Hello! My name is Sam and I'm spending my last semester of college in Ecuador. The first month of my study abroad experience will be in Quito, the capital city, and Tiputini Biological Station, which is deep inside the Amazon rainforest. Then, I will spend the next three months in the Galapagos Islands! I'm taking a total of 5 Biology classes while in Ecuador. I will be on my plane to Quito in t-minus 5 days.
When I first heard about this opportunity, I thought it would be a bad idea to spend my very last semester of college in another country when I could be spending it with my friends at CMU. It was a really hard decision to make--to leave everyone and everything I know behind and adapt to a new way of life for 4 months. However, I know I'm doing the right thing by taking a risk and seeing a part of the world I might never otherwise be able to see. I've always loved traveling, but I've never been gone for so long, and they never tell you how hard it is to say goodbye to your life.
Still, I know when I get there I will be so immersed in the incredible things I'll see that I won't have much time to miss home. I am an equal parts mixture of excited and nervous, and I feel completely unprepared for what's ahead but totally ready to experience it. I will try to post often to share my trip and let you in on what it's like to live in Ecuador!
