El Día de Agradecimiento

I was thankful to celebrate Thanksgiving with friends American and Ecuadorian on Thursday. My friend Molly hosted a potluck dinner on the terrace outside her apartment, and a bunch of volunteers in and around Guayaquil came for the feast.

We had a turkey, and stuffing, and sweet potatoes, and mashed potatoes, and roasted veggies, and pumpkin pie, and apple pie – all the most important staples – so it was surprising that the general favorite Thanksgiving dish was the strawberry salad made by my friend Kelsea. Just goes to show how rare it is for fresh veg to find its way to your plate here. Kelsea had to soak all the spinach and lettuce and strawberries in a bacteria solution to kill any parasites, which we gringos must do any time we eat raw produce.



We had a good-sized gathering…





…and more than enough food to go around.

Oh yeah – the sweet potatoes here are purple.

Changing the subject, Ecuador has a national census every 10 years. From 7am to 5pm tomorrow (Sunday the 28th), everyone is under curfew and must stay in their homes while teachers and high school students go door to door conducting the census. The whole country has been under ley seca (“dry law” – no alcohol sales or consumption) since Friday night, just to make sure we’re all sober come Sunday. A little bit different from the way the census is done in the states!

On the agenda for tomorrow:
Watch the first four Harry Potter movies
Eat Oreos
Play with Anita la Gatita Bonita



Some of the kids found her abandoned on the playground a couple weeks ago and brought her to me. She is about four weeks old, I think, and has been living in a makeshift nest-thing in my room, toddling about and mewling and making messes everywhere.

But I’d like to know, How else can you respond when seven wide-eyed kids ask, “You’re going to take her home and take care of her, right?”

Jungle-mench

This week, Menchie was privileged to be included on a trip to the Ecuadorian jungle along with the VAC team (below), who showed him a good time. Here they are pictured in Puyo, capital of the Pastaza province. VAC, the Volunteer Advisory Committee, meets periodically throughout the year. They act as volunteer representatives to the Peace Corps Ecuador administrative staff in Quito.

The picture of Menchie with the three little girls is in a village an hour outside of Puyo. The girls are sisters and a cousin, all members of an Oriente (jungle) Quechua (indigenous) community called Chaguamango.

Last night, I opened my door to go to the kitchen and found a chicken.



“Is this an Ecuadorian tradition I don’t know about?” I wondered. “Sneaking into someone’s house and leaving a chicken – what does it mean?” Unsuccessful at eliciting information from the chicken itself, I took the opportunity to snap some pictures.



When my host mother got home, I asked her, “How is there a chicken in the house?”

“Someone gave it to me,” she answered proudly. “And it’s fat, too!”

And that settled the matter.

Chicken has taken up residence in the kitchen, although I’m not sure how long she will last in those quarters - alive, anyway; rumor has it that Don Lucho (my host dad) is hankering after sopa de pollo. In the meantime, she provides a ready audience for Marcelo as he practices reciting his presentation for English class.

Menchie Comes to Ecuador!

For those of you who don’t already know, I left a blossoming career in frozen yogurt when I decided to join Peace Corps, and I rather miss it. The people, the energy, the endless toppings options… So I requested a companion from home to comfort me.

Say hello to my little friend.



This is Menchie soaking up some culture at the Modern Art Museum in the city of Cuenca, Ecuador. Cuenca is renowned for its Day of the Dead feriados and urban flair; with balconies, bridges, cathedrals, and cafes, it feels like a European city that’s been picked up and deposited this side of the Atlantic – and in the midst of the breathtaking Andes landscape, no less.

Menchie is excited to be in Ecuador and to be making new friends.



He will surely be popping up here and there as he takes the opportunity to travel around the country. In fact, he’s on his way to the jungle right now, so stay tuned.

Día de los Abuelitos

Just before the Halloween weekend, we celebrated Día de los Abuelitos at a few of the refuerzo centers I work at. Below are pictures, but first let me outline the key ingredients to an Ecuadorian party so you can identify them appropriately when you see the photos:

1) Chairs lined up against every wall. Everyone sits on the chairs, and the open space in the middle is for things like…
2) Dancing. Everyone dances; even if you can’t walk yet, you dance.
3) Some kind of spoken performance – recitations, speeches, songs, you name it.
4) There is also food, in abundance.
5) Music, played at maximum volume.

Those are the basics. Sometimes there’s things like raffles and competitions, too. At a charity bingo event my family hosted a few weeks ago, there were clowns, a dance troupe, a raffle, singers, dancing competitions, catered food, and beer (the event took place on a Sunday, outside a church and next to a police station). It lasted for seven hours. People take their bingo here seriously. In retrospect, I think my friend Molly is right, bingo is the Ecuadorian equivalent of a block party, only with prizes at the end.

Anyway, below are some pics of our Día de los Abuelitos celebrations.



[Above: Maritza's house, where CAE1 is held. "CAE" = Centro de Apoyo Escolar, School/Studies Support Center]

[Below: Parents, grandparents, and kids came to celebrate]





[Above: Enriqueta can’t wait to eat empanadas, cake, and jello with flan]

[Below: Evelyn, our model, shows off some of the food]





[Above: Joshua: Do I really have to smile for this picture?
Pierina: Hey look, flan.
Mayerli: I never noticed before, but he’s kinda cute.
Darlyn: Just what do you think you’re looking at?
Kevin: I’m completely huggable!
Mayerline: Is it time for dessert yet?]

[Below: If only boys in the states learned to dance at such a young age…]





[Above: Alejandro gives his abuelita a card and a hug, after much prompting]

[Below: The kids of CAE1 with Enriqueta, Maritza, and Evelyn]



The next day saw another Grandparent’s Day celebration at a different center.



The program included a performance – written, directed, and produced by yours truly – of Pinocho. You know, the one about the puppet-boy whose nose grows when he tells a lie. That one.

[Below: Trying on Pinocho’s nose]





[Above: The theater troupe before their grand debut]

[Below: If you’ll recall, at one point Pinocho grows donkey ears]





[Above: I think he’s really excited to perform]

[Below: With my trusty Narrator]





[Above: Jiminy Cricket!]

For those of you who have facebook, I'll be putting together albums with additonal pics soon. Chao!