After a long week in Quito for my Peace Corps Reconnect Conference, I’m back to work at the Municipio! I had an amazing time in the sierra visiting my host family in Paquiestanica, visiting the Otavalo market and celebrating a birthday with one of my close Ecuadorian friends in Ayora.
Two Fridays ago, I traveled via night bus to Quito with Caitlin and two other Peace Corps volunteers from our ominbus. We took the 10:50pm bus from the Guayaquil Terminal. I was actually able to get a lot of sleep with the help of my REI travel pillow. We arrived bright and early in Quito and then took the metrovía to Ofelia Station where we caught a bus to Otavalo.
Otavalo is a town two hours north of Quito that is well know for its street markets. We met up with some other PC friends and spent the morning and early afternoon walking around the markets and bargaining with the shopkeepers.
La Iglesia in Otavalo
Andean jewelery
During training one of our out-of the-classroom exercises was learning how to bargain and ask for a “yapa” or canasta (when the shopkeepers throw in an extra item for free on top of your purchase). “Dame la yapa…no sea malito” I must admit that I’m pretty good at lowering the price and asking for a yapa. I ended up buying some traditional Otavalo artisan pants for my host brother Julian and my host fam’s 2 month old baby boy.
artisan andean bowls
beautiful paintings
….and we always make time to go to the famous Otavalo Pie Shop !! So yummy
My mora (blackberry) pie
After a long day of shopping we took a bus back southeast to Cayambe! After 3 months on the coast in Guayaquil, it was surreal to be back in Cayambe and Ayora where we had our Peace Corps training. I missed the cold weather, the rich Andean culture and the slow “tranquilo” pace of sierra life.
That night I met up with my PC friend Ben to attend our Ecuadorian friend´s birthday in Ayora. Over the last month of training, I made close friends with a group of 8 Ecuadorians who were born and raised in the Cayambe/ Ayora area. There was a lot of dancing, food and of course the famous Andean alcohol “chicha.” In many parts of Ecuador, chicha is prepared with maize, yuca, quinoa, pineapple, rice, potatoes, etc., depending on the part of the country. Its normally consumed during celebrations in rural areas and Andean cities.
Me, my german friend Myra and my Ecua friends from Ayora
I spent all day Sunday with my host family in Paqueistanica. It was raining all day long so I spent time indoors playing with my host brother Julian and holding their new 2 month baby boy Martín. My host family was really happy to have me visit and encouraged me to bring Tessa to come see them when she visits in January.
Julian with the toy truck I gave him and his new pants!
Monday I traveled with a large group of Peace Corps volunteers to the southern part of Quito. Our Reconnect Conference was hosted in San Patricio Convent in the Cumbaya Valley. Tuesday morning, I gave a 25 minute presentation in Spanish on my CAT (Community Assessment Tools) with the results from of my encuestas (256 patients and 50 doctors). I really enjoyed learning more about what my fellow volunteers have been up to in their sites for the past three months. One volunteer, who is working with special needs kids in Riobamba, did his whole presentation in Ecuadorian Andean Sign Language while speaking in Spanish …very impressive! The rest of the week we had training sessions on topics from security to how to better communicate with our counterparts.
Friday night we celebrated my roommate Michelle’s birthday in Quito. We hopped around to a few bars and dance clubs in the Mariscal District of Quito. I also met up with some of my Ecuadorian friends from Cayambe who are currently attending university in Quito.
Overall, I had an amazing time visiting la sierra …. I miss it already!! And I know I’ll be visiting again soon when Tessa comes in January.
Back to work at the Municipio de Guayaquil……I’m currently working on a project for World AIDS Day (December 1st). I’m organizing a casa abierta (open house) on the Malecón to promote the HIV /AIDS test and to educate the public on HIV /AIDS. I’ll be canvassing on large streets in Guayaquil during the day and then from 4-8pm I will have a table set up on the Malecón to pass out educational materials about HIV AIDS and testing centers in Guayaquil. This is my first solo initiated project in my site and I’m very happy how much support I have received from my counterpart Dr. Farhat. With his help, I will be able to obtain a permit from the Mayors Office to have a designated space for the casa abierta.
Time really feels like its flying…..I can almost say that I have been here in Ecuador for half a year!! November is almost over….. two days until Thanksgiving….then December and Christmas….and then Tess gets here January 8th!!! Sometimes it feels like time is crawling at a slow pace but in reality, I think these two years are going to fly by!
Te Extrano La Sierra ... a view of the mountains around Paquiestancia
