Papanicolau---no this is not Santa Claus

First off, I want to thank EVERYONE for their comments. I am so glad people are reading this and it really means a lot to me to receive every one of your comments. It definitely makes my day brighter knowing I have so many people rooting for me back home. So, MUCHAS GRACIAS.

For this posting, I wanted to switch things up a bit and share some funny experiences and/or conceptions of this country. It is an amazing country, and although I am somewhat familiar with Latin American culture...some things are stil continuing to surprise me.

1) PAPANICOLAO: No, ladies and gentlemen, this is not the same as Papa Nicolas/Santa Claus/Jolly Guy at Christmas. This, my friends, is pap smear in Spanish. When talking about women´s health issues, one facilitator started describing a papanicolao as a standard procedure, I asked my native speaker friend, Miriam, what it was. She whispered Santa Claus and the facilitator proceeded to laugh in our face...nope...this is not quite a jolly man in a red suit giving you gifts...

2) BABIES ON THE BACK: It is amazing how the women carry their children here. Daily you will see women carrying their guaguas (wa-was, kichwa for baby) on their back strapped in by a bed sheet. They lay the screaming child on their back and with two quick twists, the child is securely strapped by a simple sheet. It´s quite a wonder to watch. We´ve actually stopped where we are walking to watch these native women do this.

3) CAR HORNS: When someone beeps their car horn at you in the US, you think HOW RUDE?! Or this person must be really mad or it´s out of urgency. Here, a car horn is as common as saying hello. It´s ridiculous. And the way the horn is honked signifies something different. The slight jab of the horn with the heel of your hand, meaning Buenos Dias, seems to require much practice. As my friend Chris states, the honking is like one car saying to the other ¨Hey! You´re a car too! Let´s honk!¨ The busses here are the worst---they honk, letting you know they are behind you. Thanks, I couldn´t tell a GIANT BUS was behind me! The black smoke you blow in my face wasn´t enough of an indicator.

4) BREAKFAST=LAST NIGHT´S DINNER: The food here is pretty good. I have soon grown to love rice...as it is served at every meal. And breakfast, I´ve learned, is just last night´s dinner. Reheated. Sonia asked me this morning what Americans eat for breakfast. I said they usually don´t but if they do, it´s cereal and coffee (not insant). She said Juan would ¨se muere de hambre¨(die of hunger) as he likes his soup, potatoes, rice and meat option for breakfast. Different strokes for different folks, I guess.

Enough observations for now. This weekend we are off to a cultural trip; my group is going to Cotocachi, a leather market. Tuesday is the big SITE ASSIGNMENT DAY!! Everyone is on pins and needles for that day...hope it doesn´t end in tears for some. Have a buen fin de semana!