Good morning!
Ecuador is still as amazing as ever, and I seriously want to take advantage of all the food that is available here that I know I will not get a chance to eat once I return to Japan in the coming weeks. Beans, good beef, fresh avocados...but one thing I was not expecting to enjoy so much, so far away from Japan is the seafood.
Thinking of Japan, what happens to the apartment while I am away? Do my neighbors enjoy some piece and quiet? Do all the toys come to life and play around the room as in that movie Toy Story, knowing that I am away?
It is amusing to me to receive messages and updates from my friends in Japan mostly because I don't get a chance to check my emails and messages everyday. Either there is not a strong enough signal, or one at all. And, they are all a good three quarters of a day ahead in time, and that kind of logic can screw with your head the way a good science fiction story does. So, I find it amusing that I sometimes receive messages from the future, late.
As is the case with these two touring cyclists form Europe. Spring vacation means time in Ecuador with my family. Next month however I return to work to see the school children, my humble apartment above the flower shop, and the availability of sushi just about everywhere you look. Worth keeping the apartment available for my return, yes? I paid rent to keep my apartment open (I look at the price as a storage fee), which is fine. Still, the living room, kitchen, balcony remains unused. A little bit of a waste actually.
I agree. That is why when I received a message from these two fine outstanding cyclists on Warm Showers, I explained that if they didn't mind me not being around to show them the city, they could absolutely crash in my unused apartment. The key is in the mailbox.
The young couple were very gracious, could not believe their luck. First time to Japan and they were still becoming accustomed to the hospitality. From my point of view however, was this so strange? Here I am, also in a bed that is not mine, half way around the world. I don't think that our situations are that dissimilar.
Update: After returning to my apartment, a very kind note was found at my desk from the couple. They told of merry times and were so happy to have a stayed in a private apartment, and not in there tents, for a few days. They even said they decided to stay an extra night on account of the rain. And as a gift of good nature, I found some beer in the refrigerator which in my case, is international, interdenominational, and intergenerational currency for all acts of good will and charity.
In this case, I wonder: why the name change for this movie? I like to think that people around here just wouldn't associate the idea with a "hangover" with a wild night out. "Hangover? Whats so special about that?"
When I talk about this photo to them, I save the best for last and get the same expression from them when I tell them how much a kilo of strawberries cost in Japan. Their reaction is a confluence of gasp, shock, surprise, excitement, desire, and praise. It is really hard to replicate and unmistakably Japanese. It's not so much that the soup is cheap (we could not have paid more than two dollars) but that the dish was simply the special of the day, on a rotating basis, and hardly had any special reason to celebrate aside from dinner with the family, which, is plenty.
I am afraid that these are all the pictures for today. Soup and and helping new friends adds up to a pretty good day if you ask me. Now we move on to the house at the end of the road and do some relaxing. Only a few more days until my friend from California arrives and an expedition into one of the most amazing places I have wanted to visit with high expectations: the Galapagos.
Love,
-A
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