South America

We rode on paved streets through concrete, graffiti and remains of the day after leaving the airport. Night brought out the eeriness of the empty storefronts and boarded shops and the air smelled dusty, suspended by morsels of water. Most buildings were hard to distinguish except for the beaming car dealership on the corner.

Newness is settling in and it’s hard to make judgments quite yet with the glare of excitement blinding.

The taxi dropped us off at the end of a wide cobblestone road with a broken sidewalk to the right and a strip of grass to the left, tall concrete walls on both sides. Jen opened the broad metal gate unlocking the hidden flora and fauna beyond the concrete walls. For a second I thought fairies or fireflies would emerge from underneath the glistening leaves of the light rain. A stone path lead to terracotta tiled steps and thin black railings that produced an apartment at the top. Inside were high ceilings, exposed wood, an espresso machine, warm showers, wi-fi and a master bedroom just for me (!). (WTF?)

The high walls keep this orphanage functioning and safe. Buildings provide a safe haven for preschoolers, babies and children with disabilities. Disabled children are given therapy, babies are held and fed, and preschoolers have a loft with all the windows and toys a child needs to stretch their imagination. A pet Lama sluggishly roams through the courtyard next to a fire pit that I can hardly wait to use, AND if you walk down the cobblestone path the trees open up a beautiful view of the mountains and Quito.

About an hour away is another orphanage. To get there requires a bus ride of about $1.00 for two people. It drops you off on the side of a highway and you walk on broken stone and dirt through concrete houses, finished and unfinished, with flowers resting on the sills outside, across a moving bridge over a deep ravine, passing a horse at the entrance and wandering dogs, down a road lined with trees and through a gate. Grassy mountains hover in front and behind, cloaked in grassy patchwork all along the sides and to the top, reminiscent of England. The green grassy common greets you, surrounded by colorful little concrete houses. Children are eating pork, potatoes, and maiz with spicy cilantro sauces to drizzle on top.

“Jennifer!” they say, recognizing my friend excitedly.

Quito is a mixture of tall office buildings, old Spanish influence, and what seems like strip malls, surrounded by mountains. The climate is comfortable, 60 and sunny, pushing me to wear long sleeves. Today we drank fruit shakes at a place with finished tree trunks for chairs and tables, an ex-pat western haven. We also visited a video shop, stocking up on bootlegged movies (my picks: True Grit and Harry Potter).

Now, it’s official - I must be in foreign country.