As this post’s title says, we are alive and well here in our casa in Ecuador. This is not something we take for granted. We are diligent in doing our part to keep out health as good as it can be. The most important part, is how we safeguard our psychological health, how we keep up positive spirits. Once one descends into anxiety and depression, the physical health becomes even more compromised. So, how are we doing that? We have…
I got an email late, yesterday evening, telling me that a repatriation flight is going to leave early tomorrow morning from the Quito airport. There was a problem that quickly reared its ugly head. How do we get to Quito as the provincial borders are all closed, and there is a curfew in place to restrict movement. A quick call to a trusted source told us that two days earlier, a person we both know, had taken a taxi from…
I know, it looks like it is beautiful. And, it is very, very beautiful to be honest. Three buildings surround this green space. We are the only residents in this compound. The grounds are open to view by any passersby, but at this time, those numbers are very low – just the occasional foreign surfer, or dog walker, or cyclists who feel the rules of social distancing doesn’t apply to them. Like all foreigners here in Ecuador, my wife and…
This is really what it is here in Ecuador for me at this point in time. Our community is getting even stricter. Curfew has been lengthened, now beginning at 4pm until 5am. Too many foreigners in the community are still carrying surfboards to the beach, and wandering around as though COVID19 has nothing to do with them. As a result, tensions are spreading thin with regards to foreigners and the local people. Of course, a number of local people are…
I slept well, for the most part. We both seem to snuggle closer during the night, both somehow attuned to the other. With the first hint of the night beginning to shift into day, it was time to declare that it was morning, time to get up. It’s not like we have to rush off to work or anything. We just have had enough sleep. Of course, going to bed a bit earlier might be partially responsible for this as…
Well, I knew it was coming, but I really wasn’t ready for it. The Ecuadorian military has shut down all the beaches, parks, and recreational areas in the country. Everyone is to stay at home. And, they mean business. Break curfew, drive when you aren’t supposed to, be where you aren’t supposed to be – potential for three years in jail. Yesterday, a man broke curfew, plead guilty and was given 4 months in prison rather than the otherwise minimum…
Yes, I am feeling frazzled. Blame it on the pandemic. Here I am in what many would call paradise, with an endless beach to walk that is almost denuded of people – sun, surf, sand – and I still find myself at odds with myself. I am healthy and where I am will likely allow me to remain healthy. So what is with this feeling? It might have something to do with being out-of-country and not at home. All the…
It’s warm, and the sunshine is abundant this morning, the first day of road blockades, curfews, and enforced social distancing. We aren’t confined to our casa though we have restricted access to essential services such as grocery stores, pharmacies, and health centres. We do still have access to the beach where we had coffee this morning while watching a pod of dolphins not too distant from the shore. Surfers were already in the water as soon it will be high…
As of midnight tonight, all travel out of country is restricted, and all international arrivals are to be cancelled here in Ecuador. CoVid19 is the reason. My scheduled flight home on April 3, may or may not happen at that time. I might be required to board a ghost plane to be repatriated back to Canada, or I might have to wait for normal flights to resume further down the road in the future. Since I am 70 years old,…
Well, it seems like the first three months of this blog site have been moderately successful. I have had 2,845 views from 1033 visitors over the first three months. That works out to about 72 views per day and 26 visitors over those three months. The 39 posts received 100 likes and 83 comments [including my responses to some of the comments]. Of course, these numbers are way down from my older blog site which was pulling in numbers that…