You May Not Want to Read this if You're European
I have to say the worst thing about Ecuador is the abundance of frickin' Europeans. I am so sick of their condescending attitudes and easy anti-american sentiments. The people of Latin/South America have way more of a right to hate America than the Europeans. European countries very often benefit from the economic policies that they seem to hate us for. (Do I smell guilt?) Regardless of how justified anti-American sentiments are, the Latin/South Americans can actually distinguish between the US Government and average people. Not so with the Europeans. They think we're all George Bushes: rich, dumb, and childlike. They love Michael Moore movies and the Simpsons because they make fun of Americans. What they neglect to realize is that Americans love Michael Moore and the Simpsons. I mean, we've made Michael Moore a very rich man and supported the Simpsons through like 15 frickin' seasons! We can make fun of ourselves and are way better at it than Europeans. We actually met a guy in Cuenca (a German) whose entire understanding of American politics came from Michael Moore's oeuvre. Incidentally, when he joined our table, one of the first things he said to us was how much he hated Americans. Not the government, but Americans. Finding out that we were Americans didn't seem to affect any change in his attitude. He haughtily went on about how stupid we all are. My favorite part was when he fervently (and tritely) maligned the US for its use of guns. In an attempt to move beyond the easy (and therefore boring) target, I brought up hunting. I had to because the German claimed to be emphatically against guns in all situations. He said he was against hunting. I asked him if he ate meat and he replied that yes, of course he did. I reasoned that if you're going to eat meat you should be able to kill it. (It seemed I was having a very adolescent kind of philosophical argument. Like the kind of debates you had when you first started to really think abstractly). He incredulously replied that we have factories to kill the animals so that we don't have to. Recall where this guy's from: Germany. "We have factories to kill the animals so that we don't have to." I bit my tongue rather than scream out, "You dirty Nazi!"
Another difference between Europeans and South/Latin Americans is that the former refuse to admit how much they love American culture. People in France line up for their Big Macs (fact according to The Economist) yet despise themselves for it. A rudimentary understanding of pop psychology should explain how they turn that self hatred against the US. Here in South America, most people don't hate themselves for liking American cultural products. I'm not trying to imply that they stupidly eat up anything American just because it's so cool, though there is a little of that. (Example: A bookstore here in Otavalo sells posters that picture hamburgers, fries, cokes, and hot dogs, with a caption that reads: "Fast Food." That's of course really dumb). They're just not so frickin' weak as to have an identity crisis every time they drink a Coke or watch a Hollwood blockbuster. Many people here are understandably concerned about American influence (on the youth, of course). But the difference is that they don't seem to blame the US for or charge the US with culturally bankrupting their communities. They are more inclined to take some responsibility instead of just whining about it. These are just my casual observations; obviously there are exceptions to these "rules." Where does this difference come from? Of course it's complicated (I'm sure) but my personal belief is that many Europeans are simply jealous of US economic and cultural power. They've lost a significant amount of influence to us in the recent past. There's something else too though. Like I said, they don't distinguish between the government and the people. I think it might be because they feel guilty about what their governments did in the past. They feel responsible (Germans are the most obvious example) and project that guilt onto us. Jerks. What the hell do I know though? I'm just a stupid American.
2006-08-30 17:06:58 UTC
Leather Town
So we took our little field trip to Cotacachi, where they specialize in leather. (We're finding that many of the small cities here specialize in one type of artistry). Though they did not have any strap-on holsters, they did have a wide variety of leather goods. The main street in the town is lined on both sides with leather shops. I was really surprised at how tailored and trendy their goods are. I think I expected plain, rugged jackets in the usual shades of brown and black, but every store had bags and jackets in many styles and all sorts of colors. One popular style for women seems to be brightly colored leather jackets with slightly flared sleeves and waists (though I haven't seen anyone in Ecuador wearing a jacket like this. Lots of people wear plain but stylish black leather coats). It was really hard to resist buying a super soft leather jacket in pink or teal, considering they cost between $50 and $70. I resolved to be practical and get a jacket that I could wear all the time (black, $50). And a really cute bag. And a belt. Later that night, when I left the house in my new leather digs, Monica (the mom) shouted, "Que guapa, Jessie! Que guapa!" I felt slightly conspicuous for the rest of the night, like it was obvious I'd taken a trip to Cotacachi and spent money like a crazed tourist. At least I stopped short at leather pants!
