Fair fa’ your honest, sonsie face,

Great chieftain o’ the puddin-race!  Well that was the address to the Haggis at the Burns night dinner I attended the other week…..My best friend invited me to attend the regular event. I had been invited many times in the past but my work had always precluded me attending…

First off my mate asked if I would like to borrow a kilt !!! Are you kidding me ??!!! No way would I wear one, because mainly I thought it a bit of a sham, not being Scottish. I was assured however, that of all occasions that an Englishman “could” wear one, would be a Burns night dinner. No amount of cajoling could persuade me. A couple of things overrode my sense of adventure. The fact that my friend would have had another subject with which to beat me over the head “I can’t believe you let me talk you into that !!” kept buzzing around my brain…PLUS you have to go “commando” and that was the defining characteristic that sealed the deal..

It was an interesting evening, but in my opinion a bit of a letdown as there were no toasts to Her Majesty (which from information that I had, ALWAYS opened the evening) and no Burns readings. Disappointing from my standpoint. The Haggis was piped in by two pipers, accompanied with the address to the “Great chieftain o’ the pudding-race..” which another friend gave..complete with the “slashing” of the puddin’ towards the end of the address. This was followed by the toast to the Lasses, and the one to the Laddies, the one to the lassies had some hilarious moment… Overall though, it was not as much fun as I would have thought but it did give me a chance to catch up with a few good friends whom I haven’t had the chance to visit with since returning from Cuenca.

Things are moving along slowly, the weather has been absolutely abysmal except for a few days.. It has been raining on and off for the past 3 days or so, the temperature not getting above the mid 50’s for over a week it seems….. today the sun has made an appearance for the first time this week…It might get up to 60 today but it seems unlikely.

Sunday is Super Bowl day, and I am looking forward to it having enjoyed immensely the play off games and I wonder if my friends at the Inca Lounge will have a party. My guess is that they will and I did remark to them that I would be thinking of them on Super Bowl Sunday and thinking about watching the game from the bar overlooking the river. I have (too many) fond memories of watching football (soccer games) the big Pacquiao fight there and the Sunday afternoons a.d.d sessions !!!! I certainly hope that you are getting more rain, you can borrow some from us, we have plenty to spare. The view is much better with a raging river….

I keep up with my friend’s activities by reading their blogs and it is good to see that everyone is doing well, and that Brian has now gotten the “all clear” from his doctors. Of course there are mandatory follow up tests that have to be undertaken, but I know that it must be a great weight lifted off of their shoulders as it would be anyone who receives positive news.

Now all I need to do now is to take my TEFL course, I have a couple of house sitting/dog sitting gigs for friends while they travel.. Who knows maybe a new business venture takes off ?? We’ll see…

I guess that’s it for now, there doesn’t seem to be so much to write about these days, my brief adventure in Ecuador is consigned to the recent past, the future holds even more uncertainty again, and where the road leads, I don’t really know. I have a Plan A, a Plan B, but they sometimes seem to be opposing each other…. Oh well, life’s an adventure, innit….

Plus ca change plus c’est la meme chose….

Well things are about status quo (a really great English band by the way) right now for me. It is obviously very apparent that I will be here for the foreseeable future. I have decided to take a TEFL course online in an effort to be able to get a work visa for wherever it is that I end up going. It’s about 100 hours online and even in my wildest imaginings, I won’t be able to dedicate more than 2 hours a day on the computer. I say that having disciplined myself studying Rosetta Stone prior to my trip to Ecuador.

It is very difficult for me to concentrate for that length of time, I could make it for quite few days, and even at that my concentration began to wander. So I honestly figure that I could do 2 x 1 hour sessions, I doubt very much that I would do it on the weekends as the love of my life “football” (soccer) is on live in the mornings both days, and know that I won’t be able to dedicate EVERY weekend. If and when I do it will be a bonus but I can’t plan on it. Therefore, it will take me 50 days consecutively to attempt the course. Over 2 months. Then the exams, so 3 months realistically.  Next week hopefully I can chat with a friend about summer camps, maybe the way to go would be work here 2 months in the summer and go away again. But then I couldn’t commit to a school…What to do, what to do…I have a friend who would like me to house sit/dog sit while she travels…My best friend says that I am welcome to stay here in the interim..

Circumstances seemed to conspire against me last end of season regarding a loss of 2 months salary and the offering of part time work at a reduced salary. It seemed that no one was hiring much or if they were the vacancies had been filled. After working for the best (or worst) part of 46 years I honestly felt that it was time to retire. But after the initial 2-3 months and moving on, I felt that I had no real purpose in life any more, and that I was offering nothing to the world that I lived in. Not that I was on the verge of discovering an alternative to Microsoft or being another Albert Schweitzer, but I wanted to feel that there was something to get up for rather than merely walking around my new “home.” My friends had hobbies and interests; my hobby was of course my job. My one true interest in life is football (soccer) and it was my job. I was always envied by many in that I got paid to do the thing that I really loved to do. The opposite end of the spectrum though was now that it was removed from my working day there was no job, the necessity to get out of bed and fill the day seemed to disappear. My luck will be that I will find another job and begin in August and wish I was retired again by September !!!!!!!

