los días primeros de cualquier aventura siempre son arumbadores

The first days of any adventure are always overwhelming.

I'll start with yesterday (Wednesday), my first day in Quito. Vivo en un barrio que se llama Los Laureles. My host parents, Maria Elena and Orlando, are beyond gracious. Their home is modest, but very friendly and open. Tenemos una perra que se llama Azúcar. She is very very cute (like I die every time I see those big eyes and ear), but she is crazy. She is 6 months old, and I'm pretty sure she is teething because she nibbles at my hand when I pet her. Usually she is on the opposite side of the fence from me (she lives outside), but whenever I am walking around in her outside area she bites at my ankles. She also grabs onto my leg with her front legs in a sort of hump-like fashion, which makes my question her sexuality... But she loves belly rubs, and immediately lays out when she senses one coming.

There are three rooms off the back terrace/yard area where Azúcar lives. One of the rooms holds a treadmill and elliptical machine. So yesterday I ran about 2 miles at 9350 ft!! I was only slightly out of breath. I am so happy to have these machines here because I would not feel safe running around Quito!

My host family is very close knit, and most of the children and grandchildren live close by. Mario, one of the older sons, came to the airport with Maria Elena and Orlando to pick me up, and he sometimes drives us places. He has a car. Mario is super-fit and runs marathons etc. and is doing a triathlon in the Galapagos in October. I also got to speak with their grandson Juancho (I think that's his name...) over the phone. I think that I'll meet him in person on Sunday when we take Azúcar to training school. He is ten years old and sounds really great on the phone.

Yesterday, the group had a meeting at our program coordinator's house. AYYYY, beginnings are always so awkward, but I think the group is showing early signs of a good dynamic.

But today was the day for meetings and presentations. We arrived at la Universidad San Francisco de Quito at 7:45 am. We met our student buddies, who showed us around the small campus. We were talked at for a long time about safety in the city, diarrhea, social customs, how to dress, Ecuadorian politics, etc. Although I don't care at all for politics, I found it very interesting that the political science professor who talked about the country's politics was very hesitant to say anything even slightly negative about the government. From the safety talks, I got the sense that Ecuador is no more dangerous than any other country in Latin America. I basically have to use my noggin, and everything should be just fine!

I'm really making a huge effort to speak Spanish and learn more. My classes are all in English (except for Spanish class), and my group does quite a bit of traveling to different areas of the country. I'm thinking this could be a bit isolating in terms of getting to know our fellow Ecuadorian students at the university. It's truly exhausting to meet so many new people all at once. It's like day one of high school and college all over again.

The meetings at the university were over at 4 pm, and Maria Elena met me and Alison (a student who is living with a family close by) to guide us home. Eventually, we will be on our on on the buses. When I got home, I played 7 games of dominoes with my host parents, skyped my biological parents, and ate dinner and talked with Maria Elena. Ecuadorians don't really eat dinner, because they eat such a large lunch.

This should keep you satisfied for now, and there will be more later!