Aaah, Winter

I don´t even know where to start, really. I am (still) back in Baños, where I have been since last Sunday. This is a record-breaking week, in a number of ways. For one, it´s the longest I´ve been in one place in quite a while, as I normally am in Salasaka Wednesday through Sunday, and in Baños the other days. Secondly, the amount of rain we have gotten here has made leaving virtually impossible. People are saying that it hasn´t rained this much in forty years. The flooding is worse to the south, but even still, there are currently 3 obstacles to getting out of town. In order of appearence, they are:

1.) Lahars: These are rivers of mud --sometimes small, sometimes not-- that originate from the volcano and flow down over the road out of town, which also sits (at that point) conveniently right on the edge of a cliff that drops down about oh, 1,500 or so feet to the Pastaza River Gorge. This is also the same area that was most effected by the last eruption in August, and so it is mostly already loose volcanic material from the flow. (There are rooftops of houses that you can see peeking out of the mud-rock-lava stuff along the way.) “Normally”, one can hop a truck up to where the lahars are, and then jump across them, catching a bus or truck on the other side of the roadblock, or walking a ways until one comes by. (This sounds insane, but really, it´s not so big of a deal.) Lately however, with all of the rain, the lahars have not been so small. And, of course, with that much water flowing down the mountain, there are plenty of landslides and large mudflows to go along with the lahars. Fun for the whole family. The national police have the area completely blocked off now. The only people who are getting through are those who are willing to yell at the police and make a run for it, or who have their own cars and are willing to drive throught the barracades while the police scream and threaten arrest. I do not really fit into either of those groups, as it turns out.

2.) A big chunk of the road (same road, different locale) collapsed. That is to say, the road is now completely gone, for about a 200 ft stretch. Judging from the cracks spanning on either side of the collapse, it also looks as if more of the road will go with the next rainfall, which should begin any second now. The real problem with fixing this is that (again) the now-former road is sheer rock cliff up on one side, and sheer mud cliff down on the other. So, they are actually working right now on removing part of the mountain, so as to make some space for a new road. This is no small task. They say they will be done on Wednesday. Somehow, I sorta doubt it. But, we´ll see.

3.) My favorite obstacle of the three is the overflowing river that suddenly changed its course, and is now in the process of washing out the rest of yet a different part of the same poor road. At the point where it comes down the mountainside and now covers the road, there is also a shrine to the Virgin. Smartly, the shrine was built on a huge rock, and it is the only thing to not have been stripped from that side of the mountain. So, among all of the mud, and uprooted trees, and the (now) fast-flowing water, there is this beautiful little shrine, adorned with flowers and pictures, and painted in bright colors, completely intact. Somehow, it´s not even dirty. Quite an image. No pictures of that, though, as I was a bit concerned at the time that the river would carry the truck I was in over the side of the mountain. Or that the road would collapse.

Sounds kind of dramatic, huh? Well, I can only say that this is what people are having to do here (every day, lately) just to get to work, or to get home, or to take their university entrance exams, or whathaveyou. I did it twice, (once going from, once coming to Baños) as I had planned to go to the doctor in the provincial capital. However, once I got there, I felt fine; no fever, no nothing, and so went shopping for necessities and came back to Baños to get my things to go up to Salasaka. By the time I went to catch a truck out of town again, it was raining and the police weren´t even letting pedestrians through the barracade. I had to turn around and come back home. That´s when you know it´s bad; usually, they will at least let you try to cross the 10 or so “problem” kilometers on foot, at your own risk.

Anyhow, so here I am, in town still. Every morning when I wake up, I look out at the mountains, and there are more and more mudslides up there. One hit the little hospital here on Saturday. And, there are still 2 more months left to the rainy season.

Local businesses, as you might imagine, are also being hit hard by this weather, since tourists can´t get into town to spend their money. The common refrain around town is “Fuck, if it´s not the volcano, it´s the winter. We are screwed.” Needless to say, there is also a general shortage of things at the moment (gas, fruit, veggies), as the trucks that normally come from Quito and the coast can´t get through to make their deliveries. Also also, the rain this morning damaged the pipes that serve the whole town with water. So, no water, except for at the hotsprings, which are fed by Tungurahua. (This will get resolved quickly, though. Probably even today.*) Luckily, after the last time this happened, I filled up several gallon jugs with water, so I am in good shape this time around. I even had water to make coffee with this morning.

I should say that all of this sounds worse when I write it down than it actually is. Aside from not being able to leave (ok, and not having water today) I personally wouldn´t necessarily even notice that anything was wrong, although town is definitely quieter than usual.

Anyhow, it´s not like I don´t have work to do here, so I have been transcribing and doing other computer stuff that requires the internet (which, knock wood, is still working). Also, my landlord just went down to the jungle (that road was still open, although barely, as of 2 days ago), and she brought me back some endemic orchids. Big ones. In bloom. $.50 a plant. Biodiversity be damned! I want some orchids on my balcony. (I plan to re-plant them on a friend´s property when I leave, don´t worry…)

So, tomorrow is Wednesday, the day that I normally would go back to Salasaka, and that is still my plan. I have tons of stuff to do, and have already been gone for too long. I am antsy. Supposedly, the road is going to be passable tomorrow. Hopefully, it will not rain again. In the event that it does, an indigenous guide friend tells me that there is a cable car across the gorge, that leads to a road out to the provincial capital. Vamos a ver.


*UPDATE: The water issue is fixed!