Dec 21 Well we returned
home to Cuenca on Friday, happy as can be. We
quickly unpacked, ate, and settled back into Cuenca life. We went out
that night for a quick drink, even though we were still going on
plane/bus naps and a 3:30am wake up call. We met up with Kat’s family,
who would be in town through Christmas. We didn’t last long at the bar, but it was wonderful to be back home and back in our nice little comfort zone.
Dec 22 So up until this point, Kels and I had been sharing a bedroom.
This worked out well for the first three months, but about halfway
through November we decided maybe it was time we had our own space. So
I started the move upstairs, enlisting Fredy’s help to bring up the
mattress and sweep the room. So far its only a bed and a
nightstand, but I’m crossing my fingers that by the time I come back my
landlady will be moving in a dresser for me. The rest of Saturday was spent
relaxing, and by evening we were getting ready for Kat’s big birthday
bash. A group of her friends, as well as some of our friends, her family, and even our roommate Annie, came over to our house for drinks and chitchat. By 11pm her parents retired home, and we all headed out to Dos 2, our frequented dance club. We danced the night away, even drinking champagne and fishbowl drinks in celebration of her birthday, and grabbed some food before heading home after closing Dos 2 at 2am. Not a bad night.
Dec 23 Almost Christmas time! Sunday we hung out during the day, and
by 7pm I was heading out for a bit of an adventure; one of my English
students had invited me to her house that evening for a Christmas
dinner. I met her husband outside of CEDEI, looking for a man in a car
and was surprised to be met by a man on a motorcycle. Um, okay. I
feared for my life most of the ride, sitting on the back without a
helmet, but it was a great adrenaline rush. And once at her house I
greeted my student, and instantly found myself at home in the kid
room. I spent most of the night hanging out with the kids, dancing
with them and having them ask me how to say anything they could think
of in English. I had missed kids so much, and kids that speak
Spanish... I was so happy. By 9pm we had dinner, which for me was
soup and a heaping plate of rice, salad, and a tamale. The tamale
alone would have been enough for dinner, and I had to stretch my
stomach to fit in even half of the rice and salad. It was a delicious
meal, and Latin hospitality will never cease to amaze me. By 11pm I
was falling asleep in my chair and decided it was time to head home,
which my student and her uncle graciously drove me home. What a fun
night and great cultural experience.
Dec 24 Christmas Eve! Which actually happens to be the bigger day down
here in Ecuador. We started the day by heading out to watch the
Paseo del Nino, the famous Christmas parade in Cuenca. Although it was
cute and cultural (so many dead cuy and pigs in children’s arms and on
the back of their horses...), if I never see another parade in Ecuador
I think I will be okay. I got a little paraded out in Guatemala. After
the parade we came back, ate lots of leftover guacamole, and started
the holiday festivities. Kelsey’s mom had sent her a kit to make rice
crispy treat snowmen, so we put on the Christmas music and made some
treats. That night we had glog (mulled wine. Annie’s parents are
English) with Annie’s and Kat’s families, enjoying being with families
on Christmas even if they weren’t our own. Mark, Emily, Kels and I,
after the families had left the orphans, went out to dinner at
Eucalyptus, myself enjoying for the first time Indian food on
Christmas eve. We returned home for some more drinking and Christmas music; apple juice cooked with rum, cinnamon and sugar. A very Christmas-y drink I would say.
Dec 25 On Christmas we got up early and met Kat’s parents for breakfast
at Mansión Alcazar, the beautiful hotel they were staying at. As Mark
said, it was the best breakfast he has had in Cuenca, and I had a nice
surprise that one of my students was our waiter. Back at home I took a
nap, and then called a taxi to take me to the airport for my flight out
to Quito to meet mom and dad. I got to the airport an hour and a half
before my flight, kind of cutting it close by American standards, apparently an excessive amount of time by Ecuadorian standards. In 5 minutes I had printed my boarding pass and passed through security, not knowing what to do with myself for an hour and 25 minutes in the waiting room. Luckily the flight from Cuenca to Quito is only 45 minutes, so after waiting in the airport for an hour and a half, I was excited to have the flight be over before I could
blink. In Quito I grabbed a taxi, and headed to the hotel to wait. My
cabbie turned out to be 19 years old, and was driving with his little
sister’s doll in the car. Interesting… We got a little lost on our way to the
hotel, but once at the hotel I checked in, left my stuff, and went wandering
looking for food. Luckily our hotel was located in the heart of historic
Quito, and everywhere I looked there was a beautiful church or a
fancy building to see. After eating I came back to the hotel to wait
for mom and dad. Their flight was a little delayed, but it was worth
the wait. It was so great to see my parents again. They set down their
stuff, and we were out looking for food again. We found a cute street
with lots of restaurants close to our hotel, and settled for a quaint
looking place. The food was good, but it turned out to be a terrible
choice; mom and dad were in bed all day the next day with food
poisoning.
