El Dia Final

"Here, the strong cry and the weak die."

They said that the wall was meant to enclose the prisoners, but the truth is that it was intended to kill them. A two mile walk towards the heart of Isabela has brought us to "The Wall of Tears."  In 1947, 300 Ecuadorian criminals were shipped 600 miles off of the mainland to Isabela Island. For those who think that the Galapagos are an ideal vacation destination, it certainly wasn't for the prisoners that were sentenced to a punishment that was likely worse than any crime...they died building a pointless wall that would stand there eerily for decades to come so that tourists could feel cold shivers run down their backs at the sight of it.

But luckily, I am a modern tourist, and here on this last day, I have for you a list of all the things about Galapagos that were absolutely brilliant...and then some things that weren't quite so perfect, but added to what has been a fantastic conclusion to a most fantastic month abroad.

Charles Darwin Research Center

Surfing

Dinners with my incredible peers and professors

Homework on the beach

The most adorable puppy I have seen in my life

Patacones

Dancing under the stars

Flirting with Ecuadorian guys

A two hour boat ride of sea sickness...at 6:00 in the morning

Teaching the locals about solar energy

Organic oranges and bananas

The beach of love (or iguana love, at least)

A fantastic guide named Julio

A steaming volcano crater

Mid morning banana splits

Lots of sore-blistered feet

Talking of the things we miss about American food

Amazing lunches for $4

Happy hours

Turtle breeding center

Spontaneous singing sessions

Lack of wifi

Sand...everywhere

Sunburns despite sunscreen

Oodles of our own unique memorable quotes/facial expressions/idiosyncrasies 

Pictures. So. Many. Pictures. So. Many...and I am quite grateful for this

Last minute touristy shopping

Snorkeling with sharks and turtles

Face to face encounters with sea lions

Swimming with the penguins

Watching late night soccer games

Going for night runs

Paradoxes: cacti and mangroves, flamingos and penguins, creationists living in the homeland of evolution

Calling for Darwin's finches

Getting taken advantage of as tourists

Scrambling to catch up on journaling

Walking with the iguanas

Marveling at the diving blue footed boobies

Avoiding poison apples and collecting Jesus flowers

Long island ice teas, piña coladas, cognac, pilsner 

A fruit fight with little kids

Eating tres leches cake in such an amusing manner that the locals bursted out laughing

Making plans for when we can all see each other again...

I will miss Ecuador, these beautiful people I am traveling with, and learning new things by the minute. And while I am already excited to travel again, I have a clear concept of how lucky I am to belong in Seattle...if I hadn't known that I had a solid place to go back to, I never would have been able to let myself go and break down new boundaries the way that I did. They say that traveling helps you figure out more about yourself, and I don't want to be any more cliché than necessary, but I think that I instead learned that there is only going to be more about myself that I will never know.  Meeting new people requires changing little pieces of who you are in order to enable a connection, but each time I surprise myself with how I have changed, the happier that I am to know that I can trust in the solidarity of the notion that so much in life is transient.

Okay, I hope you understood all that...I think I broke my English in the process of improving my Spanish. It has been fun writing out my experiences, but it is time to stop stalling while finishing this last post so that I can look out the windows of this bus and watch Ecuador, as well as the rest of the time I have here, whiz off into my memory. If I could, I would say goodbye the Ecuadorian way, thanking all of you readers with an air kiss, but all I have for you are words. So ciao, hasta luego, I'll see you the next time around.

The Most Picturesque Day Yet...

Seeing may be believing, but I'm still a little uncertain that that enormous sea turtle swam only a foot beneath me. Under the water, there are brilliantly fluorescent rainbow fish mingling with an equally beautiful species that bears eyes the ebullient blue that one might find on the wings of butterflies in the mangroves. A fantastic aquatic world glistens underneath waters that look more as if they might be as cold as those in Puget Sound. From what I have seen so far, Isabela is not the glorious Hawaiian island that travel magazines airbrush to increase their income. In all honesty, the obsidian-black lava rock makes the island look more wasteland than evolutionary keystone of the world, but the beauty of the place really lies in the animals, and not just the ones that can be seen while snorkeling.