So the weather here is really shitty most of the time currently, hopefully it will change soon. The cold is fine, the rain prevents me taking my daily walks which I have really grown to love. My friends keep asking me: “You walked HOW far ?”  ~ “You carried the groceries from WHERE ?” After carrying groceries from the SuperMaxi and the co-op for the best part of 3-4 times a week, at 8400 ft altitude uphill for 4 and a half months this is doddle..

I have discovered some more fantastic music ~ Chill music ~ would describe it best.. I have some new headphones for the MoPod bought the other day in the middle of my 10 mile walk. I know it was approximately that because I input the addresses in Google Map from my friends to the Galleria and back via another few blocks…..Still the day was pretty decent and I enjoyed the vista ! Hah ! Vista ! Richmond/Westheimer and traffic..No mountains or Rio Tomebamba for me to traverse, but hey it is what it is.

Friends came over the other night, Mo has moved his grill onto the roof of the “reception” area and dinner was served at the Los Amigos Bistro..(Friends Bistro he named it many moons ago)….We dined on Tex-Mex, followed by Kopi Luwak which is civet coffee…The coffee is harvested by the Civet eating the coffee berry, passing it through it’s digestive tract and then..well you can guess where it exits..Not for me though. The other venturous souls tried it and deemed it very good. A client of Mo’s brought it back from a far eastern trip for him…When it was first on the market it was sold for 50 dollars a cup of expresso !!! And we think that Starbuck’s gouges us !!! It runs anywhere from 100 to 600 dollars per pound with only about 1 K pounds is marketed each year….That’s a lot of dough for what is basically Cat Shit…Ah, Madison Avenue, WE LOVE you…… I would just like to share some wonderful news that doesn’t involve me..One of our friends (“our” as in the ex-pat Cuenca community) has recently had a joust with prostrate cancer. You can read all about it through a link at the bottom Planet Irony.

I am pleased to be able to say that Brian received the all clear from his doctors in the past day or so…I know that many people who suffer from the dreadful disease and other forms of it are not quite so lucky. He has so far, we all know that follow ups and periodic checkups are required. I wear a wristband in honour of Bobby Moore who captained my local pro team in England and was the captain of the victorious campaign in ’66 when England won the World Cup. He was taken from us very early in life from colon cancer. I am sure you are all aware of the Livestrong Trust of which I also proudly wear a wristband. We can never do enough to subscribe to these fantastic causes. If you are thinking of donating in any way, please don’t think any longer, please act, even if it is only a donation to a wristband.

Soapbox put away……Thanks again for reading…

Congrats Brian and Shelley..(and Fredi of course)

“There Are Places I Remember…”

…….The Beatles once sang. I am actually still sitting here in Cuenca while composing this, trying to put my thoughts together as to how this past 4 months or so have gone. I read back to my first entry after I arrived and my early views. I wonder how often other bloggers actually read back from time to time to see if their perceptions have changed in any way ? What were my initial views on Guayaquil, how the country seemed to me and of my VERY first steps in this “foreign” land.

I have come to the conclusion, among many, that a land and its people are only as foreign as you allow them to be, or in fact allow yourself to be,  more precisely. Someone once mentioned to me that they felt “foreign” here. I honestly don’t although I obviously am. Reflecting on my time in Texas, 30 years of living within and around a large Hispanic community, playing soccer and coaching and interacting with many, many Hispanics, I should have been at least passable in this language if not fluent. My total failure and mine alone.

My Spanish here is not so bueno, but I have honestly tried. I try to interact with the taxi drivers, my local “neighbours,” that is the people here in the “sub division” (read gated community) and the guy down the street who operates a Comida Rapida (fast food) place. In actuality it is like one of those pop up awnings that you see at so many soccer fields or camping grounds, or someplace on Memorial Day or July the 4^th. I must pass 10 or 20 from here to the Super Maxi and in the opposite direction towards the petrol station. They are on either side of the street and some do a great business and some don’t. “Mi amigo” just down the street on the way into town is open 7 days a week from about 7.30 to around 4. I say “mi amigo” because I always say hola to him and ask “como esta ?”~ and of course vice versa. I am pretty sure he doesn’t know that I am English although I am pretty sure he knows my espanol is limited because at first when Ecuador was playing in the WCQs, we “spoke” in halting Spanish (me not him) and hand gestures and mime. Marcel Marceau ~ I have a lot to thank you for.

