Last night a bunch of us went to a bar for another girl's birthday (a lot of us are having birthdays around the same time). We played some pool, and I tried amaretto. Straight amaretto. If you haven't, don't bother, it tastes like cough syrup. The bartender spoke english, surprisingly. He said he was happy when Americans came in because he rarely got a chance to practice it. Today we went to an indigenous museum, which was ironically at the same intersection as the bar we had been at the night before. It was pretty incredible to see all of the clothing, furniture, eating ware, weapons, musical instruments of the indigenous peoples.

I've been speaking at length with my ecuapadre about the economic situation in Ecuador. Apparently in the nineties Ecuador experienced horrible inflation of the sucre, their currency. So, the president at the time switched Ecuador over to the US dollar. At first, people were very hurt by this move. A dollar was worth many, many sucres. But soon things improved and the economic situation stabilized. But that is all. The dollar did not cause the economy to flourish, it only maintained it. The sacrifice for this economic stabilization, the central bank of Ecuador has been virtually stripped of its monetary policy, and Ecuador is now subject to the rules of the American Fed. But it's a small price to pay for the help it has brought them. So the Ecuadorians use the same currency as we do, but it is not the EXACT same. For one, much of their change is still Ecuadorian change. There is also American change present, and an Ecuadorian centavo is equal to an American cent. But something else that is curious, the Sacajawea dollar coin is very prevalent. If you had a taxi driver or vender a five, you are very likely to receive back at least one Sacajawea dollar coin. I have no idea why that is the case, but I have collected quite a few of them by now.

I'm getting to know my ecuafamilia much better. My ecuapadre is a very smart and aware man. About once a day we have a conversation, and we've had some very interesting ones. He is very unprejudiced, and while he understands how Ecuadorians think and opine, he also is able to see the world from other perspectives. He's very relaxed. He doesn't like to plan out his day. When I ask him what he's doing for the day he just shrugs and says he doesn't have a plan. At the end of the day when I ask him what he did, he always has something to talk about. He's very good about not feeling like every moment of every day must be geared towards some ultimate goal. And he is very tolerant of other people's mistakes. My ecuamadre is also very nice, and has a great time chasing the cat around the house. The cat gives her no end of enjoyment. She always dresses up in nice pantsuits, as if she's going to work, but I'm pretty sure they are both retired. Both of them are excellent cooks! My ecuahermanos are great as well. Two of them are married, and one of them has a five year old son. The third still lives her, and is very nice. She works for either the government, or an NGO, for conservation of the Amazonian animals. My ecuahermano's son is very fun and energetic. He likes to speak in his own made up language, and loves to play with toy cars, like I did when I was his age.

The food here is fantastic. I have fresh juice every morning, and usually for lunch as well. Rice, meat, and fruit are all staples of their diet here. But some of them have interesting dieting habits. I know one guy who is craving anything with protein because he usually just gets breads and fruits. Another girl has very little for dinner, because lunch is the most important meal here, and she has to find ways to compensate.

I have liked Quito from the beginning, but I'm really starting to become fond of it in an even deeper way. I feel like I've been here forever, though I've only been here a week, and I feel like I'm leaving soon, even though I'm leaving months from now. Some of us are already talking about coming back. Despite my deepening affection for this country, these people, and this culture, I can't help but feel homesick sometimes. At first I thought I was just tired, but after I awhile I realized it was homesickness. It's strange being in a place that's completely unfamiliar. I don't know, maybe it's just the altitude. It can do strange things to you.

A final note: back in the states, whenever people asked me what I wanted to do after college, or do with my life, or do in general, I always said I didn't know, but I'd figure it out in Ecuador. That was largely a joke, but I think it will turn out to be true. I think I will come out on the other side of this experience with a much more solid idea of what I want to do.