A Frank Assessment of Quito Part 1

     So, Quito back in the day (say 10 years ago?) was known mostly because of how unsafe it was, with the Centro Historico (Historic Distrect) being so filled with thieves, robbers, muggers, and every type of unsavory character that even the locals didn't carry anything of value and shut their shops before dark. Southern Quito wasn't much better (Northern Quito is the rich area). However, the gov't decided that the way for them to start making some money was to focus on tourism; and that meant making Quito safer and more attractive to the touristas. So the gov't invested however-many-millions of dollars into clearing out the unsavory types from the Centro Historico and fixing up the buildings. They also invested in some heavy security and some much-needed lighting. Along with giving the tourists something to see, they needed to give them someplace to stay and someplace to reaaaally spend their money. Hence, Mariscal Sucre! (also known as Gringoland) It is full of restaurants and nightclubs and basically everything a tourist could want, all at sky-high prices of course.       I, of course, live in the South, near El Recreo, (a huge mall) so I have a better knowledge of this area than any other. Compared to most western countries, this area would be considered a slum, or ghetto. As I look out my window, I can see trash up and down the street, two tires randomly on the sidewalk, and stray dogs ambling about. Loud music plays every night from a club across the street in a rusting warehouse. The decades of high crime have left an indelable impression on South Quito, with every house being built like a fortress. I've only seen one house without either a high barrier wall or heavy metal doors with multiple locks. My house has huge metal doors with 3 locks on the outside, plus another locked door in the garage, and another heavy metal locked door at the entrance of the living area. The houses around us are the same, or have 15-20 foot walls topped with barbed wire or broken glass set in concrete. Also, practically every car in Quito has a car alarm on it, most of which are prone to going off for no reason at all, so you will hear a constant stream of alarms of different types going of though the day and into the night.
      I live one block off of a major street and two blocks down from a major trollybus station, so transportation is easy enough. (a trollybus is an elongated bus that runs on electified wires above the street) The trollybuses are an experience, let me tell you. I have to cross the street to get to the station (an experience in and of itself) but it's easy to get in. A ticket is .25 cents, and the trollybuses are regular so there isn't too much of a wait. Getting on the trollybus is a different story though. Ever seen a rugby scrum? Yeah, it's kind of like that. It's one of those crowd situations where you are being hurtled forward and jostled and shoved, and you realize that if you trip and fall, you might just die. The trolleybuses are always packed, and personal space is a foreign concept. Thieves are also known to frequent the trolleybuses, ranging from pickpockets to muggers. When riding, everyone holds their purses or bags tightly in front of them. I never carry anything of value in my purse or in my pockets, and wear conservitive clothing without flashy jewelry, and so far it has worked well. Getting off is equally a struggle. You have to literally shove and elbow your way through to the doors without any thought to personal space as you use all of your strength to work your way through areas no wider than a few inches. There's a lot more, but I am going to have to write about that later. As it is getting late. Adios, and Dolce Suenos.

