Thanksgiving in Cuenca

Thanksgiving began with a beautiful sunny day --  the perfect weather for the Turkey Trot scheduled for 9AM.  We met at the starting point which was Otoronga Plaza.

This event was to benefit the "Fundacion El Arenal".  Some of the women who work at the El Arenal Mercado (Feria Libre) were present and very thankful for any help we were able to give them.  (Please see updated information at the bottom of this blog.)

These women represented the families working at El Arenal.

And they gave out brochures explaining the Fundacion, which provides services for their children while they are at work.  Their services include school support, workshops, family and individual counseling, healthcare, etc.  Before the Fundacion started, the children (ages 5-17) would be seen on the street trying to make money for their families by shining shoes, selling newspapers or vegetables, or carrying loads and working between 5 and 12 hours a day.  With this Fundacion, they can just be children who thrive under the care of the Fundacion.




They made posters to depict how the Fundacion helps their children.

"Development"

Turkey Trot
The following are pictures of the 2 to 3 mile walk/run.

Walkers are starting (the joggers are already long gone!)

The course was along the Rio Tomebamba

Those in front of me . . .

. . . and just to prove I wasn't last, those behind me!

The turnaround point at Puente Roto (Broken Bridge)

Starting up the 83 steps that lead to town

Mike's thinking:  "What took you so long?"

Ending point (Kookaburra Cafe)

Our prize!

We received a handwoven turkey from the Asociacion de Toquilleras Maria Auxilladora (women's hat-making cooperative)

Thanksgiving Dinner

In the afternoon,we went to California Kitchen for a full Thanksgiving dinner (roasted leg of lamb, roast turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, green bean casserole, cranberry sauce, homemade rolls, pumpkin pie, mora cobbler, and cheesecake).  Needless to say, we were very happy, indeed.

The restaurant was packed and we knew only about 10% of the people there!

Hoping that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving, too.

Updated Information from an email received from Mark Raderstorf (organizer of the event):

Hola Turkey Trotters,

Thank you for participating in the first annual turkey trot. 

With your contribution, we were able to donate over $100 to 

El Arenal Foundation - this will go a long way at this program. 

I gave the money to director Bette yesterday and she was very excited 

and appreciative. 

Just a couple of followup items:

1.  Several of you expressed  an interest in volunteering at El Arenal. 

Please let me know if you would like to help out ( I am there 4 

afternoons a week). The programs for the kids run from 2 to 5:45. 

I am glad to show you around the place if you want to just take a look. 

Habla Espanol is not necessary. 

2.  El Arenal would love to create a website for the foundation. 

If you have website skills or know someone that does, they would love 

to tap into your talents.  Just let me know. 

3.  Bette would like photos of the event to show other parents, - 

if you have any you could pass on to me, I would appreciate it. 

Due to popular demand, we are already planning a jingle bell run/walk 

for Saturday morning, December 17th.  More info to follow. 

Hope to see on the 17th! 

Muchos gracias, 

Mark Raderstorf 

Getting an Ecuadorian Driver's License (Part 1 of 3)

We have been in Cuenca now for 15 months and have been getting around fine without a car.  When we need to get somewhere, we usually walk or take a taxi, depending on how far away we need to go.  And sometimes our friends that have cars will drive us where we want to go.  Since this has worked out fine for us, why are we thinking about getting a driver's license now?

Sometime next year, we plan on relocating to Cotacachi -- a small town in the northern Andes.  It is about 60 miles from Quito, and about 15 miles from Ibarra (the closest large town where we would go shopping, etc.).  Life would be much easier for us if we had a car in Cotacachi, so we can run errands in our own car. 

There's been some information out there about not needing to go through the entire process required for getting a license here if you already have a valid driver's license (international or otherwise).  Since no one has definite data on this, we decided to not take the short cut but to do it the right way and get our license just like everyone else has to for the first time.  Also, why wouldn't we want to know what the rules of the road are, and what all of the signs mean?

So here is what we have done to date just to get registered at the driving school.  (Everyone who wants to get a driver's license for the first time must go through a driving school here.)  We choose Aneta (the Automovil Club del Ecuador).  The reason we choose Aneta over the other schools is because they allow an interpreter to attend with you and there is no extra charge.  This is important for us since the driving school is all in Spanish, and we want to understand what is being taught.

Aneta is located on the Autopista km 1 y Avenida Las Americas.  We will be attending on Saturday and Sunday for 4 weekends from 8am to noon.  The first two hours are classroom work, and the second two hours are for driving.  (You can also take the course during the week if you choose.)  Our class starts on Dec. 4th and ends on Jan. 8th.  (No classes over Christmas and New Year's holidays.)

Before you can register with Aneta, you must pass the following tests:

• Vision test
• Reflex test (red and green lights)
• Coordination tests (2 different kinds)

After passing the above tests, you can then register with Aneta by providing the following documentation:

• 2 copies of the Cruz Roja card indicating your blood type.  (First you need to go to Cruz Roja; they will collect your blood; determine your blood type; and give you a card with your blood type on it.  Cost $4.)
• Original and 1 color copy of your Police Record.  (First you need to register at the Police Dept.  Give them a color copy of your Cedula and two passport-sized photos.  Fill out a form and they will then give you a Record Policial.  Cost $5.)
• 2 color copies of your Cedula
• 2 passport-sized color photos
• Color copy of your passport (front page, and visa page)
• Color copy of your Censo
• Cost $185.40.

