#and every nice charming cute guy is esmeralda

[wesleyv21-blog]

One Week Down!

¡Hola, todos! Sending out good vibes from Quito!

Damn has a lot happened this weekend! Perhaps both the most exciting and nerve-wracking part of the experience so far has finally come: I moved in with my homestay family! But there’s quite a story leading up to this point so I’ll start from the beginning.

Friday was taken up by one-on-one interviews with our program director, Faba, during which we just checked in about our medical information and how we’re doing so far. Since there are 24 of us, and each interview took about 10 minutes, and somehow we fell behind at some point, this took almost half the day. When it was finally done around 1:30, a big group of us went out for tapas and had quite the time. It will be our last meal together for some time, because at around 4:00 on Friday, our host families came to pick us up from our hotel!

I was quite the ball of nerves and excitement while waiting for my family to arrive. Hell, we all were! All I had to go on was a letter they wrote me describing how excited they were to welcome me into their home, as well as a photo of the family and some info about them that the program provided. Well, the funny thing was that my family did not show up on Friday. The whole family had taken a weeklong vacation to the beaches of Esmeraldas, a province to the northwest of Quito that is a looooooong car ride from the city lol probably 6-8 hours with traffic. So, one of their good friends who is hosting another student and who lives close by picked me up. She was so nice and hospitable, feeding us cake, tea, and a scrumptious dinner. She is quite experienced in hosting foreign scholars, and in fact I ended up meeting two additional students from other universities and doing other stuff in the country that were wrapping up their time in Ecuador. My temporary host mom has a daughter and a son around our age, so all 6 of us ended up going out to a house party after dinner. Oh, one cool thing about my temporary host family is that the father’s brother is an ex-president of Ecuador who is also a famous economist. In addition to his famous books he’s written, my temporary host mom showed us a picture album with the whole family which was amazing and cute.

Now, this house party was something else. Getting there took around 40 minutes, as we had to drive out of Quito to Tumbaco, a little town out to the west. Let’s just say that the young Quiteño upper-class plays hard. First of all the estate was enormous, surrounded by this huge wall that enclosed probably three or four buildings on this large piece of land. Behind the mansion was this patio that was replete with a huge grill, a hammock, access to the kitchen, comfortable furniture, and even security cameras lol. There were many young men and only four young women including my temporary host sister. The men were going hard, forcing each other to drink, smoking cigarettes, forcing each other to drink more, running around all over the place, fighting over control of the music, grabbing the women as if they owned them. I had heard from one of the program assistants during our safety lecture that in Ecuadorian society, men are under such pressures from patriarchy that they vent all their pent-up emotions by drinking excessively. I don’t know enough to claim that this is what I witnessed, but it is a tempting conclusion to draw. Of course what I saw at the party is also heavily influenced by class, since these kids (my age) have the leisure and money to drink hard on a Friday night. It should also be said that this entire weekend is a dry weekend; bars are closed and you can’t buy alcohol anywhere. The reason? There was a national referendum today, and I take it that for all elections, since voting is mandated by law, alcohol disappears so as to ensure people’s faithful compliance. Nonetheless these individuals had procured alcohol from somewhere and were indulging. The most fun I had was swapping party stories with this one guy who ended up getting so drunk he couldn’t stand by the end of the night, and talking with this truly intercultural young man who spoke English, Spanish, and German, had studied abroad almost as much as he had in Ecuador, and who has plans to continue his education in Europe. One other thing I learned was that marijuana is super taboo here, way different from the states lol.

