El Universo, El Universo!

Have I already told you guys how I wake up in the morning? Normally my alarm goes off, and then I shut it off and roll over. A few minutes later, the newspaper man rides by my house on a bike, shouting the name of the newspaper over and over: "El Universo, El Universo!"

Depending on how I'm feeling that morning, it can be either a cry of joy - Get up, it's morning, and the whole wide Universe awaits! - or more of a wringing your hands type of thing.

These days, I can't help but think that El Universo is its own cry of lament every morning.

Back in March, El Universo OpEd columnist Emilio Palacio wrote some criticisms of President Rafael Correa for his alleged actions during the September 30th brouhaha.

Correa didn't like that.

Correa took 'em to court. He asked for $80 million in damages, jail time, and a cherry on top. (The Wall Street Journal does a quick rundown of the facts here.)

Fast forward to last Wednesday, when I got off the Metrovia at the stop near my house. This stop also happens to be right in front of the offices of the newspaper El Universo. The bus slowed to a crawl the last few blocks to avoid hitting any in the crowd blocking the road in front of the offices. People were waving signs and banners, and they were wearing cloths tied over their mouths.

Turns out that the judge had ruled in favor of Correa. The fine, however, was set at only $40 million, and so both sides will be appealing. This is not the end; we will hear more as the case continues.

What I'm hearing now from people of differing political views is one of two things:

One - President Correa had to set a precedent for addressing these unfounded rumors generated by the press, rumors which affect his standing in the eyes of people at home and abroad.

Two - When we look at other Latin American countries, their histories and their leaders, and look again at the political situation in our country, we are afraid for our future.

The case has received widespread coverage. Below are some articles, should you be inclined to skim them over.

CNN article

Short article found on Americas Forum, and a longer version detailing the proceedings and IACHR's statement regarding the case.

A very interesting Miami Herald article

Human Rights Watch article

On Thursday following the ruling, El Universo published a blank front page.

It was later reproduced as part of their weekend magazine, along with photos of the crowd.

Quoted on the front page is Ayn Rand.

Translated, it reads:

When you see that trading is done, not by consent, but by compulsion - when you see that in order to produce, you need to obtain permission from men who produce nothing - when you see that money is flowing to those who deal, not in goods, but in favors - when you see that men get richer by graft and by pull than by work, and your laws don't protect you against them, but protect them against you - when you see corruption being rewarded and honesty becoming a self-sacrifice - you may know that your society is doomed.

Bienvenidos y Buen Provecho

First of all, Bienvenidos - welcome to Amanda's and my resolution to cook our way through some traditional Ecuadorian dishes. We will be using a Peace Corps-compiled cookbook, Buen Provecho, as well as recipes found in Ecuador's household kitchens.

Which brings me to my second point: Buen provecho. This is a phrase you hear every day here.

Literally, buen means "well," and provecho means "benefit" or “usefulness.” Buen provecho, then, is a courteous expression wishing someone’s food to be beneficial for their health and well being.

If you want to learn when it is socially appropriate to use this phrase so you don't embarrass yourself in front of friends and strangers, click on through to Gringa Cookation. (The name comes from native Spanish speakers' propensity to add "-ation" onto the end of any Spanish word for which they do not know the equivalent in English; it's akin to the way we tack "-o" onto words we don't know in Spanish. As in, "Pass-o the butter-o.") This site is where we will be documenting our progress for all eyes to see. We hope it will inspire you to try some new dishes, and maybe even provide valuable information about what not to do in the kitchen. Only time will tell.

Closer to Home

Nearly one month of this blog has been dedicated to a whirlwind tour of Guayaquil. After all that wandering, one starts searching for signs that point closer to home. They are...

The Mall del Sur. Not to be confused with the Mall del Sol, which is on the opposite side of the city. It's pretty important that you double check your taxi driver understands which one you mean.
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This restaurant is parked on the corner opposite the mall. I say "parked" because, if you look closer, you will see that it is actually a truck. Once more proving that the best food is usually served in the least likely of places.
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Another stop near the house. I walk past the gas station nearly every day and hear The Yogurt calling my name. And usually, I answer The Yogurt. Which is unfortunate for my wallet.

Yogurt is a "thing" here. There are different yogurt chains, but they all offer the standard fare: a few flavor options, plus pan de yucca - yucca bread. The tartness of the yogurt, combined with the warm, chewy bread, makes for a good snack that costs one and a half times as much as a standard lunch.
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*Note: If you get squeamish from looking at things like raw meat, you might want to skip this one. I ain't no vegetarian. You have been duly warned.

Mercado Caraguay. Within walking distance of where I live, this market is renowned throughout the city and is open 24 hours a day.

It backs right up to the river, where fishermen empty their nets, then send their catch straight to the countertops for sale. Fresh shrimp costs roughly $4 per pound here.

