Last school year, my twin sons entered middle school. During the beginning of their 6th grade year, a science teacher, Ashley Monroe, sent out a message about an opportunity to delve into science and use Spanish. Since my sons have been heavily involved in science since they were 4 and were also taking private Spanish lessons because we weren’t satisfied with the Spanish instruction at their elementary school, Mr. Barnes and I told our boys about the message, and we went to the callout meeting.
After we left, our boys told us they wanted to go on the trip. The trip was a nine day adventure to Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands.
The trip wasn’t cheap. It cost thousands of dollars per person. We determined that all four of us couldn’t afford to go. Since air travel isn’t Mr. Barnes’ favorite pastime, we determined that I would go with our boys.
I took on extra jobs to cover my trip cost. Because the trip happened this year, in 7th grade, we had about 1 1/2 years to fundraise to cover my sons’ costs.
Before I continue, I would like to personally thank every single person who donated to my sons, especially those of you who donated multiple times. I don’t take lightly those of you who follow my Educator Barnes/Blazing Brilliance content, whom I never met in person, who donated just because you saw the importance and value of this opportunity for two Black boys who love science.
Over the next few weeks, I will share what we did on this page so everyone, especially donors, can see it. Between my sons and me, we took over 1,000 photos and videos, so we are working as hard as we can to edit and identify the best photos and videos to share.
Also, my sons got several jobs to earn money to help pay their way. After their jobs and travel patron donations, Mr. Barnes and I only had to cover $400 each on the remaining balance. It was important that we made our sons work to cover a portion so they felt like they earned it.
Let’s get into it!!!!
Day 1 – April 1
We had to be at the Indianapolis International Airport at 4 a.m. 
The Barnes Family was on the struggle bus. Despite packing our suitcases one week early, we still arrived 10 minutes late. Everyone knows I hate being late 
Because our group had 66 people, we still ended up being right on time to stand in a long line 
The energy from the middle and high school students was palpable.
We left after 6 a.m. and flew to Miami, Florida. After that brief flight and a 45 minute layover, we got on another flight that took us from Miami, Florida to Quito, Ecuador.
We purchased snacks and drinks after arriving at the airport in Quito before getting on a bus to go to our first hotel. We stayed in different hotels during the course of the trip. I had mora juice, and it was delicious. Mora is blackberry juice, and y’all know I love blackberries.
On the bus ride to the hotel, we took in the sights of Quito, the capital of Ecuador.
Once we arrived at Hotel Rios Amazonas, they had a tray of cold fruit slushy drinks in two different flavors. It was also delicious. We all felt fancy! Then we went up to the 9th floor to our suite. We didn’t know we were in a suite room at the time until we returned to that hotel at the end of the trip and were in a different room. Both rooms were still great.
The last photo is the view from our room! Simply gorgeous!
We also learned that you can’t drink tap water in Quito, but it is safe to shower in and use to brush your teeth. Also, you don’t flush toilet paper in Ecuador. There is a trash can next to the toilet. Bodily waste goes in the toilet, and clean-up paper goes in the trash can because the sewer system is not made to handle toilet paper. It was a habit that we had to consciously remember each time.
Also, the hotel elevator had a strict weight limit. The sign said only six people at a time. We often found that six Americans were heavier than six Ecuadorians. If the people exceeded the weight limit, the elevator would beep and would not move until enough people got off to be under the weight limit. Let’s just say you didn’t want to be the person beeped at when you crossed the elevator threshold 
After we were all settled in, we had our first dinner together in the hotel restaurant. All of our meals were traditional cuisine except the last meal of the trip. We didn’t know it then, but Ecuadorians really love to eat soup and drink lots of fruit juice.
That was day 1!
