Mindo, Ecuador

It is hard to believe that I am mid-way through my service here. WorldTeach held their MidTerm conference this past weekend in the cloud rainforest, Mindo, about two hours outside of Quito. As other teachers and I gathered around our hotel, Gallo de la Pena, we discussed our teaching experiences with each other, shared ideas for the classroom, and spoke about life in Ecuador in general. It was interesting to hear stories from other parts of the countries and a lot of fun to share my own. Other than having sessions on teaching, WorldTeach is putting together what is called the EcuaVista. This is a revista of the September 2011 volunteers. It will consist of stories, ideas, and a lot about life in Ecuador. Two other volunteers and I are taking on the responsibility to organize and edit. It is exciting to take on a task where I am able to get creative!

Other than the conference, we had a lot of time to explore Mindo. Mindo is a small town but who knew there was so much to do! We spent the day with Mindo Ropes & Canopy! Canopying is the same as zip lining. There were 13 cables that I zip lined through the rainforest. It was lightly misting and absolutely gorgeous. While canopying, you had the choice of doing the "mariposa" or  the "superman." Take a look at the pictures below to get an idea what I am talking about. After zip lining, I did what was called the Tarzan Swing. This swing is built about 40 meters off land. You walk to the edge and fall-it turns into a swing. Pretty intense but worth it!

The chocolate factory was another excursion we were able to explore. Minus the thousands of bug bites we all got, it was really interesting to learn how chocolate is made. We were able to eat fresh cacao beans and eventually a homemade brownie.

Let's not forget the food in Mindo. Street almuerzos, pizza, and lots of trucha (trout)!

Although Ecuador is small, every part has a different culture. The people, food, activities, and climate all range from anything you can imagine. It is great to be able to explore parts of the country and see how other people live everyday. It is much different than the coast!