Ecuador Bound

Ecuador’s Four Unique Worlds

admin — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 06:00:38 +0000

Amazingly, Ecuador is not a very big area when compared to the entire United States

The entire country of Ecuador is around the size of the State of Nevada or Arizona. It is approximately 285,000 sq. kilometers or 177,091 miles and is home to close to 14 million people. Within these minuscule miles, or should I say kilometers as Ecuador is on the metric scale, there is diversity like nowhere else. Ecuador is home to the world’s longest mountain range and the world’s biggest and most impenetrable jungle, the Amazon.

Ecuador is home to the largest diversity of animals and plants per sq. kilometer in the world. It is proudly 3rd in the world for it’s variety of amphibians, and 5th for it’s butterflies. To give you an idea of how many species this is, it includes more than 25,000 plant species (10% of the world total) and 1,600 types of birds. It also has more varieties of mammals per sq. meter than any other country on Earth!

New species are being found all the time in Ecuador from both the plant and animal kingdoms. I have shown but a few recent additions to Ecuador’s menagerie of species below:

The country is divided into four unique worlds. They are:

The Pacific Coast (La Costa)
The Andes or Sierra (La Sierrra)
The Amazon Rainforest or El Oriente (Amazonia) and
The Galapagos Islands (Galapagos)

The first three areas above divide the mainland into three distinct regions. These regions pretty much divide the country in parallel strips. The westernmost portion of Ecuador is The Pacific Coast where the beaches are for the most part pristine and inviting. The center region, The Sierra, lies within the eastern and western chains of the Andes and adorned by close to 30 volcanoes. To the east lies El Oriente which is sparsely populated and contains only about 3% of the population. For the most part this region is a dense tropical rainforest and home to many indigenous groups.

The last region above is not on the mainland. It is the famous Galapagos Islands which of course is famous for it’s humongous ancient tortoises which live approximately 150 years, among many other species of colorful wildlife. These islands are located almost 620 miles from the Ecuadorian coast and are visited regularly by millions. It has 13 main islands and dozens of islets and minor volcanic islands. The Galapagos Islands are the only place on earth where animals, like birds and reptiles, show total lack of fear to humans.

These four divisions are quite different from one another in many ways. Some have regarded Ecuador to be a microcosm of South America itself. The fact that Ecuador is not very big but so diverse is quite a blessing. You don’t have to travel far to experience something totally different. Yet another huge advantage is Ecuador’s weather, meaning that due to the lack of extremes (either hot or cold) you can pretty much travel all year round.

I will attempt to outline each of these diverse contrasting areas giving each at least one page apiece. From time to time, as my knowledge of Ecuador progresses, I will write posts about the new things I have learned, and eventually, have seen firsthand.

Car rentals available in Ecuador (I checked each one)
or anywhere else for that matter.

Llapingachos – Ecuadorian Potato Patties

admin — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 02:25:45 +0000

Llapingachos (yah-peen-GAH-chos) or Ecuadorian Potato Patties

These potato patties or stuffed potato pancakes are a popular side dish in Ecuador. They are often served with fried eggs and a simple lettuce, tomato and avocado salad and pickled onion. Sausages and a side of rice are often added to make a full meal. Don’t forget the ever tasty peanut sauce and the hot sauce.

I personally adore potato patties/pancakes. Add the cheese and the chives/scallions and they are heaven.

Ingredients (patties):

5-6 Russet potatoes (or a potato that is very starchy)
2 Tbsp. Achiote molido (ground annatto seed) or paprika to color
2 Tbsp. sunflower oil (or your favorite cooking oil for browning)
2½ cup white onion or 6 Scallions (finely chopped) – I love both
1 cup queso blanco, Mozzarella, Monterey Jack or Fontina cheese (white cheese of your choice, shredded or grated)
pinch of salt — to taste

Ingredients (salsa de maní or peanut sauce):

Traditionally, the sauce is made with fresh roasted peanuts and not jar peanut butter, but this is the quick way.

