We had already had an amazing morning (part 1) and the day was far from over. We headed to lunch and enjoyed some delicious empanadas.
One of the local specialties was roasted guinea pig, a traditional Ecuadorian delicacy. Needless to say, that was a little difficult for our American minds to process!
One guinea pig was ordered for our group so everyone could experience it, and before long, some of the group turned it into a challenge to pose with its head in their mouths.
However, there was an intense game of rock, paper, scissors to see who would get first dibs.
I'm still not entirely sure why that became the goal, but it certainly made for some unforgettable pictures! To my surprise, both of my girls were brave enough to join in on the fun.
The remains were spilt up for those that wanted to try the actual meat.
Our next activity was a little souvenir shopping in that area.
There were plenty of fun things to look at, even if they didn't all make it into our suitcases!
Many of us ended up buying beautiful ponchos to bring home. (Zoe modeled another team members purchase.)
One of our leaders, who had visited Ecuador before, told me the coffee shop nearby was one of the best in the area, so naturally I had to check it out.
I grabbed my coffee to go so I could continue exploring and soon discovered that the café had been recognized as one of the top coffee shops in South America. Even more exciting, the barista who served me had won Ecuador's national barista championship that year. As a coffee shop owner, I loved seeing someone else pursuing excellence in their craft.
Next, we visited the famous equator monument. For many years, the French believed this was the exact location of the equator and built a monument to mark it, although the true equator is actually a short distance away, where we had visited earlier in the week.
We enjoyed taking some fun photos before heading inside...
where a museum featured incredibly lifelike wax displays.
At the top, we were rewarded with another beautiful view of the city.
Afterward, we met back up for some gelato.
One of my teammates and I wandered the grounds a little longer, enjoying the scenery before gathering everyone together for one final group picture.
Looking around at our team, I couldn't help but smile. God had brought together such an incredible group of people, and I was thankful to have shared this experience with each of them.
Before heading to the airport, we stopped for one last dinner together. The calzones were delicious and incredibly filling, although they didn't seem to agree with one of us later that evening.
As the night went on, I started feeling pretty bad. There wasn't much time to rest, though, as we returned to the guest house, packed our bags, and headed to the airport for our overnight flight home.
Ponchos apparently make for great travel accessories.
My runny nose seemed endless, and after running out of tissues, I resorted to stuffing my bag with paper towels from the restroom. Since toilet paper in Ecuador isn't flushed and is often scented, it was definitely not my first choice! While some of our team rested and others played games as we waited to board, I sipped hot herbal tea and tried my best to keep my germs to myself.
Our journey home included two very different flights.
The first flight left around 1:00 a.m. I was exhausted and quickly fell asleep. My sweet teammate beside me was nervous about flying, and I wished I had been more help to her, but thankfully she was able to fall asleep as well.
Around 2:30 in the morning, the flight attendants served a meal. Thinking I should eat while I had the chance, I accepted one for both myself and my teammate. Looking back, it was not my best decision. Not long afterward, I became incredibly nauseated. Trapped in the window seat next to my sleeping teammate, I reached for the airsickness bag, turned on the overhead air vent, put on a motion sickness patch, and pulled out my peppermint oil. Thankfully, it was enough to keep me from actually getting sick. I was also thankful my teammate had decided not to eat her meal, as I think I had food poisoning (on top of the bad cold symptoms).
When we arrived in Atlanta, I found another cup of hot tea and began feeling a little better. I was still worried about getting others sick, so I kept my distance as much as possible while we waited for our final flight home.
When I boarded the last flight, my seat assignment was in the very back corner of the plane. It was a short flight and kept in mind we were almost to Columbia. But before takeoff, a flight attendant walked up and asked if I would be willing to change seats.
"Sure," I replied. Whatever we needed to just get going.
When she told me my new seat was in Row 3, I was confused for a moment. Then it hit me.
First class.
I had never flown first class before.
On that small plane, I now had no one sitting beside me, which was such a blessing since I still felt miserable and didn't want to expose anyone else to whatever I had. The flight attendant brought me another hot cup of tea for my sore throat and even offered a basket of organic snacks.
It was such an unexpected gift.
As we began our descent into Columbia, I looked out the window and recognized beautiful Lake Murray below. My heart was overwhelmed with gratitude.
The airline had no idea I was sick.
They didn't know how exhausted I was.
They didn't know I had been praying to simply make it home.
But God knew.
That unexpected seat wasn't something I had asked for or even imagined, but it reminded me once again that our Heavenly Father sees every detail of our lives. Sometimes His kindness comes in miraculous ways, and sometimes it comes in the simple, unexpected gifts that remind us we are deeply loved.
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