New news: Moving, Festivals and Active Volcanoes

Over the past few weeks we have stayed in Quito but that doesn't mean that we didn't do anything. We decided that our current two bedroom apartment was just too big for us. John noticed that another smaller (1 bedroom) in our complex was currently free, and we decided to take advantage of the opportunity. We moved a whole 37 steps up and slightly over to the right (or left, depending on which way you want to look at it). Our new place features a nice, large, and easily accessible porch, a fire place, and vaulted ceilings. I would say that we are finally settled into the new place and like it very much. It is a bit smaller than we have been used to, but we think this is a good thing because it means that we won't be disappointed or cramped feeling if we have to live in a small place back in the states. Here are some pictures of the new place:

Dining Room/Living Rom

Kitchen

Bedroom

        A couple of weekends ago, the section of Quito we live in had its annual festival.  Know as Fiesta de Guápulo, the event lasts from Friday evening until Monday evening with few breaks in between.  The festival consists of live music, indigenous and Latin American dancing, daily parades, a down hill wooden cart derby,  street food, and large fireworks structures.  Friday night started with a very good professional Salsa band.  It was a welcome change to hear good musicians.   The local bands have not discovered the concept of playing in tune.  On Saturday morning, we woke up to loud bottle rockets starting at 5:30 and then a paraded down to the church.  The exploding rockets continued intermittently outside our window throughout the weekend.  That afternoon, we watched the cart derby.  Only about 15 people had carts, but it was still entertaining.  Later that evening, a parade with people dressed up as clowns, cowboys, and gorillas descended down the streets to the church.  Nobody told the cars coming up the hill that there was a parade coming down, so the participants just had to weave through the stopped, frustrated traffic.  

Oops, Sorry cars, but there's a parade.

The night ended with more loud music and large bamboo towers with fireworks strapped to them.  There is no regard for safety and the people watching get covered in showers of sparks.  We could watch this from the comfort of our living room thankfully.  Here's a YouTube video that shows the craziness.  We didn't take the video, but it give you an idea of what happens.  Turn your volume down first.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay1m16Q4usw   During the day Sunday, there was more dancing and music.  The big event Sunday was the parade of oranges.  In addition to the usual clowns, cowboys, and gorillas, there were many pickup trucks throwing oranges to the spectators.  Johnny was really looking forward to catching some oranges, but we sadly got the start time wrong.  We saw people catching oranges from our window and realized it was too late for us.  The random bottle rockets and music continued until about 8:30, and then it was more or less over.  From what our neighbors told us, it was the most calm Fiesta de Guápulo ever.  

This past Sunday John and I (and 64 others) went with the climbing group Zona Verde to climb down into the crater of the active volcano Guagua Pichincha (pronounced Waa-waa). It means baby in the native language here. The day started with a 6 am bus ride to the road leading to the refuge. I thought that we were going to get to drive all the way up, but I was sadly mistaken. The buses dropped us off next to some cows on the side of a dirt road. We climbed under a barbed wire fence (how most of my hikes start here) and proceeded to climb straight up for the next two hours. After a small break we continued for about another 45 minutes and finally found ourselves at the refuge. It would have been much easier to drive there. 

Refuge for Guagua Pichincha.

The steep hike down

Climbing down rocks

All too soon we were being shuffled along the uphill path to the ridge that either led to the crater or to the summit. (You can kind of see the trail in the picture: lighter brown and heading away from the top of the building to the left.) Then began the hike down to the crater. There was a sort of path that we followed for some of the time, but really it was just finding your own way and making sure that the rock that you stepped on was sturdy. There were more than a few people that got scared and moved super slowly. I felt bad for John because I am pretty sure that he could have just run down the whole thing and left everyone else in the dust. He was patient and stayed with me and my short legs though. 

Smoke coming out of a vent in the volcano

Unfortunately, even after all of our efforts, neither one of made it all the way to the crater. I turned around about half way though. I had been coping with an intestinal parasite for about a week and the medication I was on made me feel like I was going to puke every other second. Added to the fact that I had not eaten a real meal since Friday afternoon, so I was feeling weak. I knew I had had enough and decided to go back with two others and a guide. John, even though he tried, did not make it all the way. He was forced to turn around with his group. We did get good views of the smoke coming out of the hole and of evidence of eruptions in the past. Some good news is that John was able to pass every other person in the group on the uphill climb and as a result he had enough time to make it to the summit. 

Photo op at the ridge

We then had to walk back down to the buses.  We decided to follow the road this time instead of taking the cow paths that we originally took up. The buses arrived in Quito around 8pm and we were safely home by 8:20. John is already planning his return trip to the crater...

Interesting fact: In America we have the "Happy Birthday" song. Everyone knows it, and everyone sings it the EXACT same way each time. Granted, sometimes a few words are interjected, but the main body of the song remains the same. Not true here in Ecuador. Seems like the song changes, not only words, but tunes and timing too, every single time we sing it. Even the locals comment on how the song is not consistent. As a result we end up singing whichever version the loudest singer of the group decides on for the day and usually the first verse is a jumbled mess. 

