Last Friday, as planned, I took a bus across the border into Ecuador and arrived in the city of Guayaquil in the evening. Ecuador is a curious place: it's incredibly poor in the countryside--like, Bolivia poor--but its cities are completely prosperous, orderly places. My friend Carlos picked me up at the bus station, and from that moment I passed an entire weekend where I didn't have to be constantly on guard about my stuff, and where I didn't have to worry about where I was going and how to get there. Because Carlos took care of everything. We had a great time. I had time to just relax and watch TV (including TV Chile, channel 51 in Ecuador!), and he took me out and I met a lot of his friends.
I learned some interesting tropical Guayaquileño slang (like, for example, they use the word "man" to refer to women, men or things, as in "Vamos a llamar a esas mans para que salgan con nosotros"), and saw a lot of Guayaquil. We walked around the city's recently-rebuilt Malecón and walked up the hill of the charming colonial neighborhood of Las Peñas. I let myself be pampered by the family's maid Luz, who makes amazing fresh blackberry juice. We partied until practically the break of dawn at a disco with the beautiful people of Guayaquil on Saturday night. 
On Sunday we drove out to his parents' beach apartment in the town of Salinas, but not before a driving trip along the Pacific coast of the province of Guayas. We stopped and had lunch in the town of Montañita, where hippie Argentines sit on the sidewalk drinking their mate and braiding things into each others' dreadlocks. I had Ecuadorian ceviche, which is more soupy than the Peruvian variety (and, sorry, but not as good). We spent the night at the apartment and I slept like a baby for 10 hours, with the sound of waves breaking in the back of my subconscious.Now I am in Cuenca, Ecuador, which is actually kind of cold in comparison to hot, tropical Guayaquil, as it is up in the Andes a little bit. All is well.
Thank you to Carlos and his family for allowing me to make myself at home for a couple of days.
5 comments:
Carlos Burgos and his family must have been extraordinarily hospitable to treat you to several days of R&R in Guayaquil, Montañita, and Salinas. We have great memories of similar R&R stops with friends in Europe. It means a lot when you don't "have to be constantly on guard" about your possessions and can relax in a family atmosphere. The thought of ceviche and beer is certainly appealing, and Luz's blackberry juice must have been delicious.
We knew that Carlos was a colleague from Stanford, but we didn't know that he was a student of South American literature. It must have been fun to talk about books and the spread of ideas -- the world to which you are returning.
in reference to the argentine hippies... what does "drinking their mate" mean? sounds sort of kinky... and gross!
i'm stoked you were able to meet with your friend from stanford... it must have been nice to be able to relax for a couple of days and let someone entertain you and show you around. the iguanas in the trees sounds awesome. did you get any photos?
oh and you know how i emailed you about paris being released from jail early? well the judge is pissed off and wants her back in court tomorrow morning- at her sentencing he specifically said that she is not allowed to serve her sentence at home with electronic monitoring. he's going to try to send her back to jail hahahaha
Mmmm... ceviche. I had my own version of raw fish for dinner last night -- Josh and I made spicy tuna rolls. It's kind of amazing that you can get sushi-grade tuna in Ann Arbor, where they think that real estate beside a giant lake is a "beach." Um, excuse me? I am so very jealous of all your adventures, especially when I am stuck in front of my computer all day in the midwest. At least I can live vicariously through you ... We must travel together soon.
Jess--mate is this weird tea thing that all Argentines and Uruguayans love drinking. It's an interesting ritual, and the tea is drunk out of a hollowed-out gourd, through a silver straw. The Argentines looked a little dirty and gross, but at least they weren't mating (out in the open, at least).
Sorry, no photos of the iguanas...they totally blend into the trees.
You are very welcome, Carl. I had a great time, too! I hope to see you again soon. Have a nice a safe trip back home. Hugs, Carlos Burgos.
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