 Will provide updates as we go along.

Weekly Update

Time Change
Daylight Savings Time ended this past weekend in the U. S., which means that Ecuador is now in the same time zone as New York.

English-Speaking Church in Cuenca
If you have missed going to church in Cuenca where you understand the songs and the sermon, come to Calvary Chapel where they have started a 10:00am English service on Sundays.  The entire service (songs, sermon, bulletin) is in English.  If you want to practice your Spanish you could come to either the 9:00am or 11:00am service which is all in Spanish.

We love going to this church and have made a lot of friends, both ex-pats and Ecuadorians.  The church is located near Tres Puentes, on the corner of Solano and Belisario Andrade.  Their website is:  http://calvaryecuador.wordpress.com/who-we-are/.

Dia de los Difuntos

When we were recently in Cotacachi, we experienced firsthand what "Dia de los Difuntos" is.  It is very interesting to see how the families here view their departed loved ones -- they are still very much a part of the family unit, and their memory is kept alive through this tradition.

Entering the cemetery

Every year on November 2nd, Dia de los Difuntos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated in Latin America.  It is a very important day.  All businesses and schools are closed.  Everyone brings flowers to place on the graves, and they also bring their departed loved one's favorite food to eat at the grave site, making for a picnic-type celebration.  In addition to the food, they make the traditional food for this special day:  A drink called "Colada Morada" and the baby-shaped breads called "Guaguas de Pan" (guaguas means "kids" in Kichwa, the native language of the Incas). This day allows the entire community to gather together and strengthens the community spirit, as they share stories of their deceased loved ones.   

Daniel (left) and Segundo, the mayor's brother

We had a group of about 25 gringos attend this event at the local cemetery in Cotacachi.  Our local guide Daniel translated as the mayor's brother (Segundo) explained the significance of this day.   Segundo explained how the Cosmic Universe of the Indigenous here is divided into three worlds. The powers above include the creative spirit and the sun, stars and weather. The middle world is our biosphere and Mother Nature which is called Pacha Mama in Kichwa. Underlying these two is a lower world which the dead move through and which also corresponds to our own inner spiritual nature. To have spiritual peace and guidance, an Indigenous person is expected to demonstrate respect for family -- past and present.

 

It is probably impossible now to unravel which aspects of Ecuador's “Sierra” (mountain) culture come from before the Inca conquered the local tribes here. The Inca controlled this area for only about fifty years before the Spaniards came. The mixtures of belief systems in the Andes that developed from these culture-clashes are interesting in their own right. Pacha Mama and Virgin Mary are used interchangeably in Indigenous ceremonies. Sharing bread and drink are, of course, common to most cultures. The concepts of good and bad here are based on selfless versus selfish, just like almost everywhere where people live together.

This little girl is dressed so cute

The little girl and boy in the background are wearing the typical Indigenous clothes

“Bovedas” or “Nichos”

One concept that may appear unique is that a family plot here is often literally a place for the remains of family members to rest close together. Keeping these together makes it possible to reunite the living extended family regularly in one place. Sharing quality time together in honor of the memory of the dead keeps the spirits alive in a sense that is valued here. Some Mestizo families have family members' bones kept together in “Bovedas” or “Nichos” in a Mausoleum-like structure above ground at the cemetery.

Segundo explained that, for the Indigenous, being buried intact with others in the family ancestry, with the bones being kept under the ground is important, so that the spirit of the deceased can begin the voyage to the under-world with integrity, and can more easily reach the end from where it can return to help watch over family. He adds that the soul is purified on its path, so good or bad, all people end up in the same place. Segundo continues to explain that once the purification of the soul is completed, this spirit should be able to help the rest of the family if the family pays its respects. An “egotistical” or bad person, Segundo says, will have a harder time with the purification, but even the best person's spirit will not help the family that does not show respect for the deceased. The greatest characters in life can maintain a long-lasting spirit in beautiful or powerful places, continued Segundo, where their presence as a guardian may even be sensed long after death, so in this sense- the more positive social impact a person makes, the longer their memory lasts, and the longer their spirit lasts.

Baby holding his Guagua de Pan!

Mike with Colada Morada and Guagua de Pan

Daniel made for us Guaguas de Pan which are dipped into the Colada Morada drink.  The drink is similar to red wine in color and is traditionally made with blue-black corn, wild raspberry and blueberry juice, and a traditional herb bundle of red amaranth (sanguarachi) flowers, orange tree leaves, panela or other sugar, cloves, allspice, ishpingo (some call it cinnamon flower), cinnamon bark, star anise, arrayan (a type of myrtle), yierba luisa (the local lemongrass), and cedron (lemon verbena).  Usually you'll also see pineapple, strawberries and apple in it, but Daniel likes to work with traditional local fruits, so he used passionfruit juice and added Andean palm coconut juice  The purple color of the drink symbolizes the grief and the blood of those who have departed. 

A band was playing

Indigenous gathering around the grave sites . . .

. . . and eating together on their loved one's graves

Leaving the cemetery