana!!” the one uniformed man yells and two more uniformed men come running over to me. My heart is beating very rápido. I am digging in my bag, digging, digging, sweating, found it!! My ticket! I’m not going to waste away in a foreign prison. I’m free. I head to the exit and….LAURA!!!!! The real adventure begins.

I see very quickly why Laura has fallen in love with this place. Quito is amazing….alive, vibrant, colorful. Day one was a visit to Laura’s university. So, so pretty. So fun to be walking around campus, taking in the colors, the buildings, the people. Walking and talking, walking and talking , walking uphill and talking, walking and I. Can’t. Breathe. What. Is. Happening? Laura turns back, sees my struggle and with a knowing nod, “altitude.”

Off to Salsa class. Laura, me and the instructor. Let me repeat: salsa and me. I will let the video speak for itself. Hint: Kate Gosselin-esque.

Day two was Mitad del Mundo (middle of the world). The coolest place EVER. It literally is the middle of the world: longitude 00/ latitude 00. So what this means is that you can balance an egg very easily. Well, easily for everyone else. The Amrein egg-balancing gene was lacking but I had to persevere for the sake of a picture just for Mark.

Picture for Mark

Mitad del Mundo

I also learned of an indigenous people here in Ecuador that live on a small parcel of land that has the equivalent to all the trees in the United States. But it has come to the attention of the government that this particular parcel of land is sitting on a minefield of oil. So of course the government wants to take the land. And the indigenous people don’t feel too happy about that idea. So they have started to let visitors come to visit and support them. The little caveat: this indigenous tribe is one of the only ones that still shrinks heads (and I’m not talking about the lying on the couch kind.) So you can visit if you want, just try not to step on anyone’s toes…or guinea pigs.

Day three: Otavalo. I think Otavalo is another word for heaven. Ok, not really. But it is the largest outdoor market in South America. Did you hear me? Largest outdoor market. Let me address a few issues here. To hubby: kept on a budget. Sort of. Which is way easier to do here because a. you can barter (which I learned to do out of necessity when Laura told me I was on my own) and b. things here in general are so much cheaper than at home. (I got mad when the earrings were $1.50 instead of $1.) To mom and dad: remember when you had to sit on a bench and wait for me at Sunglass alley? Thank your lucky stars you were not in Otavalo with me. To Patrick and Christie: I have come a long way since that craft fair at USC. I walked down an entire row of tables before I bought my first thing!

Back in the hotel after visiting heaven

Day four: Mindo. So it’s really interesting to be in a foreign land and not know the language. When people spoke of Mindo I had no idea what they were saying. Mindo started out as a beautiful, peaceful, serene butterfly garden and hummingbird paradise. How quickly things changed. What Mindo actually means is extreme terror. Two words: zip line. We get to the place, I see what we are doing. Breathe in, breathe out. I’m actually sort of ok with this. I mean, I came here for an adventure, right? They put the gear on me. I’m still ok. We get instructions from the guide… in rapid-fire Spanish. Laura translates as fast as she can. What I hear is: “do this, don’t do that, do this, don’t do that.” I am going to die. “Laura, I need a guide to go with me.” “Mom, why are you freaking out now?” Ok, ok, I can do this. Climb the stairs up to the wire. Laura hooks in first like the old pro she is, tells me I will be fine, then is pushed off into oblivion. I stand there. Everyone is looking at me. Here’s my question: how can my heart be beating so violently and yet I am not dying of a heart attack? Ok, ok. Breathe. Hook in. Try to stop shaking, it’s not really helping. Hang on for dear life and…… FLY!!! I really didn’t know I could scream so loud. But, I’m doing it! I am actually doing it! I reach the other side and I am laughing hysterically, partly because I am just so happy to still be alive but partly because it was possibly the craziest thing I have ever done. And I did do it. Two more times, in fact.

Proof.

Survivors

Day six: the Basilica. The Basilica is….I actually don’t know what the Basilica is so I will use visual aids here. Mike, remember when I wouldn’t climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower when we were twenty? Something has happened in all the years since because, in the words of your friend, I am younger than that now. Climbed all the way to the top. Made Laura take lots of pictures to prove it. I guess after seeing my life flash before my eyes on the zip line, a trip up to the bell tower at the Basilica was a piece of cake.

