SST students and faculty visited Dream Farm, a flower producing facility in Guayllabamba, a small town 45 minutes north from Quito. We learned that the business of flowers is a huge source of revenue for the area, specially before Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Halloween, and Saint Patrick’s Day since their…
Otavalo, a small town, two hours north from Quito, is world known for its artisanal crafts such as textiles, musical instruments, jewelry, hats, and hammocks. The community is proud of its indigenous heritage, practices, language, and customs. María Virginia Farinango is one of those proud otavaleñas. She coauthored —with…
Last Thursday, we left our beloved Quito for some adventurous adventures in Imbabura Province, named after a great inactive volcano. Our agenda included hiking around a lagoon in a volcanic crater, meeting new SST partners, and visiting Parque Condor, a refuge —and kind of a hospital— for birds in the…
While in Mindo, we visited Quetzal Mindo, a chocolate shop, garden, and tasting tour. Sergio, our Portuguese guide —whose Spanish is better than my Portuguese— explained that cocoa harvesting originated in what now is Ecuador, but it was mostly used as currency. The pod made it to what now is…
Mindo, a small town located about 2 hours from Quito, is tucked in the middle of green luscious mountains and singing rivers. Because of its biodiversity, beautiful views, and environmental projects, Mindo has become a great ecotourist attraction. The locals welcome visitors and the revenue they bring, the challenge is…
Museo Intiñan features a tile covered line that marks the equatorial divide—to make it visible to the naked eye—, plus, life size representations of native people’s houses, ancient tombs, and regional flora and fauna. This provides interactive experiences at a scientifically intriguing place. The museum and its…
Oswaldo Guayasamin (1919-1999) is considered one of the most important visual artists of the 20th century, not only in Ecuador or Latin America, but in the world. His work is visually vibrant, emotionally compelling, and politically engaged. He depicted scenes of pain, love, violence, and hope; he organized his…
The first week of classes included lectures, museum visits, church tours, and silly games. On the weekend, students went out on adventures big and small with their host families. Some went hiking… Some showed off their fitness Biking was popular……
This was a very philosophical dinner. Orientation for this year’s SST Ecuador group was packed full of activities, places to see and new people to meet. The first week of classes set us into a more quotidian rhythm of family life, academic activities, group…
A few days before the program started, Tillie, Klever and Cristóbal met with a group of eager families. They shared their stories of coming home with “healthy and super cute new family member”. After they were “delivered”, we received a cascade of messages from families telling us how great their…
