Being back in Quito opens up our culinary options.
Oscar's lunch of salchipapas y Más cola at the fast food place near our hotel.
Showing posts with label Ecuador. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Ecuador. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 21, 2014
City eats
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Contentment
It hit me at a strange time today. I was smushed between Oscar and Ruby in an un-airconditioned taxi on a stomach-churning "highway." I felt content.
I wasn't worried about anything or anyone. I wasn't thinking about what I had to do. I was content to be exactly where I was at that very moment. It struck me, "I never feel this way...aha, this is why I'm on sabbatical!" If only I could bottle that feeling.
Let me be clear, there were a few things that could have been on my mind. We had just left a hostal in Canoa run by a friendly Spanish family that had been cramped, sandy, short on wifi, completely lacking in water pressure, and a bit too redolent of toilet for my taste. We were heading to our next place (found on the internet), an open air "house" on an isolated beach in Esmeraldas with a compostable toilet in an out building, billed as closer to camping than not. Ruby wasn't feeling well so I had to apply pressure on her wrists to ease her motion sickness, and her nose was dripping like crazy (she was the last to get the family cold). Oscar and I were playing a constant game of footsie to gain leg room, which was taken up mostly by a violin and various groceries.
But I suppose being in the moment is a form of contentment. And I was totally in the moment. Our car ride from Canoa to Esmeraldas was riveting. Last night marked the official start of the rainy season here -- it poured, a real tropical rain. I woke up to the realization, duh, that quaint sandy streets turn to mud when they get wet. (I blame the rain too for the toilet smell in our room, but I have no proof.). Canoa was looking less than pretty upon departure.
We stopped in Pedernales for groceries and money. Imagine a busy, non-touristy beach town full of sand/mud streets. We got stuck in a political rally -- elections all over Ecuador are coming up. The air was heavy and humid. At some point we crossed the equator. Here are some snapshots of the town.
We then drove through a Maurice Sendak lush, tropical landscape.
We saw a dead iguana on the road. We swerved to avoid a large snake. The beach appeared every now and then on the left, as did shrimp farms, skinny cattle and horses, and village after village. The landscape became dry again, then we hit a humid patch. The coast of Ecuador is full of micro climates.
Between the administering of pressure on Ruby's wrists and the dispensing of tissues, I tried to follow Neil's conversation with our driver (his coastal accent was very hard to understand).
We made a small detour for lunch in Mompiche, a famous beach town. Rain had made its appearance here too. Mud, more mud, sewage, mud, the scent of patchouli, mud, the sound of drumming, Argentinian backpackers, mud, and some cute guys from Uruguay. I also saw this creative Xmas display.
Lunch was fried seafood for the kids and encocado (seafood cooked with coconut milk) for me, Neil and the driver. There was a bathroomy smell and way too many flies, but that was some good eating!
Leaving Mompiche, I realized that I'm too old to be a backpacker any longer. (Although we did get a hacky sack in Montañita.) Happily, our "house" is perfect. All of us are excited to be "camping" here near Same, for 5 nights. No other people, no mud, no hippies or backpackers. We have birds, iguanas, some seriously loud insects, hammocks and a view of the beach. It feels like a vacation from the sabbatical, the perfect place to work on this contentment thing.
Sunday, December 29, 2013
El Cajas - One more time!
We got up early this morning for one last jaunt in the mountains of El Cajas (see last trip report here) before leaving Cuenca. This time, we went to an area of the park closer to Cuenca, at much lower elevation (around 3100m or 10,000 feet vs last time when we were at 13,000+ feet). The landscape was quite different, cloud forest instead of paramo, or grassland. The conditions were much more forgiving, with higher temperatures and no real impact of the altitude on our breathing.
We took a taxi from our front door about 25 minutes up to Laguna de Llaviuco (or sometimes, Llaviucu), at the lower reaches of El Cajas. The first 15 minutes of the car ride was on the main foad up to Cajas, and then on to Guayaquil. The last 10 minutes were along a steep narrow road paved with huge stones, that wound steeply down, and then up a stream bed to the parking area for the Laguna. From there, we set off on a flat 3 hour hike past the Laguna, which sits in a valley between two steep mountains, and then into the valley as it narrowed past the lake, the well-marked trail following the cascading stream that feeds the lake. We made it up to the end of the valley, and then returned along the developed trail on the other side of the lake.
The cloud forest and the mountains were unbelievable. The trail alternated between closed-in cloud forest where orchids seemed to grow from every other tree, to wide open wetland, with stunning views up the near-vertical mountains close on either side. I feel like it's very difficult (at least for me) to capture the grandeur of mountains with photography. Some photos below, but they don't really do it justice...
