If you asked me if I thought I would ever study abroad, I would have said no. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to study abroad, I desperately want to travel the world, but I always thought I couldn’t afford it. Coming back from my trip I have learned there is no amount of money that could compare to what I experienced on my trip. This trip has become another turning point in my life and I can see myself doing it all over again. 

 
Day 1: After a much traveling, we finally made our way to Guayaquil, Ecuador. We were greeted with a van at the airport and drove our way to Cuenca, where we went straight into orientation at the El Nomad Center. 

 
 

 Cuenca is 8000 ft above sea level, so altitude sickness can affect you, and hit me the first day. A lot of water and their delicious sugar cane candy made me feel 100% again. With El Nomad we were paired with a host family. My host family consisted of a woman named Sonia, a little man named Matias and his Mother. Sonia cooked us breakfast and lunch every day. It was so delicious. Many of the meals consisted of rice and chicken or some other type of meat. She served each meal with homemade juice as well. Here is the lunch she prepared for us on our last day there before we left:

Everything I ate there was delicious! The fruits were incredibly fresh and full of flavor! One of the fruits we tried was called Granadilla (aka Passion Fruit). The Granadilla is a member of the passiflora and is native to South America. The shell is hard and shiny and inside there is a jelly pulp with black edible seeds. If you ever come across this fruit, I recommend you try it! Here’s a picture of what it looks like:

The culture here has many local markets all around. These markets can even be found in the center of town. They have markets for flowers, fruits, meats, clothing, and more. There are also supermarkets, such as Supermaxi, however the markets sell items for cheaper. Here are some photos of the markets I came across:

Turi is a small place within Cuena that welcomes tourism. Here you can find a huge swing that will place you atop the entire city. It is more exhilarating than a roller coaster! You can also see the entire city from up here and the mountains in the background.

On the evening of Day 1 we had our group welcome dinner. We had a traditional dinner consisting of mote pillo, mote sucio, cuy, horchata and canelazo. Mote pillo and mote sucio are both made of hominy corn, however they use different ingredients when cooking. Cuy is also known as guinea pig. It is often eaten for celebrations or during the weekend. You can find restaurants that have this as their specialty. Horchata is not your typical rice made horchata, but instead it is made as a tea with many different herbs. Canelazo is a sugar cane shot, which can also be drank as a cocktail. I wouldn’t recommend drinking too much of this, as it may take a little longer to hit you.

Day 2: Breakfast consisted of toasted break with scrambled eggs with ham, cheese, guanabana juice and this milk where we poured in the coffee too. I’m not usually a coffee drinker, but this coffee was delicious! You are given a cup of warm milk and pour the coffee into it. After breakfast we went to El Cajas National Park. There are many different trails you can take here, we took the three our trail tour with a tour guide. This is an excellent hike for nature lovers, fitness junkies, and those who just love to explore! It is semi challenging, as you climb up and down. At one point we were at 12,800 ft above sea level!

The llama was found outside a restaurant right outside the national park. My adventure for the day did not stop here. They say the best way to learn a city is to get lost in it, so that’s exactly what my roommate and I did. When we got back, we took a public bus to our home stay and although we did not get lost, we experienced the city more than we could otherwise.

Day 3: We began the day with another delicious breakfast (same as yesterday). The girls in the group decided to get their nails done today, so we went to the local nail salon. When treating yourself, prepare to leave about an hour or longer for each service. A manicure and pedicure together costs about $15 including design. The hand and foot massage they give you are excellent, best I’ve ever received. A haircut here is very cheap as well. I received a trim for my dead ends for only $7 and I have very long hair!

Later that day we began our work at the foundation. We were here only to observe and help where help was needed. I helped a little boy named Justin with his homework. At the center the children are given a meal, a snack, help with homework and playtime. The children here are filled with so much life and are eager to learn.

Later that evening we went to try more traditional food. We went to eat empanadas at a small restaurant on Remigo Crespo. We tried empanadas carne (meat), pollo (chicken), verde (plantain), and queso (cheese). I also tried a traditional Ecuadorean hot dog here which had thin cut fries, peppers, and I believe also had ketchup, cheese and maybe a few other toppings. I also tried a beverage called morancho, a milk/rice drink. Since it was my roomies birthday, we went across the street for ice cream after to La Creperia Sorbetto. The ice cream was delicious and the service was excellent. Afterwords we walked home and stopped to take some tourist photos.

