Otavalo & the Middle of the WORLD!

We had a such a great weekend this past weekend! We were all in bed fairly early on Friday as it had been a long day and we knew that Saturday at the market would be a long day. I find the school days quite exhausting, especially the days when we're teaching or participating in P.E. (Cultura fisica). On Saturday, we got to sleep in (8:00am! wooo) although most of us are so used to being up at 5:30 that we woke up earlier. It takes about 2 hours to drive to Otavalo, which is basically a huge market town. We were able to stop at a little tourist shop that had an amazing view of the mountains! You could also pay some money to pet a little llama, but I never did.

This is at that location. So beautiful. This is what Ecuador seems to look like everywhere. Green mountains covered in clouds at the top with sprawling houses. So gorgeous.

We continued on and eventually got to Otavalo. Just a town made of a huge market! So unbelievable. We mostly stuck together so that we could buy things together. The guys all got poncho's, which look amazing I must say. I was able to pick up some things for myself as well as for my lucky friends back home! Don't worry friends, I was thinking of you! Things are extremely cheap here and we're lucky enough that our driver and his son came with us and were so helpful with the bargaining. It was actually hilarious to watch. Oh what gringo's we are! They have some really beautiful art here that I would love to buy but have no way of transporting home. They also have so many beautiful little trinkets with so much detail and the alpaca blankets are the softest thing you've ever felt! So amazing. After the market, we headed to another town close by that's the leather market but I can't remember the name of the town. You walk down the streets of this town and there's just store after store after store of leather jackets, shoes, and purses. It's sooooo cheap but is definitely legit leather. Luckily I didn't bring my visa with me and I was out of cash so I didn't buy anything, although I would have loooooved to buy a beautiful leather jacket. Maybe when Anik gets here we'll go back! We had lunch at another delicious little restaurant (I just can't get over how good the food is here) and then we were headed back to Quito. Our driver, Oswaldo, told us he has a surprise for us. He pulls over on the side of the road and tells us to get out. He then explains that we are in the middle of the world and are quite literally standing on the equator. Whaaat?! Craziest thought ever. He then explained a few little tricks to us.

 This is Dana and I standing on the one side of the equator. On this side, she's pushing down and my arms and I'm fighting it but she could easily push my arms down.

 In this picture, we're on the other side of the equator. You can see the red line in the background, the one close to Dana and I. On this side of the equator she couldn't push my hands down so matter how hard she tried. Seriously! I know it sounds insane but it's actually true.

This is how I felt when I realized that she couldn't push my hands down. Seriously. Oddest feeling ever that moving one foot made such a difference. Apparently it has to do with gravity at this point in the earth. I don't know but it blew my mind!

We were all blown away by Oswaldo's surprise. So neat! We all packed back into the van and continued to Quito. We stopped in a small town on the way back known for its bread and stringy cheese. It is the place of the original cheese strings! The cheese here is amazing by the way. So we got 10 pieces of bread $1.00 and $0.30 for a cheese string. So yummy! What a fantastic day!

On Sunday, we had a laid back day. Went out for a breakfast with the group and then came back to play some crib. Some of the group was going to play some sports but Dana, Jen and I went for a walk around the neighbourhood looking for a massive park that was shown on the map. We then headed down through the city to another a big park where there are lots of volleyball courts and so many people playing! Reminded me of Assiniboine Park, except with mountains in the background. We continued on our walk and then headed back to the hotel. We spent about 2 hours just exploring the city and walking around. We went for a swim to cool down and then I did some laundry and then we did yoga on the rooftop. Momma Oso Meghan is trained in leading yoga so we've done it a couple times on the rooftop of our hotel which has a most spectacular view. Then it was time for supper and then we just relaxed and played some games. Such a great day!!

To end this post, I just want to make note of a few things we take for granted in our schools that you may not realize we take for granted (the reason I'm posting this now is so I don't forget :)) :
- toilet paper
- paper towels or anything to dry your hands
- toilet seats (yes, toilet seats. The Inca school doesn't have toilet seats so I will have quads of steel by the time I come back to Canada)
- sports equipment
- substitute teachers (here, if the teacher doesn't show up the students do whatever they want. there are no teachers to substitute for them so the class just doesn't happen and the students don't learn)
- general school supplies (dry erase markers, pens, pencils, etc).

It's not hard here to realize how lucky we really are in Canada. Even for the complaints we may have about the school system or anything else, we're extremely blessed to have the luxuries we have.