Lights out in Guayaquil

So I'm driving home from work 2 days ago and I notice that not a single traffic light is working. Imagine what sort of chaos that creates in a country where people already ignore lane markings, stop signs and yields. It was a free for all and it took me over an hour to get home. When I pull into my neighborhood, I see a sign that says "Lights will turn out tonight between 5-7pm". "Hmmm", I think to myself, "That's awfully strange, but maybe they are running a test of some sort or doing some required maintenance or something."

Flash forward to the next day...still no traffic lights, and this time when I get home from work the sign says: "Today lights will be out between 10-12 AND 5-7". I finally ask what the heck is going on and apparently because we've had no rain, the electric plant has dried up (it relies solely on some sort of water supply) and the city of Guayaquil has no back up plan. In other words, they will be cutting the electricity for FOUR hours a day until it rains. It could rain tomorrow or next week or NEXT MONTH!!!

So, if you all don't mind, please do a little rain dance for us. You don't realize how much you need electricity until you lose it. Oh Guayaquil...

A long weekend in the mountains

So, for those of you who I haven't talked to in the past couple of weeks, Leo and I stumbled upon this awesome little farm in the mountains outside of Cuenca. Long story short, we are crossing another item off of our bucket by purchasing a mountain house/farm. Our little diamond in the ruff comes complete with 15 acres just outside of Cajas National Park and a four-bedroom stone farm house. We are 45 minutes from Cuenca, which is a charming colonial city that lands on the must-visit list of many tourists.

So now we have an escape to nature on the weekends and let me tell you it's just what the doctor ordered. Suburban Guayaquil is comprised of mostly gated communities, so it's easy to feel closed in when you're here. This little house in the mountains lets us breathe in fresh air and lets the dogs run free. To get to our house, you drive up the mountains right through the clouds. Once you're above the clouds, it's just another world. See the pictures and you'll know what I mean!