Learning about Indigenous Culture

Waddup yo.

This is Vani and Emma comin’ at you from Riobamba. Today we woke up at 7:00.  As the first Leaders of the Day, we prepared by learning the three Spanish words of the day: limpia (cleansing ritual), poncho (traditional Ecuadorian clothing), and cuy (guinea pig), then teaching them to the rest of the group. Once 7:30 rolled around, we had a good time aggressively banging on everyone’s doors (with a water bottle) to disturb their blissful rest and get them started for the day.

By 11:15, we headed out to Pucara Tambo.  We were surprised to learn from our inspiring tour guide, Segundo, that the cross design on the poncho symbolizes the twelve months of the year. The group also had the opportunity to try eating cuy as a part of their lunch at Pucara Tambo- the opinions of which were mixed. Overall though, we had a great experience learning about the indigenous culture of the Cacha region (plus a nice view from the mountain!).

At around 5:30, we took a tour of the city and tried chola (panella-filled buns). Andre ate four. During the city tour, Alden demonstrated compassion by checking in on the people who were feeling sick due to the altitude.  We are proud to report that no one died nor was lost during our excursion to the city.

Being Lider Del Dia was a fun and engaging experience for both of us. We took charge by making sure everyone was accounted for and on task by using a headcount and a call and response we learned on the first day.  We both learned that we could be more assertive than we thought we could.

Now we are excited to “pass the torch” to Enrique and Paniz as tomorrow’s Leaders of the Day.

Mahal Kita

Emma Tuan and Vani Kaura (._.)