here begins an attempt to blog more frequently...

for today, only a short list of what ive been doing lately. social commentary and more to follow...

hombres en escena--a dance show in the casa de la cultura that was all contemporary dance and all men. it was very artsy, downright strange at times, but very creative and enjoyable. it was supposed to be about men enjoying dancing without sexual orientation being an issue. (which is awesome, here, where there is quite a bit of descrimination against homosexuals. and also quite a bit of of support for them on the walls of graffiti, which i find so interesting!) also here was free canalazo, a famous ecuadorian alcoholic drink. it was strong, but good, and tasted like a weak apple cider.

ocho y media--a theatre here with a cute little bar. the theatre specializes in latin american, german, and indie films. and the theatres themselves have a big open area with pillows in front of the screen if people want to sit on the floor!

various delicious italian and other restaurants in la mariscal, the "gringo" area of town...

la compania church, part of the city tour.

another city tour which included a climb inside the virgin of quito on a hill overlooking the city (like a mini little statue of liberty, with religious significance) and the museum of the city (which i found interesting but very eurocentric in my opinion), and a delicious traditional ecuadorian lunch at a hacienda outside the city which included:
--so much orange and blackberry juice
--shrimp ceviche with popcorn and roasted corn
--cheese empanadas
--chicken, a potato and cheese pancake, lettuce and avacado salad, and a hominy side-dish, complete with aji (my new favorite hotsauce)
--figs with a suguary syrup and a mild cheese!!

a pardoy of shakespeare's "the tempest"--at a theatre near my house, where all the actors wore clown-like outfits...complete with tons of cheesy latin american humor (of which i probably only understood about 1/3, but it was hilarious nonetheless)

la carolina park--with museums, botanical gardens, a reptile house, paddle boats, miniature horse rentals, tons of soccer fields, and even some americans that play ultimate frisbee

mass in a gothic style cathedral. and i actually understood about 90% of the very well-spoken homily!

shopping in the el ejido park, where artists showcase their work, and the artisans market, filled with souveniers and other goodies. im sporting some ecuadorian pants from there as we speak...

more to come, i hope. this week is the last week of orientation classes, which means 2 final papers, a final quiz, and a very important final test! its going to be busy, but after that comes a beach trip in esmereldas!

que les vayan bien!