Report from Quito

Lisa asked me to write about my impressions of Ecuador as we mark our one year anniversary living abroad. A day doesn’t pass without me reflecting on the fact that I’m not residing in the U.S. When it really smacks me in the face is when I’m getting my daily dose of U.S. political news. I’m so glad not to be in the thick of that mess! So much of why we moved overseas was to get away from the ship of fools running the U.S. and we succeeded. I do know we haven’t escaped the impact of recent U.S. international military escapades as the world economy is shattered and respect for the U.S. as the leader of the free world is now a distant memory.

Moving around our small circle in Ecuador, virtually all the people we come in contact with are willing to forgive our home country’s sins and not pile blame on us individually. Maybe this is understandable when we remember Ecuador has so many social and political problems of its own. The citizens here feel generally helpless to change the course of their world too.

Daily life in Ecuador is meeting my expectations. I’m glad I’m here. I really like the people and their culture. They are tolerant and respectful of others. Generations of families live together and family is the most important thing to them. They aren’t afraid of welcoming strangers into their midst. They show interest in us and we are interested in them.

Ecuadorians are worldly. It seems that every time I ask a taxi or Uber driver where he/she is from they might say they’re from Quito, but they lived three or four years in London or New Jersey, and their children are young professionals living in Spain, and their mother lives in New Orleans, or something similar. The variety of stories seems infinite. 

The negative of living here is the isolation from friends and family back in the U.S., but nowadays we can connect easily, face to face, on social media. In my three previous experiences living overseas I could connect only by mailed letters or an infrequent expensive telephone call. Our weekly conversation with our boy makes it less difficult to be so far away from him. 

Both Lisa and I have developed our routines just like we’d do living anywhere. Grocery shopping, walking the dog, doing laundry, doctor visits all happen with the same frequency as before. My favorite routine is bicycling the “Ciclovia” ride through Quito every Sunday. That’s when I join my like-minded neighbors riding the streets closed off to auto traffic from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day. So many people biking, roller skating, running and walking. I’ll never tire of that experience, which gives me a perspective of being part of this city.

Nothing so far has caused me to seriously question the decision to move here. Yes, I’m adaptable and have traveled throughout the world, but life is good here. I don’t think Ecuador would work for everyone seeking a new home, but for us life is excellent for many reasons – mostly because we like Ecuadorians!