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October 27, 2003Shit Happens
DAY 8: I checked out of the Crossroads Hostel while everyone was still asleep and brought all my gear to class. Class was more of the same -- more verbs and vocabulary, and conversations with Rosa that went off in tangeants. During the break, I met a new student, an English girl on her first day of class, who -- unlike everyone else I met so far -- actually thought I was Asian and not Latino. (She had just flown in to South America after six or so months wandering Southeast Asia.)
After class, I was picked up by Blanca, the woman whom I would live with for the next week, as set up by the school. From what I've heard from other travelers, living with a family is essential in learning Spanish -- if you go to a hostel, you revert back to English and forget everything you learned that day. Immersion is the key and I was ready to dive in. Her apartment was just half a block from the school in a building above shops and restaurants. Her place had four bedrooms -- one for her, one for her 21-year-old daughter Gabi, and two for students. My private room was fairly big, with a twin-size bed, a desk, and armoire space. It was just me and Blanca when I got there in the afternoon -- that is, if you don't include a scruffy black dog named Cometa and a cat that I forgot the name of. Blanca didn't speak much English at all, which was exactly what I wanted; no choice but to speak Spanish. She was surprised I was taking a class because she thought my Spanish was pretty good. In fact, she thought I was Haitian because she knew some Haitians spoke Spanish. She showed me around the house and explained to me that there was something up with the plumbing, but a plumber was coming to fix it soon. I went out for lunch at my usual restaurant that none of the gringos frequented. For just two gold coins and a 50 cent piece, I had churassco, a traditional Ecuadorean meal with a decent sized steak, two eggs, a salad, fries, rice and a juice. I filled my stomach as I wrote my daily notes in my notepad entirely in Spanish, so I could get the practice. It started pouring and I found refuge in an internet cafe and finally got around to sending a mass announcement for this blog via Evite. I digested my massive lunch pretty fast because soon I ran off back to the house to take a major dump. YOU KNOW THAT AWKWARD FEELING you have when you take a dump in your buddy's house, no matter how close you are? Well, imagine that awkward feeling when you're dropping four big logs and realizing that the plumbing doesn't work. After I wiped my ass and threw the paper in the nearby garbage -- not in the bowl, which is common in the Andean countries since paper usually clogs up sewage pipes -- I stood and looked at my four big turds and wondered what to do. Luckily I realized that Blanca had filled these big basins of water in the bathtub, and I used a nearby bowl to flush the toilet by water displacement. It took four bowls -- one for each turd. I settled into my room and looked out my window as the rain fell (view above). The rain let up after about an hour, and so I just set my laptop up to render a video for a client back in New York, put on my fedora and took to the streets to wander. WEARING A FEDORA in a mountain village is one thing, but in the city, it didn't really help me blend in at all. In fact, Navid told me that with my glasses on, I looked like I was trying to look more like Elvis Costello than an indigenous person. I decided to give myself a mission and find a place that sold mini luggage locks, so that I could lock my bigger cameras to my security cable. It's such a bitch lugging them everywhere in a big city. Using my Spanish, I asked some woman for directions and surprisingly understood them -- even though I couldn't find the place she spoke of. No matter, I found a camping equipment store -- with padlocks in a display case -- and conducted the entire transaction in Spanish without stumbling on words. Pretty soon I'll have enough confidence with Spanish to order condoms. Back at the house, I chilled out until dinner time. I met the other student, Ani, a German surfer-turned-pediatrician, looking for work in a hospital in Ecuador. We sat at the dinner table with Blanca and Gabi, who had just come home from school. Dinner conversation was completely in Spanish -- even when I spoke with Ani, although at one point, I had to explain something to Blanca in Spanish via the little German I knew. We touched the usual get-to-know you subjects: Where are you from? What do you do? Have you eaten fried guinea pig? I've discovered that many Ecuadoreans do NOT like cuy, it's only a traditional dish served and eaten by a select few. Most people, including Blanca and Gabi, can't get over the fact that it's a rodent. I told them that it tastes like chicken, but still couldn't get over the fact that guinea pigs are pretty much rats without tails. (Okay, now it sounds pretty disgusting.) After dinner, Ani approached me about the no flushing situation -- apparently he had a turd situation too -- but I told him about the water displacement thing. He told me he was considering leaving due to the lack of plumbing, but couldn't bare to disappoint Blanca because she's such a cute old lady. Gabi went to do her English homework while Ani and I went to do our Spanish homework. If you enjoy this daily travel blog, please post a comment! Give me suggestions, send me on missions, let me know how things are going back home in the USA. Knowing that I have an audience will only force me to make this blog more entertaining as the days go by. Donīt forget to bookmark it and let a friend know! Comments
