Our last full day in Quito was exactly that – full…a day of varied encounters and wide-ranging emotion for me. We started our day with sharing coffee and conversation with two incredible young professionals who have devoted their time and energy to a foundation whose mission is to educate people about the most common cancers in Ecuador – breast and gynecologic cancers, prostate cancer, and melanoma. Andrea, a 33 year old survivor of a non-cancerous but nonetheless serious breast condition that required numerous surgeries, founded ULACCAM (Union Latinamericana Contra el Cancer de la Mujer) and Sebastian is now the program director of the organization. Andrea spends much of her time traveling to the most remote pueblos in Ecuador to educate people about healthy nutrition and other preventative activities like self-examination, how to identify medical issues that need immediate attention, and trying to shift the common mindset of “ignorance is bliss” when it comes to serious illness.

Andrea explained that the attitude described is tied to the harsh fact that diagnosis and treatment for most diseases are not even available…no money from the government is forthcoming for mammography machines and other key diagnostic tools, nor are the medications to treat serious illness. So why even worry about it. This is actually true in many of the major city hospitals as well. The talent and basic education of medical personnel is available, but they cannot fully execute complete and correct diagnosis and treatment without the tools to do it. This made me incredibly sad, and angry. Andrea’s current plan is to seek funding to outfit a mobile clinic to bring some modern diagnostics and treatment to the small villages along with the education she does. Both she and Sebastian agreed that Andrew and I might be able to make connection through our two foundations (Patient Empowerment Network in the US and Patient Empowerment Foundation in Geneva) to look into possibilities for writing grants to ask Pharma companies to co-pilot an education program along the lines of what Patient Power already does. Some follow up we will do when back home.

Sebastian offered to take us on a bit of a tour of some other sites in Quito, and we couldn’t refuse. He and Andrea then did a running commentary as we drove through some of the more affluent sections of Quito and ended up at a magnificent park atop one of the hills overlooking the city. We stopped to see horses grazing, caught up with a pack of lovely llamas also getting their fill of grass, and took in a wonderful panorama of section of the city we had only heard about – Cumbaya. I had to laugh at the name as it is reminiscent of the old camp song, Kumbaya…which means “come by here” in Creole. This Cumbaya is the hub of ex-pat life in Quito and boasts about a half-dozen shopping malls to cater
to the more monied transplants. Makes sense but definitely makes the economic split more obvious.

Our next stop was back at the Parc de Carolinas to visit the botanical gardens and a newly opened bonsai exhibit and Japanese garden. While a Festival day was in full swing – complete with zillions of kids spaying each other with some shaving crepe-like stuff and lots of local street food stands making bank – our wander through these lovely gardens was a great retreat. There were indigenous Amazon plants that included radiant flowers, some trees with leaves the size of basketball backboards, and some creepy carnivorous varieties that trap unsuspecting flies with fragrance and stickiness. The bonsai exhibit was most unusual – the art of tree and “set pieces” was diverse and fascinating – and admittedly soothing to look at. While we strolled through the Japanese garden there was a young woman being photographed decked in a brilliant traditional kimono…quite a juxtaposition to the ragtag rampaging kiddos on vacation covered now in all matter of goo!

I think the combination of altitude, loads of walking, and busy filled days caught up with me mid afternoon and after a shopping mall meal of actually pretty decent sushi we headed back to our apartment to do laundry and pack up for our boat adventure the next day. Always up for a cross-cultural challenge, we had to figure out how to use a combination washer/dryer – not two different machines – one in the same. It sounds pretty lame but first encounters with what might be totally normal for folks who use them all the time can become an exercise in futility for others. We got some help from our host but this is a great illustration how there is always more than one way to skin a cat (and save space at the same time).

Since it was the eve of Valentines Day, Andrew decided to revisit our Spain days and found a Basque-style restaurant not far away. It turned out that the owner and chef, Cristian Aroba, is a young and ambitious Ecuadorian who is on a mission to upgrade the gastronomic sophistication in his country – starting in Quito. He started with this very cozy spot where he played Spanish guitar music as background, and a menu that brought back some of our favorite edibles – croquettes, tortilla patata, and entrees focused on lamb, pork and local seafood). We were very lucky that things were quiet in the restaurant as this night all the locals were returning to Quito from beach days and heading home to get ready to (sigh) go back to work. Cristian spent a bit of time talking to us about his cuisine philosophy and his ambition to bring great food even to the more rustic and at this point resistant Galapagos. We wished him well and owe him a great review in Trip Advisor!

Hasta luego – off to the Galapagos to bond with nature.