Ecuador

Tuesday 6/14/2011 - More Baptism Preparations

We woke up before our 8 a.m. alarm and came to breakfast at 8:30. Sisa's coloring book and crayons were on a mat on the kitchen floor, indicating that she had been coloring before we got up.

For breakfast, we had patacones (crispy flattened fried plantain slices), cheese, croissants, coffee, and fresh juice. We were also offered leftover soup from last night if we had wanted it, but we were stuffed.

Antonio told us he has hired a band called Junior's Band for Saturday's baptism fiesta. Antonio's traditional Andean band, Chasqui Ñan, will play first, then Junior's Band, more dance-oriented, will play on into the night. He said that if there is no live music, villagers won't attend the party. It sounded like it was going to be a lot of fun. Antonio was in the process of moving the fence to make room for the party. We have no idea where two bands and a community of dancers would fit.

We colored with Sisa and then played ball with her. Sisa was playing with the rear axel of an old tricycle. Antonio inserted a dowel into it so that she could push it around. Lots of giggling ensued. Rosa asked for our help shucking beans. Sisa helped as well. We reflected on the fact that we are enjoying participating in these party preparations, and that we feel like we are in a "Worlds Apart" episode. We were zenning out shucking the beans.

We went into our room to use the bathroom and organize things a little. A few minutes later, we heard a light knock at the door. It was Sisa calling us for lunch. We went into the kitchen and ate squash soup, chicken marinated in spices, boiled potatoes, habas beans, salad, and fresh pineapple juice. Meals are plentiful and large here.

Antonio said that we would go to pay the band and buy more clothes for the baptism, so we should be ready to catch the 1:00 p.m. bus which stopped right in front of the house. All five of us went, along with a huge heavy sack of corn which rode in the storage compartment underneath the bus. The bus fare was 25 cents to Quiroga.

We disembarked at the square and walked down a street through a little entranceway to a building which housed a large corn grinder. The woman who ran the place came in and Antonio spoke with her. They then dumped the bag of corn into the grinder. It noisily ground the corn, which came out looking as finely ground as flour. Antonio asked if we could leave the bag of ground corn here while we went to Otavalo, retrieving it on our way back. She said yes, so we then walked back to the square and caught a second bus to Cotacachi.

Once there, we waited for yet a third bus to Otavalo. A student on the bus was reading an "Over Canada" aerial photo book. He shyly said good afternoon to us, not quite making eye contact in case we didn't answer. It was obvious that he was eager to practice English, so we chatted with him until it was time to get off the bus.

We disembarked at an intersection from which we then took a cab. It dropped us in front of a large sign which advertised Junior's Band. We walked down the driveway and met a girl who said that her father (the bandleader) wasn't home. She got her mother. Antonio spoke with her and she assured him that everything is arranged for them to play at the baptism on Saturday night. After thanking her, we walked back to the road.

We climbed a huge hill and waited at a bus stop for bus #4 to Iluman. Iluman is the best place to buy traditional Otavalan hats, and Craig needed one for the baptism. Sisa had a small meltdown at the bus stop, obviously in need of a nap.

Iluman is also where many yachaks (shaman) have offices. We walked down a street lined with hat shops and shamanic offices. We went into La Casa del Sombrero. There was a gas cooktop with flat irons warming on it. A man was working at a bench with a hole in the middle. He placed a hat on the bench so that the top of the hat fit through the hole, and then pressed the brim with one of the flat irons. A woman working at the shop unsuccessfully looked through their inventory to find a hat to fit Craig's head in black. We thanked them for their time and for the demonstration and moved down the street to Shaman Sombreros, a store whose name blended the two main "industries" of Iluman.

Sisa was enchanted with a little dog named Oliver in the store. This store had a variety of hats, including women's hats that were very stylish and looked like they came out of the roaring '20's. Sisa tried on an adorable straw hat. They found a nice hat for Craig. Antonio was skeptical at first, but they told him that once they ironed it, it would work perfectly. We selected a wide band to go around it. They pressed the hat, and Craig tried it on. He looked styling.

Sisa called Oliver the dog over to her, but when he would come to her, she would get startled and scared. He would retreat, only for her to call him over again It was quite amusing.

We purchased the hat, and were amazed that a handmade wool hat only cost us $15.

