C'mon lady. I know you are obviously pissed at something and need to let us all know about it, but could you let a fellow chica get some sleep one of these nights?
Quechua legend has it that Mama Tungurahua is the jilted lover of another nearby volcano called Cotopaxi. Not sure about the logistics of how two volcanoes can be lovers, but Mama must have been burned bad. Maybe lately he's been flirting with another volcanita right in front of her, and Mama needs to let him hear his wrath. Because boyyy, is She loud. And us poor little weak humans are being caught in the middle of this lover's quarrel.
Mama has on occasion lulled us into thinking that She is over it. On Sunday, as much as two hours passed without a peep. But today has been a different story. The eruptions are not as frequent as they were on Friday (the scariest day), but they are still window-shakingly strong.
Today was business as usual at La BIB. The kids showed up and we enjoyed some books and games of Spanish Pictionary (which I created...and it's a HIT!) When we had an hour left to go, we practiced our emergency evacuation plan and took the kids for a walk down to the zona segura (safe zone). On the way back we had some spectacular views of the volcano (without our camera - d'oh!), and had to hold the kids close when Mama decided to blow and shake the ground beneath us. Some of them screeched with each boom, and others just held our hands a little tighter.
It's funny what a person gets used to when exposed to it for some time. Pete and I have both changed in so many ways as a result of this journey - we've learned to live with little, we've become accustomed to less-than-cozy living arrangements, and now you can add our ability to tolerate a violent and menacing volcano to the list. Bizarre, right? It's not near as scary as it first was, and I think that when She finally grows quiet, I might even miss Her.
Except for at night. I needeth the sleepeth! I hope She obliges soon.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Another Tumultuous Day with Mama T
What a day this has been!
I first started off being utterly bitter at this whole situation, thanks to Mama T's refusal to calm down enough to allow for any kind of sleep last night. Until 2 am we sat staring out the window - the clouds had parted somewhat and we could see the ash plume lit up by the moonlight. The sounds were sometimes deafening and varied - it would be like a string of really loud thunder, or firecrackers, or even waves of rhythmic pounding - who knew an erupting volcano could be so musical?
We finally decided to try and get some sleep, but Mama repeatedly shook our windows and bed, and often woke me up with such a start that I'd have to catch my breath, and take a minute to let my heart rate slow down before trying to fall back asleep.
By morning she had calmed, and we managed to catch some more sleep (by "calm", I mean that explosions were only every 15 minutes or so, not every couple of minutes). We were convinced that the worst was over. Baños had seemed to return to a regular level of activity, and we allowed ourselves to unpack our things a bit.
And then, around noon, She started up again. The "booms" started coming more frequently, and the wind had also changed direction - instead of the ash heading directly south and away from us, we were getting a thin blanket of it in town. While Pete was out on a walk I had decided to head out to find some lunch, but as soon as I opened the door, a wind gust gave me a face-full of the ceniza (volcanic ash). That was enough to turn me around and keep me indoors for the afternoon. Yesi (an Ecuadorian employee of La BIB) came by, adorned in her breathing mask, and shared her deep concern with the latest events. Yesi claimed that we were on a higher level of alert then the last time the town was evacuated. She reminded us of the evacuation routes, and generally just got me freaked out all over again. By now we had also noticed that there was a huge army presence in town, perhaps readying for an evacuation? Back upstairs to re-pack the bags.
Mama T changed her mind again, and a couple of hours later, She was quiet. There was no more wind, the bustle of the town even seemed to have slowed it's pace. It was all very eerie, but we were also hopeful that this time that the worst had definitely passed.
However, just as we say aloud to ourselves that "it must be over", She contradicts us. Mama definitely still has something to say. Thankfully, this evening her conversation has been steady but not deafening, and is even mixing with the thunder of a rainstorm so that we no longer know the difference.
Before the rain started, we were gratefully taken out of town to a viewpoint by one of the more permanent volunteers that has a vehicle. The lava flow side of the volcano faces almost directly south (Baños is mostly on the other side), and so we hoped to catch a glimpse of some of the action. We had heard the eruptions, had felt their power, but had yet to actually see anything substantial.
