Andrea in Ecuador

Yesterday we finished excavating at the old Sicalpa church and backfilled all the units. I was only able to assist in this excavation for one day, but Ross let me tear out a Colonial wall with a pick axe so we could see what was under it and low and behold there was a layer of soil and then another wall. It seems the church has had several building episodes after various earthquakes. We were digging in what used to be alcoves or small chapels outside of the main room of the church. We found a couple pieces of painted pottery but mostly non-glazed chunky potsherds which makes sense for utilitarian items. There was a bit of household trash on the very edge of one of our units. I think Ross may explore more in this area when he returns in the future. We were speculating about whether the priest might have quarters connected to the church by walways which we could distinguish from some of the wall remnants. We finished backfilling by lunchtime and met up with Eve, Claudine, and Rodrigo who had been excavating at the convent. Our Ecuadorian amigos had arranged an end of the project meal and fiesta for us. We had a traditional Ecuadorian lunch..chicken and rice soup with cilantro, followed by roasted cuy (Guinea pig) on a bed of potatoes with peanut sauce, and chicha to drink. The chicha they served us was only fermented for one day and therefore has less alcohol. It is made from mashed corn with pineapple juice, cinnamon & cloves. I tried a little but found the combination of fermented flavor (sort of vinegary) and cloves somewhat disturbing. They said we didn't need to worry about drinking because they boiled the water very well and they don't chew and spit the corn to start the fermentation, they mash it. Ross said he prefers the 8 day old chicha which has more alcohol but perhaps a better flavor. I haven't tried that kind so I have nothing to compare it with.

After our meal, Effrain made a short speech about the good relations between us and how we had become part of each other's communities. He expressed his sincere gratitude to us for the things we had taught them about our culture and about the early culture of Sicalpa through our excavations. Ross then made a similar speech, saying that we had learned much more from them and have greatly appreciated their participation and partnership in the archaeological work.

Then Patricio began playing cds of traditional Ecuadorian music for us and I was asked to dance by Eduardo, our truck driver. He is perhaps 4-1/2 feet tall and danced like a leprauchan so we were an odd looking couple. This is a traditional way for men to dance, apparently. They hold the sides of their jacket or vest and click their feet around, sometimes lifting their knees a bit higher or dancing on one foot with the other swinging back and forth (sort of looks like a horse and rider pantomime). Once we had the first dance, all the other men invited the women to dance and we saw various styles of dance. It was pretty darn funny because none of us gringos could really find the rhythm in the folk songs. Jose taught me a partnered simple country dance which is a bit like the two step. After the chicha they brought out giant bottles of pilsner which is made near here and then Zumir which is a clear hard alcohol. I tasted a small bit of this and it seems like rubbing alcohol to me....totally awful, but the Ecuadorians seem to enjoy it. Our neighbor in Riobamba, Pepe, came to pick us up at 3:30 but the fiesta was still in full swing so we convinced him to park his taxi for a while and join us. He was a very good dancer as he and his wife Elva used to do quite a bit of dancing when they were younger. Then we headed back to Riobamba and Ross took the gringo crew and Jose out to dinner at Cafe Delirio which is a fancy place with a fireplace and lots of interesting culural items hanging on the walls...ponchos, chaps, masks, ornate candles, Jesus crusifixes, etc.

Maeve is intrigued by all the Jesus sculptures everywhere. Some of them are rather gory but she doesn't seem too phased by it. She always asks, why were they so mean to Jesus, though. I think Ross and Laurie have come up with many explanations but she never seems too satisfied with the answers. Maeve informed me the other day that she knows all of Canada, all of Ecuador and all of Las Vegas and that the Rainforest Cafe in Las Vegas is very different from the one in Ecuador.

This morning we went to the craft market in Riobamba and this afternoon we are going to the food market to buy some fresh seafood for our dinner. Also, I'm hoping to get lots of different seeds for a comparative collection. It is a beautiful sunny day here and all the mountains are showing with snow-capped peaks. My favorite is El Altar which has jagged peaks like the ones in North Cascades but it is rarely out of the clouds. We saw it this morning but no one had a camera handy. Adios amigos y amigas!

Here's a blog from Claudine.

---------- Forwarded message ----------

From: Claudine
Date: 25-Jun-2005 13:54
Subject: my blog

Hello everyone! I'm Claudine, the french canadian chick that always makes weird faces on the pictures and wears glasses because Ecuador is way too dirty to wear my contact lenses without them burning... What can I say about Ecuador? It is definitely something different! The best thing I have seen so far is an old man in the streets of Sicalpa viejo walking next to its donkey, the latter transporting a motor on its back... It's a motorized donkey! Or a good reminder that technology can't get anywhere without something alive... Really, for me the funniest thing is the animals and the Ecuadorians' relationship with them... There are tons of stray dogs, but no one bothers neutering their own dogs. The trick anyways for stray dogs is to always walk around with big rocks in your hands because the dogs know that if you have a rock, you'll throw it at them and it will hurt... Plus, they have pretty good "pet control" with all the trucks running over dogs and eating guinea pigs as a delicacy! And do I need to remind you of the pig skin delicacy slowly roasted over a blow torch?! There's nothing like power tools to cook a perfect dinner! On that note, I got to go grocery shopping... Wish me luck!