My reasons for wanting to visit Ecuador can be attributed mainly to learning Spanish. I have been learning Spanish for the last 5 months practicing for 2-3 hours a day. They say that to get to conversational level of any of the romantic language (ie, French, Latin, Spanish etc) you need to practice for 600 hours (for math wizards, that's about 3 hours a day for 6 months). Now, those numbers are really subjective and depend on the intensity and level of which you are practicing. I will be approximately at about 500 hours of practice when I start my journey through Ecuador 2 days from now, so let's test that theory, shall we? English is not common for most native Ecuadorians , so I figured this country would allow me to dive in head first speaking Spanish at every opportunity I have. For the last 5 months, I have been practicing speaking Spanish with a native Ecuadorian who has helped me tremendously. As a double bonus, Kary has become a great friend which makes learning even more better! :D
Ecuador is known for many things including its nature, active volcanoes, lush Amazon forests, endemic creatures, food, and its beautiful culture and people!
I have planned a back packing expedition which will lead me to many interesting parts of Ecuador including:Guayaquil: the city of Guayaquil is known as the Perla de Pacifico (pearl of the Pacific) and boasts the largest sea port of South America and is the largest city in Ecuador home to 3 million people!
Cuenca: Cuenca is known as Las atenas del Ecuador (Athens of Ecuador) located high up in the Andes and is known for its Spanish colonial architecture and food. Favorite dishes in Cuenca include hornado and fritado (roasted and fried pork), cuy (guinea pig... :O), chicken and mote (boiled corn kernels served as motepillo and mote sucio). Expats apparently love to retire here, so I'll make sure to avoid them at all costs (as I want to learn Spanish you know..).
Baños: Baños is known as the 'gateway to the Amazons'. Baños is known for its nature with hot springs, active volcanoes and close proximity to the Amazon Jungle!
Quito: Quito is the capital of Ecuador and is known as Luz de America (Light of America). It is also known as the 'old city' complete with cobblestone streets, history buildings and architecture and open squares.
Galapagos Islands: The Galapagos Islands are known for their vast inhabitants of endemic species from penguins, tortoises, marine iguanas, blue footed boobies and other birds, other reptiles, sharks and so much more! The Galapagos Islands is well known for Charles Darwin's studies including his work in the theory of evolution and natural selection. Exciting!!
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