Ñaño y ñaña

On the way to the mall, un ratito after we witnessed the chicken carnage. Adrian y Andrea, the best Ecuadorian siblings I could ever have!

I saw cuy.

You know what I love about Cuenca? That I can call up people that I don't even know or have met only once and travel to incredible mountainous lands with them and have a wonderful time. [Alyss I hope you're reading this] Yesterday my cousin's friend María Jose took me with her to Gualaceo, a small town maybe 30 mins from Cuenca. We went with her fiance Gustavo and his brother Leo. Gualaceo is know for its hornado (roasted meat) and chancho (pork) specifically. Though they had just about every kind of meat. And I don't just mean cut up meat, I mean carcasses hanging from the ceilings. Yes, there were the infamous cuy too. Poor little guys. But I learned they don't just give you the animal on the stick and then tell you to take a bite- they cut it up first. Also Gualaceo has un montón de shoe stores! And they're cheap. But alas, I bought none. It rained the whole time we were there. I also got to try cangil, basically a popcorn ball glued together with sugar. Leo and I are in the pic with it above. He said he looks feo in photos but he probably won't see this anyway. Later María Jose got me some rosero, which is a thick drink made from mote with chunks of fruit in it. At first it tasted like some kind of thick medicine, but you get used to it. :) This really was the first time I've used my camera since being here. I've been trying to avoid looking like a tourist at all cost. But with this complexion it's inevitable. The colors of the town did look pretty awesome after it rained though.

Ok, more observations. The movie theaters here are tiny and are cheap. $4.25 for an 8:30pm movie. We saw El Principe de Persia last night, and I fell asleep in the middle of it. But understood it all in Spanish! Also they couldn't let us in until the previous movie ended because there was only one theater per movie that's playing. Can't get in an hour before like we can at home. AND all the movies are American movies. Just like the mall plays American songs too.

Also the malls in Cuenca are pretty much spotless. We were at Millenium two days ago, and went back again today for lunch. The floors are so clean and sparkling and shiny. You could see your face in them. Everything looks brand new. In the public bathrooms you have to grab the TP before you go in the stall- there is only one dispenser. What happens if I go in the stall, then realize I don't have enough??? I don't know what I would do.

We witnessed a death today. A poor gallina (hen) attempted to cross the road, trying to fulfill her lifelong dream of a carefree life outside the city walls. She began to cross the street. We dodged her, then looked behind us only to see a cloud of plumas all over the street. Today her bright hopes for the future were crushed to pieces. Literally. We talked about this in the car for like the next half hour after it happened. Let us pause for a moment of silence to remember her bravery.

In the hipermercados o supermercados, there are specific gates through which you enter and exit. And they don't let you bring bags with you- if you have a large purse or bag from a different store, you have to check it. There are guards everywhere- all over the store.

Yesterday before Gualaceo, the entire family was over for lunch. The two married daughters, Valeria and Cristina, came over with their husbands and kids. One of the grandkids/nieces, Flabia (7) brought over her Barbies- Bella (Belle) and La Bella Dormiciente (Sleeping Beauty) among others. It was fun to have a full house.

Bueno. Tomorrow I start meeting with the students, lending my knowledge of American culture and my perfect use of English. What little knowledge I have, haha. I may not be completely street smart, but at least I'm a true gringa [sadly]. We'll see how this goes.

It's almost been a week...

This is a long one but WELL WORTH THE READ, if I do say so myself.

NEXT is happening this weekend! I wish I could be there with you all! Definitely going to listen to those messages as soon as I can! Hope you're all having a great time, discovering the Lord in new ways and experiencing some awesome fellowship with each other. I'm with you in spirit!

The other night, Thursday, I went with Andrea to a mall inauguration. The mall is called Monay Shopping. It was the first night to open to the public so we had to fight the guards to get in early so she could prepare for her dance performance. Little did we know that this event was incredibly formal. Suits, ties, and dresses. And I there I was, already drawing attention with my hair, but also dressed in jeans, sandals, and my black Terps fleece. Fracaso (fail). I was sitting in the midst of all the suits and black hair. This inauguration was a huge deal for them- I think it's their 2nd mall in Cuenca. The first mall was built only 2 years ago. This place was squeaky clean, and bright lights everywhere. Some important VIP's made speeches, and the Ecuadorian national anthem was sung at the beginning and end. Talk about a cultural experience. Andrea's performance was at the end and it was very similar to Circ de Soleil (sp?). It was awesome. Then they had fancy little foods on toothpicks- coconut-encrusted chicken, shrimp, steak. And champagne and wine. Classy. Afterwards Andrea, her sister Cris (married with a nena (baby)), Jesica (other dancer), Andrea's novio, and the novio's cousin went out to a very Americanized sports bar/restaurant. I was quiet most of the time, trying to keep up with the convo.

