Well, apparently we received some bad information regarding the youth group at Verbo Church. We were told it was yesterday, but when we arrived, we discovered that it was actually a church-wide service, that would be entirely in Spanish. Since there was really only one of us that would be able to understand what was being said, we elected instead to head over to a friend's house a little early, because we were planning on going there later anyway. Our friend came and picked us up, but the car had one less seat than we had people. Ergo, Sasha ended up sitting on my lap; we had concluded that that would be the least awkward situation. On the way to the church earlier, we were put in the same situation in our taxi, except I was sitting on Sasha. There is no possible way to make that comfortable, no matter how hard you try.
Once we arrived at our destination, we enjoyed a few hours of conversation, as well as re-living our memories from the last week. Our hostess, after being surprised on account of our early arrival, quickly whipped up a delicious meal for us, followed by some tea/coffee. There were key limes served with the tea, and a couple geniuses in our group decided to eat the limes, even after we were told they were extremely bitter. I don't understand guys.....or Sasha.
Wednesday morning, Hudson, Sasha, me, Mrs. Brumbarger, and our new friends, Marco and Maria, headed off toward Chordeleg (aka the city known for it's work with silver). On the way there, we came across the house of a woman who was in the process of making scarves, shawls, etc. How long do you think it takes her to make one of those? Well, that depends on the size of it. First, she has to turn the wool into thread, and dye it if she wishes. Then, she has to tie knots in the thread, and dye it again, in order to create the pattern. To create the dye, she boils walnuts, bean pods, flowers, moss, and a bunch of other things, depending on the color she wants. Once she has all of this done, she is finally ready to weave it into a scarf or a shawl. That part alone takes at least a day or two, non-stop, if she's lucky. After she finishes that, she must tie the ends of the scarf, as to add more detail, and keep it from unravelling. This, again, takes at least another full day. Now, if she decides to add any embroidery, it can take as much as three months to get it finished.
Now, compare that to the States, where everything is done with a machine, and they can make one in less than five minutes. Which would you rather have? The one that everyone else in the world has, or that unique and special one that was made personally for you? I know which I would rather have.
After that, we continued on to Chordeleg, where we spent hours looking at the silverwork. In most of the shops, the people were literally manipulating and working the silver in the back of their shops while we were there. You never see that in the States, and there is a huge difference in quality, also. It goes without saying that I of course made a purchase; I mean, how can you not? (Pictures to come!) I could have spent hours there, but, unfortunately, we had to head back to the hotel for some lunch, where we met up with Tanner.
That afternoon, we went back to the local supermarket to buy any last minute things we would need, then we headed over to the Verbo Church for a birthday party. Sam, a consultant working with Mr. Brumbarger, was celebrating his 19th birthday. The party was supposed to begin at 5, and it was Tanner's job to get Sam there. Of course, they did not arrive until almost 6. That's what happens when there is not a woman involved in the process.
Not long after the party, we headed to our friends' house for some pizza. We all made sure to instruct Hudson to go light on the pizza, as to avoid a repeat of the last week's disaster. Little did we know, our night would also consist of a Jenga tournament, and Youtube surfing. We have met the kindest, most hilarious Equadorian friends that we could ever ask for.
During our car ride back to the hotel, in which we had to fit four people in a seat that was not meant for more than three, Tanner discovered that he had left his phone on the table at our friends' house; classic.
Only one more day in Ecuador! It's sad. Sasha and Hudson are coming down with colds, so please pray that they will make a speedy recovery before we have to get on the planes!
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