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| *Travel Tips>>>Ecuador Travel Tips |
I want to volunteer abroad in Ecuador, do you think it's safe? |
Travel Info I want to volunteer abroad in Ecuador, do you think it's safe? Travel Tips I spent almost a year in Peru and had a wonderful experience. I think you will love Ecuador but you MUST keep the following three things in mind: Columbia, Peru and Ecuador are the world's leaders of cocaine production (in that order). The entire economy focuses around cocaine. And that is very dangerous. The corruption and scandal is very high. When I lived in Peru, people teasingly called me a "Visa card" because people wanted to date (marry) me in order to get an American Visa. If you can keep your wits around you, know that you are a target for scandal, romance, and danger at all times, trust no one completely and have a solid exit strategy, you will be fine. Make sure you make a good contact with the American embassy and always know that for most people you will be the only American that they will ever know (so act accordingly). Never carry too much cash (there are ATMs everywhere). And have a time and date that you contact a friend or family member every week. Never miss this time If you are unsure where to volunteer, I would recommend either the schools or an orphanage where your compassion will go along way. Others Depends if you are going alone or with a group. I live in South America and have no problems except when I am alone somewhere in a city....which is dumb on my part. I think you will be safe if you are volunteering with an organization or with a mission group. I have brought down several groups to the Amazon, and we have never had any problems. I do know it will change your life! God Bless You!! It's never safe, wherever you go, been there done that. Keep your eyes in the back of your head. Ecuador has its crime problems as does any country. Crime is poverty driven and its a very poor country. Foreigners are seen as "wealthy" regardless of the what your real situation is. Tourists and volunteers face two main problems - petty crime like pickpockets, bag snatchers etc and occasionally being robbed under threat of violence. The advice is simply to not carry a great deal of cash and/or valuables, be aware of your surroundings at all times and be suspicious of persons interacting with you in an odd way. If you feel something is wrong, trust your gut and leave the area. If you do get robbed, simply hand over everything you have without comment and it will be over in minutes. If you resist, there may be violence. Use taxis (only official ones) at night. Above all, a good insurance package is vital - one that covers medical too. ten years living and working in ecuador. I spent the summer in Quito, Ecuador volunteering and never felt uncomfortable or unsafe (honestly, I think I've felt more unsafe in the US!). The main thing is to use common sense and go out of your way to be safe. The people that have things happen to them are usually not thinking at the time or are drunk. Honestly, the people that had problems did not travel in groups, walked down the streets at night by themselves, or just did things that just sounded fishy. My volunteer group made a huge effort to get all the volunteers together so we would always have people to travel or go out with. During the day it is very safe and walking alone is not a problem (at least in the main streets of Quito) but at night you never want to walk alone. One of my friends did have her purse taken (they're very tricky) so always keep it in your lap. Otherwise, the streets are pretty safe. You'll find the vast majority of the people incredibly nice and helpful so you shouldn't have many problems. As for the drugs, the people will tell you it's mainly in Columbia and most Ecuadorians cannot afford them so it's not common (the only people I ever saw doing drugs were tourists smoking pot). I started out being very paranoid but eventually found I could relax a little but it's better to be safe than sorry! So you'll be fine as long as you use common sense! Have fun! i went to ecuador this summer to help out the commune centers in the ande mountains. I felt completely safe there, just make sure you are there with a group. have fun, equador is amazing. If you have time, try to visit the rainforest. Its a little out of the way from quito, but is a great experience |
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