Whose house is that?

I ask our guide, “Who owns all these big houses?”
“Migrants.” He replies. “They leave Ecuador for the US and other counties where they can make more money. When they return here they can afford to buy land and build these big houses.”
I ponder this as I work on catching my breath and wiping the sweat and dirt from my face. Alfonso, our guide for the day and a part of the Canari tribe in southern Ecuador helps to keep the Canari culture and customs alive by providing a bird’s eye view into the life of an indigenous Ecuadorian family. From traditional food to a lesson in botany, by the time Alfonso taught Carl and me how to plow the field using two oxen, I was pretty impressed by this guy whose parents are 90 and 99 years old and have never had the need for traditional medicine. Their knowledge of local plants, teas and special remedies has been keeping Alfonso’s parents and the rest of the Canari tribe in excellent health for hundreds of years.
With the plow in one hand and whip in the other I look out to the country side where the Andes Mountains provide another breathtaking backdrop to an area where Alfonso and his family have been living off the land long before the Spanish set foot in South America. That particular view was also what prompted me to question Alfonso about the large homes dotting the landscape. Just below, in the valley smoke is curling up from Alfonso’s small but modest home complete with an outdoor bathroom, only added to appease the many western visitors who visit Alfonso each year.
When I asked Alfonso about the biggest problem his people face, he did not answer that they are hungry, uneducated, and penniless or disease stricken. He answered that he was afraid of his people losing their culture and customs because of getting "swallowed" up by those “big houses” closing in just over the hill.

Slothing in Ecuador

Our view from Hotel Milan in Cuenca

Cuenca has turned out to be a wonderful place to unwind… at least our hotel room watching American movies this first night has been fabulous. An afternoon and evening of “sloth” is what we call it, thank you very much. If you don’t know what I am talking about, “Slothing” is a term defined by the act of doing nothing, or moving as slow as a sloth. It also includes eating and drinking while lying down, making the most out of a t.v. remote control and falling asleep fully clothed without brushing your teeth. Carl and I coined this term the first (and only) time we treated ourselves to a “day of sloth.” It was in January of 2007.

Putting Down Our Packs

The Devils Nose Train Ride in Riobamba, Ecuador


The five day five city tour after leaving Quito started with Latacunga and then off to visit the famous Salisquili Market. Then off to Guaranda for our evening stroll. The enchanting Salinas came next heading to Riobamba to catch the highly anticipated and slightly disappointing train ride “El Nariz del Diablo” (The Devils Nose). The actual ride itself was an incredible feat in engineering, but too many gringos for us way up there. In the end though, the only thing worth sharing about that experience are the pictures.
After unpacking and repacking our bags, moving hostels and perfecting my Spanish in asking for rooms, cost, one bed, hot water, ect., we finally landed in Cuenca. Cobble stoned streets, old churches, old fashioned ice cream parlors and to top it off, a hotel room on the third floor with a killer view of the San Francisco church and plaza. My aching shoulders thanks me as I put down my pack… for at least the next few days.

The town that could not tell time

“What time is it?” I yell. Tired and recovering from a small case of altitude sickness the last thing I felt like dealing with at that particular moment was the situation at hand. Carl and I could not figure out what time it was. I mean, it seems simple enough, right? Four wrong clocks and about 2 miles lugging our packs through Guaranda trying to catch the next bus south to Riobamba proved to be a bit more challenging than we had anticipated. Carl and I purposely travel without a watch, I guess as a peaceful protest against our lives back home. Ruled by our day timers and to-do lists, the freedom one acquires by simply telling Father Time to “bleep” off for a little while can be quite exhilarating. Of course, this only works when I do not actually have a need to know the time. At this junction though, we need to catch a 2pm bus. I know that when we arrived in Guaranda it was 12:30pm. Since then I have seen clocks for 11:00am, 4:30pm, 2:25pm and 6:45am and my phonetically perfect, “A que hora es?” has only gotten me a few shrugs.
As I trudge up and down streets huffing and puffing, feeling somewhat lost without a plan, a schedule and a universe that is making it harder than usual for to dip in and out of reality as I choose, Carl (who is on an eternal holiday as far as I’s concerned sometimes) just laughs at me. He just laughs and walks up on ahead, looks around the corner and points to the bus station.

My entries from this point will be written “after the fact.” I can assure you my journal is full to the max with our wanderings around South America, but due to a few majot technical mishaps, the words and photos had to wait until we came home to find their home a la blogger. I hope you enjoys the rest of our blog as much as we enjoyed making these memories. Buen Provencho!

Serendipity

Definition: Serendipity is the effect by which one accidentally discovers something fortunate, especially while looking for something else entirely.

