Leaving is no Fun at All

Maya Practicing

The apartment is in chaos as Eric gets packed and organized for his trip back to Baltimore. As always, there is far too much to carry and all sorts of decisions to make as to what to give away, what to store and what must come home. Almost everything we own is spread out in piles all in the living area. Because I want to be sure that Maya and I have enough room in our bags, I have packed as much as I can away in the two bags I currently have, and am assured that we will not be too overwhelmed when we fly back in a month.

Just a Mess

We have been planning this move home for weeks, but despite the foreknowledge and discussion and lamenting, it is still a shock that the year is over and that Eric is going home for good. Maya and I have another month until reality hits.

Eric walks around with a frown, frazzled and stressed and uncomfortable. I was able to avoid the house, by meeting Amparo for a four hour review of verb tenses. For the first time in the last two weeks, I was finally healthy enough to focus and learn something. The parasite or amoeba that took over my body since our trip to Peru has been vanquished and I am feeling lighter and more energetic. Eric met me for coffee and more salsa, and both of us felt very accomplished for the hour.

The World Cup is playing in every coffee shop and restaurant and bar, so I am getting glimpses of almost every game, which conveniently play each early morning, midmorning and early afternoon. Brasil was playing North Korea at 'Son Latina', so we did not miss that game either. Earlier, breakfast at Corfu's was accompanied by more soccer. The Ecuadorian championships are happening at the same time, but the World Cup takes precedence for now. The locals are appreciative of good soccer, but it is clear where their sympathies lie in the rivalry between the old world (Europe) and the new.

Maya is preparing for her role in 'Coppelia' on Saturday at the Teatro Bolivar. We learned yesterday that she also has to play in a concert that same day. Her violin teacher somehow forgot to tell us, and suddenly Maya has to prepare to play two pieces with an accompanist she has never met. Maya was on television again on Sunday. Since we rarely watch local television, or any TV for that matter, we have missed her television appearances each time. I am told by friends and acquaintances after the fact. Ecuadorians like to promote the arts and are especially impressed with talented children!

Maya and Teacher Nina

One of my roles here is to be 'stage mother', or at least support Maya's ballet and violin activities. During the end of the year, she is shuffling the various rehearsals, having performances in ballet, orchestra and solo violin, so she is often slated to be at several places at once and we are always making choices as to which practice to attend. Today it was four hours of ballet on her toes, and it was a pleasure to watch her and her teacher and her friends reviewing snippets of the performance. For now, I am too busy to think much about leaving.

Sunny and Cloudy