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Spanish Course in Ecuador

To book a Spanish Course in Ecuador

Visa Requirements

Passport: All nationals entering as tourists need a passport that must be valid for at least six months after your arrival. Check the expiration date on your passport. You should always carry your passport, as there are occasional document checks on public transport. You can be arrested if you don't have any identification.

Visas: British nationals do not require visa to enter Ecuador as a tourist.

Tourist cards: Tourists need a passport and a T-3 tourist card, which is obtainable on arrival in Ecuador. There is no charge for this card, but don't lose it as you will need it for stay extensions, passports check and leaving the country. If you should lose it, you can get another at the immigration office in Quito or Guayaquil, or at the point at which you exit the country.

Money Matters

Currency: Sucre

Carrying money
Pickpockets prey on easy targets, and unsuspecting tourists are a prime choice. Avoid losing your money by following a few basic precautions: carry money in inside pockets, money belt or pouches beneath your clothes. Don't carry a wallet in a pocket or a purse, as these are the first places pickpockets look. Divide your money and carry it in several places, so that if you are pick pocketed you don't lose all your cash.

Traveller's Cheques and Cash
There is not very much difference between exchange rates for cash and traveller's cheques. There isn't much advantage in carrying all your money in cash. Traveller's cheques are safer because they are refunded if they are lost or stolen. Don't bring all your money in traveller's cheques however, it's always useful to have a supply of cash is accepted.

ATMs
Ecuadorian ATMs have only recently become compatible with foreign credit cards. The following banks are worth trying: Banco de los Andes for Visa, Banco Popular for MasterCard.

Credit Cards
Credit cards are becoming more widely recognised. They are generally accepted in larger establishments including first class restaurants, hotels, gift shops and travel agencies. Cheaper hotels, restaurants and stores don't want to deal with credit cards.

N.B. Card purchases and cash advances are normally charged to your account via an exchange rate, which may be slightly worse than you'd be quoted for exchanging cash or travellers' cheques in China. Once you consider the commission on the exchange transaction you'll probably find that you usually win by using plastic, even taking into account the handling charge, usually about 1.5%, that's levied for cash advances (though not for direct purchases by credit card).

Climate

Instead of the four seasons, there are wet and dry seasons, and weather patterns also vary greatly between different geographical regions. Ocean currents influence the coastal areas. The warm equatorial counter current from the central Pacific causes a hot and rainy season from January to April. It doesn't rain all the time, but you can expect torrential downpours that often disrupt communications. Daytime temperatures average about 30°C, but are often much higher; this time of year is generally an unpleasant time to be travelling in the coastal coast regions.

From May to December both the cool Humboldt and Peru currents from the south keep temperatures a few degrees lower and it rarely rains, though it is often grey, damp and overcast, especially in July and August. If you plan to travel in the Oriente, bring your rain gear, as it rains during most months, especially during the afternoon and evening. August and December through March are usually the driest months, and April through June are the wettest -with regional variation. It's usually almost as hot as the coast. The dry season in the highlands is from June through September and a short dry season also occurs during the month around Christmas. It doesn't rain daily in the wet season, however. April, the wettest month, averages one rainy day in two.

Daytime temperatures average a high of 20C to 22C and a low of 7C to 8C year round, though you should expect more extreme variations on occasion. These figures are based on climatic data from Quito. Despite all these statistics, you should remember the Ecuadorian adage that they can experience all four season in one day.

Culture

Entertainment The most typical nightlife is a peña, or Ecuadorian musica folklorica club. This is popular form of entertainment for all Ecuadorians, form of entertainment for all Ecuadorians, from cabinet ministers to campesinos. Concerts are informal affairs, usually held late of a weekend night, and accompanied by plenty of drinking. They are not held everywhere -Quito and Otavalo often have good ones. Apart from peñas, there are the usual nighttime activities: cinemas are popular and cheap, with shows for well under a dollar. There are theatre productions and symphonies in the main cities too. Some of these are great fun if you like dancing to Latin rhythms like salsa or merengue. In the smaller towns, there isn't much to do apart from going to the local cinema, except during the annual fiesta.

Food

Caldo: soups and stews are very popular and are often served in markets for breakfasts. Soups are known as Caldos, Sopas or Locros. Chicken soup, or Caldo de gallina is the most popular. Caldo de patas is soup made by boiling cattle hooves.

