Make sure to go see the towering volcanoes above Ibarra

Those volunteering in Ecuador for an extended period of time should find plenty of opportunities to explore the country. Whether your preference lies on or off the beaten path, Ecuador has something for everyone, no matter your physical shape, time or budget. Here are some recommendations of things to do in this beautiful, diverse country:

1. Visit the hot springs of Papallacta: Just a couple of hours away from Quito, Termas de Papallacta makes for a relaxing day trip from the city. For $7, you can soak in the thermal baths here, while watching hummingbirds buzz around in the surrounding vegetation. For those with a bit more cash, an overnight stay is recommended.
2. Whale-watching on the Pacific Coast: During the months of June to September, humpback whales can be spotted along the coast off Ecuador. Puerto López is a sleepy coastal town from which tours can be arranged to see these majestic animals breaching the water.
3. Quilotoa Loop: For an exciting three-day trip from Quito, visit the remote Quilotoa Loop. Challenging to reach by public transport, the area boasts outstanding natural beauty, a spectacular crater lake, excellent hiking and horseback riding, and a chance to peek into the lives of the colorful local indigenous communities.
4. Maquipucuna: Animal lovers will especially enjoy this eco-lodge, set amid pristine cloud forest and surrounded by spectacular wildlife. In the summer months, the rare spectacled bear can even be spotted! 
5. Iñaquito Market: Typifying traditional local life in the capital city, the bustling Iñaquito market in the north of Quito is a true cultural experience. Come here to buy your local groceries, sample some regional food, or just walk around and take in its sights and sounds.
6. Baños: If you love outdoor activities or nightlife, Baños is the spot for you. During the day, indulge in biking, rafting, rappelling or hiking. At night, hit up the town’s buzzing local night spots. If you’re lucky, you may even get a glimpse of the highly active Tungarahua volcano.
7. Catch the Symphonic Orchestra in Quito: For an evening of fine classical music and the chance to see the best musical talent Ecuador has to offer for only $5-10, head to Casa de la Música. Some events are even free. Check out upcoming events here.


Looking for gifts to bring home from Ecuador? Check out the Otavalo market north of Quito!

8. Climb the mighty Cotopaxi Volcano: Not for the fainthearted, a climb up one of the highest active volcanoes on Earth, Cotopaxi, starts at midnight and takes approximately five to seven hours to summit. It should be undertaken with a licensed guide. Biking downhill from the refuge is also an option.
9. Otavalo Market: Shop until you drop at one of the largest artisan markets in South America. On early Saturday mornings, head slightly out of town to the animal market for some great photographic opportunities. The indigenous market in the center of town (Plaza de Ponchos) is there every day, but Saturday is the busiest day of the week and has the most variety. For those that cannot get to Otavalo, the Mercado Artesanal on Jorge Washington in Quito has a similar range of products.
10. Explore the Jumandy Caves : Close to the jungle towns of Archidona and Tena, the Jumandy Caves can be visited daily. Tours include swimming by flashlight through the dark caverns and plunging into deep pools.

As a volunteer we do have to do our research. Just like someone donating (discussed pointedly in Amanda’s recent post “Too Much Charity“) in order to make a difference, we have to do a background check on who we donate our time to. We also must realize that volunteer organizations operating in Latin America under the “do-gooder” guise are not always that transparent or altruistic.

I guess I didn’t do my research.

When I volunteered last year with a foundation in Tena, Ecuador (doing trail maintenance), I felt mislead. After finishing my two-week stay, I was to understand that the organization was in a “transitional phase” during my visit, but even considering this, I was a bit let down.

The facilities were functional but surprisingly run down. The food was good but simple. And more than once during my 2-week stay the “manager” was found in the morning arguing with the kitchen help about buying enough food for the week, and basically telling the cook to make due because there was no money to buy food. This surprised me. Considering the amount of money that the volunteers from the states paid to do the same work I was doing, I was appalled that this site was short on cash.

But the frustrating part was it seemed that the organization had a really successful history. There was evidence of some really productive volunteer projects.  However, it seemed the “transitional phase” really was impacting their work. The new volunteer coordinator seemed more motivated to talk to me about the “monas locas de Guayaquil” than any kind of project. He was open to ideas, but during our Friday meetings, it seemed that he would come up with excuses to not do many of them.

I am not complaining. I still enjoyed myself immensely. We did some useful projects to improve the trail infrastructure in the short time I was there, and I met some great people with whom I am still in contact.