There is one Comida Rapida just past the panaderia where I go, which has a little girl manning the thing up until late in the evening, 9 o’clock or later sometimes, she must be maybe 9 or 10……

I was thinking of the things that I will majorly miss, other than the wonderful friends that I have made here, that part goes without saying.

My walks to the panaderia and of my initial problems of not knowing quite when buenas dias passed on to buenas tardes or even later to buenas noches.

My walks down by the Tomebamba and watching the water level fall, and the local indigenous people washing their clothes or themselves in the river.

My walks to the Super Maxi and realizing quite quickly that they were asking in Spanish, if I had the equivalent of a Randall’s/Kroger’s card.

My trips to the Co-op to buy my fruit and veg and realizing that they were asking if I was a member.

Rides on the city buses, sometimes packed full of people all of course chatting away in Spanish.

Rides on the regional buses from the terminal. Not as many as I would have liked.

Watching the men playing 8 v 8 on a piece of ground with not only not a spare blade of grass, but that doubled up as a cattle field during the week.

Walking down the street and seeing pigs, chickens, cows and over by the river a couple of sheep. All sometimes next to a 40K and upwards house.

Seeing a sheet operate as the door to an outside toilet.

Clothes hanging out on a line to dry (which seems to have caused such an unnecessary stir in the states) outside even the BEST and I DO mean best homes.

“My” hummingbirds (one of whom I rescued if your read my earlier postings) just outside the window who have kept me entertained for literally hours upon hours with their coming and going and mock fights or courtship dances. They are apparently though fiercely territorial especially over feeders.

All this and more will certainly go through my mind as I get into the “soccer mom” van which will take me over the Cajas to Guayaquil and then to a flight back to Tejas. Lots of walks and lots of buses take me back to my childhood when it was commonplace to do the same thing. Up to and including an outdoor toilet ~ but ours had a wooden door.

I was talking to a good friend on Thanksgiving night and we were talking about these very same things and the fuss that clothes drying outside saving people energy, and more importantly money, has caused in America. I remembered then that the very first soap powder that was advertised that I can remember was I think Persil ~ Outdoor Fresh Scent. Well why not just dry your clothes outside and have nature cover the outdoor fresh scent part ??? How amazing that we had to have someone invent an artificial outdoor smell when all we had to do was dry our clothes outside ??? What price progress, eh ?

And so this brings a close at least somewhat temporarily, the chapter of my life as it relates to Cuenca.. What does the future hold ?? Who honestly knows what the future holds for any one of us..We merely move along in what we know as “life” and sometimes we make our own decisions, sometimes they are made (directly or indirectly) for us by circumstances. Be they financial, family related or other things. All I can say is for right now, I have to continue to explore ALL avenues (again the decision may not be in line by what I want). These will be affected by the immigration laws of the country where I wish to go, by the financial constraints of my 101 K (nope it hasn’t changed much lately) and my health of course. Currently it is pretty good I have to say (ooh there I go again tempting that mistress that seems to rule my life ~ Saint Fickle Finger of Fate).

So as this chapter closes, I merely reflect somewhat nostalgically on the opportunity offered me by this wonderful city, and all of the wonderful, wonderful people who took me into a part of their lives, and shared with me some moments that I will cherish forever. I still keep in contact with them, via their blogs or e mail. They will remain in my heart and hopefully we will all (or in part) meet again in the not too distant future should fate and circumstance allow…..

Hasta luego mis amigos…My life will never be the same again..You and “your” wonderful city have changed me forever, and not a day goes past without I think of (or mention) you guys or the city or both…..

todos ustedes estarán en mi corazón para siempre…….

Welcome back to America; where’s your green card ?

Early doors at my hotel, 4:00 a.m. ish to be precise…I pile in the smart car, haul ass to the airport and get in the check in line. ….I put my bags on the scale and expect excessive baggage fees and a second bag check in penalty, but it seems that only American airlines charge you, but don’t pay their workers to lift heavy baggage. Also I try to go to the immigration only to find that I have to pay 27 dollars tax to leave Ecuador. What would happen if I didn’t have any money to pay my exit fees I wonder ??? Would they keep me here at their expense ?? Anyway by now my tooth is aching and the abscess is starting to swell… So, through immigration with a few hiccups, but nevertheless I am en route…The desk clerk calls several passengers of which I am one. Chuffin Nora, I’ve been upgraded I think..Down the jetway but a sharp right turn instead of straight ahead. Down the stairs, across the tarmac, and into the waiting arms of the police or airport security equivalent of Homeland Security. Opening our bags they smell the contents. Of course having space bags my luggage now assumes twice the volume of those previously packed. I hope that they are smelling my last weeks undies, socks and worn tee shirts, I think to myself.

