An adventure
Senior Liam O'Sullivan vlogs about his two weeks in Ecuador.
When traveling to a new place, one of the most intimate ways to get to know the locals is to go where they go, shop where they shop and just simply strike up a conversation.
Markets are the perfect place to do this – and they work a bit differently here in Ecuador than they do in the United States. Booths selling various products comprise the market. From colorful fruits to whole pigs, everything that you could want is there — and for the most part, it’s cheap.
Simply watching the way people interacted at the market was one of the most interesting aspects of going there. There were customers purchasing fruit, vendors with abuelas chatting by a TV and young children running around and playing tag throughout the complex. In places like these, taking the time to talk to a local or try some food that you wouldn’t normally eat is an important part of traveling, as it brings you closer to the people and their connection to their community and culture.
While we were waiting outside of the market, an older woman who seemed to be very interested in our teacher, Jim, sat down right by him and cast occasional interested glances over. Eventually, Jim asked if he could take a picture with her, to which she happily obliged, and sat up straight to adjust her apron, which had her restaurant’s name on the front of it. Proudly taking photos with Jim while not speaking much, there was a pure and unspoken understanding of each other in that moment. Despite cultural differences and language barriers, there can be camaraderie in the unspoken — just simple gestures and genuine interest in one another.