That leads me to this: The main language challenge is social settings with groups. I want to be involved in conversations and jokes, etc, but at this point I just don't know a lot of vocab. So when I'm either at the kitchen table with the family, or out with a group, I'm quite, cause, well, I'm just trying to keep up with comprehension before actually speaking! I get a word or question in here and there. It's really ok by me, I just hope the rest of the group doesn't feel bad or...something. Also it's hard because I want to ask people questions as well, instead of them only asking me, but it takes me a while to formulate the right question in my head. In one-on-one convos, however, I do much better. :)

But you know what I've realized? Having this language challenge has made me see how selfish I can be back home. I often will not initiate hang-outs, or close my door to my room in Ellicott so I'm not bothered, or pass by someone with a "Hey, what's up?" instead of entering into conversation. It is SO EASY to have a conversation with someone in English! There is no excuse for avoiding those opportunities! Here, I have more of an "excuse" per se, because there is a language barrier. But back home, no way. I have every reason to be invested and interested in the people around me. So that is what I'm learning so far... though please pray that little by little I'd be able to enter into social groups, and participate more and more. Cause it IS hard. But it's another opportunity for me to trust God and be humbled in my somewhat helpless state. jaja.

I wanted to add a few more notes, things that I've already observed even after 4 days of being in Cuenca:

1) don't get pizza in Ecuador. We went to the mall yesterday for lunch and I got it... mostly dough, barely any sauce. And "ensalada de cesar" is not ceasar salad either, jaja. But I ate it. Better that than the pot of chicken parts (I saw a foot in there, no doubt about it) that was boiling on the stove yesterday morning. And they call junk food and fast food (comida rápida) "chatarra."

2) The jugo (juice) is like their soda. And it is almost always freshly squeezed/mixed in a blender. Jugo de mora (berry), de melón (cantaloupe), de tomate de arbol (not our tomatoes- these are sweet and more oval and light orange in color) and this morning it was something like a green orange.

3) Life here is relaxed in general. The Bustos are not preoccupied with having a spotless kitchen or rushing around from one thing to the next (except to work/school, of course). Their days get going around 7:30 or 8. And in Cuenca, people don't have to commute to work, either.

4) Driving is a whole different animal. So supposedly the law is to wear a seatbelt, but people don't. The driver usually, but no one else. I've been squeezed into the back of Julio's tiny hatchback with 3 other girls, and 2 in the front seat. 7 of us total. jaja. There aren't many minivans here- mostly small SUV's, cars, and trucks. Drivers are crazy, my family included. There really aren't lines on the streets, you just pass people as you please. Cars zoom by to pass you as well, and you don't know when they're coming. The neighborhoods in the city are so confusing, too. Like a maze. Road names are NOT clearly marked at all- sings are few and far between, not on every corner. Only in the center are they marked well. I could never drive around here alone, even if I knew the road names I had to turn on, because I wouldn't be able to SEE the road names.

5) The time to go running is 6am, pretty much. Un montón de gente run at that time, because it's before work. I should probably try that, to avoid honks and cars speeding past me in the afternoon. But 6am? Really, how dedicated am I? We'll see about that one.

6) Families are SUPER CLOSE. Siblings and cousins do things together ALL the time. Family is part of the core hangout group most of the time. I love it and wish our culture was like that, and not so "Oh I need to go to college to be far away from my family" and "Oh no way could I ever hang out with my little brother in public" and "Oh I only see my cousins at family reunions because they live halfway across the country." I realize these are blanket statements, but for the majority in America I think they're true.

7) Cuencanos have a sing-song accent. I think I've already mentioned this. And also in words that have double r's "rr" they pronounce it like the "s" in "closure." So sometimes I get lost... some have stronger accents than others.

8) Latinos think that gringas, white girls, are easy. One reason why Latino guys like them so much. But I am here to counter-balance that stereotype! They won't get nothin from me. jaja.

9) Cuencanos also think it's freezing cold when it's like 55 degrees. However, I'm so used to the fierce winters in Maryland. People always ask me if I'm cold if I have short sleeves on with no jacket, and I reply, "No, really, I'm used to it." :)

10) Sarah, you have no idea how comforting it is to have peanut butter. I don't know what I'll do once I run out.

