Studying Spanish in Quito, Ecuador

A lot of folks treat a foreign journey like a travelogue. They don't really experience it, they watch it. It's safer and more comfortable to learn about the world from your armchair or from a tour bus.

But studying the language of the culture on location can offer security and comfort while also allowing you to become more immersed. And it can be far more affordable than a guided tour.

Today I'm going to tell you how Melanie and I experienced Ecuador as Spanish language students.

Our two-week experience with the Simon Bolivar Spanish School, included 40 hours of intense Spanish and a home stay for a less than it costs to live in the states. Class time cost about $250, and the home stay cost about $260. That pencils out to just a little more than $1,000 a month. That's enough time to savor the experience instead of just rushing through it.

Cope with it: When a man leads "Venezuela, Colombia (including Panama at the time), Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia to independence from the Spanish Empire, dramatically changing the political landscape of South America for the next two centuries" (Wikipedia), you're going to have to name a Spanish language school after him. That's just the way it is. Here's Mr. Bolivar's portrait at the Simon Bolivar Spanish School in Quito, Ecuador.

But that's just the basics, and Simon Bolivar offered a lot more.

A guest instructor showed up to teach salsa to the foreign students.

Like Salsa! Each week there was a salsa class taught by a local instructor who stopped in for an hour. It was an opportunity for the dance newbies to learn some moves and for more experienced dancers to connect with a local school.

And each week there were cooking classes. On our final day, our instructor, Mariana took us shopping for ingredients and then we cooked a traditional meal of chorizo sausage, eggs, and potato patties with cheese, topped by a peanut sauce which we reduced.

Mariana, our Spanish instructor (on the right) showed Melanie and me how to reduce a peanut sauce and prepare a typical Ecuadorean meal.

There were also excursions, such as the visit to a local restaurant to try out the national dish, cui (guinea pig); a visit to a market the locals use, and the excursion to Otovalo, the tourist shopping mecca down the Pan American highway from Quito.

In Otovalo, we visited the Saturday morning animal market ("this little pig went to market...") and then browsed booths offering--among other things--lovely fabrics and garments and finely crafted leather items at very reasonable prices. Afterward, enroute back, we took a side trip to hike a ways up the side of a dormant volcano.

Pigs on a leash. Not quite like pets,but a good way to deal with a handful of porkers at the Otovalo market.

Spices on display and for sale at the Otovalo market.

Enroute back from a field trip to the Otovalo market, several of us hiked the rim of a long-dormant volcano caldera.

The school was a bit of an international crossroads. We met classmates, young and old, from Holland, Germany, Norway, Australia and the states. Some were on extended adventures. One German architecture student was using an online agency to work his way through a few countries in Northern South America. Another student, a nurse, was planning to volunteer her services through the school's community outreach program. They were all ages, with a variety of experiences, and they all had stories to tell.

I found the classroom experience to be particularly enriching. I had studied Spanish in the past, and the two weeks I spent at the school really consolidated what I had retained. Mel and I had an instructor all to ourselves for 20 hours each week for $6 per hour for each of us. That turned out to be just right. One-on-one would have fried my brain, but sharing air time with just one more student seemed to be the optimum situation for me. We attended classes in the morning. In the afternoon we were free to walk the city or hop a bus for a destination within town or even to a neighboring town. Taxis can be fairly reasonable if you pick a metered cab, and the buses are ridiculously cheap -- and comfortable--if you find a seat. Otherwise, hang on!

While Melanie and Mariana took a tea break at the schools outdoor patio, Wilson tried sampling Mariana's bread loaf.

Simon Bolivar has two locations: One in the nation's capitol, and another in Cuenca, one of the jewels of South America. The school also offers Spanish studied at two remote locations near the Pacific coast or in the Amazon jungle, further enriching the experience.

Individuals at the school were especially helpful in connecting me with communities where I could distribute 10 One World Futbols -- and explore the possibilities of delivering a lot more of the little indestructibles in the future to communities in need.

One of the questions you might have is -- is Quito a safe city to walk in? Well, there are thieves and pickpockets in any tourist environment, and you want to keep a close eye on your belongings in a crowd. But we found Quito to be just as safe as Seattle or Portland. Exercise common sense and a little caution, and everything goes smoothly. And watch where you walk. The sidewalks are uneven but the drivers are very predictable -- they can be counted on to remind you that you are only mortal.

Wilson at the doorway of the Simon Bolivar Spanish School. You ring the buzzer to gain entry.

A wooden toucan welcomes visitors at the school's doorway. In the background is a hefty jade plant.

The home stay worked fairly well. We stayed with a family that included the husband and wife, two grown daughters and an adult  son who was getting married in May and moving out. The family owned the three-story structure where we stayed and had other tenants as well.

We were a 15-minute walk from the school. Each had our own bedroom, with  limited shelf space and small desks which quickly became cluttered. The bathroom had a tankless water heater which could produce suitably hot water for a shower if you didn't turn the flow on full blast. At first, in the middle of the night I had to walk through Melanie's bedroom to reach the bathroom, but after I got the run of the house, I located a different room for that late night necessity.

Wilson takes a short nap on my bed. The room was small, but ample, clean, and very affordable.

Our small quarters were supplemented with a large dining table adjacent to the living room; we were able to charge and use our lap tops there to do our studies.

At this dining table, which went largely unused because of the breakfast bar, Melanie and I set up our laptops to carry out our Spanish studies, write e-mails, etc.

Home stay families frequently like to do activities with their student guests. That didn't happen so much with Melanie and me, but we also had our own agendas which may have pre-empted  family-initiated activities.

The school was warm and inviting. My primary contact, Sofia Valdivieso, was readily accessible via e-mail and facilitated my arrival. The driver was waiting at the airport and took me directly to my home stay. There's a toll-free phone to reach the school from the states. When I needed to contact my bank, I used Sofia's phone to make the call without charge. And I had the pleasure of meeting her young daughter, whose name, Tamia is a Quechua name for "rain."

Sofia Valdivieso communicated with us via e-mail before our arrival, scheduled our transportation and host family, and facilitated our study. Her daughter, Tamia, was in charge of charming us. 

Would I go back? Count on it. At this time, I'm looking forward to that possibility. There is more Spanish to learn, more fun to have, and more One World Futbols to distribute. And the school and home-stay provide a safe haven to come back to each day -- a place where you can count on good advice and support while immersing yourself in a different culture.

For more information about the school,  turn to http://www.simon-bolivar.com/index.html.


Love,

Robert,
and Wilson

The school's his and hers bathroom signs.