Ecuador 7/29/2023 |
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Saturday, July 29, 2023 - Visitors from the NetherlandsWe woke up early. Sisa and Shina had already left for Ibarra for Sisa's English lessons. It is very nice that Shina accompanies her, as it can be dangerous for a young girl to travel so far by herself.Breakfast was a fried egg, fries, turkey ham, bread, yogurt, and coffee. Kuri has always been fine with Craig and me, but now he has started actively seeking us out. He will also point at the "ecasa" sticker on the freezer the way that Nena does (and point to the Dora Exploradora and mundo stickers on the refrigerator). He learns from what his big sister does. It is so cute! We played with Nena outside and gave her a bilingual Little Red Riding Hood picture book. She sat with me with rapt attention as I read it with her. Then afterwards she sat looking at the pictures again. I took Nena and Kuri for rides on their little plastic car around the property. Lunch was cauliflower soup and a big old hamburger with turkey ham, cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup, and mayonnaise. Yupanki helped to prepare it. This was the first time the family had served us an American-style hamburger on a bun. Craig and I did the dishes while Aida prepared the guest rooms for tourists to arrive. Antonio went to pick up Shina and Sisa in Quiroga after Sisa's English lesson. (They had taken buses from Ibarra to Quiroga). They arrived home and the girls were just digging into their hamburgers when the Dutch tourists arrived: Ronald and Carla and their sons Patrick (studying to be a heart surgeon) and Robert (studying filmmaking). Although we were sure that the girls were very hungry after their hours-long bus rides and English classes, they kicked right into gear and put their barely touched burgers into the microwave for safekeeping. (The microwave hasn't functioned in years, but the family uses it as a breadbox of sorts to protect food from the animals). Sisa and Shina offered to take the guests for a walk up to the community center. Antonio's electric band (which plays modern dance music at weddings, baptisms, etc., as opposed to his traditional Andean band which had played at Sisa's quinceañera) arrived for a practice session. We always find it amusing that they practice at full, ear-splitting volume. They cram into a small room and turn the amps up to eleven, so to speak. Craig and I retreated into the casita and actually put earplugs in. I read my Penn Jillette book (Random). The girls came back from their walk with the tourists. They had obviously stopped at the little community store, as the tourists were carrying a couple of bottles of Coke. We wondered what they would think about the loud music rehearsal; it kind of undermined the more bucolic aspects of the homestay. But they seemed to be enjoying the whole experience. Antonio brought the parents two glasses and a bottle of beer. The younger son went into the room with the band to film them. Sisa knocked on our door and asked us to come see her drawing of Cruella De Vil based on the puzzle that we had made together yesterday. So we went and had some coffee at the dining room table. Sisa's drawing, which we had seen in pencil yesterday, was now colored in, and looked indistinguishable from the color picture on the puzzle box. Sisa is a perfectionist and is very precise in her drawings. We knew this from a young age, when she used to fill graph paper with tiny, perfect circles. The tourists from the Netherlands came in and we chatted with them. They were very friendly, and we enjoyed the conversation. We had dinner (quinoa soup, steak, tomato and onion, beans, carrots, broccoli, and rice) and Coke that the family brought. Sisa played songs for them on the guitar. We came back to the casita at 9:30. |
 Nena in her plastic car  Nena reading Little Red Riding Hood  Achi Mama and Kuri  Hamburger lunch See all photos from July 29 |
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