Where in the World is Meg?: Ecuador!

I traveled to Ecuador May 18^th- June 2^nd with my friend, Mary Jessup, and we volunteered through an organization called A Broader View. In the midst of Quito, the capital city of Ecuador, there is a much needed facility named ABEI where Mary Jessup and I volunteered. Here, we worked in a daycare-like center for children with disabilities. We also had the opportunity to shadow an occupational therapist at ABEI, which was an excellent experience since both of us want to go into occupational therapy.

Ecuador remains vastly different from what we are accustomed to here in good ‘ole North Carolina. The food, the streets, the driving, the shops, the homes, the dress, and more vary from what we see daily in our culture.

Here are just a few differences I noticed:
-Popcorn in their soup instead of crackers like we do (which was delicious!)
-Plain white rice with nearly everything
-Road rules are merely suggestions, and I will never drive there because I wouldn't survive.
-Lunch is the biggest meal of the day and always starts with some kind of delicious soup.
-Most things are much cheaper compared to the US
-A lot of families do not own a car; public transportation is mostly used
-The buses are dangerous and jammed pack full of people
-And at the markets you have to bargain so you don't get ripped off!
These are just some of the many differences I noticed between our cultures.

Since pictures are said to say 1,000 words, I figure I'll just add pictures to the rest of this post...enjoy!