Ecuador 11/27/2014 - 12/2/2014

Thursday 11/27/2014 - Arrival, Thanksgiving Dinner

Since our dear friend Marty is not in St. Thomas this Thanksgiving, we decided to take a year off from our annual Thanksgiving trip to St. Thomas. We traded turkey at the beach for guinea pig in the mountains and visited our compadres in Morochos, Ecuador instead.

This was the first time in which our visit did not coincide with a special occasion within the family or the community. It was a peaceful, relaxing few days in a very beautiful location. Most of the days were sunny, and the sun was warm. It was cool when the sun was behind a cloud or when it got dark for the evening. Even though they live at the equator, they live at an elevation of over 8000 feet, so it can be quite cool when the strong sun isn't out!

On the day we were to depart for Ecuador, we woke up at 1:15 a.m. to find that it was snowing. Just what you don't want on a travel day. We left the house at 3 o'clock and arrived at Logan Airport before 3:30. Luckily there was no traffic at that time of night. We had checked in online, but needed to check in again at the kiosk to check a bag. It seemed very redundant, and the attendant at the check-in desk wasn't very cheerful. We got through security by 4:15.

We needed to get something for breakfast. Craig wanted yogurt and granola from Cosi, as well as their large water bottles. We stood in line behind a woman and nobody ever came to help her. She finally asked one of the employees if they were open and they said they open at 5 o'clock. We needed to board at 4:45, so we went to McDonald's instead. We each got a breakfast sandwich, hash brown, orange juice, and I asked for the largest water they sell. It ended up being a very small bottle. Once we got our food, at around 4:20, Cosi opened. We should have waited. I went there to get the large waters that we had wanted in the first place.

The flight boarded at 4:45, and we took off right on time at 5:15 despite the snowy weather.

I worked on the China trip and we listened to Dio on our iPod. We arrived in Miami at 8:50 a.m. It was a short walk to the connecting gate. We had time to use the restroom and then boarded for our 9:45 departure.

The flight to Quito was not full, and there was nobody in the aisle seat, so we got to spread out. They served lunch. Craig had chicken and rice and I had pesto pasta. We also had salad, a dinner roll, and a snickerdoodle.

We arrived at the new Quito airport 15 minutes early at 1:45. We went through immigraton, and Craig went to collect the bags while I got a cart. The cart machine says $1 but there is always someone there who collects $2 before giving you the cart. They probably pocket the other dollar. But Craig has MS and we really need a cart, so whatever. By the time I got to Craig with the cart, the bags had already come out!

The whole family had taken the 2 hour ride from their community to the airport to pick us up on Thanksgiving afternoon. They always dress the kids in traditional clothes when they go into the city, so it was adorable to see 6-year-old Sisa, 4-year-old Yupanqui, and 2 1/2-year-old Shina Tayanta dressed in their traditional outfits, waiting for us with 2 bouquets of roses. The kids' mom Aida was there, as well as her dad Antonio and his wife Rosa.

We saw Sisa and Rosa immediately. Sisa handed us locally grown roses, and was a little bit shy at first. Aida and Shina Tayanta then arrived from the rest room. We waited for Antonio and Yupanqui, who had gone to buy snacks and drinks. After everyone was accounted for, we went out to the curb. Antonio had to call the van driver, who had gone to park.

Aida wanted to go back into the airport to get photos of the kids on the escalators. Escalators were still a novelty for them, so I accompanied them with my camera. Sisa and Shina Tayanta were afraid to go up the escalator, so they went with Aida up the adjacent stairs instead. I convinced Yupanqui to go up the escalator with me, but he got terrified and was screaming by the time we got to the top. He refused to go back down, so we went down the stairs.

I eventually convinced Sisa to go up the escalator with me. I took her hand and stepped onto the escalator, but she hesitated, causing me to have to walk down the up escalator like a person in a cartoon. I eventually picked her up and put her on the escalator. She did well, and when we got to the top I helped her off. I gave her the option of taking the stairs or the escalator down. She chose the escalator. This time I knew to pick her up for loading and unloading.

