Cuenca Pasada

There's a parade marching the streets of old Cuenca. Costumes, trumpets, fireworks, the whole shebang. Very cool. There are children riding burros, and a band following them in reverie. I've been told that these 'pasadas' are a fairly common ocurrence in Cuenca. Equal to it's nightlife, Cuenca is alive even on the weekends...

This week L and I were initiated into Carnavale. It seems not a day can go by where I am not assaulted by children from the heights, hoping to score a hit with their vaunted water balloons...

Even our host family enthusiastically participates. Caro (my host sister), L and I battled against our neighbors late into the night. By the end, we had been inundated by volley after volley, and I had slipped in the excitement. Today I walk with a limp. But it's all in good fun.

Yesterday, L, Flor (our French fellow traveler) and I scaled the heights of the city. Cuenca proper is surrounded by hills on every side. Curiosity overpowering care for safety, we climbed the nearest hill. "What is on the other side?" we wondered. What magnificent prize could be waiting for us on the next summit?

Hills... lots of hills. Flor told us this area of Ecuador reminds Europeans of the Alps.

I'm going to the hot springs tonight, or Los Baños. And then eagerly to partake in the Cuencan nightlife experience... Talk to you Monday!

El Museo de las Culturas Aborígenes

As a matter of course, one eventually learns that the Inca was not the first culture to develop in the Andes. Fascinating people flourished in the nation that is now called Ecuador. The Tolita, Guangala, Bahia, and Jama Coaque are just a few of the societies that lived there long ago.

Cities have been built upon the ruins of these ancient civilizations. Their memory, however, has been retained by their descendants, and now forms the base of Ecuadorian national history. This week I visited El Museo de las Culturas Aborígenes. Within its walls are the largest collection of ancient artifacts that I have seen in my young life.

A few important facts to remember about Pre-Columbian Ecuador:
1. The Incans were not the first culture there.
2. Stone was the lifeblood of their buildings.
3. Always stone.
4. Faces were considered the most beautiful part of the body, and thus, increased detail was put into the face in art.
5. These were advanced agricultural civilizations.

More photos from my trip to the museum are in this Flickr photo set.

¡Estoy Chuchaci!

I was in a cafe across the street from my school when I wrote this Thursday afternoon. I battled fatigue this morning to make it to school. It was a serious trial... but that's what happens when you are at the discotheque too late.


Drinks in Ecuador are dirt cheap:
Rum and Coke, 1.50
Pint of beer, 1.00
Mojito, 2.50
Peace of mind... priceless

The food here is what all ethnic restaurants in Duluth try to be, but at half the price. I bought a plate of carne desmechada con verdura encima de tortilla for 2.50. Its basically shredded beef and vegetables atop a tortilla. ¡Que Saboroso!

The traffic laws in Ecuador are merely suggestions, not actual laws. Crosswalks and such painted on the street serve better as art than actual rules. It's cutthroat. All the drivers are crazy...

Cuenca is full, absolutely full of wild dogs. No dog catcher methinks. In El parque de la madre, near my house, there is literally a pack of at least ten dogs that hang around all day. L and I were walking back from the bar last night and several started chasing and barking at us. Haha...

Meanwhile, in el parque de la madre they don't jog, ellos trotan. La marcha is kind of like speed walking, so it looked funny the first day I was here.

The first almuerzo, or lunch that L and I had became an inegdota -- a strange situations that can be a funny experience. During el almuerzo you get dos plato (soup, main course consisting of rice, meat and sometimes veggies), and un postre (or dessert). L and I finished our soup and the main course hadn't come yet. We didn't know there was a main course, so we thought, "Is this all there is, we're starving?!" Our host family had a good laugh about that. Inegdota.

For lunch today the soup was caldo de pata. It's a chicken broth that has, among other things, cow hooves. It was not something I would normally order, being that it had a strange flavor, but you gotta eat!!! My host father told me that it is a typical Cuencan dish. L enjoyed it more than I did.

Cuenca has their Carnaval starting now. It entails the people throwing water at each other in the street; from buckets, bowls, glasses, water pistols, bombas de agua (water balloons), from the balconies, from the streets, kids outside of schools and even complete strangers. It doesn't matter who you are!!! Kids threw water at me down town twice... yesterday. It is a fun holiday though. I've already bought my water pistol as the biggest days for this are February 3, 4, and 5th. ¡Que chevere!

I don't think that holiday would go well in Duluth in January though...