Sally Lightfoot Crabs

According to legend, Sally was an American spy during the second World War. She worked in Germany as a dancer and could thus glean information from the soldiers who frequented the bar that she worked at. She was killed, and when the American soldiers who were based at the Galapagos heard this, they named the crab in honor of her...because of its dance-like movements.  Female crabs, according to our guide Julio, will eat their mates, so there is no such thing as "spending the night" after sex unless the male has a death wish. They are a daring fire-truck red, and yet the seabirds seem to leave them be.

Marine Iguanas

A tribute to the dinosaurs, piles of these charcoal-black dudes reside on the beach.  They can live up to 30 years, and after 2 years, will gain their capability to dive for food underwater, during which time playful sea lions will swim past to pull up on their tails. Patrick asked if the playfulness of the sea lions was a sign of intelligence, which led to the notion that the benefits of intelligence could be a longer life span. Julio looked at him and said something surprisingly existential. "What is the purpose of me living longer? It would be better for the world if I were dead." It was something that I had never considered before...I guess that on top of developed freeways, health care, and drink-worthy water in every toilet, shower, and sink, another thing that we all take for granted in America is a long retirement.

Frigate Birds

The princesses of the birds here. They have no waterproofing on their feathers, so all of their food must be stolen from blue footed boobies who do the dirty work of hunting while the frigates relax above. Kevin calls them the "friggin frigates" but regardless of their survival methods, it is said to be good luck to have a frigate bird fly overhead.

If you prefer to stay away from the gringo restaurants, there are no menus here...only the promise of soup, a main course and fresh juice, all for four dollars. The rest of the day is for sleeping on the beach...well, and doing homework, we find time for that, too, ya know.

Last night was spent with piña coladas, dancing, and good times underneath millions of glittering stars. And just for that extra dollop of perfection, in the background you could hear the chorus of warm waves softly grooming the fine white sand of a sleeping Galapagos. 

Let's Galapa-GO!

So I'm not that clever, I have to give the credit of the title to Ashwin.  We are all here in the Galapagos Islands at the lovely Hotel Sula Sula.

This morning meant a sad departure from our host families--many of us have become surprisingly close to them in the span of only a week. It seems that Ecuadorian families like to give small mementos upon parting.  Allie got some cute bracelets. Taran's host family splurged and bought him three shirts. And I, I got two cans of tuna and one of hominy...living the rich life, right?  I have plans to keep in touch with my family (a practice that they seem much more serious about here in Ecuador than they are in the US) and would definitely love to return some day.

Getting to the Galapagos was more than a little bit of a hassle. First they have to make sure that you aren't trying to sneak in any exotic elephants that are not native to Ecuador...ya know, because I always keep a cat or a chicken or something with me to ensure the spread of invasive species.  Then they have to make sure that they discourage your entry to the islands by charging you endless amounts of park fees and life (life that you spend waiting to give said park fees and have your packs searched for said elephants). We took an airplane, a bus, a ferry, another bus, a boat, and finally a truck to get to our destination.  And big surprise, the locals down here to everything they can to take advantage of tourists. They will not dock larger boats, but instead charge you for small water taxis to take you and your luggage from these boats to the shore--apparently this is a new development that has started taking place over the last two years (as Chuck said he had never encountered it before, and was not very happy about the change). 

Yesterday was our last free day in Guayaquil. Sarah S, Sarah E, Emily, Michelle, Ashwin, Allie, and Kevin all went to Cuenca, which is apparently an adorable city with incredible ruins. It is on the top of my list for when I return to Ecuador.  Lisie, Amanda, June, Patrick, James, Nikki, and our two fabulous profs all went to Playas and had a very sunburned but happy time on the beach.  Taran got to spend the day with his lovely family and I with mine (thus inspiring the previous post).

Tomorrow is the beginning of the end...and the first day of the last week is going to be kicked off with snorkeling.  So excited to Galap-"GO" (lol how we all love Ashwin) and see some turtles!

