Passports: According to the U.S. State Department, you will need a passport to travel to Ecuador. If you do not already have one, please apply for one as early in advance of the program as possible. For more information about obtaining a U.S. Passport, (including downloadable passport forms) please go to http://travel.state.gov/passport/passport_1738.html .
ASU Students: There is a Passport Office on campus in the International Programs Office located at 951 S. Mill Avenue in the Tempe Center at the corner of Mill and University, call 480-965-0877 for more information. For other Passport Office locations and hours in the greater Phoenix metropolitan area please go to Maricopa County Online (http://www.maricopa.gov/clkcourt/pp_loc.asp).
All Participants: Please bring a photocopy of the identification page of your passport with you when traveling abroad. While a copy of your passport cannot replace the original for official purposes, it can facilitate the replacement of your passport if it is lost or stolen. Keep one copy at home and another with you, but separate from your passport, while you travel. Some veteran travelers even suggest taking an extra set of passport photos, too.
Visas: According to the U.S. Department of State, Visas are not required for stays of up to 90 days in Ecuador.
Learning more on Ecuador:
https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/ec.html
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/worldguide/destinations/south-america/ecuador-and-the-galapagos-islands/
http://www.geographia.com/ecuador/
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/country_profiles/1212882.stm
http://www.economist.com/countries/Ecuador/
http://www.moon.com/planner/ecuador/ecu_overview.html
http://www.frommers.com/destinations/ecuador/
https://www.odci.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ec.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecuador
Readings to help you prepare for Ecuador:
Dr. Tod Swanson has compiled this list of suggested readings in order to help students prepare for the Field School. These books are not required reading for the program, but rather they are items which will help you to prepare yourself mentally for the trip. Each of these items is available in the Hayden Library on the Arizona State University main campus. For those of you who are not local to ASU, check at your home university or college library. Chances are if they do not have these books, they can interlibrary loan them for you.
Foletti-Castegnaro, Alessandra. Tradición oral de los quichuas amazónicos del Aguarico y San Miguel: Jatun Comuna Runa. ([Lima?]: Ediciones Abya-Yala, 1985).
*Muratorio, Blanca. The Life and Times of Grandfather Alonso, Culture and History in the Upper Amazon. (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1991). [A translation of Rucuyaya Alonso y la historia social y económica del Alto Napo, 1850-1950.]
Whitten, Norman E. Sacha Runa: Ethnicity and Adaptation of Ecuadorian Jungle Quichua. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press, c1976).
*If you can only read one of these three, make it this one.
What to pack:
Clothing
3 pairs
of pants
1 pair of
shorts
2-4 shirts
Swimsuit
Dark sweater
Sweatshirt & sweatpants
for sleeping and lounging
Warm jacket
4 pairs
of socks
4 pairs
of underwear
Long T-shirt
1 pair of
tennis shoes
Flip flops/
(non-leather) thongs (for bathroom)
Towel
Valuables
Daypack
Security
pouch (wear under clothes)
Passport & several copies of its identification page, vaccination certificates
(if any)
Tickets
Traveler’s checks
Copies of traveler’s checks number if applicable
Necessities
Anti-bacterial
wipes
Aspirin/ibuprofen
Bug
spray/insect repellant
Pepto
Bismol (or similar medicine, just in case)
Sun
block/lip balm
Vitamins
Contact
lens care products (if required)
Personal toiletries.
Flashlight
Watch
Miscellaneous
Pens,
notebook
Pocket
tape recorder, tapes, and batteries (for recording notes in the field)
Sunglasses
Hat
Water
bottle
Camera
You will probably want to bring one medium size suitcase and a day pack, at max; packing light means that you will have fewer things to lug around and worry about. Also, as a general rule of thumb--if you cannot afford to replace it or would be heartbroken if it was lost or stolen, then don't bring it.
Spending Money: All meals, lodgings, and internal transportation within Ecuador are covered by the program fees. There is a $33.00 airport tax that students must pay upon their departure from the Quito Airport. Otherwise, no spending money is required. However, it is a good idea to have an extra $300.00 (about $15.00 per day) for discretionary spending. However, you will probably find that you want to have more money available. This spending money is for extras such as snacks, personal items, phone calls home, gifts to take home, and optional evening entertainment in the cities (for example, during last summer's program, some students went salsa dancing on their own one Friday night). There are beautiful native weavings and ceramics which you may wish to purchase as gifts or souvenir keepsakes to commemorate your trip. In past years, many students wished that they had brought more money to buy indigenous crafts. Nevertheless, other than the $33.00 airport tax, no spending money is required.