1/3 cup peanut butter (unsweetened or natural)
1/4 cup white onion (thinly sliced)
1 1/2 cups milk
Salt and pepper — to taste

Directions:

1. Place the potatoes in a lg. saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil, add salt as desired. Cook uncovered on med-hi heat until they are soft. Drain the potatoes and set them aside to cool off for a few minutes.

2. Mash the potatoes until smooth adding salt to season. When it is cool enough to work with form 1/3 cup portions of the mashed potatoes into balls and set on a cookie sheet. Chill for at least 30 minutes in the fridge. This step will save you some time and they won’t fall apart.

3. While the potatoes are chilling, start your maní sauce (go to step 4 if you are not using sauce). Simmer the milk (not to a boil) and onion slices in a sm. saucepan for about 10 minutes. Remove the onions from the sauce and toss out. Whisk the peanut butter into the milk and add salt to season. Now bring the sauce to a boil and reduce to simmer until sauce is thick (like heavy cream), approx. 4-5 minutes. If not thick enough add more peanut butter, if too thick add more milk. Set sauce aside until the patties are done.

4. Turn oven on warm to keep patties until you are done. Remove your potato balls from the fridge. Mix the cheese and onions or scallions together and stuff each ball with about 1 tablespoon of the mixture. Flatten the balls with your palms to form individual patties.

5. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Sauté the patties, a few at a time, until browned on each side. Remove to a warm oven until all patties have been sautéed. Serve topped with the salsa de maní (peanut sauce).

Ecuador is Rationing Electricity

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:34:57 +0000

The rationing of electricity in Ecuador is only temporary until next Saturday.

According to The Wall Street Journal: “Ecuador on Thursday started rationing electricity for between two and six hours a day until Saturday…”

After Saturday, the Ecuadorian government will decide whether to continue with the rationing mandate, depending on the gravity of the situation.

The use of rationing electricity started yesterday by the people of Ecuador. A drought in the southern Andes of Ecuador has led, in recent weeks, to a “drastic reduction” in the flow volume of water entering the reservoir of the hydroelectric plant of Paute.

These measures are seemingly only for a limited time, however, as they are scheduled only to be undergone up until next Saturday. The lack of water that is used to fuel the hydro electric plant is what is causing this major issue to take effect.

This is just another example of our depleting resources across the globe and ways we can counteract with some sort of solution. In Venezuela they had had a lower amount of water in their reservoirs also, and I had read that they were requested to take “3 minute” showers to help this situation out. The capital city of Caracas began rationing electricity and water in recent weeks. In Florida, where my mother lives, she can only water her grass on certain days of the week and at certain times of the day.

I have enacted a rule in my house for the use/abuse of water in the toilet to: “If it is yellow — let it mellow & if it is brown — flush it down.” Now, I know that may be a familiar term to some of you, I stole it from a movie, I think it was “Meet the Fockers.” I also watch myself washing the dishes, I turn the volume of water down. I also do my part with the washing machine & only do full loads and wash in cold when I can. When brushing my teeth I try to remember to turn the water off in-between my toothbrush rinsing.

If you have some other good ideas on how we can save water place a comment below for others to see.

Months in Spanish

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 06:52:21 +0000

Most of the months in Spanish are similar in spelling to their English counterparts, therefore it makes it easier to learn. The main exception is January, enero. If you use a memory trigger it will make it easier to remember.

I saw one example of using Emperor Nero — hence e nero. So when you are trying to remember the first month remember that image of the Emperor & then carry on from there.

Here are the months in Spanish:

Months in English	Months in Spanish
January	enero
February	febrero
March	marzo
April	abril
May	mayo
June	junio
July	julio
August	agosto
September	septiembre
October	octubre
November	noviembre
December	diciembre

As with the days of the week in the previous post, these are also NOT capitalized and they are all masculine as well.

