Sunday, Jul 3, 2016

Heidi and I met Scott and Colleen for lunch near El Centro. Easton decided to hang out at the apartment and not come with us. I’m sure it gets tiring for him to always be around people at least twice his age. He has however met a couple of people his own age and has plans to go out somewhere for drinks and listen to music. I asked him if his mother and I could tag along. The look on his face told me all I needed to know. And in case it isn’t completely clear, I was kidding with him.

After lunch we walked over to Scott and Colleen’s place. All I can say is they totally scored on it! It’s new, plenty of light, lots of room, a huge terrace, great views, and a 5 minute walk into El Centro. It’s in an excellent location. I’m very happy for them.

We have been on the search for some bedside table lamps and it hasn’t been a productive endeavor. They are either ugly, only have one without its match, or the price is through the roof. Heidi and I shared this with Scott and Colleen, who then said they had an extra set they weren’t using.

They offered to loan them to us! It was a blessing. On top of that, they had an extra bedside table they loaned us for Easton’s room. Double blessing! We are very grateful for their generosity.

I have to go to ETAPA, our internet provider, and figure out my bill. It was emailed to me over the weekend and it was twice what I was expecting. I think some of the charges were just one time set up costs, but I have no idea. I tried calling their customer service number but after selecting prompts for internet, residential, and bill, I ended up lost in the prompts that followed.

Living in Ecuador is a daily challenge for me in one way or another regarding the language. Nothing is ever as simple as picking up the phone to ask a question and get an immediate answer. I have to find someone who speaks Spanish when I have anything that will require a discussion.

Customer service is a concept that is still evolving here. Last week we spent almost an hour waiting in line to talk about getting a different internet service option with ETAPA. When we finally got to speak with someone we were told we would have to come back next week, wait in line again, to make an appointment to talk with someone about this service.

Absolutely unbelievable really. It was ok though because that was what I needed to push me to go with another company who has fiber optics. I was hesitating because it was going to cost me $125 to have them run the line to my building. I’ve decided it has to be worth it to have fiber optics and reliable internet. With ETAPA I pay for 8 megas and I usually only get 3-6 megas. Of course changing all this is going to be a communication challenge. Wish me luck!20160702_132519

Here is a little guy we pass on our walks. I believe he thinks he is a dog.

Chau.