Animalitos!

I am no longer homeless! I have found a lovely family to live with. I have four host sisters, the youngest of which is 9 (turning 10 on sunday) and the oldest is 21. Dad works at a credit institution and mom runs the family business which includes running the reception hall which is the bottom floor of our house, and charging clients to use our INDOOR POOL on the weekends. The pool and the reception hall make up the bottom floor of the house. The second floor has a small kitchen, all 6 bedrooms and living room with a TV and a couch. Dad enjoys cock fighting in his spare time so we have some roosters that live in our house and love to crow when I wake up at 5:30 every morning. we also have songbirds in a little cage outside. Our dog, Fiona, recently gave birth to 6 adorable puppies, and I have not seen but I am told that we have rabbits and tilapia. I know for a fact we have cui (guinnea pigs) because I ate one for dinner last night. Cui is a delicacy here and they usually only make it for special occasions. Last night was special because it was my first time trying it. It was ok. It kinda tasted like chicken, but a bit chewier. It was difficult to eat (psychologically) because they basically fry the animal whole. When it is served on your plate, it still looks like a guinnea pig! You know, the one you had as a pet when you were little! My host sisters were making fun of me because I was really bad at getting the meat off the bone. It was an interesting experience, but cui is certainly not my new favorite dish.

I have seen lots of other animals around Ambato, which is odd to me because it is definitely a city! Yesterday, I saw a man herding 6 large white ducks and their baby ducklings down the street past a cell phone store and a bank. Today I saw the milkman. He walks a long the city streets with his 4 goats squirting milk into anyone´s glasses who wants to buy it! You can always tell when the milkman has come by because there are goat droppings everywhere. I finally managed to go for a run around my new neighborhood the other day and I ran past 3 cows. (It was a pathetic 15 minute run, I´m still not used to the alititude and my neighborhood is very hilly) I also saw hummingbirds on my run! They´re small and green with a very long tail. So pretty.

On monday, my class has their first quiz. I hope their ready! Have a nice weekend everyone!