Update

So, the longer I am here, the more I realize just how lucky I got.  Let me start at the beginning.  Coming into Quito, the lines for immigration are very long, and usually take 45+ minutes, I was there for more than an hour, and I wasn't more than 1/3 back in the line, (So if you are visiting Quito, schedule that time into your trip) Immigration was fairly simple, and I had nothing that required more paperwork, so I was able to get out just before minnight.  The UBECI person was easy enough to spot, and had a sign w/ my name on it.  They drove me to my homestay (all of them are in the south) and I ended up in Mayra's house.  Now my room (which I love and also find hilarious) is also the kids playroom, so half the room is just toys, and I have Hello Kitty and Disney Princesses on my wall, while the colour scheme is pink and purple.  And you know what? I love that room!  It has a good bed, lots of drawers, and a huge window. 
  Now Mayra is my host mother, and she lives here with her husband and 2 children, Allison (7) and Jose (2).  She speaks English well, is studying tourism, and is increadably kind and thoughtful. Also, I have to mention that the food is absolutely increadable.  (Seriously, the food is among the best I've ever had)  This was my first piece of luck.  As I have talked to other volunteers here, the most common complaint has been the food, most of the complaints I have heard have come from the Volunteer House, the kindest being that the food is "bad enough that I need to buy a new belt" (as he had lost so much weight)  The second complaint I heard was about the noise.  The noise from the street is constant, but after a day or so, you don't really notice it. (and to me it's actually somewhat comforting)  But again, at the Volunteer House, the complaint is that the walls are really thin and you can hear everything through them.  In my house, I hear nothing except from the street, and that isn't bad at all.  However, there are advantages to staying at the Volunteer House, chief among those is that you meet other volunteers.  There are at least 7 that stay there, and if you like to party and go out on the town, then that might be the place for you, as they have things going on almost every night.  As for me, I'm not a party girl, and I have so much work to do with Spanish lessons, my classes at the school, and TEFL, that I don't have enough time as is.  So I really don't miss out. 
     The second thing I really lucked out on was the woman I was replacing at the school, was in the same house as me and I had several days with her.  Unfortunately, if you are teaching English as an assisstant, they don't really give you much help.  For Stacy (the woman I was taking over for) they literally just dropped her at the front of the school, and that was it.  UBECI focuses a lot more on the Market Children Program, and there are a lot more people, so you have more support.  Luckily for me, I had Stacy.  She took me to the school and introduced me around and showed me how to get there and back again on the bus.  I really would hate to think of where I'd be without her.  I also went to Mindo (another story) over the weekend, and she told me all about pretty much everything she knew about Quito and the school, as well as how to handle the students.  I would have been completely lost without her, bith literally and figuratively.  As for right now, I need to get back to studying my Spanish.  Adios, I'll write again later!
 

Well, This is New

Ok, so things have changed since my last post however many months ago.  At the moment, I am in Quito, Ecuador, to teach English through International Volunteer HQ (IVHQ).  I am in a homestay and will be here for three months, though at the moment that seems rather terrifing.  I will post again, later today about all the insanity here, it should be interesting.

Off On A New Track

Well, I've done it!  I'm heading off to Kathmandu, Nepal to teach English in a Buddist monestary!  I'm hoping to do a photography project on literacy while I'm out there, as well as a "30 Years Later" retrospective in the villages of Lahachok and Rrampur, the villages my mother taught in as a Peace Corps volunteer in the late 70's.  More to follow, at the moment I'm too excited to sit still!

I Was Right To Be Scared

The Peace Corps got back to me with an e-mail, and basically said I am not qualified for any of their positions.  On top of that, they will shred my application in 1 years time unless I become qualified for another field and have 3 months of outreach experience in that field, or if I score a 50 or higher on the CLEP test in either English or Spanish.  My video post will explain what I am doing to reactivate my application; because know this, Peace Corps, this. is. not. over.

Now I'm Scared

So now I am trying to get in touch with the Peace Corps Placement Office.  I have run into so many problems since starting this that I want to make sure that they have all my info and aren't missing anything.  I am also terrified as this is the most competitive part of the process.  About 12,000 people apply every year for about 4,000 available spots.  Only 8,000 are accepted and begin the process, and others are knocked out in the medical review.  However, by the time the placement office gets the file, there are still roughly 2 applicants up for every available spot.  I wish I could accurately spell out how much it frightens me that I might not get picked.  However, I do know that if I don't get picked, I will up my skill set, maybe in building, maybe in medical, in language, anything I have to in order to get an invite to serve.  I know I will not stop until I actually have a paper in my hand telling me when I am leaving and where I am going to serve in the Peace Corps.  That still doesn't make it any less scary though.

A Video Post! Because I'm Lazy That Way.

I actually rather like this way of updating, maybe I'll have to do it more often now.