From the bottom

Making it to the top was well worth it

Laura has an incredible life here in Quito. Her family is wonderful and is taking such good care of their Laurita. Her friends are fun and funny; I can see why she enjoys her time with them so much.

Dinner with some of Laura's friends

Laura's familia

This has been an amazing, amazing adventure. There have been so many highlights I could not pick just one. I have enjoyed it all tremendously but most of all…. I have enjoyed Laura.

--Petra/Mom/Mrs. Amrein, one tough mama.

Let's Do Some Living

WARNING: About 80% of the things that I am about to mention are things that I want to do with my mother, one Petra Hothorn Amrein, when she gets here in just 9 days. I have asked her not to read this and I will ask you all who may contact her between now and then that you do not mention all the ridiculous things I am going to force her to do. Thanks!

That being said, I haven’t been able to write on here for a bit because this week has been an absolute whirlwind. Between eating an entire family-sized Hawaiian pizza which may have ruined Pizza Hut for me for good and taking Ecuadorians out for their first St. Patrick’s Day, lots has gone on here in Quito Quito.

The Competition: Before.

Little backstory: While in the jungle, I noticed that Jess Dever and I both eat more than your average girl. SO I decided that she and I should face off and see once and for all who can eat more. Nghiem somehow got in on it (somewhat unfair, we all noted), and we settled on pizza as our medium.

I may look nervous here but thanks to Brianna I ate that entire pizza you see there without crying (there were a couple rough spots along the way though). Nghiem, however, was able to eat a pie and a slice, reigning victorious.

...And after. Jess fared far worse than I and also violated one of the rules just after this picture was taken (I won't go into details but let's say there were only 2 rules and she didn't go over the time limit), and was automatically disqualified.

We met a little Ecua leprechaun!

Apart from that, last weekend a group of us went to a little town 2 hours from here called Mindo and absolutely fell in love with it. It was very small and not a lot of nightlife, but the things that are available during the day are just incredible.

When we first got there, after consuming far too much peanut butter as we tend to do on trips where we go grocery shopping beforehand, we headed off to a butterfly garden and hummingbird __________ (please insert word that is comparable to ‘garden’ but applies to hummingbirds, suggestions welcome). It was really phenomenal but somewhat daunting. I felt like Robbie or Christie who both have an irrational fear of ladybugs, but when something with huge wings starts flying toward you, you’re going to scream.

After that, we ended up white water tubing down a river which for sure should never have been traversed by humans. We had the time of our lives though. In the freezing water with our helmets on, I couldn’t stop dying laughing looking at the girls in the other raft, completely soaked and all rocking a wet-dog look that I won’t forget anytime soon.

Emily, me and Mateo, holding on for dear life.

We had an early night of tacos for dinner, Gabriel García Márquez as a bedtime story, and the never ending Boston College name game. The next morning we woke up and set off for the zip-lining adventure of our lives. Pictures speak louder than words in this case. Despite my slight fear due to the kindergarten broken left arm incident (and the lack of belief on the part of not one but both of my parents afterwards), I had an absolute ball on all 13 of the rides through the air, even the one where the guides thought it would be funny to bounce the ropes up and down.

Leila declared this Extreme Sports Weekend. True story.

Yes, I am pretty super.

All in all, life is pretty good. I fall more and more in love with the group with each day and my family could not be more perfect for me. The week ahead doesn't promise to be quite as exhilarating as the last but we'll see what happens, you never know around here.

That's all for now (General Mills I hope you're happy, I may have just sacrificed my Lit grade to write this).

Our Endless Numbered Days

I’m sorry to have been so inactive here for the past couple weeks, it’s hardly a reflection of my life here these days. Just the opposite, really. In my non-cyber life I have been so busy I’ve barely had time to keep you all up-to-date.

This will be explained much later.

Anyways, here are the highlights since the last time

My soccer team, Gasolina, is currently 2-0-0 and we hope to continue our winning streak for the next couple rounds of the girls tournament at the University. The games are really exciting and although we play in straight dirt and the fields are the size of the ones I used when I was part of teams like the Blue Sharks and the Red Devils, they’re quite intense.

Not so successful have been the salsa classes here for the Monday group (Jess, Emily, Brianna, Liz and I). We have seriously regressed and after skipping class two weeks ago because it was “too hot to walk”, we have now been prohibited from ever attending the Thursday class (the rest of the group) because they are so far ahead of us. Oh well.

