26-year-old Jordan Hauenschild was living a conventional life in Queensland, Australia, when she came across 24-year-old Pitiuruk’s profile on Instagram one night. She was immediately enthralled by the South American content creator’s photography, which captures life in a rural Kichwa community, an indigenous people native to Ecuador.
Jordan Hauenschild, a 26-year-old Australian woman, and Pitiuruk, a 24-year-old indigenous Ecuadorian man, formed a romantic connection after meeting online
Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ Share icon Image credits: pitiuruk With an initial message telling the Ecuadorian how “gorgeous” he was and asking to learn more about his unique culture, the 26-year-old was stunned when she actually received a response. The two began video chatting regularly “to understand each other’s cultures, what we do in our day to day, and what our [lives are] like on opposite sides of the world.” Eventually, they broached the subject of meeting up. Four months after meeting online, Hauenschild quit her 9-5 office job and undertook the journey to meet Pitiuruk in person. Consisting of four flights and a bus trip from Quito to Guayusa Runa, it took 35 hours in total.
At first, she was nervous. “As the plane was landing in Quito, I realised the magnitude of the situation – I had gone on a whim with a ‘why not’ attitude and I was about to meet someone I had never seen in real life.” Yet all that apprehension melted away when she saw Pitiuruk. “I just couldn’t believe he was real,” she said. “It was my first time in Ecuador and I just wanted to ensure I was really respectful, but I just couldn’t wipe the smile off my face.” This feeling persisted despite the fact that they didn’t speak each other’s languages. The Australian insists that much of the magic comes from body language alone. “If the spark is there, it doesn’t matter if you can’t speak each other’s language,” she confided. “I’ve never had such a connection with somebody where I know exactly where I stand.”
After four months of frequent texting and video calls, Jordan left her job to travel to Ecuador so the couple could meet in person
Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ The Queensland native also found her love interest’s family to be particularly hospitable, and she never felt unwelcome. “Our jungle is your jungle,” they told her. Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ The Australian wants to convince the Kichwa community that to preserve their traditions and educate others, it’s important that they embrace tourism and foreign visitors. Pitiuruk is doing just that by promoting their culture and offering guided tours online. In the future, he wants to be an indigenous model to further promote his way of life.
Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ The Kichwa are the Ecuadorian branch of the Quechua people, an indigenous people native to South America. They have significant populations in Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, and Ecuador. As the dominant culture in the area prior to Spanish colonization, the Quechua were responsible for establishing the Inca Empire. The Quechua people speak the Quechua language, of which Kichwa is a dialect local to Ecuador. There are over 10 million speakers, making it the most spoken language in South America after Spanish and Portuguese.
Although the couple intend to continue their relationship, Jordan had to return to Australia to arrange her finances
Share icon Image credits: jordankh_ Although Hauenschild said “nothing else seemed to matter” when the couple were together, she inevitably had to return to Australia for financial reasons. As they plan for “a life together,” they keep in daily contact. Now, their happily ever after may be that much closer.
“I … received an email from Flight Centre saying they were invested in our story and wanted to see us reunited. We were both in tears because we didn’t expect to see each other for another year or so.” Apparently, the Australian travel agency is offering to pay for Jordan’s next trip to see Pitiuruk in Ecuador. “They’re going to fund my flights which is just incredible. When I told Pitiuruk, we both just cried.”
Share iconThe romance has inspired thousands online and gone viral for its transcendence of cultural and linguistic boundaries
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