Almost time for the fat man!

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, a HUGE day in Ecuador. There is the largest parade of the year, filled with children on floats, horses and even walking. All in costume in honor of the religious side of Christmas. We enjoy the photos of others, the huge crowds (and hordes of pickpockets) keep us away, as well as the fatigue of fighting our way to a good viewing spot and then trying to fight our way out when we are ready to head home. The parade often lasts from 10 am to at least 4 pm, and they start lining up by 7 am.

But we did get into El Centro the other evening and took a nice walk after another goodbye dinner with close friends (forgot to take photos of the dinner, sorry!). Not the best, my old iPhone 3G doesn't do night shots well, but something to show a little of what things look like at night. We listened to the police band play and watched some of the locals dancing. We walked past the dinosaur exhibit, right next to the "new" cathedral. Then on to the Tomebamba river, covered in strings of blue lights. A nice end to a good day.

If you don't hear from us for a week, our Internet at the hotel we are moving to on Sunday will not have great wifi. Don't worry - LOL!