We took a taxi from our front door about 25 minutes up to Laguna de Llaviuco (or sometimes, Llaviucu), at the lower reaches of El Cajas. The first 15 minutes of the car ride was on the main foad up to Cajas, and then on to Guayaquil. The last 10 minutes were along a steep narrow road paved with huge stones, that wound steeply down, and then up a stream bed to the parking area for the Laguna. From there, we set off on a flat 3 hour hike past the Laguna, which sits in a valley between two steep mountains, and then into the valley as it narrowed past the lake, the well-marked trail following the cascading stream that feeds the lake. We made it up to the end of the valley, and then returned along the developed trail on the other side of the lake.
The cloud forest and the mountains were unbelievable. The trail alternated between closed-in cloud forest where orchids seemed to grow from every other tree, to wide open wetland, with stunning views up the near-vertical mountains close on either side. I feel like it's very difficult (at least for me) to capture the grandeur of mountains with photography. Some photos below, but they don't really do it justice...
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| Laguna Lluviuco |
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| Huge flower |
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| Wild llamas checking us out |
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| Oscar checking out the llamas |
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| More llamas |
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| Like something from Lord of the Rings |
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| Along the stream up the valley |
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| As far as we got, looking back toward the lake |
Saturday, December 28, 2013
Things I'll miss in Cuenca
Three weeks was a long time to stay in one place. I say this only because we have a lot of ground to cover over 8 months, not because I got bored in Cuenca. In fact, I absolutely loved Cuenca and easily could have stayed longer.
I loved the scale of the city -- walkable, containing enough distinct neighborhoods to keep it interesting. Cuenca has two large mercados in the centro (for those of you who want the farmers market experience), three SuperMaxis (if you like your food shopping more first worldy), delicious restaurants serving $3 almuerzos (three course lunches), as well as cafes with gringo food and fast wifi, a symphony orchestra and youth orchestra that are reportedly quite good, numerous book stores (I'm collecting Ecuadorian book recommendations so I can improve my Spanish), churches galore, amazing public spaces filled with trees, flowers, and the best people watching in the world.
The Parque Calderon is filled on any given day with senior citizens sitting and chatting on benches, ladies selling espumilla (sweet, pastel colored meringue/cream disguised as ice cream) and homemade potato and plantain chips, tourists, business people, students in uniforms, indigenous people from the campo, the guy who will you pose for holiday pictures with his large St. Bernard, lottery ticket sellers ($3 million!!), and families strolling and hanging out. Oh, and don't forget, Cuenca is surrounded by gorgeous, soft, green mountains. The southern sierra in all its glory is always visible beyond Cuenca's narrow cobblestoned streets and adobe walls. The people here are also incredibly friendly. As transient gringos passing through town, we were routinely greeted with smiles and pleasant conversation. Even when thousands of people descended on Cuenca for el Pase del Niño, the atmosphere in town was safe and hassle-free.
Thank you, Arie, for renting us your beautiful, spacious and quiet house. And thanks for introducing us to your friends. Tony and Michelle, Todd, Adam and Carmen, and everyone else we met in Cuenca, thanks for the Christmas Eve party, the travel advice, and for the game of ultimate frisbee!
What I will miss about Cuenca:
1. The amazing selection of fresh fruit and vegetables in the markets.
2. Cooking and relaxing at Arie's house
3. Our wonderful teachers at La Escuela Simón Bolívar, Señora Elena and the rest of our host family
4. The beautiful architecture in the Centro and its mountain setting
5. El Cajas and Baños -- unique excursions that are easily within reach of Cuenca.
What I won't miss about Cuenca:
1. Hand washing laundry
2. Diesel belching buses
3. Narrow sidewalks and slow-moving pedestrians
4. Not being able to throw toilet paper in the toilet (not unique to Cuenca)
5. Fireworks at 5:30 a.m.
We leave Cuenca on the 30th, well-rested and ready to celebrate New Years at the beach with the Chaps Platts and Katzs. We'll be at the beach for the next 2 weeks, then will head inland to Mindo and the cloud forest, then to the Sierra again, and ending our 2.5 months in Ecuador at the Galápagos Islands.
I loved the scale of the city -- walkable, containing enough distinct neighborhoods to keep it interesting. Cuenca has two large mercados in the centro (for those of you who want the farmers market experience), three SuperMaxis (if you like your food shopping more first worldy), delicious restaurants serving $3 almuerzos (three course lunches), as well as cafes with gringo food and fast wifi, a symphony orchestra and youth orchestra that are reportedly quite good, numerous book stores (I'm collecting Ecuadorian book recommendations so I can improve my Spanish), churches galore, amazing public spaces filled with trees, flowers, and the best people watching in the world.
