Travel Log Day 1

4:00 AM: I’m awake and cannot go back to sleep, despite the fact that my alarm was set for 4:30 a.m.  I get up, get dressed and realize the zipper on my jeans (the only pair of pants I own, that fit, that I didn’t pack) has broken.

5:00 AM: Patrick drops me off at the airport in Austin to leave for my 6:10 flight to Dallas (then on to Miami and then to Quito) and I see more people than I have ever seen in ABIA at one time.

5:00-5:40 AM: Checking-in takes forever, so a ‘customer service representative’ suggests that I do the self-check in. Fine. Except that I have a huge suitcase and there is a weight limit on the self-check luggage. Of course my suitcase is overweight (6.4 lbs overweight to be exact). So I spend forever deciding what to throw away- I decided I could part with brand new, unopened bottles of shampoo, conditioner, body wash and lotion. Despite my best efforts to purge the heaviest things in my suitcase, I am still one pound overweight and my sweet friend who is exemplifying customer service isn’t doing me any favors. So I stuff as much as I can from my luggage into my backpack. Finally my new friend lets me pass on to security.

5:40-6:07 AM: Security takes forever. I’m anxious and sweating and texting Patrick every three seconds about how I am not going to make my plane. What happens if I don’t make it? But my bag is already tagged to be on that plane! Am I going to have to pay more for a new flight? What if there aren’t any more flights and I miss my flight to Miami and then miss my flight to Quito? (I know this sounds a bit irrational, even for me, but it was early.) As I’m waiting in line, I hear someone over the intercom saying it is final boarding for my plane. Finally it’s my turn to walk through the metal detector- and I set it off and the security guard tells me I should probably take my cell phone out of my pocket. As soon as I walk through the metal detector (passing with flying colors this time), I hear my name over the speaker.

6:07-6:10 AM: I am running (no, more like sprinting) toward my gate as they page me overhead for the second time. I’m a hot mess- I am running in my socks, carrying my shoes and all of the crap that made my suitcase too heavy to begin with. When I get to the gate, the flight attendant at the end of the walkway tells them to “Wait! Here she is. Don’t close the door.” They close the door to the plane right behind me.

6:11 AM-4 PM: I am the person camping out at the gate for two hours before their flight departs. I chose to eat in restaurants that are directly across from my gate- I didn’t want a repeat of this morning.

7:00 PM: I arrive in Quito.  It is already dark when I arrive, so the lights of the city wedged in between mountains is breathtaking (no really, I can't catch my breath because of the altitude). 

8:00 PM: My host sister, Erica who is probably in her late 20s, drove me to my home for the next 6 weeks. Apparently the pareja that they told me about also includes two twin sisters (one doesn’t live at home and the other is only here through July) and the bunny.

The “apartment” is bigger than my parents’ house, so I’m having a hard time referring to it as an apartment. But, it’s really nice (and so are the people I’m living with). I have my own room and bathroom, Wifi internet, a maid that does laundry on Mondays, and a cook that Erica says is the best cook in Ecuador. My host mother even offered to lend me her grandchildren’s books so that I can practice reading Spanish. The title of my first book is “Un día en el parque”—so obviously my Spanish is impressing everyone. I’ll post pictures of my apartment and the city tomorrow. Hasta luego.