Lis has recovered enough to travel, so the traveling duo left yesterday, headed for St. Paul Minnesota. It was really a treat getting to know Andy and Lis--what a gift!! We still shake our heads in disbelief about the mysterious powers of the universe that allowed our paths to cross. Rob has searched for the meaning in this, and has decided that the lesson to be learned is, "eat more trail mix." Either that, or "be nice to everyone." As for me, I have learned that it is indeed possible to choose your relatives. In fact, I am claiming Andy as MY first cousin since A) I found him, and B)because I didn't have any cousins previously, Andy is my FIRST cousin.

 

 

 

 

A few days ago, I was standing in line at the Hypermarket grocery store in the Mall in Salinas. I noticed that the person in front of me was obviously non-Ecuadorian, not so much by the way he looked, but more due to the fact that he was buying imported trail mix bars. No Ecuadorian would buy such an item. Also, he was standing in line behind the person in front of him, leaving a respectable distance between them. Ecuadorians never leave space between people in line, frequently touching the person in front of them.
The cashier recognized that both the man in front of me and I were not Ecuadorian, and she tried to ring up both of our purchases together. I mean, what are the chances that there would be two gringo customers in a row who didn’t know each other? The man and I corrected her and we made our separate purchases. During the transactions, I made a comment to the man that the cashier was surprised that we weren’t somehow related, and that it was odd having two gringo customers in a row who didn’t know each other.
I found out that the man’s name was Andrew, that he was from Seattle Washington, and that he was in the middle of a medical crisis. His girlfriend, Lisanna had just undergone emergency surgery for a burst appendix, and she was in the hospital across the street from the mall. Andrew and Lisanna had been traveling the world together for the last 7 months, and they were in Montanita, a small coastal town in Ecuador, when Lisanna became really sick. Andrew was on his way back to Montanita to gather their stuff that they had left in a hostel before rushing to Salinas to get medical help. I gave Andrew a ride to the bus station so that he could board a bus to Montanita. On our drive together, I learned that Lisanna was from Minnesota, and that she was from the Christiansen family, a reknown family in choral music. I told Andrew that we used to live in Minnesota, and that my husband Rob trained at Hennepin County Medical Center. We marveled that we had some similarities in common, and we commented about how the world was indeed small.
Andrew told me a “small world” story about the strange coincidence they experienced in Buenos Aires, Argentina. It seems that early in their first day in Buenos Aires, Lisanna remarked that she only knew two people from Argentina, twin girls who had lived in Seattle. Lisanna worked with one of the twins for a period of time. Later that day while seated at a restaurant, Lis spotted someone who looked just like her friend. Lis finally got the nerve up to ask the woman if she had ever lived in Seattle. Shockingly, the woman said she had. It turned out that she was the twin sister of the woman who had briefly worked with Lisanna. Small world.
Along the way to the bus station, we spoke with Rob on the phone to discuss the care plan of Lis. Rob was in Guayaquil at the time, but would return the next day to Salinas. He promised to visit Lis and help with communication with the Ecuadorian surgeons, if needed. When we got to the bus station, Andrew and I exchanged phone numbers and I invited him to stay with us during this crisis (It turned out that Andrew didn’t stay with us because he stayed in the hospital room with Lis). I then visited with Lis at the hospital to let her know of the connection we made with Andrew and that Rob would come visit her the next day.
The next day, Rob arrived from Guayaquil. He and I visited Lis in the hospital for about 20 minutes. At the end of the visit, Andrew returned and we all met each other for the first time in the same room. Rob left his business card with Lis so that she could use him as a resource when conversing with her surgeon.
From the business card, Andrew learned that Rob and he shared the same last name. When speaking with his mom that night on the phone, Andrew wondered to his mother if Rob and he could somehow be related. That night Andrew called Rob. After about 30 seconds it was confirmed: ROB AND ANDREW ARE FIRST COUSINS!!!!!
Rob and Andrew had never met previously because Andrew’s dad, David, moved out West many years ago. David married Claudia, and they had a son together, named Andrew. Rob is about 13 years older than Andrew, and their paths simply never crossed. Until now. In Ecuador. In a chance meeting. Small world!
So now that our families are connected in this strange mix of fate, we have insisted that Lis and Andrew stay with us so that we can help with Lis’ recovery. Lis is still way too sick to travel. The goal today is to try to venture past rice in the solid food category. Or, maybe not. Maybe that will happen tomorrow or the next day. But Lis a strong person, she has a good sense of how to take care of herself, and I trust that she will know when the time is right to venture into the land of the eating.
It has been fun seeing the family resemblances in Andrew and Rob. Besides sharing the general Fuller physical features, they are both woodworkers, home-improvement specialists, musicians, good story tellers, adventurous travelers, and extremely caring people.
I have been impressed by the way Andrew has handled this crisis situation. He has nimbly negotiated the insurance payment of the hospital bill (not an easy task, ANYWHERE, especially Ecuador, and particularly using rudimentary Spanish skills), he has politely but firmly advocated for Lis’ nursing care, and he has prepared rice and other bland foods for her. It is clear that both Andrew and Lis are independent and self-sufficient people: they’ve managed to travel the world in the last 7 months with little more than a backpack and some advanced planning. I’m sure they would have found an equally effective way to handle Lis’ recovery had we not met in the Hypermarket. But this chance meeting is nothing short of a miracle, and we’d be fools not to go along with The Plan.
Here's a link to Andrew's blog: www.fuzzytravel.com/guru2008

