Not literally, of course. But definitely figuratively. I'm not sure what brought on this sudden surge of love in the Middle Eastern food, but there seems to be a shawarma restaurant on every corner now. When I first got to Cuenca in September there was only one Middle Eastern restaurant with shawarma that I knew of. It was on Calle Larga, and the small shawarma cost $1.90. I thought that was a pretty good price.
But a couple of months later another restaurant opened up a block down the road. This restaurant had black lights, hookah pipes, and great deals. A single shawarma, which was bigger than the small at the other restaurant, was $1.75. You could also get deals like 3 or 6 shawarmas plus 3 or 6 beers plus a hookah pipe for a $9 or $15. And their first weekend open they had a belly dancer. It was a great time.
And since then I've been going to that restaurant to get my shawarma fix. It's a great meal that's quick and cheap. But since that restaurant has opened two or three more shawarma restaurants have opened up close by. They all look exactly the same, and the prices are all exactly the same. This is basically a typical move in the business world in Ecuador.
Once something has established itself and become successful, competitors will lazily stick their own version right next to the same place. Rather than trying something different or going to a different location, they flood the market with the same product, driving down prices and shooting up competition.
Another example of this is with one of my favorite restaurants in Cuenca. It's a Colombian restaurant that has been around for years and is known all throughout the city as a great place. But just in the last couple of weeks another family has set up a Colombian restaurant right next to the previous restaurant. Not really the smartest business move. The first restaurant is already established and a known favorite. Every time I walk by the street I can see the first restaurant is packed while the new one is empty. Why change when you know the first place is great?
And this extends beyond food. There will be streets where all the vendors sell are sun glasses, pants, or the cheesy artisan work that you find everywhere. It's amazing to see how the business works down here. But I guess as long as the competition keeps the prices down it's good for the consumers, and since I'm a consumer, I'll stay happy, if not amazed.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Monday, March 30, 2009
Ecuador vs. Brazil
Yesterday afternoon was pretty entertaining. Ecuador played Brazil in Quito in a qualifying match for the World Cup at 4 o'clock, and I think it's safe to say that the entire country was watching. My host family set up a TV in the hallway outside my room under the sun roof, and we all sat together watching, along with Casey and Lara, who were in Cuenca for the night.
You could see on the TV how crazy the crowd was, and everyone in the stadium was decked out in yellow, just like us at home. We didn't really expect too much because Brazil is such a good team that they didn't really need to try. As long as they didn't lose, it wouldn't be a loss for them. For Ecuador, however, it was a must-win or must-tie game.
Ecuador came out strong and owned the first half, but missed many opportunities to score. We talked about how well they were playing, but at the same time realized that Brazil was just going with the flow. They weren't attacking the ball and were basically just playing defense. Even with the little effort, you could see just how talented they were. Their bench players are the stars on their respective club teams.
After half time we expected the tempo of the game to change, and for a while it did. Brazil came out looking to score in the second half, and they played well, but Ecuador was still in control of the ball for most of the game. But as long as they didn't let up a goal, Brazil was fine with it. They had nothing to prove. Eventually Brazil took out their star player, Ronaldinho, since there was no sense in risking injury. But almost as soon as his replacement came in, the new player scored a goal on Ecuador.
The score was 1-0 and you could sense the deflation in the stadium, maybe over the whole country. There were only 15 minutes or so left but Ecuador continued to attack the ball as Brazil started to hang back and just play defense. With more and more opportunities wasted, it looked as though the game was over, as well as any serious chances for the World Cup for Ecuador. But with 2 minutes or so left Ecuador suddenly scored a goal, tying the game at 1-1. The house, the stadium, and I assume the rest of the country erupted.
With the game almost over, the team had a couple more chances at scoring the go-ahead goal, but couldn't close the deal. Yet the fact that they tied wasn't a total loss, because tying to one of the worlds best teams isn't all that bad. And they still gained some points for it. They're far down the chart, but there is another qualifying game on Wednesday against Paraguay, and I'm nearly certain that classes will be canceled. Or at the very least, no one will show up and I will cancel class after 5 minutes and rush home to watch the game.
It's exciting to watch these games even though I've never rooted for Ecuador. But it's funny to notice how I unintentionally start talking about the national team in the first person, which might be something unique to where I come from. But instead of saying, "Ecuador is playing Paraguay on Wednesday," I hear myself saying, "We're playing Paraguay on Wednesday." I guess I'm a part of the team now too.
It would be nice for the team to make the World Cup, but I guess if that falls through I've always got Argentina or the U.S. to root for.
