Up early today—leaving at 6:45. The night clerk was sleeping in the hallway so that he could check us out. The Hotel Santa Fe in Otavalo, if anyone would like to know, is a very nice one, with friendly and helpful employees. Last night the rain was the heaviest I had experienced in more than forty years. Very impressive! We emerged to washed streets, said our goodbyes to Romel (we will see him again) and set out for the bus station to Quito.
After a brief but intense bargaining session, Chris convinced the driver that he would do better to take all four of us to Quito rather than the bus station (we saved nearly an hour off that travel time). We had an excellent trip, telling Spanish “stupid” jokes and discussing politics with the driver. President Correa seems to be doing excellent things for the country in terms of infrastructure. In four years, his administration has turned the literacy rate on its head. It used to be one of the lowest in South America. It is now one of the highest. How they did it is very ingenious. Every person seeking a university degree was required to find 5 people every year who could not read or write and teach them. If one of his or her students learned, he or she was required to find another student. In that way, the problem was solved very quickly. The new constitution made university studies free, thus another roadblock was removed. The highway system seems to have improved dramatically from 2000 and even 2011. I learned in high school that improving roads has improved the living standards of civilizations from Rome to Britain and more recently, the U.S., Ireland and Ecuador.
Apparently the new government seems to be taxing the middle class and leaving the rich alone, which some say is making the distribution of wealth even more concentrated at the top, but I do not know what is truth and what is hype, even in my own country. With a generally captive press, I do not know how I can find out, either. I must say that it is a relief to me to not be hearing the polemics of the U.S. right and left on a daily basis. Most people seem to agree that the position of the poor in Ecuador is improving under Correa’s administration.
We arrived in Mitad del Mundo (outlying Quito), an hour earlier than expected. Juanita made us breakfast (mote with eggs) and Andrés (our host) drove us to their shop near the monument and the painted yellow line showing where the equator was determined to be by the international scientific team. The shops are nice, traditional Spanish colonial architecture (new). In the center are some museums and a large open space where traditional music and dance are performed. We helped out in sorting beads and bagging necklaces for a while until everyone was hungry, then all of us—Juanita, Andrés, Emily and Mateo, their two children, Vincent and I piled into the car and went to a neighborhood restaurant for lunch. South Evanston residents: it was a bit like Ted’s, on Dodge and Crain. Everyone knew everyone else in this restaurant, where two other families had gathered for Sunday lunch. It was strange to have flies dive-bombing us—I haven’t seen a fly in several months. Anita armed herself with a swatter and single-handedly wiped out a small battalion of them. Maybe it was only a troop. Still, we sang her praises for this skillful feat as it allowed us to eat in peace. Afterward, we stopped at a shop for ice cream treats, where I sampled the first fig ice cream I have ever seen. Yum! The nevlito (a fine mist of snow similar to ice fog) had begun—Andrés said it comes from the lake above in the mountains surrounding the town. It was quite pleasant!
Returning home, we met Chris coming back from worship and got our marching orders from him—what we should look for, what we should encourage, arranging our schedule, etc. He and Vincent went out for a walk, Juanita continued on with making tagua necklaces, and I had a nice chat with Elspeth and Amber via Face Time before they went out to a movie. When Chris and Vincent returned, we discussed samples with Anita and Andrés, said good-bye to Chris and headed for bed. The coming week will be spent with Anita and Andrés learning from them and interviewing them about their work here. We are excited to begin! Chris told us they are taking us to Manabí, which now we are excited about, too.
Chris told us the theme of worship today was avoiding worry. A good word for us as we begin our first week more or less on our own. We have always been taken care of in the past by our heavenly Father. Why would He stop now?
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