Fotografias!

These are 2 pictures of Bastion that I took on my walk with Bethany´s mom, Lilian, yesterday. Number one rule in Bastion - never step in water... because it may not exactly be "water" if you know what I mean. In fact... it´s probably not. That is still Bation streatching out to the edge of the picture just above us, and that only shows about 3 of the 10 blocks I think... so that should show you... it´s a big place. Bastion started as a squatters community about 20 years ago and has continued to grow and grow since then. Most people who live here moved in from the Jungle hoping to find a better life. Life is rough in Bastion, very rough, but at least they have the possibility of access to medicine and education, even though many still go without it. The education system here is really bad and really corrupt, the worst part is that it´s not so much that the government doesn´t have money to make things better, but it´s so corrupt most of that money never gets past the politicians wallets.
This is caracoal (Bethany, I don´t know how that´s spelled, help?) where we live. The contrast is rather obvious eh? This is just right across the street from Bastion, but there is a gate around it and gaurds with guns at the entrance to the gate (guards with guns are EVERYWHERE in Guyaquil... that was hard to get used to... I mean... big guns, and often bullet proof vests too). This is the main street so it doesn´t show our apartment but they´re all the same, each of those buildings would have 2 apartments in them - 2 bedrooms a small kitchen and a bathroom. It´s not much but it´s definetly something to be thankful for! This community is so safe. Nikki and I can go jogging alone and night and no one would even harass us, I´d hardly even do that in Portland. What a difference a street and some armed gaurds can make!

This is the waterfront in downtown Bastion where we went yesterday on the 4th of July. It´s so incredibly nice. Here too it´s hard to reconcile that a place so nice as this and so difficult as Bastion exist in the same city. We just don´t see contrasts like that in the states. It´s hard to describe. There´s a lot more I could say about it but I´ll leave it there for now.

Peace.