But I wondered why we hadn't seen any of Cotacachi's leather for sale in Otavalo. After all, Cotocachi is maybe 10 or 15 miles from Otavalo and most tourists never take the time to visit Otavalo for more than a day let alone any of its surrounding communities. The tourists come here, to Otavalo, on Saturdays to go to the famous market. Couldn't the leather artisans make a bundle selling in Otavalo? I would think so, but the shops in Cotacachi must do very well. There are tons of them, each store has its own plastic bags with its name, phone number, and (sometimes) web address printed on them, and they have slick advertisements on billboards. It's strange because the day that we were there (Friday) the town was almost deserted. Maybe they get a bunch of tourists on the weekends. Oh well, I'm now happily leather-clad.
2006-08-29 16:52:30 UTC
La Cascada de Peguche
Earlier this week our Spanish instructor took us to La Cascada de Peguche, which is a beautiful waterfall about 45 minutes by foot outside of Otavalo. We definitely took the road less traveled. Our teacher hadn't prepared us for the adventure. I had no idea it would be so strenuous and, at times, scary. We crossed 2 very frightening "bridges." One of them was a long, thin concrete basin through which water flowed (about 2 feet deep). It was about 15-20 feet over a creek. It was sort of like a concrete pipe, but square.The edges were approximately 2 feet apart. I had to walk with my legs two feet apart, one foot on each 5-inch side. My adrenaline was pumping and I was plagued with visions of my imminent death (or at least a humiliating fall and some bruises). Noah and my teacher were laughing at me. Jerks. The other bridge was like someone simply laid a rickety ladder (perhaps constructed by a six-year old?) over a river. It was like a frickin' Mountain Dew commercial, man. (A Mountain Dew commercial aimed at nursing home residents: I'm kinda wimpy). The hike was absolutely worth it. We saw amazing country and the waterfall was beautiful. I mean, when aren't waterfalls beautiful? Our teacher also took us up alongside the waterfall, where we crawled through a little cave, and ended up on top of the waterfall from which point we could see another "secret" waterfall. Very cool. We took our shoes off and waded a bit. Our teacher told me that the waters of Peguche are supposed to be very healing, used by local shamans and whatnot. He assured me that my feet would be feeling great for a long time to come. I asked him if the magical waters would permanently eliminate foot odor. Apparently, the magic doesn't work like that. Tomorrow, we're going to Cotocachi, a small town that specializes in leatherwork. The guidebook promises that anything you could ever want in leather is available in Cotocachi. I wonder if they make strap-on holsters?2006-08-24 16:53:29 UTC
What Happens to the Dead Roosters?
My guess was that they probably fed the dead roosters to the street dogs (of which there are tons). I was wrong though. When a rooster dies in the ring, the dueño (owner) eats it. They sure don't waste food down here! I wonder if there's some weird spiritual element to it as well, though. Like, does the owner hope to absorb the power of the defeated gallo by ingesting it? It's doubtful. Like I said, I prefer my violence with context. Here's some more information about cockfighting (along with a photo from the ring here in Otavalo). Apparently, it was legal in New Mexico until very recently (a ban passed in 2005), which is where we're planning on moving next year.2006-08-23 15:43:27 UTC
The Cockfight
So I saw my first (and probably not my last) cockfight. I was pretty sure I was prepared for it. I mean, the name pretty much says it all, right? Cocks fight. Not a lot of mystery or artistry to it. Now, in the cockfights of my dreams, toddlers in tiny matador outfits fight roosters instead of bulls. But I knew it wouldn't be like that. However, it wasn't as gory as I expected. We only stayed for two of the 20 scheduled fights though and we didn't see any roosters murdered. I'm sure some roosters lost their lives (or at least their eyes) before the night was over. There was a dry-erase board with "$246" written on it. We found out that if one rooster kills another within 12 seconds, the owner of the victor gets the pot. The fact that the pot contained $246 meant that such a swift kill hadn't happened for about three weeks. Anyway, we would've stayed longer if there had been more action. Each fight lasts 12 minutes (or until a bird dies, whichever comes first), but the time between fights is about 30-45 minutes. The fights start around 10 PM. They must speed things up as the night goes on because I've heard the fights last until 5 or 6 AM (8 hours of cockfighting!). They don't play any music between fights so the only sound you hear is the angry battle cries of the caged gallos. That sound made me want to jump in the ring and kill a rooster. I think they ought to Americanize the cockfight. You know, use wrestling as a model. Bring in some loud music- maybe some cock rock (irresistible), give the birds some personalities (maybe even masks), incorporate an overarching theme of good vs. evil. Violence is always better with some context. One thing I didn't know about cockfights: the roosters have tiny knives taped to each of their back feet. Sick!2006-08-22 13:20:35 UTC