We were not disappointed. As soon as we had stopped the vehicle and took our seats on the tailgate, we were welcomed with a large BOOM and saw the clouds surrounding the crater light up a bright pink. The eruptions continued, not as frequently as the previous night, but enough to allow us to see what all the fuss was about. When the clouds dispersed we saw bright red fireworks - lava rocks flying high into the air and coming down on the side of the volcano with an audible thud. Lightening from behind the volcano lit up it's silhouette and we could clearly see the large plume of ash that hung overhead.
The batteries died in our camera only a few minutes in (d'oh!), but we weren't too disappointed about it. It was amazing just to be able to sit silently and see the power of nature at work like we've never seen before. Mama T has humbled us as humans, while giving us the show of a lifetime.
Some grand experiences in life can never possibly be duplicated, and I am sure that this is one of them.
We didn't get very many good pictures, click here for some images by newsgroups online.
Picture from Pete's walk in the afternoon.
The grayish cloud in the middle is the ash plume,
the crater is almost constantly covered in clouds.
Our viewing at night - some lava rocks
Karl, Jill, Me and Rob
Our volcano viewing tailgate party!
I first started off being utterly bitter at this whole situation, thanks to Mama T's refusal to calm down enough to allow for any kind of sleep last night. Until 2 am we sat staring out the window - the clouds had parted somewhat and we could see the ash plume lit up by the moonlight. The sounds were sometimes deafening and varied - it would be like a string of really loud thunder, or firecrackers, or even waves of rhythmic pounding - who knew an erupting volcano could be so musical?
We finally decided to try and get some sleep, but Mama repeatedly shook our windows and bed, and often woke me up with such a start that I'd have to catch my breath, and take a minute to let my heart rate slow down before trying to fall back asleep.
By morning she had calmed, and we managed to catch some more sleep (by "calm", I mean that explosions were only every 15 minutes or so, not every couple of minutes). We were convinced that the worst was over. Baños had seemed to return to a regular level of activity, and we allowed ourselves to unpack our things a bit.
And then, around noon, She started up again. The "booms" started coming more frequently, and the wind had also changed direction - instead of the ash heading directly south and away from us, we were getting a thin blanket of it in town. While Pete was out on a walk I had decided to head out to find some lunch, but as soon as I opened the door, a wind gust gave me a face-full of the ceniza (volcanic ash). That was enough to turn me around and keep me indoors for the afternoon. Yesi (an Ecuadorian employee of La BIB) came by, adorned in her breathing mask, and shared her deep concern with the latest events. Yesi claimed that we were on a higher level of alert then the last time the town was evacuated. She reminded us of the evacuation routes, and generally just got me freaked out all over again. By now we had also noticed that there was a huge army presence in town, perhaps readying for an evacuation? Back upstairs to re-pack the bags.
Mama T changed her mind again, and a couple of hours later, She was quiet. There was no more wind, the bustle of the town even seemed to have slowed it's pace. It was all very eerie, but we were also hopeful that this time that the worst had definitely passed.
However, just as we say aloud to ourselves that "it must be over", She contradicts us. Mama definitely still has something to say. Thankfully, this evening her conversation has been steady but not deafening, and is even mixing with the thunder of a rainstorm so that we no longer know the difference.
Before the rain started, we were gratefully taken out of town to a viewpoint by one of the more permanent volunteers that has a vehicle. The lava flow side of the volcano faces almost directly south (Baños is mostly on the other side), and so we hoped to catch a glimpse of some of the action. We had heard the eruptions, had felt their power, but had yet to actually see anything substantial.
We were not disappointed. As soon as we had stopped the vehicle and took our seats on the tailgate, we were welcomed with a large BOOM and saw the clouds surrounding the crater light up a bright pink. The eruptions continued, not as frequently as the previous night, but enough to allow us to see what all the fuss was about. When the clouds dispersed we saw bright red fireworks - lava rocks flying high into the air and coming down on the side of the volcano with an audible thud. Lightening from behind the volcano lit up it's silhouette and we could clearly see the large plume of ash that hung overhead.
The batteries died in our camera only a few minutes in (d'oh!), but we weren't too disappointed about it. It was amazing just to be able to sit silently and see the power of nature at work like we've never seen before. Mama T has humbled us as humans, while giving us the show of a lifetime.
Some grand experiences in life can never possibly be duplicated, and I am sure that this is one of them.
We didn't get very many good pictures, click here for some images by newsgroups online.