Saturday morning, my friend’s host family dropped me off at my real host family, and I finally got to meet them! Their house is also enormous. Just like every other house I’ve seen in Pichincha province (which includes Quito and the surrounding towns I’ve visited, like Pifo and Tababela), their house is enclosed in a tall wall covered in spikes. It has three stories, including a large patio and a home office for the parents’ travel agency they’ve owned for over 20 years. The sitting rooms are spacious and filled with cool art, the kitchen is small but intimate, and the house is super well located: just a few minutes’ walk to Parque La Carolina, El Jardín Mall, and our class building. Two parents, a daughter, two sons, and their grandmother all live in this incredible house. There’s even room for a visiting aunt who lives in London who is also very charming. In addition, a lovely Japanese woman named Ayumi rents office space and works as a travel agent for Japanese tourists. Her office is right next to my room; she’s also super friendly! Everyone is so welcoming and nice! We talked, watched Black Mirror in Spanish lol, ate delish traditional Ecuadorian food, compared the Spanish and English in different countries across the world, and went out the shopping mall. More on the food. It’s all soo yummy. There’s like a mini corn-on-the-cob that’s called choclo, and it’s usually served with a slice of cheese. They brought out a cacao fruit, which looks really cool, and when you cut it open you expose the brown seeds that are covered in a white slime. You can suck on the seeds and ingest the white slime, which sounds kinda gross but is actually a good mixture of sweetness and tartness. Oritos are mini bananas that are super sweet. Habas reminded me of edamame, as they’re kinda a bean-looking food whose shell you bust open to reveal a kinda bland inside that you can scoop out and eat. It’s really good with just a pinch of salt added to it! The main course of lunch featured a sardine flank that was served cold in a red sauce with tiny round potatoes. At breakfast there was thick papaya juice which was really good, and with lunch there was this sparkling apple juice that somehow had no sugar whatsoever in it. Tonight for dinner I had pastel de plátano, which is exactly what is sounds like: a little pan-seared cake made of smooshed sweet plantains called maduros. Oh I guess should I explain how meals work lol. Lunch is the main course of the day, usually consisting of 3-4 dishes served around 1-2 pm. Breakfast and dinner are both very light. Coffee or tea is usually served at both, and I’ve had grilled cheese sandwiches served at both as well lol. At breakfast, they bring out the rich fruits, whether in slices or juiced. Dinner, if served at all, tends to be pretty late, like around 8 pm. Needless to say everything I’ve eaten so far is delish(;

But I have to say that moving in with the host family has been one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. Saturday was one of the longest days of my life. I’m overwhelmed still from being here and being so far away from what’s comfortable; add to that the awkwardness of getting to know an established family unit so intimately and the mindfuck of re-socializing your brain to speak only another language. There was a lot of time to myself Saturday, which was hard. But, it was also very fun and I can’t say I regret it. I knew going in that this weekend would be the hardest, but once I get over this hump then it should be relatively smooth sailing. On the positive side, they treat me very well and I can hold my own in conversations with three generations of native speakers. Think about the differences in pronunciation that accompany age in English-speaking lands; well, I’m slowly building the satisfaction of mastering that in Spanish as well. I also get along very well with both sons, which is cool to think that I’m making international friends! It’s a long journey I’ve just begun, but I wouldn’t go back for anything.

Another cool thing was a conversation I had with the youngest son about voting today. This won’t be his first time voting (that came in Lenín Moreno’s election last year), but he nonetheless had some cool perspectives on the referendum. Voting is mandated by law for all those above age 18 and is optional for those aged 16 and 17. If you do not vote, you incur a steep fine. In addition, upon voting, one receives a certificate that one needs to do official citizen business like procure a passport or visa. The referendum consists of 7 questions that will amend the Constitution. These questions are:

1.       Would prohibit those accused of corruption from ever serving in public office (Ecuador has a long history of political corruption, yet the last straw in adding this question to the referendum was the recent imprisonment of former vice president Jorge Glas on corruption charges)

2.       Would limit all elected officials to only 2 terms in the same office (brought about by the last president, Rafael Correa, who changed the constitution to allow himself to run indefinitely)

3.       Would replace all current members of the Citizens’ Participation and Social Control Council (the 5th branch of government here) and replace them all with new appointees (to flush out the last remaining allies of president Correa)

4.       Would remove statute of limitation for sex crimes against minors (due to over 1,000 cases of sex crimes against minors brought to court over the last 2 years)

5.       Would prohibit mining in protected areas, untouchable zones, and urban centers (mining is on the rise in Ecuador, yet this question might prove decisive for the young industry’s future)

6.       Would get rid of the law of plusvalía, which essentially treats the sale of property of any kind as speculation, meaning that the seller must pay like 70% of the revenue from the sale to the state as tax