We went back out to the curb. It was sunny and in the 60's. Two young nuns were with an older nun and they asked to get a picture with the family. When they realized we were with them, they got a photo with all of us. It was very cute.

We got into the van and the kids got more comfy with us as time wore on. We got stuck in traffic and hit some rain. Shina Tayanta peeked over the seat and hugged Craig from behind and gave him a kiss. She prefers to be called "Mi Nena" ("My Baby", a nickname coined by Yupanqui when she was just an infant).

We stopped in Quiroga for Aida to buy eggs and for Antonio to buy us a 6-liter bottle of water. We saw a new sign in the center of town advertising indigenous community tourism in their community of Morochos.

When we arrived at their house, we were delighted to see that Max the friendly old dog was still around, and he greeted us warmly. We also immediately noticed the 4-month-old baby cow, the daughter of their heifer. They also had a new calico kitten. Cats don't last long in this environment unfortunately. This is probably the 5th one they've had since we met them 4 years ago.

Sisa and Yupanqui played with us out front, singing a Spanish song which appeared to tell the Little Red Riding Hood story. We petted the vaquita (baby cow). She was adorable. One third of her nose was black and the other two thirds were pink with black speckles.

We got settled into the adorable casita that they built for us (with a bedroom and a bathroom with a hot water heater - heavenly on chilly mountain mornings) and then joined the family in the main house.

We colored in coloring books with colored pencils. We drank cups of tea. Shina Tayanta loves sugar and kept sticking her fingers into the bottoms of the other kids' cups to get the sugar which precipitated out of the tea.

Antonio showed us the new brochures and business cards that the local Peace Corps volunteer Rachel had helped him to make for the community tourism.

Sisa, at only 6 years old, is the eldest child. She helps the adults with chores and sets a good example for her younger siblings. She enjoys school and is doing well.

Yupanqui is now 4, and he is a little chatterbox. He is an active and sweet little boy. He has a good attention span for doing activities. He does not especially like preschool, but he is learning in spite of himself.

Perhaps the greatest transformation we saw after 6 months away was in the youngest, 2 1/2 year old Tayanta. She is such a cutie. She is talking now, and had changed quite a bit since we last saw her in May.

Shina Tayanta was completely blind from birth to 6 months, at which time she had her first surgery which restored her sight. Since then she has had a second surgery, and has a pair of thick glasses which, as a two year old, she seldom tolerates. But despite still being nearsighted, she obviously sees well enough to get around.

Usually at her age the kids have been a bit reticent. But she seems to take her cues from the older ones. She literally welcomed us with open arms, giving hugs and kisses and sitting on our laps as often as our godchildren Sisa and Yupanqui. She talks often and sings happily in her cute little voice. What a little miracle she is!

Antonio, who works professionally in a traditional Andean band called Chaski Ñan, got out his violin and played a tune while Yupanqui accompanied him on the recorder. Sisa and Shina Tayanta joined hands and danced. Antonio then gave Yupanqui and Sisa a chance to try the violin. Sisa was surprisingly good. Antonio said that he is starting to teach her to play his small guitar which sounds somewhat like a mandolin.

Before we knew it, dinner was ready. The family knew that today was a holiday in the United States, so they prepared something very special: cuy (guinea pig). This is a traditional Andean food which is eaten on special occasions. We had eaten it at Sisa and Yupanqui's baptisms, and during the village's 76th anniversary celebration this past May. This was a guinea pig that they had raised and prepared themselves, and we were very honored that they prepared something so special in our honor.

It was served with quinoa soup, beef, potatoes in sauce made from sambo seeds (which tasted a bit like peanuts), rice, carrots, cauliflower, and broccoli. It was a Thanksgiving feast - the first time we have had cuy on Thanksgiving! Antonio asked about Thanksgiving traditons and what people usually eat, etc. We explained that in the U.S., people usually gather together with their loved ones and share a feast of turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, and vegetables.

Tomorrow would be a school day for Sisa, so the family couldn't stay up too late. That was fine with us, it had been a long day of travel. We said our goodnights at around 8:50. We went to our comfortable casita, texted Steve and Marty to wish them a happy Thanksgiving, wrote in the journal, and were in bed at 9:35, after having been awake for 20 hours.