Monday: This morning my friend and I were up early to chat, then all of us had breakfast and coffee around around 8:30/ 9:00. At 10:00am I departed for home at the north end of town. I finally arrived around 11:30 and headed straight for the shower. Then I treated myself to a 30 minute rest in the sun on my rooftop. Then, I got to work. I scrubbed the house, cooked some food, packed a few things, tried to catch up on a few emails and RBC work and started my "to-do" list for the next couple of days. Where was the time going? Next, I made dinner for my friend and I and then I cleaned up before crashing in my bed tonight.
Tuesday: Today I met up with some friends to go preaching in the Mariscal area of town. We met so many friendly English speakers.
One experience in particular stood out. While doing a "quick census" (focusing on the open businesses to leave the invitations), we came to a coffee shop. (Pause for excitement). I pointed out the chalkboard sign, which read (among other things) "We speak English". I suggested we go in, and we found the place to be empty, save for the two baristas working there. The told us they had the best coffee in Quito (a theory which we tested and was also later confirmed by a coffee connoisseur friend of mine).
As we explained what we were doing in Quito, one of the baristas seemed intrigued. So we decided to have a cup of coffee and invited him to sit and continue the discussion further. He poured himself a coffee and sat down. We talked for about 20 minutes, during which, the cafe began to get busier. At one point, another patron who had been listening to our conversation, jumped in to play "devil's advocate" after one of the barista's comments. We were surprised at both his interest and support of a particular point we were discussing.
As more people began arriving at the cafe, the man we had been talking with asked his co-worker to let him know if he needed his assistance. The man's wife then came over, introduced herself, and then suggested that he get back to work. At the same time, however, the customer who had previously chimed in our conversation came back and he sat down to join us. Though he had recently converted to Islam, we found him to be quite open-minded and pleasant. We left him with invitations to both our local meetings and the District Convention as well as a "What Does the Bible Really Teach?" book, which he assured me he would read. We were all so excited!
We rejoined the others in our group, then I took our visiting sisters to a popular lunch spot for foreigners (The Magic Bean), then I walked a few blocks to meet up with some of the friends to purchase our bus tickets for the following evening. After we had our tickets, I went back to the restaurant where I had left them and ordered a salad for myself. We then took them to the bus stop so they could go home and the one sister and I headed up to the north for my study.
I stopped by to pick up some cake since it would be the last time I would see them for a couple months, but regrettably, they were not home. My friend and I then walked several blocks to her sister's house and spent a couple hours there with her sister and played with her niece and nephew (they were so adorable!) while her sister finished sewing a beautiful wedding gown for a friend of hers. Around 6:30, we took the bus back home. On my way home, I stopped to pick up a few items my friend had brought back from the States, then I continued to walk home.
I walked in the door at 8:00 and I headed straight to the kitchen to make some dinner as I was starving by this point. Then it was time for just a little computer work (mainly catching up on this blog) until my eyelids became so heavy I couldn't keep them open any longer.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
07-26-13 - 07-28-13 A Weekend of Goodbyes :(
Friday: This morning I had another interview at 5:30am. Still a little disappointed about the previous night's interview, and a lot tired from not sleeping well, I got up at 4:30 and prepared myself. This interview only lasted 15 minutes and I was tempted to try to go back to sleep for a bit, but instead I decided to get up and get ready for the day. I met up with my friend who lives in the Los Chillos Valley (about an hour from my house) for service this morning. We had such a lovely time! I even paused for a photo of some horses we passed by.
Then, around noon, she dropped me off at the bus stop so I could head back to Quito. I met up with two of my friends for lunch, and then one of the sisters and I continued on up to Mitad del Mundo to pick up an item I had ordered earlier in the week. Much to my dismay, I was told that the item was finished, but wasn't there in the store - and was asked to come back the next day. I explained that it was not possible for me to return the next day, and the owner was kind enough to say he would deliver it to my house in the afternoon. So then, we got back on the bus and returned to Quito. I had been all over the city today and was quite tired upon arriving home.