I <3 Guayaquil

I cannot say how much I love it here. I could live with this family for a year more. Little Maria Eduarda is running around the house trying to entertain the adorable baby Alexa Marie.  Alex just walked up to me and told me how much he really regrets that I have to leave and that I must write to him. We have spent the early afternoon going out to eat plantain chips and...a ceviche like food that I fail at remembering the name of. Apparently this is the food that Ecuadorians eat for hangovers. Last night Mika and I had an adventure in downtown Guyaquil during which we got lost and met a helpful man who works for a local newspaper who helped us safely find our way back. I would write more, so that you might better understand my love for this place, but I am off to fall in love with it even more on yet another adventure with my family. Ciao!

My sweet host brother, Jose, and the all too-cute baby, Alexa Marie

Maria Eduarda--this girl was born a movie star

Warm Morocho is for Hot Evenings

It felt a little bit like I was living on the set of Slumdog Millionaire, except this is no movie. This is real life. Poverty is not always what people imagine--hungry, incapable persons living under a scorching sun--poverty is plenty of food, but food that is of poor quality and nutrition. Poverty is plenty of available work, but work that is dangerous, and brings in the handsome sum of less than two dollars a day. Here in guayaquil, we are staying with host families that live in a very wealthy quarter of the city called Samborondon. Outside of this sector, on the way to Duran, are the squatter communities that we are trying to help through the nonprofit organization Hogar de Christo. And then I learned that there is a class of people living here that have even less than the squatters...I just, um, can't explain how I feel about that. People always say that life I the US is so fortunate, but I had heard that all too often to really believe it before finally coming here and seeing it.

We spent the greater portion of today building a bamboo house for a woman that had purchased the "kit" from Hogar de Christo a few months ago (for about $800...and these houses will last around three years, during which time the families can reinforce them for greater durability and longevity) but had no way of building it.  The houses are built on stilts here because the rainy season guarantees flooding across Guayaquil.  These one room houses can support up to 10 people, though that seems like a miserably cramped lifestyle to me.  The most exciting part of the project was that we also were able to add a composting toilet--the only one around this area and a strong symbol of the beginning of improved sanitation in the developing parts of Ecuador.

But enough on toilets...

There are a few things you should know if you want a picture of Guayaquil:

1) as in the rest of Ecuador, lunch is the biggest meal of the day

2) a taxi ride across town only costs $4

3) the doors on public buses remain forever open...and vendors of ice cream, water, and candy hop on and off as they please

4) the richest man in Ecuador lives only a few neighborhoods away, and children of important figures here go to UEES (Universidad Espiritual Santo), so to get onto the very campus without a guide, you need to scan your fingerprint

5) Chifa! Chinese Ecuadorian food. Trust me, it sucks, don't risk your health for it.

6) most of the old town burned years ago...except for a small portion of downtown...aka, not a whole lot of authentic Guayaquil to get a taste off

7) iguanas are everywhere! University of Washington has squirrels and UEES has iguanas. A park in the middle of the city is absolutely filled with them, and visitors who (despite the signs prohibiting it) try to cuddle them

8) all neighborhoods here in Samborodon (that I have seen at least) are gated. They are little havens of safety in what is by far the safest part of Guayaquil

9) it is not at all uncommon here for people to have live in housekeepers...which brings me to my host family.

I got ridiculously lucky with my family--it is such a unique scenario, and one that I am really having a lot of fun being a part of. I live with Gretta (my host mom), Jose (dad), Jose (28 year old bro), Mika (exchange student from Japan), Emanuel (cousin), Maria Eduarda (adorable, 6 years old, the housekeeper's daughter), and the sweet sweet housekeeper, Solanda. Solanda made me a pile of  patacones (not sure on the spelling, but they are double fried plantains--super yummy) for breakfast yesterday and refused to let me help with any dishes. I am getting spoiled down here.

Spanish is coming really quickly for me now, except for when Emanuel spoils me by speaking in English. Regardless, I don't see how I couldn't have picked it up during the four hour long conversations that follow dinner each night. 