Visit Spanish Widgets and Learn Basic Spanish for more helpful tips.

Spanish Days of the Week

admin — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 06:33:50 +0000

Here are the days of the week in Spanish for the others learning Spanish like me. Note that the week starts on Monday and not Sunday. Also note that the days are NOT capitalized, only lowercase. Those are the two main differences.

Spanish Days of the Week	English Days of the Week
lunes	Monday
martes	Tuesday
miércoles	Wednesday
jueves	Thursday
viernes	Friday
sábado	Saturday
domingo	Sunday

Visit Spanish Widgets and Learn Basic Spanish for more helpful tips.

Learn to Count in Spanish

admin — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 03:49:12 +0000

Previously I worked on the Spanish alphabet, today I am working on Spanish numbers.

I am still brand new at learning Spanish, so again, please bear with me. I may, or may not, make a few mistakes. Please if you see one, let me know

Here is the run down on the basics of learning the Spanish numbering system.

Learn the basic 1-10
Then learn 11-15 as they don’t follow the rules
It gets a little easier from here as 16-19 are easy to follow – see below
Now learn 20 and the rest of the 20’s (this pattern continues through the 20’s)- see below
In the 30’s there is a new pattern and it continues throughout the number system untill 99
Now learn the 10’s and the 100’s and will be a snap
Lastly, learn the big guys – they also follow the rules

That is how I see learning the system. It actually is quite easy once you figure out who abides by the rules and who doesn’t. I hope this helps you out some, it helps me.

Learn Spanish Numbers Here:

Numbers 0 – 10	Spanish Translation
0	cero
1	uno
2	dos
3	tres
4	quatro
5	cinco
6	sies
7	siete
8	ocho
9	nueve
10	diez

Numbers 11-19	Spanish Translation
11	once
12	doce
13	trece
14	catorce
15	quince
16	dieciséis
17	diecisiete
18	dieciocho
19	diecinueve

The 20’s	Spanish Translation
20	veinte
21	veintiuno
22	veintidós
23	veintitrés
24	veinticuatro
25	veinticinco
26	veintiséis
27	veintisiete
28	veintiocho
29	veintinueve

The 30’s	Spanish Translation
30	treinta
31	treinta y uno
32	treinta y dos
33	treinta y tres

Count by 10’s	Spanish Translation
10	diez
20	veinte
30	treinta
40	cuarenta
50	cincuenta
60	sesenta
70	setenta
80	ochenta
90	noventa

Count by 100’s	Spanish Translation
100	cien
200	doscientos
300	trescientos
400	cuatrocientos
500	quinientos
600	seiscientos
700	setecientos
800	ochocientos
900	novecientos

1,000 and Larger	Spanish Translation
1,000	mil
10,000	diez mil
100,000	cien mil
1,000,000	un millón

Next project I will undertake on my quest for mastering the Spanish language is working on flash cards. I downloaded a huge batch of templates for making my own, but it is going to take some time to do. Once I have finished, just by compiling the words to put on each card, I should be half way there. Wishful thinking perhaps!

Be sure to check out the other pages on Spanish like the Spanish Widget page I just finished putting up. I love this new widget that speaks to me.

Aguacates Rellenos – Stuffed Avocados

admin — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 09:07:23 +0000

Avacado Halves

Stuffed Avocados or Aguacates Rellenos is a simple recipe using that healthy green vegetable. Ecuador grows wonderful avocados year round.

Ingredients:

3 large avocados
1 cup chopped, cooked ham (or chopped cold roast pork or chicken)
3 hard boiled eggs, chopped (or 1 cup cooked mixed vegetables)
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup mayonnaise, fat free if you prefer (tomato sauce or Béchamel sauce is often substituted in Ecuador)
romaine or iceberg lettuce, shredded

Directions:

Carefully peel the avocados, cut into half lengthwise making sure to remove the pits. In a bowl combine the ham and hard boiled eggs, season to taste with salt and pepper, and fold in the mayonnaise. Fill the hollows of the avocados with the mixture.

