Jon Funston's reflections on his trip to Ecuador.

Ecuador can not compare to the United State’s size and economic prowess; the same can be said for most other countries. Having that thought in mind, one month ago I joined a group of eleven eager Wabash men and immersed myself in a foreign language and foreign culture. While we all concluded that there was no place like home, our group of gringos was able to find much beauty in this new country and culture, despite its unfamiliarity.

My experience in Ecuador is one that I will always hold dear. How often is a person able to spend his first extensive stay outside of western culture with a group of classmates, all of whom have not paid to be there? While I have taken a spring break trip to Cancun and traveled to typical stateside vacation destinations, even my time in Mexico was not really abroad. Mexico and the Caribbean are very accommodating to the people and culture of the U.S., as so much of their economies’ are sustained by U.S. tourism. This was one of the first things I noticed upon stepping foot in Quito; I had never been outside of a predominantly U.S. culture.

During my trip to Ecuador, I experienced jumping from 45-50 foot waterfalls, spending a month with the world’s best host family, seeing animals that people spend their lives in search for, and playing futsal in an oil camp. My Ecuadorian experience was not just the sum of all these new experiences, but also (and most importantly) it was the widening of my thought spectrum to incorporate new, non-American ideas.

 I would like to thank everyone who had a hand in the Ecuador Immersion Program. There is no other school that would provide a group of students the opportunity to spend a month with five of their professors in another country, while making it all-expense paid. Throughout my experience, I had the surreal feeling that I won The Price is Right or something.