That night, my roomie and I met up with our friend who just returned from the states, as well as the other young friend she brought with her. We ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant just down the road from my house. The service was bad, but the food was decent. Nothing to write home about. Nevertheless, we had a great time talking, laughing and catching up.
Saturday: The girls and I met up at the park around 8am to get a jump start on preaching that morning. Then we hopped in a taxi to go the meet the group at 8:45. We had a large group (about 20 or so) meet at the Hall for service this morning (that is about a third of our congregation). It is our last weekend to distribute invitations for the upcoming District Convention. If you thought trying to get people to go (by car) from one coast of Florida to the other for the convention was difficult, imagine encouraging people to travel 9 hours by bus to attend. And yet, many say they will try to make it despite the distance.
Then, around noon, she dropped me off at the bus stop so I could head back to Quito. I met up with two of my friends for lunch, and then one of the sisters and I continued on up to Mitad del Mundo to pick up an item I had ordered earlier in the week. Much to my dismay, I was told that the item was finished, but wasn't there in the store - and was asked to come back the next day. I explained that it was not possible for me to return the next day, and the owner was kind enough to say he would deliver it to my house in the afternoon. So then, we got back on the bus and returned to Quito. I had been all over the city today and was quite tired upon arriving home.
That night, my roomie and I met up with our friend who just returned from the states, as well as the other young friend she brought with her. We ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant just down the road from my house. The service was bad, but the food was decent. Nothing to write home about. Nevertheless, we had a great time talking, laughing and catching up.
Saturday: The girls and I met up at the park around 8am to get a jump start on preaching that morning. Then we hopped in a taxi to go the meet the group at 8:45. We had a large group (about 20 or so) meet at the Hall for service this morning (that is about a third of our congregation). It is our last weekend to distribute invitations for the upcoming District Convention. If you thought trying to get people to go (by car) from one coast of Florida to the other for the convention was difficult, imagine encouraging people to travel 9 hours by bus to attend. And yet, many say they will try to make it despite the distance.
Hard at Work...
... Well, Sort Of :)
We ended up staying out until about almost 5pm that evening! It was a great day! That evening, some friends who had been visiting from the States had to go to the airport to travel back home. We had decided to get together one last time and so a group of six of us girls ate dinner, drank gin slushies, ate cheesecake and danced and sang all night until it was time for them to go. The big yellow taxi came and took them away :(
Primero, the nice photo
Entonces, the silly photo (its just what we do here)
How sad I was to see them leave! It seems that the time passes so quickly, and there is never enough of it to spend with those we love!
After cleaning up, I went straight to bed - it had been a long day!
Sunday: This morning we went to the meeting, where our local brother delivered an excellent outline on creation vs. evolution - so many good points to use in the ministry! After the meeting a few of us went to another friend's house for lunch - it was delicious! We also seized the opportunity to try out some wigs
After a lengthy luncheon, I went back to my house to pick up the punch I had made for my friend's going away party that evening. Then my friend/ roomie and I hopped on the bus and headed to the south end of Quito.
The party was awesome, with snacks and games and dancing, as well as a special clogging and guitar performance by a young brother in our hall (it was his farewell present).
I decided to stay the night at my friend's house where the party was instead of taking a long taxi ride back home that night. A few of us stayed up for a while and talked until we were all so sleepy we had to call it a night.
07-24-13 & 07-25-13 Getting Myself Together
Wednesday: I did more catching up on emails, computer work and RBC work this morning. I also did some preparatory work for the week and in anticipation of my new house guest (a friend of mine who will be staying with me for a week or so, and then for a bit after I leave). I also got some cleaning and laundry done, finished studying for the meeting. Unfortunately, the two studies I had planned on for the day rescheduled for Thursday. Well, I always have plenty of things to do, and began organizing in the afternoon. Before I knew it, it was time for the meeting! My new temp-roomie arrived, dropped off her things, and we rode to the meeting together. Afterwards, she and I went out for some dinner together before heading home.
