7-31-11
Pretty much all the volunteers came all at once, and now they’re all leaving at the same time, so I’ve been preoccupied trying to spend as much time with them before they leave (and then I leave). Thursday afternoon I taught the last English class to my two students before a few of us ran a couple miles in the stadium in Lumbisí. At night, a group of 20 students (!) went to the Mariscal in Quito, since it was the group from Illinois’ last night. It was entertaining to go to a bar and request a table for 22. After we spent some time trying different drinks like Tinto de Verano (red wine mixed with orange juice) and a mojito, we went to a bar to do some salsa dancing. It was fun to hang out with a big group before they all left.
Friday morning was the last day of summer camp for the kids in Lumbisí as well as the students from Illinois. Here, the kids performed a play (similar to the Lion King with hints of environmental awareness) for the elderly whom we serve at the comedor. Zack, Marjorie and I served lunch to the elderly after the play and then delivered all of the Tupperware (for 3 couples) to people who are unable to make it to the comedor. This usually takes a while, since some of the couples live far away. Vanessa, Marjorie and I went to “El Español” (next to Baskin Robbins in Cumbayá) where we ordered chocolate drinks (and coffee), sat in comfortable couches in the upper part of the restaurant and just chilled. It was a rainy and cold afternoon, so it was nice to be in a relaxing place where we used free wifi internet, read, and hung out. It was a great place to spend an afternoon with good friends.
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| Marjorie, Vanessa, Zack, Esteban, and I on the side of a volcano. |
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| Cotopaxi volcano: we were on the snowy part!! |
Saturday morning we planned a day-trip to Cotopaxi volcano. An Ecuadorian friend (Esteban) offered to drive us in his uncle’s Jeep-like vehicle. From Lumbisí, it’s about a 2 hour drive to the 2nd largest volcano in Ecuador (I think). No matter what we do, we always have an adventure along the way. Since there aren’t many signs to tell you where to go on two-track dirt roads (or if there are signs, they’re most likely wrong) on the way up to the volcano, we took a bad turn and ended up facing a huge crevasse where if we would have continued we probably would have flipped the jeep. The only way out of there was to put the car in reverse (while trying to avoid huge boulders and not get stuck in the mud, because of course, it was raining) and take a new route. After saying “Oh my land” multiple times because of fear, we made it to the correct dirt path up the mountain. Side note: never follow signs/arrows painted on rocks which eventually point you in the wrong direction. As we were ascending the volcano, we came across sleet and then lots of snow. Many of the cars/busses couldn’t make it up the volcano because of this (as we had to stop eventually as well because the 4 wheel drive wasn’t working) which was just amazing because I wouldn’t expect snow fall on the equator. It was very exciting to see and play in the snow during the summertime. We started walking, instead of driving, up the mountain, but we weren’t really dressed for the occasion of snow. Eventually we made it to the parking lot where the hike usually begins—this is the highest point in Ecuador I’ve ever been; even higher than the Teleférico. Although, since it was snowing so hard, we could barely see anything, let alone the volcano. We decided against the hour hike up the volcano in the snow because of the extremely thin air and also because it was freezing and we weren’t prepared for that kind of weather. Instead, we ran down the snowy mountain like you would a sand dune. Descending the mountain was a lot easier in the Jeep and we ended up in a restaurant/lodge that had a fireplace and hot chocolate as well as a great meal. With my host parents, I ate salchipapas (hot dogs with French fries mixed with Ketchup and Mayonnaise) and then met up with Zack and Marjorie to go to Cumbayá to eat at a vegetarian restaurant (kind of rare in Ecuador). Later in the evening, we met up with some other friends in Guápulo (a cute, cobble stone town located between here and Quito) to hang out at a café overlooking the city. It was a really laid back café and is known for “Moralazo”, which is mora-flavored hot wine—really good.
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