Quito Week One!
Hi sweet friends!
I just want to start off by saying that God sure does have a bigger plan than what we can create for ourselves. NEVER in a million years did I think I would live in South America. I’ve always been the one to dream of living in another country for some time, but that country has always been somewhere in Europe like England or France. I grew up traveling to Europe with my family, I went to a french-immersion school from pre-school until 8th grade, I think I’ve always thought of moving to Europe for some time as a realistic dream. And it still is! But before that happens, God presents this opportunity to live in South America- somewhere I had never even thought of living, somewhere that really didn’t interest me that much. Funny how that works, huh?
So here I am. In Quito, Ecuador, totally out of my element. I don’t speak Spanish, I don’t know anything about the country, I’m the only blonde in the entire city. How the heck did I get here? Well let me tell ya… My husband was presented the opportunity to train with a professional soccer team here called Liga de Quito. He plays D1 soccer at our university, but the team had the summer off, and he needed to continue training at a high level. One of his old coaches has a contact here in Ecuador and set up the gig, and I’m just here for the adventure. The opportunity was confirmed on Monday the 6th, we bought our flights that night, packed our bags, and left on that Saturday. It was SO sudden- we only had a couple of days to get everything ready. It was insane. We arrived in Quito late Sunday night and have just completed our first week - it’s been wild.
Joe lived here in Quito for about a year while he served a church mission, so LUCKILY he knows the area pretty well and he speaks good Spanish. You already know he’s been ordering every meal for me and doing all the talking in the uber rides. But in all seriousness, we are so excited and blessed to be here. I’ve been a little hesitant this week, but I’m starting to warm up to the city and the language. I’m definitely out of my comfort zone. The area of Quito where we are living is very safe, which has given me a lot of peace, and there’s plenty to do close to where we are. You’ll never believe what restaurant is just across the street from our apartment… CHILI’S. I died when I found that out.
I wanted to give you guys some first impressions of the city that I’ve noticed during the first week.
There’s wild dogs EVERYWHERE. I want to adopt all of them. They just roam around the streets, minding their own business. Every time I see one I want to pet them, but it’s not the safest to just because you have no idea if they’re carrying a disease.
The buildings look like legos. Lol… I’m serious. We went to a lookout spot onto the entire city and it just looked like a million little legos.
English is not a thing here. Whenever I’ve traveled to other countries, the people usually speak a touch of English, but not here. Solo español!
The altitude of the city is at just under 10,000 feet. When we first got here, I got winded just walking a block. There’s not a lot of oxygen in the air and you sure can feel it!
There’s a hair salon on every block. Every block.
The taxi and uber rides are insanely cheap. A 20 minute ride will only cost about $2.00.
They use American dollars here.
You’re not supposed to drink the tap water, or eat strawberries and lettuce.
The avocados are BOMB.
Everyone is so nice.
Those are just some of the things that I’ve noticed. It’s definitely a different world here, but I love it. Like I said, I never ever ever saw myself living here, much less visiting. It’s been the biggest blessing so far and I feel humbled to be here. Joe trains with the team from 9am to 12pm, and then we have the rest of the day together to explore and pretty much do whatever we want. We don’t have homework, we’re not working, it’s just the two of us living in this new country. What an opportunity. I’m SO grateful. God is so good- I truly believe that this trip is a part of His plan for me. I get to grow as an individual, but also grow closer to my husband. We’re so far from our families, we only have each other to rely on while we’re here.
I want to encourage you to travel somewhere that you’ve never thought of going to. Maybe it’s in South America, maybe it’s in Europe, maybe it’s another state in the U.S. Don’t worry about being out of your comfort zone, because wow I totally am. There is something truly so amazing to be in a new place that you never expected you would be in - I’ve already learned so much and I know there’s so much more to learn! The moments that we step out of our element tend to be the ones where we grow the most. I’ve for sure seen that in myself in only the week that we’ve been here. So far, it’s been the greatest adventure. Onto the next week!
Lotsa love,
Sav