(That's my hometown Spittal in the background.)
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
The Basilica
Last Friday was Karen's last full day in Quito, and since I didn't have to teach, I took the day off. We went downtown and explored the Old Historic Center, going into three very different churches. The only one that obviously allowed us to take pictures was the one here of which I am now posting all these pictures. It was the Basilica, the tallest, most impressive one, built in a Gothic style even though it is only 100 years old.
The tour was only $2, so we excitedly followed our 4-foot-10 guide into the stone building and into the elevator. As far as exploration goes, this was by FAR the coolest tour I've been on. She led us into all these areas of churches that you normally never see: above the rafters, up side towers, the back-side of the clock, up extremely steep ladders, and into the bell area where she actually rang the bell for us (at about 2:52). I wondered if all the Quito residents frantically went to "fix" their clocks.
This was the view from the smaller tower at the north end of the Basilica. Now, look over at those two taller twin towers. She later took us all the way up the left one to where there wasn't even a floor anymore, and I was stepping on mesh. On the picture it's just below where the towers get cut off by the picture. Then she said "Come" and led me OUTSIDE the tower where there was NO GUARDRAIL and I could look down nearly 100 meters (300 feet). I'm not afraid of heights, thank the Lord, but all I could think was, "This is a lawsuit waiting to happen" and "Good thing I'm not suicidal!"
On the way down (when my legs were rubber), as I was un-tensing, she pointed out the Basilica's special "gargoyles." They're really animals from all over Ecuador: turtles, condors, seagulls, panthers, snakes, etc. The Rosetta above was full of Ecuador's flowers, and the stained glass on the sides depicted famous Ecuadorians. In fact, I had to admit I felt the Basilica was more of a glorification of Ecuador's culture and history than God's magnificence and power, but I think that may have been its purpose.
After making it out alive, we decided to treat ourselves.
The End.
The tour was only $2, so we excitedly followed our 4-foot-10 guide into the stone building and into the elevator. As far as exploration goes, this was by FAR the coolest tour I've been on. She led us into all these areas of churches that you normally never see: above the rafters, up side towers, the back-side of the clock, up extremely steep ladders, and into the bell area where she actually rang the bell for us (at about 2:52). I wondered if all the Quito residents frantically went to "fix" their clocks.
This was the view from the smaller tower at the north end of the Basilica. Now, look over at those two taller twin towers. She later took us all the way up the left one to where there wasn't even a floor anymore, and I was stepping on mesh. On the picture it's just below where the towers get cut off by the picture. Then she said "Come" and led me OUTSIDE the tower where there was NO GUARDRAIL and I could look down nearly 100 meters (300 feet). I'm not afraid of heights, thank the Lord, but all I could think was, "This is a lawsuit waiting to happen" and "Good thing I'm not suicidal!"
On the way down (when my legs were rubber), as I was un-tensing, she pointed out the Basilica's special "gargoyles." They're really animals from all over Ecuador: turtles, condors, seagulls, panthers, snakes, etc. The Rosetta above was full of Ecuador's flowers, and the stained glass on the sides depicted famous Ecuadorians. In fact, I had to admit I felt the Basilica was more of a glorification of Ecuador's culture and history than God's magnificence and power, but I think that may have been its purpose.
After making it out alive, we decided to treat ourselves.
The End.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Proper Names
All semester, my Advanced students have been reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (hooray!). I've been more and more amazed at C.S. Lewis' ingeniousness, not just with his literary insight or Christian message, but his intricate use of the English language. It's really perfect for advanced ESL students.
Anyway, I actually wanted to blog about my most recent musings from his book. In chapter 13, Aslan makes the following comment: "All names will soon be restored to their proper owners." In the context of the story, it's the fact that the White Witch calls herself Queen of Narnia, but I was trying to get my students to think in terms of today. Most made the connection that Jesus will one day again be called "the ruler of the world," and I was pleased. I've always thought it was SO INCREDIBLY cool that Jesus even has a name we don't know yet (Rev 19:12), basically so we can't try to steal it or misuse it.