You could see on the TV how crazy the crowd was, and everyone in the stadium was decked out in yellow, just like us at home. We didn't really expect too much because Brazil is such a good team that they didn't really need to try. As long as they didn't lose, it wouldn't be a loss for them. For Ecuador, however, it was a must-win or must-tie game.
Ecuador came out strong and owned the first half, but missed many opportunities to score. We talked about how well they were playing, but at the same time realized that Brazil was just going with the flow. They weren't attacking the ball and were basically just playing defense. Even with the little effort, you could see just how talented they were. Their bench players are the stars on their respective club teams.
After half time we expected the tempo of the game to change, and for a while it did. Brazil came out looking to score in the second half, and they played well, but Ecuador was still in control of the ball for most of the game. But as long as they didn't let up a goal, Brazil was fine with it. They had nothing to prove. Eventually Brazil took out their star player, Ronaldinho, since there was no sense in risking injury. But almost as soon as his replacement came in, the new player scored a goal on Ecuador.
The score was 1-0 and you could sense the deflation in the stadium, maybe over the whole country. There were only 15 minutes or so left but Ecuador continued to attack the ball as Brazil started to hang back and just play defense. With more and more opportunities wasted, it looked as though the game was over, as well as any serious chances for the World Cup for Ecuador. But with 2 minutes or so left Ecuador suddenly scored a goal, tying the game at 1-1. The house, the stadium, and I assume the rest of the country erupted.
With the game almost over, the team had a couple more chances at scoring the go-ahead goal, but couldn't close the deal. Yet the fact that they tied wasn't a total loss, because tying to one of the worlds best teams isn't all that bad. And they still gained some points for it. They're far down the chart, but there is another qualifying game on Wednesday against Paraguay, and I'm nearly certain that classes will be canceled. Or at the very least, no one will show up and I will cancel class after 5 minutes and rush home to watch the game.
It's exciting to watch these games even though I've never rooted for Ecuador. But it's funny to notice how I unintentionally start talking about the national team in the first person, which might be something unique to where I come from. But instead of saying, "Ecuador is playing Paraguay on Wednesday," I hear myself saying, "We're playing Paraguay on Wednesday." I guess I'm a part of the team now too.
It would be nice for the team to make the World Cup, but I guess if that falls through I've always got Argentina or the U.S. to root for.
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Feeling My Age
I'm not that old. But I'm starting to feel like I'm not a spring chicken anymore. Lately I'm noticing that after just one night of going out I'm wiped, and don't want to go out for the rest of the week. Back in college I could go out hard for three solid nights and still get through the week fine. Now, however, I'm finding that if I go out on Friday night, I just want to take it easy on Saturday.
It could have to do with my work schedule, or the fact that I get woken up very early, even on the weekends. It's always necessary to sleep off the night before, but here I get woken up too early and can't get back to sleep, which defeats the purpose of a weekend morning. But my whole body just feels tired, and I feel perfectly happy just watching a movie and relaxing.
I've always thought it was kind of lame to see older people (40s and 50s) out at a disco because they just don't fit in with the rest of the demographic there. Aside from maybe once in a blue moon, when I get older I think I'd be fine with dinner parties and movies. I had my time partying it up, and it was great, but if you did it right the first time, you don't need to do it again. And I think I'm ready to move on.
Some friends from my program were visiting Cuenca this week and on Friday night we went over to Lauren's house for dinner and some wine before heading out. Her host sister just left for Mexico for a month, so now she's all alone. We had a good time and met up with some other friends at a bar on Calle Larga. Even though I only got one extremely strong Black Russian and a beer, I was doing good for the night. After a shawarma we called it a night and went home by 1:30 a.m.
And for the rest of Saturday I was exhausted and just wanted to lay in bed watching movies. But I'd told Lauren I would go with her class to do karaoke around 4 p.m. Just as I'd left the house a great thunderstorm passed through Cuenca, and I got soaked on the way, even though I had an umbrella. The wind was so strong that the rain was just blowing under the cover of the umbrella. We went to a karaoke bar by the river and were led into a private room to sing. It was a bit odd being taken to a private room to sing with just 5 other girls, but I was just going with it.
We sang for a little bit, even though I was too tired to get into it and my awful tone deaf voice was as bad as it could have been. We left the students to grab dinner and met up with a couple other friends later on, but we were so tired that we'd all filtered out by 10:30. I went home, finished watching a movie, and went to bed.
And I feel fine today, which is a nice thing. I went for a run this morning and have been able to enjoy the beautiful weather. Later this afternoon Ecuador plays Brazil in a qualifying match for the World Cup, and everyone is out wearing their yellow national team shirts. Even I have mine on, and everyone was looking at me strangely, wondering why a gringo would have the shirt.