Thursday: Back to preaching! We had a nice group out this morning. Since it was a beautiful day out today, we decided to do some public witnessing in the park. In the afternoon, we met up at the mall do to some return visits and have lunch. From there, it was on to my study in the north. Once home, I had to tidy up the house and then it was time to get ready for my interview! Unfortunately, my connection to their server kept dropping and so it didn't go so well :( I also had to create a video introduction for another possible job and so after recording it about 20 times, I finally decided to submit it as is. I found it very awkward to record a two minute video introduction/ interview - I felt like I was talking to myself. Finally around 11:30, I went to sleep...
Thursday: Back to preaching! We had a nice group out this morning. Since it was a beautiful day out today, we decided to do some public witnessing in the park. In the afternoon, we met up at the mall do to some return visits and have lunch. From there, it was on to my study in the north. Once home, I had to tidy up the house and then it was time to get ready for my interview! Unfortunately, my connection to their server kept dropping and so it didn't go so well :( I also had to create a video introduction for another possible job and so after recording it about 20 times, I finally decided to submit it as is. I found it very awkward to record a two minute video introduction/ interview - I felt like I was talking to myself. Finally around 11:30, I went to sleep...
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
07-22-13 & 07-23-13 Time to Get to Work!
Monday: Today, two sisters from the south and I did some preaching and went up to Middle of the World to pick up an item. It took us a little longer than we remembered to get there and at one point, we stayed on the bus too long and had to back track. Always an adventure!
That evening, I went down to the valley to enjoy Family Worship with one of my elders and his family as well as another couple in our Hall. We had chili, rice and cheesecake for dinner and considered together the Watchtower lesson for the following week. What an enjoyable night!! Around 10:30pm, my cab arrived to take me back to the north.
Tuesday: This morning I went with a friend to an appointment, studied for the meeting and then we had lunch at my house. That afternoon, we met up with another friend for coffee. I find that I greatly cherish these moments of down time - to just enjoy the company and laughter of my girlfriends. Good times girls, good times... :)
That evening I started to catch up on my emails, job applications (I have 3 interviews set up for later this week!!) and bills. My apologies to everyone for being behind on everything computer-related - I haven't had much chance to sit down and get things done over the last several days/ weeks.
That evening, I went down to the valley to enjoy Family Worship with one of my elders and his family as well as another couple in our Hall. We had chili, rice and cheesecake for dinner and considered together the Watchtower lesson for the following week. What an enjoyable night!! Around 10:30pm, my cab arrived to take me back to the north.
Tuesday: This morning I went with a friend to an appointment, studied for the meeting and then we had lunch at my house. That afternoon, we met up with another friend for coffee. I find that I greatly cherish these moments of down time - to just enjoy the company and laughter of my girlfriends. Good times girls, good times... :)
That evening I started to catch up on my emails, job applications (I have 3 interviews set up for later this week!!) and bills. My apologies to everyone for being behind on everything computer-related - I haven't had much chance to sit down and get things done over the last several days/ weeks.
07-19-13 - 07-21-13 No Water: A Whirlwind of a Weekend
Friday: Today I took myself for a run - upon returning around 8:45, my landlord's maid informed me that they were having some improvements done to water lines to improve the pressure and I couldn't use the water for about 2 hours. Then she looked again at me, standing there, dripping in sweat and said "un poco agua" - thank goodness! After showering, I did some errands in the morning and met up with my visitors at the market to buy souvenirs. In the afternoon, some of my friends from the south came by to drop off their luggage, then they headed off to do some shopping. I began cooking and cleaning up. We had bbq chicken fajitas for dinner and then my other friends returned to pick up their luggage and head to the airport. Then they returned from the airport and we all watched a movie together, complete with popcorn and gin slushies :)
Saturday: Today I made breakfast for all of my friends; three of which were heading to Otovalo to do some shopping, and my other two guests who were staying around Quito for the day. At 9:00am, when the girls had just left, I started to do another round of dishes, only to discover that the water was shut off. Grr... this was not good!! I had massive cooking and cleaning and laundry to do in preparation for the big "Movie Night" I had planned. I probably checked the faucet about every 10 minutes for the first hour. I thought perhaps it was a repeat of yesterday, and at 11:00 the water would be back on. So at 10:30, I decided to take my un-showered self to the store to pick up a few things (namely more ingredients to make gin slushies, since we drank half of the batch the night before). I asked the man working up there at what time the water would be turned back on. He vaguely replied: at mid-day. I grumbled under my breath and headed to the store. I returned home an hour later. He was still there working. So again, I asked what time the water would be turned back on. He said, "in two hours". More grumbling... I made the gin slushies, made a salad and sauteed more onions and peppers for fajitas.