However, if you are going to volunteer in Ecuador, I would follow the same recommendations that Amanda mentions for donations. Mainly, just do your research and try to work directly with the organization where you are going to volunteer.
I realize that these places do need to spend money on marketing to attract their target audience in the US and Europe, but I would like to have seen more of the cost of the program go directly to the site. I left questioning the integrity of these booking agencies that set up the projects from the states and wondering where does the revenue go from the high program costs if not directly into the site?

For more posts on paying (or not paying) to volunteer abroad in Latin America, check out “It Pays To Do Some Research,” “Pesos and centavos: Should you pay to volunteer abroad in Latin America?” by Megan Kaseburg, “Making a Difference While Making a Living – But How?” by Caitlin McHale,  or “From Volunteering to Paid Work: Development Careers in Latin America” by Andrew Wainer. Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador, who has just relocated from Guayaquil to Quito, and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

First off, thanks Rob for the recent guest series on various volunteer and development opportunities. Your experiences and incites were concise and objective, great advice to the budding idealist in Latin America. While reading your entries and others on the site lately, I have been deeply considering whether my job belongs on the site. I was inspired by your posts to copy (if the editors keep it this way) your format, and I just wanted to make sure we didn’t leave out another breed of idealist; the international teacher!

1) What it’s Like and What is was Like for Me

I am an English literature teacher in Quito, Ecuador. Being an international teacher in Latin America is filled with options  and great benefits. If you are an experienced teacher in the states looking for a change, or a new teacher looking to experience a new culture, seriously consider this option.  After attending a job fair in Atlanta last year for international schools in Latin America, I became newly fascinated with the career. The caliber of some of the tops schools is really impressive and the opportunity for advancement in the field is abundant. Considering that most international teachers stay at a school for an average of 2-3 years, if you invest some time, and stay longer than that, you will be rewarded with more responsibilities and pay.

Although I have only been to one country so far, Ecuador, I think international teaching offers a comfortable way to get to know another culture and country. Depending on your position, you will have the option to meet and make lasting friendships with a great group of like minded teachers from all over the world, and locals as well.

2) Level of Freedom or Structure

This depends heavily on the individual school. In my first position in Guayaquil, the school gave me a great deal of freedom as a teacher, and as long as the kids or parents didn’t complain too much, I was free to do basically what I chose. Here in Quito, with norms like scheduled “walk throughs” and formal observations from my superiors, setting smart goals, uploading unit and lesson plans; it’s a bit more formal.

When looking for a position, sorting through the myrid of opportunities and finding real schools  can be overwhelming. So, if you are interested in a legitimate international school rather than a language institute,  it is worth it to pay for a subscription to one of the recruiting sites like  TIE online, www.tieonline.com; search associates, http://www.searchassociates.com/; or International School Services, http://www.iss.edu/

3) Was I Useful? Did I make a ‘Difference’?

This is the where I think my experience differs from some of the options Rob detailed. As an international teacher, you usually work with upper class students. The families have money, they can afford to send their kids to bilingual, international caliber, IB diploma school; so they do.

So these are the questions my conscience has been wrestling with: do I need to work with kids in poverty to make a difference? Can I teach privledged Ecuadoriadian kids and get paid almost 10 times the amount of minimum wage here and still be considered an idealist? I certainly see the allure of working with less privileged students, they need the English instruction more than the rich kids do to raise themselves out of poverty, and I have done some fun volunteer projects during my summer breaks here.

But this is my chosen profession, so I am forced to defend it. I am encouraged (and sometimes scared) to think about how many of my students will undoubtedly become leaders in the business or political community here in Quito and Ecuador. So perhaps my influence can make a difference. If I can teach an ounce of humility, I think it could go a long way.

David Whyte, a poet who writes on teaching and imagination,explains it best; “There is a lovely root to the word humiliation – from the latin word humus, meaning soil or ground. When we are humiliated, we are in effect returning to the ground of our being.”

If I can help my students understand themselves and the complex world around them a little better, I feel like I have done my job.

Also, I currently enjoy an ideal situation in which to accomplish the goal above. I have one class of 19 students and 4 classes of 10-13 students each. Small classes are a dream come true for me as a teacher, as (despite what the research says) small classes allow for deeper conversation and appreciation of the material. Not to mention, more one on one attention for each student goes a long way in their development.

