La Mitad Del Mundo

Michael's Semester in Quito, Ecuador.

[michaelswanderlust]

Comiendo Gusanos!

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Last day of presentations.  I'm going to miss these kiddies.  We've gone through a lot this semester.

[michaelswanderlust]

Chasing the sun

Somehow I survived the gigantic workload that was thrust upon me these last few weeks, and as of my last presentation monday I am free!  These weeks have had me staying in and working so much, but it was very fulfilling to see the semester work come together.  Now that they are done, there's a rush for me to hang out and say bye to the people who have made this journey so special.  It amazes me how close I've grown with some people here, and Im going to miss them terribly when I have to leave.  Though, like my host mother says, its not goodbye forever because I will return.  I really believe that I will find myself here again, because it feels like a second home. So cheers to a wonderful semester, and I will be making the most of the farra these last few days, each night chasing the sun.

[michaelswanderlust]

One of my favorite moments of my time here was visiting Mitad Del Mundo.  It's a cool feeling knowing that you are standing on Earth's sunny equator just outside of Quito.  It was also very fulfilling because when I was last abroad we took a day trip just outside of London to Greenwich to visit the prime meridian. Having the chance to straddle earth's most important lines of latitude and longitude makes my abroad experiences come full circle.

[michaelswanderlust]

Just a few weeks left

It is nearing the end of April, and so the school year is winding down, and my semester abroad is winding down.  There are many assignments, presentations, exams, and final projects that lie ahead of me.  It is actually quite overwhelming.  It has taken a lot of will power to cut down on fun activities and focus on schoolwork.  This weekend, I have an extra large workload as I was sick for most of this week.  I got food poisoning on Monday, which has made the week very difficult to manage.  At my lowest point, I was too uncomfortable to stand, and too uncomfortable to lie down, I just wanted out.  Somehow, I made it through, and I'm feeling a lot better now, ready to take on these last few weeks.  

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At the helm.

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TRANSITIONAL ZONE

The transitional zone is characterized by trees and shrubs that take advantage of the increased water availability.  Giant tortoises inhabit this area, and it is also used for agricultural purposes.

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LITTORAL ZONE

The Littoral Zone is the coastline where habitats include, beaches, rocky shores, and mangroves. This habitat is ideal for seabirds, waterbirds, and shorebirds as well as plant species that can tolerate high salinity.

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The Cromwell current is responsible for the cold upwellings that come from the west.  It is a counter current that runs from the western Pacific beneath the flows of water traveling west.  It brings up water rich in nutrients and it disperses at it reaches the submarine Galápagos platform and rises up around Fernandina and Isabela islands.

A similar phenomenon occurs from the south east, with the peruvian currents bringing cold nutrient rich water to the Galápagos.  

The Panama current is a warm water currents that travels down from Central America.

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SCALEZIA ZONE

The Scalezia Zone is lush cloud forest like vegetacion that is dominated by the scalezia trees.  Scalezia ia an endemic plant to the Galápagos.  It is a tree species that grows 15-20 meters high. It grows in stands where all the trees are of the same age.   

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The galapagos islands are located on the Nazca plate.  Just above the Nazca plate is the Cocos plate.  The border that they share is called the Galapagos Fracture Zone.

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Reptiles are particularly well represented in the Galápagos.  There are lizards, iguanas, turtles, and snakes.  Many of these animals have become endemic to the Galápagos.  Reptiles have the ability to surive for an extended period of time without nourishment.  This is likely one of the reasons why reptiles were successfully transported to the islands.  In the past, sailors would capture turtles and stack them in the hold of the ship upside down, and use them throughout their long journey as a source of fresh meat. 

[michaelswanderlust]

The Galápagos Islands are world renowned.  When Darwin first visited, he made collections and observations that have changed natural science into what we know it as today.  I feel extremely privileged for having the opportunity to visit these fabled islands and it was also a very fulfilling visit.  It brought full-circle my experiences abroad and connected this Ecuadorian journey with the time I spent studying in London.  One of my classes in London focused on the history of science, we focused on the history of diseases, and history of scientific thought.  One of the most beloved British scientists was Charles Darwin.  Our class took trips to visit Down House as well as the University of Cambridge where he studied.  Learning about his voyage and seeing the samples he collected was incredibly intriguing.  What I learned in London came alive when I was in the Galápagos. 

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Spring Break:  Galápagos & Cuenca

[fyeahecuador]

Fanesca appreciation post

The Fanesca is the official soup of the Semana Santa, back in the day with everyone was die hard Catholic people didn’t eat meat on Semana Santa so they ate this bad boy all week. And some didn’t bath from Thursday to Sunday because they fear to be transformed in a fish … Yeah, those times

Fanesca has 12 grains and dried fish, eggs, little empanadas, onion, banano de comida, and several other things. It’s now made in the streets markets as well as in luxury restaurants like the Hotel Quito. It has a strong flavor, kids usually hate it, but once you are used to it. 

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[tnelms]

On Viernes Santo (Good Friday) of Semana Santa (Holy Week), hundreds march through the streets of the Centro Histórico de Quito in the Procesión de Jesús del Gran Poder. The route leads from the Plaza de San Francisco down to Calle Venezuela and then all the way up and around la Basilica, before returning to San Francisco. The Procession, held on the day of the Crucifixion of Christ, is considered at once a test and demonstration of faith, a display of mourning for the death of Jesus, and a form of repentance for one’s sins.

The characters of the Procession are traditional: The cucuruchos—dressed in purple robes and wearing tall, cone-shaped hoods (“cucurcho” means “cone” in Spanish)—are the penitents, sometimes assumed to have committed a grave sin for which they must demonstrate desire to repent. Many carry images of Christ on the Cross or el Niño Jesus or a particular Virgin before them; others strap themselves to wooden beams hoisted onto their shoulders or whip themselves as they walk. The Veronicas—women dressed similarly in purple, but with black or violet veils of lace covering their heads and faces—represent the women who, after helping Christ down from the Cross, wiped the blood from his face, such that His image remained on the cloth. Others appear as Jesus himself and carry heavy wooden crosses through the streets, sometimes accompanied by those dressed as Roman Centurions. The purple of the robes worn by the cucuruchos and Veronicas represents (I am told) both their remorse and their sorrow. “El duelo es morado,” one man told me. “Grief is purple.” (Why not black? Apparently because black represents mortal sin.)

The marchers move slowly through the streets, pausing often. They march to the mournful music of monks chanting Jesús del Gran Poder, played from loudspeakers set up in the balconies along the Procession route. Banners are also hung along the route announcing the different Stations of the Cross, specific moments among the events during the Passion, leading up to and including Jesus Christ’s Crucifixion. Indeed, the Procession recapitulates the events of Good Friday, for instance, beginning at noon (the hour Pontius Pilate is said to have sentenced Jesus to death). Hence the desire to act out—sometimes gruesomely—the suffering of Christ.

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The main image they carry is the Jesus del Gran Poder that gives its name to the Procession. 

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Billiards in Ecuador... the same as in the states.