The NRCSA Center in Midtown Quito is situated in a lovely residential area. One of our goals is to provide excellence in education and we emphasize in grammar and vocabulary. To ensure each student's success, we use high quality teaching materials and methodology.

Professors have university degrees and have experience in teaching Spanish to foreigners. Each professor brings with them an expertise such as: Economics, Business Administration, History, Marketing, and Literature.

A Certificate, which is recognized by the Ecuadorian Ministry of Education, is awarded for all students who complete their program. In Germany Latin American Academy is recognized as Bildungsurlaub with lessons of 25 hours or more per week by the Freie Und Hansestandt Hamburg, Hessen and Berlin.

The average breakdown of students by country is: United States (39%), Germany (30%), Switzerland (8%), Austria (7%), Canada (5%), Brazil (4%), England (2%), France (2%), Belgium (2%), Denmark (1%) Finland (0,16%), Norway (0,16%), Sweden (0,16%), Italy (0,16%), and Singapore (0,16%). These students have included business persons, university students, airline employees, teachers, retirees, ecologists, engineers, doctors, secretaries, travel agents, bankers, lawyers, and others.

Housed in a beautiful new mansion, we are surrounded by gardens and situated in a quiet residential neighborhood. There is complementary e-mail available to students (no access to the internet). However, there are several reasonably priced internet cafes close to the school and all over the city. Mail service, money exchange, safety box, luggage storage, and use of sports facilities are also included.

Quito, the Franciscan capital of Ecuador, Luz de América, ancient capital of the northern realm of the Incan empire, Patrimonio de la Humanidad, lies at 2,800 meters above sea level in a high valley at the base of Mount Pichincha about 15 miles south of the equator. Its full and formal name is "San Francisco de Quito", reflecting both its Spanish and Incan origins. Franciscan monks accompanied the Spanish conquistadors and founded one of America's first Catholic churches (begun in 1584), in what is now called the Plaza de San Francisco, in the heart of colonial Quito. Furthermore, the word Franciscan as an adjective in the Spanish language denotes peacefulness, a quality for which Quito was known for many years. The name "Quito" is derived from the name of the indigenous group, the Quitus, which dominated that region of the Andes before their conquest by the Incas. In the early 1980s, Quito was designated by UNESCO of the United Nations as a World Heritage Site in recognition of the preservation of its colonial center, essentially expressed in the architecture of the old city.

Slightly over a million people live in present-day Quito. As is typical of Latin American cities, the population density is high, relative to U.S. standards. But, somehow, Quito retains a small city atmosphere -probably because you can still walk to many places you need to go. Ownership of a car is not a must. Distances are short and the bus system is quite extensive.

Located in the inter-Andean valley, Quito is a city of sun and sky, surrounded by mountains, with three snow capped volcanoes in view on a clear day. Its climate has been described by many as eternal spring, due to its location close to the equator at high altitude. It has a daily average temperature of about 65° F, with daytime highs around 75° F and early morning lows around 45° F. Absolute highs reach 85° F and lows about 40° F on rare occasions. The seasons are called winter and summer, terms that refer to rainy and dry seasons rather than variations in temperature. Some say that the climate at this altitude in the Andes includes all four seasons each day because of the wide variation in temperature. The rainy season normally includes sunny mornings.

The school is conveniently located to 6 bus lines within a four block distance of the school. Buses cost anywhere from 25 to 35 cents and taxis around 1 or 2 USD for a typical fare. Quito is the capital of Ecuador and thus offers the best travel connections to anywhere within the country. A half hour flight to the east will take you to the Amazon Basin. A two and a half hour flight will take you to the Galapagos Islands, the site of Darwin's inspiration. Less than two hours to the north is Otavalo, South America's largest and most famous Indian Market. Follow the Pan-American Highway to the south, the former Royal Road of the Incas, and you will come to Cotopaxi National Park, site of the world's highest active volcano.