We finished our service component of the trip today. It was our last day of classes with the students. It was kind of sad to leave them because we have formed some bonds with the students we have spent the last week teaching. We took about 40-50 of the kids to Rio Pito yesterday. It was about an hour bus ride and then once we arrived, we had the choice of going on a variety of different walks. Most of us chose the 'gran aventura,' which was about an hour hike to a waterfall. The waterfall was amazing and real strong. The water was freezing because it comes from Cotopaxi, one of the highest mountains in Ecuador. We had the opportunity to walk behind the waterfall, which was quite an experience. I would post some pictures but I forgot to put my battery in my camera before we left. I had a camera, but no battery.
On Saturday, we went to Mindo. It is in the northern part of Ecuador, near the forest (not the rain forest). There, we got to go to a Butterfly exhibit and then ate a delicious meal of trout. The trout was fresh from the area. After lunch, we had the opportunity to go zip lining. I think for many of us, it was our first time going zip lining. It was pretty scary but we got a good view of the forest and Mindo.
Sunday, we had to the opportunity to go to a soccer game. It was S.D. Quito versus Elemec. Elemec is from Guayaquil, so it makes the two teams rivals. It was a great cultural experience because the entire game the fans were singing and shouting. Soccer fans don't really compare to any sports' fans we have in the United States. S.D. Quito won, 1-0. We really enjoyed ourselves watching the game and eating some local stadium food, like empanadas.
I just wanted to apologize for the lack of updates. The internet has been working off and on here. I know we don't have many more days left, but I will try and keep it updated as much as we can. You may not hear anything until Friday because Siempre Verde has no electricity, so there won't be any phone or internet access.