We hailed a cab and went back to Otavalo on a quest to find white trousers for Craig. In one store, a man measured Craig's waist, and then dug through stacks of clothing looking for his largest pair of white trousers. He handed a pair to Craig and directed him to a bedroom in the back of the store used as a fitting room. The pants were snug, but beggars can't be choosers, and they will do.

Next we went to a store to buy Craig a heavy blue woolen poncho. Ponchos are worn by Kichwa men, and usually each community has their own signature poncho color. The colors were originally aligned to the haciendas; the color identified which hacienda an indegenous person was affiliated with in colonial times. Today the color system has been reclaimed as a source of pride; and communities self-identify by these colors. Morochos wears blue ponchos.

Ponchos come in various qualities. They are a multi-purpose clothing item, as they can be pulled over oneself like a blanket. Antonio and Rosa recommended that we invest in a high quality poncho. Since we will likely buy one once and use it every time we visit, this made sense. The high quality poncho cost $58.

In this same store, we also purchased wool fabric for my anako (long wrap around skirt) in navy blue, and off-white fabric for my fachaline (sash). I had to squat down so that Rosa could reach to drape it over me and make sure that it was big enough. They also looked for a white blouse for Sisa to wear to the baptism. She tried on one which was gorgeous, but much too big. It was the smallest size they had, so we moved on.

Next we were in search of a white long-sleeved men's collared shirt with a breast pocket. If we had known this requirement, we could have brought one from home. We went to 4 or 5 stores, as well as checking stalls in the Plaza de los Ponchos. None of the shirts were big enough.

We passed Runa Tupari's tour office, which has moved to the second floor of their building. We stopped to buy Sisa some candy. Overall she is being good, but she is a flight risk in traffic. If I hold her hand, she always wants Antonio and Rosa to hold her other hand so that she can swing between us. I can only do that for so long.

Eventually, we ended up back at the place where we had bought Craig's pants. They had a shirt which was a little short and a little snug, but, again, it would do. Especially when worn under the poncho. Antonio offered the shopkeeper $8, the going rate for such a shirt. The shopkeeper wanted to charge us more because we were foreign.This after we had already bought something from him earlier today. Is this how you treat repeat customers? Antonio was not pleased, but they eventually settled on $9.

Now we were all set except for shoes, which were being made especially for our big gringo feet, and that we should be able to pick up tomorrow. Before leaving Otavalo, we stopped at a store and bought a huge garbage bag full of disposable plates and cups for the party.

We walked to the bus station with all of our goods. I wound up carrying Sisa because she was distracted by her candy and was too slow. She started to cry for Mami (Rosa), and I feared that people on the bus would think that I was kidnapping her. Luckily, they realized she was just being a cranky toddler. We found seats, but the bus was crowded and we were packed in like sardines.

All of a sudden, I realized that we had arrived in Quiroga, and Antonio rushed to get us all off of the bus. Craig, sitting separately, almost hadn't realize that we had arrived. Sisa has fallen asleep, and Rosa carried her. I carried the garbage bag of goods. Craig carried the vegetables and clothing. Antonio handled the bag of sugar.

Once we were off the bus, Antonio disappeared. We waited near the camioneta (collective pick-up truck) stand. Antonio reappeared a few minutes later after having retrieved the large bag of ground corn. We rode back to the house in the camioneta. We were glad that we didn't have to take all of this stuff, plus a sleeping Sisa, on another bus. We arrived at the house at 6:30 p.m.

Sisa napped while Craig and I freshened up. We were exhausted; it had been a busy afternoon! Then we sat in the kitchen, Craig reading, me writing in the journal, and Antonio studying English.

We went next door to visit Miguel, Antonio's brother (who, incidentally, is married to Rosa's sister). He is a catechist, and it was his job to prepare us for our role as godparents. He spoke to us in Spanish about the responsibilities. He taught us some prayers in Spanish, and we struggled to memorize them. We hoped that we would pass his inspection; he was definitely sizing us up.

Once he was satisfied, we went home and had squash soup, pasta with onions and carrots, rice, cabbage slaw, potatoes, and naranjilla juice. Sisa was still asleep.

Rosa got out her binder of information on hospitality from Runa Tupari. There were recipes, and they were looking at what was needed to cook for 150 people for the party. We serioulsy didn't know where they would put that many people!

We went to our room at 9:30 to get some well-deserved rest.