Dec 26 Mom and dad woke up feeling terrible and sick. We went down for breakfast, and realized that was as far as they were going to make it out for the day. After contemplating my options, I decided to head out to the Mariscal district to see some of Quito. I took the trolley bus, and spent a lot of time wandering the streets. I had a nice lunch of eggplant parmesan in a restaurant where I was the only patron, and found a church and a museum to visit, Santa Terestia and the National Museum of Quito. Both were free, and the museum had an impressive collection of pre and post colonization art and pottery. After the museum I was beat, and headed back on the trolley just as it was beginning to rain. The rest of the evening was spent caring for mom and dad, going to grab some food, and reading. Here’s to hoping they will be better to able to actually see the city tomorrow.
quickly unpacked, ate, and settled back into Cuenca life. We went out
that night for a quick drink, even though we were still going on
plane/bus naps and a 3:30am wake up call. We met up with Kat’s family,
who would be in town through Christmas. We didn’t last long at the bar, but it was wonderful to be back home and back in our nice little comfort zone.
Dec 22 So up until this point, Kels and I had been sharing a bedroom.
This worked out well for the first three months, but about halfway
through November we decided maybe it was time we had our own space. So
I started the move upstairs, enlisting Fredy’s help to bring up the
mattress and sweep the room. So far its only a bed and a
nightstand, but I’m crossing my fingers that by the time I come back my
landlady will be moving in a dresser for me. The rest of Saturday was spent
relaxing, and by evening we were getting ready for Kat’s big birthday
bash. A group of her friends, as well as some of our friends, her family, and even our roommate Annie, came over to our house for drinks and chitchat. By 11pm her parents retired home, and we all headed out to Dos 2, our frequented dance club. We danced the night away, even drinking champagne and fishbowl drinks in celebration of her birthday, and grabbed some food before heading home after closing Dos 2 at 2am. Not a bad night.
Dec 23 Almost Christmas time! Sunday we hung out during the day, and
by 7pm I was heading out for a bit of an adventure; one of my English
students had invited me to her house that evening for a Christmas
dinner. I met her husband outside of CEDEI, looking for a man in a car
and was surprised to be met by a man on a motorcycle. Um, okay. I
feared for my life most of the ride, sitting on the back without a
helmet, but it was a great adrenaline rush. And once at her house I
greeted my student, and instantly found myself at home in the kid
room. I spent most of the night hanging out with the kids, dancing
with them and having them ask me how to say anything they could think
of in English. I had missed kids so much, and kids that speak
Spanish... I was so happy. By 9pm we had dinner, which for me was
soup and a heaping plate of rice, salad, and a tamale. The tamale
alone would have been enough for dinner, and I had to stretch my
stomach to fit in even half of the rice and salad. It was a delicious
meal, and Latin hospitality will never cease to amaze me. By 11pm I
was falling asleep in my chair and decided it was time to head home,
which my student and her uncle graciously drove me home. What a fun
night and great cultural experience.
