T-Minus One Month

I know, I know, I haven't written a blog in a couple weeks, and I'm sorry, but I just don't want to write a post that just tells you what my daily routine is, Uber boring. Need to keep our faithful readers somewhat interested...

Time is winding down for me in Baños. Today marks exactly one month and I will reunited with Dalene who I miss ever so much, and reunited with my passport country, which to be honest, I don't miss much at all.

To say the least, it has been extremely difficult to be apart from Dalene for this long, but we both knew it would be. The cochroaches in the apartment have become my new flatmates but do a shitty job of keeping me company, so I resort to offing them.

Say hello to my little friend

Again, thankfully for Skype I am able to see Dalene (when the internet is working), but I don't know how many times I have just stared at her for a few seconds, then told her to get her ass on a plane and get back here. Overall the decision for me to stay (and Dalene to go) was the right one and we have no regrets. My time here has been ever so rewarding. The experiences, the kids, the volunteers (well most of them), and the family at the BIB have been incredible.

Anyway, here is what has happened over the past couple weeks:

- I got my Visa extension!!! After 4, 8 hour round-trips to Quito, I finally was handed my passport with the extension in it. RELIEF!! Of course, needless to say, the other volunteers and I went out and partied to celebrate.

Yo y Sam

- I decided to take on instructing Yoga classes for the children. With the help of Cecilia (a volunteer from Spain) it was a huge hit and we ended up having 2 classes instead of 1 because of the amount of kids who signed up. The kids seemed to really get into it, although I am still having to teach them the meaning of "tranquilo" at times.






- On the weekend some other volunteers and I decided to take off for a day trip to Rio Bamba.

waitin' for the bus

The city sits at the base of extinct Volcan Chimbarazo. On a clear day the volcano is supposed to be magnificent. In fact, the volcano has the famed reputation of being the highest point on earth. Because of it's longitudinal position the volcano actually sits higher than 7000 ft than Mt. Everest. So if you want to get as close as you can to the sun, this is the mountain that you need to climb.

Although touted in the tour books as being a delightful city with beautiful scenery, we were not fortunate to get a clear day and so the distant views were not spectacular.

We had only a day to spend here, and we stuck around town. We got to experience the mercado mayorista which turned out to be just a huge vegetable emporium and not the market we were looking for. So we eventually found our way back to the centro and were able to take in what beauty Rio Bamba had to offer. On Saturdays the streets shut down from traffic and vendors line them for about 6 square blocks. They sell EVERYTHING, from fruits and veg, clothes, batteries, nail clippers, and animals.

Oops, wrong market

Chris and Sam, we found it eventually

Yes, they sell everything...

Animal market

One thing about traveling is that you have to have patience and an eye to see the beauty that every place has to offer. Given how long I have been traveling, it takes a lot more to amaze me. But being open to new places and aimlessly wandering does have its benefits. We were able to capture some cool shots of the city, and some art in the form of wall graffiti.



Having spare time on the weekends means that I need to find things to do. For some reason I had a craving for chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. Sam had told me that her sister's birthday was on Monday, so that was the only excuse I needed to get my ass in gear. The result was awesome!! Too bad that her sister couldn't have enjoyed a piece with us.




As a result of this, the BIB will be hosting a Birthday day for all the kids at the BIB and guess who's baking the cakes. Uh huh, this guy.




We have a busy month ahead of us. The BIB is planning a yard sale at the end of the month and a benefit concert. Classes are in full swing because school is out and the kids want to take English lessons. The classes are nearly packed and finding a desk space is pretty difficult these days at the BIB. Some of us are thinking about escaping for a quick trip out to the coast, which I am really hoping happens. I would like to see the ocean one last time before I make my way home.

Sam has done an awesome job painting some of the furniture in the library. Amy and Chris have taken on a handful of English classes, and new art projects for the niños. Sam and I have tackled an Inter-cambio (an exchange for English and Spanish speakers to improve on their language) on our own and it actually went pretty good, at least we think the crowd enjoyed it.

We truly are FAMily here.



Until next time.

Suerte.

Community

One of the best things about sitting still in one location for awhile is immersing ourselves in the culture and getting to know some of the locals. We feel totally at home in this small city and a real part of the population. Kids from La BIB run up to us on the street, eager to say hello and give us hugs or high fives. Pete even had one of his English students track us down at our apartment to get some of her homework corrected - we aren't sure how she found out exactly where we are living - but in this small and busy town, we weren't really surprised that she could.

One of the most fascinating people we have met is our new friend Alfonso Morales. A regular student of La BIB's evening classes, I have had the pleasure of helping him work on improving his spoken English. By his invitation on Saturday afternoon, we ventured out of town and across the river to his beautiful hostel Las Granadillas (means passionfruit) for an afternoon of World Cup Soccer, volcano viewing, and great conversation.