Make a bed of lettuce on six salad plates and put half an avocado on each. Serve as a first course or light luncheon dish. A vinaigrette sauce may be used instead of mayonnaise.

NOTE: Avocados discolor quickly, so if it is necessary to prepare this ahead of time, dip the avocados in lemon juice, or leave them unpeeled, though they will look less appetizing.

10 Health Benefits of Avocados states that avocados are good for:

Prostate Cancer Prevention

Oral Cancer Defense

Breast Cancer Protection

Eye Health

Lower Cholesterol

Heart Health

Stroke Prevention

Better Nutrient Absorption

Glutathione Source

Vitamin E Powerhouse

Albondigas en Cazuela or Meatball Soup

admin — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 08:54:01 +0000

Ecuador is home to many tantalizing dishes. Even though they have vast resources of organic and fresh vegetables, they still serve meat with most dishes. This is a recipe for a beef soup that is quite hardy and easy to make.

Albondigas en Cazuela – Meatball Soup

Ingredients:

1 pound of hamburger
2 Tsp. of breadcrumbs
salt & pepper (to taste)
1 egg
2 Tsp. of milk
2 Tsp. of flour
4 Tsp. of oil
1 ground garlic
1 slivered onion
3 carrots, cut in slivers
1 pound of chopped potatoes
1 pound of tomatoes
½ litre beef broth
parsley for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

Mix the meat, breadcrumbs, milk, salt, pepper and egg together in large bowl. Roll out 15 or so meatballs.

In a frying pan heat half the oil and brown the onion and garlic. Drain the oil off and put the vegetables and juice into a medium sized saucepan.

Coat the meatballs in the flour and fry them in the remaining oil for 10 minutes, until brown but not overcooked, as they will continue to cook in the soup.

Next add the carrots, potatoes, tomatoes, and the beef broth to the saucepan. Salt and pepper to taste. Add water to broth for consistency you wish.

Cook for an 1 1/2 hours on medium-low heat. Serve soup with sprinkle of parsley on top.

Colada Morada – All Souls Day Ecuadorian Drink

admin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 23:48:46 +0000

November 2 of every year is All Souls Day or Day of the Dead. It is practiced around the world. Ecuador, in particular, makes this a festive and family oriented holiday as El Día de los Difuntos, literally The Day of the Deceased, or All Soul’s Day. Ecuadorians find it crude to say “Day of the Dead.”

Families remember their dearly departed by adorning themselves in their finest clothes and visiting their grave sites with offerings of food and flowers, etc. Most roads are closed and blocked off as long processions of people make their way to the cemeteries. The dead are visited and their graves are decorated with fresh flowers and food brought to them.

In the smaller more traditional towns, whole families reunite to clean the graves and then spend their day picnicking at the graves of their loved ones. Colada Morada, a blueberry- and blackberry-based drink, is paired with Guaguas de pan, a sweet dipping bread in the shape of babies, as the traditional food prepared on this festive & uplifting day (not depressing as you would think).

Recipes for Colada Morada will vary from family or region. Most versions will contain blueberries, blackberries, and pineapple. Others will contain naranjilla juice (an Andean fruit), babaco (champagne fruit), strawberries, and even raisins.

Serve the Colada Morada (translated as the purple colada, or oatmeal drink) hot or cold. Ecuadorians eat Guaguas de pan, soft bread loaves shaped in the form of babies [guagua (pronounced wa-wa) - means baby in Quichua] along with their Colada. These breads are filled with chocolate or jellies and decorated with frosting. If you have a problem eating dead babies (LOL) then dip any soft bread into the fruity drink.

