Ecuador: Travel & Tourism

After hours and hours of travels, I have spent time in Ecuador and returned with much to share! I will spend the next several posts to describe bits and pieces of my trip. Today - Travel and Tourism!

Flights to Ecuador - I was picked up at 10am on Friday, and we drove to NYC to fly out of JFK at midnight. We arrived in Guayaquil, Ecuador and transferred our luggage to our flight to Quito, arriving there around 9:30am. We met Rob, the missionary, and went to the guesthouse where we would spend the night. We had to wait for the arrival of two team members from Chicago.

Exploring Quito - We took a bus to downtown Quito (the capital) for 25 cents. We saw a governmental building, the Mary statue on the hill, and lots of taxis. We took a tour of a basilica and bought some souvenirs. The next morning, we went to a large church in the area and sat in on a service in Spanish.

Driving to Shell - The picture above shows the distance between Quito (upper) and Shell (lower), where Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) is located. (All the green to the right is jungle!) During the 4 hour drive, we saw volcanos, a lake, rolling hills, high mountains, houses, shops, and more. We stopped in Banos for more souvenir shopping, then arrived in Shell. We had dinner with Rob's family - his wife, Lynette, and children, Rebecca and Robby.

Casa de Fe - An orphange meaning "House of Faith" that we visted on Tuesday. My grandparents had been there before, but I was able to visit their brand new building. They currently have 58 orphans up to age 14, many with specials needs. There are now plans for a school building nearby as well.

Zoo - On Thursday, our plans were delayed, so we had time to check out the zoo. It was on a military compound, and we had to walk 20-30 minutes through the jungle to see the animals. They let monkeys out of their cages for us to see, and we got to hold a baby boa (above) and a baby ocelot. We also saw turtles and birds.

Travel back to Quito - On Friday after a morning VBS, we piled in the van and drove back to Quito. We stopped at a senic view as well as an area known for making and selling jeans. We had lunch in a mall and just barely missed being nailed by a small landslide. Driving is a little crazy in Ecuador, and we had to make a tough left-hand turn, but we safely arrived back in Quito. We went shopping at the market for more souvenirs before heading to another mall for dinner. We stayed at the same guest house as we did before and prepared for our trip home.

Flights to NY - We arrived at the Quito airport Saturday morning. Terry (above) braided my hair; we were roommates all week, and it was fun to get to know her! We flew to Guayaquil, then had a few hours until our flight to JFK in NYC. I was so ready to go home at this point. It's a lot to be with the same group of people for a week straight! I was missing friends my age, and I was tired of traveling. We boarded for JFK around 3pm, watched movies, ate dinner, and napped a bit on the plane. I also journaled and read a biography on Jim Elliot - one of the missionaries that was speared. We landed soon after 10pm, got our luggage and went through customs, and were on the road soon after midnight. We arrived in Rochester close to 7am on Sunday morning, and I was dropped back off at school by 8am. I unpacked a bit, then got some more sleep. I spent the day doing laundry, catching up on e-mail, organizing my 460 pictures, and sharing souvenirs and stories with friends.

Traveling is really tiring, but it was great to be able to experience so much during my time in Eucador - more to come!