This half of the travels has taken a rapid start as life has seriously picked up steam. Language school is monumentally more fun thanks to the arrival of Anita (Priyanka's sister who will soon be studying abroad in Argentina), Hudson (my good friend from UNC who will be my traveling companion for my backpacking segment), and Angella (an always smiling Rotary Scholar from Atlanta). As I transition out of grammar studies and into literature and idiomatic expressions in these last two weeks at Academía de Español I am reminded of a fascinating linguistic aspect of Spanish that tells a lot about the culture and concept of affection. In none of my past travels have I found it not just okay, but endearing, to call a girl "fatty," but here it is made possible by a simple suffix, "-ita."A Quick "-ita" Lesson:
The Spanish word for fat is "gordo" when referring to a male and "gorda" when referring to a female. Around the house and about the streets you are sure to hear a mother lovingly call her pleasantly plump daughter, "gordita", or a wife relate a story about her overweight husband, "gordito." Many Americans, I am sure, would find it shocking and probably even downright rude to call someone the equivalent of "chubby one," but lets try to see this in an emic way. This is a fascinating, and I believe, valuable aspect of the language that shows how people can have different understandings of physical beauty and appreciate each other for all their uniqueness. The idea of adding "-ita" to an adjective to add affection extends to several different words too (chinita - little chinese one, negrita - little black one, flaquita - skinny one).
Warning: Do not get too excited and incorporate this into your daily English. Somehow, I believe it could lead to undesired consequences.
Spanish subtleties aside, these first couple of weeks back in Quito have been very busy with two weekends of travel, the creation of an unstoppable gringo basketball team, renewed salsa lessons, new nicknames and more. We made a return trip to Mindo in a sizeable group of seven + one amazing Englishwoman, Angie, whom we adopted at the bus station. The daily rain of my first week back in Quito gave way to brilliant sunshine in Mindo making for a much more enjoyable day of ziplining over the cloud-forest. Unlike our first visit, this time I did not find myself wishing that my glasses came equipped with windshield wipers. We also returned to the waterfall hiking ground, but sloshed our way through the mud to a different, much less-frequented waterfall. Strangely enough, four of us were wearing brand new sneakers at the start, but emerged with different shades of brown covering our soles. The mud seemed to assume a mind of its own during the hike out and the men folk, myself included, emerged thankful that we had survived a hair-raising, cloud forest right of passage that led to a shirtless exit.
Post Mindo (kudos to Hudson for embarking on the adventure only five hours after arriving in Quito from the States) we returned to the grind of seven a day classes, but found ways to create variety. I have thoroughly appreciated the return to Tuesdays and Thursdays in the southern Camal Market where I enjoy conversing with our friends who battle the Diabetes, Cholesterol, and Hypertension Cocktail with a pill + inadvisable chicken and rice for breakfast. The number of interested patients has increased and we continue to try to push for the addition of fruits and vegetables in their diets, but I mean, who can resist a big chicken with white rice, mmm.Salsa lessons are back in swing as Angella, Anita, and Hudson have joined the fun. And now that
an additional gringo has arrived in town, Will, Peter, Hudson, and I have begun to frequent the local basketball courts to represent for Estados Unidos. Currently, undefeated in group play, we look forward to maintaining the chemistry in this unlikely situation that brought together the talent of UCLA and UNC in a powerhouse not to be soon forgotten. The chance friendships created off the court have also led to promises, that I doubt will be fulfilled, for me to receive free lessons from a makeshift professor - the cursing negrito on the basketball court - on the Spanish he claims I need, but will not learn in the classroom.As I look ahead, I see a banana milkshake being prepared with breakfast, an ultimate frisbee game brewing in less than 24 hours, a multi-course meal and boardgames for Peter's birthday, and a visit from family plus a trip to the Galapagos just appearing on the horizon. With plenty of excitement ahead, I also bring a promise to return to writing regularly with a hope that you won't find it a bore.
And, let us part with some random tidbits:
1. Hudson, will from this day on be called Utsent by me thanks to the fact that this is how his name was spelled at the Salsa School.
2. Rum and coke was served at our language school at 11:00 AM...definitely, would not fly in the States.
3. Angella is called "la bebé" (the baby) by her host mother and often finds herself waving at airplanes to be polite and fit in with her host family
4. My internet is not working so I can't actually post this now. This will probably be posted a day after true completion.
A huge abrazo (hug) to all!!
