Eight Days of Ecuador…Photography Travel Abroad Class

For 10 years I worked as an adjunct instructor at Nossi College of Art, offering my photography and business insight expertise. With an interest in offering the students a travel abroad opportunity, they asked if I would be interested in teaching their very first class of 12 students (10 females and 2 males) in Ecuador. As a full-time professional photographer, this was a dream job so I had to go!

Nossi is an art college in Nashville Tennessee that offers degrees in photography, film & video, illustration, graphic design, web & interactive design. The school was celebrating its 45th anniversary and they wanted to offer their students a unique opportunity to learn how to take travel photos like a pro. Offering a travel abroad photography course would also allow them to develop documentary and journalistic principles. This experience is a wonderful opportunity for anyone starting as a photographer.

The mission for the 8-day class was to capture the personalities of the people, the culture, the landscape, and the terrain including the lifestyle and food along our journey…an Ecuador Paparazzi assignment of sorts. We were all super excited because no one from our group had ever been to Ecuador so we had no idea what to expect.

This blog series shares our travel experience offering many of my professional photos (shot with my new Panasonic Lumix G8 but also includes some candid photos by my students while learning about Ecuador. I hope that you will follow along on the journey and perhaps you will learn a little about the Ecuadorian culture along the way.

Day 1 – Friday, April 20

On the first day of our trip, we had to be at the Nashville (BNA) airport by 3:30 AM to check in on American Airlines for our 6:05 AM flight to Guayaquil in Ecuador. Several of the students had never flown before and it was the first time out of the country for many on the trip. It was a bit stressful but we all managed to stay together and get checked in on time.

Ecuador History

Ecuador is sandwiched between Columbia and Peru along the Pacific Ocean. It is dependent on petroleum and agricultural products, is a major exporter of bananas, and is the seventh-largest producer of cocoa. The country also produces coffee, rice, potatoes, flowers, sugarcane, and plantains and exports a large amount of fish, shrimp, and balsa wood to other countries.

The history of Ecuador goes back thousands of years and is filled with diverse cultures and dramatic shifts in political power. Before the Inca Empire, Indigenous people thrived in the region during the 15th century. The Spanish conquest in the early 16th century brought on colonialism and transformed the landscape in the area.

Ecuador’s fight for independence was at its highest point in 1830, but the young nation faced political instability and economic struggles throughout the 19th century. In the 20th century, it saw growth, modernization, oil booms, and social unrest. Over the past few decades, it has seen shifts within its political structure, struggled with poverty and inequality, and faced economic and environmental issues.

Despite all of its challenges, Ecuador continues to showcase a rich cultural heritage, beautiful landscape, and resilient population. On my visit, I was looking forward to meeting the locals, experiencing the culture, and witnessing the beautiful landscape.

Nossi students on escalator in Miami Airport.

We had a grueling 6-hour layover in Miami that felt like a lifetime with all the excitement of wanting to hurry up and get there.

Students from Nossi College of Art on a 6 hour layover in the Miami Airport.

We arrived at Guayaquil, the largest city in Ecuador (more than 3 million people) by around 7 PM. We were greeted by our guides Alfredo Harmsen, and Chantal Fontaine, and our bus driver. As we got on the bus Alfredo hanged each of us a piece of Pan de Yuca, from a brown paper bag. This small cheesy bread snack is made with yuca flour and cheese and is a popular local favorite.

Nossi College of Art Students with Teacher, Sheri Oneal in Guayaquil, Ecuador airport.

Manso Boutique Guesthouse Hotel

We checked into the Manso Boutique Guesthouse Hotel looking forward to relief from the outdoor heat. I loved the interesting and colorful eclectic decor and noticed there were hammocks strewn throughout some of the hallways. I was happy there was AC in my room, although it would be one of the last times it would be available as I would soon learn.

It was very late but we ate a quick dinner prepared for us by the hotel, of chicken, rice, and plantains, a typical Ecuadorian staple.

Guayaquil Chiva Farrera

After dinner, Alfredo and Chantal rounded up a group of locals to join us on a “Chiva Farrera” they had lined up to give us a taste of the city from 9:30 PM to 11:30 PM. The Guayaquil Chiva Farrera is a colorful bus that gives a tour of the city while blasting loud dance tunes for everyone to dance to while drinking their fav beverages.

As we rode along the highway and city streets with the loud tunes blaring, people in the cars passing by beeped their horns while giving us thumbs while laughing, knowing we were tourists.

Sheri Oneal takes photos from the Chiva Farrera bus in Guayaquil, Ecuador

By midnight, exhausted from the long hours of travel, we finally crawled into our beds to end our first day exhausted but excited about the possibilities of what was ahead.

A room room at the Manso Boutique Guest House.

Luckily we all made it with our luggage and no crazy travel issues so we were off to a great start. The first day of travel was tough and there wasn’t much I photographed in the airports, planes, or at the hotel but there would be so much to uncover in the days ahead. Stay tuned for our second day of travel, I hope you will follow along!

*If you would like to leave a review of my work please do so here, here or here!