New Year’s Traditions In Ecuador

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Ano Viejo, Ano Viejo Ecuador, Jake's Sunday Post, jama ecuador, Los Anos Viejos, Papier Mache Sculptures, Where's my backpace travel theme new

Fun Times In Jama Ecuador! 2011/12

(This post was written in 2012, and the additions written in blue are from December 31, 2016:   The small mustard-colored house in the photo above is the only building that remains after the April 16th earthquake.  The ‘people’ in the photos are my friends!)

Some people get all dressed up to welcome the new year!

Too Pretty To Be A Guy!  (The man in the red shirt in the background was in his home on the corner when the earthquake hit around 7 pm that night.  Holding a young child in his arms, he fell through the second floor and broke his leg – a very bad break.  The child, thanks to him, was fine.)

My all-time favorite holiday in Ecuador is not New Year’s Eve itself, but the preparation for New Year’s Eve, when people make or buy the papier mache ‘Los Anos Viejos’ and display them proudly outside their home or business. Richard, one of the staff members of the Portoviejo Museum,  starts making Ano Viejos in August and sells them at the end of each year. A few weeks ago I visited Richard’s home and received a sneak peek of his army of creations!

Richard & family at the Ivo Uquillos retrospective exhibit

(I do not know if the Portoviejo Museum received extensive damage or not;  the Bahia de Caraquez Museum will be demolished, and a new one will be built on another site.)

Let’s go see his workshop!  

Reflections (Jake’s Sunday Post)

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Ecuador Rio Jama, Jake's Sunday Post, Jake's Sunday Post Reflection, Playa Rosada Nicaragua, Playa San Miguel Costa Rica, Unexplained Electrical Problems

Jake’s challenge for this week is REFLECTIONS

This week finds me reflecting on my history with things electronic;  over the past twenty or more years, I  have shorted out out random electrical items.   So many batteries on so many different watches have malfunctioned that I finally stopped wearing watches!   The one that stays tucked in my luggage continues ticking  –  two years and counting!   My finger on an elevator button, electric car window button or a copy machine ‘start’ button, at times,  triggers a malfunction.    Miguel Rendon of ESCoffee gave me a cell phone and insisted that I join the modern world and stay better connected;  on retrospect it’s a bit amusing that the phone joined the cemetery of sizzled electronics several months later!   Are there demons lurking in the shadows?