Ecuador 4/23/2016 - 5/15/2016 |
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Saturday, 5/14/2016 - Soccer, An Early Birthday Party for CraigThis morning after a lovely breakfast of crepes filled with berries, we went with Rosa and the kids up to the "estadio" (soccer field) to watch one of the weekend games. The community gathers there, and people sell ice cream, fried chicken feet, potatoes, fried chicken, and fried fish. We bought ice creams for all of us. It was a warm, sunny morning and Max the dog accompanied us.There was a trampoline and we asked the kids if they wanted to take a turn. They did, but when it came time to enter, Yupanqui backed down. We think it was because there was a boy who was a little bigger than him, and he was intimidated. Sisa got into the spirit right away, jumping and bouncing on a hoppity-hop. Tayanta just sat on the edge, bouncing slightly on her bum as the other kids jumped. When the bigger kid and his sister were done, Yupanqui decided to try. He liked it quite a bit! Shortly after noon, it was time to go home so that Rosa could cook lunch. The kids were tired and hot after bouncing, so Sisa asked if they could have another ice cream. I had enough change left over, so we bought each kid another small ice cream. It was a great outing for our last full day here! When we got home, we had lunch: soup, meatballs, rice, and peas. Monday is Craig's 50th birthday. We will arrive home at 1 a.m. on his special day. In recogition, the family was sweet enough to buy him a cake, and we enjoyed it after lunch. What a nice surprise! They sang to him while Antonio played Happy Birthday on the sax. And Craig got to take part in a Latin American birthday tradition for the first time: having his face smashed into the cake (albeit gently) by Goddaughter Sisa! Antonio's band was here practicing and they got to enjoy the cake too. We went back into the casita and packed up everything we could, leaving just a few last minute items to be packed up in the morning. We fed Juanita the pig. Aida's half-sister Cecilia came over with her son Ariel, but Ariel started crying every time he laid eyes on us. Cute as ever, though! Those eyes! For dinner we had soup, potatoes, chicken and veggies, rice, plantains. It was a bittersweet evening, as we would be leaving tomorrow. Sisa and Yupanqui begged us to stay. It's always difficult to say goodbye, but we would be returning in just two months. We went back to our casita and did some more last minute packing and arranging. We could hear music playing all night; Antonio said that it was coming all the way from Cotacachi. Somebody was partying hard this Saturday night! |
 Yupanqui, Sisa, and Achi Mama at the soccer game  Achi Taita's early birthday cake See all photos from this day |
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