Nothing new. Here's some pictures....

Ice cream....a daily treat! (left to right - K,M,N,J,F & a friend)


beautiful Quito


Joselyn
Nataly

TeleferiQo

Since ~3000m wasn't exciting enough, we decided to take a cable car ride up another 1000m!! It was ~8 minutes to the top; for some reason, these rides are more comfortable when there are feet of snow below you! The scenery was breathtaking (or maybe that was the altitude) and worth the ride and cold at the top. Amazingly, all the kids did just fine, even F's new friend (the grand-daughter of our driver).

We also went to colonial Quito to visit the Plaza de San Francisco. Highlights include a church whose interior was covered entirely in gold leaf and the Bicentennial Musem, where we caught a fantastic puppet show. Another gallery of pics from today can be seen here.

Link to more pics

If you'd like some more pics, this link (click here) will bring you to the gallery of pics from the time we left our house early 7/1/09 until 7/11/09. FYI, there's a lot; 347 photos and 8 videos! I hope your connection is faster than mine! Enjoy!

La Mitad del Mundo (both of them!)

Today we went to the middle of the world!! Both of them! When they discovered the equator a few hundred years ago (1736 to be precise), they didn't have GPS; they were off by ~180m. Unfortunately, they had already erected a monument, museum, restaurants, souvenir shops etc. So, they left it there, and then erected another museum. The actual mitad del mundo was less "toursty" and quite cool. The scenery at both was stunning. The white vulcano in the distance is Cotopaxi; an active volcano at ~5800m. The museo Inti-nan (the actual one) had many, cool demonstrations showing the effects of gravity and the differences between the hemispheres. It is true, water drains counter-clockwise in the north and clockwise in the south. When the tub of water was straddling the equator, the water went straight down. On the equator, the effects of gravity are less. K and I were both able to balance an egg on the head of a nail, quite cool! We had a great day!!

inappropriate branding

Things we have in our cupboard: "SNOB" olive oil and apricot jam and "Bimbo" bread. We gravitated towards these subconsciously at the grocery. Oh well.

It's been one whole week in Ecuador!!

Today, I had the best empanada of my life. Seriously, it was amazing and it only cost $1.20. I bought two, but I did, reluctantly, give one to K (I'm a giver). I contemplated posting a picture of it, but I was afraid it wouldn't do it justice.

Late yesterday, we went to Parque La Carolina. We had a lot of fun, but it was an interesting scene. It reminded us a little bit of Central Park NYC, but not as well maintained, a bit dirty, stray dogs roaming around, and little kids begging. Still, moderately scenic and the kids really enjoyed the wide open space.

I nearly capsized in a paddle boat. F was fairly scared but quickly enjoyed the maritime adventure. M loved it as well. Mom had her own vessel, a bit more stable with N & J, who also loved the journey. I was grateful our boats stayed upright; the water made most swamps look appealing!!

Tonight for dinner we went to KFC. That's right the Colonel called and we answered. The food is just as dreadful as in the states. So why did we eat there you ask?? It's simple really, they had a cool play place for the kids and it's only a few blocks from our temporary home. The kids had a blast; I mean, who wouldn't love launching themselves into a pit of soft, plentiful, plastic balls. It was cute to watch the kids have so much fun. F made a friend and was sad to leave.

I finally got around to downloading the video we have shot so far. Here's a clip before bedtime. Uploading video is time consuming. Even after downgrading the quality, it took 20+ minutes to upload 1 minute to the blog.

This weekend we are headed to La Mitad del Mundo (the actual equator) and to some sites in Quito. I hope to have some more scenic pics to share with you then!

Only in Ecuador

Today I bought 25 beautiful pink roses for $2! It's crazy. In our apartment, there are propane tanks everywhere. I'm not a huge fan. Fortunately, there is a large fire extinguisher in the kitchen as well. Comforting...kind of. There is no central natural gas system here, so the stove, dryer, hot water heater all have their own propane tanks. Oh yeah, so does my grill. I am very excited about my "Made in the USA" Thermos gas grill. Over the weekend, it was all we had to cook since we couldn't figure out how to light our "luxury" stainless steel stove! That's fixed now.

The kids are adjusting reasonably well. That is to say they are fighting as if they have been together since birth!! Ok, they get along very well at times too! All in all, they are very cute and doing well. There is alot to get used to for all of us. For mom and dad, it will be hard for us to get used much less help when we get back!! What do I mean?? Our rent includes 2 cleaning ladies that come everyday to replace our towels, make beds and clean up. In case that isn't enough, we have another lady (former f.m. domestic helper) come in twice a week to help with laundry and cooking. She costs a whopping $2/hour. Don't worry, we're not taking advantage...apparently a typical wage for this type of work is $1 to $1.50 per hour!!

I found a most fantastic new cookie. There's chocolate in the middle and more surrounding the outside. K doesn't love them as much as I do. Lucky for me!!

My systems engineer friend will be glad to know the locally brewed beer is fantastic and economical...in moderation of course!

Some important math we have learned recently...2 + 2 does not equal 4. It equals 10...10x the work,10x the noise, 10x as long to bathe the family, 10x the laughs, 10x the love!! Another interesting euquation, 1 = 3! That's right 1 = 3. Managing 1 very rambunctious young boy = managing 3 girly girls. M is not afraid to agitate all three of his sisters at once. He knows how to get under their skin remarkably well. I think F is happy to have some sisters to share the pain, I mean love from M!! Don't let the very cute picture of M fool you!!

Progress is slow but steady...we signed some documents Monday and are awaiting our first vist to court to start the official legal process. We expect to go before a judge next week sometime.