4) Dolla Dolla Bills Y’all

The pay is usually enough to live comfortably and save a little. You can easily save 2-3 times as much as I do teaching in China or the middle east, but if you’re on this site  I don’t need to explain the attractiveness of Latin culture!

Other benefits can include professional development opportunities. I am currently pursuing a distance learning masters degree through a university in New York state, and my school here in Quito is subsidizing the program heavily, so I am getting a masters degree as well as experience working and living abroad

5) Was it Worth it?

My favorite professor in university used the phrase “Journey of Self” in all her classes. It served not only as a theme to investigate the literature we read, but also as a reflective tool to evaluate our own development.

For me it is worth it. Teaching is a profession that requires commitment to long term goals and not always instant gratification. If I can force my students into some reflective moments and guide them through their “Journey of Self” during adolescence, I am happy.

For more tips on volunteering abroad, check out the aforementioned guest series by Rob Gradoville (parts the three, two, and one), “Can English Really Open Doors?” by Meredith Price, ”How Much Difference Did I Really Make After 5 Months of Teaching English?” by Jon Clarke, or “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” and “Ready to Teach Abroad? Be Ready for Anything,” by Kent Green. Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador, who has just relocated from Guayaquil to Quito, and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

Translate this phrase: “golpe de el estado”

It can be literally translated as punch or hit to the state, but we agreed that the closest translation in English would be coup or coup d’etat.

The phrase, golpe de el estado was all over the papers and the news a few weeks ago here in Quito surrounding the one-year anniversary of the 30th of September (30 S). According to the president, “democracy triumphed” last year when an attempted coup by the city’s police force ultimately failed and he remained in power.

At 3:15 on Thursday, September 29, we had a last minute announcement that school was cancelled the next day because of expected traffic and possible violence surrounding the rallies planned for the weekend. Both the president’s supporters and the opposition party staged demonstrations surrounding their views of 30-S.

The majority of the teachers and students here held the belief that that the president was “celebrating” for the wrong reasons and blew the whole situation out of proportion.

September 30, 2010 was quite a show. In short, the police staged a protest, and closed down one of the main roads out of the airport because of their discontent with a new law supposedly reducing benefits. Correa interpreted this as an attempted coup, and was addressing an agitated group of city police, when things got heated. Correa was in poor health, and the tension grew and a smoke bomb was thrown. Correa was feeling weak so he returned to his car, not before tearing open his shirt, and yelling at the crowd, “If you want to kill me, kill me now.” Correa decided to go to the state run hospital rather than the more expensive private hospital, and while he was being treated, a group of police surrounded the building. The “rescue” can be partly seen here. Several police and military died during the “rescue,” but eventually Correa was driven out of the hospital and gave a speech to his supporters.

As members of the upper class, and virtual carbon copies of their parent’s political beliefs, most of my students have strong feelings against the current president of Ecuador, who has gained popularity as the president of the people. I thought the recent rally and his revolutionary rhetoric would be an interesting topic to bring up in my Language in cultural context class and it certainly generated some discussion. It definitely forced me to reflect on the whole charade. And I can’t help agree with the sentiment that was most common among local staff at our school, that Correa’s insecurities and inability to deal with problems in a calm, measured manner is not something to celebrate. I mean, “A triumph of democracy?” He basically kidnapped himself. But I suppose that exuberance and dramatization are typical of Latin leaders. Maybe that’s part of what makes Latin America unique: the passion, the enthusiasm, the zest for life. And maybe that’s why I’m still here.

Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador, who has just relocated from Guayaquil to Quito, and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

It’s a story of deforestation and reforestation; of destruction and rejuvenation; of changing perceptions of land use; and of ecology.

Last week when I visited Mindo (a small town less than 2 hours west of Quito, Ecuador) with a group of teachers, the taxista taking us up to the waterfall hike and zip-line canopy area couldn’t contain himself. He was non-stop chatter the entire 30 minute ride up to the trailhead. His pride in his community was palpable.

As we climbed up the windy rough road in his pickup, the town of Mindo slowly got smaller and eventually almost blended into the surrounding forest. Apparently, it didn’t used to be that way. According to our new guide, just 15 years ago the area surrounding the town was completely deforested. The town was using the land to make a living, and a meager one at that. Then, change happened. A foreigner visited the town, and was captivated by the beauty and potential for tourism. With the support of the local community, he set up the first tourism agency, and started bring customers from Quito to Mindo to explore the forest canopy on zip lines and hike through waterfalls. At this time, the trip from Quito to Mindo was a 6 hour trek, instead of the 2 hour trip it is now.