On the plane, off to Panama City,

The layover is good, the next flight is to Houston but my face now assumes chipmunk like status and the swelling is noticeable. Getting met at IAH, and asking my pickup to take me to a close by dentist is done and dusted. Oh, did I say that immigration held me up ?? At the first desk the immigration officer asks me “When do you propose getting your green card ?” I reply fairly nonchalantly “When you deem fit to send it to me..” ~ Well maybe I didn’t phrase it quite like that…So it’s now off to the back to get fingerprinted once more and the third degree..What are you doing where did you go why did you go there ???  I thought to myself..because I lost my job and have no money you chuffin moron, but I chose to be the stupid know nothing immigrant El Campesino… Well I lost my job and in my career they only hire twice a year. Will you be staying then ? Only if you guarantee me a government job where I get paid for having no brains I thought.. Well I will be certainly looking for work while I am here…. I had my mail forwarded to my friend..Didn’t your friend open your mail.. ..Knowing that it was a Federal Offense to tamper with mail, I chose to continue to appear stupid…not a difficult task for me…. Well we sent it on Oct xxxx date….so it would be at my friends’ house I opine….

Dental x-rays taken and the confirmation that a huge abscess exists and the possibility of the tooth being removed and mega bugs later…….welcome home sir the world seemed to be saying……

Short story though the green exists at my friends house in the mail and now my status is confirmed..

Where will my road lead I wonder……

Oh and it’s bloody FREEZING…quite literally with temperatures expected  to get to around the lower to mid 20’s tonight and throughout the weekend..The best consolation is that my friends neighbourhood is walking friendly so no walking at 45 degree angles in the culverts similar to what I was doing at my other friends place…..

Goodbye Piccadilly, Farewell…

Cuenca Town….okay I know technically it isn’t a town but it fits the song title.. google Gracie Fields ~ she was an old time (second war) English singer who epitomized the English stiff upper lip stuff….

So things were coming to a close. I took the bus downtown, walked from 10 de Augusto to the Carolina Book Store to exchange some books. Mission accomplished. I walked from there to the Super Maxi and felt a twinge in a tooth. No problem, these things happen. Later that evening (Tuesday) my tooth ache began in ernest. (And if I could have found Ernest, I would have beaten the shit out of him). Went to bed early because I didn’t feel so good, but lay awake most of the night. When the lack of sleep overcame the pain, I slept. When the sleep wasn’t so bad the pain woke me up. Repeat about 10-30 times…..So early doors Wednesday, I called a friend (just like the Millionaire show) and go the name and address and phone number of a dentist. Got in to see him and after x-rays, some filing down of a crown and some discussions he prescribed me some anti inflammatory pills. “If this doesn’t work you will need to see a specialist.”

So yet again the Fickle Finger of Fate had made an intervention. Do you remember Rowan and Martin’s Laugh In ???

Thursday morning arrived,  I thought that I might try to make the earlier bus, so as I couldn’t sleep too much I got up, took the proverbial shower and began working around the apartment to make sure things were cleaned up and that I had not left anything behind. In the second bedroom I open the drapes only for them to come unconnected with wall and fall to the floor. Bugger. I went to the panaderia only to find it closed, but on the way back, thinking like an Ecuadoran, I picked up a large stone and a piece of wood to try to effect repairs. After effecting temporary repairs I tried to hook the drapes and net curtains up to the eyelets and lo and behold !!!! The whole effin’ lot came tumbling down…..

My landlady was very good with it but yet again I felt that I couldn’t do anything without the world falling in around me and the entire population of the world sitting back and laughing at my expense when the terrestrial t.v. showed “Candid Camera.”

I chose to take the van for a couple of reasons; one being that it was relatively cheap. The other being that I wished to say goodbye to Cuenca and Ecuador. From a plane the world below looks so anonymous, mountains, oceans or green. It could be any place. I enjoyed the trip, but not the part about leaving Cuenca. As we drove out of town towards the Cajas Mountains, roads I have walked many times, I saw the places that were so commonplace to me.

As you rise higher and higher you get to look back over the hairpin turns and elevations, the wild llamas (or alpacas) grazing in the park and the small shareholdings tucked away into the mountain.

Guayaquil arrived and the taxi driver packed me, my 2 suitcases, my backpack and two other passengers into a smart car. Are you KIDDING me ?? No problemo. A little while later I checked into the hotel. Had a fantastic meal at the Opti-Hotel café…actually I found this Spanish restaurant that I had seen on the web, sat down looked at the menu and realized that I could have had a 5 course meal, a taxi and a flight back to Houston for the price of a starter. I patted my pockets looked alarmed and told the waiter “I have lost my phone I have to find it ~ I’ll be back.” I am sure that everyone put 2+2 together and realized that I had made my exit, stage right… I don’t mind paying for a good meal, because being my last meal in Ecuador I wished to enjoy it, my first meal being a Domino’s pizza !!!!! However, I hesitated to pay for the entire family to be raised in the best school and university in Ecuador at my expense.

