After arriving back mid-week from spending Carnaval in Mompiche, I was so happy to welcome back Ibarra’s climate into my arms- 70, sunny, and low humidity, though I will say the non-bustling and fresh air lifestyle of the coast was nice as well. The rest of the week at CRECER was very slow because school kids had the whole week off, and I also wasn’t going to any of the older adult centers for the holiday week as well. Because we had not slept at all over the last week, these slow paced few days were needed for all of us to recover physically and mentally.
On Thursday night, Corri, Hannah, Gina, and her friend Jim and I joined Marcela, one of the physical therapists who works for the local government, for wing night in town. It was a 2×1 deal, so we scarfed down some Jack Daniel’s and BBQ flavored wings. Not as good as at home, but still tasty since I haven’t had wings since October. We have been wanting to spend more time with Marcela after rafting, and we finally found some time to do so; she’s so personable and patient with our attempts at Spanish, but she’s also interested in bettering her English from us.
Friday night we spent in, eating brownies, making guac, finishing up Spanish classes (for me), and preparing for a Saturday morning hike up Imbabura Volcano. It is the visible volcano from my roof at home, and it’s something we’ve talked about climbing since we all made weekend plans. I knew this was going to be tough for me, but I’m not sure the others were quite aware of my future struggle! We woke up early, got a taxi to Esperanza, and ate breakfast at hostel Casa Aida before meeting our guide, Charly. After a short ride in the open back of a truck, we arrived at the trailhead.
On Friday night after saying by to the level 1 students, Gina, Corri, and I headed out to Gong for some live music. There was absolutely no one there except for a few people, but the music was instrumental and sounded like a mix of latin-rock-funk and was great. On Saturday morning, Hannah, Gina, Corri, and I headed out to a friend, Peter’s, farm in Salinas, around 40 minutes north of Ibarra. I met Peter the first week I was here- he used to live in the States, but his mom is Ecuadorian and his family owns land here where they cultivate limes/lemons, coffee plants, avocados, corn, etc. Peter showed us around his farm which was stunning and had great views, and then we spent the day with his parents and their friends. Many of them are United States citizens who live either part time or permanently in Ecuador now (how can I do this....?). I met someone who grew up in Grand Rapids, MI; someone who lived in YellowSprings, OH and Columbus for extended periods of time, and someone who was just as interested in radio waves and power technology as my dad. It was an afternoon filled with fantastic conversation, delicious food, to-die-for carrot cake and homemade pumpkin pie, and wonderful people. We were so happy to spend a day outside of Ibarra in such a tranquil place. That night, Peter invited us out to a friend's 30th birthday party on the outskirts of Ibarra. We had a good time being Ecua-napped in attempts to get to the party after 2 hours of driving around picking people up, and we spent a good time there attempting to speak Spanish with people but mostly speaking English. It really makes me feel sad that there isn't encouragement in the States to learn a second language, yet a majority of people our age in Ibarra speak English. Continued motivation to get better at Spanish!
We are incredibly sad that we only have a little over a month left together. We are at a point of feeling like we really are living in Ecuador, but the time we have left is so short and not sufficient for a total immersive experience. When I arrived in November, I thought the 5 months would seem like a significant time, but it seems so short now. I figured out that I have to extend my tourist via this upcoming week, and I wish I could stay the 90 days more. I asked Ohio State and the graduate school, but unfortunately it's not permitted for me to stay longer. So, this short time that is left with these amazing women and wonderful country, we need to take advantage of everything. So now I'm headed out to the local lake for a delicious lunch! Hasta la próxima vez.
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