Party Heats Up

Skydivers at La Carolina

Woodcarved Painting of Quito

There were too many choices today. The city is heating up. Each barrio of the city erected a stage and closed off a street or a square and put on a show, which will go on through the night. Avenue de Los Shyris, just a street over from our house, started setting up early in the day, and the music started in the afternoon, attracting more and more people, and by evening, the street was packed with kisosks selling cotton candy, candied apples, donuts, whole pigs, sausage, llapingachos, beer, canelazo, wine for $1.50 for two litres, too many possibilities. There were game booths and a sort of roulette game and blown up slides for children. The music near our house was Ecuadorian pop, loud, raucous, and the crowd loved it.

Earlier in the day, we could choose to go the local soccer final between Quito and Cuenca at Atahualpa Stadium down the road from our house. Fans started to gather early, and I thought the game was to start at noon, but Ecuadorian fans like to start celebrating hours before the event, and the actual start time was 3:30. We did not go to the game, and later we ran into excited fans after Quito won the championship.

Getting Ready for the Soccer Match

Selling Quito and Cuenca Jerseys

Chiva Sighting

My taxiste Thursday promised me that the bullfight today would be the best. I complained that the bulls were simply not very good that day, so that however skilled the matadors were, they were unable to show off their abilities. He reassured me that if I went today, I would be impressed. But Eric was not keen on the bullfight, so we skipped the bullfight for today.

Maya had a playdate with a friend, so Eric and I wandered through Parque La Carolina, watching hang gliders fly off Rucu Pichincha and land in the park. We were inspired by the many athletes playing soccer, 'Ecuavolley', basketball, frisbee, and we bought a basketball for ourselves.

Chiva Again

Young Chiva Driver

Half of Quito is on a Chiva

We took the Ecovia to the Centro Historico, and wandered around, listening to bands on chivas, and found ourselves at a folkloric dance performance at Teatro Sucre. It was an 'invitation only' affair, but we got in the back door and got seats high up in the theatre, so we had a view from far above.

Teatro Sucre

Andean Music

Maypole Dance

Folkloric Dance

Chagras, Ecuadorian Cowboys

Movement and Dancing

We returned to our barrio for the evening entertainment. Shyris was packed with spectators, eating, dancing, singing along to the music. The night promised to get more and more exciting as the last day of the festival nears. Fireworks too!!!

Party for Children

Big Hotdogs

Candied Apples

And More Chivas

Viva Quito!

Cathedral- Centro Historico

San Francisco de Quito

More celebration. Maya played half a day at school and was sent home at 11:00. Many schools were closed for the day. I had been told by my Spanish teacher that her son would be in a parade in the Centro Historico in his 'banda de guerra' (each school has a marching band that participates in such events), but when I got to the Centro Historico, there was a huge parade of school children from elementary to high school age, and I was unable to recognize him amongst the sea of faces. There were large bands playing traditional Quiteño music along with dancers in costumes from Otavalo and from Pichincha, as well as young people dressed in Spanish attire from the 1800's, dancing too. Clowns, devils, priests, men in top hats, children in all sorts of costumes, men on stilts, characters with huge heads, all sorts of colourful participants marched with much enthusiasm and applause. The old town was packed with people, either participating in or watching the parade.

Parade at the Carandolet

Men on Stilts

Girls and Xylophones
Serious About the Parade
Dancing Girls

More Dancing

Children in Costumes

Spanish Dances

Chivas (party buses) drove by regularly, with bands playing typical Quiteño music, which I can no longer get out of my head. I have heard the songs before, but now the music is constantly within earshot. People were drinking and blowing whistles and dancing on the chivas. They continued through the day and into the night. It appeared as if half the city were on chivas today!

Chiva Getting Ready

Parque Carolina was full of athletes playing soccer and equavolley and another game called 'pelota'. It is traditional on this occasion to have all sorts of sports competitions, as well as chess and card games. I visited my Spanish school and all the students were playing '40', a card game especially played at this time of fiesta.

