Fiesta time!

Being in a group of predominately 18 year olds in a foreign country for three months, there was bound to be a bit of partying going on. Here's a few of our favourite hot spots that we discovered during our time in Quito. 

Bungalow 6

In the heart of gringoland, this was our regular Wednesday night ‘discoteca’. To be honest this was completely due to the fact that Wednesday was ladies night, which meant that us chicas got a cup upon entering the club, and were able to receive free drinks until 9PM. Now if you’ve never been to South America, the drink sizes are quite contrasting to their Australian equivalent, which meant that you would only need a few of their potent concoctions to be seeing double. Rationally, the idea of ladies night encourages men into the nightclub as soon as the clock strikes 9, ready to live up to the ‘machismo’ stereotype that is often related to South American men. It may be a haven for questionable men, but it was also somewhat of a tourist retreat from local bars, which meant amongst the throngs of unsolicited males, there would always be a multitude of cute foreigners – what more could a girl want! All this with a combination of both western music for a bit of nostalgia to home, and a contrasting selection of all the top Ecuadorian pop tracks. Touristy and tacky? Yes, completely. Our favourite club? Undoubtedly. 

La Mariscal

Venturing away from the favourite Bungalow 6, we found a great number of other interesting bars and clubs in our three months. The perfect hole in the wall bar for any Beatles fans out there has got to be Strawberry Fields. With a themed menu and matching décor it’s well worth a drop in – just don’t get too cosy; the prices are quite steep in contrast to regular Quito fare (though mighty reasonable compared to Sydney). Finn McCool’s was a great little Irish bar, which was always a great place for a few drinks and getting your dance on. In my opinion two of the coolest non-western bars in la mariscal were a salsa club just off the main street, and Chupitos. For the life of me I have no clue what the name of the salsa club was, though I don’t recall ever seeing a name for it. It was located behind a different street front bar, with a small walkway taking you down to where all the dancing happened. There are of course a multitude of places where you can try your hand at salsa, so definitely go exploring, and as clichéd as it sounds, some of the most amazing discoveries happen when they’re unplanned. One unplanned discovery would have to be Chupitos, the charming little bar we stumbled upon on my 19^th birthday, which had an extensive and also relatively inexpensive shots (or shooters, for any Americans out there) menu.

Our first Chiva Party

Chiva

Party buses may be something that is incorporated into the western world, but the South Americans definitely do it best. These buses give a new level of danger mixed with party, with the buses being quite open (somewhat terrifying if you get a gas-pedal-happy driver) and brightly coloured.  On our first chiva party we were all escorted onto the bus, given cups that hung around our neck, and bottles filled with one of the most horrible tasting drinks I’ve tasted yet. Little did we know that it wasn’t even alcoholic, so our persistence was completely in vain. If you’re not too interested in partying (we were all around 18 at the time, so I can promise you we were more than eager) the chiva experience can still be for you. Many of our day tours outside of Quito included a chiva bus to take us around, including the musical element without the nocturnal factor. We found this particularly prevalent in the town of Baños, where we spent a day visiting waterfalls and nature walks via our very own chiva bus.

La fiesta de la Mama Negra

Latacunga
La Fiesta de la Mama Negra takes place twice a year in Latacunga, once to celebrate the ‘Virgin de la Merced’ who is said to have stopped the 1742 eruption of the Cotopaxi Volcano, and the second to celebrate their independence day. The festival embraces the diverse cultures of the locals, from their Spanish roots, to the Ayamaran, Incan, Mayan and even African heritage. In doing this, the entire town was a place of celebration, with a parade sprawling through the streets and masses of people filling up the town centre. The festivities include dancing, music, marching bands and the most interesting tradition of throwing or even spitting water and alcohol into the crowds (as a sign of good luck of course!). If you’re in town for the festival, or even just find yourself in the surrounding areas, make sure to check out the breathtaking sights of Quilotoa, which is just under an hours drive from Latacunga. Lake Quilotoa is a 3 kilometre wide caldera in the Ecuadorian Andes, which put simply is a large volcanic crater. At the top of the caldera you will find a small town, with markets, a small home restaurant, a quaint art gallery and a place that you can hire donkeys to walk you down towards the water.

