Daily Life at the Center of the Earth
Trip Start
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Trip End
Ongoing
Quito, Ecuador
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
We´ve settled into life here quite nicely. The kids are getting used to jumping onto crowded buses and onto the back of pick up trucks, normal routine for people around here. The local markets are extremely colourful, full of luscious exotic fruits like Moras, which look and taste like raspberries on steroids. There is also a pink fruit here which when peeled looks like lychees. Another fruit, which is about the size of a softball, is green with brown stripes, tastes like honeydew and has the same name as a cucumber ¨pepino¨.
You should hear Abigail rattle off in spanish now! The kids go out daily and play with other kids in the complex, on some days, from morning til sunset. All this exposure to spanish kids has made Abby absolutely fluent now. And when spoken to in Spanish, both Sam and Zoe comprehend everything.
We are sticking close to home this week for two reasons. We have the kids are enrolled in Vacation Bible School at the church which we have ádopted´during our stay here in Mitad. It´s packed everyday with over 150 kids and the energy is electric. We feel God is showing us something very special and unique when we see how He moves in different countries and cultures.
The second reason is that we are renewing Sam and Zoe´s passports at the Canadian embassy right now. During our last excursion into the city, to do passport business, we stopped at another park, called Metropolitano park, which is like a big forest on the mountain, on the edge of downtown. It´s hard to imagine a city, the size of Toronto, but nestled in a valley. So at the bottom of the valley, in the heart of the city, you have congestion and pollution at it´s worst, yet you just climb the hill (or mountain) and you have forest, clean air, and tranquility. The kids were thrilled with the park and didn´t want to leave, especially with the mini ziplines keeping them all entertained. I wish I had the movie camera to capture when Ryan went down one small zip line with Zoe - the look on their faces! Sheer exhileration!
Abby is expecting her second tooth now and she is quite thrilled about the whole matter. The last big of developmental news is that all the kids have bikes now, and Abby (just in the last 2 days) has taken off her training wheels and is biking around the complex like nobody´s business. Only a few wipe outs, scrapes and bruises... Abby has the unique ability to say she learned to swim in cenotes, where the astroid hit the earth and killed all the dinosaurs (check out ´Chixulub Crater¨) and she learned to ride her bike on the equator. Not a bad resume for a 6 year old!
Our plans for the next (and last) two weeks in Mitad Del Mundo include a visit to Mindo, a community about 2 hours away and known as a destination to experience the cloud forest - a forest that is high enough to contribute to cloud formation (thus a lot of mist and rain). There is supposed to be ziplines, wire basket trams whizzing over rivers, hikes to waterfalls, and butterfly farms. Over 400 bird species live in this area. We also hope to visit Papallacta, which are supposed to be the best volcanic hot springs in Ecuador - that is about 3 hours east of Quito by bus. Also, another 7 day journey, first to Latacunga (the beginning of the Quilatoa loop), then to Bańos, famous for volcanic hot springs and live volcanoes, and then Shell, which is in the rainforest, and also where Jim Elliot was martyred in the 1960´s.
Oh yeh, we still have to visit the monument, which signifies the Equator (but it is actually in the wrong location). Actually, Ryan and I have walked over the equatorial line several times. On a recent mountain climbing expedition with new friends from Mitad Del Mundo, Bayardo pointed out to Ryan the marker on the mountain that scientists used for the equatorial measurement. We figured (by eyeballing it) there is a little footpath not far from our house which is likely on the equator. It´s not as glamourous as the Monument, but at least we didn´t have to pay the entrance fee.
As for the whole, ¨which way does the water go down the toilet´´ thing, I found out from my Lonely Planet guide that it is likely rigged, and the direction of water flow is more likely related to the shape of the vessel than it is to any forces at the equator. The good news is I weigh about 0.3% less here than I do at the North Pole!
We plan to be heading down to Cuenca on August 5th, probably by bus (it´s really cheap but logistically challenging). We will likely leave half our stuff here with Mark and Nancy (I overpacked - Again!) and take the remainder to Cuenca, this includes the 3 kids (used) bikes we bought.
Sorry about the lack of photos but most internet cafes here prohibit use of flashdrives and such because of viruses. Hopefully we will get an internet connection at the next place we stay - we want to rent another apartment in either Cuenca or Loja, where ever we can find a good deal and there isn´t too much congestion. Ryan and I have realized we are not big city people anymore. A city about the size of Red Deer or Medicine Hat, or St. Albert, suits us just fine.
Please keep us in your prayers. We feel good so far, no security or big health concerns and we are thankful for this.
