For starters I traveled by day as we had gotten correspondence reporting some security issues on the night busses. That meant about 8 hour on the bus, all day long. I had stayed up until 3 am one morning making banana bread for the ladies as there was know way I could show up empty handed and I learned how to make the banana bread after we had gotten an insanely large donation of bananas, so it was a nod to the old days. I had a ton of work to do leading up to the trip and it’s a good thing that I didn’t go on and on about how nervous I was about returning.
Nervous about what you ask? Nervous about the city that essentially chewed me up and spit me out, nervous about seeing old friends and how it would feel, worried about going back to the barrio and seeing the ladies… it had been SO hard leaving I just didn’t know what to expect emotionally. Had I called enough? Will they be as happy to see me as I was I knew I would be to see them? Etc..It would have been an exhausting blog entry I’m certain!
What I can report now is that I am back and that the trip was absolutely amazing and cathartic. I was (as usual) worried for absolutely nothing. As I mentioned Friday I traveled all day by bus. I twisted my hair, read and slept and it actually was a quite enjoyable ride. I got in kinda late so I stayed in a hostal for the first time even in Guayaquil that had internet, AC and cable. It was fun little mental escape.
The first order of business of course the next day was to see the ladies. It turned out that they had a meeting near the hostal I was staying so we planned to just meet up there. I rolled up to the hotel where the meeting was being held. The ladies hadn’t arrived yet, but it turns out I knew SO many people at the event. It was a workshop of community organizers and I felt so welcome as even without the Ladies present I had made friends over the year and a half I had worked in Guayaquil. The meeting started and the Ladies still hadn’t arrived, so when they finally did show up in the middle of the meeting we caused a huge scene as we ran to each other hugging, talking, kissing with tears in our eyes. Hey it’s Ecuador, you can do stuff like that!
Not only was it great to just see the Ladies and be in there presence the meeting was amazing. One thing I miss about being there is the sophisticated issues the Ladies and these community leaders confront. The discussions they have are a far cry from the chasing after kids I do now. I love what I do now, but it was a great to change gears for awhile and it was great to remember the kind of work I was doing. The meeting was ALL day however, so I had planned on going to the barrio that day…so I let the Ladies convince me to stay until Monday and go to the barrio then. I HAD planned on coming back Sunday, but hanging in Cristo de Consuelo was worth staying an extra day.
The meeting was until 5 but I had to dip around 4ish to get ready for the Despedida. I showered and changed and went to Molls for the last time for a pizza party. Then we headed to the house of some other volunteers and had a fiesta. It was a lot of fun to meet new volunteers and to get together in honor of our friend. We went on from there to La Zona Rosa, which I had never been to while living in Guayaquil so that was something new. We had a great time and it was a good send off. I know from experience you don’t want to hear “don’g go!” all night, so we were all aware of that and kept the party going. We had beer, wine, brownies, cake, chips, played games and danced and danced. I was sad on the inside but we were in full fiesta fun mode so that made the goodbyes easier and we were able to send off our girl in style.
The next day was a fun filled marvelous day with my homie Liam. He and a new teacher Derrick were out and about to see the city and I was able to tag along. We hunted down the best Encebollado and talked and laughed until we couldn’t eat another bite. We went all around the city, to the pool, meet even more new friends out for dinner and I ended up spending the night as the good times kept goin.
The next day was barrio day. I was so excited I could hardly stand it. I was going to get to see the group of elderly I worked with, the kids, the neighbors and everyone one in between. When I showed up everyone was happy to see me and I was so stoked to see them too! I got to see the construction that is being done on the Tienda. When I was in Guayaquil we had been working tirelessly to get a propsal approved to build a community center where all of the small businesses could exist in one location. Well it had finally gone through and they were doing construction and it was a DREAM Come True to actually see that happening. Amazing. I went to everyone’s house and fell right back into the fold easily. The Ladies are amazing and resilient. They dream big and make things happen. They will be getting a new volunteer soon too I heard so that will be great. I left with one of the ladies I used to always ride to the centro with and it was such a great return. She dropped me off and we said our goodbyes..well our hasta luegos (see you laters). When the Construction is complete the ladies said they will let me know so that I can come back or the inaguration. So it wasn’t as sad this time to say goodbye.
I then went to the Malecon to meet my tutor and friend Lily. It’s where we used to have lessons and it was so great meeting in our old spot. We both had a lot of news and updates for each other and time flew by. She ended up riding on the metro via with me to the Terminal to catch my bus and that was such a sweet gesture and a wonderful send of.
Some volunteers never get to “go back” and see how they project is progressing since they left. I was able to see steps that we had taken together are still advancing and that was rewarding. All in all the Gqui return was more amazing than I could have ever imagined and I am looking forward to going back to visiting again.
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