Carnival, etc.

Greeting from Quito,
I thought today woud be very unexciting, but I was very mistaken.
This morning I went to the tourism office in Old Town. I was looking for a place that might sell the Lonely Planet book for Ecuador. I had bought one in Phx before I left and it has been a resource that I don´t want to try to live here without. It seems I left mine in the car that was involved in the accident on Monday. Another anglo told me they thought they saw them for sale at the tourism office in Old Town. To make a long story short they didn´t have it, nor did they have it at any of the other places in Old Town I was referred to. Finally someone told me of a bookstore in a secton of town called La Mariscal (more about La Mariscal later), so I started to look for a taxi.
Suddenly I heard a lot of noice, band music (not very good band music, but band music nonetheless) and I found myself in the midst of a huge parade that is part of the Carnival celebration that runs until Ash Wednesday next week. It was fabulous--literally hundreds of people, most in indeginous dress, some in constumes of every imaginable kind, bands, floats, people throwing flower pedals, and the ever-present KARAOKA. Karaoka is a custom where people buy aerosol cans of a soapy foam spray and go around spraying everybody and I mean everybody. It serves much the same purpose as confetti, only some spray it right in peoples´ faces. It vanishes pretty quickly, but it is a pain when you get hit right in the face, as I did, and many do. Don´t you know I didn´t have a camera. But it may be better, because the karaoka could have damaged the camera anyway.
I am sure I will run into more Carnival. I will be in Arequipa, Peru on Shrove Tuesday and there they will surely have a fantastic event for the last day of Carnival.
I thought I´d take a few minutes to acquaaint you with a few of the slices of daily life here. I have already mentioned the horrible traffic, but what I haven´t told you is that people here walk the same way the drive--aggressively. No one ever says excuse me or such when they bang into you or cut in front of you. No one ever steps aside to let a lady, or anyone else for that matter, pass first. It is every man and woman for themselves and no apologies.
Also people think nothing of blocking a pathway. People park cars on the side walks and force pedestrians to step out into the streets. They think nothing of blocking a lane of traffic if they need to stop for a few minutes for some reason. People often block the aisles in the supermarket and move only after they are asked. They are not rude by their standards at all, that is just the culture here.
Walking on the sidewalks is an exercise in mental concentration and athletic ability. The sidewaljks are horrible by our sndards. They have holes, some from lack of repair, some by design, there are pipes and other structures sticking up right in the middle of the sidewalk, the elevation changes fro property to property. One property owner ha hs sidewalk at a certan height, the next has his 6 inches higher or lower, curbs vary in height from low to ¨make your best jump¨. You have to watch very carefully every step you take, and be ready make an athletic move at any time.
On the more plesant side, Ecuador is a major producer and exporter of flowers, especially roses. Green houses are all over the countryside. The good part about this is that flowers here are dirt cheap. I bought a dozen long-stemmed roses for my apartment for $1.70, and some places they cost as little as $1.00.
I mentioned La Mariscal above. That is a part of town generally referred to as GRINGO LANDIA. It is a part of town where many restaurants and hotels and shops are located that cater to gringo tourists. I go there sometimes when I eat out. The gringo sports bar where I will watch the Superbowl is located.
Speaking of the Superbowl, no one does here, that is speak of it, I mean. The papers don´t have a word about it, there is nothing on the TV sports news--nada, nada, nada!!!!. I had to ask Mike to send me an email telling me what time the game is on Sunday.
Similarly, there is very little news about the primary elections. None in the press, and only short references in the TV news. Incase anybody thinks otherise, the USA is not the center of interest on the earth. The only interest I hear expressed by local people about the primaries is ANYBODY BUT BUSH, other than that the locals have no interest.
If you have never traveled in underdeveloped, or third world contries, bathrooms would be a bit of a surprise. Used toilet paper is NEVER put in the commode. It is placed in a waste basket mext to the commode. If you stop at a gas station, the men´s urinals are outside--set only so that the person using it has his back to the area where the gas is pumped. In some public bathrooms a lady stands inside, both the mens and womens and sells you a very small amount of toilet paper for a dime.
These are just a few of those little things that make up daily life. Well, I must go and do my Spanish homework and get some supper.
Love to you all,
Glenn+