Eventually, the locals banned together with Quiteños to create a foundation. Later, they succeeded in gaining governmental approval to create a protected forest in the area. This forest came under threat when the state oil company was planning to run a pipeline basically through the town. But the locals protested, and the pipeline was diverted to protect the forest and the growing tourism boom in Mindo.

“Now, it’s true….we’re not true ecologists… we’re green ecologists here, green like money,” said our taxi guy. He explained to us the transition from and extraction based local economy, to tourism. The government helped too, by renovating the road from Quito to Mindo, making it more accessible to tourism. Today, Mindo has gained a reputation as a hot spot for bird and butterfly watching, so virtually every weekend the town is filled with Quitenos and backpackers. The American Bird Conservancy even has a partner organization there, http://www.mindocloudforest.org.

So for me, Mindo provides an inspiring example of how Thomas Friedman’s “Green Revolution” is in action here in Ecuador. And if developing countries in Latin America can do this, just imagine if some bigger “leading” economic powerhouses could do the same…

phto credit: Mary Cornwell-Wright

photo credit: Mary Cornwell-Wright

photo credit: Mary Cornwell-Wright

Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador, who has just relocated from Guayaquil to Quito, and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

The first order of business was finding housing for us newbies; and for 24 new foreign teachers, with 24 different ideas about their ideal living conditions, this was no easy easy task. I was immediately confused by conflicting messages. “Don’t look in Guapulo, you don’t want to live there, it is too dangerous because of land slides…and a plane just crashed there recently too!¨ said Wendy, one of our ‘housing buddies.’  At the time I was living close to Guapulo, and it is a beautiful area of the city. I went to the bike race there week, and later I found out that other teachers do live in the area.

I am equally challenged to portray a balanced picture of Guayaquil and Ecuador to the new teachers. As I had my bike at the hotel where the school put us up, I was naturally asked to give an opinion on the cycling accessibility of the city. At first, I was reluctant to be positive about biking in Quito, because it can certainly be dangerous, especially coming from Europe or New Zealand like some of the new teachers. But after being here for two weeks, I think I can confidently taut the city’s progressive bike culture. Compared to Guayaquil, where I lived for three years, Quito seems safer for bikers. Not only does the city shut down 26 km of one of its main through-ways every Sunday for 6 hours for exclusive bike and pedestrian traffic; but the surrounding area provides endless cycling opportunities.

Last weekend, I explored the Chaquinan park in Cumbaya. A popular project for off-road advocates in the states is Rails to Trails, an organization whose mission it is to create a network of off road trails from former rail lines. And until last Sunday, I was unaware that the movement has spread to Ecuador as well!

La Ruta Ecologica, Chaquinan, is a 20 km off-road ciclo-via that follows an old rail line from the center of Cumbaya (a town approximately 20 km down the valley from Quito) through the valley of Tumbaco. The route follows a trail line that once ran from Cumbaya to El Quinche.

The entrance to the park is well marked in the town of Cumbya, and the route passes several tiendas and crosses the road several times (with impressive signage!) then goes through a few old rail tunnels. Finding these greenways and parks in and around Quito has made the transition easier, and I think I will be content in my new home.

For anyone visiting the city, Quito has some great websites in English and Spanish, with places to eat, sleep, and play in and around the city, www.quito.com.ec, has it all. And for one that highlights summer activities, www.quitoverano.com, is filled with fun ideas.

Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador, who has just relocated from Guayaquil to Quito, and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

While preparing to return to Quito this Sunday, after hiding in California and Colorado for the last two months, Ginny’s post on goodbyes struck me. While the post highlights the importance of saying goodbye – and while I agree and identify with many of her sentiments – I can’t seem to do it!

Say goodbye, that is. Say goodbye to Ecuador and my life there. I’m just not ready to do it. Well, I should be honest, I have tried to say goodbye – more than once. In January, when I made a last minute decision to join my roommate and school director to a job fair in Atlanta, I was preparing for a goodbye to Ecuador. I was learning about and interviewing with some phenomenal international schools in South America.