This weekend, I was struck by the thought of our own names though. Not so much that one day we'll have our proper names back, but more that one day we'll actually live up the names we already have. "Christian" - little Christ, God's chosen, his witnesses, his servants, beautiful, shining stars, etc. I want to be a proper owner!
Anyway, I actually wanted to blog about my most recent musings from his book. In chapter 13, Aslan makes the following comment: "All names will soon be restored to their proper owners." In the context of the story, it's the fact that the White Witch calls herself Queen of Narnia, but I was trying to get my students to think in terms of today. Most made the connection that Jesus will one day again be called "the ruler of the world," and I was pleased. I've always thought it was SO INCREDIBLY cool that Jesus even has a name we don't know yet (Rev 19:12), basically so we can't try to steal it or misuse it.
This weekend, I was struck by the thought of our own names though. Not so much that one day we'll have our proper names back, but more that one day we'll actually live up the names we already have. "Christian" - little Christ, God's chosen, his witnesses, his servants, beautiful, shining stars, etc. I want to be a proper owner!
Monday, January 19, 2009
Great Expectations
The following I'm about to tell you really did all happen. None of it is fiction.
Karen and I flew to the coast Friday evening for a little mini vacation. It was one big part of Ecuador I hadn't seen yet, plus the weather in Quito had been leaving a lot to be desired of late. We left rainy Quito only to land in rainy Manta. "Oh well," I told myself, "tomorrow it'll be better and we get to stay in a hotel tonight!!" The hotel, or so we thought at the time, had been recommended by my boss' husband, so we had high expectations. Until our taxi driver wrinkled his nose when we told him which hotel, and it only went downhill from there what with the lock that wouldn't lock, the broken bathroom light, the torn curtains, and the flooded lobby the next morning when I almost broke my neck.
But we weren't to be perturbed. We feel asleep fully expectant of a nice Saturday with a great adventure to another coastal town where we were going to catch a boat to "Poor Man's Galapagos," an island just 2 hours off shore with some of the same animals as on the real Galapagos. Instead, we awoke to torrential, monsoon-like rain around 6:30 am. Breakfast cheered us up slightly before we made our way out into the downpour. It took nearly 10 minutes before a taxi stopped for us, and then it was a guy carting around his children in the backseat and an overchargerer at that. In the bus terminal, we must have looked forlorn enough, for a "helpful" dude began running around trying to help us locate the Puerto Lopez bus and literally tried every side of the terminal, us in tow. We did manage to hop aboard the correct bus, and I at least enjoyed the scenic though watery 3-hour ride to P. Lopez. The picture makes it look like there was a gorgeous sunset outside. That's just the flash bouncing off the fogged-up, rain-soaked windows. (Note the hippie in the backseat whom we dubbed "Gret" [pronounce H-phlegm-ret, from Holland] who slept shirtless the entire way there.)
This was the real view out the window:
We arrived in P. Lopez around 11 am, highly expectant of our fun boat ride to the island, albeit if it had to be in the rain. Crossing the streets in the town proved to be quite the challenge, matched only by the confusion in locating the tourist information, but we optimistically found it and inquired about the next boat ride. "Oh, they only leave once a day, around 9 am!" Crushed, Karen and I looked out at the monsoon and the rising water in the streets. Neither of us wanted to get back on a bus right then, so we decided to find a restaurant, which we did, just across from the beach. "Nice," I thought. We settled down, fully expecting (getting the theme here) a wonderful Ecuadorian meal. Karen ordered some grilled chicken, and I ordered the Churrasco when our waiter with the two mullet tails (we affectionately dubbed him "Ewan," and later his brother with the matching mullets "Gregor") told us "No, only seafood." So, I ended up with fish and Karen a mini salad.
