i figure since i haven't used this blog in about 50 years i should probably start up again.
seeing as though i'm out of the country.
i'll do my best to tell you all what i've done so far and what it's like. and about the journey here.
...but no promises. ;)
on june 13th i was up at 4am. i was supposed to be up at 5:30, but I was far too excited to sleep. i feel like i only slept about 3 hours that night. partially because i had friends over until 11pm that night and because i had a lot of fun that night too. and obviously, i was excited to be going on an adventure of a lifetime. anyway, i woke up and triple-checked to make sure i had everything. from a toothbrush to my camera. i wanted to make sure there would be nothing that i needed (or thought i needed) left behind.
my mom, great aunt and i had a 3 hour drive to the chicago international airport where we had to hang around for 3 hours to wait for my plane. i was escorted on first because i was an unaccompanied minor. for some reason, i wound up getting business class seats and i was SO excited. i was excited and nervous. no turning back now. we waited on the plane. and waited. and waited. and waited. and eventually the guy next to me said to me "i dont think you're going to make your connecting flight. this flight will be 3 hours and by the time we land..you're plane to guayaquil will be taking off." after another 20 minutes of waiting..a voice over the speaker mentioned a phone number we could call to reschedule our connecting flight. i decided it was time for me to go find a flight attendant to find out what i should do.
she escorted me off of the plane.. luckily, my mom and aunt were still at my gate. we went to the front desk to find out what to do...turns out..my plane had an oil leak and before they had boarded the 251 passengers, they knew that there was something wrong with my plane...as you can imagine, people were angry..missing cruises, weddings, meetings, graduations. everything. i'm glad i was one of the first people off of the plane because before i knew it there was a line forming behind me of angry people waiting to find out what to do. i was going to miss my flight and the next flight to ecuador from miami was the next day.
so. round 2. june 14th...this day my flight from chicago left 2 hours earlier than the one that was going to on the 13th. i knew that i had to go to bed early so i fell asleep at 9 thanks to some benedryl even though i wasnt sick.
i woke up at 5:30 this time. and i was still incredibly tired. i didnt have to check everything again..because my suitcase was already God knows where. some people assumed it would be in miami...while others assumed it was already in Ecuador. I slept the whole entire car ride to chicago and i was only nervous that my plane was going to have problems again.
i was once again, one of the first passengers on the plane, along with the other unaccompanied minors. however, i was the first unaccompanied minor on the plane. all of the flight attendants knew me by name and asked me where i was going. they all thought i was adorable and they were all super nice to me. no business class this time. when i found out my seat wasnt a window seat..i was determined to find someone to trade with me. about 15 minutes after people started boarding a young guy who looked like he was in his mid-twenties sat down by the window seat closest to me. in my sweetest voice possible with a smile i said "umm excuse me? i'm going to be a foreign exchange student to ecuador and i would really like to take pictures out the window of the plane to show my host family once i get there (total lie..i just wanted to take pictures!) would you mind trading with me?" and of course, he traded with me. :) carry-ons were supposed to be kept above the seats in the cabin if they didnt fit below the seat...but knowing that if that were the case for me...i'd be up and down every five seconds..i was determined to make my bag fit below the freaking seat...and i did. i have no idea how...but i did. taking off was so much fun! i was absolutely mind blown at how fast the plane was moving in order for us to take off. to the point where i started laughing. no turning back now.
i sat next to a flight attendant who was done with her shifts and heading home to miami. she was one of the nicest people i met while flying. she gave me ear plugs in case i wanted to sleep on the next flight or on the flights home from ecuador. she talked with me the whole way and was super interested in my love for photography. i had to have taken over 200 pictures on my first flight.
when we landed in miami, the flight attendant who sat next to me told me to have a good trip. i was the last one of the plane because all unaccompanied minors had to be escorted off. all the flight attendants told me to have a good time and they were all super nice. when i walked off the plane to meet my fellow unaccompanied minor friends that were also on the plane..i noticed they were all about the age of 12. and the one who stood out the most..was the one who talked to me..and this is how the conversation went. her: hey! me: hi. hows it going? her: good. how old are you? me: 16. her: oh! you look like your 12! ...thankfully, right after she said that..it was time to be taken to the unaccompanied minors room to hang out for 4 hours and wait for my next flight.
i met a couple kids in that room who were pretty nice and helped me pass the time. i couldnt get the wifi to work on my ipod which was super upsetting. however, my phone still worked so i was able to text my best friend and my mom to tell them that i landed in miami.
i kept asking the women that worked in the unaccompanied minors (let's just call them UMs..k?) room where my suitcase was...and every single time..they would ignore me. they all spoke spanish and english but when they talked to each other it was in spanish...after asking in english where my suitcase should be and they didnt answer...i tried in spanish..finally..a lady came over to me and in english said, "your suitcase should be in ecuador. don't worry about it. it will be there waiting for you." alright, lady..i'll take your word for it. i won't worry.