11) If you got this far down the blog, here's my address. It's actually the dad's office address, because there aren't mail trucks and mailboxes out here in San Joaquín:

Av. Paucarbamba y Miguel Cordero esq. Edificio WORK-CENTER, ofc #311, 3er piso, Cuenca, Ecuador.

Thanks for reading all that, if you actually got through it all! Love you and miss you!

BESITOS & ABRAZOS!!! E-mail me about YOUR LIVES! I want to hear. linds0929@gmail.com.

First day in the city.

My day began at 7am as I was awoken from my slumber by a rooster crowing right outside my window. As a matter of fact he crowed about 5 minutes ago, too- guess Ecuadorian roosters aren't limited to the mornings!

After eating eggs and bread and coffee (which is 90% milk with a spoonful of instant coffee, by the way) with Nancy, I went into the city with mi papá Guido. Did I mention he's a lawyer? So he dropped me off in the center near the Ordex office and I proceeded to walk around the block since the office wasn't open yet and I had stupidly brought no map or books with me to read. As I was sitting in the park, I was approached by a young man who tried to sell me a cell phone. And as soon as I spoke Spanish to him I regretted it- could not get rid of him. Finally I just said, "I'm leaving you now, ciao" and walked away. Lesson learned: tell unwelcome chicos that I don't speak Spanish! That keeps them at bay. So as soon as I saw Julio, a minute after leaving that guy, I couldn't have been more grateful.

Julio helped me buy a cheap cell phone, $25 total. Then I pretty much sat in the Ordex office, feeling more or less useless. I have to admit, I'm not really sure what I'll be doing here, STILL. It seems a little less organized than I expected... I didn't know what to do but sit there, because I don't have any kind of set plan yet. So I feel like a dependent tag-a-long. I really want to know the city and be able to take the bus, but I do realize this is only my 2nd day here! I have to be patient... but I'm anxious to have a schedule and be able to survive on my own

One thing that is going to take getting used to is that every day people go home from about 12-2 or 1-3 to eat lunch and take a break. They don't call it a siesta, but that's basically what it is. They literally close up their stores, and then re-open again for the afternoon shift. So the day is divided up in lots of small chunks- it's not day and night like it is in the U.S.

So far it has been a little difficult, with no kind of job to keep myself occupied and make myself useful. But I talked with Andrea, my sister, and she reassured me that I'll get the hang of things soon. She is very kind.

Now I'm going to venture outside and go running for the first time. We will see how this goes... for one I haven't ran in almost 2 weeks. Apparently there is a path that goes up that mountain!!!! Off to explore it. Pray that I will get used to the life here, be able to make my way around the area by myself, communicate clearly in Spanish, and be doing useful things!

Ciao.

Llegada a Cuenca

Hola todos!

Wanted to add some pics of Quito- I downloaded them today.

To the left is the interior of Hostal Quito Antiguo, apparently one of the most famous hostels in the Mariscal area.

Ok, I'm having trouble with blogger... it only let me upload this one photo. So I am going to upload the rest to facebook! Anyway, I wanted to clarify that last night I hung out with the gringos out of pure desperation. There was not enough time for me to meet Ecuadorians to travel with for only one day. But I will not travel with gringos again if I can avoid it... especially ones that don't speak Spanish! I was their principal translator.

So I got up at 5am this morning and Fabián, the kind older man who picked me up on Sunday night, was downstairs at 6am. We went to the Quito airport and I was left alone once again, this time in an Ecuadorian airport. I garnered many stares. I don't know how I made it through sitting in the waiting area and boarding the plane without God's grace. Because I was a spectacle for them. A veterinarian guy sitting next to me was chatting it up with me, but he wasn't too creepy, just curious. And another interesting thing- we walked outside on a painted path to get to the plane. It was a good 2 minute walk, too. Another thing is that although it was 60 something degrees, everyone was wearing jackets as if it were in the 50's. To them, spring weather is "un poco frio." But for us, it's warm. I think it's because they don't have winters here whatsoever.

Through the plane window I saw two major volcanos that look like white-capped mountains. One of them was Cotopaxi, the 2nd highest summit in Ecuador. It was incredible to see. The Andes are very brown, and then all of a sudden you see these white-capped peaks and it's just wild to behold.

