Filling in Gaps from Last Week

I know you have all been teetering on the edge of your seats for me to give details on those teaser items I dropped, in last week's posts, so...

Backtracking to my first visit to the U.S. Embassy last Wednesday, I must say that the Embassy itself was quite impressive.  Very new, ultra modern, and every convenience one could imagine in terms of design and amenities. The structure itself is glass and stone, but beautiful in a contemporary yet classic way. Everyone I met at the Embassy was amazingly nice, too. Jon, one of the senior guys there, it turns out was born in Tomball, Texas (just outside of Houston for you non-Houston readers). He told me that quite a few of the State Department staff stationed in Ecuador are, in fact, from Texas. Jon is super nice and is married to a Peruvian, so he plans to be in Ecuador or the Andean Region for a while.

Getting into the Embassy was a chore and, while I cannot go into great detail for security reasons, suffice it to say that to get in to see the inner workings of the Embassy and meet with high-level officials there, one has to go through rigorous background checks and then several layers of detectors and frisking. In fact, one of the nicest things Jon agreed to do for me during my stay in Quito is to get me a clearance card and ID so I don’t have to go through all of the rigmarole each time I go to visit there. Suhweet!

The best thing I learned at the Embassy is that every Saturday the bomb detection and guard dogs are given ‘play time.’ They get to roam and run about the grounds of the Embassy, which are expansive and, obviously, gated without restraints for pure fun and play with each other. Since Jon and I talked had talked about Jackson, Jon offered to get me permission to bring Jackson by to play with the other dogs on a regular basis. Of course, I jumped at the opportunity. Maybe some of the bomb sniffing and guard skills will rub of on Jackson!

On Friday, I went to the Casa de la Musica, which is a new concert hall, here in Quito. The show was the Ecuador Symphony orchestra, about 50 musicians, playing pieces by Tchaikovsky (Concert for Violin and Orchestra, Op. 35) and Vieuxtemp (Concert for Violin and Orchestra No.5). The concert hall is really beautiful (pictured above) and the music was quite nice. I have to say, though, that the highly touted featured violinist –South Korean –was good, but she (Seo Yeon Lee) did not show the character, enthusiasm, or flourish in her performance that the featured violinist from Ecuador (Franklin Ruque) did. The Señor Ruque is from Loja, Ecuador, which is the local equivalent of Santa Fe. Picture very artsy and idyllic –like Santa Fe –and I’m told that’s what Loja is like. (Above is an artist's rendering of the city center, so judge for yourself.) Loja is also in a ‘blue zone,’ which is one of those areas of the world that scientists are studying because there is a history of longevity in these regions.  Anyway, the concert was really great and cheap –only $5 for orchestra seats! Afterwards my new friend from the Embassy, Carlos, and I went out for dinner and wine. Carlos is from Ecuador, but works at the Embassy and he is quite the fan of classical music. I’m guessing he’s about 70 and, when I mentioned I was going to go to the concert, he practically jumped out of the chair in the conference room with enthusiasm. It seems Carlos’ wife is not a fan of classical music, so he has no one to go to the concerts with. I’m guessing that from now on I have a friend to go to the performances at Casa de la Musica with.

Well, it has been a long day and I’m tired, so off to do a bit more reading and then bed time. See you on here again soon.