Artisanal Market & Ñeque

The Mercado Artisanal was very much like a smaller version of Otavalo. Since a metaphor is technically a word or phrase, I feel as if it would be better to say that the artisanal market was more of a representation of Ecuadorian culture. The use of natural materials found in Ecuador are a representation of how down to earth the indigenous culture is. Additionally, the way the people in artisanal markets barter shows their willingness to be a community and to give their work to other people.

Working at Ñeque confirmed what I thought I already knew about kids, but on a much deeper level. I learned that, in the end, all kids want the love and attention from someone that they can look up to. No matter what the situation is that kids grow up in, they all have so much love to give.

I learned a lot about service while working at Ñeque. I realized that, no matter what you are doing when you’re doing service work, as long as it comes from the heart and is done to genuinely help someone, it doesn’t matter what you’re doing. Whether you’re buying food and craft supplies, helping with homework, or playing soccer, the most important part of service is to spend genuine time with the people you are helping. It was frustrating to see people who were only participating in the service for the photos and using the children for a photo opportunity.

Cooking with our professors was  a great example of intercultural communication because it allowed us to learn new vocabulary in the kitchen and to learn through participating in an activity. It was rewarding that the locro soup was so good, and many of us had fun learning how to make new foods that we had never made before. The biggest challenge wasn’t about the communication, but more so that there was not enough for everyone to do in the kitchen. I don’t feel as if everyone got enough time to participate in cooking along with the professors.