Cuenca y la escuela

Today was my first day of school. The temperature is hovering around seventy degrees and partly cloudy. My host father, Paúl drove us to school this morning, though we will usually walk there, being only ten minutes away from my house. Our host family is awesome. My host mother, Nelly, is a doctor and professor of medicine. Her esposo, Paúl is a businessman who sell furniture out of his store. Their daughter is a 17 year old national ping pong champion in Ecuador. She has no less than 20 trophies and 50 medals for her skill. She something of an icon in Ecuador. I live at the top of a 3 story house with them. It is quite beautiful. Furthermore, their entire extended family lives adjacent to them. Literally next door neighbors. They are quite a fun family.

Cuenca is nothing short of beautiful. It is nestled within the hills of the Andes. Being 2500 meters above sea level makes breathing getting used to as there iis less oxygen up here. The city itself is the marriage of tradition and modernity. For example it lacks the obtrusive skyscrapers that can offset the traditional flavor of other cities. Many of the buildings are from the Spanish colonial period, located in la Ciudad Vieja. There are between ten and fifteen churches in that area. The latest cathedral was begun in the nineteenth century and only completed in the last few decades. It was built completely out of bricks, and due to its fragility, was never completed. I will find more info on this tomorrow. There are stone pathways in Cuenca that predate the Inca period. It is amazing that something so old can endure for centuries in a city of 300 thousand people.

Terra cotta roofs are the norm for most buildings here.

I visited the outside of a cloister today. These cloisters, due to Catholic law, are only allowed in Europe and Latin America. It is one of three in Cuenca. Women enter its walls to become nuns. However, there are never allowed to step outside again. The door to the cloister has no key holes from the outside, a symbol of their devotion. I found this quite shocking as they do not have this in the US, but I cannot judge. Interestingly, there are always twenty nuns in this cloister. No more, no less. The nuns within spend their lives, among other things, making various foodstuffs for the local people. For example, they produce a healing tonic from the herbs of 25 plants. It is said to have healing properties. The tonic can cure a hangover, mend a broken heart, and allow one to speak perfect Spanish. But do they sell it in a bottle...

For the next four weeks I will be attending Estudio Sampere. Originally founded in Spain over 50 years ago, it is the only branch in South America. I find myself in the company of many European students. Their nationalities include English, French, Dutch, German, Austrian, and Swiss. It is incredible that strangers living across continents can forge a bond through a language that is not even their own...

Unfortunately, no one knows where Minnesota is... weird for me. While I am here though, I would like to debunk any stereotypes that they have of Americans. Ecuador has smashed my presuppositions to smithereens.

I have three classes every day at Estudio Sampere. They include Grammar, Conversational Spanish, and Ecuadorian Culture. I begin at 7.45 and finish around 2. The atmosphere is relaxed, but every one is here to learn, so it will be an intensive and aggressive experience.

I have been in Ecuador for 2 days and have already learned so much. It is a completely different lifestyle here, though I can see why it makes so many happy. Cuenca is said to be La Patrimonia de la Humanidad. Basically, it is the cradle of cultural heritage, art, and peace. There is a sense of community here that makes even a foreigner feel at home

In short, it feels like paradise.

Primer Día

I'm sitting in the internet center of the Hotel Akros right now. In the middle of downtown Quito. The flights were a success. Due to the fact that I haven't been on a plane since 1992, needless to say the experience was an awesome one at that. As we took off I saw the landscape of Minnesota fade into the obscurity of a Google Earth vista. Ear popping and turbulence were no exception to the experience for this rookie flyer. Nevertheless, it was interesting to watch the snow dissipate as my plane approached Houston.

Once we arrived there it was quite obvious that the diversity of people was changing dramatically. Nearing my destination made it all too clear that I am going to be able to perfect my craft. Taking off from Bush airport, I had hoped to catch glimpses of Central America and the Andes, but night and an overcast sky made that impossible. Lenay and I arrived at QIO at 10:30 last night. Getting into the van we met a biology graduate from Norfolk who was on a similar mission as us. Driving through downtown Quito was surreal, being my first experience outside of the US. The buildings are different. English, though present, takes a back seat to Spanish as the main language of advertising. I did see a KFC though, interesting.

We checked into the Hotel Akros around 11 p.m. Being so late, we decided to forgo any exploring that night and mixed with the few people enjoying drinks at the hotel bar. We met an Argentinian named Juan, who invited L and I to get in touch with him in April. Talking with Ecuadorian nationals and others reinstated my confidence in being able to survive in Latin America, though many resort to English to speak with us.

Our flight for Cuenca leaves at 3, and I will be able to settle into a routine finally. I plan on posting pictures right now, but my computer at present does not have that capability. L and I are both well. This surreal experience has not even begun to sink in yet, though it is incredible.