girls, you have a message. city hall called

This is what the hostal owner told us after we had come back from exploring Guayaquil. With the first sentence, I was sure it was my mother. But no, the Ecuadorian government needed our help. We are the only English speakers staying in the hostal. Could we please help the citizens of Guayaquil learn to speak English on national television? Why not?

A crew came a short while later and we filmed simple scenarios in very basic English. I learned that I am absolutely the world's worst actress because I was unable to stifle my laughter every time Tori looked at me with wide eyes and exclaimed, "It's 5 o'clock, Francesca!"

These commercials will be aired in January and by then everyone in Ecuador will know how to say, "Hello! My name is Francesca. I am from the United States and I am a tourist!"