7.       Would expand the protected areas of the Yasuní National Park, the single most biodiverse place on earth that also sadly houses much of Ecuador’s oil reserves (this question would thus prohibit future oil drilling in Yasuní)

The general populace was expected to vote to pass all of them in what many see as a middle finger to the last president, Rafael Correa, and a vote of confidence for Moreno’s young regime. Yet that’s not how my host brother necessarily sees it. He doesn’t support the current regime, and he certainly didn’t support the last. According to him, both presidents have raised taxes, especially on imports, which has raised the cost of living significantly. In addition, neither president supports/ed policies that are favorable toward foreigners, something he doesn’t like. His perspective is quite interesting and will need to be investigated further. Another interesting thing about the referendum came when Sebastián told me that many voters don’t understand the wording of the questions, not to mention all the annexes that are on the flipside of the ballot page. Very interesting. Also last night I watched a government news channel ahead of the vote today. After going into detail about each of the questions, the focus turned to the actual process itself. Even though this is the 11th national referendum since the return to democracy in 1979, there are some new and exciting steps being implemented in this referendum. For example, there is a new electronic rapid-response exit-poll-type technology designed to report trustworthy results ahead of the official tally. Lots of domestic and international observers were invited to oversee the polls. Something that I guess isn’t new is that all ballots are translated into indigenous languages, and for the many hard-to-access communities scattered across Ecuador, the government helicopters ballots in so people can still vote. Another highly promoted feature on this program was the accessibility of all voting stations so that people with different abilities can still vote. The temptation at looking at this at first was to dismiss it as government propaganda, which it no doubt is. After all, in the U.S., elections are a piece of cake and no one ever has reason to question the outcome (except Trump lol). But, I had to catch myself. This is a country whose democracy is relatively young. Building up these institutions is key for achieving long-lasting social justice. Who am I to come in and laugh at things that Ecuadorians take pride in? Nonviolent, inclusive elections aren’t a given. So, I learned a lot more than I thought I would watching that program last night.

Today I accompanied my host brother, Matías, as he went and voted. It was quite the process to get to his assigned voting place. We had to take a bus probably a mile or so (which, in Quito traffic, took about 30 minutes) and walk to the destination. Although we didn’t know at first which street the school was on, so we were walking around asking people where it was. Finally, we found it, and I watched as Matías showed his I.D., was handed the piece of paper with each question labeled and color-coded, walked over to a schooldesk on which stood a cardboard trifold to act as a privacy shield, and deposited the ballot in the cardboard box in which was cut a slit to slip in the ballot. And home we went. At night, nos reunimos para cenar y mirar los comentarios a cerca de la votación. As expected, all measures passed. Now the country awaits the implementation of each question.

After lunch I had the opportunity to talk to the ones I love most. I cannot overstate how happy I was to reconnect with them and catch up, even just to see their faces and hear their voices. No matter where I am on this earth, I know where home is (:

Classes finally begin tomorrow. I’m actually looking forward both to their content and the sense of routine they’ll bring. 

¡Hasta luego!

[theharrystyleseffect]

A long survey

Thanks @heart-attack-harry for tagging me, keeping my head a bit occupied. 😘

1 - Who was the last person you texted? Uhm. Think it was my mum.

2 - When is your birthday? 11 November.

3 - Who do you want to be with right now? Esmeralda.

4 - What sports do you play? Getting out of bed in the morning.

5 - Who is the first person in your contacts? A guy named Adam.

6 - What is your favorite song as of the moment? Meet Me In The Hallway.

7 - If you were stranded on an island, who do you wish to be with? Peter Pan cos he could fly me home.

8 - What do you feel right now? An ache in my back and a sorrow in my heart fdghj But I’m okay.

9 - What chocolate is your favorite? Ehm. I think... I dunno. Norwegian chocolate. Or Belgian.

10 - How many boyfriends/girlfriends did you have? Okay, if we’re counting them childhood love, then 3. 

11 - Why did you create a Tumblr account? This one I made specifically so I could geek over Harry’s incredible talent with other geeks.