Brianna, had 4 friends here from BC this past week and it was fabulous to visit with them, talk about what’s going on back at school and show them all of our favorite spots. We spent a night at Papallacta, a spa-type place with baths heated by a nearby volcano, with them as well. It was absolutely beautiful there and so relaxing. We spent the night in cabins and had three hot tubs all to ourselves, half the group got massages, and no one wanted to leave.

Peanut Butter Jelly time at Papallacta

Liz provides us with fire.

I'm sorry there aren't more pictures from our night there, it was a very water-based adventure, I hope you understand.

Yesterday two important events happened here in my Ecua house.

1. One of our two dogs, Lisa, died. She was 13 and died in her sleep and everyone was very sad. This is terrible to say but I was rather ambivalent. Lisa had cataracts so her eyes were bright white which always terrified me and any guests I brought back. In any case, may she rest in peace.

2. We had a crab feast. It was one of the most fun meals I have ever had in this country or any other. My family was shocked that I knew how to eat crab and I tried to explain to them the annual Carla and Amy dinner but my Spanish isn’t quite proficient enough to describe how much my actual family is able consume in one night.

Oh, also 3. I think one of my brothers here just got engaged. When and how this happened I am not quite sure (I feel like Robbie here), but lately there has been a lot of discussion about location for the wedding so…I’m slowly getting the picture.

In other news, Jackie Draper in Chile is a-okay, yesterday a group of us went to a soccer game of the two rival teams here in Quito (so much fun, fútbol fans go crazy from the get-go here, as evidenced by groups of them busting down doors to enter before the game had even started), and although I have a somewhat tough week coming up at school, things are going really well!

Matt, Leila, Ryann and me at the Liga game

Due to the lack of exciting pictures I'll add this one of Leila and I with Jess' host brothers, whom we love.

I know pictures of flowers are boring but my host mom and I just came back from the botanic gardens here and they were just too gorgeous not to include.

¡Hasta la próxima!

This River is Wild

So, as many of you know, I spent last weekend in the rainforest. What many of you don’t know (and I only have myself to blame on this one), was how much I loved it. As I told the MG, it was an experience so far removed from my life back home, which is exactly why I came to this country.

We left Saturday morning and after a quick stop at Papallacta, a volcanic hot springs where Liz enjoyed her first warm shower in this country, we arrived at a small town where we traded in our sneakers for rainboots and hopped into the canoe that would be our main mode of transportation for the weekend as we were staying on a river (not the Amazon…we asked). We stayed in cabins that were far more luxurious than we had imagined and ate like kings, two things that we had not expected given the preparation of our program director, who had led us to believe that the great outdoors would be our bathroom and that we may have to kill our own food.

Nghiem and I at the hot springs

The crew on the canoe.

Ryanncita outside the girls cabaña

The days in the jungle were jam-packed with activities so I’ll just give you some of the highlights. We had a spirit-cleansing performed by the villages Shaman and the next day went to see where he lives with his family and while there we were treated to a typical meal (I’ll explain this shortly). There was a night hike in which we saw a mondo tarantula and I almost cried. Not really, but I did run away which is hard in the dark when your flashlight is borderline dead. We also visited an animal rescue site where we saw monkeys strange birds. It was also Matt's 21st while we were there so we celebrated with cake and wine.

Here's the group inside one of the biggest trees I have ever seen

I’m really just trying to rush through these highlights to get to the following: While there we played Survivor because, honestly, conditions were too perfect not to. It didn’t last that long (we voted out the creator in the second tribal counsel and things were downhill from there), but it was one of the funniest things I have ever been a part of. The threat of being voted out became the motivation behind everything we did. Therefore, we did not question:

- eating ants we had found in leaf stems and that tasted like lemon

- building a raft together and rowing said raft back to our campsite

- participating in a blow dart gun competition (in which Brianna won immunity)

- painting tribal figures on our faces while visiting the indigenous family

- forming alliances and backstabbing friends

Ten minutes later, once cooked, these were part of our lunch (Mom - remember when I boycotted sandwiches for a year after finding a worm in the bread?)

Game faces.

Our river bath. By Day 3 cohabitation was becoming difficult with the amount of dirt that was clinging to us.

So although the game didn’t last long and I was/still am more bug-bitten than I ever have been in my life (Mom I’m taking the Malaria pills, have no fear), I loved the jungle and the four days we spent there and think it was one of the most hilarious and amazing weekends of my life.