Welcome to Ecuador!

When thinking about BCA Quito, it is best to think about it as a journey… a journey to the middle of the world.

Ecuador, as its name suggests, is situated on the Equator and although only the size of Oregon, one will be hard pressed to find a more diverse country anywhere in the world. The bulk of your journey will be in and amongst the marvelous Andean mountains, highlighted by numerous snow-capped volcanoes. The weather will be nearly perfect all year, as one of Quito’s nicknames is the “city of perpetual spring.” You will be communicating in Quiteñan Spanish, meaning that you will learn numerous Quichua words, which are part of the daily vernacular. While most of the people you see around you are Mestizos (a mix of Spanish and Indigenous descent), you will recognize significant human diversity, including varied Indigenous cultures, Anglos, Afro-Ecuatorianos, Asians and Arabs. Your daily journeys will be full of hand-shaking, hugs and kisses, not to mention family parties, Latin dancing and music. You will notice the dominant Catholic faith as represented in the old colonial churches and numerous festivals and rituals. Many Ecuadorians will mistake you for one of the hundreds of thousands of tourists that come to Ecuador every year.

Speaking of tourism, your journey to the “land closest to the sun,” another nickname for Ecuador, will take you to the country’s diverse geographical regions. You will visit the dense Amazon jungle and one of the most impressive natural wonders of the world, the Galapagos Islands, not to mention one of America’s largest Indigenous markets, Otavalo. Other potential trips include the historical center of Quito, one of the World’s first cities to be listed as a United Nations World Heritage Site, the cloud forest, pristine beaches, small indigenous villages, volcanic lakes, indigenous ruins, and much, much more.

Everywhere you go you will encounter different cultures, socio-economic situations, traditions and foods. Oh, and the food should inspire more journeying, especially since it isn’t really expensive. Five-cent bananas, great bread and pastries, a variety of types of corn, lots of potatoes, the best ice cream, not to mention just about any international food you can find in the States. Who knows, you might even eat a Cuy (that’s Guinea Pig to you and me, an Andean delicacy.) And here’s a side note for students coming for a full year: your journey will go outside of Ecuador, as we will visit one of the 7 Wonders of the World, Macchu Pichu in Peru.

A significant part of the journey is your effort to understand the complexity of the country, city and school where you study. As you travel, whether to other parts of the country, or just on your daily trip to school, you will witness human challenges that most of us normally take for granted. Poverty, segregation and political instability are the norm. People migrate to where they have the best opportunity; however, such mass movement of people results in other challenges, perhaps worse than what they were escaping. It is very likely that you will become frustrated with the unfair distribution of wealth, and this will be complicated even more when you realize that many of your classmates are children of the extreme upper class. It is also likely that you will begin to see your own country in a different light, as you learn about its effect on small developing nations like Ecuador. After all, the money you will be using is the United States dollar. Your journey will be a true exploration of our new Global Society and hopefully your inauguration as a Global Citizen.

You will live in a huge city, probably larger than any other in which you have lived; however, Quito is only recently so sizeable. Rapid growth enhances the rich history, but also brings many complications, such as intense traffic, pollution, petty crime and disorder. Such growth also means that if for some reason you can’t live without a burger, multi-screen movie theatres or huge malls, Quito has got them all over the place. It also means that communication is as easy as almost anywhere else, if not much cheaper. There are Internet cafes on every corner, and many families already have wireless.

As a BCA student your journey will be based in family life, since you are required to live with an Ecuadorian family. While it may feel weird to go from dorm life back to the home, the journey wouldn’t be the same without it. After all, since family life is such a critical part of the Latin American experience, you wouldn’t want it any other way. You will study in one of the country’s premier universities, the Universidad San Francisco de Quito, which offers a wide range of courses similar to the style of U.S. universities. On site will be the Resident Director, with eight years of experience in Ecuador, and the Assistant Director with her whole life’s experience in Ecuador.

The journey will offer sights that amaze your conscience; you will say things like, “I can’t believe I had the opportunity to see this.” You will have experiences that touch your soul, whether they stir up emotions of being engaged in a truly authentic moment or they rouse anger due to perceived unfairness. True, your classes will educate you, but daily life will be your real teacher. It is possible that this journey to the “middle of the world” will really be a journey to the middle of yourself.