Ecuador offers a variety of places, from mountains to seas, including big bustling citifies, quaint smaller towns with all sorts of amenities, as well as remote villages and communities such as Pablo Arenas, close to Montaña de Luz, where the camp was held.   Montaña de Luz is a meditation retreat with stunning mountain and valley views and friendly staff that are busy upkeeping the property and preparing locally sourced organic meals.  It is a 15 minute walk up a mountain trail from Pablo Arenas.

This was the second year the «English Summer Camp for Children» was conducted. There were 18 kids, carefully selected by local communities and schools, that participated in the program and I helped as an assistant, organizing games, or giving individual help in lessons, etc.  The kids were full of energy and eager to learn. They had many questions and were always ready to play.  Andrew, the teacher leading the camp was super patient and really good with the kids.  Camp included English lessons, arts and crafts, organized games/sports, and playtime, and included lunch and snacks.  The camp was offered to the participants free to charge with Xplorer providing all the material and Montaña de Luz providing the location and food.

Ultimately, the camp was a success and the kids learned a lot and really enjoyed the experience.  If the camp continues every summer, including having native English speakers conducting the camp, the kids will be able to speak English relatively well by the end of high school. It is my hope that more organizations join Xplorer in this community service program.

Ariana and I went to Montaña de Luz (Place where the summer camp took place) thinking we were going to teach many aspects of English. However, we realized that we learned more from our experience than the kids. We met people from the remotest corner of the Andes mountains where we learned the true values of life. The smiles on the faces of the children taught us what is important. In the remote corners of the world is where the real meaning of life is found. Thanks, the towns of Pablo Aenas and La Victoria for teaching us more than we ever thought was possible.

I have always been interested in languages, especially Spanish. Spanish has always come easy to me since it is my mother’s first language. Despite being born in New Jersey, I identify myself with the Latin community. When I was transitioning from middle school to high school, I wanted to do something different. In the summer 2021, I created the pilot program «Summer Camp in the Community of Pablo Arenas in the Province of Imbabura» and traveled to Ecuador to participate in it as a volunteer.

I consider this to have been one of the most gratifying experiences of my life. I had the opportunity to travel to Ecuador and not see the big cities there, but also spent one week in a small community where the camp was held. At camp, there were 13 children participating, each more interesting than the next. The volunteers taught the children English as well as sustainability education to protect the environment. With the leader and teacher of the camp, Andrew, and his daughter who was also a volunteer we made a very cool team and we dedicated ourselves to the children. We talked to them, we taught them, we made crafts, we played, we planted, with the entire program in English. The best thing was that I learned a lot too. I learned to take care of nature. I learned that there are places in the world where the climate mixes and you can produce plants that you would think are only for cold or hot weather, but there they grow together. I met friendly people and visited wonderful places with incredible landscapes in the Andes Mountains. I understood that people despite not having all the things or comforts that we have in my country, do not need them and are very happy. There is much to learn from the world, from the people, from every place you travel to. I think travel is very important, I like to travel and I want to do it all my life.
I can’t wait for when the first camp in Ecuador officially opens and I can participate again. I want to go again and see the friends I made, keep visiting new places, helping and learning from these experiences.