Montanita, Ecuador

In addition to all the politics, I have been learning about some of the fun cities in Ecuador. Last weekend, 6 of us went to Montañita, a small coastal town known primarily for its “tranquila” atmosphere. I think a vital detail in helping one understand what “tranquila” means in this context is to mention the ever present scent of marijuana and logo of that little green leaf that seems so popular among those who would likely consider themselves frequent “munchers” and relaxed, artistic thinkers. Haha.

In Montañita, the party starts when you want it to and doesn’t stop until 7:00 am. I promise I am not exaggerating. The first two nights, we stayed in a hostel a little on the outskirts of this small (only about 2 square miles) town in order to avoid all the late night noise. It was a good strategy, but in the end, we decided that we would rather battle the sounds of 4:00 street parades, drums, and reggae bands than the equally “awake” cockroach population.

Outside of habitación drama, the town was pretty cute. However, I mostly enjoyed our adventure to La Isla de Plata. Some call it “Los Galapagos para los pobres” because it has almost all the same vegetation and much of the same species population as Darwin’s famous islands. I saw lots of blue-footed boobies. They were hilarious and had no fear. I could get right beside them and they wouldn’t even blink an eye. The biggest incentive to keep my distance came from there razor sharp beaks that come in handy during their fish-spearing nosedives. I managed to get close enough for a quick picture, but made sure not to agitate them as I was certain that my leg was no match for that sharp booby-beak.

The journey to the island took about an 1 ½ by boat. On the way, we could see big, beautiful whales coming up for air and playing around the surface. This area is known for its whale sightings during the months of July, August, and September. We found out about it just in time and got to go on one of the last boat rides of the season. When we got to the island, we hiked for about 3 hours and saw lots of different kinds of interesting animals including the boobies, albatrosses, and a giant sea lion. From the cliffs of the island, I could see more whales as they playfully dove high into the air for a spectacular show. It was breathtaking. Later, the group went snorkeling in a cove with sea turtles and thousands of beautiful fish. It was kind of cold outside, but that didn’t seem stop anyone, but me. Haha. The whole day was so wonderful that I barely remember how intensely, nauseatingly and miserably sea sick I got on the way there and the way back.

The next few days in Montañita were spent relaxing, eating, browsing at all the little artisan stands, and inventing new kinds of baltidos cominations (fruit shakes) for all the vendors. The last day was really sunny and the beach was beautiful. Although I am not really into collecting shells, I found really cool turquoise, blue, and even red stones all over the place! They are so beautiful, and I must admit to spending a significant amount of time thinking about the kind of craft I would like to make with them when I get home.

I am still missing everyone… everyday. To merely say thank you for all your prayers just doesn’t seem to cut it. But I’ll say it anyway- thank you.

Un Engano

Un Engaño.

Capítulo 3, Sección 5, Art. 45

“Las niñas, niños y adolescentes gozarán de los derechos communes del ser humano, además de los específicos de su edad. El Estado reconocerá y garantizará la vida, incluido el cuidado y protección desde la concepción.

“The girls, boys, and adolescents will possess the common rights of human beings, regardless of their age. The state will recognize and guarantee life, which includes care and protection from conception.”

Capítulo 6- “Derechos de Libertad”, Art. 10

“El derecho a tomar decisiones libres, responsables e informadas sobre su salud y vida reproductiva y a decidir cuándo y cuántas hijas e hijos tener.

“The right to make free, responsible, and informed decisions about your life and reproductive health and to decide when and how many children to have.”

**It has not been so easy to find time to sit and take a breath… and update my blog. So, please forgive me for all the suspense…

Today, I have done absolutely nothing. We (Charlotte, Becky, and I) arrived home very late last night around 2:00 am from Riobamba. Luckily, classes were cancelled today due to the constitutional vote that took place on my college campus yesterday. So, today I am recouping and have found time to share some of the things I have been learning.

In a recent trip to Montañita, Ecuador (a small beach town), I met a man who worked for the government. He told me about his 5 children, spoke adoringly about his wife, and brought tears to my eyes as he talked about his faith and how he tries to live it out as a father. Boldly, I asked him about his views on the teachings/relationships between the Catholic Church/ culture and contraception, abortion/ family planning. He was so honest with me and I loved it. He qualified his response by stating that he wasn’t a religious man, but believed deeply in Jesus Christ. He described how there were times that he didn’t know how he would put food on the table for his children, but how the food always came. Like so many Latin Americans, he lives his daily life dependent on the Grace and promises of God. Even though he already has 5 children, he said that “if my wife comes to me tomorrow and says she’s pregnant, we will not be scared or sad, we will be happy.” He made it clear to me that he does not support abortion. So, then I asked “why will you vote “yes” to a constitution that welcomes pro-abortion legislation?” Then, he basically cited article 3 of the constitution and explained to me how the constitution does not legalize abortion, but that it actually protects against it. I was so confused and couldn’t understand why he, a seemingly educated man who clearly didn’t accept abortion, believed the constitution would actually protect unborn children while the Catholic Churches in Ecuador were certain that it didn’t. Soon, I got to the bottom of the confusion.

Two days later, I started my internship at “la unidad analysis politica”. It is a political analysis unit for the government. I was really excited and nervous to begin working. On my first day, I had to read/ skim nearly hundreds of pages of information about political, economic issues in Ecuador. It was difficult. I felt way out of my league. However, the team seemed to believe in me. I started asking more detailed questions about the purpose of the unit and found out a lot of useful information. One of their primary goals was to try and convince people to vote “sí” for the constitution. When I found this out, I felt angry and deceived because I didn’t want to be a part of anything that was rallying votes for a constitution that the Catholic church hated… but I still couldn’t understand why the church hated it. After a conversation with one of the “head honchos” of the unit, I understood exactly why so many people, like the man in Montañita, believed the constitution would protect AGAINST abortion and not welcome it. Although the constitution does not explicitly permit abortion, it does not acknowledge the “right” to the life of the child and its protection until “natural” death. The absence of these specific words in quotations and Ecuador’s new commitment to the protection of the “health” of the mother is frighteningly familiar to those of the US pro-abortion legislation. In addition to these vague articles, there is plenty of language that mentions “reproductive health” and certain “rights to privacy” (regardless of age) (Art 3 and 10). It does not take a constitutional analyst to understand the implications of such language. However, the average Ecuadorian and the majority of Ecuadorians are uneducated and ignorant to how significant the presence and absence of even one word can be. Even I, a college-educated, pro-life, student had to consult with several people to really understand what was happening. Regardless of where one stands of this issue, the fact that the Ecuadorian government is deceiving millions of people with vague language is wrong. Even worse, I directly asked my boss at the unit if he actually believed that the constitution was against abortion. After he thought about it, it seemed that for the first time, he realized the slippery slope towards pro-abortion legislation. Then responded with, “well, maybe not, but we are trying to modernize, aren’t we?” To me, it is a tragedy that so many people in our world understand “modernity” to include this idea of an absolute right to autonomy to the extent that it actually denies any autonomy and rights to society’s most innocent- the unborn. I only worked in that office for one day, and haven’t been back since. I am still trying to find a new internship to complete my required hours so that I can receive the 3 hours of credit. This is an urgent prayer request.

Because there are some 400 articles in this new constitution, I cannot begin to predict exactly how all the changes will affect the country, whether positively or negatively. However, I know that because of the majority “yes” vote that occurred yesterday, many are celebrating as they believe Ecuador, too, is “modernizing”.