Quilotoa

Cheeky happy snaps with my room mate 

If you've got any other hidden gems to share, feel free to let me know! 

-Melissa 

Oh baby, oh baby!

During my three months living in Ecuador’s capital city, Quito, my roommate Garigarra and I were working in a small childcare centre on the outskirts of the city. The experience as a whole was an eye opening one, having never spent so much time in a developing country, not to mention with underprivileged children. We worked with a group of babies from five to twenty-four months old, which meant a lot of crying, feeding and the dreaded nappy changes, though looking back I wouldn’t change it for the world. These kids, despite their less fortunate upbringings, were just like any other children their age. These are the faces that got me through all the early mornings and near vomit inducing cleanups, and I’ll never forget all of their happy faces!

The cheeky Anderson & Alexandra

This gorgeous little lady

Garigarra with the kids

The children with Garigarra & I

Jocelyn conmigo

This is just a snapshot of my three months in Quito, with some of the gorgeous kids I was looking after.

-Melissa

Shop til you drop

As a self confessed shopaholic, it was inevitable that I would end up at numerous markets and suss out all the best shopping spots. These were a few of my go to spots, specifically in Quito with a couple out of town mentions.

Mexamaxi 6 de diciembre

Megamaxi

If you’ve never heard of Megamaxi it’s basically a haven for all things food, home, clothes and electronics. For any Australian readers imagine the lovechild of Kmart and Woolworths, with most items at ridiculously low prices. 

Quicentro

For a taste of westernization we would head down to our closest shopping centre, Quicentro. It featured an array of big brand shops, somewhat lacking budget options, but it was definitely fun window-shopping. It also housed one of the best food courts in walking distance of our apartment, which was always great for lazy Sundays.

Parque El Ejido

These were my favourite local markets in Quito, and I spent my fair share of weekends trawling through the stalls here. The selection of souvenirs, clothes and food was pretty typical, though there was quite a nice selection of local art, along with the great park location that you could spend a good afternoon relaxing in after doing a spot of shopping.

The famous Otavalo markets 

Otavalo

These are the markets to end all markets. If you’re in Ecuador this should be at the top of the list for all of your souvenir and gift needs, not to mention some amazing pieces to add into your wardrobe – and really, what’s better than being able to answer ‘oh just a market in rural Ecuador’ when someone asks you where you got those amazing leather sandals. My favourite picks are the alpaca jumpers, leather bags, crochet tops and the typical tourist ‘happy pants’ which are the epitome of comfort.

Montanita Street markets 

A very small-scale market on the streets of this gorgeous beach town, you can find some amazing unique jewellery amongst some of the typical market selection.

Happy shopping!

-Melissa

Food, glorious food!

As a country colonized by Spain, there is a high presence of Spanish culture present through language, dance, music and of course food. I immediately found the culture of lunch as the main meal of the day to be quite foreign, but the incorporation of the siesta proved to ease us into this foreign practice. Our host mother would serve us a fairly westernized breakfast of fruit, cereal and toast, and she also organized our less substantial dinners. La cena consisted of jamon y queso for the greater majority of our three months in Quito, and to this day I have trouble consuming the humble ham and cheese sandwich. The main meal of the day, lunch, was an extravagant affair usually consisting of a three-course meal. Following the starter of a soup was a meat-based dish with salad, vegetables and every bean known to man. I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve ever eaten so many beans in my life. This was all topped off with a combination of fresh juice, fruit and usually some kind of pastry to end the meal on a sweeter note. The culture shock was less prominent in the type of food, but in the fact that our main meal of the day was prepared by our household maid. That’s right, I said maid. I never did quite get used to the fact that we had someone serving us and cleaning all our things, it was all a bit bizarre. 

On sundays our host mother would spend some quality time with her relatives, so we were left to forage for our own meals. We did throw a few dinner parties, where I did majority of the cooking due to my roommates innate ability to burn all the things, however we were often quite lazy and visited our favourite local café The Magic Bean. With one of their two locations conveniently situated below our apartment building it became a frequent meeting spot for us and many of our fellow antipodeans who all lived within 10 minutes walk. The staff came to know us well, and we fell into a routine eating their ‘Po-boy’ sandwiches, jam packed salads and their ridiculously cheap choc-chip pancakes (always worth the extra calories).