At the Omni I had the BEST pasta dish, whole pieces of pasta instead of single strips, salmon, shrimp in a white wine and cheese sauce. I know, I know Emeril says “NO cheese sauces with sea food” but what the hell, were the food police going to come and ticket me ???? The hotel/hostel is right around the corner from the Iguana Parque and ideally situated. As I only need a room for half the night, my flight being at 6.50 a.m. and having to be at the airport around 4.45 why pay top dollar for a room when this place is clean, comfortable and cheep. Did I mention cheep ?? Thanks Sandee.

So my very good friends and blog readers, I will leave Ecuador tomorrow morning, will be back in Houston just in the early afternoon. You can be assured good readers, that I will seriously miss the place, my friends and the ambience of this place. Guayaquil is a busy bustling mess in my humble opinion. So much so that I wasn’t even inclined to take my camera and walk around. I suppose that it would have been very safe being around 2 p.m. but it didn’t feel right or more correctly it wasn’t familiar. Cuenca was. I never thought anything about walking around with my Mo-pod, camera or any combination of the above.

I hope that sometime in the not too distant future I can return to that wonderful city and it’s wonderful people..

However the journey isn’t over, so stay tuned…….

All my life’s a circle..

Or seems to be…When I first started this blog, I was getting ready to depart from the States and sell, give or dump everything that I owned. Then I was counting the days, and if you followed from the beginning, packed my entire life in two bags. I then said goodbye to all and sundry ~ sorry Mo and Ken et al don’t mean to call you “sundry” it’s only an expression after all. I knew that it would only be “temporary” as I had to return to Tejas in order to get my replacement green card, but it was to be a “permanent” temporary really as I have to find somewhere to live. America certainly is an expensive place to live without a job and trying to exist on savings and/or a pension. 401K’s that no longer hold their worth have taken a lot from ordinary people who chose a place for their investments, hoping that this would carry them through their retirement.
Looking back I suppose that none of us thought that there would be a financial “crisis” that would impact the monies that we hoped would give us a cushion against inflation. Some sold their homes for their worth, some didn’t, some still have yet to sell. We read the stock market almost daily I guess for a glimpse that the “recession” is over or moving towards that way. I did at least until like the proverbial watched pot, it never seemed to boil. Of course governments never have to tighten their belts it seems, that being one part of the “private” sector which never seems to be affected. In fact after every election they normally manage to vote themselves a hefty pay raise.
Enough morbidity ~ it won’t change anything. Back on point, as we say. Now I have to count towards the days when I have to repack everything in those same two bags and head back out. It’s funny really in that I have gotten a feel for the city; know pretty much my way around seemingly having hiked over the entire downtown I think. I kind of know which buses go in which general direction, (thanks Chuck) and which ones take me home, and more importantly where to catch them. It is an interesting concept, because coupled with a one way system, it isn’t as if you can figure out that go over 1 block from where you got off and you can get back on a bus going back in the opposite direction. It doesn’t work that way. Out routes don’t always follow the in routes. And also remember that not everywhere the bus stops are actually a “bus stop” so it pays to kind of watch where crowds are gathering. That usually means there is a bus stop there. Usually but not always.

Turkey Day in Cuenca

After living in the States for 30 some years, I have (I think) celebrated every Thanksgiving. It is a time to be with family, and as I had none, or none in the vicinity, I got an invitation for dinner as people seemed always to feel sorry for me, luckily enough for my stomach. Now I wasn’t always a veterinarian, which means I don’t eat meat. However, since I have been one now for a boat (as our Canadian friends say) 20 years there is still plenty of food (and if you have EVER seen a table laid out at Thanksgiving you will know what I mean) to be consumed for the non carnivorous amongst us. Anyway yesterday a few friends got together at this wonderful apartment of the host and hostess which has a magnificent view of the City. Food was plentiful and there was an awful lot to eat and drink.

However, there would have been a little more to eat and drink if I had not had one of my “mishaps” and those of you who have known me through the years will nod and smile right about now. Even those who haven’t known me that long will know that Fate has determined that I cannot go through life for too long of a period without something happening. At the panaderia that morning, I purchased 2 dozen croissants and a wonderfully fresh crusty French loaf…mmmmmm….. The day previous I had taken a great long walk to the Liquor Store and purchased 2 bottles of white wine.

Roll call was set for around 4 p.m. so with my trusty Mo-pod, a bag full of pastries in one hand and the wine in the other I wasn’t quite sure how to handle the French loaf. No matter, it’s only a 25 minute walk along the river, so how difficult could it be ??? I think it was DK and Strictly Kev playing at the time, and the weather was pretty nice and I was enjoying the stroll. It was just about then, Lady Fate decided it was time to intervene. The loaf of bread fell through the bottom of the bag, and instinctively, as one does on these occasions, the thought is to grab the falling object. We don’t consciously think, “Oh well, that’s 60 cents into the dirt.” One thinks “Oh no, quick grab it before it hits the ground !!”