Revelers at La Ronda

I dragged Eric and Maya to the Centro Historico for the evening. There were all sorts of music events around Plaza de Independencia and Plaza San Fransisco. We visited the Festival of Quiteño treats at the Archbishop's Palace, and Maya tried some candy. We visited La Ronda for more music and great food. The street was packed and music was loud and each restaurant competed for customers by offering music and 'canelazo'(a hot drink with cane sugar liquor and fruit juice, traditional for this time of year). Maya was falling asleep despite the loud noise and activity, so we headed home, passing chiva after chiva, and hearing music from every corner. The city was more alive than ever, and the party was just beginning. We will have more celebrations tomorrow!

Night Out With Maya

La Ronda

More Chivas

Party Town

Crowd at the Plaza de Toros

Quiteños went crazy last night. Cars overfull with fans roared through the streets, honking, screaming, waving Liga banners. Avenue de los Shyris was the gathering spot for the party that followed. The chanting and singing and yelling went on through the night and the evidence of the nights' activities was all over the streets this morning. How perfect is is for Quito that during this week of celebration, they have the championship to celebrate as well.

Bull as Hero

I decided to join a very select crowd of Quiteños at the bullfight today. The prices were very steep, particularly for Ecuadorians, and certainly for me. I managed to negotiate for a much better price for a very good seat. The Plaza de Toros was wild and full of music and dancing and food and excitement. Once the event began, the crowd settled and focused on the bullfight. Unfortunately the bulls were not very good today, so however talented the matadors were, they did not shine today. I wondered if my discomfort with the bullfight affected the way I saw things today, but the crowd was not particularly pleased with the performances either and no ears were awarded. The first matador was 52 years old, unusual in what appears to be a young man's sport. The first and second ones were from Spain, much more experienced than the third from Latacunga.

Close to the Bull

Touching the Bull

Even Closer

Styling

The crowd got distracted regularly when shouts of 'Viva Quito!' echoed across the arena. Fans were still celebrating the win from last night. There was an ongoing political protest that focused attention away from the matadors. It was clear that the crowd did not support the president or the government, and were vocal about it. I was a little offended that so many of the audience stopped paying attention to the men in the arena risking their lives, but perhaps because the performances were lacklustre, it made sense that anything mildly curious captured their interest.

Political Statements

Crowd Pleased

I am still trying to understand the bullfight. I find the ritual interesting, the condition of the bulls disturbing, the matador's prancing and posturing and boldness fascinating.

Matadors' Entrance

Matadors Waiting and Watching

Banderillero

Matador as Banderillero

Posturing

The audience was exclusively European and well off. This was a reflection of the Spanish character of Quito. Later this evening I attended a performance of flamenco dancing and music, again, Spanish in origin, but with an Ecuadorian twist. On my way to the theatre in the Centro Historico, we passed many 'chivas' which are open sided party buses, full of partying Quiteños. This is a special tradition in Quito and especially this week, locals are drinking canelazo (a warm drink made with cane sugar) on the chivas and listening to music and celebrating with friends. The chivas were out in force tonight, and hopefully Eric and I will have a chance to join the revelers before the Fiestas de Quito end on Sunday.

Fiestas de Quito

Quito Flag

I was determined to participate in the Fiestas de Quito today. I chose to go the 'Gala de la Musica Quiteña', which was an opportunity to learn about Ecuadorian music. I was worried about getting a ticket, but I arrived at 7 PM, when it was supposed to start, and bought a ticket from a vendor on the street. Before paying, I hesitated, not sure I was buying a real ticket, so the vendor walked with me to the entrance and I tried the ticket before paying for it. Of course, once seated, it took another forty minutes before the event started. The curtains rose to reveal about ten violinists (one happened to be Maya's violin teacher, another the conductor of her orchestra, both play in the philharmonic symphony orchestra), two flutists, a drummer and a banjo player and two keyboards. Six huge candlesticks with dozens of candles framed the musicians. Smoke filled the stage and gradually cleared as the two hosts entered, one a very attractive blonde in a very revealing dress, and the other a middle-aged man in a tuxedo. With three video screens and lights pointing both to the stage and intermittently to the audience, it was evident that the gala was being filmed. The hosts talked alot, but much of their patter was about the music and the composers and their pride in Ecuadorian, in particular Quiteño music.