Although the majority of our diet was typically Ecuadorian we did manage to explore quite a bit of the local variation of foreign cuisine, especially in the tourist area of La Mariscal or ‘Gringo town’. Some of our personal favourites included the bohemian La Boca del Lobo and the cheeky natured Uncle Ho’s. La Boca del Lobo is worth a visit for the colourful architecture and interior design alone, especially considering the prices are quite steep in comparison to regular Quito prices. We did only visit twice, deciding it was more of a special occasion restaurant, but if you’re looking for a bit of splurge this is the place to be. Not to mention its instagram potential, this is definitely the kind of place that would give your friends travel envy. Uncle Ho’s on the other hand was a Vietnamese restaurant started by two men with a combined heritage of Irish, American and of course Vietnamese, serving up a selection of Vietnamese favourites with a side of Thai and Ecuadorian delights. The service was what really made the restaurant, with the added bonus of their mischievous ‘I love Ho’s’ t-shirts for sale. Needless to sale I’m the proud owner of one of those shirts, though I would definitely recommend you size up in the ladies styles as they’re quite a slim fit.

One of the most bizarre Ecuadorian delicacies I encountered was the eating of guinea pigs. I didn’t dare try it, mainly because of the method of cooking them that kept them completely whole, which overall unnerved me. My friend Alex did however try them, and he said they weren’t too bad, though I can’t say I was completely convinced.

I’d have to say the culinary highlight of my Ecuadorian adventure was similar to many of the other countries I’ve visited, which was the street food. I love the experience of ordering something on the side of the street and watching it cooked in front of me. Not only is it often a safer option when it comes to possibilities of food poisoning, it’s also a great way to get the freshest, and in my opinion the most delicious food. Street food was everywhere in Ecuador, and I found that the more rural the location, the better the fare. One of my personal favourites for street food was a surfing town along the Ecuadorian coastline called Montañita. We happened to be in town during a national public holiday, which meant we had a bit of an adventure finding hostels (though I still remain strong on my stance of not pre-booking in majority of circumstances, as our booked hostel turned out to be a nightmare and we easily found another), but it also meant that there was an amazing vibe of celebration throughout the town. There was an abundance of street food through the centre of town, with a great deal of touristy fare, however we made a beeline for the same stall every time. Their main options were marinated meat on a stick and corn roasted in front of you then coated in your choice of what I can only guess was some kind of yoghurt, amongst a variety of sauces, and then rolled in cheese. I’m not going to lie, even as I type that out it doesn’t sound incredibly appealing, but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t one of the most amazing flavour combinations I’ve encountered yet. Another perk of Montañita we lovingly nicknamed ‘cocktail alley’, which was essentially a street leading you to the beach, lined with small vendors selling fresh fruit juice combinations with the option of added alcohol (which we of course obliged, with the maximum paid being around US$3.50 for an enormous serving). The last remaining standout for food in Montanita was a quaint vegetarian café by the name of Café del Mar, which had a homey interior and served the most amazing vegetarian lasagna, amongst a selection of other meals and desserts. Worth it for the cute couches, book exchange and delectable medley of vegetarian options.

¡Hasta Luego! 

-Melissa 

Adventures of an Antipodean

An-tipo-dean

A person from Australia or New Zealand (used by inhabitants of the northern hemisphere).

The Antipodeans group at Rumicucho

Straight out of high school I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life (not unlike my 22 year old self), and so when I heard about the Australian company Antipodeans who facilitated volunteer programs around the world, I was set on doing one of said programs on my gap year. With my heart set on travelling to South America, I decided on the one country I knew the least about, Ecuador. This somewhat impulsive decision has left me with zero regrets, as I came to know Quito as my second home.

Exploring Quito with my roommate

I spent three months in the countries capital, Quito, sharing a room with a school friend and the amazingly hospitable host mother, a little 60-something year old Ecuadorian lady with very limited English, but more enthusiasm than a kid in a candy store. With our own limited Spanish, we relied on her visiting grandsons Joaquin and Luis, along with our in country agent, the famously eccentric Marcello. It wasn’t long however until I was able to communicate (though in hindsight probably with terrible grammar), through a weeklong Spanish course and private weekly Spanish conversation classes.