Then came the next hurdle: crossing the "raging river of death" (our name) that was now flowing down the streets almost as high as the sidewalk. Spirits high, I blazed a trail that Karen could follow, until the one point when I was ankle deep in mud. I lifted my foot out and it came without my sandal. Bravely, I thrust my hand into the mud and groped around until I located my squelchy sandal. I had to trot barefoot over to a stream of rainwater that was overflowing out of the church gutter to wash my sandal off. It was about at this point that I started to lose sanity and got, what is known as, "the giggles."
The ride back to Manta was rather uneventful other than that we kept off-roading to avoid watery, muddy potholes and took the long way home. I had mud all the way up the back of my legs, and Karen's pants were splattered. We were both half-soaked, starving, and all we wanted was a shower. We splurged on pizza followed by cake afterwards, but the big bug in the shower made it difficult for Karen to enjoy that part of the clean-up. Oh, and then there was a power outage at the hotel.
I'm happy to report that we entered into Sunday with no expectations whatsoever, and this was the beautiful day we had:
We did nothing but lie on the beach from 10 am till 6 pm when we had to rush to the airport to catch our flight back to Quito. Have I ever mentioned that the Custer Travel Curse extends to vacations, too?
Karen and I flew to the coast Friday evening for a little mini vacation. It was one big part of Ecuador I hadn't seen yet, plus the weather in Quito had been leaving a lot to be desired of late. We left rainy Quito only to land in rainy Manta. "Oh well," I told myself, "tomorrow it'll be better and we get to stay in a hotel tonight!!" The hotel, or so we thought at the time, had been recommended by my boss' husband, so we had high expectations. Until our taxi driver wrinkled his nose when we told him which hotel, and it only went downhill from there what with the lock that wouldn't lock, the broken bathroom light, the torn curtains, and the flooded lobby the next morning when I almost broke my neck.
But we weren't to be perturbed. We feel asleep fully expectant of a nice Saturday with a great adventure to another coastal town where we were going to catch a boat to "Poor Man's Galapagos," an island just 2 hours off shore with some of the same animals as on the real Galapagos. Instead, we awoke to torrential, monsoon-like rain around 6:30 am. Breakfast cheered us up slightly before we made our way out into the downpour. It took nearly 10 minutes before a taxi stopped for us, and then it was a guy carting around his children in the backseat and an overchargerer at that. In the bus terminal, we must have looked forlorn enough, for a "helpful" dude began running around trying to help us locate the Puerto Lopez bus and literally tried every side of the terminal, us in tow. We did manage to hop aboard the correct bus, and I at least enjoyed the scenic though watery 3-hour ride to P. Lopez. The picture makes it look like there was a gorgeous sunset outside. That's just the flash bouncing off the fogged-up, rain-soaked windows. (Note the hippie in the backseat whom we dubbed "Gret" [pronounce H-phlegm-ret, from Holland] who slept shirtless the entire way there.)
This was the real view out the window:
We arrived in P. Lopez around 11 am, highly expectant of our fun boat ride to the island, albeit if it had to be in the rain. Crossing the streets in the town proved to be quite the challenge, matched only by the confusion in locating the tourist information, but we optimistically found it and inquired about the next boat ride. "Oh, they only leave once a day, around 9 am!" Crushed, Karen and I looked out at the monsoon and the rising water in the streets. Neither of us wanted to get back on a bus right then, so we decided to find a restaurant, which we did, just across from the beach. "Nice," I thought. We settled down, fully expecting (getting the theme here) a wonderful Ecuadorian meal. Karen ordered some grilled chicken, and I ordered the Churrasco when our waiter with the two mullet tails (we affectionately dubbed him "Ewan," and later his brother with the matching mullets "Gregor") told us "No, only seafood." So, I ended up with fish and Karen a mini salad.
Then came the next hurdle: crossing the "raging river of death" (our name) that was now flowing down the streets almost as high as the sidewalk. Spirits high, I blazed a trail that Karen could follow, until the one point when I was ankle deep in mud. I lifted my foot out and it came without my sandal. Bravely, I thrust my hand into the mud and groped around until I located my squelchy sandal. I had to trot barefoot over to a stream of rainwater that was overflowing out of the church gutter to wash my sandal off. It was about at this point that I started to lose sanity and got, what is known as, "the giggles."