This entire trip has been a bit of the word you see above. Finding unexpected friends in strange places to special moments shared. The word is worth a nod from these two amigos for sure.

We´re Moving!!

Our new home!

Just kidding.... well, sort of. We are having a total love affair with the town we have found, way off the beaten path for sure. Salinas. About 3,500 meters up, rolling hills, mas verde, emerald and forest green, wildflowers everywhere, SUN for the first time on our trip, crazy blue sky. A town known throughout Ecuador for their homemade cheese, chocolates (sorry, we ate it all), meats, wool, eco-tourism and sustainability. Fresh clean, crisp air. Spectacular views of the surrounding mountains and on a clear day (which thankfully we did have) a glimpse of Ecuador´s highest peak, Volcan Chimborazo, thought by some to be the highest peak in the world due to it´s location being farthest away from the center of the earth.
We did find a small house, land and cows included for a very reasonable price. We are thinking about it.

Evening Stroll??

A typical square in Ecuador

A short overnight stay in the town of Guaranda is needed for our hike to Salinas the following day. Following the advice of our travel bible (Lonely Planet), it suggests arriving in Guaranda early enough not to miss the evening local tradition of the elders ¨strolling¨ through the park or square (Each city seems to have a centally located, beautifully manicured square. The magnificent Catholic Churches are also adjacent to the square. At the center of each square there is some sort of monument erected in honor of an important figure in Ecuador´s history.)
Decked out in our newly bought Alpaca sweaters (mainly because we have been freezing our you-know-what´s off) our bus from Latachunga made it just in time to hit the square just about sunset. Arm in arm, we hit the square ready to get our ¨stroll on¨ only to find a few teenagers sitting on a bench listening to music and a lone couple with their two children... one in a ¨stroll¨er (I don´t think this is what Lonely Planet meant).
Not wanting to break a tradition, we slowly begin to circle the outside of the park, talking about life´s more simple things such as weather, which square has had the best church so far on our trip and whether or not we want to try the helado (ice cream) in this particualr town. I kind of like this strolling thing.
The evening announces it´s arrival as the church lights up from the inside out. We feel the cool mountain air on our cheeks and the warmth of our bodies locked together in perfect strolling position. Carl asks ¨¿Quiero cafe?¨ (Do you want coffee?)
¨Claro¨ (of course)

If I had a centavo.....

If I had a centavo for every time Carl asks me to take the Lonely Planet guide out of my bag so he can figure out where we are on the handy little maps they provide of the towns we have visted, I would be able to stay in South America for a few more weeks.

Saquisili Market

Said to be the most important market for the local´s, Carl and I headed to Latachunga on our first bus stop (6 city tour, remember?) to make the famous Thursday Market in Saquisili. Need a pig, anyone? Small pig: $80, Large pig: $180.
Start the bidding!

The Bus

Riding a bus ïn a foreign country is a must for anyone who wants to to get a hands on experience of local culture. Carl and I set south on a six city bus tour in six days, through the Andes Moutains. (Lets take into consideration folks that there ain´t no interstate loops around cities, the Pan American Highway which runs throughout most of the west coast of South America can go from six lane to six potholes to six boulders in the middle of the road).
We wait anxiously for each bus stop. Everytime the bus stops to pick up or drop off there is a mad frenzy of vendors climbing onto the bus with about a minute thirty to sell their wears.
¨¡Aqua! ¡Aqua! ¡Cola! ¡Limonada! ¡Manzana! ¡Manzana! ¡Helado! ¡Helado! ¡Empanada Queso! ¡Papas Fritas!¨
It becomes a spanish symphony of drinks and treats sqeezing themselves past one another through the isle trying to make a few centavos before the bus begins to rumble and the tires slowly start to move away from the curb. Yes, I did just say that the tires are slowly moving away from the curb with our five singing salespeople still on board. I will tell you, the ecuadorian people have a thing for jumping on and off moving buses. They all begin a mad scramble toward the front while the porter (a young man in his ´late teens, early 20´s who has become an expert at moving bus jumping) helps them each off.
I have only been on the bus for thirty minutes. This is going to be fun.

It´s all ¨Buenas¨

Although I am sure the typical Spanish greetings of Buenas Dias in the morning, Buenas Tardes in the afternoon and Buenos Noches in the evening has been written about a million times, it´s timeless charm and noticeable affect on my perspecitve is definitely worth another plug here.
How pleasant it is to be greeted by anyone you meet, at any hour of the day with eye contact, a smile and salutation. The young and old alike pay the same respects to one another. Can you imagine everytime you say a friend, family member or even a stranger you were met with a warm ¨howdoyado?¨ I am afraid much of the culture I live in has fallen out of favor with such things. We could all learn a bit by just remembering the simple things like..... greeting your fellow neighbor.