Cuy: whole roasted guinea pig. This is a traditional food dating back to Inca times. It tastes rather like a cross between rabbit and chicken. The sight of the little paws and teeth sticking out and eyes tightly closed is a little unnerving, but Cuy is supposed to be a delicacy and some people love it.

Lechon: suckling pig. Pigs are often roasted whole and are common sight at Ecuadorian food markets. Pork is also called Chancho.

Llapingachos: fried mashed-potato-and cheese pancakes often served with fritada -scraps or fried or roasted pork.

Seco: stew. The word literally means 'dry'. The stew is usually meat served with rice and can be seco de gallina (chicken stew), de res (beef), de chivo (goat), or de cordero (lamb).

Tortilla de mais: tasty fried corn pancakes.

Yaguarlocro: potato soup with chunks of barely congealed blood sausage floating in it. Many people prefer just straight locro, which usually has potatoes, corn and an avocado or cheese topping.

Holidays and Holydays

Shops Opening Hours

Banks are open from 9am to 1.30pm Monday to Friday. In Quito and Quayaquil most stores, businesses, exchange houses and government offices are open from about 9 am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday with an hour off for lunch. In smaller towns, lunch breaks of two (or three) hours are not uncommon. On Saturday, many stores and some businesses are open from 9am to noon. Restaurants tend to remain open late in the big cities, where 10pm is not an unusual time to eat an evening meal. In smaller towns, restaurants often close by 9pm or much earlier in villages. Restaurants often close on Sunday, when the selection of available eating places can be quite limited.

Before You Go….

Insurance
However you travel, it's worth taking out insurance. Standard insurance should at least cover theft and loss of luggage, and cancellation of, and delays in, your travel arrangements. Ticket loss is also covered by travel insurance, but make sure you keep a separate record of your ticket details.

Travel Safe Advice

Before you travel you should always check with the Foreign Office as to the official view on the safety of the country you intend to visit.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office
King Charles Street, London SW1A 2AH
Consular Division 020 7270 1500
General: 020 7238 4586
Travel Advice: 020 7238 4503/4
Visa enquiries: 020 7238 3838
Website Address: www.fco.gov.uk/travel

MASTA
For information on health issues and vaccinations we advise you to contact MASTA (Medical Advisory Services for Travellers Abroad)
Travellers' Health Line
Telephone: 0906 8 224100
Keppel Street, London, WC1E 7HT
Website Address: www.masta.org

What Shall I Take?

Apart from any special personal needs you may have and things you might require for a particular kind of trip i.e. camping gear, hiking boots, surfboard etc., you may like to consider the following:

· An under-the-clothes money belt or shoulder wallet
· Sunscreen lotion
· A small Spanish dictionary and/or phrase book.
· Photocopies of your important documents kept separate from the originals.
· A medical kit.
· A towel, or wash cloth
· A padlock, or two, to secure yours luggage to racks.
· An adapter plug for electrical appliances. 110V, 60Hz.
· An Alarm Clock
· Sunglasses

The list above is a simple list of useful items for any holiday. There are a number of more specific items that would be useful for a trip to Ecuador. They are as follows:

· Lightweight layered clothing
· Jacket or sweater
· Comfortable walking shoes
· Umbrella (during raining season)
· Small knapsack for day trips
· Some plastic bags come handy (leaking bottles, dirty clothes, etc…)
· Prescriptions drugs
· Extra film (can be expensive)
· Insect repellent
· Flashlight

Books, Films and Music

· The Conquest of the Incas by John Hemming
· Ecuador: Fragile Democracy by David Corkill and David Cubitt
· On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection by Charles Darwin
· Galápagos: A Natural History Guide by Michael H Jackson
· Travels Amongst the Great Andes of the Equator by Edward Whymper
· The Panama Hat Trail by Tom Miller
· Galápagos by Kurt Vonnegut

Useful Websites

www.bbc.co.uk/weather/features (The weather worldwide)
www.worldtimezone.com/time24 (Timezones across the globe)
www.masta.org/ (Health advice)
www.xe.net/ucc/full (Currency converter)
www.visa.com/pd/atm/main (ATM locater)
www.holidayfestival.com (Festivals, bank holidays and religious days worldwide)

To book a Spanish Course in Ecuador