We picked Ecuador because of their epic New Years Celebrations!!!! Â Haven’t you heard????
This trip was rejuvenating.  International travel! For the first time in year(s) I was able to sit in the backseat of a car, in another country, stick my head out the window, and watch country scenery go by.  I didn’t want that 45 minute ride on public transportation to ever, ever end â it was  amazing!  “I CAN’T BELIEVE I’M IN ANOTHER COUNTRY”, I yelled inside of my own head.  That feeling, being in a taxi with the wind rushing by and seeing parts of the world I’ve never experienced before, is a very specific feeling, one I’m incredibly accustomed to, and one that I had missed dearly. I took a deep breath.
Novel things happened here. I had an entire period where I used pads only (they didnât sell tampons where I was in Ecuador). Â We ate guinea pig, called cuy. It’s a short word for a delicious meat. Â My favorite wild meat, in fact. (alligator, horse, dog, ostrich, kangaroo, rat, et al.) Entirely unrelated, I made the amateur mistake of forgetting to look for toilet paper before I went into the stall (it had been too long!). We saw lots of stray dogs (a sight I donât see here in the USA). Watched the Spiderman movie entirely in Spanish. Â Took cold showers, Patrick didn’t flinch. Again, with the incredible mask wearing here! (I see you, Puerto Rico). Â Ate ice cream with cheese. Â Drank hot chocolate with cheese. Â Drank wine with chocolate nibs sprinkled in the glass, sans cheese. Â Ate “one entire guinea pig (between us) and 6 ice creams, por favor”.Â
My biggest take away from my first international trip post covid?! And now, this may surprise you:
Nothing says Happy New Yearâs quite like eating an entire guinea pig followed by ice cream covered in cheese.
Feliz aĂąo nuevo,
‘mi