Well if my school boy memory serves me correctly, an object descends at the rate of 32 ft. per second, per second, or as our teacher used to say “32 ft per second SQUARED.”  Which meant nothing to a chubby 13 year old still trying to figure out who the Hammers were playing that coming Saturday. Now if I had been paying attention to this, and it not had been a distant memory, I could have saved myself a bit of grief. The distance between the bottom of the bag and the road was maybe 18 inches. My reflexes would never, even in my wildest youth, have been described as “cat like” so if you can imagine I was deeply “into” Solid Steel on the headphones, the bag broke, and the bread fell. Time stands still at times like these. (Too many Doctor Who episodes methinks). I saw my life flash before me. (Okay it didn’t, but you have to admit it does add to the drama). I grabbed for the falling loaf with the opposite hand. It was of course, a futile attempt. I mean you do the math ~ the object falling at 32 ft. per second per second, had about 1 and a half feet (maximum) to travel before it hit the ground. What hope did I honestly have of catching the crusty loaf before SPLATT !! it was spread across about 3 feet of dirt and dusty roadway ?? None. Not only did it hit the ground, but while reaching across for it with the hand that held the bag of wine…well you can guess the outcome can’t you ??

It doesn’t take an Hercule Poirot or a Miss Marple like imagination to figure it out does it ?? I can picture it now, a smile beginning to spread across your face as the picture tumbles into view. Not only did I lose my bread but also one of the bottles of Sauvignon Blanc. Chilled. Oh well… I pulled myself together as a grown man crying and screaming and throwing a tantrum alongside the Rio Tomebamba is not a pretty sight, and a crowd was beginning to gather to see what the commotion was all a boat. Okay, I wasn’t, and there wasn’t but again it paints a picture that you can almost half believe. I journeyed on, the day was incredible, and we ended up chatting way into the night, laughing so much that I almost had apoplexy. Another exaggeration of course. But it did bring to a brilliant end to another traumatic day ~ one of many for me.

As the clock ticks down to 2 weeks from the very day until I return over the Cajas to Guayaquil and head back to Tejas, I leave behind some great memories and wonderful, wonderful friends who have made my stay here something very special. Does Fate have me returning ?? And if so, when ?? And if not, where does she have me headed next ?? Whatever the outcome I can assure you that there will be more trauma filled days like these and hopefully I’ll come out of it a better more rounded person. (Yeah right ~ that’s something your parents tell you when they don’t really know the answer to the question: “Why ME ??”  (Mum said “Son there will be days like these.” Yeah, mum, but what you didn’t say was that there would be so effin’ many of ‘em).

”Where The Streets Have No Name*”

Or in this case, the town…Well there was a sign that said “Entrada a Santa Isabell” but there were no houses, churches or anything that usually relates to a small town. Anyway, my erstwhile companion and I had set out looking for a Mexican restaurant that had been recommended by a friend who owns a coffee plantation out towards the Yunguilla Valley. At the Bus terminal, in our best broken Spanglish, we ascertained that this particular bus was going via Giron towards Santa Isabella..

(Quite why we were setting forth on a bus ride in search of a Mexican restaurant that was somewhere between 17 ½ klicks from either Cuenca, the turn off to Loja or indeed from a certain monument, I really had no idea. But that was our GPS reading. Shame we didn’t have a Garmin, eh ?? There are several very good Mexican restaurants in town from what I understand. Oh well, it made for a good adventure AND a blog entry. Can’t be all bad…).

At a turn off for Santa Isabella, through our initial contact at the Terminal Terrestre the conductor” insisted” this was where we wanted. It wasn’t of course; we had missed the restaurant, if it ever existed, but now we found ourselves in the mid 1950’s “On a Dark Desert Highway” missing only Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, or maybe Marlon Brando in “The Wild One.” There were I think we counted 15 restaurants, a couple of food stands, a petrol station and an Azuay (region) bus office. That was it. Oh well, hunger overcame our fears of being kidnapped, tied up and tortured in the “Motel Hell” and we set down to eat. Of course the “gringo menu” came over and it was explained that the item marked 4.50 was not 4.50 but really 5.00. And the item without a price was in fact 4.00. We ordered a beer each, water, one sin gas, and one con gas. Two aquas sin gas arrived. When my companion pointed this out, we were told that they don’t have con gas. Perhaps they did out back, but for us they weren’t going to make that walk (just kidding ~ Ecuadorans are the most helpful of people). There were 2 different fish dishes we assumed one cooked one style and one another, so we order one of each which when they arrived looked identical. They were. Americans in America would have sent it back and made the staff re-order. But maybe it was our inability to convey what we wanted. It was delicious and plenty of it and for 4 dollars we couldn’t complain. We sat and chatted and got on the bus back. One great part about the Ecuadorans is that the bus drivers at major stops allow vendors to get on and try to peddle their wares. Everyone is trying to make a living and if they can sell an item or two then they and their families have made a bit towards making ends meet. I don’t believe that there is a welfare system here for the unemployed, I’ll have to google, and so everyone works or goes without. It also happens at road works and toll booths. This “allowance” is a wonderful concession to people. I imagine that the bus lines could prevent it happening and no one on the bus seems at all put out about it. The vendors are not pushy or obtrusive, you hold up your hand or shake your head and they move on. Car salesmen in the states could learn a thing or two, I think.

