Join Garrett F. on his Ecuadorian quest with the Quito Junior Immersion program
My weekend was quite amazing I must say. On Saturday we left the school at 6:30 am for the Bella Vista cloud forest. After a two hour drive we arrived at a cool little lodge in the forest. We ate breakfast then set off on a hike through the cloud forest. Equipped with a guide and boots on our feet, we took a long hike through paths and rivers as we finally got to the water fall. Afterwards we hiked back to the lodge where we had some scrumptious trout for lunch, then it was off to the small town of Mindo.
After a bumpy drive we arrived at our very cool hotel in Mindo. We stayed in little cabins, 4 people per cabin. Then, after dinner at the hotel, we went on a tour of the city and its wildlife areas with a guide from the hotel. A cool thing I saw was crickets that let off bright lights that you could see throughout the forest. The tour ended with a discotheque where I practiced some of the salsa skills I learned from the lessons. On Sunday we woke up bright and early and headed to the zip lines which were pretty awesome. I very much enjoyed glided across the forest tops across the cables. Afterwards we headed back to the hotel to grab our swimsuits for tubing! Tubing was fun and a very cold. As we bumped off rock and rapids, we were drenched by ice cold water! It was a very fun weekend that ended with a long, sleep-filled van ride home.
As my first complete week has come to an end, I would like to share some things that I have learned and some tips you might want to know. In Ecuadorian culture they do not waste food. Unlike in the United States where we often don´t finish plates and take food for granite, in Ecuador you finish ALL the food on your plate and you only have three meals a day unless you decide to buy your own snacks in between. Although you often have to be careful of pickpockets and petty crime, overall the people in Quito are very kind and the city is vibrant.
Chao!
Garrett
See all of Garrett F.'s blogs from Quito
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