South American Explorers

SAE, one of GAP´s partners is a member funded non-profit organization that helps travelers with everything from organizing spanish classes to providing a safe haven for travelers to come and ¨chill¨at one of ther clubhouses. The Quito Clubhouse is bustling with activity as the oh-so-many bulletin boards, flyers, maps and posters about Ecuador and South America greet you at every turn as soon as you come through the gate. Refreshing scents of cilantro and lime come from their kitchen as lunch or älmuerzo¨is being prepared. Even using the their ¨member only¨free internet can be an adventure. With a keyboard designed for the spanish alphabet, don´t be suprised to find your yahoo email in slavic from the previous user!
Cameron and Marcello, SAE´s incredible managers are always on hand with a smile to help with advice about organizing your trip to the Galapagos Islands or where to get the best ceviche in town (unfortunately Carl did not listen to that advice and was laid up in bed all day long).
Becoming a member is essentail for anyone planning to travel in South Amercia for an extended or even short period of time. To find out more about SAE please visit their website.

Mariscal

Spend more than two or three days in Mariscal, Quito´s backpacker district- you are sure to make a few friends. Carl and I can´t go one block without running into some amigos we have fiesta´d with at a salsa or disco tech (club). Bars, shops, restaurants, travel agencies and hostels all squashed together to give the traveler everything he or she could need in a five block radius. Tres amigos found plenty of rum, salsa and tequila until the wee hours of the morning, more than once!
While the party life can be fun, Carl and I are leaving the big city today and heading south on a six city tour in the next ten days. Please check the blog as we will be listing our ¨mas favoritos¨ here in Quito and beyond.

Adios Amigo!

Thomas Hart, owner of Hart to Heart Media returned to his homeland after spending an amazing week as a part of the GAP Team. Thomas was an intricate part in helping to create a documentary about our trip to promote non-profit organizations. Thomas volunteered his time to GAP for this trip and also for the hours of editing that our documentary will require. Thomas, from the bottom of our heart´s we thank you. Our already growing friendship both personally and professionally was only strengthened during the last week. You have shown not only Carl and myself, but all the people you touched and will touch through your involvement with Global Awareness Project that no matter how busy life gets, there is always time to give back. Others should take note from your example. Muchas Gracias Papi!!

Pictures from the trip

To view the complete web gallery click here.

Technical Difficulties

Hola Amigos!
We have run into a slight technical problem. Carl´s laptop is not working properly and we have to send it home to the states via Thomas who is heading back tomorrow. Fortunately, all of the photos from our workshop have been retrieved and we will be wrapping up our project here in Quito tomorrow. Bad news, all of the programs we need to upload pics to the web and edit video are on the computer. We will still be blogging and if we run across an opportunity to get some pics online we will for sure. In the next few days we will have an overview of our workshop to share with you. I will admit, when the computer would not work, it was a bit scary. To think we would not be able to share the pictures with all of the children we worked with last week was not in our game plan. I guess Carl and I will just actually have to take a break now. :-)

Weekend Get-a-way

Tres Amigos will be heading to Banos, Ecuador this weekend to unwind, decompress and process which could be one of the most amazing days of our lives yesterday. The filming went great and while we have so much to show and tell.... we are going to take a much needed break after six weeks of planning for this trip, so you all will have to wait a few more days.
We have hours and hours of footage and over 500 pictures to sort out over the weekend. I am bursting with ideas of where we go from here and look forward to putting it all in my journal and then sharing everything with you.
We are all safe and well.
Ciao.

It is all about the kids....

Tres Amigos traveled to scope out where we will be filming the meat of our documentary this afternoon. By taxi, we snaked through the mountains about 45 minutes outside of Quito. Our lovely host, Viktoria from Bruce Ecuador brought us to the small church in Santa Domingo where she conducts her summer classes each day. While the children we will be working with were not there, a day care center across the street provided us with plenty of entertainment.