The Parque Calderon is filled on any given day with senior citizens sitting and chatting on benches, ladies selling espumilla (sweet, pastel colored meringue/cream disguised as ice cream) and homemade potato and plantain chips, tourists, business people, students in uniforms, indigenous people from the campo, the guy who will you pose for holiday pictures with his large St. Bernard, lottery ticket sellers ($3 million!!), and families strolling and hanging out. Oh, and don't forget, Cuenca is surrounded by gorgeous, soft, green mountains. The southern sierra in all its glory is always visible beyond Cuenca's narrow cobblestoned streets and adobe walls. The people here are also incredibly friendly. As transient gringos passing through town, we were routinely greeted with smiles and pleasant conversation. Even when thousands of people descended on Cuenca for el Pase del Niño, the atmosphere in town was safe and hassle-free.
Thank you, Arie, for renting us your beautiful, spacious and quiet house. And thanks for introducing us to your friends. Tony and Michelle, Todd, Adam and Carmen, and everyone else we met in Cuenca, thanks for the Christmas Eve party, the travel advice, and for the game of ultimate frisbee!
Ultimate frisbee with resident gringos on Christmas Day
1. The amazing selection of fresh fruit and vegetables in the markets.
2. Cooking and relaxing at Arie's house
3. Our wonderful teachers at La Escuela Simón Bolívar, Señora Elena and the rest of our host family
4. The beautiful architecture in the Centro and its mountain setting
5. El Cajas and Baños -- unique excursions that are easily within reach of Cuenca.
O&R with Sra Elena, Carlos & Lourdes
What I won't miss about Cuenca:
1. Hand washing laundry
2. Diesel belching buses
3. Narrow sidewalks and slow-moving pedestrians
4. Not being able to throw toilet paper in the toilet (not unique to Cuenca)
5. Fireworks at 5:30 a.m.
We leave Cuenca on the 30th, well-rested and ready to celebrate New Years at the beach with the Chaps Platts and Katzs. We'll be at the beach for the next 2 weeks, then will head inland to Mindo and the cloud forest, then to the Sierra again, and ending our 2.5 months in Ecuador at the Galápagos Islands.
It's not a party until the smoke alarm goes off . . .
. . . even if it's at lunch time.
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With the streets of Cuenca barely cleared of the detritus of El Pase del Niño and attendant Christmas celebrations, masks, effigies, and fireworks galore started appearing at street corners and stores across the city. Last night, people were burning effigies on the streets -- very exciting for the kids!
An early new year's party yesterday was the perfect way to wrap up three weeks of Spanish school. Neil was a good sport about learning, at the last moment, that he had been appointed la viuda (widow). La viuda cries, dances, begs for money, and generally carrries on during the fiesta. It is best if the viuda is a tall, handsome man (naturally Neil was selected), and funniest if he dresses sexy (Neil had more of the crazy housewife look).
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The rest of the party-goers wear masks, wigs, and costumes.
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We drank canelazo (a hot drink made with cinnamon and aguardiente), played traditional games like limbo and clay pot piñata, and ate small chancho sandwiches. Oscar's teacher, Paty, performed a karoake song. Ruby and I played violin.
Then, there was a presentation of the manigotes, two teachers from the school -- one is moving to the U.S., and the other had a lot going this year.
"Honoring" them this way allowed us to wish them luck, and gave them a way to reflect on their lives and find ways to change. One teacher read funny poems about them.
Given that the manigote inferno was happening inside a covered courtyard, it was only a matter of time before the smoke alarm went off, we were getting asphyxiated, and it was time to bid farewell to our wonderful teachers in Cuenca. ¡Grácias por todo lo que nos han enseñado!
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A smoldering monigote (effigy) at the end of the new years celebration at the Escuela Simón Bolívar.
With the streets of Cuenca barely cleared of the detritus of El Pase del Niño and attendant Christmas celebrations, masks, effigies, and fireworks galore started appearing at street corners and stores across the city. Last night, people were burning effigies on the streets -- very exciting for the kids!
An early new year's party yesterday was the perfect way to wrap up three weeks of Spanish school. Neil was a good sport about learning, at the last moment, that he had been appointed la viuda (widow). La viuda cries, dances, begs for money, and generally carrries on during the fiesta. It is best if the viuda is a tall, handsome man (naturally Neil was selected), and funniest if he dresses sexy (Neil had more of the crazy housewife look).
The rest of the party-goers wear masks, wigs, and costumes.
Which one is Oscar, which one is Ruby?
We drank canelazo (a hot drink made with cinnamon and aguardiente), played traditional games like limbo and clay pot piñata, and ate small chancho sandwiches. Oscar's teacher, Paty, performed a karoake song. Ruby and I played violin.
La viuda's fencing prowess helped!
Then, there was a presentation of the manigotes, two teachers from the school -- one is moving to the U.S., and the other had a lot going this year.