Andrew and Rob

 

A FULLER FAMILY UPDATE:
THE GIRLS:
For the past two months, the girls have been on a school break for the “temporada alta.” Sarah and Julia have been training for the upcoming South American Championship Optimist regatta that is being hosted by the Salinas Yacht club during the first two weeks of April. Their mornings are filled with workouts and team building exercises, and their afternoons are spent practicing and honing their sailboat racing skills with other members of the Ecuadorian team. Their coaches are among the best in the world, and the training is taken quite seriously. In fact, in addition to the excellent on the water coaching, the team was recently prepped by a sports psychologist, a nutritionist gave dietary recommendations and each sailor is being evaluated by the Olympic committee for fitness. Quite a program! No wonder Ecuador is frequently represented by some of the best Optimist sailors in the world at the various Optimist regattas world-wide. Ellen is also sailing every day in the Salinas Yacht Club Optimist School for beginner racers. Each of the girls continues to work on their home-school assignments to make sure they stay in step with their peers in West Hartford. Their Ecuadorian school starts back up again April 1st. Unfortunately, the regatta conflicts with the first two weeks of school. Perhaps they can attend school for the first few hours each day…. We’ll see.
TRAVEL:
We visited the Galapagos by sailboat for one glorious week in January. We loved being on board a large catamaran, sailing from island to island. Viewing the wildlife was quite an awesome experience. Due to the remoteness of the islands, the animals have been without human predators for the most part, and are therefore unafraid of humans. It was amazing being able to watch close up the caring of a young Blue Footed Booby by its parents, the consumption of a field mouse by a Galapagos Hawk, the motionless sharks as they rested in their caves, the head-bobbing of marine iguanas as they protected their turf, the grazing of sea turtles along the algae covered rocks, the playfulness of the penguins as they dove off rocks, the gravity defying leaps followed by impressive splashes from courting Manta Rays, and adorable baby sea-lions as they suckled from their mothers. The ruggedness and barrenness of some of the volcanic islands was other-worldly. At times, it felt like we were trekking through an episode of “Lost in Space” and at other times it felt like we were walking through an immense blacktop parking lot that had suffered damage from giant frost heaves.
In February, we took a trip to the Oriente, to visit the Amazonia jungle. We traveled by canoe and raft to see the way the indigenous people of Ecuador live, to experience the jungle forest, and to view monkeys and other wildlife. The afternoon downpours were so impressive that the girls opted to take their showers in their bathing suits in the abundant and pelting rain!
Next we visited Quito, the capitol city of Ecuador. Quito is nestled among the Andes Mountains and is in site of several volcanoes. We stayed with friends in Cumbaya, a suburb of Quito, and we were treated to the insider’s view of Quito. Our hosts toured us through museums and churches, to the tops of mountains and monuments, to the Mundial del Mundo (Center of the World) to walk the line of the equator, and to remote towns for shopping for Ecuadorian handicrafts. We also enrolled in the Simon Bolivar School of Spanish to brush up on our verbs and practice correct uses of indirect objects!
VOLUNTEER MEDICINE:
Rob is volunteering his services at the Luis Vernaza Hospital in Guayaquil, a facility supported by a private charitable organization that provides medical care to the poor. Rob is focusing his efforts in two areas: 1) participating in the day to day medical care of patients, and 2) making administrative recommendations and facilitating structural changes. The Luis Vernaza hospital has been in the process of revamping its emergency room and the care of its patients. Since Rob is a specialist in Emergency Medicine and the chief of service of the UConn Emergency Department, the timing of the sabbatical could not have been more relevant. Rob spent the first few months of his sabbatical working in the wards and Emergency Room so that he could learn the system and get to know some of the doctors and nurses. He has worked hard to build relationships, establish himself as a reputable and knowledgeable physician, learn the current system of care, and identify areas that need change. Since January, he has been focusing more on the administrative changes that are slated to occur. He runs meetings, soothes egos and works to find common ground between the administrators and doctors. In addition to helping the Luis Vernaza Hospital, Rob has given lectures to doctors in a local hospital, and taught a medical school class at the University of Spiritus Sanctus Medical School.
This week, Rob is hosting a family practice resident and five medical students from the University of Connecticut who have traveled here during their spring break. He is expecting several more students from Connecticut in the weeks to come.
SPANISH:
We are continually amazed by both the intricacies of the Spanish language (those nuances we fear we will never completely grasp) and the generosity and acceptance of the Ecuadorian people for our many mistakes with their beautiful language.
Our individual attempts at learning Spanish have revealed a lot about ourselves as individuals. For myself, my conversational skills are not very speedy. I unconsciously prioritize correct uses of verb tenses and placement of nouns over the general flow of my speaking. That has always been true for me as a communicator, being more confident in the mechanics of my writing than in the effectiveness of my verbal communication. Speaking off the top of my head is not something that comes easily for me in English or Spanish. In Ecuador, I am much more comfortable writing text messages and emails in Spanish than I am in picking up the phone to speak.
For Rob, his vibrant personality, generosity and warmth gush forward in exaggerated hand movements that are communicated way ahead of his actual words. His use of words comes slowly but genuinely. He understands everything that is said to him, and he communicates in an engaging and personable style. People are drawn to him and they enjoy his stories. A few months ago a friend of ours told him that he sounds like the wise old Native American Chief from the movies of old: halting words spoken in the infinitive, but with profound depth and wisdom.
The girls have learned Spanish in ways that equally reflect their personalities. Sarah has developed a wonderful Ecuadorian teenager style of speaking, using lots of diminutives such as “ahorita” and “ratito” for ahora (now) and rato (short period of time). Her friends (of which there are MANY) give her a “9” because she can speak without much of an accent and can understand almost everything. Sarah has grown to be a very social kid, and her language success reflects this stage in her life.
Julia is a true “tween,” caught somewhere between teenage and childhood. This tenuous position in her life is reflected in her timid use of language especially when she is feeling self-conscious. At times when she is feeling more confident, she speaks Spanish with good pronunciation and content. Julia has a wonderful language base upon which to build as she gains confidence and maturation. It will be fun to see her back at her Ecuadorian school in a few weeks where she can use her improved language skills with her peers.
Ellen is at the chatter-box age, in English AND in Spanish! She is as uninhibited by her own grammatical errors as much as she is unconcerned by a lingering chocolate milk mustache. She playfully banters with her peers using Ecuadorian slang, and she understands almost everything her friends say. She enjoys school, and considers herself pretty much Ecuadorian. In fact she is very upset when her father refers to her as a “gringa” (warm/inoffensive slang for North American female in Latin America).

