Found a communal living area for lgbtquia+ hermanex (ex= gender nonconformative suffix in Spanish)! Such lovely people and art and inspiration. Live dj’s, graffiti, drag queens, and a woman who makes batik out of her own menstrual blood. Same sex couples are still not allowed to adopt children in Ecuador. In addition, abortion issues, contraceptives, and Plan B are very rare/ more or less illegal– but that is not to say people aren’t trying!! Our friend organized a march for femicide and women’s rights and we found a wall covered in slogans like “niñas no madres” in support of legalizing safe abortion practices.

Today Dani, Carmen, and I hiked el volcán Pinchincha. You need to take a cable car up to ~4000m and the summit is about another 700 meters (3-5 hours) from there. The hike had insane views of the city and the last km was just open face rock climbing which was so much fun and would definitely not fly in the US. The summit is 15,695 feet, so the reason it takes so long from the top of the cable car (Teléferico) is due to altitude adjustment. There is a type of flower that grows all over the surrounding hills and people use it to make tea for treating altitude related headaches, dizziness, nausea, etc. There were a couple women and families collecting the plant today but I can’t find the name anywhere online! I will ask somebody local in the market tomorrow. We talked to a couple from Quito who had AMAZING dogs and really like Bernie Sanders. Also witnessed a hawk (halcón) soaring above the blanket of clouds that rolls into the valley around 3 o’clock every afternoon. Magical day. Now happily exhausted from sun, wind and a sweeet rocky walky.

Best volunteer fam everrr. Our room smells hecka bad but we still look good and enjoy exploring the city together when we are not making breakfast! Tomorrow we will buy some incense!! Also Tarquín won’t let us get a pet:( We offer an international mix of Bermuda, Brasil, Spain and the US which is ideal for wholesome activities such as language practice and pasta trivia night.

Today we took a coozy bus (2 hours) to nearby town Otavalo. Went to famous Mercado del Poncho and bartered (¿nada menos?) for ponchos but we didn’t actually buy any ponchos, just rings and stuff. Beautiful, calm city with sweet dogs, street art, and very kind people. Primary colors are everywhere and the energy is charged with ancient mysticism and spirituality. The pace of life is completely different than the US as the majority of people have a specific craft (food vendor, knitting, jewelry making etc.) with which they contribute to their community.

Walked to Museo Nacional del Ecuador with new hostel vol Rosita and Carmz. The building was incredible with three gigante floors depicting the chronological history of Ecuador via art, tribal artifacts, music, dance, contemporary documentaries, trading maps etc. It was amazing and I’m so glad to finally have made it to one of the amazing free (!!!!) museums yay. Met two Fullbright gals doing different research projects in the Amazon for stir fry in La Floresta district. We had some interesting conversations about women’s health and indigenous cultures. The selva (jungle) are fascinating to me and I am so excited to start looking into the gender nonconforming, nature inspired deities and folklore of la oriente.

Missing the fire places in Cotopaxi where I slept with these pups and a belly full of beans

This is a local drink that is served warm with many spices and herbs from the surrounding mountains. Live music en La Ronda: salsa, regatón (more to come on this and machismo culture), and Blondie