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