Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Quito So Far

I am now settled in Quito and I live near the famous La Mariscal. A trendy district full of restaurants, bars, nightclubs, hostels and foreigners. I got a room through airbnb in a very conveniently located neighborhood and it takes me 25 minutes to walk from my neighborhood to La Mariscal, by bus or taxi it would take about 10 minutes or less.

I have already formed a routine in Quito, yes I have come to find out that I do like structured days after all. I usually wake up around 9 or 10 am, have breakfast, finish any homework that didn't get done the previous night, practice some Spanish online then at noon I start my 25 minute walk to my school that's located at La Mariscal. I could easily take a bus or taxi but I like to walk and it's my form of daily exercise.

Look at the following pictures, wouldn't you enjoy a walk along these streets? I certainly do!





I have my Spanish class everyday from 1 pm to 3 pm and that works out perfect for me because I get to sleep in and not worry about waking up too early in the morning. After my class I go for lunch and depending on what activity the school has lined up for the day, I hang around the area until 5 pm when most of the school's activities take place. It could be a screening of a Spanish movie at the school, a tour of the city or free salsa lessons at a salsa studio that's not too far from the school.

The school building is actually a converted house and it has a very warm and welcoming ambience that makes you feel like you are in someone's home. Check out the lounge area.



Today I went for the free salsa class and even though I already dance salsa I figured it wouldn't do any harm to be a sport and join the group class that was going through the basic steps. It was actually fun but that will be my last group class because next time I want to try a private class where I can progress from my level. The dance school by the way is really cute inside, I took a few pictures just because I really like the colors.




Later on after I am done with the day's activity I usually head back to the house where I have an early dinner, chat with one of my roommates and re-treat to my room to do my homework. "exciting" right? cut me some slack, this is my first week here so I am still finding my footing in the city.

That's it folks, nothing exciting has been happening so far but hopefully I will get to meet people and socialize more.

Random Thoughts of The Day:

Quito's weather changes a lot, one minute it can be sunny and bright and the next, cloudy and overcast.

Showering here is a challenge! the water pressure is next to nonexistent and if you turn the tap all the way on the water becomes cold but when you turn it back down like you are almost turning the tap off, the water becomes hot. It's a tricky situation and the worst part is the water pressure is still low either way! maybe it's just where I live I don't know.

One thing I know for sure is I am moving out of my rented room in two weeks time. Let's just say the image presented online versus what I actually found were totally different..........and not in a good way at all! I will try to be very gentle in my review with airbnb.

From now on I will stick to private Spanish lessons, I feel like I am getting so much more out of private classes than group classes. To make matters better the classes are super cheap! that's actually the main reason why I decided to focus on taking Spanish classes in Ecuador.

Tomorrow I plan on attending a language exchange event that I found out about through couchsurfing, I hope I will be able to meet some Ecuadorians and get to practice my Spanish.

One of our neighbors plays sad Spanish love songs all the time, it always makes me feel nostalgic about a certain someone in Colombia.

I still haven't warmed up to Quito. Then again, this is only my first week in the city.




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