WELCOME TO GUARANDA...

...a small yet bustling mountain town set in the middle of Ecuador. Nicknamed by locals ¨the Rome of the Andees,¨ it´s set in a valley, between rolling 7 hills that decorate the countryside like patchwork quilts in every direction. A river runs through it and a white-capped mountain—Mount Chimborazo, the closest point on earth to the sun—dazzles in the background. In many ways it maintains the quaint, traditional culture typical of the sierran region of Ecuador—without lacking the modern necessities that allow for comfortable living. Every morning the roosters crow at the crack of dawn to set in motion an orchestra of sound and life: traditional musica nacionale resonates between footsteps, honks, hammers, and greetings, along with moos, bahhhs, and oinks. Thousands of indigenous people pour onto the streets from surrounding communities, lugging barrels of fruit, flowers, bananas, and other harvested products to sell on the streets or at the local market. These women wear bright shawls, long skirts, woven sandals, and feathered hats, and use a boldly patterned belt to secure the heavy load they carry on their backs; their hair is braided carefully in back according to tribal customs. The men wear ponchos made with alpaca or sheep´s wool and elegant hats that represent mount Chimborazo looming in the distance.




On Guaranda´s busy sidewalks, these traditional mountain-dwellers walk side-by-side with the city´s mestizo population—an ethnic mix of indigenous tribes with Spanish conquistadors—which makes up Ecuador´s mainstream culture. They stroll down the street in jeans and brand-name sneakers (usually fake versions), the teenage boys catcalling and blasting music from their cell phones, representing a more modern lifestyle. These are the ones who teach me to live a la Ecuatoriana—to dance salsa, meringue, and other latin american rhythms—to arrive at least an hour late to every scheduled program—to eat mountains of rice and various forms of carbohydrates in every meal (and cheese in my hot chocolate for dessert)—to get around town hanging on to the back of a truck—to use any excuse available to stop work and participate in random street celebrations—and more wonderful quirks of Ecuadorian culture.




In the past 10 months, this has become my second home. I´ve learned to live a different lifestyle, speak a different language, dance to different beats, and eat things that I formerly thought of as either inedible, unhealthy, or household pets (that´s right—roasted guinea pig is a typical Ecuadorian dish). I try my best to smile at the constant inefficiencies of its institutions, and appreciate the slower pace of life that they bring… It´s a spirited culture full of unexpected eccentricities and juxtapositions, set in breathtaking natural beauty, and filled with warmhearted people. I hope that by reading some of my descriptions, you can get a taste of an experience I´ll never forget: one year spent here, just south of the equator, as one of the only gringas (north american girls) in Guaranda.

La Comida Ecuatoriana (Ecua-Food!)




  • Ecuador´s Specialty: roasted guinea pig R.I.P Sweetie and Squeaker: my first childhood pets. I´m still trying to cope with the trauma of seeing their Ecuadorian cousins rotating on skewers every Sunday afternoon.
  • Biggest Ecuadorian food staple: RICE! You eat it multiple times a day, in giant mountainous heaps on your plate… here, it´s not just a side dish. It´s life.
  • Strangest Ecuadorian snack food: salted pig skin--that sometimes still has the pig hairs on it… yuck!
  • My favorite Ecuadorian snacks: tortillas (round salty wheat/corn pancake-like thingies with cheese in them—a Guaranda specialty), yucca bread, batidos (fresh fruit milkshakes), and anything wrapped in a leaf or corn husk, such as quimbolitos, chiwilis, tamales, and humitas…

roasted guinea pig: an ecuadorian specialty


My First Ecuadorian House Party
April 4th, 2009

First course: Chicken feet in my soup (I thought it was a mistake—apparently this is the prized part here)
Second course: chicken on a pile of rice that rivals Mount Chimborazo in the distance
Third Course: Chicken ceviche. ( I thought this was a supposed to be a seafood dish?)
Dessert: jello in a plastic cup to sip on—(most likely made with chicken parts)

I was pretty much in shock when we drove through Guayaquil,
Ecuador´s biggest city, and stopped for dinner at the mall...
a food court! with italian food! Unbelievable...


Humitas!
June 21st, 2009

It all started with choclo (giant white corn), sitting piled up in its husks at the Sunday market…

...We bargained, then carried, then husked, then de-kerneled, then milled the kernels, cleaned the leaves, added onions, mixed in egg and a pound of animal lard, spiced the cheese, and put our mushy masterpiece in corn husks, then steamed them in a giant pot and… WHAM: Humitas! A laborious treat for my tastebuds—more satisfying because we slaved over it together, as a family—a Sunday afternoon brings yet another of Ecuador´s many culinary surprises—individually wrapped in its original husk.


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