Friday, March 21, 2008

good friday in quito.

we spent the day in Colonial Quito to observe the Good Friday parade. It was disturbing, to say the very least. "Los Cucuruchos" dress in purple clothing that resembles Ku Klux Klan robes and they walk in the streets to show penitence. i think it was initially disturbing because of the KKK stigma that surrounds the type of garb they were dressed in. some carried huge crosses. Some were bleeding because some of the crosses were made of cacti. Some whipped themselves. Some were wearing sharp thorn crowns and were gushing blood down their foreheads.

procession of the cucuruchos video

tomorrow morning, we are leaving for quayaquil. it is the biggest city in ecuador. it is in the coast and they tell us its going to be hot, hot, hot times five. i will be back in one week.

Saturday, March 15, 2008

mitad del semestre/ our new pet

the semester is half way over. i have so many mixed feelings. i miss my family, blake, my roommates, and my friends so so so much. however, i cannot imagine what it will be like to leave ecuador. this country and its people are so beautiful and they have changed my life immensely. it is really hard for me to put it inwords. i doubt i will ever be able to. so i won't try.

on thursday we went to the basilica, which is stunning. i will get photos developed soon.

on friday, we went to the market to buy the groceries for the cafeteria. we were each assigned to pick up three different things. i was assigned to buy six avocados, 1 pound of peas, and six maracuyas. prices were a bit higher because of something to do with holy week, but regardless, everything was incredibly cheap. i also bought 1 pound of grapes for eighty cents and one pound of ecuadorean coffee beans for one dollar.

also, ben, conrad, alex and i decided we needed a pet. so, we bought a hen for four dollars. we named her Frida Kahlo. the other names considered were whoopi goldberg, luzita, nilita, niliana, and so on... Although she lacks the signature unibrow, she definitely looks like a frida. we put her in what used to be a rabbit house, but we felt it was a bit too small. so today, alex and i made a palace for her. she has a courtyard and a place for shade. we feed her our leftover rice. she is surprisingly tame and docile. we like to take her for walks. the latinos threaten to eat her the day that we go back to the states. over my dead body.




Sunday, March 9, 2008

a week in pictures.

if you didn't already know, i really love BBC. i spend probably way too much time on their website. they always have several different stories that are told through a set of pictures. i thought all of their featured stories were notable today...

  • this picture story is my favourite of the three. it shows the current situation in ecuador/colombia/venezuela.
  • i do NOT miss this. suckaaaaaz.
  • okay, so i am not a feminazi, but Women's Day was yesterday and i like being a woman and i always like a reason to celebrate. so raise your glass to feminity. right on.

in other news, the new cloud cult album is really good, the colombians are teaching me so many dance moves (papa, nonnie, mom, and daddy, i'll be sure to teach you), i am mastering the art of making chifles (tastey little plantain chips), i found a bunch of bjork covers by radiohead that are excellent, i talked to my parents for a little bit the other night, my spanish is getting really really good, there's a possibility of visiting Macchu Picchu (!!!!!!!!), and i still live in the most beautiful country in the world. all is good in the hood.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

lately

first off, i am alive. there has been a lot of concern due to the current situation in latin america, but i am safe. for those of you who have not seen/read the news, you can read it here.

it is certainly an interesting time to be here. it is also really upsetting. at this point, ecuador and venezuela have severed all diplomatic ties with colombia, who has been fighting a civil war for more than forty years. the corruption is almost unbearable. sometimes i think maybe i should stop reading the news because nothing else makes me quite as depressed. aside from lots of ecuadoreans and venezuelans, i have lots of colombian friends here on campus. in fact, the colombians have become some of my dearest friends here. right now, they fear that they will either be deported back to colombia or not allowed to go back to colombia.

i do have hope though. last night i was watching the news. it showed an angry hugo chavez and an angry rafael correa, dead bodies, george bush, scared civilians, and military troops at the recently closed borders..... but then i went over to the cafeteria for dinner and sat down with my friends. right across from me sat a colombian, and ecuadorean, and a venezuelan. we all ate dinner together and talked and laughed. i know it sounds really cheesey, but i got really emotional at that moment.

enough of that.

anyway, i had a great four day weekend. we went to riobamba. so far, it is my favourite of all the ecaudorean cities we've visited.... here are some highlights.....

i climbed mount chimborazo. it is one of the highest peaks on the entire earth. although mount everest is the highest mountain, chimborazo is apparently the biggest because it is furthest away from the core of the earth. it has something to do with being on the equator. i am not sure i understand it, but hey, i climbed one of the tallest mountains on the world.






we also spent some time with an indigenous community, which was my favourite part of the weekend. i became quite close with some of the little girls. they taught me words in their native language, quichua, and they let me take lots of pictures of their most beautiful little faces so that i can always remember them.