Travelers Checks and ATMs: 1) The U.S. dollar is the official currency of Ecuador. The provincial capital city of Tena near the Field School site has several banks where ATM machines can be used to take out additional cash as needed. Many local businesses do not accept credit cards or cheques. Travellers checks are difficult to cash even in banks in Tena. Most transactions are in cash. Bills higher than $20 can also be difficult to exchange.
Making telephone calls: When you are in the cities such as Quito, Baños, Otavalo and Tena, calling the U.S. is possible. In the past students who have bought prepaid phone calls in the U.S. have had difficulty with using them in Ecuador. It has been more efficient to buy a calling card once in Ecuador from places like Andinatel which can be easily found throughout Ecuador. These calling cards seem to work better in Ecuador and can be used to make international calls. There may be times when you are homesick and cannot call home. If emergencies should occur, however, faculty members leading the group will find phone as quickly as possible to help you call the U.S. or will make the call for you.
Pre-Departure Orientation Meetings: There will be two pre-departure meetings at ASU Tempe Campus.
Date: Friday April 25th, 2008
Time: 3:00pm to 4:00pm
Location: ECA 371
Date: Friday May 2th, 2008
Time: 3:00pm to 4:00pm
Location: ECA 371
If you are out of town or are unable to attend please feel free to email or telephone Dr. Tod Swanson with any questions.
Financial Aid: If you are receiving financial aid, please be sure to check any balance that you might have on your ASU Student Account. Heads-up: The system might try to pay any outstanding balance(s) on your account upon receiving any funds. The deposit fee ($350.00) is credited towards your total cost of the program fees. Attention FLAS Fellows, this deposit is submitted by you upon applying to the program and after your FLAS award is processed, you will have this amount back on your stipend amount.
Travel arrangements: In the past ASU has used
I.T.S. Travel to arrange our group flights. Rainee TenEyck is the travel
agent that we have worked with and she has being able to find us great group
rates. Please feel free to contact her with any questions regarding airfare
quotes and availability (see below for contact info). Please note that
our program dates are very busy travel dates in South America and in particular
Ecuador, so you might want to start checking into airfare early. Please be
sure to send me a copy of your flight itinerary at your earliest convenience;
we need to make sure that we know where and when to expect you in Ecuador. Furthermore,
this helps us coordinate with those of you who are interested in flying with
other students.
I.T.S. Travel
Rainee TenEyck
rainee@discountair.com
800 722-7312
602 957-3456
Break: During the break from June 30th through July 4th, if you are attending both sessions you are welcomed to travel in Ecuador on your own time. Be sure to notify us of where we will meet you again once second session has begun. Although it is high peak season for tourism in Ecuador, it is usually relatively easy to find lodging in short notice in most places. Please note that during the break, participants are responsible for their expenses.
Traveling into Ecuador: On June 6th and July 4th, staff from the Ecuador Field School will meet the group at Quito’s Mariscal Sucre International Airport. Most of the participants arrive in the late evening, so aside from meeting the group at the airport and transporting everybody to the hostal, there are no planned activities for that day. The mornings of June 7th and July 5th during breakfast, there will be an introduction and orientation by Dr. Swanson at the hostal.
Special Arrangements: If traveling to the Field School outside the program dates, please note that there is a air travel service provided by SAEREO from Quito to the provincial city of Tena.
There are twice-weekly flights from Quito to Tena with SAEREO. The flight is about 25 minutes and costs approximately USD 60,00 one way.
Below is the flight schedule:
Monday: Quito-Tena 10.30 a.m.
Tena-Quito 11.15 a.m.
Friday: Quito-Tena 14.00 p.m.
Tena-Quito 14.45 p.m.
For reservations from
the U.S. dial 011-593-22-26-3607 or 011-593-99-58-8360
Attention Sra. Margarita Chafla at Oro Travel S.A. Ecuador, Av. Amazonas
e Indanza, Quito, Ecuador.
If you have questions or concerns that are not addressed here, please contact Dr. Tod Swanson directly.
Preparing for your Trip