1:30pm - Still no water. I wanted to scream, or cry, or something. Finally, at 2:00pm, the water was restored. My guests and I frantically began cleaning, cooking, doing dishes, doing laundry and taking turns in the shower. Another friend had agreed to come early to help us as well and she arrived around 3:15pm. Amazingly, we finished almost everything before the first guest arrived (early) at 3:30pm. The rest of the guests began trickling in around 4:00 and when everyone had arrived, we ordered pizza and began the movie. It was a success - we all had a great time :) Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the theatre set-up! The last of the company left around 10:00pm and my house-guests and I cleaned up and watched another movie before heading off to sleep that night.
Sunday: Today our visiting speaker was a young brother from a nearby Spanish congregation. It was his first outline delivered in English. He did a fine job and we were all proud of him. In the evening, there was a get together for a few of the visiting friends who are departing next week. Because of the late hour (10:00pm), I decided to spend the night in the south instead of taking a cab home by myself.
Saturday: Today I made breakfast for all of my friends; three of which were heading to Otovalo to do some shopping, and my other two guests who were staying around Quito for the day. At 9:00am, when the girls had just left, I started to do another round of dishes, only to discover that the water was shut off. Grr... this was not good!! I had massive cooking and cleaning and laundry to do in preparation for the big "Movie Night" I had planned. I probably checked the faucet about every 10 minutes for the first hour. I thought perhaps it was a repeat of yesterday, and at 11:00 the water would be back on. So at 10:30, I decided to take my un-showered self to the store to pick up a few things (namely more ingredients to make gin slushies, since we drank half of the batch the night before). I asked the man working up there at what time the water would be turned back on. He vaguely replied: at mid-day. I grumbled under my breath and headed to the store. I returned home an hour later. He was still there working. So again, I asked what time the water would be turned back on. He said, "in two hours". More grumbling... I made the gin slushies, made a salad and sauteed more onions and peppers for fajitas.
1:30pm - Still no water. I wanted to scream, or cry, or something. Finally, at 2:00pm, the water was restored. My guests and I frantically began cleaning, cooking, doing dishes, doing laundry and taking turns in the shower. Another friend had agreed to come early to help us as well and she arrived around 3:15pm. Amazingly, we finished almost everything before the first guest arrived (early) at 3:30pm. The rest of the guests began trickling in around 4:00 and when everyone had arrived, we ordered pizza and began the movie. It was a success - we all had a great time :) Sorry I didn't take any pictures of the theatre set-up! The last of the company left around 10:00pm and my house-guests and I cleaned up and watched another movie before heading off to sleep that night.
Sunday: Today our visiting speaker was a young brother from a nearby Spanish congregation. It was his first outline delivered in English. He did a fine job and we were all proud of him. In the evening, there was a get together for a few of the visiting friends who are departing next week. Because of the late hour (10:00pm), I decided to spend the night in the south instead of taking a cab home by myself.
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
07-17-13 & 07-18-13 Slides, Service and Sushi
Wednesday: Today my friends from Cuenca arrived, so I met them at the bus terminal in the morning. They had to head straight to their appointment, so I took their belongings back to the house and continued to tidy up. Then I applied for more jobs online and studied for the meeting that evening.
