another busy week

Last week began the 2nd half of the first cycle of my teaching at CEDEI.  It's amazing how much more relaxed and comfortable I am in this new endeavor.  It still requires many hours of prep, but at least now it seems manageable.  I also feel more a part of the school and have connected a little more with some of the teachers.  Being in the classroom is the fun, easy part, which no doubt is the payoff for all the preparation.

Moving from my job to the rest of my life, which in many respects is more important to me, Esperanza's daughter, Mayra, had been on a break from her job, which is in Gualaquiza, 6 hours south of here.  (She is a medical intern and it is a requirement that interns practice medicine in a rural part of the country for a year.)  So she was back home again and it's nice having her around.  She went back to Gualaquiza last Wednesday and Esperanza decided to go with her 5 days.  This means that I have had her house to myself, which I have really liked.   Since I pay for room and board, Esperanza arranged for me to eat at her friend Lia's restaurant, which is about a 3 minute walk from her house.  I know Lia as she is the one with whom Esperanza and I have gone to the 2 soccer games together.  Lia is a good cook and a very funny person.  I've had many a laugh, even to tears, with her.  I also know many people in her family, most of whom work at the restaurant, so it's very comfortable for me to go there to eat.  Lia's grandson, Julian, July for short, age 4, has become very attached to me.  He is usually at the restaurant and always welcomes me by yelling C-L-A-U-D-I-A when I enter.  I don't need to call attention to myself, but my entrance seems to be a big deal, caused by Julian.  (By the way, the name of the restaurant is July's!)  Lia told me that when I did not eat there on Friday night, July cried.  That's hard to imagine because it's difficult to visualize him crying.  He's a tough little chap, a bit chunky, full of energy, and VERY bright.  He knows how to read and talks non-stop.  He has also tried out lots of words in English with me!  Of course he speaks Spanish VERY fast so I miss a lot of what he says.  I don't think he's capable of slowing down.

I went again last Thursday to the animal market.  It was just as fascinating the 2nd time as the 1st time.  I could have taken many more photos, but used restraint, only taking a few.  Below is a picture of a pig that was no longer walking around, but ready to be sliced for lunch!

This past Friday night I went to hear the Cuenca Symphony Orchestra again.  I loved it.  They played Tchaikovsky, Liszt, Saint Saens, and others.  Then Saturday night I went to a jazz concert.  Yesterday, Sunday, I went with another woman, whom I'm getting to know who is here as a Peace Corps volunteer, to a resort-like place, where I had previously been, but she hadn't.  It took us 2 hours each way by bus, but worth it as we both like to swim and there is a lovely outdoor pool.  I swam 50 lengths, which I haven't done since January.  It was wonderful.  I did not take any photos there as at times the sky was gray and I didn't think I could capture what it looked like.  I was, however, amused at the bus station in Cuenca upon my return by the sign below:

Translation:  prohibited to enter (the bus station) with a goat, a bike, or a dog!

And one more photo, which I took on my daily walk, of the vegetables being delivered to a local shop, near where I live:

Never a dull moment!

my latest activities & various observations

It's been a busy period of time.  Preparing for my classes continues to occupy my time more than I'd like, but when there is an opportunity to do anything else, I find a way.  In fact, I was offered to teach another class, would would have been 2 hours/day 5 days/week, which does not include prep or travel time.  Although flattered, I decided that for my mental health and the fact that I need to be sure to include play time in my life, I declined.  This past week was midterms for my students, which meant a little less prep, which was good.  Most of my students did quite well, but there are a few that are really struggling.

NON-WORK ACTIVITIES THIS PAST WEEK
Last Thursday evening there was a presentation by my school at one of the local malls.  I thought that I should go & am glad that I did because a group of us went back to the apartment of 1 of the teachers after the presentation.  It was good hanging out with my colleagues.  They are an interesting group--more mature in many ways than those of the program that brought me to Ecuador.  They are older & have much more teaching experience.  It's also an international group of teachers---from Canada, Australia, Great Britain, and the U.S.  

