Visiting Quiteñean Sites

Prologue--why there is a delay in this, and no pictures posted here

The weekend of Halloween turned out to be a major turning point in our lives in Ecuador. We had off of work the following Monday, and I ended up being a bum at home. In the early afternoon, my friend Joe called and asked if I heard from my roommate, who was on a trip to the jungle. I said no, and that he left his phone in our apartment on accident. He proceeded to tell me there was a bus accident that my roommate and three other friends were involved in. I said it couldn't be possible because they had a private driver, or so I thought. 

The accident left four people dead, including a child... but thankfully none of my friends. They were left with a wide range of injuries but each of them survived and have shown much courage and strength in getting through this ordeal. Read the story here. Josh and Mallory returned to the states, as Josh has sustained serious injuries. He came to Ecuador for the same reason as I did-- to have an international experience and teach in a great school. If you feel compelled to help, the link is here to donate: DONATE HERE.

I am safe and now planning my trips to avoid taking the bus, even though it is a SUPER cheap form of transportation. With that said... here is my experience that same weekend!

QUITO SIGHTSEEING

The weekend of Halloween marked also the weekend of Cuenca Day. The 31st also marked the anniversary of Ecuador adopting its coat of arms, which is proudly displayed on the national flag... of which I really want to buy a large one. Work is getting crazier with how much work I need to get done but I am starting to see that I will be able to relax more next year, after I prepare all of my resources and lessons. I haven't really been able to reuse anything of my teaching materials in the past because it seemed nothing worked successfully for me in Milwaukee Public Schools.

Because the stress and madness surrounding my job (which I accept and am motivated by), I was hellbent on getting out of Quito for the long weekend. However, realizing that it was another holiday weekend --remembering Baños over Guayaquil Day-- and not having planned anything in advance, leaving was no longer an option. It made the perfect setup for finally doing certain things around Quito that I have put off for what seems like too long.

Buuuuuut fiiiiiirssssstttt-- thank you to all who wished me a happy birthday last Sunday. It was amazing to spend my birthday in a different country, even though I did almost absolutely nothing. The Friday before my birthday, I went with a group to Estadio Olímpico Atahualpa for a concert featuring Marc Anthony. I was beyond tired and had a few too many so I went home before Marc Anthony ever hit the stage (it was like 10:30 pm, so give me a break). The next day, my fellow Canadian colleagues Michelle and Kara invited some of us to Canadian Thanksgiving (yummmm). And then Sunday, I spent most of the day in bed eating ice cream and Doritos. At night, I went with my friend Adrian to the movies and saw "Annabelle." It was very creepy. All in all, it was exactly how I wanted to spend my birthday. I am glad I did it this way because, for my dirty 30 next year, I will not be taking it as relaxed!

Halloween

Halloween at school was a half-day, and I was planning on getting some teaching in before the long weekend. That turned out to be a mistake because the kids were so excited on showing off their costumes and taking pictures. After struggling to get one period of teaching in, and two interruptions later, I decided that I couldn't beat the madness and joined them. At least I know what to expect next year to keep myself from fighting the status quo. Earlier in the week, the school fed us colada morada y gauguas de pan, aka a warm, red, thick smoothie  with chunks of fruit with a cream-filled pastry in the shape of a baby. I had colada morada three or four times that week. I will be good on drinking it until next year because it is so sweet and rich. 

When the day was dismissed, it took FOREVER to find our bus because our regular Friday bus driver wasn't there to pick us up. An hour later, we figured out which bus to take and went home. I went out for lunch with my friends Ed and Kodi to an awesome ceviche place just north of Quicentro. I can't remember what it was called but I will definitely be taking visitors there to indulge in some amazing flavors.

Later that night, I joined my other friends Kara and Jaime to one of their friend's Halloween party and danced the night away.

Saturday

I had a couple of different options open for Saturday morning depending on the weather but it ended up depending on my level of alertness. Originally I was considering climbing the pichinchas if the weather was nice early but I was so tired from the night before. I ended up going with Plan B instead: Mitad del Mundo. I have passed this ciudad a number of times before, including to-and-from Mindo and earlier in the week during a field trip with my homeroom class to their community service  site. If you drive to Mitad, it costs $2 to park, and $3 per person to enter the town.

Mitad del Mundo had the same kind of feel as Old World Wisconsin--restaurants and shopping held within Spanish traditional buildings. There is a Plaza de Toros there, but (un)fortunately does not get used for actual bullfighting anymore. Neither does the huge stadium near the old airport. A couple of years ago a law banned any bullfighting in Quito; but outside the city there are some places that still permit it. 

I went with my friend Adrián and two of his friends. For an additional $3, we rode the elevator to the top of the monument and got a panoramic view of the area. The views of the mountains and clouds never cease to amaze me. Walking down from the top, you view artifacts in a museum that explain the different regions and cultural history of Ecuador. It begins with the coastal region, then the sierras, and lastly el Oriente, the jungle/rainforest region of the country. Once reaching the bottom, we indulged in typical photo opportunities that allows us to straddle both hemispheres.

We were there for a few hours, and the weather started to get a little cool... and we were hungry. Before leaving, we shared some helado de paila. Mine was flavored with juices from taxo, which is a type of passion fruit. Helado de paila is like a sorbet. We left then for a restaurant outside of the monument where I had cuy, aka guinea pig, for the first time. I wasn't sure of what to expect with the taste and I was a little satiated from the helado, so I only ordered a half. Thank goodness because it was a full plate of avocado, potatoes, fried banana, and mote. My one regret is I did not put any of the aji on the cuy to see what the flavor would then be like. 

Sunday

The next day, I made plans to visit the Guayasamín museum, which up the "hill" on my street. After living in my apartment for over two months I am shocked I hadn't yet gone there! Kara and Jaime came over and we started up Bosmedano. The walk is actually quite beautiful despite my street being obnoxiously steep. After you reach la cima de Bosmediano , you get a great view of the east side of González Suárez and Guapulo, as well as the south end of Parque Metropolitano Guangüitaghua.  After going up and up and up we finally found the house with all of the art of Guayasamín, but it was closed. I think because of it being the holiday. However, on Sundays it is allegedly free to enter so consider that to be a soon-to-be weekend visit. The neighborhood at the top of the hill though is very contrasting to my part of the street. It's like living in different worlds. 

Since it was closed, we headed straight for Parque Metropolitano Guangüitagua. This is another place I had not yet visited despite my proximity. We walked in from the unofficial entrance next to the police station at the top of my hill, and made our way through. This place is HUGE. Like honest to goodness huge. And there's random artwork all over the place. Seriously, it reminds me of those weird statues in the Twin Cities with the giant spoon and cherry with the size of these installations. We (they) found a clearing with some sizable trees a good distance from each other and hooked up some slack lines. Yes, I slack lined for the first time. It was a lot of fun and the perfect relaxing way to spend a Sunday.

I was planning on hiking the pichinchas on Monday, since it was a day off but I decided to relax and get some work done that day instead. Next weekend might prove to be the time to make that hike.

All in all, I love my new home.