la fiesta familia

Jorge befriended my folks when they came to visit last June. He has a cousin in Casper who taught my mom Spanish. So Jorge and my parents were excited to connect. Since that first meeting, Jorge became like family and introduced his friends and family and country. Jorge had been our chauffeur from the airport; in fact he stayed until 2am while we were stuck in Guayaquil and then came again the next day. So Sunday, we celebrated our arrival and the Christmas holiday with our new Ecuadorian family.

Jorge lived in the states for some time and speaks fairly good English but the rest of his family doesn’t. Especially Papi, he just speaks slower and louder. Sound familiar? But between my dad and I we were able to keep the conversation going, though my Spanish was rough. We talked about Casper and Quito, discussing the best parts of it all. I brought the Africa book I made so I got to show and tell about our trip. They loved the book and asked many questions about the people and costumes (ie the basutis worn for the wedding).

My mom made an excellent dinner of pasta and chicken with asparagus and salad. The fresh fruits and vegetables available in Quito make all meals quite enjoyable. Over dinner we discussed New Year’s Eve. Jorge was disappointed that I couldn’t stay for the New Year; he thought it poor planning and I really didn’t have a good excuse for getting back. There are many traditions with their holidays but this day has some pretty spectacular ones. For one, the men dress up as widows, skirts, wigs, and all, though the facial hair usually remains. Eek! In this outfit they panhandle from car to car which most people give into for the sheer fun of the day. People also make dolls out of sawdust in the images of various famous people such as the president, soccer teams, and actors. At midnight, the dolls are set on fire to symbolize the ending of one year and the beginning of another. Even if the soccer team was great, a new year brings new opportunities and groups to the forefront. Finally, people sometime dress up in yellow and red and run around town in joyous fun. The women are found usually in a yellow top bikini with red bottoms. Finally, I had an excuse as I had forgotten my suit at home. The ladies offered to take me shopping for such apparel so no excuses were left.

Finally we exchanged gifts. They gave Daniel and I pouches filled with candy, a traditional gift for children. My folks received a CD of Ecuadorian music and a bag of cosmetics (for my mom) including anti-wrinkle cream and deodorant. (Are they hinting at something.) My dad gave the family pictures of their reunion at the airport and other celebrations. They all enjoyed it very much. The evening came to an end maybe sooner than usual, but with the exertion in trying to remember Spanish and the long day for everyone. So the universal debate over who would take home certain leftovers commenced until we ended up with a key lime moose and they took the brownies. Oh such fun, even the clean up with Mamma Mia in the background. It was certainly of evening of Fiesta!