Dec 24 Christmas Eve! Which actually happens to be the bigger day down
here in Ecuador. We started the day by heading out to watch the
Paseo del Nino, the famous Christmas parade in Cuenca. Although it was
cute and cultural (so many dead cuy and pigs in children’s arms and on
the back of their horses...), if I never see another parade in Ecuador
I think I will be okay. I got a little paraded out in Guatemala. After
the parade we came back, ate lots of leftover guacamole, and started
the holiday festivities. Kelsey’s mom had sent her a kit to make rice
crispy treat snowmen, so we put on the Christmas music and made some
treats. That night we had glog (mulled wine. Annie’s parents are
English) with Annie’s and Kat’s families, enjoying being with families
on Christmas even if they weren’t our own. Mark, Emily, Kels and I,
after the families had left the orphans, went out to dinner at
Eucalyptus, myself enjoying for the first time Indian food on
Christmas eve. We returned home for some more drinking and Christmas music; apple juice cooked with rum, cinnamon and sugar. A very Christmas-y drink I would say.
Dec 25 On Christmas we got up early and met Kat’s parents for breakfast
at Mansión Alcazar, the beautiful hotel they were staying at. As Mark
said, it was the best breakfast he has had in Cuenca, and I had a nice
surprise that one of my students was our waiter. Back at home I took a
nap, and then called a taxi to take me to the airport for my flight out
to Quito to meet mom and dad. I got to the airport an hour and a half
before my flight, kind of cutting it close by American standards, apparently an excessive amount of time by Ecuadorian standards. In 5 minutes I had printed my boarding pass and passed through security, not knowing what to do with myself for an hour and 25 minutes in the waiting room. Luckily the flight from Cuenca to Quito is only 45 minutes, so after waiting in the airport for an hour and a half, I was excited to have the flight be over before I could
blink. In Quito I grabbed a taxi, and headed to the hotel to wait. My
cabbie turned out to be 19 years old, and was driving with his little
sister’s doll in the car. Interesting… We got a little lost on our way to the
hotel, but once at the hotel I checked in, left my stuff, and went wandering
looking for food. Luckily our hotel was located in the heart of historic
Quito, and everywhere I looked there was a beautiful church or a
fancy building to see. After eating I came back to the hotel to wait
for mom and dad. Their flight was a little delayed, but it was worth
the wait. It was so great to see my parents again. They set down their
stuff, and we were out looking for food again. We found a cute street
with lots of restaurants close to our hotel, and settled for a quaint
looking place. The food was good, but it turned out to be a terrible
choice; mom and dad were in bed all day the next day with food
poisoning.
Dec 26 Mom and dad woke up feeling terrible and sick. We went down for breakfast, and realized that was as far as they were going to make it out for the day. After contemplating my options, I decided to head out to the Mariscal district to see some of Quito. I took the trolley bus, and spent a lot of time wandering the streets. I had a nice lunch of eggplant parmesan in a restaurant where I was the only patron, and found a church and a museum to visit, Santa Terestia and the National Museum of Quito. Both were free, and the museum had an impressive collection of pre and post colonization art and pottery. After the museum I was beat, and headed back on the trolley just as it was beginning to rain. The rest of the evening was spent caring for mom and dad, going to grab some food, and reading. Here’s to hoping they will be better to able to actually see the city tomorrow.
Dec 27 The parents were
miraculously feeling better today, we decided
to make the most of the it. We had a nice breakfast at our hotel, and
then hailed a taxi to take us to El Panecillo, an angel situated on a
hill overlooking Quito. The view was beautiful, and although I
originally had no desire to see Quito, I’m so glad we decided to stay
here a couple of days. It really is a great city. From there our
cabbie drove us to the Basilica, where we looked into the impressive
cathedral, and then climbed all the way to the top of the spires. I
love Latin American safety concerns, a.k.a. non-existent. After the
Basilica we took a cab to the main historic center, Plaza Grande,
where we started with lunch. After lunch we wandered out to the main
square, and asked about getting into the government building. The man
told us to enter from the other side, where we were greeted by a huge
line. We jumped in line, and asked someone nearby about cost or
tickets. No cost, just needed a drivers license or passport (or in my
case, cause I had neither, my CEDEI ID card). We waited close to 45
minutes, but it was well worth the wait. We entered with a group of
20, and were led around the impressive building on a guided tour. We
saw the room where the president holds meetings, and where they have
banquets. Obviously, everything was beyond beautiful. After this tour,
we popped into the church around the corner, and my parents decided to
call it a day. I went on to see La Compañia, another church, and La
Iglesia San Francisco, you guessed it, another church. I walked around
the church, and paid $2 to enter to convent and museum. I realized it
was somewhat of a mistake though, after being totally church and religious
art-ed out for the day. At least the choir room in the church was
cool and worth the visit. From there I headed home to read, nap, eat, and get ready for our adventure the next day to Mindo!