still can't believe you ate a cute little guinea pig. =( what will you think every time you pass a pet store back in the u.s.? and that shitting description was a little too personal for my taste. i wonder if that contained bits of the poor guinea pig. =P so you think you'll have a little dog when you hit asia? Posted by: alice on October 27, 2003 10:57 PMu should have taken a picture of your poo...it was be really nice to see "four big logs" as a link...hahaha... Posted by: markyt on October 27, 2003 10:57 PMThanks for the graphic description of your excrement E! I feel a lot closer to you now! Posted by: Td0t on October 28, 2003 12:06 AM*Laf* Very nice E. I remember one time my cousin, sister and I did that exact thing, but filmed it. I believe the comment in the video was "It was wide". Then my nanna came up that weekend and wanted to watch the tapes. We had to go through all our videos and tape over anything that had to do with bodily functions and fluids. I'm sure none of you wanted to hear that, but while we were on the subject! haha Its great to hear that your Spanish is going so well. Good Job Erik! : ) Posted by: Dewbie on October 28, 2003 02:04 AMHey boy! Just finally had a chance to read the blog...and I mean every entry so I'm caught up. Sorry I couldn't be at the going away party - perhaps I should have gotten the drunken monkey call!!! ok, that was too much information about your turds in el lavabo! sounds like you're a pro at spanish already:) (i'm jealous) Posted by: elaine on October 28, 2003 08:12 AMhahaha......I know exactly what you mean with the turds....hahaha. What's wrong with a little toilet humor once in awhile. You do look like Elvis Costello with that fodora on!! Da las gracias para la "turd" visual. That's great you're picking up the language. Do you plan to learn the languages of all the countries you go to? Hey, weren't you supposed to interview the families that you get to live with? And Haitian? That would be one of the last things I'd mistaken you as... then again, a Puerto Rican mistook me for being a Latina the other day. Posted by: Jenn on October 28, 2003 09:09 AMelvis costello rules! to my dismay, McDs do NOT serve cuy. Neither does BK or Wendy's. I would suggest not even asking for it because it could lead to a rough man-handling and expulsion from the premises. "Hi, i'll have a cuy w/o cheese, fries and a diet coke." "What do you mean you don't serve fried rodents? Popeyes does!" Posted by: Love Penny on October 28, 2003 10:42 AM There's nothing more funny, other than monkeys, than a good shit story! Posted by: NikkiJ on October 28, 2003 01:57 PMstupid me... i DID think of taking a shot of the "four big logs"...but not until after they were flushed down. isn't that always the way... the toilet works now, so everything's good now... Posted by: Erik on October 28, 2003 02:02 PMJen: yeah, i thought it was weird when i was just assigned a family, but its okay.... i have the option to leave them if i want, but they seem very nice and i can't beat the commute... location! location! location! Posted by: Erik on October 28, 2003 02:04 PMI got your book today...the post office pulled through. I'll have it waiting for your autograph! Posted by: Dtella on October 28, 2003 03:11 PMMy coworker, who has been following your blog too, wants to know if your surrogate family (with the 21-yr old daughter) knows that you are striving to buy condoms? Could this be your next mission? I'm glad you didn't take a pic of the turd (but I'm sure Uday would have loved to see it)!!! I too, like others, have caught up with all your blogs! It's great that we can all read and be with you on your journey. Do you think fried guinea pig would be good with patis? Posted by: Yvette on October 28, 2003 05:13 PMis gabi hot Posted by: Francis on October 28, 2003 06:34 PMGabi's okay...she more of a little sister type... Posted by: Erik on October 28, 2003 06:58 PMhey erik where the hell are you? Up for a trio out of quito over the weekend? I'm pretty sure the cuy was resposible for ultra buyant turds- mismo aqui! Posted by: navid on October 28, 2003 09:02 PMnavid: dude, where you been? i been knocking on door 16 every chance i get and you're never there... anyway, about the homestay...its really good...you are surrounded by spanish and have no choice but to learn it... lots of food too, and private room.... but i guess it depends on who you get... (you can always switch though) Posted by: Erik on October 28, 2003 09:47 PMnavid: i was thinking cotopaxi this weekend...well, maybe not to climb but to see at least. it's a three-day weekend here for Day of the Dead, no? i'm not sure if we have school on monday or not yet... Posted by: Erik on October 28, 2003 09:49 PM |
