Tech Trip - Guayaquil!

Thank you all for your thoughts as I traveled to and spent time in Guayaquil. It was a great week of introductions, and I'm so eager to return and to begin working with JUCONI.

Guayaquil is huge and bustling and slightly overwhelming, not unlike most major U.S. cities. Parts of it really reminded me of New York City or Miami...only hotter! Within the last decade a lot has been done to restore parts of the city. Namely, there's the boardwalk, the Malecón, that runs along the Guayas River with parks, restaurants, museums, monuments, and walking paths. While the Guayas River has nothing on coastal Connecticut, the boardwalk offers a respite from city life - concrete, car horns, street vendors and all. A respite I'm sure I'll be frequenting with journal and book in hand.

As with all urban areas though, affluence and extreme poverty are not far apart in Guayaquil. It's difficult to describe the disparity between the commercial area, complete with the touristy Malecón, and the barrios we were able to visit with JUCONI staff members. From manicured gardens to uneven dirt roads. From McDonalds and Pizza Hut to makeshift homes without running water or electricity. From security guards and street lamps to a fear of the nighttime. I'm sure the disparities will only become more vivid as I get to know and work with individual families, but I am so thankful that, with JUCONI, I'll be challenged to look at life from the vantage point of those most in need in Guayaquil.

This training period has been difficult in that it's been so far removed from what I came to Ecuador to do. While I know that these training sessions are necessary, there's something about sitting in a plastic chair for forty hours a week that lends itself to self-doubt. But during this week in Guayaquil, working with JUCONI, I became excited again. I remembered that the next two years will be nothing like these first three months; I'll be out of the plastic chair, out of my own head, and working with an organization that is doing beautiful work in Guayaquil.

Next week I'll be returning alone to Guayaquil for my site visit. I'll stay with my new host family and work with JUCONI to outline specific projects for my next two years. Once again, I'll have more limited internet access, but I'll write another update once back in Tumbaco. Thanks so much for all of your support and interest. You've been so intentional about communicating with me, and I'm so grateful.


While I didn't take a single picture during the whole week, I've stolen some from a couple friends!

Malecón

Posh Corps. Staying sane on bus rides. 

Parque Bolivar is home to so many of these huge iguanas. The pigeons just step over them! 

Ok, that's all for now. Buenas noches!