Santiago Ate Guinea Pig!

Hello friends, how are you? Thank you for reading and sorry it took a while to write again. Things in Ecuador have been going well and I am finally truly finding a groove here. I am still waking at 7 for morning prayer with my other six community members and getting to bed at a decent hour at the end of the day. But! enough small talk, let´s enlarge the conversation!

The weekend of September 1 and 2 I went with Patrick, Scott and Jessie to our friend Ararcely´s house in the mountains. Aracely is one of two Ecuadorians who work with Rostro as guides during retreat groups. Ara is 21 now and spends most of her time in our community of Arbolito. So the five of us set out on Friday night to her home in the hills of the province of Tungurahua. Her family´s town, Pilco, is near Mocha, which is close to the capital of Ambato.

We left Friday at 10:45pm and bought a one way six hour bus fare for $6. At about 4:30am we were dropped off on the base of a hill. From there we walked about a half hour up a rock road to get to her home, and at 5am, work her family. It was great. And FREEZING! We were close to 9,000ft above sea level, as opposed to here in Arbolito where we are at 15 feet. Haha anyway, we had a great weekend.

Five of us slept for 2 hours in two beds. We woke up and took the car farther up the hill to milk cows which was sweet. We had a little taste too, and let me tell you, it is much warmer when it comes right out of the cow. The rest of the morning we spent eating breakfast and preparing lunch. The menu: potatos and guinea pig!

Yes, guinea pig. The dish is a delicacy for the indigenous of Ecuador in the mountains...and so we bought live guinea pigs and yes, killed them (sorry if that upsets you, if you want to know how I did it, let me know and I´ll email you) then skinned them, gut them and grilled them. They were declicious! Somewhat like chicken but saltier. So we had a great lunch, when walking through the foggy mountainside, played a little volleyball and then got dinner ready. We ate and were in bed by 8pm asleep by 10pm.

Sunday then was a great day too. We woke up and had cheese empanadas, pretty much bread fold over itself and filled with cheese and then prepared to climb a huge mountain which had a cross on the top. The story goes that there was a cross placed on this mountain, decades ago, about 10,000ft about sealevel, near a lake. But when people went to visit it, they would drown in the lake. THe locals said it was controled by a bad spirit, others just thought people didn´t know how to swim. Anyway, early in Pope JP IIs time, he along with a large group of priests from the US and Ecuador moved the cross farther up the mountain, to the crest. So we treked a similar root through the deep fog and brush (because of the fog you just couldn´t see much around the mountainside) and found the cross, which had a windmill attached to it...but it was more like a pinwheel. Anyway, it was incredibly beautiful. The ground was moist and sponging, like walking on a moon walk but more firm and it last 2 hours uphill, just wonderful. It was all very green and very serene.

We made our way home, then to the bus terminal, an hour away, and headed home, arriving just after midnight. It was a great weekend which lead to a fantastic week. I made more friends here in the neighborhood and ate some sausage and french fries off a street vendor and still feel great. I have been quite fortunate with my health thus far and have not been sick for more than a day in the six weeks I have been here.

That is about it from this neck of the woods, because I have to get going but three more thigns. They have these reverse tricycles here, with two wheels in the front, connected by a plank of wood, used to transport propane tanks, water, appliances or kids. I drove one the other day and while it was hard to manuever, it was cool. Also, two of our guards, who live near the house, next door actually, are both building second floors to the cement homes. I have been helping them a little bit every now and then and it is sweet! I now know how to make a cement floor and support beams. And finally, just three years ago Ecuador was rated as the most corrupt nation in the world...who knew. I am still learning.

Ok amigos, i am sending my love and peace. Thanks for reading, and for your love and prayers!
Santi