So it will be another typical Sunday of lesson planning, relaxing, and hanging out in the house. All before starting another week of just counting down the days until Friday.
It could have to do with my work schedule, or the fact that I get woken up very early, even on the weekends. It's always necessary to sleep off the night before, but here I get woken up too early and can't get back to sleep, which defeats the purpose of a weekend morning. But my whole body just feels tired, and I feel perfectly happy just watching a movie and relaxing.
I've always thought it was kind of lame to see older people (40s and 50s) out at a disco because they just don't fit in with the rest of the demographic there. Aside from maybe once in a blue moon, when I get older I think I'd be fine with dinner parties and movies. I had my time partying it up, and it was great, but if you did it right the first time, you don't need to do it again. And I think I'm ready to move on.
Some friends from my program were visiting Cuenca this week and on Friday night we went over to Lauren's house for dinner and some wine before heading out. Her host sister just left for Mexico for a month, so now she's all alone. We had a good time and met up with some other friends at a bar on Calle Larga. Even though I only got one extremely strong Black Russian and a beer, I was doing good for the night. After a shawarma we called it a night and went home by 1:30 a.m.
And for the rest of Saturday I was exhausted and just wanted to lay in bed watching movies. But I'd told Lauren I would go with her class to do karaoke around 4 p.m. Just as I'd left the house a great thunderstorm passed through Cuenca, and I got soaked on the way, even though I had an umbrella. The wind was so strong that the rain was just blowing under the cover of the umbrella. We went to a karaoke bar by the river and were led into a private room to sing. It was a bit odd being taken to a private room to sing with just 5 other girls, but I was just going with it.
We sang for a little bit, even though I was too tired to get into it and my awful tone deaf voice was as bad as it could have been. We left the students to grab dinner and met up with a couple other friends later on, but we were so tired that we'd all filtered out by 10:30. I went home, finished watching a movie, and went to bed.
And I feel fine today, which is a nice thing. I went for a run this morning and have been able to enjoy the beautiful weather. Later this afternoon Ecuador plays Brazil in a qualifying match for the World Cup, and everyone is out wearing their yellow national team shirts. Even I have mine on, and everyone was looking at me strangely, wondering why a gringo would have the shirt.
So it will be another typical Sunday of lesson planning, relaxing, and hanging out in the house. All before starting another week of just counting down the days until Friday.
Friday, March 27, 2009
Paid
We did it! We finally got paid this morning. I got a call from my secretary at 9:30 a.m. telling me that my check was at the financial office and ready to be picked up. I'm still in a bit of shock, really. I had kind of forgotten was it was like to get a paycheck and have some money. Instead of getting a check for two months worth of work, I got one for $1,400, so I have to assume that it includes March also, even though the other professors haven't been paid for March yet. And the $20 that has been short on every other check, will be included in April's paycheck.
So the first thing I'm going to do now is figure out how to deposit or cash this check so there is as little delay as possible. I need to pay for three months worth of rent. After that, I need to pick up some things I've been going without. I'd like to get some floss and Listerine. But I might have to go without the Listerine if it's too expensive, since it's kind of a luxury anyway. I've needed a pair of black shoes for work for a long time. I have brown loafers that I wear with my khaki's, but when I wear black pants I need to wear my black sneakers, and I always feel like an idiot in them.
I also only have one pair of pajama-like pants that I can wear around the house, so I'd like to get some cheapo depot pants to wear around the house. I'm a pretty simple person, and outside of those things, there isn't much else that I want. The only other expense would be a movie or two a week and a drink or meal outside of the house. It just feels so good to finally have the paycheck in my hands, even though it's a bit nerve racking to have it all at once. But now it feels like I can actually do stuff and not feel badly about it.
Luckily it didn't come down to a strike in the end. I'm sure my students will be ever-so happy to have class on Monday (yeah right). But just avoiding that whole issue will make things a lot better for everyone else. And hopefully in the future this kind of thing won't happen again.
*And to clarify, $600 are going towards paying for rent and food.
And the best part of it all? Today is Friday.
So the first thing I'm going to do now is figure out how to deposit or cash this check so there is as little delay as possible. I need to pay for three months worth of rent. After that, I need to pick up some things I've been going without. I'd like to get some floss and Listerine. But I might have to go without the Listerine if it's too expensive, since it's kind of a luxury anyway. I've needed a pair of black shoes for work for a long time. I have brown loafers that I wear with my khaki's, but when I wear black pants I need to wear my black sneakers, and I always feel like an idiot in them.
