In other news.

Oh, and in other news : Ecuador experienced a country-wide power blackout yesterday.

Well, that's what I've heard. There have been multiple accounts - coming from our school director, the cab driver, my family, everyone! Most say that the whole country's power went out. And many people said that it was a problem with the main power grid for the country. But then our taxi driver last night told us that it was part of the indigenous protests, which seemed completely plausible. There have been major indigenous protests recently, usually around the Cuenca area. The indigenous groups there have placed large boulders all around the roads to Cuenca so that cars aren't able to pass. It seems that it's completely peaceable, but that they're doing more and more to get the government's attention. I could see how they might cut out the power for a few days to prove a point. How they would have the power to do that, I'm not sure. But this morning, my family said that only 70% of the country didn't have power and that it was because of a lightning strike. So, I guess that's the truth?

The power went out around 5 PM, during my first intermediate class. And I was able to continue with the lesson as there was still sunlight. But by the time the 6 - 8 PM class time started to come around, I thought we would just have to cancel that class as there was no way the students would be able to see what I was teaching. However, my directora told me to continue with classes. What? How? My class gathered in my classroom, in a circle, in the dark. Because I wasn't even going to try to teach, we just told ghost stories, played "ummmmmbrella" (which was particularly mean to people who cannot speak English well), and "light as a feather, stiff as a board" all in the light of one lone candle. That was my first time playing that! And it's so crazy! Oh and during the ghosts stories, one of my students raises his hand and says, "a plane crashed in New York." WHHHAAAAAAT? "In the river." Still, what? What happened there?

It was a Thursday, which means it's "gringo night". So, Deb and I were still determined to meet up with the gringos. We were still able to get pizza (all the tiendas were open, with candlelight), go to our friend's house, and watch the new batman on his laptop.

So, for a blacked out night, with no water, it was still a good night. Horror stories, "light as a feather, stiff as a board", and Batman. Not bad.