IVHQ Ecuador Review

So I spent two entire months in Ecuador volunteering with IVHQ. I chose Ecuador because it was a small country I could travel around on the weekends, it was Spanish speaking and because the daily expenses were low. I knew I wanted to volunteer because I've done other types of travel and I wanted a …

Last Week in Quito (IVHQ)

So I returned to Quito early Wednesday morning to find out that Fabricio, my driver to the school, was told not to show up by the director of VCE, Gina. You can imagine my annoyance when I arrived. Turns out that she decided to completely ignore my email and only speak with my host mother, …

Unforgettable Mindo & Banos Weekend

I had such a great time at Mindo a few weeks ago that I knew I had to make a second trip. Of course I stayed in Casa de Cecilia again and spent time at my favorite restaurant in Mindo, La Casa de Babylon. I also danced salsa with the locals and tourists in the …

Week 7 Quito, Ecuador IVHQ

2/14: Had fun with my kids this week at gym class. They're so cute and they love when I join them.     Here was my dinner tonight. It was terrible, bland and lacked all forms of flavor. Plus it was dry and reheated for me as the family eats earlier in the day. 2/15:  …

A trip to Banos, Ecuador

One of my biggest regrets during this 2 month trip in Ecuador was not going to Banos sooner. It was so popular among the volunteers. I kept putting it off until I found, "the right group" at, "the right time". Not to mention I met two other volunteers that told me their time in Mindo …

Quito, Ecuador Week 6 (IVHQ)

  So there isn't much to say about this week. Monday was a holiday so I only volunteered 4 days. This week was like every other week before this. Teaching, eating, socializing, breathing. I'll show you all a few pictures. Nothing special. 2/7 8:50 p.m. Dinner at Myra's (host mom) 2/8 The first picture below …

Mitad del Mundo (Ecuador)

2/6 So today my volunteer friends and I met up around 10:30 am at the VCE office. We all split a taxi to Mitad del Mundo. I forgot how much I paid, but it couldn't have been more than $5 as there were at least 6 of us and the ride was probably 20-25 dollars …

Cuenca,Ecuador was a Dub :(

So I have been dreaming of going to Cuenca since I had arrived in Ecuador. I had heard it was a "retirement" paradise and that tons of Americans moved there to live. Little did I know how true of a statement that would be. I took a 9 HOUR overnight bus from Quito to Cuenca (check …

Quito, Ecuador IVHQ (Week 5)

1/31 Today I got to work along side the gym teacher. He's Cuban but he used to live in Venezuela. They had to move to Ecuador because of the unrest over there. He was quite sad telling me the story because he loved it there. The kids were so excited that I was in class …

Otavalo Market Fun

1/30  My new VCE friends and I met up to travel to Otavalo on a Monday. We didn't have volunteering that day because it was a holiday. I was so excited because I saw so many pictures online and met people who told me they got awesome things from there. I also watched a Yabla …