Saturday Market in the Neighborhood

Every Saturday morning the vendors start coming into the neighborhood from the Campo (countryside) about 5 blocks from where Walt lives to set up and to sell their produce  It's quite an extensive market and very colorful and alive with activity and sound.  I could have taken a thousand images, but I try to be sensitive to these people and I am well aware that they really don't like to have their pictures taken.  I am fascinated by the people, their faces, their dress, their work and especially the children.  But I try not to intrude too much - and I am VERY obvious with my western dress and my big camera with big lens.  But I hope to share some of what we see when we go out like this.  And remember you can always click on the images to see them full size.  Look at their faces.

 A view of the shoulder of Vulcan (volcano) Pichincha between the buildings of Walt's apartment compound as we began our walk over to the market.

 Graffitti is everywhere and some of it is quite beautiful and creative.  (Notice the car!)

 I know these grapes taste just as juicy and delicious as they look!

 I am so often so tempted to eat on the street as some of the offerings look so delicious - but I don't cause I've been violently ill from eating in restaurants that are supposedly much more trustworthy.  But doesn't this look good!  A meat mixture with llapingachos (potato pancakes stuffed with cheese) and eggs.  YUM!

 A fruit called mora - kinda like blackberries.

 The "vendors" always have such neat looking, carefully arranged presentations of their produce.  This woman is shelling beans as she waits for customers.

 Looking for the best and the ripest!

 A young woman from Otavalo in her native dress.  Otavalo is a VERY famous market - anyone who comes to Ecuador absolutely makes a trip up to shop at the Otavalo market.

 Saturday was the day before Mother's Day, so there were many floral offerings for mom.

 A truck full of plaintain up from the Oriente or the Coast along with some bananas by the truck.  Plaintain is more of a vegetable than a fruit like bananas.

 Can't remember what these are called and I've never tried them, but they're colorful and interesting looking!

 Pineapple.  You can't believe how delicious they are.  Pineapples, mangoes, papaya are my most favorite fruits here.  Along with one called grenadilla, which is a very odd fruit, but excellent.  (Kinda like really tasty snot!!!)

 Cute little boy.  Couldn't resist including this picture of the fruit as it is coming off the trucks - just because he's such a cutie.  I was very careful to not take pictures of the children - as much as I would have loved to photograph ALL of them.  They are adorable.

 This little boy was working on something.  His dad was nearby, but not looking when I snapped this.

 I also liked this old woman sitting here in the display.

 And the meat market.

 And the fresh chickens!!!

 I am fascinated by the fish vendors - can'at imagine how they actually manage to stack slippery, slimy fish so perfectly.  It's a mystery.

 And the crabs fresh caught.  They're still quite cold, but get very active as they warm up. . . .

 Rather blurry, but I was glad to surrepticiously snap this group sitting shucking corn.

 Don't ask.  This is a tub of pigs' heads and I have no clue what they do with them - and I don't want to know.

 Hmmm.  A typical Latina from the city.

 A phone booth!  We don't see many of these in the States anymore.  And although most all of the country has cell coverage and we see them everywhere, they are still quite expensive for the poorer people, so there is still much use of public phones.

Roasted corn.  Yummy.  They use it as a condiment for ceviche and soup, but it is also excellent as a snack and we often buy it just to munch on it.

Mindo Memories

We headed out yesterday to revisit one of our most favorite Ecuadoran areas down toward the coast to Mindo.  We discovered Mindo our first year here in 1992 (when Walt was assigned here at the Embassy as the Defense Attache) long before it was "discovered" by even the Embassy communities.  It is now discovered by the "world" and has changed dramatically since then.  As you can see from the following photos, the change in altitude is dramatic and beautiful.  One literally drops off the side of the mountain(Andes).

 Land is a precious commodity, so even the steepest hillsides are farmed.  It is not at all uncommon to drive above the cloud layer.

 Of course, everything is lush and green from the tremendous amounts of rain.  Thus, the rainforest, or cloud forest. 

 As one drops in elevation, the vegetation changes and becomes much more dense and varied.  The sign below says:  "Reduce your speed !NOW!"  This is a common sign on the winding road that drops down the mountain.