12 - Who is your favorite blogger? I have a-many. @heart-attack-harry @linnsometimes @harryandgaga @styloffonpostlimit @harrysimpact @savage-styles @cantquitu @adorkablehazza @johnlennon-harrystyles @hazzwatch (CRY) but a lot of the others have changed their urls and I’m quickly losing track of them. Please, kids. I miss knowing who you are! 

13 - Where do you want to be right now? In a very hot tub.

14 - What do you want to be in the future? A fucking rockstar.

15 - When was the last time you cried? All day yesterday.

16 - Are you happy? Happiness is a warm gun and do you see me sitting on one?

17 - Who do you miss? My childhood. Not necessarily what went on, just... I want a way to do it over again, but differently.

18 - If you were given a chance, would you like to have a different life? Oh hell yeah!

19 - What was the best thing you were given? My love for music.

20 - Who was the last person who called you? Mum. They’re currently in a caravan, on their way to visit me.

21 - What is your favorite dish? Potatoes. Anything chips, really.

22 - Who is your bestfriend? @adorkablehazza and @linnsometimes. Very lucky to have the two of them in my life online and outline.

23 - What is your biggest regret? Bukowski said, “regret is mostly caused by not having done anything,” and so I have a lot of them, too many to count.

24 - Have you ever cheated on your partner? No.

25 - Who do you spend crazy moments with? My pals, the triforce. A fucking nerdy bunch.

26 - Name someone pretty. Harry Styles’ nips.

27 - Who was the last person you hugged? My flattymate. 

28 - What kind of music do you listen to? I...don’t know where my taste falls, I just know I don’t like whatever category Justin Bieber falls in. His music rubs me wrong. 

29 - Are you over your past? I’m in therapy.

30 - Who is the last person in your contacts? A guy named Martin.

31 - What kind of person do you want to date? A musically gifted or musically nerdy guy with lots of humour, charm and intelligence. I like to learn stuff and I love deep and long conversations. I’m not asking too much.

32 - Do you have troubles sleeping at night? owh HELL yaz, I’m a professional insomniac. Today I fell asleep at 10 am (!). 

33 - From whom was the last text message you received? Mum. She texts a lot when on the road.

34 - What do you prefer, jeans or skirt? Going naked. Or Jeans.

35 - How’s your heart? Missing dead stuff.

36 - Did you ever have a girlfriend/boyfriend whose name starts with a “J”? Janove. Where art thou. My heart is still wide open.

37 - Do you like someone as of the moment? Naeh. 

38 - What would you want to say to your latest ex-boyfriend/ex-girlfriend? I’d give him a cheeky smile and say, “Remember me?” 

39 - Do you have any phobias? Spiders!!!!!!!!!!!! Life in general.

40 - Did you try to change for a person? Oh no. Nothing in this world can ever make me change for someone else, I’m way too stubborn for that and always have been. 

41 - What’s the nicest thing you haven given to someone? My heart. 

42 - Would you go back to your previous relationship? No.

43 - Are you in a good or bad mood? I’m fine. Content.

44 - Name someone you can’t live without. Flattymate.

45 - Describe your dream date. Hm. If there’s a telescope involved then count me in. Music. Telescope. The night sky. Something nice to drink, and just a generally long fucking conversation about astrophysics, the philosophy of life, planet and stars. That, or full music geek out.

46 - Describe your dream wedding. In space.

47 - How many roses did you receive last Valentine’s? I’ve never received anything on valentines day.

48 - Have you ever been kissed? Deep, hot and rowdy. 

49 - How long is your longest relationship? 1 years.

50 - Do you regret your past? Do I have to quote Bukowski again.

51 - Can you do something stupid for someone else? I always do. Majority of my time goes away to doing stupid things.

52 - Have you ever cried over someone? Yeh.

53 - Do you have a grudge against anyone? Just my dad.

54 - Are you a crybaby? No, my childhood hardened me. But I’ve gotten a lot more sensitive in recent years.

55 - Do people praise you for your looks? They used to when I had a pinup fringe. Strangers could stop me on the street to compliment me. It was very sweet of them.

56 - Did you fall for someone you shouldn’t? He was married. Is. Still is married. 

57 - Have you ever done something bad but you don’t regret? (Insert Bukowski quote) 

58 - Do you like getting hurt? In what way?

