Andrea in Ecuador

The bus ride was quick...only 4 hours and I didn't get sick. I made it to Riobamba and we are all moved into our new house. Mike picked us up in a taxi from one of the hotels in town where Ross had left a note for us about where they were and how to reach them. In the taxi Mike was telling us it would be rough living...trying to prepare us a little so we weren't shocked about the living conditions. He was making it sound so bad that we had to ask...does it have a flush toilet? Yes, he said, but only one bathroom for the eight of us and we're living with a 4-yr old (Ross and Laurie s daughter). It is in a neighborhood that is not an official barrio so no services, no address or street names. The drive to our new home was over some bumpy roads and passing by some questionable-looking houses. We finally got there and Mike opened a locked iron gate and let us into an unfinished house...marble floors, spacious, 7 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms (all with flush toilets), a hot water tank (which is apparently very rare around here), and two balconies with views of Chimborazo (the tallest mountain in Ecuador), and other surrounding volcanos. Get this, $300 per month for the rent because it is unfinished! Once they finish the house, it may go up to $350. Mike got punched. Ross made me do it, he said. I got some pictures of Chimborazo and Tungurauay which is spewing ash periodically. I haven't downloaded them from my camera yet but I will post them to my website as soon as I get a chance. Riobamba is much less polluted than Quito and has a small-town feel, although it has over 100,000 people. Today we organized and cleaned in our house which is filled with rock dust from the ongoing work on the place. They will be putting on the finishing touches in the next couple weeks and then we will do a mass cleaning again. Sort of reminds me of home...always having projects going and never being able to keep things clean. Also, we did some shopping around town...all cobble stone streets (yes, real stone, not pavers) and a great market with fresh fruits, vegetables and fresh (?) meats. Tomorrow I will begin trying to get supplies together to build a flotation machine and may be in the field for a while but will update the web page as I can. Hasta luego! -- Andrea

7:25 pm:
No luck sending the pictures. I am on a computer that has Windows 98 and the driver to recognize my jump drive is not installed. Gotta get going because dinner is ready. I'll try tomorrow or whenever I can. -- Andrea