Sept. 29, 2019 - My first 5 days in Ecuador
I arrived in the city of Manta, Ecuador at 7am Wednesday morning. Waiting for me outside of the baggage area was Douglas, a 22 year old Ecuadorian who's family I'll be living with while in Manta. Douglas only speaks Spanish and I felt miserably stupid trying to cobble together enough Spanish to understand him and respond in kind. I blamed it on the lack of sleep.
After a few hours of rest though, I still couldn't really understand him or the rest of his family even though they tried very hard to speak slowly. I was kinda bummed by this. I had hoped that my Spanish prep would be sufficient to give me the basics, but alas, it was not so.
For the next two days I had my first private lessons with my teacher Alberto. I was relieved that I could speak and understand him without issue. I asked him why it was so much different with a teacher and he said it was because he spoke slowly, clearly, and simply using vocabulary and grammar that I would know. I also think it's because he's willing to listen while I talk around a word I can’t remember and is experienced enough to identify the concept I'm looking for. To my surprise he placed me in the "Advanced" level. When do I get to feel advanced?! Update 9/30: He did not place me in advanced! He placed me in “A2” which is second level basic. That makes much more sense and makes me feel better.
On Friday, I said goodbye to the other students in my house and the rest of their group. They are all part of a traveling classroom that spends a week in each place as they travel all around Ecuador. The group was primarily German speaking (Swiss, Austrian, or German). For some reason, Ecuador seems to be a prime destination for those national demographics. My new housemate and two folks at Kite Surfing are also German.
Saturday and Sunday were my first days kitesurfing and boy have they been challenging. To quote two different instructors: "If you can kite here, you can kite anywhere". My new friend Chris and I hopped in the back of a 70s jeep to head 20 minutes to Playa Santa Marianita. It's absolutely gorgeous with blue water, clear skies, and perfect wind for kitesurfing. We're learning from Ocean Freaks Kite Surfing School. The instructors have been kind and supportive and really love their lives out here. From the restaurant above the school, we saw Humpback whales heading south. We are near the end of their breeding season. Unfortunately I don't think I'll get to go whale watching before it's over!
Safety
I have not felt unsafe at all, but it is disconcerting that nearly every household is surrounded by 10 ft walls + 4 ft of barbed wire or electric fence.
Food & Drink
If you go to a restaurant for lunch they will almost always have an unwritten Lunch of the Day that is far cheaper than anything else; usually $5. I'm surprised that food isn't cheaper. Entrees go for $10-25. I purchased a 6-pack of Mexican beer at a market and it was $12. Apparently Ecuadorian beer is cheaper, but I wasn't sure which ones were Ecuadorian!
Don’t worry Bros, Four Loko has made it’s way to Ecuador
When you order chicken wings, they come with a set of plastic gloves. This is a fantastic idea.
Ecuadorian Politics
During my first lesson with Alberto, we had an hour long conversation about all sorts of things including the recent meeting between the Ecuadorian President Moreno and Donald Trump to discuss the situation in Venezuela. Apparently > 300k Venezuelans have settled in Ecuador in the past 2 years causing a serious strain on this country that provides both free public education and healthcare to everyone in the country (including visitors such as myself). Although Alberto feels that most of these people are good honest folk, their impact on the communities of Ecuador has been felt. Business owners are choosing to hire cheaper Venezuelan labor over Ecuadorians. Desperate Venezuelan's are resorting to crime, prostitution, and conning Ecuadorians. Alberto recounted situations of women seducing Ecuadorian men for their money. As a result, men mistrust Venezuelan women and refuse to talk to or flirt with them at the bar. Xenophobia seems to be on the rise.
Additionally, there is very little job mobility here. Alberto has been teaching for 30 years at the same school. Additionally, as a second job he would work in the printing office of of the university for 15 years until a few years ago when they laid him off. The free public education system was only recently implemented by the previous administration in 2008 but as of yet, the increased supply of skilled workers has yet to attract the business interests that would bring in new jobs. Supposedly, many Ecuadorian university graduates leave the country in search of higher salaries and better opportunities. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any stats on this.
Kitesurfing
I've had 2 days of kitesurfing so far and I am so... sore. I had previously kite surfed in Cape Cod and didn't have much difficulty, but I've been struggling here in Manta. My teacher pointed out that previously I had kited on flat water but here I'm kiting on waves. Today while attempting to body drag to recover my board I kept getting smacked in the face by waves and losing control of the kite. According to the instructors, if you can kite here in Manta, you can kite anywhere... good to know.
There's so much to keep track of with this sport. You have to keep your eye on the kite or you lose control of it, so you can't look at the board, or the water, or the waves for more than a split second. I'm 4 hours in and I can comfortably go left, but I haven't been able to go right yet. I've still got 12 hours of lessons left so I've still got time to figure it out!
That's all I've got for this week. Look for an update next Sunday!