Mitad del Mundo

Immersing ourselves in the South American culture, we started work at a local childcare centre, working with 5-24 month olds on a daily basis, and with such a lack of staff it was definitely an experience and a half. Exploding diapers, non-stop crying, and a shocking child seizure I'll never forget, there were definitely downsides, but overall the children were a complete joy to care for and I was definitely sad to leave them. It seems even crazier to imagine that some of those kids are now 4 years old. To be completely honest, I can't justify my three month stint volunteering in Ecuador as having a significant long term effect on the children that I cared for. This may seem like a discouraging factor for many young people who are interested in embarking on volunteer programs post graduation, however I feel that if you can make any difference in someones life, be it in the present moment or over a continual long term period, it shouldn't be seen as any less of an achievement. Personally I can say that I was able to give the hardworking women in the centre in Quito a small break from their overwhelming work days, and if anything the experience as a whole was enlightening and humbling for a girl coming from a polar opposite privileged life. Far from discouraging you from taking this great adventure, you may just need to be aware that depending on your choice of volunteer work your impact in country may well be more immediate, with more of a long term effect on yourself, both mentally and emotionally. On that note, I couldn't speak more highly about the experience I had with Antipodeans, because it definitely changed me, and made me the person who I am today. 

At work with the gorgeous Jocelyn 

Typical transportation 

Following that, I will stop boring you all with my ramblings on enlightenment and self discovery, and promise more on food, shopping, accommodation and adventures around Ecuador in my next post.

¡Adiós amigos!

-Melissa 

A degree of wanderlust

Wan-der-lust
A great desire to travel.

 As a typical 20-something Australian it’s hardly a surprise that since getting a taste of overseas travel I’ve become hooked, daresay obsessed with discovering other countries, cultures, cuisines and their historical landmarks. My first ‘overseas’ trip was to neighbouring country New Zealand at the age of 12, and in the years following I also visited Thailand with my parents on another family holiday. Both amazing destinations for completely different reasons, however my love affair with travel didn’t begin until I embarked on my first international adventure sans my parents at the age of 16, embarking on a two week school trip to Japan. The duration was spent equally in Kyoto and Tokyo where we stayed a week in a hotel and the remaining week with a host family, giving us an insight into everyday Japanese life.

 The first week in Kyoto was filled with shopping, more temples than I’ve seen combined in my lifetime, and with daytrips to Nara, Himeji & Hiroshima. Being year 11 students we were given free time to roam Kyoto, and I fell in love with the notion of exploring the unknown, and the mixture of freedom and fear that came with being in a foreign country where you were unable to communicate fluently and also with the excitement of not knowing what would come next. The following week staying with a family who spoke about as much English as I spoke Japanese proved to be quite a challenge, though I also found it to be far more culturally enriching. I became practically fluent in charades, and was confronted by foods I’d never laid eyes on, foreign bedding and bathing situations and differing family dynamics. At the time it was all very strange, and I recall being quite homesick due to lack of communication, but in hindsight it was hands down one of the most amazing experiences I could have had at such a young age.

 That feeling I had in the unknown of Japan is the exact same one that I encounter whenever I first arrive in an unexplored place, the impossible to replicate moment of pure excitement and yearning for new experience. It’s not a surprise then that I jumped at the opportunity to explore South America and Western Europe as a part of taking a gap year, and that I’ve since travelled back to Europe & Asia for several month stretches throughout my university degree (In which I’m studying International Relations with a minor in Hispanic studies, surprise surprise).

 Overall this blog will outline some of my past adventures, and newfound travel ground (next up is a month in Europe & New York in September of this year), most likely with an eclectic mix of fashion, food and local adventures. Hope you enjoy following my escapades across the globe, which will hopefully be filled with strange tales and crazy adventures, with tips and tricks along the way.

 This is my current ‘where have I been’ map, and I can’t wait to make some new additions.

Come away with me, and lets travel the world.

- Melissa