Old Town / First mugging experience

Dear Mom and Dad,
Today has been a very interesting and exciting day. Lot's has happened, and I have a lot of pictures for you too. First, I'll start off with the boring information. I think I have found a solution to my now prominent acne problem. Charlie was kind enough to scout out a legititmate looking pharmacy because I went into great detail on how sensitive my skin is and some face products will actually do more damage than actual good. I found a Neutragena face scrub and Johnson Johnson baby soap (in the bar form.) Hopefully, this will curb the zits and not harm my skin. The price of these two things was about $14 and was the two most expensive products in the store, but it's for the good of the cause. Afterall, he is the one that has to look at me. Also, we did get a free wash cloth with the purchase. :)

Last night's meal is worth writing about as well. It was our first homemade dinner we made in the hostel. We decided to go a little more elaborate than eggs and satueed vegetables. Chicken stir-fry with fried rice was the goal. We ventured to three different stores to buy all of the necessary ingredients. Most importantly, we bought two bottles of wine, and to no surprise that was our first purchase. They both were blends, one from Chile and one from Argentina. I can't explain how good the wine is, but trust me, it's the best I've ever had. Everytime we open a new bottle, I always think the same thing, "it can't get any better," but with every bottle, it does.

The food ingredients included two 1/8 chicken pieces, red pepper, green pepper, white onion, vegetable oil, two fresh eggs, a carrot, and white rice. (Of course, we had to buy the cakelike pastry for dessert.) Breaking down the chicken was a lot harder then it appears, especially without a sharp knife. We wanted small pieces of chicken without the bones, but eventually Charlie just bare-handed and ripped the chicken apart and cooked everything together. We just had to be careful as to not eat any bones. The chicken was actually cooked perfectly and tasted great. The carrots don't satuee as fast, so they were definitely undercooked. The white rice was so overcooked that it turned to mush. I mean you couldn´t even tell one grain from another; it was that mushy. Also, cooking rice yields a lot mroe than one expects. We made enough to last us for days, and thankfully we didn't cook the ENTIRE two pound bag. Still, it was the best meal so far because we hunted for the ingredients and made it ourselves.

Wine cost = $17.80
Food cost = $5.95
Love and time that went into it = priceless

Old Town:

We couldn't have picked a more perfect day to go sight seeing in Old Town. The weather was perfect with the sun brightly shinning and a slight breeze to cool you down. Charlie did an excellent job in navigating the bus system for this was our first time using it. We struggled to figure out exactly how to get into the bus terminal because we kept trying to enter through the exit, but eventually we figured it out.

My favorite place we saw was a church named Iglesia de la Compania. It was so beautiful! The church is made with a half ton of gold covering everything. I mean everything! The three pictures I have don't even do justice, but Charlie didn't have optimal opportunity to take pictures because they weren't allowed. Yes, he snuck pictures to avoid buying them. Surprised? Probably not. It cost us $3 each to tour the church. If your Equadorian, it would have cost $1 per person. We almost tried to pretend that we were locals...probably would have failed miserably.

The next two pictures are of a Museum we visited. It had art works by Dali and Goya. The picture with the writing explains in Spanish how the Museum was established. That photo is more for me, so I can remember the important details if I ever have a class of my own. The painting is Dali's interpretation of "laziness" for that is the title of the artwork. To be honest, I'm just not that deep, and the picture looks like a person formed into a swirl. We only visited one museum.

The next picture is of the entrance to Old Town. You have to walk up a large hill to the to the center of all the shops, churches, museums, restaurants, etc. Can you spot the tourist?

I know, I stick out like a sore thumb. Charlie and I are still amazed by how many people stare at me. I mean, they look or glance at Charlie, but they down right STARE at me. Everyone. Little kids. Adults. Even the security guards. I have yet to find one person taller, blonder, or fairer skinned then me. I don't think I'll get used to this, but at least I have Charlie by my side to laugh about it.

This next picture is of the stature that is located in the center of Old Town. I don't really know what the importance of it is, but since it was located in the center we thought we should take a picture. It must be important.

The next series of pictures are of different bands or music groups. In every corner of the town there is a music group singing and performing. The locals love to get up and dance even in front of the large crowds. Unfortunately, Charlie wasn't so brave, so we didn't do any dancing ourselves, but we really enjoyed watching the live entertainment.

Charlie and I wandered into a really cool artisan shop. Once you enter it, the store winds and turns and tunnels every which way. We had a blast looking at all the hand-made items.

This next photo is one I took strictly for Mallory. Yes, in Ecuador they do have the disgusting JEGGINGS. You can't escape them. People actually sport those pants here too.

Here is a photo of Charlie with the "Palacio" in the background. It's an angel like statue that we did visit and climb to the top. It's hard to see in the picture, but if you look close enough and squint your eyes, you probably can see it.

The next pictures are of us on top of the "Palacio." It cost a dollar per person to climb to the top, but the view was well worth the price. You can see all of Quito from the top. You can also see six active volcanoes from this location. Pretty cool.

The next picture is a scene that one would see when viewing any young Equadorian. It's no secret that soccer is huge in the Hispanic culture, but EVERYONE plays. All you need is a ball, and these kids used trash to mark their goals. Charlie sipped on a beer while I ate my dessert. We really enjoyed watching these too. Speaking of my dessert, I was tricked into buying a fluff of pudding, when I thought it was ice cream. I should have known better that the stuff wasn't in a freezer, so there was no way it could be ice cream. It only cost 26 cents and didn't taste too bad, but it just wasn't ice cream.

Finding someone to take our picture is no easy task. You wouldn't want to ask a local for fear they might run off with your camera. We found a couple of tourists like us to trust in taking our picture.

Charlie found the restaurant that Anthony Bourdain did a segment on. Of course, we had to capture this moment. The restaurant is called "La Ronda," which is located in the section of the town "Ronda." Our South American book says this little area in Old town is a must see. Specifically the book writes, "The city has taken one of its most historic streets, swept away the prostitutes and drug dealers, beefed up security, and given grants to owners to refurbish their properties." Lies. The book lied. The first thing we saw when we were dropped off by the taxi was six women who were clearly prostitutes. There was still security, and it's clear that prostitution is illegal, it goes unchecked.

We acquired some sun, and I'm suffering from not wearing sunscreen now. You can bet the first thing that was bought today was sunscreen. I will not make this mistake again. I'm definitely not a bronzed beauty.

Our first mugging experience:

Before you freak out mom, we did not actually get mugged, but there was an attempt at us getting mugged. Charlied and I were walking down the street hand in hand. It was during daylight hours, so we didn't think there was any danger in walking between two blacks standing on the corner of the street. One of them stuck his foot out to trip Charlie and quickly asked him a question to divert his attention. I think he was trying to knock Charlie off balance to grab our day bag off his shoulder. Attempt: fail. Charlie quickly picked up his feet, and didn't trip at all. In fact, it didn't faze him at all. We have decided that Charlie would be the one to carry the day bag at all times because gracefullness and quick reactions are not my strong suit. Nice try losers.

Our plan thus far is to bus up North to Otavalo tomorrow. They have the best market there and we plan on stopping on the equator along the way. Riobamba will be the next stop after that.

"I have found out that there ain't no surer way to find out whether you like a person or hate them than to travel with them." -Mark Twain

Love always,

Matti Jo