On Friday night there was a surprise birthday party for Eugenio, Esperanza's brother.  I was told that it was called for 6:00 P.M.  We left the house at 7:15 P.M. and were quite on time.  (Those times are not typographical errors.  Whenever parties are called for (or for that matter, time for many things [but NOT the time that classes begin!]) is not to be taken literally.  Most of Esperanza's family was there.  She is 1 of 6 children.  The only 1 who didn't come is the 1 who lives in Canada.  It was a big gathering.  I think Eugenio was surprised.  After eating, Eugenio hit the piñata & all the children as well as many adults ran for the candy.  Then the music started & many danced.

Yesterday, (Saturday), after my morning class I was invited for lunch at Emanuela's apartment.  She is the woman with whom I did the seder.  She had invited me & 1 couple, whom we had gotten together with several weeks ago.  We were there from 1:00 PM until after 6:00 PM.  Food was great, as was the comraderie.

Today is Mother's Day, which is a big deal here.  It started last night (or actually this morning) at about 1:30 AM when a friend of Esperanza's came to the front door & serenaded her & me.  I slept through it!  I celebrated Mother's Day with 5 other women at 1 of the many restaurants that had a special menu for today.  Walking to the restaurant I saw more people out than usual on a Sunday, with flowers and balloons to celebrate the day.

OBSERVATIONS
I've not commented on the fact that greetings between people here are very different from what they are at home.  It basically consists of a kiss on the cheek, sort of like an air kiss, but not necessarily.  It you walk into a room with 15 people (like Eugenio's birthday party), it is assumed and expected that you will kiss everyone & be kissed back.  You also must do this when you leave.  It is not uncommon to not be introduced, which means that often I know no one's or very few people's names, but we have all kissed.  Last night when I got home, Mayra, Esperanza's daughter, was in the kitchen with 4-5 of her friends, whom I had never met.  I immediately went into the kitchen & kissed everyone (& was kissed back), but was never introduced to anyone.  Different from what I know, but less unusual for me now!

Whenever I am out walking, which is daily, I am acutely aware of how things get done here.  A lot of muscle power is required much of the time because there seems to be a limited number of machines available that we take for granted in the U.S.  I do believe that almost every machine that we have in the U.S. exists here, but they are few in number.  Lawnmowers is one such example.  It's not that everyone has a lawn, but there is grass that grows on parkways, along roads, and places where grass grows.  I think I may have seen 1 lawnmower since I've been here.   What is typical is that weed whackers are used to cut the grass and then to pick it up, men use large tarps that the grass is gathered into.  From there they cart the tarps to trucks, dump the grass into the truck and go back for another load.  It's very labor intensive.

Another similar example is watching large heavy bricks being removed from a truck and piled at a business that sells them.  I saw an assembly line of men throwing the bricks from two men on the truck to several on the ground until they reached the man who was piling them up.  Exhausting to watch and sort of frightening to think what would happen if 1 man dropped his brick.  Would the others stop in time for him to pick it up or would they keep the process going?

more incredible art

As I've said, there are artists in Cuenca using every kind of media imaginable.  There are also artists who renovate beautiful old buildings.  One of the buildings across the street from the main site of the school where I teach is a work in progress.  I have no idea how old the building is, but when I started teaching at CEDEI, its front was drab.  It is now in the process of being renovated and it is more beautiful.  The men painting the building are truly artists.  Below shows the new, fresh color and where the man is standing, is the area that still has to be painted.  I shouldn't be, but I continue to be amazed at the talent that surrounds me!

Here is the other man, working on another part of this building, adding gold specks to the rectangular area that he's facing.

making quimbolitos

Last Sunday, April 29th, I went with Esperanza to one of her sisters' homes, where I met more of her family.  We went out to buy ingredients to make quimbolitos, and returned to make them, which was quite the process.  I'm sure one person could do it by herself, but there were 5 of us:  Esperanza, her sister, her sister's 2 daughters, and me.  The ingredients included flour (several different kinds), eggs, cheese, raisins.  All but the raisins were mixed together into kind of a heavy, dense mash.  Then we placed several tablespoons full onto an hoja de achira, which is a very large leaf.  Before wrapping it up in the leaf, we placed 2 raisins on each blob, to give it a little sweetness.  They're then steamed for ~15 minutes.  Frankly, I don't think they have much taste, but it was a fun, good experience.