The flight was very short. I got off the plane, and waited for my luggage with the rest of the Ecuadorians. I already noticed a difference in the way these Cuencanos looked in comparison to the people of Quito. Most of them are lighter skinned and dress nicer. I would learn later from my papá that Cuenca has the most money out of all the cities in Ecuador... So I got my luggage, and walk out, and immediately I recognized Julio. I knew that I should expect a young guy, according to Karla. Julio is 22 and works with Ordex, the exchange program that I'll be working with. He took me into the center of the city and showed me all around. This city already enchants me. I'm hooked. I can't even tell you how lovely it is. The streets are clean and made of bricks/cobblestones. The buildings are colonial and lovely. It took us forever to find a place to park- first we had to go to Julio's house and pick up keys for something. Then we parked outside his parent's boutique called "El Chateau." I met his mom and 2 of his cousins- all are extremely welcoming and sweet!! Then he took me to a cafe and we had breakfast. Then back to the Ordex office, which happens to be directly above the parent's boutique! He gave me some maps and I tried to connect to the internet to no avail. I explored the area a little by myself, feeling very safe but still getting stared at. Then Julio brought me to San Joaquín, the neighborhood where my host family is!

San Joaquín is totally rural, in the countryside, at the base of a mountain, pretty much! It is so beautiful and calm. I prefer it to the city any day. And by the way, I LOVE my family!!! Guido (papá), Nancy (mamá), Andrea (24), and Adrian (15). Their photo was completely deceiving, friends!!! They are not at all serious- it's definitely how they take pictures because the photos in their house are the same. I also met Olga, the abuela!! They are wonderful. They took me to an authentic Ecuadorian restaurant and we had mote pillo, mote sucio, pork, these bean-like things (can't remember the name), cheese, and Coke. Now I am stuffed. Back in the house. Andrea and Adrian both are awesome and friendly and I get along with them fine! Liliana is the middle sister, and she's in the US right now for a cultural exchange, to return July 1st.

I am so excited about what the next few months hold. And so comforted in the fact that I will be able to go out with the girls- travel to the beach and such- especially once they finish school in July! The Lord has provided for me once again. And I've already learned tons of new words... if only I could remember them all. Gara= cool, chendo = I'm joking, it's a joke... and more. :)

Hasta luego! Go to facebook for pictures of Quito!

May 24, 2010.

I´m a real adult now. Hands down. I arrived in Quito, Ecuador last night- a very sweet older man named Fabian picked me up and drove me to Hostal Quito Antiguo, in the nicest area of Quito. The innkeepers are so sweet. When I got inside to my room, I laid down on the bed and just smiled and laughed to myself. I can´t believe I´m here! Over and over I say that to myself. Immediately upon arrival, each person I´ve met instantly speaks Spanish. I. love. it. I´m tempted to write in Spanish now because it´s already on my mind!

So Quito is way more beautiful than I expected. Of course, it´s a city, and it has ugly parts, but the buildings are colorful and there is so much life!!! And it´s situated smack in the middle of the Andes. HUGE MOUNTAINS right outside, looming in the distance, hidden by the fog. It´s only clear in the mornings, usually. I can´t stop looking around when I´m outside- everything about this city fascinates me- people, places, food, music.

This morning I had breakfast (eggs, cheese, toast, and warm leche in which I forgot to put the instant coffee- Ecuadorians don´t drink strong coffee) with a couple from Guayaquil and a solo Colombian traveler man who is touring South America by himself! I was telling the couple I was here by myself and that I didn´t know too many details about what I´d be doing and they were thinking I was crazy. I started to think so too.

I got a brief overview of Quito and bought my plane ticket for tomorrow with Karla Torres, one of the program coordinators. Es muy linda gente and showed me the main area around my hostal. That´s why I feel safe enough to be in this internet cafe writing to youuu.

After Karla left me, I immediately found 2 American girls from Omaha who I saw in a cafe that I passed by. Groups are never a bad thing, so I went with them to meet up with another boy who´s staying in their host family´s house and we bussed it up to La Mitad del Mundo! The bus drivers are crazy. Once the driver stopped in the middle of the street so that the money-collector guy could get some food across the street!

The middle of the world was ok... really touristy. Ecuadorian tourists included, especially cause today was a holiday commemorating La Batalla de Pichincha. I didn´t want to be there long, but couldn´t rush the others so... was stuck. Got back an hour ago. The bus ride was more of an adventure than the Mitad. But I had to do it- when am I gonna come back?

I really am enjoying this Ecuadorian keyboard. Almost getting used to the weird placement of punctuation marks, and the addition of new ones! Tomorrow I go to Cuenca to meet my family!! And why is "Workin at the Car Wash" currently playing in this internet cafe???

Ok, I´ve got more Quito to see. Les dejo ya!