Advertisement
Published: October 8th 2008
Sue and Frank
The two of them are walking in Old Town Quito.A thousand pardons for taking so long between blog entries. I have no excuses other than those that you have already heard.
After Ohio State´s crushing defeat I vowed to button-down the hatches and show that I am no fair-weather fan. None of us are in Ohio. Sure, Ohio may be a state with a lot of hillbillies, we may not be the most educated, we may not have the best economy, and we may have put GW Bush over the top in 2004, however, we support our sports teams no matter what. There are no band-wagons in Ohio. When my Cleveland Browns ceased to exist a few years back - I didn´t start rooting for the Bengals or another team (remember we have no fair-weather fans) I went into football remission until the Browns came back - and come back they did.
So, I have done my best to follow OSU here in Ecuador. I have even gone so far as to have family and friends send me text messages throughout the games to give me updates when I am not near a computer. This has lead to some stressful moments though and made me question just how
Wood Door
This is the door to one of the many churches in Quito. drunk the people texting me might be. The last two weeks I received the following series of texts during OSU games.
OSU vs. Minnesota
OSU scored first we are kicking butt
20-3 at halftime
Minnesota is coming back 20-6 - sure a field goal indicates a comeback
OSU wins 24 - 10 - this was my personal favorite - nothing like 4 safeties to get that score.
OSU wins 34-21 - from another more secure source
OSU vs. Wisconsin
7-0 bucks
Not good 7-10 badgers
Tied
Uh oh 10-17
Interception! Bucks! Yipee skipee we won!
20-17 1 min left!
This last one was not followed by any other messages. This left me utterly confused and concerned about the status of my Bucks. I mean, what is the deal - you send me a message saying we won and then another saying one minute left - then leave me hanging - what a horrible mean thing to do to a PCV and OSU fan without a tv or radio who happens to be at a community party where everyone is drinking moonshine while watching a rather large, has-been, female singer perform on a stage. I will comment on
Stained Glass in the Basilica
The windows here were stunning. this story later in the blog.
About three weeks ago, I headed up to the Peace Corps office early on a Friday morning to work on my Env. Ed. guide with the two other volunteers who are collaborating on the project, Andrea and Whitney. I spent most of Thursday at my office in Puyo getting stuff together and trying to fight off another round of intestinal parasites. Most of Thursday evening at the house was spent making frequent runs to the bathroom (probably 15 in all). This had me concerned since I was going to board a bus at 3:00am for Quito. Nothing like being stuck on a bus when you have explosive bowel syndrome.
Casey, the new volunteer in Puyo was heading to Quito as well so she came with me. Having her along was nice because it distracted me from the odd feeling in my intestines. Ok, so it may be gross to talk about this, but here in the Peace Corps, bowel movements are as common as talking about politics, sports, or what you did the night before. Anyhow, I spent five hours shifting around in my seat trying to find all sorts ways to
Casey expressing herself
Casey believes that putting frosting on a cake is a way to express your true inner self. relieve the constant gas bubbles that were building up and passing through my system. Passing gas when you have diarrhea is a little like playing Russian Roulette. You are just not sure whether you are safe or screwed.
I made it to Quito, promptly found a bathroom, and then headed to the Peace Corps office to start work. Andrea showed up around 10:00am and we worked all day. Whitney said she was busy and came in around 4:00pm and then left at 4:30pm because she was tired. Now, Whitney has an excuse, she started with a new counterpart in Quito a few weeks ago - so even though we had this date planned, I let it slide.
Working alongside Andrea was fun, however, getting her to focus is a little like herding cats - you just can´t do it. She was constantly looking up stuff on the internet, playing music, texting people, etc. When it was all said and done however, she proved her worth and really helped me get the guide to a rough draft stage. Andrea has great ideas and many are different than mine so it has been beneficial to have her on the team
Sue gets in on the action
Nothing like two people frosting a cake. to help keep things in perspective and to help make this guide more useful for teachers.
That evening, she, Whitney, and another volunteer in town, Ryan were going to go out. During the day I found out that I did indeed have parasites - Giardia - again - for the third time. So, I started the one-day course of medicine and decided to spend a quiet evening in the confines of my hotel room. When you are on this particular medicine you cannot drink any alcohol for 48 hours lest you make yourself very sick.
