"Plunge boldly into the thick of life, and seize it where you will, it is always interesting.”
- Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Ecuador
I have to be careful when I start talking about Ecuador, because I could go on and on...and on. I traveled through Ecuador as a part of a month long study abroad program. In this short amount of time, we hiked, danced, and ate our way through the Andes, the Amazon, the Galapagos, Quito (the capital), and the large city of Guayaquil.
We took classes on sustainable practices and travel writing, as described in the courses portion of my portfolio. Additionally, I completed an independent study project on medicinal plants. Through this project, I learned not only about plants, but about the shaman culture in Ecuador as well as communicating in Spanish (I had never taken a formal Spanish class) by asking many questions of the local people whose patience and openness to share I really appreciated.
It was refreshing be able to explore so many new things at a stage of my life when I was so unsure about the future. I tried guinea pig, surfed, snorkeled with sharks, hiked at 12,000 feet, touched a llama, rode piled in the back of a truck with sixteen of my peers up a windy dirt road... the list goes on. Through all of this exploring and getting lost, I figured myself out a little bit more. And after this, there was one thing I could be sure of: the people and natural beauty of this country had definitely won my heart.
We took classes on sustainable practices and travel writing, as described in the courses portion of my portfolio. Additionally, I completed an independent study project on medicinal plants. Through this project, I learned not only about plants, but about the shaman culture in Ecuador as well as communicating in Spanish (I had never taken a formal Spanish class) by asking many questions of the local people whose patience and openness to share I really appreciated.
It was refreshing be able to explore so many new things at a stage of my life when I was so unsure about the future. I tried guinea pig, surfed, snorkeled with sharks, hiked at 12,000 feet, touched a llama, rode piled in the back of a truck with sixteen of my peers up a windy dirt road... the list goes on. Through all of this exploring and getting lost, I figured myself out a little bit more. And after this, there was one thing I could be sure of: the people and natural beauty of this country had definitely won my heart.