Morocho! Ecuadorian street food, aka empanadas and this warm and cinnamon-y milkshake of a drink (made with corn and...I honestly have no idea), is muy muy rico.

The Barcelona football team was here for a soccer game...and they lost, which made for some happy Ecuadorians. I am sure you know that the excitement about football here reaches considerably higher levels here than it does in the States, but opposing fans will fight in the streets and clog the roads until Samborondon no longer seems nearly as wealthy as it actually is.

After work yesterday, we went to an artisan market and ate Chifa.  And then later on in the evening, I went to the benediction of a new Madonna/waterfall/outdoor extension of the local church.  My host mom gave a speech, a famous ecuadorian soprano sang a short program, and then everyone prayed the rosary in spanish (from what I can tell, religion other than Catholicism is as rare here as blonde hair). 

In short, this week is going by much much too fast. Guayaquil is definitely going to show up again in my future. No doubt about that. But for now, I have a fresh crab dinner awaiting me (and the best part is that the crabs here are purple! So elegant, right?).  Ciao!

Polar Opposites

Guayaquil, the largest city in Ecuador, has all walks of life: from Latin America's most affluent, to the impoverished people of the slums. I was lucky enough to experience both of these in a single day and relay back to you what I will always remember as one of the more interesting days of my life. In the morning and afternoon, our group spent time working with Hogar de Cristo to build a home for a single mother with two children. The house, a simple one room raised structure, would be one like the tens of thousands I saw coating the hills for as far as the eye could see. Its foundation required 11 wholes, 40 centimeters deep that were made by driving a 6-foot metal stake laboriously into the tough bedrock, in some places breaking apart stones in a way I only thought could be accomplished by a jackhammer. Once these were completed, the hot Ecuadorian sun began to punish us in the afternoon and staying hydrated was of utmost importance. 

With the help of local carpenters, we watched as post after post was erected and cemented with concrete. All this done by hand and with very few tools other than a shovel, saw, measuring tape, level, and strings. The ease and raw skill impressed me as these carpenters guided us in rapidly putting together a house in the space of 7 hours. Finally we hoisted wall after wall up onto the raised structure to finish the project and successfully give a much needed home to a lady and children in need. Oh, the sense of accomplishment in helping those in need!

Note: this post was for last friday

"Michelle and I wouldn't let people book for only one night...you wouldn't stay in the Amazon for one night and you certainly wouldn't stay in the Galapagos for one night, so don't stay here for one night." Andres has his forehead creased with emotion as he tries to convey to all of us the same concept we all traveled here with. Tourists should not travel with the expectation of being endlessly pleased. We think that paying lump sums of money and making the effort to travel to distant places entitles us to drive by all of nature's wonders as if the world were just one big parade. I will miss the Black Sheep Inn and its owner and founders. Andres is very passionate about the environment.  He is not an Eco-freak or a stereotypical treehugger or a pretentious recycling snob, he just wants to set a humble but good example for the world by caring not only for the environment, but the people who live there.

The airport is a complete change of scenery from the peaceful slopes of Chugchilan. You can see Cotopaxi (a large and snow-covered volcano here) in the distance from here, and it reminds me of Mt. Rainier in a pleasant sort of way. Most of the conversation amongst our group concerns Spanish...I think the majority of us, myself included, are nervous to meet our host families...and excited too, of course. Only one more hour!

Yesterday we trekked to the Cloud Forest. Picture some kind of mysterious hybrid between the Amazon jungle and the forests you can find in the Pacific Northwest, then add a little more mist, and you have the right idea.  Out of the green float little pink globules that look almost like natural neon glow sticks.  Yellow and brown spotted flowers that look like they could give birth to banana slugs are nested near a small waterfall. The trees here have been bedecked time and time again with streamers of heavy moss, making it difficult to see the sky. Our guide for this trek, Miguel, is some kind of superhuman. Not only does he have an incredible awareness of direction throughout the Andes, but he has an inner motor that could inspire the Energizer Bunny. You could ask esta cansado? And he would just laugh at you.

And it's time to board...so ciao!