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NWC students visit Ecuador
NWC Spanish Professor Mary Ellen Ibarra-Robinson led a group of students to Ecuador for an educational trip to learn about the Spanish-speaking nation’s culture and to have fun in a new environment.
In May, 11 students, accompanied by MaryEllen Ibarra-Robinson, took an educational and a life-long trip to Ecuador.
They spent 12 days learning the language and culture of their new “home away from home.” The students paid for the entire trip on their own, but did some fundraisers to help out with the cost.
Because this trip was educational, it counted for two humanities credits. Each of the students took classes of preparation to help them prepare for the trip.
“This trip was definitely different from all of the trips that went from NWC. This is an extension of the class and the best way to learn a culture and language by living with families and being surrounded by the language, using it in the home, refining it in the school they attended and perfecting it by exploring around the city,” said Ibarra-Robinson.
The group started the trip on the western coast in the city of Guayquie, Ecuador, the country’s largest city. A former NWC student, Kelly Izurieta, and her family were there to greet the students and showed them around the city and up the coast.
The highlight of this first stop was eating a lot of the seafood and also standing on the outermost land point of South America in the Pacific Ocean.
From there went to Cuenca, Ecuador, which is considered to be one of the most beautiful cities and has two sides to the city, the modern more artistic side and the traditional, colonial side. In Cuenca, the students spent one week studying at a language institute where they learned more of the Spanish language. The students typically studied four to six hours a day and had to take additional classes such as Latin America dance or a cooking class.
This is the first year that the students only studied for one week; usually it is two to three weeks of studying. Each student stayed with a different local family. Along with the schooling the students enjoyed many of the activities that the native Ecuadorian people and children enjoy.
They visited the museums, marketplaces, saw a movie in Spanish and had plenty of time to explore. They would come together as a group to explore and visit many of the ancient ruins. One of the ancient ruins they explored was Inga Pirca, an Incan ruin site.
At the end of the trip, they headed off to Quito, the capital of Ecuador. As in the previous cities, the students explored and learned the culture. They were able to visit one of the most famous open-air markets, which is known especially for its woolen products. They also saw many different art forms and tapestries. They toured the Valley of Volcanoes and ended up climbing on of the volcanoes. All of the students made the climb to 18,000 feet. The highlight of this stop was the trip to the equator.
“Usually it is pretty difficult to convince the students that their money will be well spent because of the information and experiences learned, but even more difficult to convince them to come home,” said Ibarra-Robinson. In the end the students gained a better understanding of the Spanish speaking communities that they visited and also bought back with them many memories that they will always remember.