from beaches to mountains to jungles this country is beautiful

We Ecuadorians love our relatively small country. Despite its dimensions (it’s roughly the size of the state of Colorado), Ecuador is blessed with biological and geological diversity. We have a great variety of climates, animals and plant species, with most of the landscapes a person can hope to enjoy. Beaches, mountains, jungle, rivers, waterfalls, countryside and cities — Ecuador is simply beautiful.  

There are four very different regions: the coast, with lowlands and beaches; the Sierra, a high and mountainous region; the Oriente, home to the Ecuadorian jungle and the famous Galapagos Islands.

Children International has two agencies in Ecuador; one in Quito, the capital of the country, which is in the Sierra, and another in Guayaquil, a coastal city. 

We have two seasons, the dry and the rainy, which we locally call “summer” and “winter.” Our summer is mild and windy, and our winter is hot and rainy. 

Ecuador cannot be described by talking only about beaches, mountains, jungle and islands. One must also know about its people, their behaviors and traditions. 

Food is fundamental to understanding us Ecuadorians

At any time of day, you can see people eating with great enthusiasm the countless variety of typical dishes we have. They might be dining in a street stall, a restaurant, a fast‑food place or even on public buses. The variety of dishes prepared with green or ripe plantains are practically endless and deserve a special mention: We have bolón, patacones, tigrillo, tortillas, sango, cazuela, empanadas, fried plantains, plantains with cheese, battered plantains and more. Bananas, which are of the same species, are called “guineo” here and are part of the daily food of almost everyone in Ecuador.

Rice can never be missing at lunch and dinner; many people even have breakfast with a dish that includes rice. The most popular is a dish that has roast meat, stew (with beans or lentils) and rice. The soups are also appetizing: locros, encebollado, bola soup (of green plantain). And then there are the fresh seafood dishes, such as shrimp ceviches, lobster, rice with fish (rice again), crabs, squid, shells, oysters, etc. 

Of course, not everything is food in the life of Ecuadorians.

Soccer is by far the favorite sport. The entire country practically comes to a standstill when the Ecuadorian team is in a match. There are very beloved soccer clubs whose fans blindly follow them and do everything in their power to attend matches. Fans even wear the team's shirt to go to work and spar with the opposing team, using unkind words and nicknames.  

Ecuadorians deeply appreciate family life. Parents, grandparents, uncles and cousins ​​get together quite often and share … guess what? Food and soccer! 

Ecuadorian etiquette 

Among the most typical customs is that of “asking for the yapa.” When buying five apples, for example, one asks for “la yapa,” which is something extra. We also like to bargain before buying something: “These pants cost $20, how much will they cost me?”   

We also “save the place” for those who arrive late. That is, if a person arrives first at the cinema, for example, we’ll put our hand, jacket or our wallet on the next chair to “save the place” for those who have not arrived so that no one else sits there. We also do this in lines to enter a concert, to buy a hamburger and even to vote in elections. 

Ecuadorians also have local expressions, and these are some of our most typical phrases: 

• If you ask where a store is, for example, the answer is “aquisito nomás” (just here), which can be ten steps or ten kilometers. 
• He who has bad luck is “salado” (salty). 
• Someone who does not have money is “chiro." 
• “Bien papeado” means well fed. 

As you can see, humor also characterizes Ecuadorians, in all circumstances. Even if something bad happens, these phrases or some other joke lighten the atmosphere like an escape valve to help persevere.