Suá and One Year Engagement

This past Saturday, September 1st, marked one year since getting engaged, so we decided to celebrate by going to the beach.  It's the first time we've been to the ocean since arriving in Ecuador.  The closest beach from Quito is to the north about 5 hours away.  Specifically we chose Suá, because the description sounded calmer and like less of a party beach than nearby Atacames.  To maximize our time there, we took an overnight bus Friday night.  When we bought our bus tickets, we were suprised to hear they were twice as much as we expected to pay.  Normally, the fare is about 1 dollar per hour of driving.  We were not thrilled with paying 10 dollars each for a 5 hour bus ride, but I'm sure it is more expensive because there is a higher demand to go to the beach.  Ecuador's prices reflect the best or worst of capitalism.  Very few prices are fixed, and if there is the slight hint of a demand the prices will rise.  Another example, any store near an expensive hotel will charge more for the exact same things offered elsewhere, just because they know the people staying at the hotel will pay for it.  Anyway, we arrived in Atacames about a hour before daylight, and waited in the station until it got brighter to find the local bus to Suá.  After being dropped off in Suá, we proceeded to wander to the beach.  Once it got a bit later in the morning, we chose to get breakfast at restaurant which was really just some tables and a covering.  They served us fried fish, rice, coffee, and a bolón with cheese.  It was good, but when we asked how much we owed after we ate, she said 7 dollars.  We broke a cardinal rule.  Always ask the price before buying.  This type of breakfast is normally about $1.50 to $2.50, but $3.50 is unheard of.  I regret not arguing with her, because I´m certain we only paid that much because she thought she could get away with it.  It's fairly common, especially for touristy looking people (white people) for vendors to say a higher price, knowing that you either don't know the real price, or you won't argue with them about out.  I generally reject over priced things here, even by as little as 5 cents, on principle.  It happens less in areas that don't see many tourists.

Place we ate breakfast

                                 
After breakfast, we just bummed around town and then went back to the beach.  The tide was going out, which gave us a chance to walk along the rocky coast line on the north and south of the main beach area.  This part of the beach was really pretty and the rocks were fun to climb on.  It also wasn't as full of trash and broken glass like the sandy, popular section.  There was a beautiful rock island off in the distance, so we walked along the other end of the beach to get a better view.  We clambered on the rocks as far as we were comfortable, but we knew if we went too far and the tide came back in, we would have been really screwed.      

One goal of mine while at the beach was to eat a coconut.  I've been waiting until we go to the beach to get one, because in Quito, they are usually about a dollar each.  I had this fantasy that they would be dirt cheap closer to where they grow.   Nope.  The first guy I asked wanted 2 dollars for one.  Same with everyone else.  I finally found a guy that would give me one for a dollar, only to find it wasn't ripe.  So all I got was the coconut water but no meat inside.  We finally just bought a large glass of coconut juice made by blending coconut with its milk and adding sugar. It was amazing.

Coconut with no meat

That's better

  The rest of the day was spent sitting on the beach just watching the waves and drinking a bottle of wine I got for a birthday present.  Originally, we planned on spending the night, but since things were becoming a lot more expensive than planned, we decided just to take another overnight bus back to Quito.  We didn't even want to find out how much rooms were a night.   Before heading back, I had to try a local dish called an encocado.  It's like a stew with curry and coconut and whichever type of seafood you want.  We went to an empty restaurant and I ordered the encocado for $5, and Amber asked how much an almuerzo (fixed lunch) was.  The lady said 3 dollars.  Oddly, on the menu it said the price was for an almuerzo was only $2.50.   Yet one more example of someone trying to get away with asking for more because they can.  We finished our meals (the encocado was delicious) and when a different person came to take our plates, we gave her exactly $7.50 and left quickly.  Back in Atacames, we bought our tickets back to Quito, and then spent a little bit of time wandering around near the station.  There was a bridge that kids were fishing off of, so I bought a Coke (for its normal price) and Amber and I sat and watched them fish.  For only having a line, hook, and sinker, they caught quite a few.  We arrived in Quito around 4:30 in the morning, slept in the bus station for a couple of hours until it got light out, and then walked home.

  
Interesting Simpsons Fact:  After work everyday, we watch Los Simpsons from 6 - 7.   Fortunately, they rerun the episodes from the first 9 seasons, so I basically have them all memorized, which then helps me with my Spanish.  Most of the characters have kept their orginal names but some have been changed to be easier for a Spanish speaking audience.  Homer is Homero.  Barney Gumble is changed to Barney Gomez.  Kearney, the bald one of the bullies, is now Enrique, and Itchy and Scratchy are Tomy and Daly for some reason.  The strangest difference of all however is they dub over the Bumble Bee guy's voice.  He only speaks Spanish in the English version. Why do they need to change his voice? Sometimes they even change what he says from one Spanish phrase to another.  It's already in Spanish!! There's no point in changing it.