I also only have one pair of pajama-like pants that I can wear around the house, so I'd like to get some cheapo depot pants to wear around the house. I'm a pretty simple person, and outside of those things, there isn't much else that I want. The only other expense would be a movie or two a week and a drink or meal outside of the house. It just feels so good to finally have the paycheck in my hands, even though it's a bit nerve racking to have it all at once. But now it feels like I can actually do stuff and not feel badly about it.
Luckily it didn't come down to a strike in the end. I'm sure my students will be ever-so happy to have class on Monday (yeah right). But just avoiding that whole issue will make things a lot better for everyone else. And hopefully in the future this kind of thing won't happen again.
*And to clarify, $600 are going towards paying for rent and food.
And the best part of it all? Today is Friday.
Thursday, March 26, 2009
Possible Payday
Ever since we gave the ultimatum to not show up for work on Monday if we weren't paid by Friday, the university has gotten to work on finally getting our money. It seems that all they needed was a little threat. Since Tuesday we've been running around making copies of our passports, bank account numbers, and running after financial officials to sign new copies of our contracts with the correct amount of money in them.
And today we might have finally gotten there. We signed the new contracts again, and though that should have wrapped it up, one of the top financial directors is in Belgium, while another is in Quito. But we've been told that he'll be back late this afternoon, so by tomorrow he will sign our checks. They checks are already there, they've told us, and all he has to do is sign them. So hopefully we can get the money tomorrow without any problem and still show up for class as scheduled on Monday.
It's annoying that for months no one really seemed to care or want to take responsibility, and only after we told them that we would stop working did they start to do anything about it. My director in the university told me that she was sorry, but it was no one's fault. Well, actually, it is someone's fault. It's not like it just started raining on a picnic in the park. You can't account for that. Not being paid for over two months--yeah, that's someone's fault. But I'm not too upset, and as long as the check arrives as promised tomorrow, I'm ready to move on. So here's to hoping that the financial guy actually shows up tomorrow and signs the check.
And today we might have finally gotten there. We signed the new contracts again, and though that should have wrapped it up, one of the top financial directors is in Belgium, while another is in Quito. But we've been told that he'll be back late this afternoon, so by tomorrow he will sign our checks. They checks are already there, they've told us, and all he has to do is sign them. So hopefully we can get the money tomorrow without any problem and still show up for class as scheduled on Monday.
It's annoying that for months no one really seemed to care or want to take responsibility, and only after we told them that we would stop working did they start to do anything about it. My director in the university told me that she was sorry, but it was no one's fault. Well, actually, it is someone's fault. It's not like it just started raining on a picnic in the park. You can't account for that. Not being paid for over two months--yeah, that's someone's fault. But I'm not too upset, and as long as the check arrives as promised tomorrow, I'm ready to move on. So here's to hoping that the financial guy actually shows up tomorrow and signs the check.
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
A Storm's A-Brewin'
Some things have started in motion that could potentially change the way I live and teach down here in Ecuador. I've been teaching at the University of Cuenca since I got down here in September and have been on a volunteer stipend the entire time. This has been fine, except for the fact that I, and the other volunteers at the university, haven't been paid in the last two months. And we're coming up on the third.
Every time we ask what's going on we're told there's something else we need to do. There's some other paper that needs to be photocopied and sent to a different director. Or, they're simply working on it. But that's not good enough. By our own American standards, working for two months without any pay is an outrage. If it happened in the United States, people would have striked or quit long ago. But we're in a foreign country and we have to realize that things work differently down here. When trying to understand why teachers here didn't strike when they weren't paid, I had to imagine that they could come from a place where strikes bring fear. It could get you fired, beaten, or imprisoned. After all, that used to happen in the United States too with the Pinkertons.
But we've been trying to get our money and have been demonstrating patience, but it has finally run out. After talking with my director from my program, we were told that if we aren't paid by Friday to not show up for work on Monday, essentially striking. It turns out the university is in breach of our contract, because it has been written that if we don't get paid after 2 months we don't have to show up for work. And never mind the fact that they were paying us $20 short every month.
I have no problem with not showing up for work if I'm not going to be getting paid for it. I've been extremely patient. I even continue to go to meetings every Monday even though they are pointless. We have to sign in, and if you don't they take away $10 from your pay, but from what pay? They don't pay me to begin with. But still I go.
And what makes the situation even stickier is how it is playing out with the department. My director in Quito was talking to my director at the university, and instead of trying to be accommodating and understanding, the director at the university was saying that we would be in breach of the contract if we didn't show up. Even though they are the ones breaking it to begin with. As I've said time and again, this is just part of living in a different country and culture. It's not something that you can control. Yet it's extremely frustrating. How are people supposed to live if they can't even be sure of getting their fare pay?
