2nd Day

The next day I went to orientation at USFQ and took the bus with mi mamá, Kay and April, who is also another student living in Lumbisí. Orientation was informative, scary and entertaining, and I found out that 30% of the students who go to USFQ are international, and it appears that 90% are from the United States. Most international students seem to be liberal, adventurous, and fun, which is good news. Some seem super-rich, but I guess that’s expected. The Ecuadorian students who attend USFQ are supposed to be very wealthy and drive their cars to campus and don’t work, which is very unusual for Ecuador. One professor talked about the political history of Ecuador (the scandals in Ecuadorian politics are unbelievable) and had everyone laughing at Bush jokes and another professor (the director or something) told some good anecdotes about the cultural differences between Ecuadorians and people from the United States. We also were told about the crime here and precautions to take.

Oh, by the way, USFQ is looks like an expensive tropical resort. I will post pictures later, but it is the most beautiful campus I have ever seen. There’s a pagoda, a pond, beautiful trees, and well-maintained buildings (something that U of I should look into). It’s like bit of little paradise inside a chaotic country. I’m glad I’m living in a poorer area, which gives me a better picture of the country’s distribution of wealth. Late that night we went to Mulligan’s Pub (kinda lame if you ask me) in La Mariscal aka La Zona aka Gringolandia. It was an event organized by a group on campus who try to integrate the international students with the local students. It was expensive ($15 is expensive here) because the proceeds went to children with cancer, and the taxi ride was $20 in total (shared amongst 4), which is expensive for taking a taxi, but at night the prices are higher and it’s over a 25-30? minute ride. All you Chicago people must think I’m crazy for complaining. Mostly just other international students attended, which are like 80% girls for some reason. It was fun “dancing” to salsa and it’s funny how much attention I attract by just by being rubia. I had a guy come right up to me and ask me to dance amongst a giant group of girls, I get stares on the street from both guys and girls, and guys I don’t know say “hello friend” or “hello” to me on the street because they know I’m estadounidense (North American). I haven’t really walked alone so I haven’t had any catcalls, which is nice…I don’t really enjoy that kind of attention, but I’m prepared for it. It’s really strange because I’m so used to blending in while living in Champaign. There are thousands of other white girls with blonde hair and nice dispositions in Champaign, but here, I look like una estadounidense, which has drawn more attention from strangers in these past few days than in my entire life.