6 o'clock rolls around and it's time to board flight #2. at this point i knew what to expect and i was super excited! i found my seat and sat down to realize that the man who sat next to me only spoke spanish. i came to the conclusion that it was probably good for me to practice seeing as though in a few hours i would be in south america, but it felt like everytime i went to say something to him in spanish...i'd forget how to say it!!
i took a lot of pictures on that flight, too...especially of the moon. and at one point there was a cloud out my window that was a little below us that was producing lightning which was super cool to watch. i wish i could've told the guy next to me to look too, but i didn't know how to to that, either.
i was told that the flight was only going to be 3.5 hours...but i think it was about 5. first of all, we had a 45 minute delay for taking off because we had to wait in line for other planes to take off. which made me super super impatient. but i also was impatient while airborne because after awhile it got dark and i couldnt take pictures anymore. i tried sleeping...that was dumb..how was i supposed to sleep when i was less than 3 hours away from ECUADOR?!
finally, after landing...we went through all these lines and they had to check my passport and do all of that security stuff. we went to the luggage belt thinger..(what's that thing called???) i kept explaining to the lady that was escorting the UMs my situation...after awhile of contacting people she said they didnt think that they had record of my suitcase..naturally, i panicked. and of course...5 seconds after freaking out...my suitcase comes around the luggage belt. i've never been so happy to see a plain old suitcase in my whole entire life...MOVING ON!...
we went over to customs and the only thing i could think is "ugh! this is gonna take FOREVER!!!!!" and for some reason, it took literally 2 minutes. i put my bags through a scanner thing...they looked at my passport...and that was that.
i was escorted out to the waiting area for people...which was PACKED. there were hunderds, and hundreds of people..some holding flowers, some balloons...all waiting for someone. at this point...all i could think was "well..i'm never gonna find my host family." after standing on my tip toes and looking through a crowd of faces....i finally spotted my host mom..who at the exact same time..spotted me. it was so exciting. soo exciting to know that someone on the other end of the world was waiting for me to come and stay with them. i was so thankful and blessed that i made it there safely and i had found my family....can we leave the airport now??
we arrived at a house thing in guayaquil where we spent the night. i got my own little room and i was able to take a shower. i was uneasy because i really had no idea where the hell i was. i couldn't get over the fact that just that morning...i was in my own country...my own state...my own house...my own room. it was sooo weird. i was also a little upset because my phone didn't work..luckily, i had wifi in the guayaquil airport so i could tell my best friend and mom that i had safely landed. i would've liked to have had my phone working so i could text my friends and tell them everything i'd experienced so far in my first hours of being in south america...but nope.
i really didn't think i was going to sleep that night. luckily, i had my ipod..so i was able to listen to that to fall asleep..just like i did when i was at home.
when i woke up the next morning..i thought it was in my best friend's bed room..her room is the same color (or about) as the room that i stayed in. so naturally, i just looked around to find her...she wasn't there...i heard loud engines and just thought to myself "its just the neighbor boy pulling into or out of his driveway" but then i kept hearing honking horns and barking dogs...all of the sudden it had it me. i wasnt in the USA anymore.
i ate breakfast with my host family and put on some clean clothes..gathered up my stuff and made sure i didn't forget anything and then put all of my stuff back in their car. finally, we were off for a 3 hour drive to Cuenca, the city where i would be living in for the next 6 weeks.
i couldn't belive how different things were. when driving through guayaquil every time i looked out the window, i saw something i had never seen before. and despite my car sickness, i couldn't stop myself from looking out the window at everything. all of the signs, billboards and road signs...all in spanish.
when we left the city of guayaquil, we were driving towards the andes mountains. which i was absolutely fascinated by. they were so incredibly beautiful and HUGE. the closer we got to them...the more excited i got to drive in them. after awhile of driving up and up and up my ears started to pop. i was taking pictures like there was no tomorrow and i was so excited.
at one point, my host dad stopped the car and had me get out to see how cold it was at that spot. it was the highest point we would drive to which was 14,000 feet up. i dont remember feeling sick and if i was i wouldn't have noticed because i was far too excited. i was also so high up that i literally got to touch the clouds. it was awesome.
after a long drive to cuenca. we finally arrived. by the time i got to my host family's home and got out of the car, my host parents and host sister had already grabbed my luggage for me. which was honestly totally fine by me. my suitcase was 46lbs and i was TIRED.
whether it was that day or a couple after, i met my host sister's friend Maria Cecilia who i instantly became friends with. everyone here is super friendly and willing to make friends.