While the fair certainly reminded me about some amazing possibilities for the future and the inevitability of a goodbye to Ecuador; I ended up planning my life eight months ahead (a first for me) by signing a contract in Quito that starts in two weeks.  Don’t get me wrong- there have been plenty of times over the last three years of teaching in Guayaquil that I have had more than one tough day in the classroom when I felt the pang to leave. Leave everything. Say goodbye to my dysfunctional international school, say goodbye to Ecuador, and say goodbye to my teaching career all together!

But next week, I will be saying Hello once again. Hello to a new city but a familiar country. Hello to Latin culture and customs, great cycling friends, and a new school year. And despite the possibly fragmented relationship con mi novia that seems looming, and the lack of micro-brew beer, I am ready for it!

I agree that living in Latin America changes our perspective, and I embrace that and take it with me every time I return to the States. And despite the attractiveness of moving back to Denver to live in a clean city and play in the mountains, I am not ready, nor willing, to say goodbye to this culture that I have learned to admire, and country that offers endless adventure and contrast.

Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

I am currently in the United States and I will return to Quito, Ecuador to teach in August. The first few days of re-entry into the States is always a bit jarring. Although I have been coming in and out of Ecuador for almost three years, the subtle differences always get me.

For example, Californians have a different concept of personal space. When waiting in line to pay at Whole Foods the other day, I instinctively filled in close behind a mother and daughter in line, and the Mom quickly gave me an uncomfortable look and I took a big step back.

Also, silence is okay here. My life in Guayaquil at times feels like a seemingly endless series of honks and yells and vigorous conversation. Here in California, the vibe is different.

When I recently drove to my friend’s cabin in Yosemite National Park at midnight, I forgot for a minute that I was not in Latin America. My friend waved us down us as we pulled in to park, and without thinking and out of excitement, I gave a few honks of the horn to announce our arrival and greet my friend. He then greeted me with harsh reminder of his sleeping girlfriend and landlord. So my loudness didn’t exactly fit in at Yosemite.

Greetings are different. I kind of miss the hugs, cheek kisses and warmth of Latin people. If you let it happen, an Ecuadorian will spill their soul to you in a matter of minutes basically just after being introduced. They freely and immediately share their life story. Californians are a bit more reserved.

In Yosemite, when I saw my friend R.K. he told me repeatedly to “just slow down” and “just chill out.” I wasn’t comfortable with any lull in the conversation; I wanted to instantly know everything all at once about his life and I didn’t want to pause. I filled the silence with more random questions and observations. He wasn’t used to such fast talking.

So, I hope to chill out, prepare for classes in August, and ride my bike this month as much as possible, my next post will probably be from back in Quito, so best to all my fellow bloggers, look forward to hearing of your adventures, and please let me know: how DO you deal with living in two cultures at the same time?

Philip Dixon is currently in the United States, and will return to Ecuador in August to resume his work as an English literature teacher. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

Navigating Guayaquil requires an aggressive riding style. I would describe the bike culture here as in its infancy. There has been one urban bike path recently built, a 3 kilometer ‘ciclovia,’ connecting one of the malls to a freeway entrance. My friend that works on the city counsel assures me that money has been approved, papers are signed and we are only  waiting for construction of a more extensive ciclovia to be built in the city center. There are several active bike clubs in the city, and they regularly organize group rides and events. BiciAcion is making some significant progress with bike advocacy projects in Quito and they are going to work on some projects here in Guayaquil as well in the near future. But the reality here is that every time you get on a bike in this city, you are taking real risks of possible personal injury or bike theft.

I have had several close calls on my bike here.  In addition to almost getting hit several times, once when the power was out in the city and therefore no traffic lights were working, I was completely knocked off my bike. Somehow I was fortunate enough to land squarely on my backside with no bodily injury (minus a scrape on my hand) or damage to the bike.

About three weeks ago, we had another close call. I was on a super early morning 5 a.m. road ride along the Via del Costa with the “Perros de Camino” (more on them later) when we lost Ivan, one of our group members. We started as a group of four, and as we crested a hill, three of us stopped at the roadside tea and bolon breakfast restaurant. I enjoyed a manzanilla tea and a humita (basically a sweet corn tamale with cheese inside) when we realized that Ivan hadn’t arrived yet. We got back on the bikes, and headed back down the hill.