The Holidays

The advantage to being tardy with blog entries is that NOW we can comment on all three recent holidays in one sitting: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years.
Thanksgiving or “dia de accion”: Although clearly a holiday unique to the United States, the people of Ecuador are well aware of its significance. It was front page news in “el Universo” newspaper, and the 20 or so people we invited were excited to attend an authentic Thanksgiving celebration. Upon receiving the invitation, the first words from Sarah’s friends were, “what shall we wear?” Even Ellen’s 8 year old friend Natalia was allowed to come to the celebration even though it was a school night and she wouldn’t get home until 1 AM.
We served the usual turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans and apple pie. The only thing missing was the cranberry sauce, as our exhaustive search in the markets tuned up cranberry-less. Instead, I made something that was tasty but resembled runny cranberry sauce using fresh pineapple, cranberry cocktail and red jello. Cooking in our kitchen is a bit of a challenge because we don’t actually have an oven. Instead, there is a portable electric casserole heater, affectionately known to us as our “easy-bake oven.” But everything turned out great, thanks in large part to the help of a neighbor’s grown-up oven.
The funniest part of the evening was discovered the next day. Ellen’s job of the evening was to take candid photos of all our guests. When we downloaded the pictures, we found that she perfectly captured the expression of the back the head of each of our guests as they sat around the table.
Christmas: There is a beautiful tradition in Ecuador during the 9 days leading up to Christmas, called “las posadas navidenas.” These celebrations are held in the home of a different family each night. The celebration begins with a re-enactment of Mary and Joseph’s search for a place to stay in Bethlehem prior to the birth of Jesus. In this re-enactment, the hosts of the party remain indoors and act as the inn-keepers, and the guests are staged outside the door, and play the part of Mary and Joseph. The following song is sung, each group taking turns singing a different verse:
(Afuera) Les pido posada por amor de Dios/Mi esposa esta en cinta, somos ella y yo.
(Adentro) No los conocemos y es tarde Senor. Siga su camino, busque otro Rincon.
(Afuera) Yo soy carpintero y me llamo Jose/ mi esposa es Maria y vamos a Belen
(Adentro) La casa es pequena y no hay habitacion y es la medianoche, ya no hay atencion
(Afuera) Mi esposa no puede dar un paso mas. Esta tan cansada, que quiere llorar
(Adentro) Quien es la Senora que pide el favor/ no tenemos sitio, no insista por Dios
(Afuera) Ella es una reina de un reino de amor/ Es madre del Verbo, del Hijo de Dios.
(Adentro) Si ella fuera reina en carruaje vendria/ como es que va en burro y en noche tan fria?
(Afuera) Abrannos la puerta les pido un ricon/ no saben que lleva mi esposa al Senor?
(Adentro) Porque no lo dijo cuando nos llamo? Pasen caminantes que aqui sobra amor.
The rough translation is:
(Outside) I ask you for a place to stay, for the love of God/ my wife is in labor
(inside) We don’t know you and it is late. Continue on the road and look for another place
(O) I am a carpenter and my name is Joseph. My wife is Mary and we come to Bethlehem.
(I) The house is small and we have no room. And it is the middle of the night, there is no attention
(O) My wife cannot travel any more. She is so tired she wants to cry
(I) Who is the woman who asks this favor? We don’t have room. Don’t ask again, for the love of God
(O) She is the queen of the king of love. She is the mother of the Word, the child of God.
(I) If she were the queen, why is she traveling this road by donkey on this cold night?
(O) Open the door to us, I ask you for a place to stay. Don’t you know that my wife carries God?
(I) Why didn’t you say this when you first called us? Come in travelers. Here you will find love.

