Highlights from this Week:
·
Monday – Happy Chinese New
Year! Today marks the beginning of the
Year of the Dragon and, to celebrate, USFQ had a big party in one of the
school’s plazas. There were speakers and
bands and there was cake and wine (the drinking age in Ecuador is 18, so no one
in college would be underage at this point in the year). On another note, as a lowlight, I should mention
something from the USA. I found out
today that, last night, Joe Paterno passed away. For those not part of the Penn State
community, it may be difficult to understand why this is such a tragedy for
us. Just know that he was not only a
good football coach, but also a truly wonderful person.
·
Tuesday – Today, Clark and I
gave our presentation for our conversation class on homosexuality in Ecuador
versus the United States. For those not
up-to-date on the subject outside the States, Ecuador allows civil unions between
two people of the same gender, but not marriage. (Ecuador is really Catholic and marriage is
defined in the Constitution as being between a man and a woman.) Right now, homosexual couples are not allowed
to adopt and people who are openly gay or lesbian are not allowed to serve in
the military. That just gives you a base
from which to compare Ecuador to the United States. The discussion our class had was interesting
and I think our presentation went well.
·
Thursday – I haven’t been
feeling too fantastic the last few days, so I went to the clinic at USFQ this
morning. With help from Erika, one of
our program directors, nothing was too difficult and everyone was very nice and
willing to help me understand what I did not.
All my test results came back negative, so the doctor said to come back
tomorrow. Later, in my anthropology
class, we watched a documentary on the silver mines in Bolivia called “The
Devil’s Miner,” which was about a two boys (14- and 12-years-old) who worked in
the mines. The film was rather
depressing, but definitely worth watching.
·
Friday – I went to the clinic
again this morning. Again, the test
results were all negative, so the doctor said to take Ibuprofen for the
headaches and stomachaches and to come back on Monday. I think I have a cold. On a better and more productive note, I had
heard there was a chocolate shop near the university, so I went to
investigate. It’s there and they
actually have both chocolates and pastries.
There was some pastry called a Cotopaxi (named after a nearby volcano)
and I decided to try one. It was like a
volcano-shaped doughnut and it was delicious.
·
Saturday – This weekend,
Lumbisí is celebrating the Feast of Don Bosco, who is actually Saint Juan Bosco
and is very special to this community. I
have yet to figure out exactly why everyone loves him so much, but I think he
may have come here to work with the youth or something like that. This evening, Jesús, Cecilia, and I went with
our neighbors to a party in celebration of the life of Don Bosco. The party certainly wasn’t what I’d expect
for a Feast Day celebration but, since Don Bosco worked with youth, I guess it
makes sense that it was outside on a sports court and that we had disco balls
and a DJ blasting loud, popular music.
The main event seemed to be the election of a reina of the festivities, but there were also two groups (in
English, the Youth Missionaries of Don Bosco and the Youth Who Don’t Conform)
who did interpretive dances to tell stories of the life of Don Bosco and about
his teachings. In one dance, the groups
talked about Don Bosco’s saying, “Ella lo ha hecho todo,” which refers to Mary
and means, “She has done it all.” In
another dance, one of the dancers was transformed onstage into Don Bosco to
tell the story of his life. Then, after
the performances, while everyone was waiting for the next event, the main floor
broke out into a conga line with the priest leading the way! It quickly turned into the longest conga line
I’ve ever seen with more and more people of every age joining. After the reina
was elected by a group of judges, the partygoers stayed for several hours just
dancing and shouting, “¡Viva!” in response every time the DJ exclaimed, “¡Viva
Don Bosco!” Happy Feast of Don Bosco!
·
Sunday – This morning, Jesús,
Cecilia, and I went to a special Mass in honor of Don Bosco. I didn’t completely understand what was going
on, but it was unlike any Mass I’d attended before. People clothed in identical colors sat in the
front row and read together from a paper and people brought offerings to the
altar before Communion. Everything was
very interesting and, of course, the Mass ended with, “Viva Don Bosco.” (“¡Viva!”)
In the afternoon, I went with Carolyn and Zack to El Tringo, a nearby
town known for its hot springs and horneado
(whole roasted pigs). The trip turned
into an adventure when we found the hot springs at 2:04 and the sign said they
closed at 2:00. After asking around a
bit, we learned there were other pools nearby and took a taxi there. We had a lovely time swimming and visiting
and just exploring El Tringo.
Random Notes:
·
Most of the stores you´ll need
to visit are really close to the university.
The supermarket is across the street from the bus stop and there’s a
pharmacy right next to that. Across the
street from the main gate into the university is a place you can print and copy
stuff (there’s also a place inside the school but I’ve heard it’s more
expensive). The clinic is actually in
the school, but the best way to get there is to go out the main gate and turn
right and it will be on your right after you walk a bit along the edge of the
campus.
·
There are also stores you won’t
need to visit, but you should. If you
keep going past the clinic and turn right as soon as you can, on your right,
there is a chocolate and pastry shop. A
Cotopaxi is a delicious doughnut-like pastry that you should definitely
try. It’s named after the closest
volcano and does look rather like a snow-capped mountain. (Oh…and the price for one is $0.60…)
·
How to get to the post office
(to mail stuff – the program picks up your packages for you): Go out the main gate of the university. Turn right.
Turn right again as soon as you can.
Continue on that street for a ridiculously long time. If you think you’ve gone too far, you’re
almost there. If you think you’re there,
go just a little bit farther and you will be.
I would be more specific on how to get there, but in all honesty, once
you get to approximately where you’re supposed to be, you’ll want to ask one of
the guardias for directions. It involves going to the back of a shopping
plaza and down some stairs and is just too confusing to figure out without
actually seeing the place.
·
Speaking of the supermarket,
it’s a really convenient place to get stuff, but it’s also quite expensive
(though less expensive than some other stores in the area). In general, you want to get produce and freshly
made things (like bread) elsewhere.
·
In Ecuador, both resfriado and gripe refer to a cold, since practically no one here gets
influenza.
·
A jacket or coat is called a chompa, rather than an abrigo, chaleco, or chaqueta.
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