The ride back to Manta was rather uneventful other than that we kept off-roading to avoid watery, muddy potholes and took the long way home. I had mud all the way up the back of my legs, and Karen's pants were splattered. We were both half-soaked, starving, and all we wanted was a shower. We splurged on pizza followed by cake afterwards, but the big bug in the shower made it difficult for Karen to enjoy that part of the clean-up. Oh, and then there was a power outage at the hotel.
I'm happy to report that we entered into Sunday with no expectations whatsoever, and this was the beautiful day we had:
We did nothing but lie on the beach from 10 am till 6 pm when we had to rush to the airport to catch our flight back to Quito. Have I ever mentioned that the Custer Travel Curse extends to vacations, too?
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Funny things I've heard and read
Since my friend Karen has been here, she's been proposed to at least twice and been offered someone's brother/son/friend/cousin, etc, at least five more times, usually by cab drivers. Well, yesterday was tops. I dragged her with me to the Spotlight English Listener's club, and within three minutes Toothless Joe (who's really a sweetheart) was upon her. First question out of his mouth: "Are you in love?"
A freshman came in to borrow my stapler yesterday, and while she was stapling together her papers kept sighing. After about the fifth one, I finally asked if she was okay. She assured me she was but had just been up since 1:30 in the morning working on this project. Then in all seriousness she turned and looked me straight in the face and said (with pause and drama), "You have ... NO ... idea how difficult it was." I had to bite my tongue not to laugh! (Wait till senior year, hunny.)
The best one, however, was on the Mid-terms I gave before I left for Christmas break but didn't grade till I got back last week. Since we had read the story of Esther and watched a movie last December, I had some questions pertaining her character on the test, one of which was "Do you think Esther would be a good role model." Here was one answer. "Yes, because I think Esther has a brave heart. ... Read me right, teacher. I do not say Esther was like Mel Gibson in Braveheart, I say she HAS a brave heart."
A freshman came in to borrow my stapler yesterday, and while she was stapling together her papers kept sighing. After about the fifth one, I finally asked if she was okay. She assured me she was but had just been up since 1:30 in the morning working on this project. Then in all seriousness she turned and looked me straight in the face and said (with pause and drama), "You have ... NO ... idea how difficult it was." I had to bite my tongue not to laugh! (Wait till senior year, hunny.)
The best one, however, was on the Mid-terms I gave before I left for Christmas break but didn't grade till I got back last week. Since we had read the story of Esther and watched a movie last December, I had some questions pertaining her character on the test, one of which was "Do you think Esther would be a good role model." Here was one answer. "Yes, because I think Esther has a brave heart. ... Read me right, teacher. I do not say Esther was like Mel Gibson in Braveheart, I say she HAS a brave heart."
Friday, January 9, 2009
Latest Pictures
I'd been waiting to write a new post until I could show you a picture of us pushing the car up Monument Hill, but I don't have it. Anyway, here are some of my latest pictures instead.
Christmas morning in Nebraska, the other Christmas morning in Colorado, trying to take family pictures in front of the tree, and baking cookies with Lizzie and her British crackers (which is where the crowns come from).
It is also good to be back in Ecuador, and I have a friend visiting for 3 weeks. Last night, Adeline and I took her to the Train Stop, a local coffee shop. That's been it so far, but tomorrow we're headed off to some touristy spots.
Christmas morning in Nebraska, the other Christmas morning in Colorado, trying to take family pictures in front of the tree, and baking cookies with Lizzie and her British crackers (which is where the crowns come from).
It is also good to be back in Ecuador, and I have a friend visiting for 3 weeks. Last night, Adeline and I took her to the Train Stop, a local coffee shop. That's been it so far, but tomorrow we're headed off to some touristy spots.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)