Ecuador 8/20/2025 |
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Wednesday, August 20, 2025 - Sisa's Friend Anahi Visits, a New Water Filter and MotorcycleI got up early for work, but I didn't have a meeting so I got to eat breakfast with the family. We had crepes with mora jam, made by Yupanki, and bread, ham, cheese, hot chocolate and coffee.This is our first visit since Antonio's mother, Abuelita, passed away last Christmas Eve. It just wasn't the same around here without her big smile and infectious laugh. Although she had lived here with Antonio, Aida, and the kids, she owned some land down in the ravine which was not accessible by vehicle. Apparently, there had been some discussion around who in the greater family would take possession of that land. Antonio and Aida talked to Craig about it while I went back upstairs to work. Antonio had the day off today. He and Yupanki went to Ibarra to buy a replacement reverse osmosis water filter, and for Antonio to purchase a used motorcycle. His previous bike had been destroyed in the accident when he was hit by a drunk driver in March. Because they live in a remote community, he really needs the bike so that he doesn't have to walk to and from work. It also helps to be able to get to town to buy groceries and get to and from the kids' school without always having to rely on scheduled public buses. Nena got dressed up in one of the new outfits we had given her, and we all walked up to the village primary school to register her for kindergarten. We chatted with the school staff and ran into our friend Patricia who teaches at the school. There is no high school in Morochos, so once Sisa, Yupanki, and, most recently, Shina had aged out of the school, they went to high school in Cotacachi. With Nena starting kindergarten, kids from the Jerez household would once again be in the local school as well. While we were there, the public bus arrived, and Sisa met her friend Anahi, who was coming over for lunch. Aida asked for permission to pick some lemons from the school's lemon trees. They gave us permission, and we picked a few lemons and then walked home. Sisa and Anahi helped cook lunch. I didn't have a meeting, so I was able to eat lunch with the family: steak, lentils, rice, fries, broccoli, and lemonade from the lemons we picked. I then had to go to a meeting, so I went up to my "office". We were trying to give Sisa and Anahi some privacy, but they were eager to spend time with us. Sisa asked Craig if he wanted to make a puzzle with them, and she went to get the Little Mermaid puzzle that we had brought them last year. Craig, Sisa, Shina, and Anahi made the puzzle. They had lots of laughs as the girls teased each other about which boys they liked. I came down as they were finishing the puzzle. As they started to dismantle it, they realized that I hadn’t taken a photo of the completed puzzle, so we quickly worked to put it back together. I snapped the photo, and we took it apart again. At 4:05, we walked Anahi back to the bus stop with Sisa, Shina, Nena, and Max the dog. As we left the house, we noticed a dead baby chick (not ours, thank goodness) and rat in the driveway. We had never seen a rat here before. Both animals had obviously been dead for a while, and some animal had deposited them here. This just underscored the danger to animals here, and Craig and I looked at each other, knowing that we both thought that the family should have a chicken coop to keep their poultry safe from predators. After Anahi got on the bus, we walked back home and had hot cocoa and coffee. Anahi is a lovely girl and a dear friend to Sisa. We were honored that Sisa wanted us to meet her friend and that they wanted to spend time with us. It's not always the case that 17-year-old girls would want to hang out with their godparents, and we felt very lucky. The tent for Saturday's party arrived, and two guys started to set it up. But they will need to return later in the week to complete the setup. Craig and I went up on the roof deck to watch the sunset. The sky above the cornfields resembled an impressionist painting, with purple mountains in the background, and the clouds glowing orange against a lavender sky. Yupanki arrived home in a camioneta with the new water filter and some other purchases. He had bought himself a combination speaker and disco light that he could attach to his phone. He bought this with the money that he earned playing in Antonio's band. We asked him if Antonio had been able to buy the motorcycle after all, and he said yes. Antonio was currently ordering Saturday's cake, and would be home soon. A little while later, Antonio arrived home on a blue Ranger motorbike, which was used but in very good condition. He and Yupanki unboxed the new reverse osmosis water filter. It is very nice and even has a tank to store the filtered water. The little kids and the cats played with the cardboard boxes. Antonio couldn't install the filtration system himself due to his injuries from the accident (he can't lift his arms above his head). So he said that he will hire someone to install it. We would continue to drink bottled water in the meantime. While Antonio and Yupanki were out shopping, they had bought ingredients for a pork rib recipe Yupanki had seen online. Yupanki wants to be a chef, and is always looking for ideas for new things to try. Last time we had visited, they had made ice cream using a technique that they had learned on the internet. This time it was ribs with a sauce which included beer. The kids made a big deal about the beer and were afraid that it would taste bad. Antonio and Yupanki cooked dinner, and it was absolutely delicious! They served the ribs with tomato soup, fries and salad.  Yupanki cooking ribs  Ribs, fries, and salad |
 Nena  Shina and Achi Taita  Achi Mama and Sisa  Sisa and Anahi  Anahi, Sisa, Shina, and Achi Taita  Sunset Photo Gallery August 20 |
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