Wedding planning

My cousin Pauly who lives in Chicago, who is my aunt Vito’s daughter, came Dec 16^th and stayed until Jan 3^rd .  Most of the time was mostly wedding planning.  We started from zero, before coming Pauly had no clue what church, location or date she wanted her wedding. we went to several hotels with banquet halls and tons of outdoor locations. If we had it out door it would be during the day or if it were to be a night it would be at a hotel. I think the prices were relatively great compared to a wedding in the US. In Ecuador it ranged from $28-$47 per person which includes location, menu, decorations, table cloths, flower arrangements, dj, and a hotel room for the newlyweds. Here you have to provide your own alcoholic beverages for the guests, but the waiters will serve. 

After visiting several churches she chose “La Compania” which I think is the most beautiful church in Quito!!  But since this church is always booked months in advance they only had room on May 21^st at 8pm and so we went to the ATM to reserve this spot.  This date and time helped us narrow down where the reception would be; now it had to be in the city, and in a hotel. We found Mercure Grand Hotel.  We also had to find the right invitations now that we had the date and location.  Little by little things came together. There is so much that goes into a wedding and you don’t even think of the little things that really add up.  I think she got most off of her wedding checklist.  

My aunt and I have to work on finding: singers, a band, desserts, accommodations for the out-of-town guests, menu tasting, photographer, videographer, and horse carriage, who knows what else pops up.

La Compania-inside the church

 At least now I have an idea where I want my wedding if I were to get married here, there is a place called “ El Rincon de Puembo” and it is the MOST beautiful place I have seen, and perfect for a wedding!!

Christmas

Me,my aunt vito,the CEO and my cousin Carol who also works at Ecuasanitas

To start off the Christmas festivities my aunt Vito took me to her company Christmas party. It was like a wedding party. Everyone went formal, there were escorts at the door, beautiful flower arrangements, and we were seated in tables of 10. There was 5 course meal and unlimited wine and whiskey at each table.  That said I had a great time. There were about 400 employees and everyone was dancing the night away with a live band and then dj. 

Christmas is my aunt’s favorite holiday and she really goes all out with her decorations every year she buys new ordiments and changes theme for her Christmas tree.

She is also known for having a “Christmas village” most of which she brings from the US because it is ridiculously expensive in Ecuador. Every year her village grows more and more, that during Christmas she needs to storage some of her living room furniture to make room.

My aunt hosted Christmas Eve but since she invited 40 family members she rented out a small salon next door.  My aunt hired two maintenance people from her company to help us clean up and set up the salon. My cousin and I were in charge of getting a pine tree and decorating it and a small nativity scene for the salon. My aunt hired two people to serve on Christmas Eve.   The invitation was at 10pm because that was the time mass started down the street.  Everyone at church brought their baby Jesus. It’s an Ecuadorian tradition where the baby Jesus is kept away until Christmas Eve’s mass.  Once mass has ended people throw rose petals at the people carrying the baby Jesus.  Then off we went to the salon and we toasted, ate then gave out the gifts and ate the traditional Christmas dessert, pestiño, it consists of flour, fried in olive oil and passed through honey.
The dancing began shortly after.  Little by little family members went home. There is a section of the family that are professional partiers and drinkers and they started up the whisky and the dancing and they didn’t stop. They did nap for like 15 mins at a time and would wake up to continue the party but they never got horrible drunk it was a site to see. We ended up staying up until 6:20am the next morning.  We opened the door to go out and we saw light. We all sleep for 4 hours and got back up because we had a Christmas BBQ at my uncles house.

The 2010 census

The 2010 census was conducted in Ecuador which meant that everyone had to be home. I didn't know it was that serious, but it was, there was not a single person or car outside expect for the police From the hours of 6am- 5pm.. On the news they reported people being arrested for not following the law of house lockdown. In was kind creepy not hearing people out during the day.

Two high school kids from each neighborhood conducted the survey.

Some of the questions were common like your race, age, education status but then there were questions like knowing the materials used to construct my walls and floors, the number of bedrooms I have and what electronics I use in my house are all indicators of my economic status. Indeed there were endless questions the conditions of my apartment, some of them unexpected—like for example if I drink water directly from the tap, drink boiled water or buy it filtered. Another, how many light bulbs do I have in my house and how many are the environmentally friendly type. Another question was how do I get rid of my trash?

I thought it was definitely different from the US so I thought I'd post this.

Fiestas de Quito

I returned back to Quito just in time for Fiestas de Quito.
Festivities of Quito celebrate Ecuador's Spanish roots, so traditional Spanish culture is appreciated and enjoyed during these days. Traditional food as well as wine, are commonly consumed.  Joke telling in theaters and cuarenta card game comptitions are two other traditions during the festivities. 

For the ten days running up to and including 6th December, there are also bull fights at the Plaza de Toros, the only time during the year when the bull ring is actually used for bull fighting. The fights are considered by most to be a high-class social event, and Quito’s elite flock to the fights, dressed in their finest smart-casual wear, donning cowboy or panama hats to keep the sun off. Many also have botas (wineskins). Those who can’t afford to go inside linger outside and in the surrounding streets in groups drinking beer and whiskey and dancing in makeshift discos.


In late November, the festivities start with the election of the Queen of Quito. From this point onwards, in the streets you can see Chivas, or colorful open-topped buses driving through the streets, carrying as many as 50 people who may be dancing to the banda del pueblo (town band) which play on the top, or drinking canelazo, a potent alcoholic drink with a sugar cane alcohol and cinnamon base. This happens night and day, with Chivas getting booked up weeks ahead of time for the early days of December.


On the night of 5th December, the partying reaches a climax and there are street parties all over Quito. 

It was the first time I went to a bull fight, I was glad I went but felt very sad for the bulls.

The chiva was tons of fun because you get to drink and dance on the open bus that is going 30-40 mph I think it's the adrenaline. 
The card game 40 was  interesting but it requires great memory and a slick tongue. 

The best part of it all was, after the fiestas de Quito I called my parents and they were able to re- live their youth by telling me stories on how they celebrated that week. (  now I was able to relate to the streets, the names etc...)

How it all happened

In Aug 2009 while in Ecuador I had a crazy idea... "What if I lived here in Ecuador how would life be? Wouldn't it be nice to know how and where my parents had their childhood?" At first it sounded ridiculous but then I pondered and had a self debate ...  Jackie, you have never left home, you have a great job, you will miss your friends... on the other hand you don't have kids, nor husband, nor debt, you have saved up money. I came to the conclusion that now is the only chance take it or forever wonder. 

In this blog I will share with you my experience here in Ecuador. Although I have been here since April 2010, I will be posting from the second part of this journey. Thank you for your interest.