to make the most of the it. We had a nice breakfast at our hotel, and
then hailed a taxi to take us to El Panecillo, an angel situated on a
hill overlooking Quito. The view was beautiful, and although I
originally had no desire to see Quito, I’m so glad we decided to stay
here a couple of days. It really is a great city. From there our
cabbie drove us to the Basilica, where we looked into the impressive
cathedral, and then climbed all the way to the top of the spires. I
love Latin American safety concerns, a.k.a. non-existent. After the
Basilica we took a cab to the main historic center, Plaza Grande,
where we started with lunch. After lunch we wandered out to the main
square, and asked about getting into the government building. The man
told us to enter from the other side, where we were greeted by a huge
line. We jumped in line, and asked someone nearby about cost or
tickets. No cost, just needed a drivers license or passport (or in my
case, cause I had neither, my CEDEI ID card). We waited close to 45
minutes, but it was well worth the wait. We entered with a group of
20, and were led around the impressive building on a guided tour. We
saw the room where the president holds meetings, and where they have
banquets. Obviously, everything was beyond beautiful. After this tour,
we popped into the church around the corner, and my parents decided to
call it a day. I went on to see La Compañia, another church, and La
Iglesia San Francisco, you guessed it, another church. I walked around
the church, and paid $2 to enter to convent and museum. I realized it
was somewhat of a mistake though, after being totally church and religious
art-ed out for the day. At least the choir room in the church was
cool and worth the visit. From there I headed home to read, nap, eat, and get ready for our adventure the next day to Mindo!
Dec 28 Today was the first
of our Mindo days! After thinking it over the night before, we decided to take
a taxi to Mindo instead of the local bus. In hindsight, this was the best
decision we could have made; we chose to take a taxi so we could stop at the
Mitad del Mundo on our way, but I ended up being sick in the morning and would
have felt awful on the windy roads, stuck on a bus. We had a nice breakfast at
the hotel, and then hailed a taxi. He drove us about an hour out of the city
where we saw the Mitad del Mundo, the exact latitude line 0-0-0. It was very
cool. From there we continued on to Mindo, landing at our hotel, La Roulette,
around 12pm. Our hotel room was actually a gypsy cabin, set apart of the others
in a jungle setting, with a nice dining area around the corner. We had lunch at
the hotel, and were helped by the extremely kind hotel manager in figuring out
our bird tour for the next day, dinner, hiking, etc. He gave us directions on
how to get to the terebita (a cable car suspended over trees), which turned out
to be the only bad information he gave us all night. We began our walk around
2pm, planning on a 3-hour stroll, including a waterfall viewing and a terebita
ride. Not a chance. We walked for about an hour on the road, then up a steep,
steep climb through the jungle, and finally down the road again where we met a
man walking to the “waterfall”. We followed him, and made the decision to take
the “15 minute” hike down to the waterfall, because although we were beat,
isn’t that what we started hiking for? After 30 minutes down, we didn’t get a
good view of the waterfall, meaning we hiked the 30 minutes back up having
failed. From there we continued down the road, only to find the terebita closed
for the day. Strike out number two. All in all we hiked for four hours, and
logged closed to 10 miles, while wearing rubber boots mind you. Needless to
say, when we got back to the hotel, we were exhausted. We contemplated
canceling our 3:30am wake up call birding tour, but realized we couldn’t give
up on seeing the birds of Mindo that easily.
Dec 29 At 3:30am mom’s
alarm went off, and we got up and out of bed, ready to see some birds. A man
named Franklin picked us up at our hotel, and drove us the 30 minutes to the
bird refuge. Our tour was with a man named Angel, who lived near a large bird
refuge, and most likely had dedicated his life to birds. He knew some by name, and
knew how to call them out for us to see. Although I had never been birding
before, and didn’t know what to expect, it was an excellent experience. After
the bird tour we had Franklin drop us off in town, where we sat down for a nice
lunch. After lunch we went up the El Quetzal de Mindo, a local chocolate
factory. We went on the tour, and got to see the whole process, from fruit to
candy bar, and even got to mix our own chocolate flavors. It was a really fun
tour. After the tour we headed down to the bus station, and jumped on our bus
set for Quito. I was expecting a terrible ride, but I would have to say it’s
the best bus ride I’ve been on so far in Ecuador. We went out for dinner one
last time in Quito, and said our farewell to this nice city.