One element of the traditional Ecuadorian recipe is purple corn flour. This item is not readily available in other regions of the world so cornstarch can and is substituted for the purple corn flour. Cornstarch will actually keep longer as the corn flour in the drink tends to ferment it. Another is oatmeal that is used to thicken it up, hence it’s translated name.

I have added a few different ingredients in this recipe. Depending on what you have on hand or what you can find, you can use whole spices or ground. If you wish to use fresh pineapple then cook down (approx. 20 min.) to soft but not mushy and substitute for crushed pineapple.

COLADA MORADA

1 1/2 lbs. of blueberries, be sure to rinse
2 lbs. of blackberries, raspberries or boysenberries (cooks choice)
1 lg. can crushed pineapple (if not using a fresh pineapple)
2+ c. sugar (depending on your desired sweetness)
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 c. pineapple juice
1/3 c. cornstarch (depending on thickness desired)

*Note: If you choose the whole spices (instead of the ground) then you need to steep the “spice tea” – simply add to pot of water (just enough for small amount of “tea”), boil for 15 min. or so and let cool. Then add this “spice tea” to the juice mixture.

1/4 – 1/2 tsp. allspice or 6-8 whole allspice*
1/4 – 1/2 tsp. cloves or 6-8 whole cloves*

If in Ecuador or a good So. American Market purchase these specifically for this drink:
1/2 bundle of spices for Colada Morada (5-6 orange leaves, 1 fistful each of lemon verbena and myrtle)*
1-2 ishpingo (Ecuadorian spice)*

4-5 Cinnamon sticks (optional)

Simmer berries in water. Let cool then mash and strain. Put berry liquid in a large pot. Add water at 1:1 ratio of water & juice. Add pineapple and pineapple juice. Mix well and heat thoroughly. Add sugar and spices or “spice tea” (adjust amounts to taste). Stir.

If using cornstarch place in a glass (I like to mix in a glass jar with a lid so I can shake it) of cold water. Stir and dissolve the cornstarch for about 5-10 minutes, allowing the Colada to thicken. When the juice mixture reaches simmer, add cornstarch mixture from previous step.

Mix well. Serve hot or cold. Serve with Guaguas de pan or soft dipping bread.
Makes 10+ servings.

Optional: Serve with cinnamon sticks (best if serving hot).

This is an Ecuadorian Recipe I translated from Spanish from GoEcuador.com:

INGREDIENTS (40 cups)

1 pound blackberries
1/2 pound of mortiño
10 orangettes
1/2 pineapple, chopped
1 pound strawberries
1/2 pound black flour
o maicena or cornstarch
3 sheets of orange
6 -10 leaves of lemon verbena
10 leaves of myrtle
6 cloves
10 sweet peppercorns
4 sticks cinnamon
1 ishpingo
1 1/2 pound of sugar
1/2 babaco

PREPARATION
Place in a pot with 2 liters of water all the spices (cinnamon, cloves, pepper, shiping). When water grass in about 15 minutes, add the lemon verbena leaves, myrtle, lemon, orange and leave for 5 minutes. CERN is water and carries it back to fire and without herbs.

Mix the cornstarch or flour 2 cups black in cold water until dissolved and mixed in the water in the fire, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.

Station

In addition, the mortiño cook in 2 cups of water for 10 minutes, hovering and liquefies, add the juice to the previous preparation.

Wash berries and liquefied with half a cup of water, getting a thick juice that is added equally to the laundry. Do the same with orangettes laundry and let it boil for 15 minutes.

Chop diced pineapple, strawberries and babaco the end, we put in the wash, add sugar to taste and leave for 10 minutes. To serve, you can use a cup or jar and place raisins to taste. The drink can be taken hot or cold.

The translation leaves a little to be desired LOL

Below are videos of some of the traditional recipes. I could NOT find any in English but you can watch the preparation & use either recipe above. Either that, just enjoy their festivities and language. Their passion in making these dishes comes through. I couldn’t find any Ecuadorian videos on their festivities either, so I added a Mexican one in the States.

