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Ecuador was a fortunate placement for my first out of country experience. Being sequestered for two years in a chemical engineering program makes you a little crazy. You are wrapped up in the unsaid competition of having the best grades, coolest research, or the most high profile co–op. You always are being driven to do more, better, and faster which is what makes our college great, but on an emotional level, if you get too involved it takes a toll on your sanity. Ecuador showed me a whole new perspective on how to interact with the world around me. The attitude of the Ecuadorians and the life of Quito gave me a newfound maturity and peace.

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I arrived in Quito, Ecuador, determined to absorb the intangibles of the culture. I wanted to leave with a sense of the spirit and flow of the place, not a Wikipedia article of cultural trivia. The first thing I noticed was the form of the city. If you had to pick a place to situate a city it would not be Quito. It’s nestled in a little cranny of a mountain range and spreads into the cracks in between them like moss on a rock. We drove from the airport to the hostel on winding roads that barely clung to the edge of the cliff and curvy cobbled city streets. Quito’s massive size and lack of clear urban street markings seemed impossible to navigate, but every driver we had knew it like they built it themselves. Everything was cramped and patched together. You could visualize the city’s history as you passed stately older churches right beside a block filled with concrete buildings painted in colors so bright Americans would only dare use them on prom dresses. It was a beautiful city with scars, but they only emphasized its long roots and current life. I think that is something we miss in America. Our history is much more contained into classes and textbooks, but isn’t as present in our everyday life, which I believe to be important for the growth of a society.

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This vibrant, but historic aura was reflected in the people as well. Indigenous people were a large portion of the residents of Quito, which seemed so odd in comparison to the Native American population in the states. It was so encouraging to see the natives still maintain their cultural identity while still being integrated into the larger Ecuadorian culture. The majority of the people were a mix of Spaniard and indigenous. Most everyone had experienced the recession that happened in 2010 and knew what it was like to lose most of what they had. Before they brought it up you would never know, though. They all had moved on and grown even stronger since. We spend so much time here preparing and planning, but in Ecuador, they do their absolute best with what they have and don’t worry too much about the future. For example, eating at a restaurant took three hours, but the food was fantastic and unique. The lack of punctuality, at first, was slightly irritating, but I then appreciated it as a time to breathe and enjoy my surroundings. While I am back in the hustle of engineering school now, I notice myself enjoying more of what’s in the moment and where I came from. Both of which I attribute to a fantastic week in Quito, Ecuador.