Our Street

The road we live on, Calle Luis Cordero, is a quite little one. Built from cement blocks emulating a South American version of the cobblestone street, it houses mostly just that; houses. Just off the end of Luis Cordero, however, is busier street, one which we walk up and down at least 4 times on any given day.

This road holds so many treasures; stores filled with people whose faces always mirror our own as we walk by, big grins and a warm wave; Susannah the 'venta lady', the hilarious wacky-aunt-like duo at the new dvd shop, the married couple who run the tienda where we always buy chicken (and would buy dog food, if we HAD a dog...)...


Now that we have a brand new bike, the daily trek to get extra veggies for dinner goes by that much quicker, and yet there's always reason to linger out front of Susannah's shop for the gifts of fruit she inevitably sneaks into your bag if you stay and chat for a few minutes, or incentive to stop by the bakery next to the tienda for a freshly baked croissant.

I can't help it, I love our streets.

Love, Holly

(carpentry shop, complete with a coat hanger display of the goods)

Countdowns and Lists

If there's one thing I really dislike, it's countdowns.

That said, the countdown until most of us head home for break is officially and unavoidably in full swing. With 4 days to go, there really is no way around it. And along with the countdown, we've all begun our own lists of things we MUST do while home (most revolving around food, as if that's a surprise to anyone) and things we MUST bring back with us when we return to South America.

What follows is an example from everyone's list :) Or at least everyone who responded to my email (ahem Jocelyn and Eliah).

Things we will re-work our schedules to do:
1. Waffle House and sinfully greasy bad fast-food that will clog my arteries and initiate a myocardial infarction at 25 (Serena)
2. TEX-MEX. (If Jocelyn puts the same thing (a likely possibility) then feel free to put some variety down, i.e. chips and salsa, sour-cream chicken enchiladas, or fajitas.) (Dunc)
3. Eating at Sunset Grille (Seth)
4. Chipotle Burrito after a library run (Holly)

Things we will be forcing into our suitcases:
1. SOUR PATCH KIDS (Serena)
2. Peanut butter or Reece's (Dunc)
3. Bringing back a pan we could actually cook in (Seth)
4. Packable brown sugar and Tootsie Roll Pops (Holly)

And so there you have it. Granted, we would all dearly love a new wireless internet provider, but seeing as how that is just not possible, I suppose we'll settle for sour candy and chocolate.

Holly

Caught!

Mark "I have an important skype call with Chris so I'm taking the internet connection" Hand.

We all knew that you guys were just meeting online to talk about the latest update on Perez Hilton.

Raw Eggs

Today marks the end of our Apoyo Escolar and adult English programs, until January when we return to revamp and expand them, of course. In celebration of the close of our first few months, we decided baked goods were an effective way to demonstrate our gratitude, joy, etc. etc. at having worked with the people in our programs. If you've been keeping up with us over the past five months, it really should come as no surprise that we use sugar and chocolate as indicators of affection down here.

So, once again, I found myself quarantined in the kitchen starting at 9am, my companions flour, sugar, and chocolate bars crushed by Eliah's fury. no wonder i feel more than a little queasy right now, seeing as how all i've eaten ALL DAY is cookie dough.

oops...?

Holly

How to measure time's passage...

(Today's Guest Blog comes from Dana, our apartment-window-climber, early-morning-runner, new-music-gifter, and my fellow hippy-kitchen-dancer. How we made it 3 months without her I don't know.)

"Having grown up in Colorado it only seams natural that I became accustomed to the coming and going of seasons to be the indication of a years progression and therefore the passing of time. Now, with the experience of living in another part of the world comes the necessity to adjust to a new climate. Here in Ecuador we may have seasons, the rainy season and the dry season, however the ideas of winter, spring, summer, and fall exist only in stories of far off places.

Since I arrived in September there has been a noticeable change in the afternoon clouds behavior from about the hours of three till five. Aside from this, our days and nights, weeks, and already hard to believe months have a very peaceful ebb and flow, occasionally interrupted by a frustratingly lengthy downpour of rain or a 45 minute hail storm. Due to this drastic lack of diversity in the beautiful Ecuadorian sky, I've had to concentrate on other forms of growth and progression to remind me that the earth truly is still rotating around the sun.

While chilly air accompanied by an instant sheet of hail cannot suffice for naked tree branches, fresh blankets of snow, or seasonal allergies, we do have the most adorable puppy who lives at the end of our street who at first we could cup in just one hand and examine every line in his new to the world face. Now he has a precious pot belly and so much energy that at times not even two hands are enough to contain him.

There are the calves we see roaming around outside the Casa Barrial and each time insist that one of them must be the one that Jocelyn and Dunc saw birthed back in August and comment, my how much he has grown. There are the women in our exercise class who have lost over a kilo of weight and now recognize the importance of wearing t-shirts and sweat pants to class rather than their alpaca sweaters and flip flops. There are the houses in the distance that use to disappear with the sun every evening at the exact same time, however now they remain visible, illuminated by the flickers and glows of their elegant Christmas lights. And of course, there are our family dinners, which at the Manna house are progressively more and more delicious, but more importantly an increasingly significant part of each of our days. This is the time for us to regroup and remind each other of the new and amazing things we're accomplishing, one day at a time.

While this holiday season greets you with frigid evenings, cozy fireplaces, shorter days and longer nights, remember that there are things in all of our lives beyond just the seasons to help remind us of the passing of time and the progression of each year.

Happy Holidays and looking forward to seeing many of you very, very soon.

Dana Conway"