Cotopaxi and the Chiva!

Cotopaxi!

Gabriela and I.

Ann, Gabriela, and I drinking hot cocoa in the primer refugio.

Those little specks at the bottom of the slope are cars and buses.

During our adventure trying to get to the base of the climb, we contemplated whether or not to use this bridge. We made the right choice to not use it...it just drops off the other side!

Pretty much my favorite photo of all time.

Bowling! Re-creating my technique of motioning for the ball curve to the center after I've already thrown it. Works every time.

Chiva! Can't leave Ecuador without a good ol' fashion PARTY BUS!

Canelazo! (Cider-ish yummy-ness)

(Some of) The Girls!

Tyler and I repping the military!

COTOPAXI and the CHIVA!

This weekend I went with Ann and Gabriela, one of Ann’s friends/students, to Cotopaxi, the second highest volcano (after Chimborazo) and the highest active volcano in Ecuador. I was really excited to go because it was one of the last few things on my “must do” list. We climbed to just past the first refuge, which is the goal of most recreational climbers. Summiting requires months of preparation, intense ice climbing equipment, and a guide. Not really what I had in mind.

I left at 6:30am to take a bus to Ann’s house in Los Chillos, a southern suburb, and we took Gabriela’s car to Cotopaxi. The drive was really fun because once you got into Cotopaxi National Park, the signs were almost impossible to comprehend. It was a slew of random arrows pointing down seemingly identical roads that were barely drivable. We got lost and I seriously thought we were going to careen off a mountainside to our deaths at one point but Gabriela had everything under control. We ended up taking a huge detour through the middle of the park but it was the kind of getting lost that vastly improves the overall quality of the trip. The view was spectacular. But it was exciting when we finally saw a car. Salvation!

We chased the car down and asked for directions and were to the mountain in no time. The same car that gave us directions also came to our rescue when we got stuck at the bottom of an especially steep stretch of road heading to the base of the climb. And his wife even gave us candy so that we didn’t get light-headed climbing. They were pretty much awesome.

So we climbed to the first refuge, which is a cute little mountain lodge where we got hot chocolate, which was nice because it was snowing when we reached the top. My first EcuaSnow! The trip was a blast. The whole time I just kept thinking about how I’m not ready to leave yet. It’s easy to lose perspective when writing essays, but when admiring Cotopaxi National Park, there is no way to forget how lucky I am to be here and how amazing this entire experience has been. I just can’t believe it’s going to be over in fifteen days. I’m excited about what comes next but this semester seriously flew by!

Last night, IES got us all a Chiva, an open-air party bus with music and kitschy décor, to celebrate all the birthdays that happened during the semester and it was a blast! We went through Mariscal y Centro Histórico. El Centro was especially beautiful because all the cathedrals are lit up at night. Dancing in a Chiva, sipping canelazo (cider-type drink that Quito is known for), and admiring the cathedrals, I couldn’t help but think: “I live here! This is my life!” I may just have two weeks left, but I will always be able to carry this experience with me.

Coming to Ecuador was one of the best decisions that I’ve ever made. I remember when the paperwork and scholarship applications were getting overwhelming and I had thoughts about just staying in Chicago. I love Chicago, Loyola, ROTC, my friends; why not stay? It would have been a lot easier to just stay put. I’m glad I didn’t let those thoughts overpower me.

Yesterday marked my being in Quito for exactly four months and tomorrow marks my having exactly two weeks remaining (I’m writing this after midnight. I’m pretending it’s still the 7th). It’s getting a lot harder to say no to hanging out with friends and buckling down to work. Whenever I have to make a choice between the two, I think “I only have two weeks left with these friends until we all go back to our niches all over the country.” And then the decision is made. Luckily, years of good study habits are balancing that out so my coursework doesn’t seem to be suffering. Everything will get done eventually, even the essay that I am procrastinating right now in order to write this blog. But now for a few…

FACTOIDS!

• Pichincha is a mountain range and the mountains nearest Quito are Ruco Pichincha and GuaGua Pichincha (Ruco is Quechua for “old man” and GuaGua for “infant”).
• After Ecuador’s financial crisis of 1998, Filanbanco, Ecuador’s biggest financial institution, collapsed amidst rumors of corruption. Because of the times, there was really no way to prove any wrong-doing, yet the company closed, taking the money of a vast portion of the population with it. Many people, who were already suffering from severe financial stress, lost everything. It was devastating and led to depression and suicides. Those at fault suffered no repercussions.
• If you wanted to become a citizen of The Republic of Ecuador and open a business here, all you would need to do is prove that you have $30,000 available to start the business. Once you do that, you can get an entrepreneurial visa. (Don’t worry. I’m not getting any ideas. But then again…).

Okay, that’s all for now! Tomorrow I’m tagging along on a field trip for a class I’m not in to Quilotoa. It’s very possible that Quilotoa will be my last adventure outside of Quito before heading home. I’m running out of weekends! And I seriously can’t believe that the Quilotoa trip is tomorrow. Looking at it in my calendar, it always seemed so far away and here it is! But... I think that’s it for now. I need to get some sleep! Until next time, Peace! I hope everyone is enjoying their May!