Chiva

The most popular style of music is the pasillo, which is played with three guitars and three voices. Four guitar trios came onstage, and each pasillo was played by one of the trios. The audience was familiar with most of the songs and often sang along. The screens at the sides of the stage quite regularly projected the words of the songs as if in a karaoke bar, and everyone appeared to be singing with the musicians. Sometimes the singers on stage would alternate verses with the audience. For several songs almost everyone was out of their seats, singing, clapping and dancing with the music.

The words to the songs are romantic and passionate and and express the joy and pride of being a Quiteño. 'Viva Quito' was a regular refrain. For some songs, dancers dressed in the Spanish style would come onstage, and sometimes run out to the audience and dance with the onlookers. At one point they handed out traditional Quiteño candy made with peanuts and sugar.

In the middle of the performance, six old men were brought on the stage to be lauded and given plaques to commemorate their contributions to Quiteño music. All of them were composers of the pasillos and pasacalles we heard. They were all born between 1915 and 1930. Two were in wheelchairs and one had had a stroke. They were well received with a long drawn out standing ovation.

The audience became more and more excited as the evening progressed, and participated more and more, the conductor encouraging them to sing and dance and clap along with the musicians. Everyone was out of their seats for most of the second half of the show. The enthusiasm was infectious. I found myself clapping along and mouthing the words on the screen, but not quite ready to say the words aloud.

The music was lovely and I had a wonderful time. It was a wonderful way to celebrate the Fiestas de Quito.Late in the show, some parts of the crowd started cheering for the just concluded soccer game, when the local 'Liga' team had won the South American championship. The musicians and the audience celebrated the win with many 'Viva Quito' cheers. I had heard a man a few seats behind me listening to the game on his small radio. I wondered why he was at the concert when he was far more interested in soccer. No one seemed to mind the sounds of the game and when I left the theatre, cars were honking and people were screaming in joy and celebration. Avenue de Los Shyris in front of our house was packed with fans, the roads were blocked off. Liga had actually lost the game 3 to 0, but had so many points accumulated, that losing by three points still mean winning the cup. It did not make sense to me.

Chiva For Children

Christmas is Coming

Raining in Quito

Being back in Quito is a little unsettling after our time in the wilderness. It is not quiet or restful, there is movement and activity all around. The city is getting ready for Christmas and celebrating the 'Fiestas de Quito', which is a weeklong extravaganza commemorating the founding of Quito by the Spanish on the sixth of December of 1534. The streets of Quito overflow with music and dancing and theatre and nonstop spectacles. The Plaza de Toros has bullfights daily with matadors from Spain and France and Mexico and of course Ecuador. The celebration is entirely a Spanish event, with Spanish dancing and food and focus. My plan was to go to the Centro Historico to find out the schedule of events and participate in some way, however somehow the day got away from me, and I accomplished very little.

I crawled into bed after getting Maya off to school. It was several hours later when I finally started moving. I had to restock the house so a Megamaxi run was in order, but I got entirely distracted by the Christmas store and decided that we needed to decorate for Christmas. Despite all the good reasons to get an artificial tree, I simply cannot have anything but a real one, so I will have to make inquiries about where to find one. I am told that none are available to buy, but I cannot imagine that to be true. I was entranced by all the Christmas decorations and was reminded of how much I love everything about Christmas. We will be returning to Florida and Baltimore for the holiday to see family and friends, but we have three weeks here until we go, so we will be participating in the Ecuadorian traditions.

Nearby Megamaxi Store

Until December 6, the city will be full of Fiesta de Quito activities, which of course we will take part in. I wanted to know more about what traditions are typical for the average Ecuadorian, so I learned from Pamela that for the nine days before Christmas, there is a nightly celebration about the birth of Jesus, and the family gets together and prays for Jesus and has a special meal. Christmas proper happens December 24. I have a Spanish class tomorrow and will ask Amparo more about her traditions. I remember her telling me that it is customary to have a nativity scene and that the little baby Jesus is blessed in the church on Christmas Eve.

Maya's Decorations

Maya started decorating her room when she came home yesterday and I added some more Christmas decorations today. We will have an Ecuadorian Christmas, and then have our traditional Christmas with family, so we will have a double celebration.

Christmas Roses