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We have been in Ecuador ONE week today.
I know in my next few blogs I will likely back track and cover what we LOVE about our house, our location, our journey here and more… but first I wanted to talk about something in a very honest sense.
We are both going through a transitional period here.
I mean, we ARE in a different hemisphere, spinning in a different direction (come on, the TOILETS even flush the other way!) so there is bound to be a physical and mental change happening within us.
A few days ago, Trevor made a post on his profile that explained the ‘social comfort’ nature of the change perfectly. He talked about how we are noticing how wasteful and gluttonous we are at home, and how we are so conscious and sparing here. Sitting in Kelowna, we never thought twice about rationing ANY supply in the house, as there is always an abundance of big box stores ready to sell us MORE CRAP. I never thought I would be washing out a cheap ziplock baggy so I could still have access to it.
The town we have picked as our home is extremely isolated, and that works JUST FINE for our introverted personalities, but there is still an adjustment to be made. It is not the lack of people, friends, stores, or attractions- it is more the lack of access to simple services, wants, needs and desires. What is CRAZY about that is…. we really don’t NEED much of what we want/desire.
We have been spoiled for 30+ years in our Canadian lives, so perhaps this is the ‘consumerism detox’ we really need.
Purge the habit of always buying, collecting, owning, storing, hording, wanting, and of course that DOPAMINE HIGH of instant gratification.
There are lessons to be learned here both the both of us, we just need to keep our eyes and minds open to receiving them. I can already see how much TRASH we created at home versus here in Puerto Cayo. The difference is astounding.
Tomorrow we are taking a trip to a nearby town called Puerto Lopez (about 30 minutes away) so we can grab some basic supplies. When I say BASIC I mean: limited veggies, butter, hand soap, tortillas, and really anything fresh that we can see. We are going to get the 411 on where a public bathroom is in the town (trust me, bathrooms in small costal Ecuadorian towns are like mythical unicorns!), an ATM, the bus station and maybe even a few mom ‘n’ pop restaurants. I am super hopeful that the exploration of neighbouring towns will make us more even MORE connected and content where we are.
Continuing to lift the veil of the unknown around us allows us to enjoy and explore more freely.
Trevor and I are learning to be stronger people by flexing our muscle of adaptation. This kind of ‘comfort zone abandonment’ is not for everyone, but I would not trade it in for anything.
Always learning, – Kashlee
Other Related Posts:
– How We Became Minimalists
– What it’s like living in Puerto Cayo, Ecuador
– What I Hate About Full Time Travel