What inspired you to go abroad?
A desire to learn Spanish and be able to see a part of the world and experience a culture and life philosophy different from my own. My hope always was to grow as a human being and to be able to broaden my horizon and learn from people I usually wouldn't have crossed paths with. To live close to a family and contribute to a project with passionate locals had been a dream of mine for a long time.
Growing up in Norway, I have always felt very protected from the real world, and I have felt that in order to understand the world, I need to be closer to people from cultures and countries far away from my own.
Why did you choose Fundación Bolívar Education?
The one taking me to Ecuador, which was the country I most wanted to get to know. I heard so much about this country and its people, and to me, it seemed like the country and experience that would take me closest to the real life of the people and culture.
The opportunity to work both with children and the elderly was so rewarding and to live with a host family that has become my own family has been the best thing that ever happened to me.
What was your favorite part about Ecuador?
The people and their welcoming spirit. The possibilities to really get to know a country from the inside through my host family is something I am forever grateful.
The Ecuadorian soul is truly unique, and every day feels like being in a telenovela. They really know how to cherish every second and make the best out of what every day brings—even a trip to the grocery store or a traffic jam is fun in Ecuador.
These are experiences I try my best to maintain when going home to Europe, where people often get very stuck in their routine and forget about everyday magic. The small encounters with people that change your life forever. Like when your host mom brings you to her hairdresser, and suddenly you are attending a birthday party in a stranger's home.
What made your experience abroad extraordinary?
Birthday celebration.
The very close encounter with the locals. You truly feel like you are a part of a real Ecuadorian family and their everyday joy and drama.
Bolivar Foundation makes you feel like family, and they include you in every single part of their life. From learning salsa, preparing lunch for an elderly centre, celebrating birthdays, and going on party buses.
I would never in my life have dreamt of being this involved in the everyday life in a culture so far from my own, and learning the language and culture as I have.
How did local staff support you throughout your program?
In everything!
Choosing the project that best suited me, learning the language, showing me their country, including me in their everyday life, taking me to the hospital when I got sick, listening to me complaining about my boyfriend at home, comforting me when I lost a family member, making me juices to feel better after a hangover, teaching me the traditional way of cleaning my energy with a raw egg, including me in every single activity in my host-famiilys life from taking the dogs to the hairdresser, attending a funeral, birthday parties and grocery shopping.
What's one thing you wish you would have done differently during your time abroad?
I wish I had stayed longer, and I wish I had gone sooner. This experience is something that would create world peace if everyone had done it. The knowledge and understanding you get about different cultures and people is something that can't be taught in a university, and it can't be lived without traveling.
Describe what a typical day in your life abroad looked like.
Waking up to my host mom running around to get the kids to school, speaking in Spanish - I would lie in bed listening to learn new words and phrases my teacher wouldn't have taught me. Having breakfast with the kids and maybe playing tennis in the garage before my brother left for school.
Going to the foundation for my private Spanish class, where my teacher and I would talk about everything from politics to my boyfriend. Then, I would volunteer at an elderly centre where I would help organize small activities and listen to the elderly`s incredible life stories.
It truly felt rewarding to have the time to both spend quality time with someone, acknowledge their life experience as well as I got to practice this incredible language. It truly gave my Spanish classes a whole new dimension.
In the afternoon, the Foundation had loads of activities to bring the volunteers together. Cooking classes, salsa dancing, and birthday celebrations. I didn't want the days to end.
What did you enjoy doing during your free time abroad?
I enjoyed traveling, spending as much time with my host family as possible, and also to learn to dance salsa.
A lot of my free time was spent in the salsa school and salsa bars. I really enjoyed practicing Spanish with the locals, the kids in my family, and being in such a unique country for traveling. Most weekends were spent visiting.
What type of accommodation did you have? What did you like best about it?
Slumber party with my host family
I stayed with a family that included me in every single aspect of their life and traditions. I am so grateful for everything they did for me, and these experiences have given me a second family for life.
I would never have been this integrated in the culture or learned this much Spanish if it weren't for them.
What is one thing every future participant should know about your program before their program begins?
Embrace every second. Try to come without too many expectations, because your experience will be different from what you can imagine.
Let the people, culture, and project guide you, and don't try to recreate the life you have at home in your new country. Let go and fully live in your new reality - although some things may drive you insane. Like waiting for people in Ecuador, most memorable moments I had were small, unexpected moments when you talk to someone in line at the bank or waiting for your host mom at the hairdresser's.
Would you recommend your program to others? Why?
It has changed my life forever, and I think everyone should have this experience. We have so much to learn from people in "less developed" (or more developed - depends on how you look at it).
I feel my own country has gone to a point of economic development where human interaction is no longer needed. Everything is done on your phone, and "the state" takes care of everything.
It is something very necessary and beautiful in being needed by your neighbors or coworkers. To belong to something.
What do you feel the biggest benefit of traveling abroad is?
Broadening your horizons. Understanding the world and the people you share the planet with. Bursting your bubble and making you a more diverse human being seing things from a different side.
Maybe you're able to understand people in your own country a little bit better, and bring the good from the host country into your life at home.
Now that you're home, how has your time abroad impacted your life?
I try my best to bring Ecuador into everything I do. I try to smile at people, invite people into my life, and don't get stuck in a routine where I put myself first. If someone needs it, we will always find room around the table, and we will always have enough to share.
This is something that came so naturally in Ecuador, but is hard to maintain in Europe since it is so far away from our culture. I love how people are dear to approach and help each other, and I try my best to talk to strangers and share moments with as many people as I can.
With the amazing "grandparents of the street".
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Meaningful travel to me means sharing experiences with other people. It means giving as well as receiving and trying to bring joy into other people's lives when you visit them. not only being a tourist, but also leaving money in another country.
Travels should bridge the gaps between cultures in a world that is increasingly polarized. We need each other.
