After a 10-hour overnight bus ride from Quito, we arrived in Puerto Lopez at 5 in the morning. Our project advisor helped us reach our home-stays, where we were able to sleep for 3 hours before meeting as group to go over the plan for the next month. The three other students and I have different project focuses (lizards, tsunamis, tide-pools, and dengue fever) but we share the same project advisor, a British woman named Deirde who has been living in Puerto Lopez for the past twenty years.
I have fallen in love with Puerto Lopez - comical little moto-taxis cruise around the beach town charging 50 cents for transportation, the beach front is lined with small restaurant/bars where you can drink sweet coconut smoothies at any hour of the day, it's easy to strike up conversations with practically anyone, the town is much safer than Quito, and I can run every morning on the beach! As the local people would say, this place is very 'tranquilo', or chill.
Currently, I'm living in a home-stay that's located 5-10 minutes from the beach by foot. I have two adorable little sisters, Alejandra and Mia, who are 6 and 4 years old. My parents Felita and Alex are around 36 years old, and have been incredibly hospitable. And an added bonus - my mom is an incredible cook! My second day here, we ate shrimp, fish, and calamari all in one day!
My research has been going really well! I've spent the past four days interviewing the townspeople in various neighborhoods, in order to get an idea what the level of knowledge is in regards to dengue fever and its prevention. It's exhausting going door-to-door (especially since I've been run down with a cold the past few days) but the majority of the people I talk to are very open and friendly and willing to chat. I've learned so much about what others know, as well as common misconceptions about what dengue is and how it is spread. Overall, I'm enjoying my work here and am taking advantage of what this beautiful town has to offer!
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