Portoviejo/Ecuador  –  What’s happening this week?

The recent crisis has passed, the protests and blockades are finished (for now.) Ecuador is not alone in the fuel-cost/cost-of-living woes, and poverty knows no borderlines.  When it is a struggle to feed one’s family, and prices increase, those who feel invisible will eventually shout, ‘Enough!’ 

Foods like broccoli and potatoes and carrots are now back in the markets.  We’re grateful that cool-weather crops can be transported throughout the country.   Yay!  It was a good lesson to all of us to always be prepared.  Don’t let fuel or food supplies get almost empty before restocking!

The Angel Paz Go-Fund-Me site displays heartwarming confirmation of how social media works in positive ways.   Matt Mendenhall wrote a post for Birdwatching’s newsletter, then via Twitter, Facebook,etc, the donations seemed to skyrocket!  Wow, powerful things happen when people from around the world pitch in to help the underdog, though this one was fighting a Goliath of a threat of deforestation.

Matt’s updated story is here:  Ecuador Bird Reserve Raising Funds to Remain Open

and the GoFundMe site is here:  Help to Protect the Antpitta

Like ticking down to celebrate a new year, let’s join the Paz family in celebrating the moment they reach $155,000!

Even the GoFundMe folks kicked in three hundred dollars!  Reading the testimonials is a great option to reading the normal news!

While walking a trail in June, I stepped on a short stick which rolled me ‘Flintstone Style’ like a skate.  My feet went skyward (I think) and my hip slammed the ground.   Miraculously, nothing broke, unless it was the stick.     Some amazing things happened as a result of my hobbled few weeks that followed, and I will share those stories when feeling stronger.

Orange-fronted Barbet – What a beautiful site to welcome a new day at Poza Honda!  The birds were either drinking nectar or rainwater.

While hobbling, I finally succeeded in getting ‘Pfizer number 2’ – which makes me think of that song, Mambo # 5!

While recovering, I hobbled around a very small area of flat trails at La Tomatera, and a very very very rare bird took pity on me and granted a one-hour photo session.  The Pearly-breasted Cuckoo was still there when I left that afternoon.   ebird data:  eBird P.B. Cuckoo

Pearly-breasted Cuckoo – Refugio la Tomatera – July 2/2022

Of course a grander story is stitched into the memory of that sighting.  Stay tuned.

An earthquake yesterday (14/07/2022) jolted many of us into high-alert status!

The ‘Tuesday Art at the Museum Class’  had a small show of their works at the nearby Cafe del Valle.  Carlos Wellington displayed some of his Manabi Photographs.  Most popular was his panoramic image taken of the city of Portoviejo about a month before the 7.8 earthquake in 2016.

Visitors y Artistas!

The Autograph Tree!

Carlos Wellington performed some of his original ‘Amor Fino’ songs at Cafe del Valle.

The museum show continues to be popular.  This past week some lovely VIP visitors allowed photo moments of their photo moments.

Photo by Carlos Wellington/Museo Portoviejo

Photo by Carlos Wellington. (Thanks, Carlos!)

A high-school event surprised me when suddenly the music switched to an old-timey ‘twisting’ dance session. The movie about Elvis seems to be igniting a new dance craze!

Other museum events were held elsewhere, as were some literature events for children.

Alexandra Cevallos shares one of her ‘Fabulas’ – fables, for young and old alike!

And though I wore double masks at all of these events, most people wore none.

This past week a scratchy throat preceded sneezing and a few coughs, and I was relieved that the vaccination was finally in arm and not pending… I am now better – fever has passed, and in a few days I’ll go for the tests to see if it was just a cold – or if it was Covid – or maybe the grippe that is going around.  Many people have been very ill for many weeks, so I feel blessed to be stepping back to good health.

Thank you, as always.   It’s an honor that you care about my unique life here in Ecuador.

Love, Lisa

(Comments are closed b/c you’re due a proper reply, and presently I remain quite drained!  When photos remain in the camera from two weeks ago, you know that my energies are abnormally low!)