We are doing ok. After over two weeks, we’re settled in and have created a comfortable routine, which provides us with a degree of familiarity and contentment. Sure, in an ideal world, we’d be able to socialize more often than on Wednesday nights, but when was and when is the world perfect? Not recently, from our recollection.
Many might assume that in our nomadic lifestyle, we wouldn’t stay in touch with what’s happening worldwide. Still, I assure you we pay close attention to world affairs, impacting our travels and the lives of those we love in the US and other countries, praying everyone is safe and out of harm’s way.
No doubt, it’s horrifying to hear about the war In Israel, the ongoing war in Ukraine, and wars and strife throughout the world wrought by terror mongers who are heartless and incapable of caring about humanity. What a sorrowful fate for so many.
And yet, it seems easy to sit back and focus on the nuances of our days and nights with issues that may be monumental to us at the time and are infinitesimal in the realm of worldwide affairs. Everything is relative, and a simple annoyance can send us into a tailspin, impacting our entire day.
I sometimes kick myself when caught up in such a simple annoyance when I stop to think about the horrors others are facing worldwide. It would be easy with our lifestyle over the past 11 years of world travel to isolate ourselves from the realities of what is transpiring in the world and stay entrenched in our occasional challenges, but we refuse to put our heads in the sand in a state of oblivion, exempt from the emotions
We all seek comfort in our lives, and it’s easy to wrap ourselves around the routines that provide us with that comfort. We are not exempt from seeking those comforts even amid what is happening in the world. Thus, with that in mind, we are striving to center ourselves here in Ecuador for the next few months.
How do we find that level of comfort? By engaging in familiar activities, we incorporate into our lives wherever we may be at any given time. Sure, our surroundings dictate how we spend a portion of each day to entertain and educate ourselves and, of course, take photos to share with all of you.
We’ve had to face that the above opportunities are not available right now, not in this location. There are no social venues other than Wednesday nights for dinner at Kokomo in the gated community. There is nowhere to drive to see scenery we haven’t already seen. The beach is lovely, but the weather is not, nor is it expected to be in the remaining time we’re here. It’s the rainy season now.
It’s too far to drive to the supermarket in Manta once a week and go out for breakfast or lunch, which we always enjoy. Instead, we were finding some meat at the tiny market, allowing us to have enough for dinners, one week at a time. Then, of course, we delight in Raphael suddenly appearing every Tuesday and Friday with his truckload of fresh farm vegetables. His prices are somewhat high, but we like to support local vendors and are willing to pay a little more, knowing doing so helps him and his family.
We spend a certain amount of time each day communicating with family and friends via Facebook, WhatsApp calls, and texts, all of which work well here in San Jose with a good internet signal when at the house. When we drive to Manta, which we’ve done a few times since we arrived on October 24, we lose our Google Fi signal for most of the drive since it is so remote.
We always say we like remote locations, where we’ve stayed in most countries, but in all cases except here, it’s been convenient to shop, sightsee, and dine out. Good photo ops have been in abundance. Thus, we apologize for the lack of photos in Ecuador, but we certainly had plenty while in the Galapagos only weeks ago. Today, we are including a few more photos from that adventure.
Be well.
Photo from ten years ago today, November 10, 2013:
