Bienvenido a Quito, Ecuador!

Hola, Quito! My friend and I successfully found our apartment. Paid the taxi $7 and was dropped off right in front. Thankfully ALiVE and in one piece! Wow, they sure drive crazy here. No taxi comes equipped with seat-belts in the backseat. However, these Ecuadorians know what they’re doing and some would venture to say  that they are actually safer drivers than those in the U.S. because there are no rules. Thus, they are constantly aware of their surroundings and what the other drivers around them are doing.

Both suitcases, which also passed the 50 lb limit, have been unpacked. My room is HUGE! I have three closets full of drawers and hanging space, three windows with some interesting views and a full bath. I feel extremely lucky to have been able to rent this place.

It’s past 1 a.m. here and I have been up for 19 hours, so I am going to let my head hit my pillow and pass out to the sounds of zooming cars and honking horns.

Pictures should be up tomorrow. It’s dark out so they would not capture the essence of this country. I can’t wait to see the green and region in daylight. Hasta luego mis amigos!

Ready & packed, but the weather may disagree

Today was a successful day. It had to be. Otherwise, I would be, well, to be blatant, I would be screwed. I finished packing! Hooray! During my afternoon devoted to packing, I was reminded of two things.

1. I am definitely not a girly girl. I would gladly sacrifice a pair of shoes to fit my camelback into a suitcase.

2. I fit the stereotype of a typical North American that I think I need to bring all my “things” with me when I travel. However, after a few weeks I’ll realize I had brought too much.

I’ve also come to the realization that I may have had the disadvantage of being born and raised in Arizona, a state that gets less rain in a year than others receive in a day, to paint you somewhat of a portrait of my origins.

This is what I’ll be experiencing in my first week in Quito, Ecuador.

forecast for my first week in Ecuador

Rain, rain and more rain. I’m shocked I was able to buy an umbrella today at the store. I didn’t think they existed in Arizona. Okay, maybe I’m being overly dramatic but I’m being serious when I say that this is going to be a big change. Talk to any native Arizonan and they will tell you that anything below 70 degrees fahrenheit is absolutely freezing! I’m shuddering right now just seeing these digits. I don’t think I have more than two pairs of long pants and four, thin sweaters.  Oh well, it will be an adventure to say the least!