When we rounded a corner, I saw the sirens of an ambulance and immediately thought of the worst – great, first real day out riding with Ivan and the perros, and Ivan wrecks, I hope he’s okay… When we reached the scene Ivan was sitting in the back of the ambulance recounting the incident involving a moto and a hole in the road. He was okay, and lucky enough to walk away with a scrape on this arm and a pretty big bump on the head. The medical staff was helpful and friendly, but one of the national police started to go off on us about our obligations on Sundays: “Sunday is a day for church, you should be in church praying forgiveness, not riding bikes, you can ride on Saturday but not on Sunday, it’s prohibited to ride on Sunday.” I was reserved in my reaction, though I first I told him in Spanish that my religion involves biking and being outside, and second, muttered a few ugly English words at him to express my contempt.

If this response was a bit out of character for me, being cut off by a bus on my bike (what happened last week) brings out the worst in me. I was riding in downtown Guayaquil, on my way to the Federation public swimming pool in el centro. I am used to weaving in and out of traffic and having some close calls at speed, but I was riding slowly, maybe 5-8 mph, in the left lane of a busy 3 (ish)-lane one-way street. A large public bus started coming over towards me from the far right hand lane. I saw it coming and had plenty of time to react. And although the bus could have slowed down of a second and let me pass, it continued coming over into my space and made a left hand turn right in front of me. I was forced to take the left hand turn with the bus, but I made my discontent known. I punched the bus hard four or five times with my right hand. The passengers looked down at me in alarm and I yelled some Spanglish slurs at the driver.

Now, like I said, this sort of behavior is typically out of character for me, but there is something about the threatening bike environment here that gets me going. But being in an oppressive environment has its benefits as well. It makes you think quickly, forces you to be more passionate in your causes, helps focus the objectives of your movement. I love being in Ecuador to watch as the road and mountain bike scene grows. It is exciting to live in a city where the bike culture is growing and changing so rapidly.

Does all of this mean I will stop riding bikes in the city? Heck no! Have I sincerely considered buying a car or truck so that I can transport myself and my bike to ride in places with less cars in ‘safer’, less populated areas? Yes, I have.

Does this make me want to leave Ecuador and go back to the Rocky Mountains of Colorado to a progressive bike community of riders and racers and people who respect bikes? Sometimes. But I think that would be the easy way out.

So in conclusion, SI vale la pena (yes, it’s worth it) to stay here in Ecuador to see where the bike culture goes and to help out as much as I can. If only I can transform my terror-induced  biker passion into more productive methods of change, I think I will be more effective.

For more information on biking in Ecuador see check out www.guayaquilenbici.org, www.biciaccion.org, or on Facebook the group Ciclistas Sin Fronteras, Guayaquil, Ecuador. Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.

The recent series on ‘Lone Travelers’ reminds me of one of my favorite English Literature professors from Hobart College, Lee Quinby. For better or worse, after taking one of her classes during my first year as an undergrad, my main academic goal at Hobart was to take at least one class with her each semester. I ended up graduating with a double major in English and Environmental Studies, and to this day, her classes continue to motivate me to improve my teaching and reflect on my world.

One of the main themes of her classes was the “journey of self.” She used this metaphor to examine the personal journeys taking place in some of the literature that we read like Fredrick Douglas’ slave narrative and Thoreau’s Walden. The theme really stuck with me I think because I consider myself on a constant “journey of self” — regularly evaluating my personal and professional goals, being open to new perspectives and points of view, and remembering that there is always (at least) two sides to every story.

I think my journey of self is intensified when I travel. Traveling alone surely has its benefits, and I think those have been duly noted in recent posts on this site, but I must say traveling with my brother, or a close friend, is one of my favorite ways to travel.

One of the hardest things for me to deal with while living abroad is missing my family, so when my brother came to visit me in Ecuador for 10 days last year, I was pumped. We took to the Sierra; starting with my favorite city in Ecuador: Cuenca, traveling through Latacunga, hiking part of the Quilotoa Loop, and exploring Banos. We met some interesting people, rented motos and mountain bikes, and generally had a good time. Traveling with Will has all the benefits of traveling alone because we share such similar interests and values and enjoy similar activities even though he lives in Santa Cruz, California and I live in Ecuador. So although I completely agree with all of the comments about the value of traveling solo as a learning/transformative experience, traveling with a family member can be equally rewarding.

For more information on travelling solo abroad, check out Lauren Foukes’s post “…But Is It Safe?,” John Brandt’s “Going Abroad Alone or With a Group?“, or Alex Harker’s recent post “Lone Travelers.” Philip Dixon is an English literature teacher in Ecuador and a devoted mountain biker. For more information on his experiences, check out his blog.