Beautiful views of Baños from Alfonso's hostel patio

Alfonso has been confined to a wheelchair for 23 years, due to an accident he had while working on the dangerous highways surrounding Baños. Such a tragic situation would break and traumatize most people, however he is one of those amazing spirits that has turned a bad situation into something really beautiful.

He is a paralympian - having competed in the 1996 summer games in Atlanta. He has traveled all over the world - throughout South America, much of the USA, and even to Switzerland (it is VERY rare for someone from around here to be so well traveled). Much of his travels have been to attend (and present at) conferences on overcoming disabilities. He spent two months at school in San Francisco studying wheelchair design, to hopefully bring improvements for people who are disabled and living in locales with difficult accessibility. He even served on the Baños town council for four years, and was responsible for the wheelchair ramps on sidewalks all over town (another rarity in South America).

We were treated like royalty while Alfonso and his mother busied themselves in their hostel kitchen, preparing us coffee, snacks of roasted split bananas with melted cheese and raisins (so good!), and finally some tea made from plant leaves they picked right from their front terrace. Alfonso has some really great stories, and to get to know him in this way has been a real joy.

After such a lovely afternoon, we will even forgive him for citing the Village People as one of his favourite musical groups! We are making him some new CD's to correct this issue =)

And then...

I had written the above portion about how-great-it-is-to-be-a-part-of-this-community right after our beautiful Saturday afternoon. Before Sunday. Before the incident that introduced us to the not-so-friendly-community of our local bus terminal.

Sunday afternoon we decided to be tourists for a few hours and strapped on our hiking shoes. Our destination was Rio Verde - a small village about a 15 minute drive from Baños, and home to one of the top 10 most beautiful waterfalls in the world (as decided by National Geographic). We had seen only the top of El Pailón del Diablo waterfall on a previous venture, and this hike was going to complete the picture.

The bus station was very busy, and the four of us (two other volunteers with Pete and I), took our spot on the sidewalk, waiting for one of the next frequent buses to take us north out of town. While we waited, we were exposed to a little drama that borderlined on the scary.

Buses were backed up outside of the parking lot, and had been for several minutes. Instead of waiting for one of the parking spots to open up, one bus opened it's doors and the passengers started pouring out. The undercarriage baggage gates were lifted and people rifled through the luggage to find their bags.

Meanwhile, spots started to open up. The first bus behind the unloading bus got impatient. Horns were honking, drivers were yelling. Finally, the small driver from the second bus had enough - he stormed off, and proceeded to get in the face of the driver of the unloading bus.

It didn't take long before flying curses became flying punches, and the belt of one of the drivers soon also became a weapon. With a bloody lip and nose, the second bus driver returned to his bus, and came back wielding a baseball bat that had been hidden behind the seat. The crowd around us grew, and everyone was very anxious as to what would happen next via the angry young man with the bat. As he approached the unloading bus and tightened his grip, he suddenly stopped short. The driver of the first bus had reached behind his seat too. And the angry young man realized that his bat would be no good against a machete.

That was the end of that. Dirty looks were the last things exchanged, and everyone went back about their business.

Okay then! That was some interesting excitement in our day - the first almost-machete-fight we've ever seen. Hopefully, the last!

On the bus we went, off to see this waterfall:


Very purdy! And a good burst of exercise to get there and back. Totally worth all the excitement!


Oh Mama, I miss you.
It has been several days since we heard from Mama Tungurahua. While Her daily entry in Her internet diary still says that activity is high (thanks to potentially troublesome ash that is still being emitted every so often), She has become very still and quiet. No more window rattlers, not even a murmur. The excitement of living with an active, life threatening force of nature is apparently over.

Sigh. It was fun while it lasted.

While at Alfonso's on Saturday, we did get to see one of Her massive ash emissions. If only it wasn't for the damn clouds, we could have had some amazing pictures.

The grey puffiness in the middle of the clouds is the ceniza

Up and Down

Everytime we think it must be over - She starts up again. And vice versa. Mama is an unpredictable one.

At least we seem to be getting more used to it. During the last couple of nights, Pete and I have had very blissful sleep, despite reports that She had let off some good shakers in the middle of the night. To us, it seems much quieter compared to what we had on the weekend. And by "quiet", I mean that we still get a couple of good booms, but they are much farther apart (up to an hour) and don't usually generate a "woah-that-was-a-gooder" response from anyone.

However, Mama's activity (as recorded by volcanologists), seems to be increasing. An interview played on a local radio station yesterday said that her activity levels were rising, but a little less then they rose on Friday. That's good, I guess? No one seems to be willing to commit to any sort definitive answer about what to expect. And we have learned by now not to even rely on comments from Bañenos. One man's concern is another's man's joke.