 Since we were going to Mindo on a Saturday, about half of Quito was headed down toward the coast with us.  Fortunately, not too many of them stopped at Mindo.  Most of them will be headed back up the mountain on Sunday evening, making for a very long, slow climb.

 This guy is cutting sugar cane with his machete.  They love to sell short chunks of sugar cane for the people to suck on while riding down the mountain.  Very frequently one sees the leftover pulp lying alongside or in the road where it has been tossed from the many buses.

 This flower is actually a banana plant getting ready to produce a new bunch of small, sweet bananas.

 This is the entrance to one of our favorite places in Mindo:  Mindo Gardens.  Notice the variety and density of the vegetation.

 The main lodge at Mindo Gardens.  Reading room upstairs, and restaurant and reception on the main floor.  One has to remove shoes before entering (they do have an outdoor dining area if you don't want to take your shoes off.)

 One of the cabins at Mindo Gardens.  Each cabin has three rooms, one upstairs and two down.  This one sits right on the side of the Mindo River.

 Walt enjoying a cup of coffee in the main dining room.

 Just outside the cabin at the Mindo River.

 Linda enjoying a brief respite from the mist in the air.

 On the way back into Quito, one must pass the monument to the equator, commemorating the location where the French exploration team decided was the exact spot between the northern and southern hemispheres:  0.00 degrees latitude.  This is about 15 kilometers north of Quito proper.

One of My Favorite Things

Lunch with my quilt buddies on this "spring" day!  (Well, it hasn't snowed yet today - it MUST be spring!

 My table theme was set by my beautiful quilt cookies from 2 Cookie Momsters.  Those two moms are incredibly talented and are doing amazing and creative work.  I am so proud of them both.  (Lori is our neice!)  Check them out on Facebook.

 If you click on this you can see the image full size.  I didn't arrange them very well, but I didn't realize it till I saw it in the camera - and by then I had given away all the cookies!  (Well.  We did eat some!)

 Some of the cookies I put in cello bags and used them as table favors.  Love it!

 We celebrated Ellen's birthday and Drin brought the cake!  Wow!  She is now out of the dog (ding dong) house!  She has redeemed herself. . . .  It was ice cream and it was pretty darn good.

 I have so very much enjoyed my quilt buddies this winter.  We have met most every Wednesday during these long snowy days and have had much  fun together - along with accomplishing a whole lot of quilt projects.  Drin, Ellen and Joan and the time we spend together mean a lot to me (friends are important!) so I put together a goodie basket for them which included their choice of a quilter's tool caddy all made up from my Asian collection.  (I love Asians - they are so beautiful.)  We probably won't work together again now till fall - we're on to hiking season!!!  (We have incredible hiking here in these mountains surrounding our valley - gotta take advantage of it - great opportunity for photos.)

 Of course, we always do show and tell.  Ellen brought this fabulous quilt to show us.  It is completely finished.  It is king size.  And it is stunning.  She does incredible work - and FAST!!!

 And this is a top that she has just finished - probably lap size or wallhanging.  It is now off to the quilter to work her magic on it and turn it into a work of art.  Never a dull moment in our group!

 I totally reorganized my quilt cupboard and pulled out a bunch and found places around the house to display them.  Love the colors!  They make me happy.

 My newly arranged cupboard displaying my friendship teapot quilt.  They're all special.

More of my fun projects.  Out of hiding!

Spring Time in the Grasshopper Valley

This is what our back yard looks like today.  The Gang kids dug out forts and caves out there and this is what it now looks like today.  There's still mostly about 2 feet of snow in most places. . . .

 I think this snow off the roof now piled up on the dining room porch might still be there when I come home in June. . . .

 Because we have so much gravel in the driveway, the mud isn't too bad as the snow melts. . . .

You can see how high the snow still is as you look at the horse hitching post. . . .  I'm really looking forward to my visit to Kansas and Ecuador next week.  Should be nice and warm and sunny. . . .  Wonder how much snow will be left when I come home. . . .  (It has snowed every day except two in my memory of this winter.  Seriously.  Today.  Yesterday.  The day before.  And the day before that. . . .

The End of a Dream

It looks like Walt and I have traded in our horses for bikes.  They're much safer.  But it's hard to give up a dream.  Building our retirement home in this valley and living here very definitely included horses.