that friday...june 17th...i went to my first party..which was absolutely insane. it was like a party you see in the movies with color strobe lights, servers, drinks, and hundreds of teenagers just looking for a good time. of course, when i went to greet everyone, i didn't notice a dip in the pavement and i took a little bit of a fall. great way to break the ice..
of course, because i'm foreign..pretty much every guy wanted to dance with me. and in america at parties where there's dancing..we just kinda awkwardly rock back and forth and text and talk...and at parties here...people actually dance..and if you're not dancing, people are going to look at you and wonder what's wrong with you. since i already stood out enough, hence the blonde hair and blue eyes and extreme accent when i spoke spanish...i figured i might as well TRY to dance like everyone else..which didn't go as well as i planned. the first couple guys that i danced with tried to teach me and they all told me i was very good. then they offered me a drink...just like everyone else. no drinking for this girl, i can't even handle myself when i'm sober.
after awhile of dancing with at least 7 different guys, i was tired. i was still adjusting to the altitude and i was still exhausted from all my traveling even though i had been there for a few days already.
seeing as though the doctor told me that i would only need altitude meds for 3 or 4 days..i decided that the next day i wasn't gonna take them. they made me feel horrible. they made me tired all of the time and they made me lose my apetite too.
june 18th. i woke up..and i felt SO horrible. i had the worst headache ever. i was dizzy and i felt like at any second i was going to pass out. not even advil helped me. nothing. finally, after eating bread and drinking sprite (which i am now obsessed with) i felt a little better...i also decided that it would be best to back on the altitude meds. that night was my host sister's sweet 16th birthday party. so i knew that i needed to feel better. maria cecilia did an incredible job at doing my hair and makeup and i eventually started feeling a little better.
there were tons of people at Natalia's (my host sister) party. I got to meet even more of her friends, and reconnect with the ones that i had already been introduced to. all of them included me and made me feel like i was a part of their group.
i was once again, asked to dance...or told to dance with someone. and it was a little easier than the party the night before..but still a little difficult. the party went very late and as the night went on i got more and more tired and just wanted to sit down.
at one point, an extremely drunk boy decided to ask me to dance, because i knew he was drunk, i said, "No."...and he grabbed onto my waist..so i pushed him away..and then he kissed my face. which i made pretty clear in english and in spanish that i was not very happy with that. i think his friends got the message because i heard one of them tell him to go away. finally, at around 3 in the morning we went back home. i fell asleep right away.
on the 19th my host family took me to my host dad's parent's house. it was beautiful! they had so much land! when you stood on their porch you could see beautiful buildings/monuments and the mountains. i got to take a lot of awesome pictures that day. and i got to feed and photograph a wild peacock and it was awesome!! we got home very late that night and i was EXHAUSTED!
on the 20th, it was my host sister's actual birthday and we went to cajas. a national park. 20 (or maybe even more) of her friends, all packed into cars (including myself) and we were off. i'm extremely glad i took my altitude meds that day because we did some climbing around in the mountains. most of natalia's friends climbed as high as they could go...while some others, including myself, decided to stay back a little ways. i was already super tired from climbing as high as i already had. you will never understand altitude sickness until you experience it. i listened to my ipod and layed down for a little bit...and i dont know many people who can say they've took a nap in the andes mountains. :) we eventually ventured back down and then went out to eat.
driving here in ecuador is absolutely crazy. sometimes it's fun and sometimes its scary. people here drive really fast and seat belts aren't necessary, but of course i always wear mine. people here looove honking their horns. sometimes i wonder if people just honk their horn because they are bored.
on the 22nd i went out with maria cecilia and her friend galo. we went to a mall and got stuff to drink trying to find something to do. and then we decided to go find somewhere to eat nachos..and they were very good. :)
language here is tough to adjust to. they use their slang so of course it's extremely hard to pick up on. i do what i can and i have gotten a lot better. luckily, most of the people i've met are very good at speaking english. and help me a ton.
yesterday i went to a religious festival which was awesome. there were fireworks and tons and tons of people. it was absolutely beautiful.
you all keep asking me what's different about ecuador and the truth is...everything. every time i step outside, i see something different and i can't believe how far away from home i really am. and i can't believe that i made it here all by myself. it's one of those things that happens once in a lifetime. i miss all of my friends a lot..and my dog...and i wish i had my guitar more than anything in the whole entire world. i've been writing a ton and everyday i find something different to photograph.
i have a host family of 5 people. i have my host mom, dad, and brothers; joaquin who is 14 and juan alfredo who is 17 and then my host sister, natalia who just turned 16 and will be coming back with me to the USA for a month.
to all of my friends who miss me i miss you too a ton and thank you for encouraging me to go on this trip and take a risk and be what i've always wanted to be...
Fearless. <3
tomorrow is another day and i will write soon!
love, love, love,
ashley
