First off, if anyone is reading my blog, I apologize for the lack of posts lately. Life has been crazy (good!!) busy! I'm loving my Ecuadorian family, city and figuring out my work. I'll write about my work again this week, but I wanted to tell you all about one of my favorite experiences so far in Ecuador ...
Well, after being in Ecuador for almost 10 months, I had my first visitors from home :) And, they were my fabulous Grandma and Grandpa. Adventuring down South, without knowing Spanish, with very little knowledge of future living and eating situations, they met me for three weeks South of the equator.
To start our adventures (and to avoid lugging around the extra chunky, natural peanut butter and card games they brought me), we headed to my site for a 5 day cultural integration. It was amazing having them here -- I got to show a little bit of another part of the world to them ... a part of the world that has become part of who I am.
My host family warmly welcomed them like they have welcomed me for the past 8.5 months! My host mom made cuy (guinea pig) for my grandparents one night - the entire family came over and we talked and laughed and I tried to keep up with the translations. To begin, my host mom invited me and my grandparents over early. She wanted to make sure they knew how the cuy was prepared and to help out in the process. Luckily, they were already de-haired and gutted, so we just helped to later them with Achote and flip them a few times in the oven. My Grandma also helped with the potatoes, peanut sauce and my Grandpa got to try the local Pajaro Azuel and trago (which he commented, "Tastes like Good Moon Shine!). The cuy was well received ... so my host mother joked that she was going to make yagra locro (blood and intestine soup, a delicacy here) the next day.
Luckily, the next day, everyone decided spaghetti and meatballs - of course with garlic bread - would be better than yagra locro! My Grandma helped make meatballs, and my host family learned my secret spaghetti recipe (basically, throw whatever you have around into the sauce, and then add hot sauce!) My Grandparents brought some goodies to share as well - Easter Egg dying kit (which we are actually using tonight!); t-shirts, lotions, books, kitchen towels (a Grandma trademark), and an American Football. Wow - the football was LOVED, we're going to start a (touch) football tournament.
Sunday we all went up to Chimborazo. It was an amazing adventure. For the past 8.5 months the tall mountain, covered in snow, has looked down at us everyday. You can see the peak from my city, the only peak around with snow. The locals say only the tall mountains get snow - and standing 20,565ft, it defends it's title. The summit of Chimborazo is regarded as the spot on the surface farthest away from the center of the Earth. 18 of us packed into a van and ventured up, up, up -- for 15 individuals it was the first time on the mountain. At the first refugio, we warmed ourselves with Pajaro Azuel and started up. Quickly, upon starting our assent, it started to snow :) S N O W ... not the graniso (falling hail/ slush) that will fall in the high country here sometimes, but real snow - SNOWFLAKES, to be exact. We quickly started packing snow balls and snow men and playing in the white crystals. Everyone made it to the second refugio - so enthused, proud, exhausted, amazed - at 16,404ft, it was the highest I have every been. A few of us decided to venture up a little more, and brought backpacks and scraps of cardboard to try out sledding :) After another 300ft assent, we found a great push-off point for sledding. Only, the inch of snow that covered the ground didn't help us glide effortlessly, too many rocks! It was amazing to go up Chimborazo with my new family, and to have my Colorado family there to do it with me - some experienced mountain-lovers to share the mysteries of the highest peaks in our own backyards.
The rest of my Grandparent's visit flew by - we traveled by public bus, private car, taxi, by foot, airplane :), boat and camioneta to reach places in Ecuador I've dreamed about going to -- Cuenca, Chungchilan, Cotocachi, Otovalo, Quito. I put some pic up! (and there will be more once I get all of my Grandma's photos) All in all, it was an amazing adventure, I am blessed with fabulous Grandparents who were adventurous enough to visit me first, two people who quickly became part of my Ecuadorian family here, and individuals who are full of young spirits and great hearts :)