Tonight we had a visiting speaker who had prepared a slide presentation so I arrived extra early to set up my projector. How awesome to see the updates on the Wallkill construction project and the groundwork being laid at Warwick!
After the meeting a friend of mine and I went to dinner at TGI Friday's and chatted for a bit while listening to a live band that happened to be playing that night.
Thursday: This morning I met up with a friend for service and we stayed out in the ministry all day - around 12:30 we headed to the valley to meet up with some of our other friends, including some new ones who are visiting.
Tonight we had a visiting speaker who had prepared a slide presentation so I arrived extra early to set up my projector. How awesome to see the updates on the Wallkill construction project and the groundwork being laid at Warwick!
After the meeting a friend of mine and I went to dinner at TGI Friday's and chatted for a bit while listening to a live band that happened to be playing that night.
Thursday: This morning I met up with a friend for service and we stayed out in the ministry all day - around 12:30 we headed to the valley to meet up with some of our other friends, including some new ones who are visiting.
On the bus
Bridge 8 - Time to get off the bus!
Our Service Group - Composed and Serious
The Lighter Side
Views of the Valley
That night, I had dinner at Zao with another group of friends, and to say good-bye to a sister/ friend who had come to visit. The sushi was excellent!
Ecuador Loves Life
Afterwards a couple of us went on to a little place called Turtle Head to talk for a bit.
At Turtle Head
Tuesday, July 16, 2013
07-15-13 & 07-16-13 Volcanic Activity and Explosive Days in the Ministry
Monday: Thank you to all my friends and family who checked on me! Fortunately, the volcano was not in Quito. The Tungurahua Volcano is approximately 85 miles from Quito, in the province of Tungurahua, in a popular tourist destination called Banos. Quito's volcano is Pichincha, which has not erupted since 2004. The Pichincha mountain range is to residents of Quito what the Gulf of Mexico is to residents of Naples - a quick way to get your bearings - you always know which way is west!
As there was no pre-set arrangement this morning, I made plans to work with two of my friends from the south. We started out at Carolina Park, a place I couldn't believe they had never been! Then we did some calls in the area, had lunch, then went to do a few more calls. One of these was a man from Pakistan, who speaks both Erdu and Hindi. (My one friend has been serving in the Hindi group in Ohio for around three years now.) He insisted on feeding us (even though we had just eaten). First, he gave us each a bottle of orange Fanta, next came the coconut naan (I of course, am intolerant of every ingredient contained therein and the other girls don't care for coconut. So I managed to stash about three quarters of the naan into my empty food container underneath the table). Next course: Rice with spicy chicken and grilled onions, which arrived on a cast iron hot plate, sizzling like fajitas. Yum!
We ended with some mall preaching until it was time for my Spanish class around 3:30/ 4:00. And speaking of my Spanish class, I was pretty rusty after about two weeks off.
After class, I skyped with my family, ate some dinner, did some work on the computer and before I knew it, it was 10:30. Then, the power went out. Seemed like a good time to go to bed. Fifteen minutes later, however, it came back on. Being the OCD person I am, I couldn't stand the blinking clock and had to reset not only the one in my bedroom, but also the one on the microwave in the kitchen. It was also at this point that two of the surrounding apartment buildings' alarms went off. And went off. And went off. The one was disarmed after about ten minutes, the other took nearly fifteen. Fifteen minutes of ear piercing alarms feels like an eternity. It also makes it difficult to go back to sleep. Eventually, however, I did.
Tuesday: I walked outside my house and my first thought was (sniff, sniff) - bonfire. No, not bonfire, but perhaps remnants of volcanic ash blowing in the wind. Interesting...
