Nicole Weston (center) was joined by friends (from left) Jenny Driscoll, Hallie Barnhill, Brianna Cheney, and Erin Lytwyn en route to the sprawling outdoor Octavalo market.
World class
As a biology major at Boston College, Nicole Weston found the lure of the Galápagos Islands, “the founding place for theories of evolution,’’ irresistible. It was a natural that she should pick the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador to spend her junior spring semester. But beyond this “unparalleled experience,’’ Weston also wanted to immerse herself in the culture and hone her Spanish. Living with a host family in the capital Quito has improved her fluency, though with the occasional hitch. “Once, in attempting to express my embarrassment to my host brothers, I said, ‘Estoy embarazada.’ What I should have said, however, is ‘Tengo vergüenza,’ because ‘Estoy embarazada’ means ‘I’m pregnant.’ ’’
HIT THE GROUND RUNNING:
“The main difference is that university [here] is seen as the time to begin preparing for their future careers. A student interested in medicine begins college with medical classes, and does not need to go through a four-year undergraduate education before beginning graduate education. Thus, I do feel students work just as hard, because they recognize that this education is preparing them for their future career. What has been interesting to me, though, is that most students have the ability to speak English fluently.’’
MIDDAY FILL-UP:
“Lunch is the biggest meal here, and usually consists of soup, rice, beans, and a ‘plato principle,’ which is a meat dish of some sort. Eating the largest meal in the middle of the day took some getting used to, as most Ecuadorians don’t eat a very large dinner.’’
SKIP THE CUY:
“Both ‘cuy’ (guinea pig) and blood sausage are considered delicacies here, but I have found neither to my liking. I have come to appreciate and enjoy the incredible variety of fruits here in Ecuador that we simply are unaware of in the US. Naranjilla, claudias, and maracuyá are some examples. Also, locro is a type of potato and cheese soup that is delicious and very common here.’’
CAB FAIR?:
“Traveling during the day is fairly easy, due to Ecuador’s extensive bus routes that can be compared to Boston’s T system (though most are much faster than the dreaded Green Line). Taxis are in high supply for night travel, and are relatively cheap, though one must be prepared to bargain with a cab driver over an appropriate fare, as most drivers do not offer ‘taximetro,’ or the meter, after 5 or 6 p.m.’’
GLENN YODER
© Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.
