So Christmas is well and truly on the way. It never feels like Christmas here for me. We don’t make that much of deal of it here; you’re not bombarded with it at every turn like in England. I definitely prefer it this way, but at the same time I miss the cold! It doesn’t feel like Christmas unless it’s cold and dark and I’m inside in the warm, reading a book by the fire and eating mince pies and general other stuffing my face activities. That I really do miss; therefore in order to tackle missing a Christmas like this, I decided to spend last Christmas at the beach. I always wanted to try the ‘Australian Christmas’ of having a BBQ and relaxing on the beach. It was awesome. But didn’t feel like a Christmas to me.
So, I recently spoke on Skype with a friend who I hadn’t spoken to face-to-face since I came here almost two years ago. Naturally we asked each other a lot of questions; he told me he enjoyed my blog. I decided to put some of his questions here and my answers. I hope you’ll find them enjoyable and I haven’t really touched on those topics here. What follows is a selection of those questions:
Do you miss England?
I miss catching the train in the rain and seeing the droplets run down the window. I miss go for runs in the cold. I miss real bacon. I miss concerts. I miss my friends. I miss not having to download Doctor Who. I miss ordering online from Amazon. I miss typical things like that but I don’t actually miss the English lifestyle or country in itself. I am happier here than I ever was in England. But, that has nothing to do with me not being in England and now being in Ecuador. It’s just that the situation I am in now, partner, job etc. makes me happier than before, it just happens I found all of this here in Ecuador. I just wish England and Ecuador were closer so I could visit more often and it not be so expensive to travel.
What do you like most about Ecuador?
The people! They are so laid back and welcoming. As soon as you meet someone they are quickly your friend. At work every morning we greet each other as if we’re old friends that have been apart for too long. Nothing is ever an issue or a problem. People lend each other anything. Who in England lets someone borrow their car? Or their laptop? Here all the time. In England if I wore purple trousers, yellow shoes and a green top hat everyone would stare at me, even make fun of me and laugh. Here no one would care what you were wearing. They don’t judge, they accept you. Bullying is almost non-existent here.
What’s the biggest difference between England and Ecuador?
The weather. Where I am in the coast of Ecuador it is never cold. You could wear shorts and a t-shirt every day of year and it would never ever be an issue. It doesn’t really rain here either. Today is an average day here and according to my phone it’s 27°C and it will get a lot hotter than that from January through to March.
What are you long term aims while you’re in Ecuador?
I want to progress as far as I can here at the university. We are in a period of great change here and I am working with some dedicated people who are relentlessly trying to improve the standards here at the university. I want to study for a PhD and work my way up here. Also, I am involved in a very special project that with any luck will begin in February next year (keep coming back for an updates on that). I am planning to take the DELE (The Diplomas in Spanish as a Foreign Language) B2 Spanish exam to coincide with my two years here in Ecuador. But, at this point that is more than achievable. I want to push myself further, maybe publish an article that I will write in Spanish or in the coming year take the DELE C1.
Why are you so fat?
Two things. I no longer exercise and I now drink cola. If I exercise and stop drinking cola then everything will be ok again. I have been saying I will stop drinking cola and exercise for about a year and six months now…. Those that know me from university will remember me as a fitness freak. I will start running in the evenings so I’m not chubby for the wedding photos. Love has made me fat. It’s not my fault. Also, there is no squash here. What am I supposed to drink if not copious amounts of cola?
What is it like speaking another language?
The fact that I have been here for nearly two years is the why I speak Spanish. It’s not impressive it obvious that I do. Learning a language from living in a country is not an achievement. If you have self-taught yourself a language from your home country, I respect that. But, what I have done is not really an achievement. As I live here it doesn’t feel anything different. It just feels likes speaking. People who don’t speak other languages often say they wish they could just jump into another language, but I really don’t think they would feel any different if they could.
Do you stand out in Ecuador?
I stand out a lot here. I look a bit different to everyone else. The majority of people know just from my face that I am not Latino. More often than not people guess with Spanish or a I’m some crazy Mormon Jehovah ‘Jesus was your uncle’ American missionary person.
If you had to go back to England tomorrow what would you miss most about Ecuador?
Not including the people… I would go for food. Some of the seafood and plantain based dishes are incredibly good. You just can’t get that in England. I do miss a lot of restaurants from England that aren’t here in Ecuador but I can pretty much cook anything I miss from England. Whereas cooking those Ecuadorian dishes in England would be almost impossible.
What’s Ecuadorian music and TV like?
There really isn’t a distinct type of Ecuadorian music, they listen to music from all other the world. Ecuadorian TV is really not my cup of tea. It’s like continuous daytime TV, and there is a lot of reality TV. The only things I like are the crazy Brazilian soap operas and the news; the news is only important stuff I like that.
Is it dangerous there?
I have lived here for nearly two years and I have never been the victim of crime. It’s similar to if you lived in New York or Chicago in the US. It is not as safe as some European cities. But, I have never been concerned about it.
So yeah, that’s the most of it. As always I hope you enjoyed reading. If anyone has any other questions feel free to let me know via the comments, our you could tweet me @matthew1ane and I will answer you in a upcoming post. In other news…
I want you all to meet Spikey (a.k.a. Spikeysito, Spikeysorus) the new addition to the family. He is super cute and crazy. He is the best and the only bilingual dog in Ecuador.
Hasta luego
mattinecuador 