I met up with the service group, and the three of us headed off to their territory. In the meantime, however, the couple contacted one of their studies and we re-routed to go visit him instead. What a sincere and humble individual he was. We are hopeful that he will come to the meeting tomorrow night. He is already on the chapter on baptism in the BH book and readily shares Bible truths with his friends, family and co-workers. Afterwards, we visited the workplace of a study I am filling in on since I hadn't been able to contact her by phone. She was there, but so was her boss, so we quietly made arrangements to study the following day on her lunch hour.
We tried a few more calls, then decided to break for lunch. I headed to the north and they to the south. I was meeting up with another friend at 2:00pm to go to my study at 3:00pm. While I was waiting, however, my study had to call to reschedule for another day this week. We agreed to work in my territory instead. What a blessing that turned out to be! We found so many friendly English-speakers. One man we met accepted the BH book and agreed to a study. Sadly, he told us that his young son has stomach cancer and though he does not blame God, wanted to begin with the chapter "Why Does God Allow Suffering?" He said he wanted to give a copy of the book to his son as well. I plan to go back on Saturday with a brother to follow up. We continued around the block, and a few doors down at a coffee shop, met another man who explained he thinks that there is some good in a lot of teachings, that he believes in the Bible, the Koran, etc. I decided to use the "open-minded" approach and gave him a copy of the "Was Life Created?" brochure. He then proceeded to tell us that he felt that religion and politics were so corrupt and that greed was at the root of many of mankind's problems. We had a nice discussion with him and arranged to come back to continue our discussion and have cappuccinos at his store :) On that note, we decided to call it a day. The sun was going down and the temperature was dropping. The wind had picked up a bit as well. We walked back to our original meeting point and decided to have a quick cup of coffee to warm up for the journey home.
Once home, I was able to Skype a new friend from West Palm Beach who will be coming to stay in Quito in a couple months. Hooray! We need so much help! I caught up with a few other friends and family, made some dinner and finally retired for the evening around 11:30pm.
As there was no pre-set arrangement this morning, I made plans to work with two of my friends from the south. We started out at Carolina Park, a place I couldn't believe they had never been! Then we did some calls in the area, had lunch, then went to do a few more calls. One of these was a man from Pakistan, who speaks both Erdu and Hindi. (My one friend has been serving in the Hindi group in Ohio for around three years now.) He insisted on feeding us (even though we had just eaten). First, he gave us each a bottle of orange Fanta, next came the coconut naan (I of course, am intolerant of every ingredient contained therein and the other girls don't care for coconut. So I managed to stash about three quarters of the naan into my empty food container underneath the table). Next course: Rice with spicy chicken and grilled onions, which arrived on a cast iron hot plate, sizzling like fajitas. Yum!
My friends from the French Cong. in Maryland and the Hindi Group in Ohio
Our gracious host (and potential Witness)
Lunch!
After class, I skyped with my family, ate some dinner, did some work on the computer and before I knew it, it was 10:30. Then, the power went out. Seemed like a good time to go to bed. Fifteen minutes later, however, it came back on. Being the OCD person I am, I couldn't stand the blinking clock and had to reset not only the one in my bedroom, but also the one on the microwave in the kitchen. It was also at this point that two of the surrounding apartment buildings' alarms went off. And went off. And went off. The one was disarmed after about ten minutes, the other took nearly fifteen. Fifteen minutes of ear piercing alarms feels like an eternity. It also makes it difficult to go back to sleep. Eventually, however, I did.
Tuesday: I walked outside my house and my first thought was (sniff, sniff) - bonfire. No, not bonfire, but perhaps remnants of volcanic ash blowing in the wind. Interesting...
I met up with the service group, and the three of us headed off to their territory. In the meantime, however, the couple contacted one of their studies and we re-routed to go visit him instead. What a sincere and humble individual he was. We are hopeful that he will come to the meeting tomorrow night. He is already on the chapter on baptism in the BH book and readily shares Bible truths with his friends, family and co-workers. Afterwards, we visited the workplace of a study I am filling in on since I hadn't been able to contact her by phone. She was there, but so was her boss, so we quietly made arrangements to study the following day on her lunch hour.