Picture from Pete's walk in the afternoon.The grayish cloud in the middle is the ash plume,
the crater is almost constantly covered in clouds.
Our viewing at night - some lava rocks
Karl, Jill, Me and RobOur volcano viewing tailgate party!
Friday, May 28, 2010
Courtesy of Mama Tungurahua
Over breakfast this morning, it started. What sounded like harmless low rumblings of thunder turned out to be eruptions of the nearby volcano Tungurahua.
The intensity increased, and the windows of our apartment were constantly rattling, but we could see nothing. Our vision of the volcano is obscured by a hill between us, and we were even unable to see the resulting ash plume because of thick clouds.
So, armed with our cameras, we went for a closer look! Turistas estupidas, right? I am sure that is what many of the locals thought as we made our way out of town to a lookout point. We stopped where we should have been able to see the crater, but unfortunately had no better view due to the clouds. Instead, we only had to be satisfied with actually being able to feel Mama's wrath - our proximity to the volcano meant much louder booms and a resulting increased heart rate!
Throughout town, people seemed to be a little on edge, and many shops were boarded up. Once we got back we were warned that the town was now on high alert, and also told that two towns nearby had been evacuated. We were issued masks (for the ash) and told to pack our bags in case we had to leave. Fortunately, La BIB does have an evacuation plan in place, and so if we hear the town's sirens wailing, we have a secured ride out of town and place to go.
Into the afternoon and this evening, She seems to have calmed down. Eruptions are less frequent, although we still hear some pretty big booms. People in town are going about their business as usual, and some locals we talked to are even planning to get as close as possible tonight to hopefully see some action - if they are not terribly worried about it, then we won't be either.
This is not new for Mama, She likes to cause some disturbances every few months, yet She hasn't caused any deaths or damage to our town of Baños for three generations. What is a little different this time around is that the eruptions started in the morning (they are usually only at night), and the constant intensity of them. A little scary, but we will both freely admit, we also think it is pretty cool to be experiencing this.
Quite an exciting day in our little pueblo! We will keep this up to date if anything changes. And hopefully with some pictures next time!
For more info, click here for one of the more recent news postings.
The intensity increased, and the windows of our apartment were constantly rattling, but we could see nothing. Our vision of the volcano is obscured by a hill between us, and we were even unable to see the resulting ash plume because of thick clouds.
So, armed with our cameras, we went for a closer look! Turistas estupidas, right? I am sure that is what many of the locals thought as we made our way out of town to a lookout point. We stopped where we should have been able to see the crater, but unfortunately had no better view due to the clouds. Instead, we only had to be satisfied with actually being able to feel Mama's wrath - our proximity to the volcano meant much louder booms and a resulting increased heart rate!
Throughout town, people seemed to be a little on edge, and many shops were boarded up. Once we got back we were warned that the town was now on high alert, and also told that two towns nearby had been evacuated. We were issued masks (for the ash) and told to pack our bags in case we had to leave. Fortunately, La BIB does have an evacuation plan in place, and so if we hear the town's sirens wailing, we have a secured ride out of town and place to go.
Into the afternoon and this evening, She seems to have calmed down. Eruptions are less frequent, although we still hear some pretty big booms. People in town are going about their business as usual, and some locals we talked to are even planning to get as close as possible tonight to hopefully see some action - if they are not terribly worried about it, then we won't be either.
This is not new for Mama, She likes to cause some disturbances every few months, yet She hasn't caused any deaths or damage to our town of Baños for three generations. What is a little different this time around is that the eruptions started in the morning (they are usually only at night), and the constant intensity of them. A little scary, but we will both freely admit, we also think it is pretty cool to be experiencing this.
Quite an exciting day in our little pueblo! We will keep this up to date if anything changes. And hopefully with some pictures next time!
For more info, click here for one of the more recent news postings.
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Odds and Ends
Little time and little cohesiveness to my thoughts means...a point form summary of what's been happening!
- Busy, BUSY days at La BIB. Never did I think that during our travels I would actually have a "to do" list to attend to. But I do. And so this will be short so I can get back at it.
- We have actually made some plans! Plans that extend longer then next week! With all of the fun that we are having at La BIB and in Baños, we have decided to stay here right up until we return to Canada in August.