"Honoring" them this way allowed us to wish them luck, and gave them a way to reflect on their lives and find ways to change. One teacher read funny poems about them.
Then, the big attraction, -- FIRE!! It's good luck to jump over a burning manigote.
Oscar in action (yes, that's my scream)
Given that the manigote inferno was happening inside a covered courtyard, it was only a matter of time before the smoke alarm went off, we were getting asphyxiated, and it was time to bid farewell to our wonderful teachers in Cuenca. ¡Grácias por todo lo que nos han enseñado!
Neil, R & O's teachers -- Katy, Alejandra, and Patricia
Marta (Yo's teacher), Fausto and Sondra
Friday, December 27, 2013
Wednesday, December 25, 2013
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Christmas breakfast
Special treat for O&R this morning -- rapiditos con huevos. It's not something I'm proud of, but ramen noodles (aka rapiditos) are such a comfort food.
Sunglasses at the table are acceptable when the dining room is essentially a greenhouse (like most typical Cuencan courtyards, the one in our house is covered with glass).
Anyone care to guess where rapiditos sold in Ecuador are made?
El Pase del Niño
As I write this on Christmas morning, Cuenca is at the start of a long day of rest. Christmas Eve is the big day here, all centered around the biggest local fiesta of the year, El Pase del Niño (translated loosely by me as "The Voyage of Baby Jesus"). It involves bringing a small statue of Baby Jesus from one place to another, less than a mile away, but that's an infant-sized understatement. What it really is is the longest parade I've witnessed, or even heard of - about nine hours of non-stop parading!
Things kick off around 8am with an unending spectacle of bands, dancers, floats, and marchers, with a particular emphasis on showing off traditional costumes, both from the area, and from all over Ecuador. Lots of people also dressed like biblical characters. There is a tradition of giving away food and drink. In earlier times, people used to carry huge feasts through the parade and then host open communal meals at the end. Yesterday, we saw a lot of people giving away fancy bread and rolls (a big thing here in Cuenca), candy and other things. Many of the floats are decorated with fresh fruit, bread and other treats. My favorite are the "chanchos" or entire roast pigs that get paraded around, in addition to the occasional duck and guinea pig. I was sorry to have only seen a few of these pass while I was watching. In addition, there were a few big trucks sponsored by local VIPs who have been chosen as "padrinos" (godparents) of the parade, giving away snacks and "chicha", a fermented corn beverage, all day long.
Our day went like this: School at 8:30, as usual; then viewing the parade with our teachers for a couple of hours; home for a break; then to an afternoon party, a gathering of local resident gringos (worth another post) at an amazing apartment overlooking Parque Calderon, the terminus of the parade; then home for another break; then more parade viewing; then a walk and some coffee after the whole thing finally wound down around 4pm.
At that point, most Cuencanos head to family gatherings, to eat, exchange presents and and possibly go to church, until 2am or so. But we were pretty spent, so went home and had some take-out roast chicken and called it a day.
Here are just a few photos from the very long parade:
Things kick off around 8am with an unending spectacle of bands, dancers, floats, and marchers, with a particular emphasis on showing off traditional costumes, both from the area, and from all over Ecuador. Lots of people also dressed like biblical characters. There is a tradition of giving away food and drink. In earlier times, people used to carry huge feasts through the parade and then host open communal meals at the end. Yesterday, we saw a lot of people giving away fancy bread and rolls (a big thing here in Cuenca), candy and other things. Many of the floats are decorated with fresh fruit, bread and other treats. My favorite are the "chanchos" or entire roast pigs that get paraded around, in addition to the occasional duck and guinea pig. I was sorry to have only seen a few of these pass while I was watching. In addition, there were a few big trucks sponsored by local VIPs who have been chosen as "padrinos" (godparents) of the parade, giving away snacks and "chicha", a fermented corn beverage, all day long.
Our day went like this: School at 8:30, as usual; then viewing the parade with our teachers for a couple of hours; home for a break; then to an afternoon party, a gathering of local resident gringos (worth another post) at an amazing apartment overlooking Parque Calderon, the terminus of the parade; then home for another break; then more parade viewing; then a walk and some coffee after the whole thing finally wound down around 4pm.
At that point, most Cuencanos head to family gatherings, to eat, exchange presents and and possibly go to church, until 2am or so. But we were pretty spent, so went home and had some take-out roast chicken and called it a day.
Here are just a few photos from the very long parade:
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| At the start of the day. We later went to a party on the top floor of the tall building on the right. |
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| Chancho on a stick! |
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| O&R with their teachers, Alejandra and Patricia |
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| This calf couldn't take the hours of marching and opted out. |
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| Chicha break - just the thing for a mid-morning pick-me-up |
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| With the first female candidate for Mayor in Cuenca's history! |
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| At the party overlooking the Parque |
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| More Chancho! |
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