Returning to Quito, we left the warmth and affection of the small towns behind us. We returned to the land of concrete towers, electric wires, endless cars, and choking exhaust fumes. Only ten days before, Quito dazzled us upon our arrival, and now it feels more foreign than ever; not foreign as in un-American, but foreign as in heart-sad and cold. Nobody smiles in the streets. People look at me like a freak if I dare to say hello or wish them a good morning. This is the city, and like cities everywhere, millions of people walk side by side, and yet remain absolute strangers to one another. I already miss the Ecuador of countryside pastures, mountains, and trees, where the heart has room to grow and hold all the world.
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