Dec 30 We got up early
again (although not as early as the day before, thank goodness) for our Cuenca
flight. All went smoothly, and within 15 minutes of the parents being in the
city, we saw a parade go by. We were sitting down for lunch at one of my
favorite spots, and a leftover Paseo del Niño started marching past the window.
Perfect. After lunch we napped, and spend the rest of the day going to the
fruit/veggie market, browsing the nearby artisan market, and seeing the central
park of town.
Dec 31 We slept in
(finally!), and started our day by going to the local artisan market again.
From there it was time for lunch, which meant we spent close to an hour walking
around town, trying to find something that was open (because it was New Years
Eve). We finally settled for a very Gringo place, which actually had pretty
good food. After lunch we caught the tourist double decker bus from the main
square, and watched and listened as we toured around Cuenca, stopping only once
at Turi, the viewpoint of Cuenca. After the tour we were feeling ambitious, and
decided to head out to the airport to see if my lost bag (I have the worst lost
bag karma) was there. Unfortunately, because of the holiday there was no one at
the airport to help us, even if the bag had been there. Dejected, we returned
home, and got ready for our night. We went out to dinner at Eucalyptus with
Fredy, and then back to the house for some wine. Around 11:30pm we decided to
head out and see what the town had to offer. All around the city people were
getting ready for 12pm, with large piles of both paper mache and cloth dolls
that are burned at midnight. Some of the dolls are just for fun, and some
represent the person in your family that was bad that year, which is burned to
burn away the old them and to give them a fresh start for the New Year. We
checked our clocks at 12pm, and walked through the masses of people burning
objects. It was incredible. One of the best and definitely most unique New
Years I have ever had. After watching things burn for a while, Fredy and I
headed out to a dance club, where we enjoyed free entrance and free drinks
inside. Not a bad way to end the night and start the New Year.
Jan 1 The next day was
pamper day, symbolically to start with new selves for the new year, and
practically because nothing else was open that day. We got in a taxi (after
sleeping in of course) and headed to Piedra de Agua, a spa in the town of Baños
about 15 minutes away. We did the full package, which included a steam room,
two types of mud baths, hot and cold soaking pools, and a steam box (which
steams your body while your head sticks out of the top). By the end of the day
we were smooth, tired, and so content. It was a really fun experience. The rest
of the night was spent chatting with roommates that had returned from trips,
and packing up.
Jan 2 This was sadly the
parents last day in Cuenca, and the end to my travels. We got up early and
walked along the river to the Museo Banco Central, which had a nice interactive
collection of gold, silver, money, and a display of the difference between the
different regions of Ecuador. Oh, and a few shrunken heads. After the museum we
stepped outside to see the Pumapungo ruins, Incan ruins in Cuenca located in
the backyard of the museum. From there we got lunch with Fredy, and went back
to the artisan market one more time to see if any gifts caught their eye. Fredy
picked us up at the house around 3pm, and we headed out with hopes of finding
my bag at the airport and getting the parents safely on the bus to Guayaquil.
Unfortunately, the bag office didn’t open until 5pm, giving us an hour and a
half to kill, and pushing the parent’s bus later. Luckily, a Panama hat museum
was located nearby, so we happily killed an hour there, learning about how
Panama hats are made (which are actually Ecuadorian hats), and receiving a nice
tasting of canelazo (I guess alcoholic drinks fly at an hour of the day here).
From the hat factory we did a bit more shopping, and went back to the airport
to, hooray!, find my bag. At 5:30pm we left the parents at the bus station,
saying a quick and almost tearful goodbye. It was a wonderful trip, and I am so
blessed to have parents that both encourage me to travel, and that come down
and visit me when I do. Now it’s times for a couple of days to get life in
order, and to start another cycle of teaching!