Ecuador – Just Stating the Facts

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 07:56:09 +0000

Ecuador Flag

TIME ZONE: GMT minus 5 hours on mainland Ecuador and GMT minus 6 hours in the Galapagos Islands. Daylight Savings Time is not used in Ecuador.

COUNTRY CALLING CODE: +593 + city code.

LANGUAGE: The main language spoken is Spanish, followed by Quechua and then 20 or so other indiginous variations.

REGIONS: Ecuador is basically divided into four unique regions. They are called different names depending on who you are talking to. They are:

The Pacific Coast (La Costa)
The Andes or Sierra (La Sierrra)
The Amazon Rainforest or El Oriente (Amazonia) and
The Galapagos Islands (Galapagos)

RELIGION: Ecuador Religion can be defined as a secular in nature because the country of Ecuador practices freedom of worship, as mandated by The Ecuadorian Constitution of 1998. The dominant religion in Ecuador is Catholic. During the many festivals in Ecuador the indiginous people also parade their religions alongside of the Catholic traditions.

MONEY: The official money used in Ecuador is the American Dollar (USD). The bills are the same as those used in the United States but the coins are printed in Ecuador with the images of historical personalities in Ecuador. They are the same in size, weight, etc. but they are only valid within the territory of Ecuador.

Additionally, Ecuador, at the time of dollarization, issued centavo coins. These coins are issued in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 and $1. These are equal in value to the U.S. coins. The $1 centavo coin is commonly used.

ATM’s are found in most towns and cities and in some remote areas as well. Just be sure you pay attention to the logos on the ATM terminal to check which companies service it such as Pulse ATM or Cirrus ATM. This is common in the States. Also, for added protection please note that the safest ATM’s are those that are found inside shopping centers and in front of actual banks themselves.

Credit and debit cards are used heavily, with some surcharge, and Traveler’s Checks are accepted at the banks for a surcharge as well.

If you are going to do a bank transfer note that it takes at least 3 working days.

WEATHER: The weather and climate of Ecuador depends on where you are. As a general rule: The climate is tropical along the Pacific Coast, becoming cooler inland at higher elevations such as in The Sierra; and back to tropical in the Amazonian jungle lowlands (Oriente).

I have included a weather widget for each of the 3 largest cities for your convience:

Forecast for Cuenca

Forecast for Guayaquil

Forecast for Quito

TAXES: 12% VAT and 10% service in most hotels and restaurants. Be sure to ask if this tax is already included in the bill, most are, but some are not.

ELECTRIC CURRENT: 110/AC. So bring along your small electric appliances like shavers and hair dryers. NOTE: It is good to bring, or buy, a 3-pronged adapter as some of the outlets are the old style and don’t accomodate the newer 3-pronged connectors.

HEALTH RISKS: No vaccinations are needed to enter Ecuador. As with any tropical country around the world there is a risk of malaria, as in certain areas of the Amazon and the Coast. Discuss these issues with your local Dr. or Health Department.

EXPORT PRODUCTS: Oil, bananas, shrimp, fish, flowers, coffee, wooden products, etc.

YOUR SAFETY: The safest way to carry money is a money belt worn under clothing. As in most touristy locals, pickpockets can spot a traveler a mile away. Also keep spare cash in a separate purse or wallet for easy access. This actually helps out in the event you do get pickpocketed, as the theif will NOT get all your money and won’t suspect he hasn’t gotten it!

Remember to leave your documents and valuables in a safety deposit box in your hotel (most hotels will accomodate this need). You just need to carry the copy of your passport. I have heard make sure the copies are in color (never leave without at least that).

Unfortunately, a general rule of thumb is don’t take busses and chances at night. After 6 p.m. it’s best to call a taxi from the hotel or restaurant for evening visits to the city or going out for dinner. Avoid walking the streets after dark also, unless you are not in the city and have the go ahead from people who know the area.