The following Sunday we made an almost identical trip, this time ending up in Santa Isabella itself. A small market town, which we walked around (but be warned it is STEEPLY uphill and downhill). We ate lunch, and rode home. An eventful week. Oh and my companion found the restaurant on the way back.  It looks nothing like a restaurant, especially zipping by at about 60 kmph from a coach seat that is bouncing you up and down en route.

• A great song by the way, from U2..”The Joshua Tree” album in case you’re interested ~ possibly their last classic album, in my humble opinion.

A trifecta…

Last evening (Sunday 1^st) saw my good friends Nancy and Chuck ask if I would like to join them to go to the fair and then on to the Parque de la Madre for fireworks and celebrations. Tomorrow the 2^nd is Independence Day for Cuenca. I walked down to their apartment where our other good friends Nancy and Rich joined us. We got into 2 separate cabs and off we went. The day had turned quite chilly from what had begun a very nice day.

The local fair was exactly that. I hadn’t seen stuff like this since I was a kid. Well we didn’t have combined earth moving equipment at OUR fairs, but sponsorship being what it is these days….

We meandered everywhere taking in the local atmosphere. There were the regular fair rides, the Ferris wheel, the roundabouts, the Carousels. The mandatory ghost train.  It reminded me of the time (the ONLY time) when my ex-wife, I, and some friends were at a fair and she insisted that I take her on the ghost train. She was screaming and scared. That was before we got into the car !!! So after things jumping out and things hanging from the ceiling she was so fraught that doing the husbandly thing, I thought “I’ll comfort her.” I put my arm around her and she proceeded to go all Janet Leigh on me and batter the snot out of my arm. “There’s something on me there’s something on me…” “Yes dear” I quietly informed her, “it’s me trying to comfort you, but I’ll obviously stop now as it is causing you much distress.” Or words to that effect.

Anyway, we proceeded to walk around and we found ourselves over by the animals. I steered well clear of the llamas (I don’t think they were alpacas) as some of you more avid followers (if I have any) of my blog will know, I nearly got trampled to death by a herd of llamas (or alpacas) at Ingapirca.

We move over by the horses and there were some feisty steeds there. Ego took over for one young man and he was walking this yearling (it couldn’t have been much more) around on a short lung line. Someone asked him something, his attention wandered off and so did the animal he was “exercising.” He managed to retrieve said animal, but of course the horse enjoyed its short found freedom and wanted more. It pulled free again, ran across the yard and got into it with another young stud or mare, or both.

Oh, game on !!!!!  They retrieved the horse once again and by now the thing decided it was fun to run around the yard, on its own, and take issue with other stallions and/or mares or in fact any other horse behind bars that it could. Well they in turn decided that it would be fun to try to kick or stamp their way out of their stalls.

In the meantime, the crowd of people in the yard, and there were quite a few, maybe 100 or there about, were trying to evade being trampled to death. I have worked with and ridden horses before. They weigh quite a bit and when moving forward take some stopping (which is why I have always admired jockeys and their infinite skill at moving a 600 pound race horse around a track surrounded by upwards of 150 K people). I digress.

Now I know you are asking yourselves, “Where are the gringos in all of this ?” Well Rich was taking a film, Nancy, Chuck and Nancy were all moving for cover.. Me ?? If I were taking photos you would have seen a blue screen. That would be the back of Rich’s jacket as I was cowering behind him !!!!

The best way to halt a stampeding horse is to stand with your arms outraised at your side. He stops or moves. Oh yeah I have seen more John Wayne movies than not, and when cattle or horses stampede you lie still and they jump over you. Right. How many times does the next frame show the wranglers standing over the grave of their fallen comrade usually the cook whose wagon got overturned in the melee ?

They finally managed after what seemed an eternity to retrieve the animal and relocate it to another part of the yard. When we looked around the crowd appeared again and looked for the quickest escape route. As did we. It’s amazing how many people you can cram in the womens toilet when an emergency takes place. So, let’s see, nearly trampled to death by a herd of llamas (or alpacas), nearly savaged by a beast of Hound of the Baskerville  like proportions and now nearly trampled to death by a rampaging stallion.