Here's the part where you may or may not get squeamish. Personally, I get uncomfortable at the thought of buying meat that's been hanging around for who knows how long.

The trick is to know the vendor, know when they arrive, and when they put their meat out. My host uncle owns a restaurant, and he goes to Caraguay around 10pm every night to buy his seafood, because that's one of the two times during the day that the fishermen come in with their big catches.

The best part of Caraguay, in my humble opinion, is the display of fruits and vegetables. A kaleidoscope of geometric shapes. Pyramids of color. It's a neverending, always varying pattern. The second and third best parts of Caraguay are the fresh fruit batidos - smoothies - and the lunch stalls serving fresh seafood. The worst part of Caraguay is the smell of...but wait, we're here to focus on the positives. Moving on.
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The Wilson Dance Show. One sunny day during the rainy season, I was walking down the street and suddenly got the feeling that someone was watching me. I looked around: nobody. I looked up: Wilson.

One day, he inexplicably appeared on the rooftop, and he's been there ever since. I like to think Wilson keeps an eye on the neighborhood.

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Funny how most of these favorite places of mine involve food.

Super Pizzas. Eat here about once a week.

The go-to almuerzo place. Two soup options, three main dish options, and two juices to choose from. All for $1.75

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You know you're nearly home when you see this tree. Since day one in Guayaquil, it has been the lighthouse to my ship, the magnetic north to my clueless inner compass needle.

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Finally, we arrive:

Peter gives his signature thumbs up, signaling that all is well on the home front.

That's all for now, folks. Gracias and buenas noches.

Fireworks. Parades. Pancakes.

Today is the 25th of July, el veinticinco de julio. The city of Guayaquil's independence day. Since the first of this month, exploding fireworks have lulled me to sleep (if that's possible) at night. There have been parades. Art expos. Dance expos. Movie expos.

Today, on the big day, there was a big parade down 9 de Octubre downtown.

I missed it because I made pancakes and didn't check the time.

In lieu of the parade, I post here a picture of Guayaquil's flag:

Note the colors are the same as the girls' skirts from my post earlier in the month. As for the stars, I have not been able to find their significance. Guayaquil is known as the "Pearl of the Pacific," yet the city coat of arms and the flag bear stars. Hmmm.

The city's official name: "M.I. [Muy Ilustrio] Municipalidad de Guayaquil." The Very Illustrious Municipality of Guayaquil. Because plain ole illustrious is not illustrious enough for this city.

Even down to the lampposts here, it is clear: We're not in Kansas any more. It's not Narnia...

...it's Guayaquil.

The Malecón & Las Peñas, Part Deux

Back in Guayaquil. It's always so refreshing after a trip to the Sierra to come back to the heat and humidity. I will say this: Never before in my life did I adequately appreciate cold showers.

Las Peñas sits at the northern end of the Malecón. It's one of the oldest neighborhoods in Guayaquil, as its hilltop status kept it safe from marauding pirates as well as from fires that otherwise ravaged the city.

If you look behind you during the climb up, here's the view that awaits. You can see the IMAX theater below and to the left.

If you look not behind, but around you, on the climb up you will see homes and businesses just like in other parts of the city. Most of the businesses happen to be bars, clubs, empanada stands, and souvenir shops. Intersecting the main stairway are alleyways leading around the side of the hill and into the neighborhood itself, where people live in the same old houses as they have for centuries.

If you get tired during the climb, a number of establishments offer a space to take a seat and cool off. I recommend the one at step 264.

And if you climb all 444 steps, you will find at the top a chapel, a lighthouse, the remains of an old fortress, and a great view of Guayaquil.

          Lighthouse at the top of Las Peñas. To the left is the flag of Ecuador, and to the right, the flag of Guayaquil.

          Downtown Guayaquil, facing south.

          Also facing south, looking down the river. You can trace the Malecón stretching down the riverfront.

          Facing the northeast. All the interprovincial buses from the north cross the bridge to get in and out of the city. Currently under construction is a mall and apartment building, and you can see where the Malecón is going to be extended further along the river.

          To the northwest, the neighboring hillside of Cerro Santa Ana. Like Las Peñas, it evaded destruction by pirates and fire.

Finally, whether or not you summit Las Peñas, a trip to the Malecón must include a stop for chicken shawarma. It is an unwritten law among Peace Corps Volunteers living in Guayaquil and a great way to spend the last $2.50 in your wallet. Yum.

Reporting from Quito

A little change of scenery, just to liven things up. Here's what's happening in the capitol.
**Warning: The reports below are not necessarily relevant or sensible.

1. It is cold and rainy, and, thoughtless guayaca that I am, I wore flip flops and jeans. This made for a soggy afternoon and evening out on the town.

