After class I felt like getting out of the urban setting so after a big lunch ($4) I set out for Parque La Carolina. It\u0092s a huge place and within just moments of entering the din of the traffic reduced. Some days the noise pollution is overwhelming. I\u0092m sensitive to sounds\/noise as it is and there just doesn\u0092t seem to be a moments rest from the bus, car and air traffic. <\/p>\n
To get to the park, I took the bus. There are three lines that run north and south. The bus stop is in the middle of the street. There\u0092s a turnstile sort of thing that allows you to pass after you put your quarter in the machine. It\u0092s just a quarter to ride the bus, which is part of the reason they are so jam packed. I was a little late getting into the bus and the doors closed, me on the inside of the bus and the backpack on the outside of the bus the door trying to close between the two of us! I said, in English, will someone help me? A couple of guys wrestled the door open enough for my pack to get in the bus. The buses are so crowded I feel like those photos I\u0092ve seen of subways in Japan. No breathing room at all.<\/p>\n
I wandered through the park for a while and found a snack bar sort of area and sat there for an hour doing my homework. The only Spanish materials I brought with me to Ecuador are a Spanish\/English dictionary (Mom gave me for Christmas) and a little electronic translator (Barb gave me). Both have come in handy. I\u0092m using the dictionary every day both to translate my Spanish homework and to figure out how to express my English thoughts in Spanish.<\/p>\n
On my walk back to Hipatia\u0092s I passed an art installation at the edge of the park. In Fargo they had painted buffalo. Was it painted cows in Chicago? In Quito there must be more than 50 painted hummingbirds. Next time I get an internet connection I\u0092ll upload the photos. Interestante. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
After class I felt like getting out of the urban setting so after a big lunch ($4) I set out for Parque La Carolina. It\u0092s a huge place and within just moments of entering the din of the traffic reduced. Some days the noise pollution is overwhelming. I\u0092m sensitive to sounds\/noise as it is and there just doesn\u0092t seem to<\/p>\n