DAY 1:
Curtis woke me up at 6:30 this morning. He allowed for a great morning where I was able to slowly wake up and not rush. I didn’t get much sleep as Curtis and I were up late packing and doing things to get ready. I had lost my packing list I wrote so I was running around trying to figure out if I had everything. I would look at Curtis, as I would realize the things I forgot to pack like bras, my green pants, and my pink beanie. Now that I’m in Quito, Ecuador… I realize quite a few other things I have forgotten (my bikini being the main one). It isn’t anything I can’t find here though, if needed.
We headed to Walgreens to pick up some last minute general medication to bring like cold/flu and the such. From there we headed to McDonald’s to eat a nice greasy bacon McGriddle. Yum! I had opted to bring Zulu along for the ride… I don’t think she had any idea what was going on. When I was in Walgreens and Curtis and Zulu were waiting in the car, Curtis said she watched me go in and did not move her eyes from the door waiting for me to come back out. I hope that she realizes that things will be back to normal in enough time. She is my baby and I snuggled with her all night long… and Curtis a little. 
I arrived at Bush Intercontinental airport around 8:30 am and on schedule. Curtis and I held each other for a few minutes after unloading the bags and Zulu kept jumping out of the car or into my arms every chance she got. She knew something was up. Kibu and her will be going up to Indiana to stay with his parents for a while since he is in and out of the house so much as a pilot. We looked into doggy daycare and boarding while he would be out of town, but it would be at least $60-80 per day which was a budget breaker. Zulu will likely be a bad puppy for a while up at grandma and grandpas, but hopefully she will get over it and know that we didn’t abandon her. Kibu should be fine but I fear Zulu will be depressed for a while and potty inside the house in angst. We will be back for them in April upon my return.
I waited in the airport for my 10:30 departure to Miami, Florida which was fairly uneventful. The flight was painfully uncomfortable as I was squished on a full flight. I arrived in Miami around 1:30 and waited for my 2:50 departure to Quito, Ecuador. I met a guy whom I talked about travels with. He had just come from Jamaica for a wedding and was interested in some travel throughout Europe next year. We talked for a while until it was time for him to leave and I gave him one of my Where is Jenny cards if he wanted to follow my travels, like all you guys are!
The flight to Quito wasn’t so full so I had a full aisle to myself. It was very long and I was very hungry. I couldn’t wait to get the food, and since I was so far back on the plane I was literally last to be served. The meal was pretty good, but that is probley because I was so hungry. It was some sort of beef, mashed potatoes, green beans and carrots. It came with a roll, salad, and oatmeal bar. I ate it all. Then laid down and fell asleep.
I awoke just in time to watch the sunset from the sky and it was nearing the time for our flight to come to an end. I headed outside the airport and stood in line to go through customs. They went through my paperwork and luckily did not make me purchase a return flight out of Ecuador or pay visa fees. I then grabbed my backpack from the baggage claim and stood in another line to have my stuff x-rayed. On my way out I saw Marcio with a sign saying “Jenny Leonard” I waved and told him I would meet him at the end of the aisle. Customs checked my baggage claim check to my baggage tag and removed it from my bag. They were ensuring everyone was leaving with their luggage… which was nice.
Marcio did not speak much English. My Spanish from high school is very rusty. I was an intermediate fluent speaker 10 years ago, but haven’t spoken it since. It was difficult to communicate and we had some barriers. I let him know that my Spanish teacher would be there in the morning and he informed me that she called them and talked to them. They were already up to speed on that.
He took me on a short drive to his house. They have two teenage kids one boy and one girl. It is a small house with 3 floors and 5 small bedrooms with 2 shared bathrooms. The bathrooms have outside piping which I have never seen before and there is a weird kind of hot water wiring/piping that goes out the window. There are two other travelers staying here. One is here on a study abroad program and the other is here to travel in South America for at least a year! My room is very nice and includes a tv. I tried to get on the wireless internet which I was told was available on reservation, but it is not reliable if available. I am fairly bummed about that and it may make me move places sooner because I need it to complete a few projects I am working on.
Although I had already eaten I joined the family for dinner. I could pick up on some of the conversation, which ranged from the election in the USA, tattoos, and Halloween. I was glad that I got my early vote in on Monday before I left. It is a very important election. Amanda, the student, translated a few questions that they had for me and translated my answers. I did my best to use the little Spanish I could remember.
I then headed up stairs to watch the Simpsons in Spanish and get ready for bed. It was dark upon my arrival so I don’t have too many observations to make. It is much colder than I expected and I’m thinking I may have to buy some clothes to warm up. I’ve also had a headache all night from the difference in altitude. I don’t have much of an appetite and it could take up to two weeks to adjust to the difference.
