Living in Ecuador has been such a fun experience. I’ve been able to travel to so many different places and meet so many interesting people. While traveling abroad may seem amazing and glamorous all the time, there have been some challenging moments as well.
One of the things I love about living in Ecuador is being able to learn about a culture that is so different from my own. However, an inevitable part of living in a new culture is that misunderstandings that can sometimes occur and can be pretty uncomfortable. For example, Ecuador is a very Catholic country. While the United States also has a large Christian population, in my experience at least, religion back home is a lot less pervasive in everyday life. I never noticed where I grew up any example of other people’s religious beliefs influencing how I lived my own life. On the other hand, here in Ecuador, the majority of people are practicing Catholics, so Catholicism is a lot more noticeable in everyday life. For example, religious ideas influence political decisions, how people behave and even rules in schools and universities. One instance in which this became an issue was when I was talking to one of my classes one day about my personal religious beliefs.
