Here I am

On Sunday morning, these were my views:

On Monday morning, these were my views:

(Sadly, I do not have the best views of the mountains--those are from the back of the apartment building.)

I am in Quito.  It was a long, long day of traveling, and a difficult weekend of saying goodbye to the kids.  However, there were no major glitches with the flights, all of my baggage arrived with me, and the apartment I am renting is well located, secure, and impeccably clean.

As always, I am in something of a state of shock upon arrival in Quito.  The altitude doesn’t help of course.  This year, arriving at 9,000 feet has given me a headache that refuses, so far, to leave.  I’m trying to take it relatively easy and drink lots of (pure or boiled) water.  Advil is also a very, very good thing.  I will eventually acclimate. 

The street I am living on is one of the major Avenues in town, and although it was quiet overnight, by 7-7:30 a.m. the street woke up and the noise began.  That doesn’t especially bother me, though.  Fortunately, I am an early riser, so even if I “sleep in” here, I’m still not going to be bothered by it.  Moreover…well, it’s one of the sounds of life out there.  Granted, we all need to be concerned with pollution, and one does need to be careful to retreat daily from the noise and bustle so as to avoid becoming stressed by it.  Still, I like urban noise, and I like walking in cities.  It’s just different from the sound of birds in the early morning at my house, or the sound of waves crashing at the ocean. 

I guess I just like knowing I’m in the midst of life.  Sound reminds me of that, as long as I stop to listen, and as long as I accept that being in the midst of life has many different sounds and meanings. 

So, I’m doing okay, despite the altitude and solitude.