The next morning I got up early and headed to the PC office. Andrea showed up about an hour after me and we worked our tails off from 8:00am to almost 6:00pm. Whitney was a no-show. She was supposed to come in during the morning, but failed to do so. Instead of worrying about it, I just kept plodding along.
About mid-day, Andrea went and got some pizza and took a short walk. It was a nice day in Quito and we didn´t want to spend it all inside in front of a computer.
That evening Andrea was going to hang out
Cleaning up
Sometimes cleaning up is the most fun. with Whitney again and I was going to go out with my former counterpart Andrea Garzón. She has been living in Quito since March and we really miss working together. She, her son Paulo, and I went to see a movie at the theater near my hotel. We saw a kid´s movie - something like Journey to the Center of the Earth. It was entertaining and it was nice to spend time with her. She doesn´t seem too happy with her new job and is going to be applying for a couple of jobs with Peace Corps. I am pulling for her - she would be great at PC.
Sunday was more of the same. I got up early, had breakfast, and then went to the PC office for another day of work. Andrea came in around 11:00am and started to work. Whitney was again a no-show. It was at this point that I let myself be disappointed in her. The least she could have done all weekend was sent a message or called to say that she was too busy or whatever. Oh well, I don´t want to get myself in trouble by saying what I actually think
so I will shut up and leave it to your imagination.
Around 4:00 that afternoon Andrea and I decided that we had enough - our brains could not process anymore. Andrea left to go to some music festival in Quito to meet up with….Whitney and I wrapped up a few odds and ends and headed back to Puyo.
I got back to Puyo around 11:00pm in a driving rain. In the short 3 blocks from the main road to my apartment I managed to get drenched. When I got home, the lights were still on. Susan and Casey were just finishing a craft night and a movie. I gave them the 20 minute run-down of the weekend and the status of the guide.
As for the guide, it was at the point where all but 4 activities were done, all the units were written, but none of it was on the same document. So, I did a lot of cutting, pasting, and reformatting during the next week. It was painstaking work, but it had to be done. I am already running behind on my plan to get it printed.
Most of the week I spent working
The view from Las Lajas
Columbia is somewhere over the next set of mountains. on the guide during my free time and attending to my other duties in the CODEAMA office. I went out to the communities for a meeting, gave a presentation on zoning and conservation, and then gave a presentation in CODEAMA office on human impacts on the water supply for Puyo. This presentation is going to be the one that I take to all of the schools in Puyo as round two of my EE campaign related to the Water Fund. The presentation in the office was so that the other people working on the water fund could evaluate it, make suggestions, etc. etc. Everything went very well.
Thursday morning, Susan and I headed up to Quito to pick up our friend Frank from the airport. Manuela, Susan´s counterpart, was headed to Quito as well, so she came with us. Anyhow, we got to Quito and went to our hotel. Once we checked in, we headed to the airport. Franks plan was on-time and he made it through customs in a record amount of time, about 20 minutes. We headed with him back to the hotel and got him settled in. It was great to see Frank. His 6 foot
Norman´s House
This is where we slept in Las Lajas. 4 stature, his long hair, huge mustache, cowboy hat, and tie-dyed shirt made for an interesting spectacle. The Ecuadorians were not sure what to think of him - he certainly turned a lot of heads.
That evening, we went to dinner and then to a jazz club to meet up with our PC boss, Pablo and a few other volunteers. It was a nice place, something that you would more likely find in the States vs. Ecuador. Anyhow, we listened to a band for a couple of hours and then called it a night around 12:00.
Friday morning, I got up early and headed to the PC office to try and get the rest of the guide formatted and to print up a couple copies. I thought it would take me about an hour, but it ended up taking over 4 hours. In the meantime, Susan and Frank hit the Mariscal section of Quito. Frank booked a rainforest tour and Susan looked up tour information for the Galápagos. I met up with them around 12:30 as they were finishing lunch.
One of the other things I did in the PC office was have a chat with Pablo
Two guys playing with fireworks
This was a common scene during the fiestas. and Andrew (the training coordinator) about training and my status as a co-trainer. It appears that the country director and assistant director have reservations about me being a trainer - they think that I will be a dictator during training, not be a team player, and control the PC employees responsible for training. Hmmmm…..obviously they don´t know me very well and obviously they are still pissed at me for the whole Peer Support blowup a few months ago - which was their fault and not mine. Plus, what does it say about their employees (my superiors) if they think a lonely PCV like myself can usurp their power and dominate them.
