The Foreign Service Journal, May 2011

F OCUS ON F ORE IGN S ERV ICE W ORK -L I FE B ALANCE S I , S E P UEDE 30 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / M A Y 2 0 1 1 y plane descends toward Quito’s airport, bumping over air pockets as the tips of mountains and volcanoes emerge from the clouds, much closer to the plane’s belly than I’d like them to be. Houses and neighborhoods are tucked into every moun- tain terrace and valley, a warning that habitable land must be an expensive commodity. We bank over gated communities within Quito’s city center, and almost tear the fog lights off of an 18-wheeler with our landing gear as we roar over a highway bypass. It’s mid-afternoon, and I’m delighted the weather forecast of thunderstorms all week was mistaken. The sun at 9,300 feet is blazing. I’m in Quito on a mission: to ease my family’s transition for our upcoming move here. Quito is one of the last lease/living quarters–allowance posts left in the Foreign Service, where newly arrived families routinely spend up to three months in hotel rooms, awaiting housing. To get a jump start on the process, my husband suggested I make an advance trip to Quito. “Go get a sense of the place,” he said. For a mother of two children under the age of 4, it wasn’t a hard sell. Three days by myself to find housing, hire domestic help, find a school for my chil- dren and chase down some job leads won’t be easy, but the time alone and the indulgences —massages, nice restau- rants and sleep —make it worth the expense. Other than the surly immigration agents at Quito’s air- port, I find Quiteños to be among the nicest people in the Americas. “¡Estoy para servirle, señora! (I am here to serve you!)” one says, as I chuckle silently. During three years in cosmopolitan Buenos Aires, I’ve never heard similar words spoken. A Shower of Politeness The shower of politeness continues for the duration of my visit, from the driver I’ve contracted to the real estate agents who cart me around the city to see houses and apartments, taking the time to point out nearby restaurants A N ADVANCE VISIT TO THIS FS FAMILY ’ S NEXT POST LIGHTENS THE BURDEN OF TRANSITION . B Y A MANDA F ERNÁNDEZ M Amanda Fernández is the spouse of a Foreign Service of- ficer currently serving in Quito. A former humanitarian worker, she has lived and worked in Colombia, the Do- minican Republic, El Salvador, Angola, Argentina and Bosnia-Herzegovina. She currently works for a USAID contractor.