o happy day!

The weather here in Quito has gotten to be almost summer-ish- I mean, as summer-ish as it can get in a city where all four seasons are commonly reflected in the day's weather. In fact, less than a week ago it hailed so much that the streets were white, covered in ice chunks. 

hail as seen from my window, looking out at my dear vecino's shop

look at all that hail on my ledge!

But it hasn't rained in a few days, and the morning/early-afternoon weather is sunny and warm. 

Because of the nice weather and the fact that I don't have class today, Alvi and I decided to celebrate by paying a visit to the new Mister Bagel shop that opened three blocks from my apartment (!). Although the coffee wasn't what I was hoping for, Alvi's orange-carrot juice and both of our bagels were delicious.  I ordered mine with veggie cream cheese, which was large chunks of actual vegetables, like broccoli, carrots, tomatoes, celery, etc.  Yum! 

I even decided to make iced tea- it was that nice out!  And we made an ensalada rusa- a dish I first tried when Alvi's mom made it.  It translates to Russian salad, and because both of Alvaro's parents lived in Russia for several years, I assumed that it was a treasured Russian recipe from their time living there, although it seemed weird bceause it's essentially a potato salad with some veggies and beets.  I later learned that it's a common recipe throughout Latin America, and that people add all sorts of other yummy things.  I found this great/yummy blog that has recipes for all sorts of Ecuadorian dishes, and she has some interesting information and great pictures- plus, she adds apples, which sounds like a delicious addition. 

In non-culinary news, I'm just a bit over a week away from "finishing" my classes!  "Finishing" because I'll still have final essays and exams to work on, but I won't have to head into the U.  It's exciting to be so close to finishing the first part of this maestría but it's also bittersweet- lots of my classmates are returning to their home countries to work on their theses, and they'll probably just be back to defend the theses later. It'll be sad to say goodbye to them! 

Finally, last weekend I went to my Rotarians' quinta- weekend home- in Puembo, a valley just outside of Quito.  It was a really lovely home, and they have a great surrounding yard/outside expansion.  In fact, Mónica, Gonzalo's wife, arranges events at their home (weddings, party bashes, etc.).  They have an enormous patio with room for grilling, an outdoor wood oven for breads and pizzas- all sorts of nice touches.  Plus a sauna!  (for private use, not party use.)

Mónica, me, and Gonzalo at the country club in Puembo