We tried a few more calls, then decided to break for lunch. I headed to the north and they to the south. I was meeting up with another friend at 2:00pm to go to my study at 3:00pm. While I was waiting, however, my study had to call to reschedule for another day this week. We agreed to work in my territory instead. What a blessing that turned out to be! We found so many friendly English-speakers. One man we met accepted the BH book and agreed to a study. Sadly, he told us that his young son has stomach cancer and though he does not blame God, wanted to begin with the chapter "Why Does God Allow Suffering?" He said he wanted to give a copy of the book to his son as well. I plan to go back on Saturday with a brother to follow up. We continued around the block, and a few doors down at a coffee shop, met another man who explained he thinks that there is some good in a lot of teachings, that he believes in the Bible, the Koran, etc. I decided to use the "open-minded" approach and gave him a copy of the "Was Life Created?" brochure. He then proceeded to tell us that he felt that religion and politics were so corrupt and that greed was at the root of many of mankind's problems. We had a nice discussion with him and arranged to come back to continue our discussion and have cappuccinos at his store :) On that note, we decided to call it a day. The sun was going down and the temperature was dropping. The wind had picked up a bit as well. We walked back to our original meeting point and decided to have a quick cup of coffee to warm up for the journey home.
Once home, I was able to Skype a new friend from West Palm Beach who will be coming to stay in Quito in a couple months. Hooray! We need so much help! I caught up with a few other friends and family, made some dinner and finally retired for the evening around 11:30pm.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
07-12-13 - 07-14-13 A Day Trip, New Recipes, Food & Friends
Friday: This morning I took the bus to the north terminal (Carcelen) to meet up with some friends and then head to Otovalo, which is approximately two hours from our meeting point. The bus was pretty comfy and one of my friends and I passed the time by chatting and catching up, while most of the others took advantage of the opportunity to take a nap (especially since they had to get up so very early as their house is much further away). We arrived shortly before lunch time, and visited a couple of shops before meeting up with some friends from the area for lunch. The town is small and quaint, and I liked it instantly. One of the shops we visited contained items made from tagua nuts; mostly jewelry, figurines and keychains.
Then we headed a few blocks over to a restaurant called SISA - a charming three story establishment that made you feel as if you had traveled back in time. The gentleman who worked there immediately recognized my friend and warmly welcomed us. We met four other sisters serving in the area and enjoyed upbuilding conversation over delicious food - what better way is there to spend an afternoon?
As we were leaving, we became engaged in two conversations with the table next to us; half of us talking to a man from the states who was visiting and the other half talking to the tour guides he was dining with. We were able to witness to all three of them.
On our way to the market, we stopped for helado (ice cream) and witnessed to another man we encountered. It was a beautiful day to be walking around. The market was not too busy, but many vendors were available, calling out to the passersby, announcing the goods they had for sale.
We then got back on the bus to take us back to Quito. This time, it only took about an hour and a half to reach the Carcelen station, where our taxi met us and took us home. It was 11:45pm when I crawled into bed... so sleepy.
Saturday: This morning I slept in and didn't do too much. I had lunch with some friends in the afternoon at the Magic Bean (we love this place).
Then I headed home, made out my grocery list and walked to the store. I met up with a friend to exchange a borrowed item, and she too needed to go to the store, so we went together. It gave us a chance to catch up since we hadn't really talked for a couple days. We then each walked home and I began cooking as our service group has the privilege of hospitality for the speaker tomorrow.
I was bringing vegan tacos, and vegan chocolate chip cookie dough. Upon arriving home, I started by making almond butter (you can't just pick this up at the supermarket here). It was a time-consuming process, but fun, and I was pleased with how simple it was. Why have I never I done this before? Then I prepared the rest of the recipe and hoped it would turn out as described. I soaked all my veggies for the tacos and cooked the mushrooms, cleaned up the kitchen and then spoke with a friend of mine who is back in the States over Skype. Afterwards, I was too tired to cook the other veggies, so I decided it would be best to finish in the morning and just try to get some sleep.