- That is, if Baños will have us. My slight worry about not being welcomed to stay is due to our collective La BIB performance at a local karaoke bar on Friday. I am pretty sure that the whole town heard our renditions of Four Non Blondes "What's Going On" and The Eagles "Hotel California". I think we attempted every English song they had in the book, and even a few Spanish ones. At one point, I apologized to the bartender on behalf of our group, and he said to me: "Well, at least you have a beautiful face." Compliment? Don't think so.
- Thinking of going on a holiday? Then use www.fatpassport.com to help you plan, and you may actually read some of my "expert" reviews! That's right, I am now a paid contributor to this website and have much to add from our journey in South America. I've made $16 so far (which, incidentally, is my entire 2010 income)! Woo hoo!
- We are a-shakin' and a-rattlin' here. Since we've settled in Baños, we have felt actual tremors 3 times! Nothing major, apparently it is quite common to get tiny tremors resonating from an epicenter quite far away. It is not possible to actually feel them unless we're sitting absolutely still or laying down. The first time was pretty unnerving, and now we just think it's pretty cool.
- I HAVE JEANS! This may seem entirely inconsequential to most of you, but to me, it is a BIG deal. I haven't worn jeans in 9 months, and now I have my very own pair of handcrafted Ecuadorian jeans, for a whopping price of $15. I might go get me another pair. They feel damn good! Next up: perhaps I will find me some sneakers!
- Busy, BUSY days at La BIB. Never did I think that during our travels I would actually have a "to do" list to attend to. But I do. And so this will be short so I can get back at it.
- We have actually made some plans! Plans that extend longer then next week! With all of the fun that we are having at La BIB and in Baños, we have decided to stay here right up until we return to Canada in August.
- That is, if Baños will have us. My slight worry about not being welcomed to stay is due to our collective La BIB performance at a local karaoke bar on Friday. I am pretty sure that the whole town heard our renditions of Four Non Blondes "What's Going On" and The Eagles "Hotel California". I think we attempted every English song they had in the book, and even a few Spanish ones. At one point, I apologized to the bartender on behalf of our group, and he said to me: "Well, at least you have a beautiful face." Compliment? Don't think so.
- Thinking of going on a holiday? Then use www.fatpassport.com to help you plan, and you may actually read some of my "expert" reviews! That's right, I am now a paid contributor to this website and have much to add from our journey in South America. I've made $16 so far (which, incidentally, is my entire 2010 income)! Woo hoo!
- We are a-shakin' and a-rattlin' here. Since we've settled in Baños, we have felt actual tremors 3 times! Nothing major, apparently it is quite common to get tiny tremors resonating from an epicenter quite far away. It is not possible to actually feel them unless we're sitting absolutely still or laying down. The first time was pretty unnerving, and now we just think it's pretty cool.
- I HAVE JEANS! This may seem entirely inconsequential to most of you, but to me, it is a BIG deal. I haven't worn jeans in 9 months, and now I have my very own pair of handcrafted Ecuadorian jeans, for a whopping price of $15. I might go get me another pair. They feel damn good! Next up: perhaps I will find me some sneakers!
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Our Kids
If I could fold Angie's tiny self up and carry her around in my pocket, I would. She is so quiet and shy. She barely says a word, except for the daily Buenos Dias upon her arrival at La BIB.
When she wants to play a game, she'll just bring it over and gently tap me on the shoulder. She usually wins. She is incredibly smart, athletic, and as you can plainly see, beautiful.
I doubt Angie realizes what a special kid she truly is. I hope she will someday.
Stalin is just one of those easy going kids that you can't help but beam as soon as you see him. He has a very playful personality, and his face is rarely without a big smile.
Within two days, he had a special handshake with Pete. He must live near La BIB because we have seen him a few times in the area, and he never fails to come over to say hello.
He reminds me so much of Avery. Very easy to love.
I don't know Pamela's story. She is obviously one of the more disadvantaged kids at La BIB. Her clothes are usually soiled, as is her pretty face and thick hair.
Beneath the soil is a sweet girl who loves attention. She is the first one to come in for a hug as soon as the door opens, and she loves to sit on my lap while we draw and color together.
Pamela is one of the many who waits outside for up to an hour before we open the doors in the afternoon. We are happy to be a part of this place that has so much to offer her.
Help us make a difference with these kids! Click here to see how!
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