I'll continue to check the bank account and hopefully we'll be paid before Friday, because I'm not really sure what the next step would be after Monday if we need to stop going to work. I'd feel badly for the students too, because they are caught in the middle unfairly. The countdown is on, the ultimatum has been given, and now we need to sit and wait it out.
Every time we ask what's going on we're told there's something else we need to do. There's some other paper that needs to be photocopied and sent to a different director. Or, they're simply working on it. But that's not good enough. By our own American standards, working for two months without any pay is an outrage. If it happened in the United States, people would have striked or quit long ago. But we're in a foreign country and we have to realize that things work differently down here. When trying to understand why teachers here didn't strike when they weren't paid, I had to imagine that they could come from a place where strikes bring fear. It could get you fired, beaten, or imprisoned. After all, that used to happen in the United States too with the Pinkertons.
But we've been trying to get our money and have been demonstrating patience, but it has finally run out. After talking with my director from my program, we were told that if we aren't paid by Friday to not show up for work on Monday, essentially striking. It turns out the university is in breach of our contract, because it has been written that if we don't get paid after 2 months we don't have to show up for work. And never mind the fact that they were paying us $20 short every month.
I have no problem with not showing up for work if I'm not going to be getting paid for it. I've been extremely patient. I even continue to go to meetings every Monday even though they are pointless. We have to sign in, and if you don't they take away $10 from your pay, but from what pay? They don't pay me to begin with. But still I go.
And what makes the situation even stickier is how it is playing out with the department. My director in Quito was talking to my director at the university, and instead of trying to be accommodating and understanding, the director at the university was saying that we would be in breach of the contract if we didn't show up. Even though they are the ones breaking it to begin with. As I've said time and again, this is just part of living in a different country and culture. It's not something that you can control. Yet it's extremely frustrating. How are people supposed to live if they can't even be sure of getting their fare pay?
I'll continue to check the bank account and hopefully we'll be paid before Friday, because I'm not really sure what the next step would be after Monday if we need to stop going to work. I'd feel badly for the students too, because they are caught in the middle unfairly. The countdown is on, the ultimatum has been given, and now we need to sit and wait it out.
Maybe I'll Get Paid Soon
Yesterday morning I got a call from on of the secretaries at the university. She wanted to know my bank account number to arrange something with my paycheck. So I'm hopeful that the ball is at least in motion to get my three months of pay that are owed. But she also wanted me to bring in a copy of my contract with the incorrect amount to pay me per month and make a photocopy. When I asked her if I was going to be paid soon she kind of laughed and said maybe a month. So I have no idea what to expect really.
The other volunteers at the university haven't been paid either. Just about every day at least one of us will go down to the financial department and check in or hassle the secretaries, yet still we are without our pay. If anything can be gained from this experience, it's that hopefully I will develop a zen-like patience when waiting for money to arrive. If you think it's hard waiting around for a bi-weekly check, imagine how difficult it is for a tri-monthly check. Yeah, it's kind of like that.
I'm still riding out a little bit of cash I have and avoided spending money unless I need to so that I don't have to dig into my savings. But the other day I went to the pharmacy and decided that I couldn't afford to buy floss. It's expensive here as it is, but I didn't want to spring for it as it's not a necessity. But that's kind of the way things have progressed here lately. My friends in Machala weren't paid for a few months either and were randomly handed $1000 in cash. As cool as that would sound, I'd rather avoid any issues and just have direct deposit like we're supposed to, which is why we have dealt with the lousy banks here from the start. Even a check would be welcome at this point.
I just want to get paid.
The other volunteers at the university haven't been paid either. Just about every day at least one of us will go down to the financial department and check in or hassle the secretaries, yet still we are without our pay. If anything can be gained from this experience, it's that hopefully I will develop a zen-like patience when waiting for money to arrive. If you think it's hard waiting around for a bi-weekly check, imagine how difficult it is for a tri-monthly check. Yeah, it's kind of like that.
I'm still riding out a little bit of cash I have and avoided spending money unless I need to so that I don't have to dig into my savings. But the other day I went to the pharmacy and decided that I couldn't afford to buy floss. It's expensive here as it is, but I didn't want to spring for it as it's not a necessity. But that's kind of the way things have progressed here lately. My friends in Machala weren't paid for a few months either and were randomly handed $1000 in cash. As cool as that would sound, I'd rather avoid any issues and just have direct deposit like we're supposed to, which is why we have dealt with the lousy banks here from the start. Even a check would be welcome at this point.
I just want to get paid.
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