Sunday: Today I had to get up and finish cooking and then it was meeting at 10:00am, as usual. There were only 34 people at our meeting today! Our local brother delivered an excellent outline nonetheless. I suspect that many went to the Spanish convention program today. After the meeting, we all convened for lunch at one of the friend's houses. It was so nice!
I arrived home around 4:00 that afternoon and cleaned up the kitchen from my mess that morning. Then I applied for some online teaching jobs, ate dinner and watched a movie. Then I chatted with some friends and family over the internet and updated my calendar as I find that I forget things more easily here (lack of oxygen to the brain perhaps?) Before I know it, its after 11:00pm, which doesn't look good for that early morning workout I was planning... we'll see, I'm still going to try.
Then we headed a few blocks over to a restaurant called SISA - a charming three story establishment that made you feel as if you had traveled back in time. The gentleman who worked there immediately recognized my friend and warmly welcomed us. We met four other sisters serving in the area and enjoyed upbuilding conversation over delicious food - what better way is there to spend an afternoon?
As we were leaving, we became engaged in two conversations with the table next to us; half of us talking to a man from the states who was visiting and the other half talking to the tour guides he was dining with. We were able to witness to all three of them.
On our way to the market, we stopped for helado (ice cream) and witnessed to another man we encountered. It was a beautiful day to be walking around. The market was not too busy, but many vendors were available, calling out to the passersby, announcing the goods they had for sale.
Dog on a Roof
View of the City
After the market, we took another bus about 25 minutes further to the "leather street" and arrived at the Ministry Ideaz store just before closing. We each made our purchases and then took the bus back to town to have dinner before departing for Quito. This time we ate at a great little restaurant, which I can't remember the name. It was lovely! My chicken fajitas were delicious. I also enjoyed a frozen mochaccino drink (coffee, chocolate and ice cream) and we shared the chocolate fondue with fruit platter - delicious!
Ministry Ideaz
Dinner Time!
Fruit Platter & Chocolate Fondue - Yum!
A duel with fondue forks
We then got back on the bus to take us back to Quito. This time, it only took about an hour and a half to reach the Carcelen station, where our taxi met us and took us home. It was 11:45pm when I crawled into bed... so sleepy.
Saturday: This morning I slept in and didn't do too much. I had lunch with some friends in the afternoon at the Magic Bean (we love this place).
Then I headed home, made out my grocery list and walked to the store. I met up with a friend to exchange a borrowed item, and she too needed to go to the store, so we went together. It gave us a chance to catch up since we hadn't really talked for a couple days. We then each walked home and I began cooking as our service group has the privilege of hospitality for the speaker tomorrow.
I was bringing vegan tacos, and vegan chocolate chip cookie dough. Upon arriving home, I started by making almond butter (you can't just pick this up at the supermarket here). It was a time-consuming process, but fun, and I was pleased with how simple it was. Why have I never I done this before? Then I prepared the rest of the recipe and hoped it would turn out as described. I soaked all my veggies for the tacos and cooked the mushrooms, cleaned up the kitchen and then spoke with a friend of mine who is back in the States over Skype. Afterwards, I was too tired to cook the other veggies, so I decided it would be best to finish in the morning and just try to get some sleep.
Sunday: Today I had to get up and finish cooking and then it was meeting at 10:00am, as usual. There were only 34 people at our meeting today! Our local brother delivered an excellent outline nonetheless. I suspect that many went to the Spanish convention program today. After the meeting, we all convened for lunch at one of the friend's houses. It was so nice!
I arrived home around 4:00 that afternoon and cleaned up the kitchen from my mess that morning. Then I applied for some online teaching jobs, ate dinner and watched a movie. Then I chatted with some friends and family over the internet and updated my calendar as I find that I forget things more easily here (lack of oxygen to the brain perhaps?) Before I know it, its after 11:00pm, which doesn't look good for that early morning workout I was planning... we'll see, I'm still going to try.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)