www.ecuadors.org

[Ashby]

Is anyone familiar with the Canoa School or simply been to Canoa, Ecuador or to San Vicente? I am just wondering about the social, economic or political climate. I am in need of some spanish instruction and this seems like a very nice place, any thoughts?

[Viheke]

The Spanish on the coast of Ecuador is very hard for a foreigner to understand. The Spanish in the mountains is very much clearer and more standard. I would recommend Cuenca or Quito.

[Danielle]

Sometimes even highland Ecuadorians have trouble understanding the Spanishs poken on the Ecuadorian coast. It's very rapid-fire and oftentimes the terminal "s" is dropped from words (i.e. "todos los dias" becomes "todoh loh diah"). Coastal Ecuadorian also apparently makes use of a lot of phrases and colloquialisms that most Spanish speakers aren't really familiar with.

Highland Spanish, like that spoken in Quito, is "purer" and probably easier
for students of the language to learn.