Pablo and Andrew both expressed that I am their #1 choice for training and that they will try to make the process as fair as possible - they were nearly as frustrated as I was. Pablo told me that I might need to put my tail between my legs and tell them what they want to hear. I told Pablo that I am not going to beg for this and reminded him that he and Kerry asked me to be a trainer, not the other way around. Anyhow,
Fireworks contraption
This is like build a better mousetrap. it will all play out by the end of this week - I give myself a 20% chance, which is fine by me. I am realizing that winding down my work in Puyo by January will be nearly impossible anyhow. Plus, not doing training means that Susan and I can come home a month earlier.
Back to the story, Frank, Susan and I wandered around Old Town Quito for most of Friday afternoon looking at churches and architecture. Frank is a fan of stained glass windows and we managed to find the jackpot in the Basilica.
That afternoon/evening we caught a 6:30pm bus back to Puyo. Matt and Marcie, two other volunteers were headed back to Puyo as well, so they joined us on the journey. It was a long trip. It took over 6 hours. The first two of those were just getting out of Quito traffic. There was lot of traffic on the road because many people were heading back to their home towns so that they could vote on the new constitution on Sunday.
We made it back to Puyo and immediately went to bed. That Saturday we wandered around Puyo a little bit
Susan waiting for the bang
The fireworks usually ended with a loud bang that seemed even louder when you were only a few feet from it. and then went to Hola Vida, the waterfall, in the afternoon for a hike. We went with Casey as well. It was a great day and we had a good time. That evening I had everyone over for dinner. I made Lasagna. The following day we went to the market and then went for a random hike near Shell. I saw random because we couldn´t find the trail we were looking for, but ended up meeting a guy who had a trail on his property and he told us we could walk on it. We did and we had a wonderful time hiking from the road down to Río Pastaza.
On Monday I hooked Frank up with Chris Canady the guy who runs the ethnobotanical park in town. The two of them went birding (though it rained all morning) and spent the day at the park. Frank really enjoyed hanging out with Chris, they are like two peas in pod. Monday night we went to dinner at El Jardin.
Tuesday we sent Frank to Baños and the waterfalls around Baños. He ran into some other tourists who helped him get around since his Spanish is non-existent. He said
Susan and her girlfriends
Susan befriended these adorable girls in Las Lajas. that he had a great time and that he spent hours taking pictures of butterflies. That night we had the crew over again for dinner. I made Burritos. Matt had a couch-surfer from Australia staying with him so we invited her as well.
Wednesday, Frank and I went to the FRATES communities. I was going to give some presentations and he wanted to see some indigenous communities. When we got there, the power was out. So instead of giving presentations, Frank and I just wandered around. We ended up walking all the way back to the main road. They are working on the road so there are a lot of cut-outs that expose the soils. Frank is a soil scientist so he was like a kid in a candy store. He was taking photos everywhere. I am just happy that he is easy to please. We got back into town and had lunch then Frank checked out a few more sights around Puyo. He and I headed back to the apartment that afternoon.
Thursday, Susan took Frank out the orchid park - which turned out to be Frank´s favorite experience. They were there for over three hours. Meanwhile,
The gang
Susan, Norman, Frank and Roger at the fiesta. I went out the communities and spent most of the day out there in meeting and giving presentations. My last presentation was a 5:30 and as I was on my last powerpoint slide, the bus came by and I missed it. This meant an hour and a half walk back to the highway at night. I was with two other Ecuadorians - they didn´t seem to upset so I wasn´t either. I felt bad because they were waiting for me and had I not been there they would have caught the bus. Instead, we started walking and were picked up by a passing truck. We made it back to Puyo about 30 minutes after the bus so it was not all bad.
When I got back, I met up with Frank, Susan, and some of Susan´s co-workers. We went out to a bar to get a volquetero (dump truck ceviche) and some beers. It was fun - volqueteros are my favorite food here in Puyo.
