Serena Sharma

My First Month Here

Hi everyone! Long time no see. It has officially been 1 month and 4 days living in Ecuador. These past days have felt like the longest period of my life and the shortest period simultaneously. Here’s what I’ve been up to!

For my first few nights here, everyone in my cohort lived in a hostel together. Right now, it feels like that time is a distant memory. I remember those first few nights felt the longest. But it was a wonderful time to meet and bond with everyone. We would walk to the office together, eat meals together, and play games at night. And it was a lot of fun. I feel incredibly lucky with my cohort. Even now, we spend a lot of time together, and it’s always a good time. We are currently in Week 5 of 9 of Pre-Service Training, and I am already preparing to miss them. I will miss having friends come hang out on our roof or going out exploring Quito with them. Not only have they become friends of mine, but they have also been an incredible support system for me. I was expecting to come here and struggle a lot, and there have absolutely been hard days (homesickness likes to sneak up on me at the strangest times), but I think having these people around has made the whole experience so much more manageable, and even enjoyable. Below is a picture of me and another volunteer with our matching ponchos we got this weekend.

For the past month, I have been living with my host family, and they are so wonderful as well. I have a fútbol crazed 5-year-old host brother named Salvador and a lovable puppy named Oreo. My host parents have been so kind to bring me to numerous family events and take me on adventures with them. Two weeks ago, we went together to a beautiful lagoon surrounded by mountains, about 2 hours from Quito. And just yesterday, we hiked the Cotopaxi Volcano. I’ve also gotten the opportunity to meet their extended family and friends. And I feel like I am really part of the family. I know I will miss them a lot as well.

One other thing worth mentioning: the dogs. The kid in me who always begged my parents for a dog has been thrilled. I’ve been surrounded by so many cute ones (and only a few vicious street dogs to keep me on my toes). It’s honestly been a huge highlight of my time here.

Beyond the time with friends and family, training itself has picked up too. Training days are a mix of language classes, technical sessions on community health work, and cultural sessions. And I can’t forget to mention the safety and security sessions that manage to give us all a mild heart attack. But it’s been nice having classes again and a regular schedule. My Spanish has come a long way since week one, even if I still mix up my tenses more often than I’d like to admit. But my favorite moment so far was during Experiential Learning. This aspect of our training includes presenting to groups in the community about different health topics. One session was with a group of elderly community members, and they were the most engaged group we’ve worked with thus far. Hearing each of their stories made me smile. They had so much to share, and it seemed like they really enjoyed having us there. One lady gave me two hugs, yelling at me the first time for not giving her a strong enough hug. We get to work with them again this Thursday, and I am very excited.

Unfortunately, Ecuador got eliminated from the World Cup. But those first few games were so exciting. The day that Ecuador beat Germany was such a fun day. We all ran from the office to the closest bar we could find to watch the game. And I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. I think this is the first time in my life I have been so invested in a soccer game. After they won, cars were honking for hours in excitement, and everyone was so lively. The President even announced a day off for everyone the next day (we didn’t get one though )

I’ve been loving all the new food here. Every day during lunch, I am excited to try somewhere new. I have found out I am a big fan of encebollado and ceviche. I also enjoy how large their lunches are here. Every almuerzo comes with a soup, a second plate, juice, and dessert. For only $3 too! The only complaint I have is that they do not have any spicy food. But my host family was very sweet to make Aji with jalapeños, so it was a little spicier. But otherwise, everything has been great. And I am excited to try more. I still haven’t tried Cuy, but I’m sure I will soon.

I am starting to feel more settled here. But at the same time, I am trying not to get too settled here because I know I am leaving to go to my site in a month. I still don’t know exactly where I’ll end up, and that mix of excitement and uncertainty is very real. It is comforting to have a routine here and friends now. And it’s comforting to know that I can feel comfortable here. It will just take time to do it all again. But poco a poco, I am excited to try and do that again at site, and I have a feeling the next month is going to feel just as long and just as short as this one did.