We all felt well enough to travel, so Victor, Hugo, Marilyn, and I left for Otavalo at about 11:00 a.m. We got off of the Pan-American Highway for part of the way and saw some really beautiful country.
About two hours later, we arrived in Otavalo and had lunch at the Ally Micuy Hotel. We had stayed at this hotel when we participated in United Christian Church’s mission trip in 2008. Until we found an apartment, we’d stay here again. We met Isabel and Don Jairo, two of the principal employees of the hotel, and were shown to our room. It was exciting to see the many nice changes that had taken place since we had stayed at the hotel in 2008.
We looked at one possible apartment with Hugo Jacamba right after lunch. Hugo was our bus driver on the 2008 mission trip and we all liked him very much. It was his apartment to rent. The apartment was on the outskirts of town, was new and very well decorated, had lots of storage space, had a big, modern kitchen that Marilyn would have absolutely loved, and the price was right. However, there were numerous steps, both inside and out. I couldn’t have gotten out of the apartment if there was a fire and I was alone. There was also no internet access in that neighborhood. Sadly, we had to pass. We would have liked to rent from Hugo and his wife.
We picked up Isabel at the hotel, and she led us to someone else with an apartment to rent. This one was 10 minutes out of town, and actually a small house. It had a beautiful view of green-clad mountains, which I absolutely loved. So did Marilyn. The furniture was a bit uncomfortable, but we could buy new stuff if we had to. But I couldn’t get into the bathroom. Again, there was no internet access in the neighborhood. Again, the price was right. The view was so spectacular, though, that I thought about going to town once or twice a week to do the blog.
We also looked at a few cars that afternoon, but found nothing suitable and within our price range.
At dinner, Victor told us Marilyn’s Spanish wasn’t advanced enough for her to do the work he envisioned for her, which was primarily going into various communities to learn about problems they had that FEDICE could potentially help solve. Also, he hope Marilyn could help to develop some Christian education programs with local protestant churches. He recommended she take a month and practice her Spanish with anyone she could.
We were both concerned. It wasn’t about the month. It was that we had doubts for the first time about being able to truly contribute. Marilyn’s español would improve – of that there was no doubt. But would it improve enough for Marilyn to help do the work that needed to be done?
We went to our room a little stressed that night. We weren’t sure we’d be able to contribute as much to FEDICE as we had envisioned. Our housing was unresolved. We had no car. We knew we weren’t going back home. If we stayed at the hotel all year, it would cost about twice as much as I thought Victor had quoted me. We had decisions to make.
We decided: 1) to buy the car we had looked at in Quito if it was still available, 2) to take the house in the country only as a last resort because of its isolation, 3) to try to negotiate a more affordable price for staying full-time at the hotel for a year, and 4) to have Marilyn attend Spanish lessons at one of the language schools in Otavalo.
We went to bed troubled, but slept well.
martes, 2 de marzo del 2010
At breakfast, Victor explained a little more about what he and Blanca envisioned as Marilyn’s job and it didn’t seem as daunting. Marilyn would eventually go into indigenous communities and talk with leaders about community problems and how FEDICE might help with those problems. She would basically be gathering information – after her Spanish improved. It was also hoped that she could help to develop a children’s Sunday school program. Christian education is not available in local indigenous churches at present.
We drove to various places in the morning to gather maps and books about the area to study. We also stopped at a cabina (telephone booth) for two reasons: 1) so Marilyn could call the man with the car for sale in Quito, and 2) so she could learn to use the cabina if necessary. The man accepted our offer, which was somewhat lower than his asking price.
Just before lunch, Victor arranged for us to stop at Isabel’s house (she had the day off). We needed to try to negotiate a lower monthly price for the hotel that would be more suitable to our budget. She was amenable to our offer, but said she would have to check with her boss. We didn’t really think she had the authority to make such a decision, but knew she was a good person with whom to start negotiations. There were some dates in July and August that the hotel was fully booked. It meant we’d probably have to move somewhere else during those times. This was an inconvenient, but workable problem.
After lunch, Victor and Marilyn went to see about cell phones. They didn’t get one, but gathered the necessary information for us to take care of that chore on our own. They also checked on a driving school for Marilyn. Victor then left for Quito.
Marilyn went to sign up for driving lessons just before the school closed so she could start this month. But she needed something called a censo (an identification card), which we wouldn’t have until Marilyn could register our visas with the government. They also said she needed to first improve her español, as the driving classes were not in inglés.
We took a walk before cena (evening meal) just to look around. It was nice to finally be on our own schedule.
Imbabura Volcano behind sculpture of folk dancers.
Ally Micuy Hotel
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