It is no coincidence that during the time of the World Series, the thought came to me, 1, 2, 3 strikes and you’re out at the old ball game…

December the 11^th won’t come around soon enough at this rate. I am going to look for bubble wrap, heaping of cotton wool, and anything that can keep me safe until I exit. I am also NOT going to undertake any dangerous or similar outings, and maybe, just maybe I’ll get out of Dodge in one piece.

There’s still 5 weeks to go though…….

Call Me Ismael

I always wanted to quote that, although it might confuse people who know me, because that isn’t my name. A split personality disorder perhaps ??
That is one of the most famous opening lines of American Literature. Herman Melville’s Moby Dick. The Great White Whale. (I was having a chat with a best friend’s son a short time back. “Do you ever read classics like Moby Dick at school ?” “No.” “We did” I told him…… “But then again they weren’t classics when you were young were they ?” he said. Nice one Ross.….)
Courtesy of Wiki ~ “Through the main character’s journey, the concepts of class and social status, good and evil, and the existence of gods are all examined as Ishmael speculates upon his personal beliefs and his place in the universe.”
I am not one to speculate upon my place in the universe, for as one of my best friend’s likes to opine “I’m too deeply superficial for that.” So today while contemplating what I would do if my visa extension was denied after already changing my return flight to the U.S., I must admit to a passing notion as to would the world stop on its axis if they refused ?
After taking me to the officer who gave me the details of what was necessary in order for it to be granted, they sent me upstairs to the “top perro.” Then he took me downstairs to the office where I began my journey. Oh well, nice to know that bureaucracy is alive and well even in Ecuador and that it remains the same the world over. Short version ~ went to Copa Airlines and got my new ticket, took it back with a copy to the immigration services and voila !! a 12-X visa extension which coincidentally enough expires on the day that I leave…Hmmm….
We went to a great birthday lunch last week, 3 of us (Nancy, Chuck and myself) sharing within a week of one another. A bunch of friends getting together for a midweek seafood lunch outside ~ it couldn’t be better. I was discussing the “process” with a friend, (another Nancy) and she was explaining the intricacies of moving somewhere new. A 12-X visa gives you 6 months here. There are several pre-requisites which as this isn’t that kind of blog, I won’t go into in great detail. However, stay longer as a potential resident and those pre-requisites go into overdrive. For example, when I came in I was given a 90 day stay, no questions asked. For an extension I now had to prove that I could support myself financially. They never asked how much money I had when I arrived and so for 90 days I could have been indigent. Ask for 45 days more and they need proof that I am not !!!
Nancy had mentioned that when she and her husband Rich went from 12-X status to filing for residency they were required to take an HIV test et al. I often wonder why all of a sudden they require you to confirm your health status, because after all you have already been here for 6 months.
I managed to get a 12-X extension here, but do it from the States and I need a police report to say that I have no criminal record. So effectively I will have been here for 4 and a half months without anyone knowing if I have a criminal record or not (I don’t by the way), but if I wish to come back on another 12-X I have to provide proof. Don’t you just love immigration rules and regulations wherever you are ? Still I have to laugh a bit because all of the proofs that you need to enter a place, afterward you are almost impossible to trace if you don’t leave.
Tourists bring money into an economy, and in a country especially those looked upon as “third world” those dollars are needed even more so. However, it seems as though they shoot themselves in the foot by making things difficult for those folks who seek to invest in some way in the economy. I have a friend going on vacation to the Philippines. 21 day visa. Doh !!!!!! Apparently you can pretty much keep extending it almost indefinitely, but of course a fee is required. It keeps beaurocracies alive and well and an “invisible” currency moving around. Allegedly.
I am not sure how long it will be if and when I can return to this wonderful city. I go outside my front door and can look up into the mountains. I will have done it maybe twice a day for 135 days by the time that I leave, yet it still takes my breath away. I don’t know how many times I walk the river. It never seems to get boring. Downtown ~ something new every day. Now after maybe 3, 5, 10 or 20 years, like most places it may get boring.
My great friend Kat lives in Seattle which I visited a few years back. Although she had also lived in Utah for a while, she grew up in Seattle. We drove towards downtown maybe 5-6 times during my vacation and the “shadow” overlooking Seattle is Mount St. Helen’s*. Breathtaking, I remember telling her. What a great view it was going southwards. She told me, “You know Os, I never tire of that view. NEVER.” I know that there must be places in the world like that. Maybe this is one. Who knows ??
*We visited it while I was there. Wanna know what it looked like ? Close your eyes. You were there !! The fog was so thick that you couldn’t see the mountain from the viewing platform…