First Interview

While Thomas and Carl busy themselves getting cameras positioned and ready, I settle into my surroundings for conducting our first interview in Ecuador. By pure chance we stumbled upon a lovely guesthouse yesterday that is run by a gentleman called Lars Klassen, an Amercian who has been living in Latin America for the last 30 years. After a round of introductions and of course, a shot of tequila (Lars did not participate in this) he agreed to let us interview him for our documentary.
So here we are, Tres Amigos in Ecuador, setting up tripods, wiping off tables, figuring out last minute questions and all working as a team. No questions, just getting to it.
Now, I am no Barbara Walters but I have to say that Lars was a pro (he had obviously done this sort of thing before). He provided us with an enormous amount of information about his background in the US from serving in the Vietnam War to graduating from Berkley College to watching JFK's inaguration in Cathloic school on a television the nuns brought into the classroom (the first television ever brought into the school). Working for the US Government in Latin America, Lars participated in many initiatives to help develop underpriveleged countries from infrastructure to education. He offered us a unique perspective that hours of research in books and the internet simply could not offer. He sits on the board of directors for South American Explorers, one of GAP's partners while in Ecuador. He shared that the education system not only in Ecuador, but in all of Latin America is in serious need of help. The most stable force in maintaining the system is a teachers union that runs through entire Latin America. His serene observations and calm acceptance of the current educational situation though was coupled with a passionate interest in the possibilities for growth in the place he now calls home; Quito, Ecuador. Our last question to Lars was, does he think one person can change the world? His answer: ¨Absolutely.¨

Lars is the owner of Big Sur guesthouse in the Mariscal area of Quito. He is originally from California and his new restaurant boasts beautiful scenic pictures of Big Sur, a competent rival with the picturesque views of the Andes right out his back door.
Tres Amigos enjoyed visiting Big Sur so much that this morning we packed our bags and left the old town to check in with Lars and his friendly crew. Muchas Gracias Big Sur! To find out more information about Big Sur you can email Lars at:
suesca977@hotmail.com

Quito Street Scenes

Streets in the old town

Arrival in Quito

The Spanish rhythms of B-tribe pulse in my ears through my ipod as I stand in the slow, snaking immigration line that makes me feel more like I am waiting to ride a roller coaster at an amusement park than enter a foreign country. Common to any airport I see the usual sights; family and friends reuniting and hungry, tired travelers ready to put their bags down and their feet up. After a long day of traveling the reality of being in a different hemisphere and a new continent begins to hit me. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and soak in my new surroundings. I hear a futbol (soccer) team chanting passionately in the distance....maybe for victory or homecoming, smell fresh pink roses that dot every corner, and admire the brown, tan and olive shades of skin all around me. I feel a proper welcome when I notice a "nina" (girl) wearing the same "Save the Planet" t-shirt I have in my bag. It is a small world when you realize that we are all sharing this earth.
As I pull off my earphones to share this "essence of place" with my traveling companions, I am not surprised to find them engrossed in their own cultural study.... the exotic female with long dark hair and even darker eyes that keeps passing us in the que. Welcome to Quito.

Quote

"Art is our one true global language. It knows no nation. It favors no race. It acknowledges no class. It speaks to our need to heal, reveal and transform. It transcends our ordinary lives and lets us imagine what is possible. It creates a dialogue between individuals, and communication between communities. It allows us to see and to listen to each other. " ~Richard Kamler

Vamos

Cameras- check
Journal- check
Books- check
Passports- check
Thomas- check

The last week has been a "to-do" list that seemed endless. From wrapping up old business to securing new business to preparing for a project in a foreign land... one that even world traveler himself, Carl Kerridge has never even visited.

I think that we have covered all our bases (and if not, we have an external hard drive). Passports and money is all you really need to leave the country and on any other occasion, that is all I would worry about. This trip, however, has required hours of planning, four cameras, one video camera (and with that comes one videographer), cords, cables, batteries, cd's, dvd's, computers, schedules, contact numbers and a plethera of items needed to spend a whole day with ten children filming the documentary.

To everyone who has helped us prepare for this trip: Paula, Mom, Tanner, Jesse, Dr. Davis, Bev, Val, Jennifer and Cameron with SAE, Viktoria with Bruce Ecuador, Monica, Vanessa, Tosso, Scarlett, GAP's BOD, Crystal Street for inspiration and of course Stefunny for letting us crash on our way in and out of the country. Muchas Gracias!!

Ready.. set... GO

Sitting here at my table...(not a desk...a table. I need to SPREAD out) I am finally absorbing the fact that I am leaving the country in......hmmmm, lets see.....four days. I am leaving the country in four days with a task that is more than a mission. (I was on a mission in Cambodia.. remember? :-) I am heading South and working towards something that will be able to help, empower, inspire and create awareness for the things people are passionate about, no matter where in the world they live.

I have a team. Carl and Thomas. Together we are (music please):

Tres Amigos in Ecuador

My intention with this blog, through Carl's photographs and through Thomas's video is to shine a truthful light on our experience and to make the people we meet and the places we see a little better than it was before. We hope to capture the essence of a thoughful journey and create something wonderful to bring back and share with you.

Please visit our website to learn more details about the trip.
theglobalawarenessproject.org

More blog coming soon.

(photo courtesy of Lynn Cole Photography)