59 - Does anyone hate you? If so it’s because of my incredible brains and nothing else.

60 - Did you slap anyone whose name starts with an “R”? Sure, why not.

61 - What hair color do you prefer? Black on myself. Red is second in line.

62 - If you can change anything about yourself, what is it? Appearance and mental health.

63 - Do you love someone as of the moment? I really don’t know what love is, but I do love my people and my cat.

64 - Have you ever thought of killing yourself? I have.

65 - Do you have issues with somebody in your school? My old classmates *grits teeth* and the old teachers who are probably dead by now *huffs like a horse* and the headmaster! All shitty people.

66 - Can you live without internet? Harry Styles is a part of the internet so no.

67 - What’s the song that remind you of your special someone? A song called Under Månen. 

68 - Are you good at holding back your tears? It used to be my specialty. I cracked a few years ago, though. Lost my no-tears diploma and everything.

69 - Are you a crybaby? Only Johnny Depp can answer this question. 

70 - Have you ever experienced being hysterical? MhM. 

71 - Are you a KPOP fan? No, but I KNOW OF BTS cos my best friend is head over her heelz for them, so I know a few songs and I can point out Suga’s face in a crowd cos he’s fucking cute.

72 - Do you study hard? I’m not studying at the moment, but if I have to study something closer like, in a magnifying glass then sure. I go hard.

73 - Have you ever sacrificed something important to you for someone you love? No, cos I am my own island.

74 - Did you ever had a kiss under the moonlight? With a brit! It was sexy.

75 - Have you ever ridden a boat? Countless of times.

76 - Did you have an accident last year? Dude, I have an accident every day. It’s called sleeping past noon.

77 - What kind of person are you? Someone very curious and very weird, and also incredibly kind with a lot of love for the littlest things. Except from fucking spiders, they can all die.

78 - Have you ever thought of killing someone? Read question number 77. 

79 - Have you ever been jealous? Probably.

80 - How can you prove your love to someone? By forcing them in a hug.

81 - What are you thinking right now? That I’m looking forward to holding my parents’ dog on Monday.

82 - Who is the 6th person in your contacts? Old classmate from high school.

83 - Do you have any memories you want to erase? A fucking lot of them but they’re a part of making me me, so I guess none unless someone can give me a brand new life.

84 - Have you been hurt so bad that you can’t find words to explain how you feel? Yes.

85 - Did you ever badmouth someone? Tons.

86 - Have you ever had an argument with someone? I’m a fucking stubborn person, so it’s inevitable. 

87 - Do you have trust issues? YeEes. Thanks dad! 😘

88 - Are you broken-hearted? From listening to Harry Styles’ debut album I was.

89 - Who’s the person who first comes to your mind when someone mentions “love”? Music.

90 - Do you think all the pain is worth it? I actually don’t. I think this world is vicious and for what?

91 - Do you believe in the phrase “If it’s meant to be, it will be”? I do. I believe you have to work for it if you really want it, but when working and if it happens, it’s meant to happen, y’know? So it’s a bit doubled edged. 

92 - Who do you want to marry? Myself. Or, y’know, I could marry Harry and take his last name. I’d like that. 

93 - Do you believe in destiny? I believe in cause and effect.

94 - Have you ever thought “I already found my soulmate”? I sometimes wonder if my flattymate is that soulmate. She’s like a twin soul to me.

95 - How do you look right now? Like I’ve been inside a tumble dryer. My hair’s full of knots.

96 - Do you believe that first true love never dies? I think the saying means your first love will never be forgotten, which I believe to be true cos first experiences have a habit of sticking to your memory.

97 - Have you found your true love? In music.

98 - What should you be doing right now? Probably something productive.

99 - Name one of your ex-boyfriends/ex-girlfriends. Can it be Damon Albarn? Please? 

100 - Did you ever feel like you’re not good enough? Yeah.

Right! Bedways is rightways now, so best we go homeways. I’m gonna be cheeky like Courtney who tagged me, and tag the ones I have mentioned so far. Enjoy the 100 years old questionnaire! I think I come off a bit pessimistic so, sorry in advance.