2. If you give a street child a piece of chocolate, all his friends will want one, too. This is the grown-up version of "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie," reminding us that there are always repercussions to our actions. And they aren't always pretty, even if there is chocolate involved. As one of my companions observed, one of the worst things is a child who's been completely hardened.

3. Cab drivers may or may not accept a song played on the harmonica as payment in lieu of cash money, and it never hurts to ask. (We didn't, but should any of you be inclined to try this, please share the results of your endeavor.)

4. In Ecuador, "vegetarian food" is more or less synonymous with "health food." Which in turn may or may not be synonymous with "yummy food." It's luck of the draw, and today we drew the short straw. What's worse than mystery meat? Answer: Fake mystery meat.

5. Giant mugs of steaming hot chocolate more than make up for yucky vegetarian almuerzo and icky weather.

6. So does being with people you love and care about.

7. So does coming back to the hostel to lay in bed and watch a movie about nuns who teach inner city kids how to sing gospel songs.

Oh, Happy Day!

...Oh, cozy bed.

The Malecón & Las Peñas, Part I

If you take 9 de Octubre all the way east, you will run into the Malecón, the riverwalk along the Río Guayas. The Río Guayas runs through the city and eventually splits into different branches, merging with other rivers to the north. In the south, it widens into the port, the defining feature of the city and what put Guayaquil on the map. By the end of the seventeenth century, Guayaquil had become "the shipyard of South America and one of the continent's most important ports" ("Conquest and Colonial Rule," The Ecuador Reader).

In the middle of downtown Guayaquil, however, the river flows smoothly on by, first in one direction and then the other, according to the tides. It's the backdrop, a slow and steady gliding, behind the hustle and bustle of city life.

          A view down 9 de Octubre, with the Malecón and the river at your back.

          If you take a look in the other direction, towards the river, you'll see this:

A commemoration of the Guayaquil Conference, the famous meeting between liberators Simón Bolívar and San Martín. Each had his own army at the time they met in Guayaquil, in 1822. Despite having similar goals (namely, freedom for South America from the Spanish empire), the two men could not reach an agreement on how to achieve those goals. In the end, San Martín abandoned the cause, leaving Bolívar to complete the liberation of Peru.

The Guayaquil Conference is also commemorated - in a way - in Jorge Luis Borges' short story "Guayaquil."

As you're strolling along the Malecón, here is some of what you will see.

                              The Moorish style clocktower.

                                   Names.

                              A small obstacle course, and my friend Ronald playing on it.

                              Hi, Ronald.

Lookout towers such as this one. There are a total of four, each painted a different color to represent the four natural elements: earth, fire, water, and air.

The pavilion next to the MAAC (Museum of Anthropology and Contemporary Art). The pavilion houses events and exhibits of all kinds, everything from health fairs to concerts to early morning Tai Chi classes.

The Malecón is one of the safest and cleanest spots in the city. A project initiated under mayor Jaime Nebot, it was designed to beautify the riverfront and serve as a tourist attraction. In addition to the tourists, hundreds of Guayaquilenians take advantage of the scenery, the playgrounds, the gardens, the restaurants, and the shopping every day. Weekends are especially crowded, as entire families head to the river for a promenade and an ice cream cone.

Once you get to the far north end of the Malecón, right around the IMAX Theater - the first one built in South America - you can see the hill of Las Peñas with its brightly painted houses and its lighthouse rising up past the MAAC and the plaza below the museum. It's 444 steps to reach the top, so take a breather for now. To be continued...

You can always go - downtown

Downtown Guayaquil.

The intersection of the two main streets. Quito runs north/south, and 9 de Octubre runs east/west. We'll be walking down 9 de Octubre. You can even sing Petula Clark if you want to.
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This is Parque Centenario. Big ole' park. Trees, benches, foot traffic, street preachers. Tourists, drug dealers, 6-year-old candy vendors. Shoe shiners, newspaper stands. And in the middle of it all, a big honkin' column to commemorate Guayaquil's independence. The lantern she holds up shines at night.
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Sweet & Coffee: Latin America's response to Starbucks. Here you can find air conditioning, cushy recliner chairs, and Oreo cheesecake. Oh - and coffee. It's a winning combination.
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To find the American Consulate, just look for the giant face on the corner of this building. It's pretty hard to miss.
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Empanadas BamBam.

It's an institution.

It's a pocket of fried dough filled with delectable delight.

It's impossible to walk past and not stop and get one.

EMPANADAS!

BAM!

BAM!
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Just listen to the music of the traffic in the city
Linger on the sidewalk where the neon signs are pretty
How can you l- *cough cough* *cough cough cough cough*
(And speaking of traffic, how 'bout those exhaust fumes?)

The lights are much brighter there,
You can forget all your troubles, forget all your cares,
So go dooooooowntown,
Things'll be great when you're
Doooooooowntown - no finer place, for sure
Doooooooowntown - everything's waiting for yooooooooou!

(Encore, anyone?)