After this, all the guests and hosts come inside, sing more Ecuadorian Christmas carols, eat sandwiches and drink soda. There are also readings about the birth of Jesus as the children sit around the crèche. It was wonderful to be included in these posada celebrations.
The following is a contribution from Sarah about a highlight of our Christmas:
I’m sure that if you’ve read this blog before, you have probably read how much we value our maid Shirley. For Christmas, we wanted to give Shirley and her two children, Genesis (6) and Nixon (3) something special, useful, and memorable: Bikes!! At home in the US, bikes are a great way to have a lot of fun and get a little bit of exercise. Here in Ecuador, however, bikes replace the minivans and cars as the family transportation vehicle. It is not uncommon to see up to five family members piled on one bike! So we went shopping in la Libertad, the only place within 100 miles to buy bikes. La Libertad is a dusty, overcrowded, rundown collection of streets. Store fronts are encased in metal bars, like so many cages lined in rows. After a few hours of searching for the perfect bikes, we piled them on the roof of our car and drove home to Casa Blanca. It was not easy getting the bikes in the elevator, but in the end we had almost three bikes in our apartment. I say almost because all of them were missing some crucial parts such as valves for the tubes, brakes, and screws to hold everything together. Dad worked really hard to prevent the bikes from falling apart in front of our eyes and in no time we had three great bikes, in working order, ready to be received by Shirley Genesis, and Nixon. The next day, when we presented the bikes to Shirley, she thanked us but was distressed that she didn’t have anything for us. Mom assured her, “tu eres nuestro regalo cada dia” (you are our gift each day). Later that day, we brought Shirley and her bikes to her home. When we got to their small bamboo house, we showed Genesis and Nixon the bicycles. I will never forget their faces when they understood that the bikes were for them. Genesis hugged us all and jumped on her bike so fast that she almost fell off the other side. Nixon was so excited, all he could do was literally jump up and down and shriek in joy. They couldn’t believe that such an unreachable gift could be theirs. Seeing the reaction of these two children made my heart swell so much I felt like I could have gotten on a bike and ridden to the stars.
We are one step closer to improving Shirley’s life and future. By having a bike, Shirley will cut down her bus expenses. Although we know that there's a good chance that the bikes will be stolen within a month, we carry the hope that this will not happen, and we still feel good that we could give this gift to such a deserving family.

New Years (Ano Nuevo): There is a wonderful tradition here of each family buying or making an Ano Viejo muneca or monigote (old year doll), filling it with fireworks and burning it in huge bon fires on the beaches of Salinas at midnight. This is a symbolic act of burning all the mistakes and bad things from the previous year, and welcoming the New Year with a clean slate. New Years in Salinas was a night to remember. The town was absolutely MOBBED with people from Guayaquil and the loud, boisterous party lasted all night, if not all weekend. The night was lit up with gorgeous fuego artificiales (fireworks) from dusk to dawn, and the air was thick with smoke and rata-tat-tat of fireworks, resembling a Hollywood war scene. Our family welcomed the New Year on the beach by burning our elephant-shaped Ano Viejo muneca, laced with sparkler fireworks. The elephant was mostly cute and resembled Horton from the recent movie, “Horton Hears a Who”, but I also couldn’t help thinking that we were symbolically burning the mistakes of the previous “elephant” administration in the US.