Ambato and Beyond

So I guess now I’m an Ambateña…well, getting there at least. I’ve been in Ambato for over a week now, and it’s beginning to feel a bit more like home. I have photos up in my room, I have become somewhat of a regular at a few cafés, and I am finally figuring out the bus routes, which I assure you is no small task. But it has been so nice having this past week off so that I could plan my semester, hang out with my family, and get to explore a bit more of Ambato and the towns around it. I realize, though, that I haven’t really painted a good picture of Ambato for you all yet, so I will try to do my best! Here it goes…

So the guidebooks aren’t very forgiving with Ambato, but I definitely found it to be a lot cozier and comforting than expected. Though it is a small modern city, it definitely has its fair share of charm as well. From anywhere you find yourself in Ambato you will see hills and mountains around you on all sides. The Volcán Tungurahua can be seen sometimes as well, puffing out gray clouds of smoke. The center of the city is your basic city grid, with a few really pretty parks scattered throughout. The amount of stores in Ambato is almost unreal…I don’t know how they all stay in business! Walking down your typical Ambato street will put you face to face with DVD stores ($1 each), pharmacies, clothing stores, little food shops, tons of chicken restaurants, bakeries that small like heaven (Ambato is famous for its bread), street vendors, indigenous men and women selling things on the sidewalk, and tons of stray dogs running around. One never knows what to expect!

One thing that I just cannot get used to, though, are the little children selling things in the street. Often times they have worn clothing and no shoes, and do cartwheels in the streets to make money. It breaks my heart every time. And this situation presents me with one of the moral dilemmas I've been faced with here so far- I just don't know how best to react. So much of me wants to pour out my pockets into these kids' hands, or at least to give them a little something. At the same time, though, the parents supposedly often rely mainly on their children to make the family's money, and giving money to the child then enforces this child labor. What is the right thing to do? And even if one does decide to give money, there are just too many kids or other beggers on the street to possibly be able to help them all (especially on a volunteer's budget). But something in me really thinks that at least giving a little bit of money to someone acknowledges them and their suffering, and then puts the choice of what to do with the money in their own hands. Not everything is ours to decide I guess. So I'll have to think on it and decide what I think is the best thing for me to do for the rest of my year here.

So now to continue on our Ambato tour: The main park, Parque Montalvo, is surrounded by the big, gorgeous (and relatively new) cathedral, the post office, the library, and our friend Daniela’s book store. From there I usually walk down Calle Cevallos to Parque Cevallos, which is close to my bank, some of my favorite cafes, Aubrey’s family’s tienda, and my bus stop to catch the buses back to my neighborhood or to SECAP (my school). The neighborhoods surrounding the city center are great as well, and they have a lot of character. Ficoa is known for selling cooked cuy, or guinea pig (tastes like chicken but a bit chewier), and Atoche is known for some the traditional drink of colada morada (tastes like apple butter…so good!) and the farm houses of a few famous authors from Ambato. My neighborhood, Ciudadella España, is about a 7 minute drive from el Centro, though obviously a bit longer by bus. SECAP is also located a bit out from the center of Ambato, on a busy highway (and not a very attractive one at that), but the road certainly leads to some pretty incredible places. I actually headed out on buses that way a few times this past week to explore Ecuador beyond Ambato’s city limits.

To begin with, this past Friday Dan and I headed to the tiny town of Patate, about an hour outside of Ambato. We went hiking a bit with some of the most spectacular mountain views in the distance, together with donkey in the foreground and all. Then we had a big lunch of soup, chicken, and rice for $1.50 before I tried the traditional Patate spicecake, arepa. We also went to the little craft town of Salsaca where I picked up a few little (very-Ecua) knick-knacks. Looks like I'll be heading back there to do some Christmas shopping! Then yesterday Aubrey and I went to the famous little town of Baños, a little over an hour away, for the afternoon. Baños is in the shadow of Volcán Tungurahua and is known not only for its many thermal baths, but it's also a great place to go hiking, cycling, rafting, horse-back riding, and of course shopping. Again, I was surrounded by breath-taking landscapes and waterfalls. I just hope the grandeur of the mountains never becomes commonplace for me during my year-long stay here. The town of Baños itself is so friendly and picturesque as well. We had some great food, explored the church and jewelry shops, peeked over the walls into the thermal baths, and had some of the town’s famous taffy (and watched people make it as well!). One of the highlights of the afternoon (for me at least), was when Aubrey was looking at some taffy and a little old woman came over to her and spanked her repeatedly for no apparent reason! Oh dear, it was one of those times we could not stop laughing…Ecuador and all her surprises.

Speaking about surprises, Eden’s boyfriend came to surprise her Friday night from Michigan! I had been emailing with him and Eden’s mom for over two weeks, and now I can finally talk about it in the open. Eden thought he was coming on the 18th, so the 2-week advance arrival was definitely a shock. David came and met us all at a bar when he got into town, and you can’t imagine the look on Eden’s face….it was priceless! So it was definitely fun being a co-conspirator in that little mission.

Today I went to yet another little town outside of Ambato called Quisapincha. This town is known for leather, and there is just store after store of leather shoes, jackets, purses, etc. I told my host mom that I needed some new shoes before classes began, so she told me she would take me shopping on Sunday. Little did I know it would be such a family affair! Mom, Dad, two brothers, and one brother’s girlfriend all came along to help me find the perfect pairs…and what a parade we were. I ended up getting two new pairs of shoes, and my host mom bartered down the prices for me! Then I also tried my very first street food together with the rest of the family, something I must say I am quite proud of. Though I haven’t worked my way up to trying mystery meat yet, today I did get a bunch of nuts and seeds in a little baggie with tomatoes and onions on top. It was quite tasty! I’ll tackle the mystery meat another day.

Aubrey and I met to lesson plan some more in a little café today. I can’t believe my classes begin tomorrow! Cross your fingers for me- I’ll take all the help I can get. I still have to finalize my syllabus and get things in order in the morning, but I hope the classes themselves will go as smoothly as first classes can be expected to go. Then hopefully this week I will settle a bit more into a routine with planning and teaching, and maybe beginning Spanish classes, salsa lessons, or going to the gym as well. Thanks for all your love and support and I will write again soon with an update on my English classes. Chao chao!