The next day we headed to Otavalo, the big market north of Quito. We got there around 7:00pm and met up with our friend Roger. The four of us went to an Italian
Roger and the gang
Roger with his new Ecuadorian friends and an empty bottle of Traigo (moonshine). restaurant in town. Sue and I were excited for Roger and Frank to meet. They seemed to hit it off fairly well. After dinner we got some wine and went back to the hostal to sit by the fireplace. Roger played some guitar and then he and Frank started singing together. There was a couple from Holland and one from the States there as well. By 1:00am we were sufficiently tired enough to head to bed.
The next morning we hit the market and Roger headed back to his site. We were going to meet up with him later in the day. The market was fun as usually. Really, the Otavalo market is the biggest of its kind in South America. We ended up buy Alpaca blankets, more hammocks, and a variety of other things. Frank bought a lot of stuff as well for his girlfriend and various other friends and family.
Later in the day we headed north - about 40km from the Columbian border to a small town called Las Lajas. On the way, we met up with Roger. Apparently Roger helped a medical brigade a couple of months ago and they send Roger about 200
One of the stage performers
Ah yes, great music at the fiestas. eye glasses to distribute to the people in that community and two others. We went up there to help out. Las Lajas was going to have a fiesta that night and we were invited.
When we got there, we met up with one of the community contacts and she took us to another guy´s house, Norman. Norman is in his mid to late 50´s and lives by himself in a small house. He is a modest man and throughout the course of the next 24 hours he became a good friend. After we dropped our bags off at his house we went to another house and had dinner. This family was extremely nice as well. We spent about 3 hours chatting with them and Norman about all sorts of topics including better farming practices. At one point, Roger was doing some type of geography lesson. In this lesson he drew a horrible map of the U.S. and then proceeded to tell people that Ohio was bigger than Colorado - FALSE - Colorado is twice the size of Ohio. He was using Colorado because it is the same size as Ecuador. Anyhow, we kept ribbing him about his error and
Roger being the patron saint of glasses
Roger gave this man the opportunity to see clearly again. he was embarrassed. It made me wonder how many times he had given this false geography lesson.
Later in the night, we went to the Fiestas. They had a big fireworks thing going on. It was some kind of devices that was about 40 feet tall and when you lit the bottom of it, it started a chain reaction that would light the rest of it one by one. It was elaborate and would have been really awesome had it not started to rain really hard. It worked, but just needed a lot of human intervention.
After the fireworks, we went into the community building and watched a few musical performances by relatively unknown musical artists. Everyone was drinking traigo which is Ecuadorian moon-shine that they sold mixed with hot lemon tea for a dollar a bottle. It was relatively strong stuff.
I think that Frank was overwhelmed by the experience. Susan, Roger and I had to do a lot of translating for him. By midnight, we had enough and headed back to Norman´s to go to sleep. The party raged on until 4:00am. We slept on the floor at Norman´s. It was a cold night in
the mountains, but we all managed ok.
The next morning we went to breakfast at the same family´s house and then left Las Lajas around 10:30. We went with Roger to another community, Garcia Moreno, to hand out eye glasses. This turned out to be one of the best PC experiences I have had. I had nothing to do with the glasses other than being there to give them away, however, the people treated us like we were saviors. It was wonderful to see their faces light up when they could actually see. You slide those glasses on their heads and it is like you have performed some type of magic trick. They were so grateful and kind to us. It really was an incredible experience.
After handing out glasses, Susan, Frank and I began the long journey home. Roger was headed back to Las Lajas to hand out glasses there. He didn´t do it in the morning because most of the community was hung over from the night before - not a good time to be giving out glasses.
We got to Quito in the evening and got Frank settled into a hostal. We then went
to get some dinner and check our email. At 8:00 we parted ways with Frank and headed back to Puyo. Monday Frank was headed into the jungle on a tour. I hope that he has fun - we won´t hear from him again until Friday afternoon.
As a plug for the local orchid park - Volunteer Matt developed a new website for the park, check it out at: www.jardinbotanicolasorquideas.com
Well, that´s the news from old Ecuador where the women are stronger than you think, the men can´t hold their liquor, and all the children are precious.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.118s; Tpl: 0.021s; cc: 6; qc: 45; dbt: 0.0705s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb
chris
non-member comment
Oooooh
Diareah, and gas. No problem. It's called swimming trunks. They do have acces to a garden hose at your office right?