This morning they tested the alarms (thank Gawd we knew about it, otherwise - how scary!) and all seem to be working fine.

We are trusting our own instincts, and so are staying put for the time being. Because Mama T is one of the most active volcanoes in the world, all of the top "volcano institutes" are watching her. If there is sincere danger to our little town, I am sure we will know about it. And we will follow all directives when issued. But until then, we are staying put and witnessing one of the most incredible and unique events we could have hoped to experience on this trip!

The Show Must Go On!
Despite the school's being closed due to Mama's activity, the doors at La BIB have been wide open, and we even threw a little party on Tuesday!

Remember as a kid, after celebrating Mother's and Father's Day, asking this inevitable question - when is Kid's Day? To which would always follow, the inevitable answer - every day is Kid's Day!

Well, Ecuadorians do not apparently subscribe to this theory! June 1st of every year is Kid's Day, and the eager kids are even awarded a day off from school. And what better time for La BIB to throw a party - to celebrate the kids as well as take everyone's mind off of the burping volcano in the background.

We had three-legged races, potato sack races, musical chairs, and even a dance competition! There were lots of prizes, and we were FULL of kids, more came then we anticipated.

Getting ready for musical chairs!

It was a really fun afternoon, and I do believe the party well served it's purpose. Once again, we are pleasantly amazed at the good that this little organization does for the community.

Thanks to all that have already made donations to La BIB! For any of those who haven't had a chance to donate yet, follow this link to do it!

Caught in the Middle

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.

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!

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.

Green!

Everywhere we are, in every town we visit, Pete and I are in a constant state of evaluation. What is there to do around here? How expensive is it? What is the weather like year round? Could we live here?

We came into this journey with some expectations, or at least some assumptions as to what would have the most appeal to us. Growing up in the frigid, landlocked north of Alberta, we expected that there would be nothing that could compare to the draw of the warm ocean. We envisioned evenings on a beach, watching the sunset with a glass of wine. Sweating from the hot of the equatorial sun instead of from the workout of shoveling snow.

And while that vision still carries a lot of appeal, there is also a new contender in town. And it can be summed up with one adjective: GREEN!

All around us in Banos, there is green. The mountains are covered in lush foliage all year round. And when not set against a brilliantly contrasting blue sky, they are draped in layers of mystical clouds, seemingly close enough to touch. They are alive with the many waterfalls and crystal clear rivers. They are majestic, enchanting and inspiring. I could just stare out our windows all day long and never tire of the view.

Saturday morning we decided to take to the green, and embarked on a hike along the mountainside north of Baños, east and across a large canyon from the one main highway. It was led by Karl, one of our fearless leaders at La BIB, and he took us along an old smuggling route used back in the days of prohibition (yes, it was hard for us to believe that prohibition existed here too!) Karl said he has done this hike several times before, but part way through, we were questioning whether or not ANYONE had ever come this way before.

We walked through some serious, Indiana Jones shit! A machete, whip, or any number of tools would have been helpful through parts of the wildly overgrown paths. We got our fill of "green" - as it smacked us in the face, scratched our arms, and deceitfully covered holes that we then stepped into.

It was a amazingly beautiful setting, when we actually stopped ourselves to enjoy it. It was not the sort of hike that allowed for a casual stroll while gazing at the vista all around us. If it wasn't overgrown with plants, then it was a pit of mud, and we slipped and slid our way up and down the mountainside.

We are tiny little specks against the green mountainside

Check out my mud-encased pants and shoes

After almost four hours of hiking, we stopped for lunch and then continued a little further to one of the regions many tarabita's - a very basic basket style cable car to take us back across the canyon at quite a rapid speed. There are five of them along the canyon around Baños, I would love to just ride back and forth in them all day, taking in the beauty!

Tarabita across the canyon

Our chariot!

Safely on the other side of the canyon and at the highway, we hopped on a bus to our next stop of Rio Verde - home of Pailón del Diablo (Devil's Cauldron) - a waterfall recognized by the National Geographic as one of the ten most beautiful in the world! The area surrounding the top of the waterfall is actually owned by a Canadian, who Karl aptly described as quite...interesting.

That he is! Antonio warmly welcomed us and gave us the briefest introduction of how to enjoy his land: "Just remember the Beatles song - All you need is love! That's all that needs to be said."

And this is what he meant:



After hiking around his property, we returned to the town of Rio Verde and escaped the hot sun for a much needed cold beverage. Enjoying the rest and the shade more then the prospective of any more exercise, we forewent the last portion of the prescribed hike, deciding to save the views from the bottom of the waterfall (in the midst of all the green!) for another day.

For more GREEN (and other pictures)....click here.