daily impressions

The city is indeed scary. I have not walked around by myself yet, and in some areas you have to take a taxi where ever you go & be home before dark which is 630 here. at home everything has bars on it, my teacher has a gaurd dog and this is new to me- shards of glass glued to the top of every wall and partition even along beautiful buildings. in the Mariscal district, also known as Gringolandia, there are cops that look like militiary and security guards at the entrances to fancy stores and supermarkets. Even though I have seen scetchy people, I have felt confident in being able to get around safely. And, now that its 10 days in, I am much more comforable and relaxed.


This weekend i went with los grupos de estudienates to see la mitad del mundo, the actual ecuador which is not actual, but some french (?) guy thought it was and built a large monument with a red brick line. the thing itself was boring but getting there was fun. the bus trip took over an hour, with me standing and holding for dear life onto the bar above me. people can get off or on at will and when the bus stops its a jolt that nearly sends you into the person in front of you. the bus door is left open the whole time and barely stops to let people on. i watched with great apprehension as grandma´s and disabled ladies and small children struggled against the force of the bus to get on and not be swept under the wheels of the open door. one lady i gave my seat to because i feared for her life.

so we arrived in one peice and decided to hire a truck to take us to a crater in the mountains with some farming below. it wasn´t very impressive, since i had recently seen into the crater of mt. st. helens, and i was a little bored, but the truck ride itself was fun. it was nice to be out of the city and see green steeply peaked mountains, with slides and outcroppings of houses and buildings below.

the redeeming portion of the trip was going to the REAL ecuator which is said to be scientifically proven, with GPS. they had stuffed and jarred animals, snakes, the parasite that crawls up your private parts in the water, cuy- guinea pigs- alive- and i watched the water in the sink flow 2 different directions only 12 feet or so away from each side of the ecuator.

Eating dinner at my teacher´s house has become an event that i look forward to. the table is set beautifully with home-blended juice, tea, water, and the food is so delicious. my teacher often cooks traditional and regional favorite dishes and explains us the history or nutritious properties ect. of the dish. I am eating very healthfully. one of my favorite dishes is made with green bananas, shrimp and topped with cheese, smothered in white sause- sort of a lasagna. there is always a salad or fresh vegetable and lots of fruit as well.
I really enjoy sitting with a family to eat; it is very enjoyable to practice my spanish explaining the days events and to share with this family.
after dinner, we sit for awhile and drink tea and often my teacher´s papa explains events and decribes places that he deems as important to anna and i. he told us the story of how the banks were stealing and the prezident did nothing,this leading to extreme inflation with 1 us dollar equaling 25000 sucre. this event lead to the decision to change the national dollar from the sucre to the us dollar. I call him profesor Pepe.