Day 4: Today we went over to the market nearby the foundation to meet the parents of the children. Some of the parents sold fruits and veggies, some sold cooked corn, some polished shoes and others just pushed heavy groceries. We continued to work at the foundation today, where we broke into groups. One group taught the children about hygiene and healthy teeth, while the other groups painted the walls fresh.

Later that evening we had salsa dancing lessons. I knew the basics of salsa, however taking a salsa class improved my ability to dance better. We then went back to the crepes/ice cream place (La Creperia Sorbetto) we went to yesterday. This time I ordered crepes and it was delicious! Following that we went to a bar in town.

Day 5: We began the day at the Pumapungo Ethnographic Museum. The ruins were well preserved and a great sight. Afterwards my roomie and I went to the Plaza Millennium. This reminded me of a small mall. there were three floors but each floor was fairly small. Here you could find electronic stores, a movie theater, clothing, food, shoes, a hair salon and more.

Later that day we did zumba in a nearby park. The culture here promotes health and by doing so they have exercise classes at nearly all the parks. Zumba here is like an intense Latin dancing class. It was so fun even though it ended early because of the pouring rain. Something everyone should try at least once during their trip here!

Since the zumba class ended early, we made our way to Parque Calderon, where we found the break dancers practicing. At various time you could catch the break dancers practicing or showing off some moves in the glorieta (gazebo).

Day 6: Our last day volunteering at the foundation has arrived. My time with the children here, although short, was more rewarding than any volunteer experience I ever had! They have forever impacted me in a way I could not be impacted by anyone else. Here are some photos I captured with the children and of the art I had the opportunity to paint on the walls.

 

After the foundation that day we learned how to make empanadas and aji! They came out delicious!

After we made our way back to Parque Calderon to get some break dancing lessons from the break dancers in the Wazy Style Crew! There was a larger crowd tonight and many more break dancers but we still were able to learn a few moves from them!

Day 7: Our final full day! Today we explored Incapirca. We got to stand on the original Inca trail and see a rock in the shape of a face! We also tried Chicha (a drink made out of corn) and choclo (white corn).

When back in Cuenca, we wanted to explore for a little longer. We had a friend walk with us through the city and gave us a little history of some of the things we saw. Some of the things we saw were La Cruz del Tomebamba or La Cruz del Vado (this is a cross named after a river for protection of the young ones crossing it).

Ecuador has a massive street art movement. Here are some of the photos of art I captured.

We then were given three different types of food wrapped in leaves. One was a humita, one was a tamale and the last was a quimbolito. The humita was my favorite! We ended the night exploring the nightlife. If you’re looking to explore night life while you are there, places are supposed to close at 2am, however there are some karaoke bars and other places that open up after 2 am or stay open until 4am.

Day 8: Our final hours have arrived. Today was a day for pure relaxation. We went to Pierda de Agua for a spa day. I purchased the bigger package. I first went into a steam room, then I had my massage (which was the BEST massage I have ever received and I go get massages about twice a year), then I was instructed to go into the mud bath and cover myself in mud. After I rinsed off and did an exfoliate bath and washed it off. Then I was sent to go into the hot tub for 10 minutes transfer to a cold tub for 1 minute, and repeat. Going from cold to hot gave a tingling sensation. We then were fed delicious fruits with melted chocolate and wine. We finished with a sauna box. Such a relaxing and great experience for an affordable price compared to the United States.

Ecuador was an experience of a lifetime. Studying abroad with El Nomad has forever impacted my life and I hope to do it all over again one day! If you’re ever in South America, I would go and visit Ecuador and if you’re in Ecuador, go and visit Cuenca! The history, archetecture, art, kind people, delicious foods and more will make your time stayed well spent! Till next time Cuenca.

Hasta la proxima Cuenca!

Photo Credit: Bek Summons

A special thanks to Bek, Arturo and Becca for leading such a great study abroad program! Another special thanks to Ms. Terre Lucas for introducing this program to UNCC and continuing to raise the bar! I would also like to thank Sonia for making amazing meals and providing us a place to stay and the friends I made along the way during my time in Ecuador. Last but not least thank you to all my friends and family that contributed in any way for making this trip happen!

If you have any additional questions about studying abroad or Cuenca, please don’t hesitate to ask.