Getting lost seemed to be the theme of the day yesterday haha. I am safe though, don't worry! I had to wake up early for my orientation at USFQ. My host abuela drove me and the other three American students to campus since we are still feeling a bit confused when it comes to riding the buses. I was so sleepy during the first half, which was basically just a series of lectures about safety. It took place in the movie theater in the mall across from the campus! At lunch I sat at a table with a group of students who have been in Quito for a month already! They have already gone on several trips together and know their way around. There was also a boy from the Netherlands who had literally come straight from the airport, and a girl from Germany as well. After lunch I took a tour of campus. The university is soooooo nice, it's like a hundred times nicer than Truman. Although Truman has USFQ beat in the drinking fountain department. There are only two drinking fountains on campus, and one of them is way out on the edge of campus. After the tour, I tried to find the spot where Susy said she'd meet us, but I couldn't remember what her car looked like and I couldn't remember which side of the bus stop she said she'd meet us by. My phone has not been working, so I wasn't able to call anyone either. Just as I was about to start panicking I ran into Susy and Tyler. The two girls were shopping in the mall for new phones, so we stayed outside to talk. After Macie and Caitlyn were back we drove to Susy's house. All of the children (besides Monse) were there. They were playing a game in the yard that involved killing plastic dinosaurs with rocks. Darth Vader lasted longer than the dinosaurs but eventually he was killed by a rock too. Caitlyn suggested that we build a cemetery for all the dead dinosaurs and Darth Vader but the boys didn't seem to like that idea. Tyler, Caitlyn and I worked together to build a giant tower of dinosaurs, but the boys weren't too impressed by that either. Soon it was time for my first field trip! Susy drove me to the meeting place, but we were thirty minutes early so we went inside a little coca cola store (they are everywhere) and she bought me some water. She explained how I would walk back to my apartment after the trip, and I understood (or at least thought I understood). We said our goodbyes, and I set off to find the other students going on the trip. Even though the vast majority of international students at USFQ are from the United States, there were quite a few people on this trip from Europe. I met a girl and a boy both from England. We couldn't find the rest of the group at first (but it might have just been that we were early). The girl, Grace, has an uncle who used to live in Ecuador. She has been living here all summer with a friend of her uncle. We found the bus, and I sat by a girl named Clementine. She's pretty much one of the coolest people I know. She's from Paris but goes to school in Montreal. She has been to every continent besides Antarctica (but it is on her list) and she speaks French, English, and Spanish fluently. Over the summer she was a mountain guide living on a Canadian ranch. The traffic was pretty bad, it probably would have been faster to get out of the bus and walk. At one point when we were waiting on traffic, a street performer that was holding a plastic skeleton began dancing all around the bus. The roads were mostly all brick and were very bumpy and there where so many hills everywhere. Our first stop was at a cathedral in el centro histórico. I don't remember its name but it was modeled after Notre Dame. Afterwards we got back on the bus and drove to la Virgen de El Panecillo, a giant statue of an angel on the top of a mountain. The view was gorgeous, my pictures did not do it justice. The first picture was a mural of la Virgen from the inside of the statue. The lights were spectacular from the top! Next we went to a little empañada restaurant in el centro histórico. We ordered 2 empanadas grandes, one with pollo and one with queso, that we shared. We also ordered Canelazo de Mora, a hot blackberry drink, for everyone. Everything was delicious! I had to call my host mom from the restaurant to let her know I was running late and that I was okay, but the music and voices were so loud I could barely hear her over the phone! When we left the empañada restaurant, we all sort of lingered in the alley for a few moments. Then a clown came up behind Clementine and me and screamed in our ears! I have never been so scared!
On the bus ride back to el Estadio, Fernando (one of the guides) told us the story of la Iglesia de San Francisco. Legend has it that it was built by an indigenous person. He wanted it to be built by a certain date, but there was no way that it could be done. So he made a pact with the devil, selling his soul in exchange for the construction of the church by a certain date. The church was finished by the date, just like the devil had promised, but it was missing a single brick. This one brick made the pact invalid, so the devil did not get the indigenous man's soul. By the time the trip ended it was quite late at night, probably around 9:30. I was scared to walk home that late since my phone didn't work. If I got lost I would have had to flag down a taxi. Clementine's host mom offered to drive me home, but she didn't exactly know where my address was either. She called Margarita to ask for directions, but Margarita insisted on picking me up. I apologized to Margarita and she was so sweet, she was glad that we called and that I was safe. When we got home she drew me a map to help me learn the city.
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Hola, soy olivia.After living in the Midwest my whole life, I packed my bags and moved south to Guadalajara, Mexico where I'm working as an English teacher and studying Spanish. Keep posted to hear about all my adventures!
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