As I sit here writing this blog, the entire
town of Pulingui is black. About two hours ago the electricity went out and we
have been living by candle/my computer light ever since. I have learned though,
that this is not a rare occurrence at all. According to my host mother, the
power gets shut off about once a week and the people have no idea why, or how
long each stint will last. The most common theory is that this is the
government’s way of flexing its muscles and showing how much control they have
over these areas… (I don’t find this very amusing since I am so afraid of the
dark, so if the Ecuadorian government is reading this: I know you have power
now please turn the lights back on). I am going to take this as a test of
patience, because my being bothered by it seems so dramatic compared to how
calm and patient the people of Pulingui are during the darkness.
So not only are there no lights right now,
but there are no restaurants ever! In the whole 12 neighborhoods of Pulingui
which stretch all the way up the volcano, there is not one single restaurant.
The concept actually seems so silly to them—paying for someone to cook you
food—because not only do most of the people love to cook, but they love to
share. My host mother practically runs a restaurant by the number of people she
has over for every meal, but never in her wildest dreams would she not share
her food for free. Maybe it’s the fact that most people in this community are
family, or maybe it’s just the warmth and generosity of the people, either way,
do not expect to be dining out on your next trip to Pulingui.
While I was quite befuddled that you
couldn’t buy food anywhere, I have been even more perplexed over the legal
system here. In my 7 days here so far I have only seen one police car drive by.
Again, according to my host mother (my source for all things Pulingui), there
are no police stations, fire stations, court houses, or anything like that
within 30 minutes of Pulingui. You could say that in theory there are laws in
the town, but with no one to enforce them it becomes more of a community legal
system. Because the community is so tight knit, it is merely expected that you
don’t hurt or steal from any of your neighbors.
Last year, a few of my host mother’s guinea
pigs were stolen, and though they never found the culprit, every person in
Pulingui was convinced it must have been someone from another town, because no
one in Pulingui would ever commit such a crime. In a town a few miles away,
there are actually signs posted saying “Robbers will be burned”… Now I don’t
know if that is what really happens, but I can expect that they don’t have many
robberies there…
It really is so bizarre when you think of all
this…these people have no lights at times and their lives aren´t bothered in
the slightest… they have no restaurants, but no one is ever looking for
food…and they have no police, but still it is the safest place I have ever
been... Something is very backwards about our lives… Still pondering…
Lots of love from Ecuador,
Jen
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