At first, when I came
to Ecuador, I lived in a town called Ibarra.
It is also called the
White Town, La Ciudad Blanca, or The White Town Where You Always Return, La
Ciudad Blanca Donde Siempre Se Vuelve.
According to the local
knowledge it is so beautiful that your heart stays there and you always come
back because you can’t stay away.
For me it is very
true.
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Ibarra (full name San Miguel de Ibarra)
is a city in northern Ecuador and the capital of the Imbabura Province. It lies
at the foot of the Imbabura Volcano and on the left bank of the Tahuando river.
It is about 70 kilometres (43 mi) northeast of Ecuador's capital Quito.
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Ibarra has a unique
blend of students,mestizos, highland
Indians and Afro-Ecuadorians
from the nearby Valle
del Chota,a combination that
gives the city an exciting
multicultural edge.
When you're through relaxing
in its leafy plazas,take a stroll around
the train station and
market area which is
always abuzz with interesting
activity.
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Ibarra is my home in
Ecuador.
I haven’t lived there
for years, and I only lived four years in that town.
But it is where I was
born to Ecuador.
The northern Ecuador,
close to Colombian border, has its own culture and cuisine.
There is very much
Kichwa influence but Northern Kichwas are very different from Southern Kichwas
who live close to Peruvian border and can even understand their Quechua.
In the North spirit of
Karanki, or Caranqui en Spanish, lives on.
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Ibarra was founded in
1606 by the Spanish. Many churches and
public buildings were built, but an earthquake in
1868 destroyed many of them.
The Inca ruler Atahualpa
was born in the Incasettlement of Caranquí
about 2 km from the city.
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There is such a strong
influence in the culture, we still remember Pacha, who married the Inca and
united Northern Ecuadorian indigenous tribes with Incas.
And who later on
became the mother of Atahualpa.
We could not be overcome
by the Incas.
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Imbabura is an inactive stratovolcano in northern Ecuador.
Although it has not erupted for at least 14,000 years, it is not thought
to be extinct. Imbabura is intermittently capped with snow and has no permanent
glaciers.
Covered in volcanic ash, the slopes of Imbabura
are especially fertile. In addition to cloud forests, which are found across
the northern Andes to an altitude of 3000 m, the land around Imbabura is
extensively farmed. Maize, sugarcane, and beans are all staple crops of the
region. Cattle are also an important commodity, and much of the land on and
around Imbabura, especially the high-altitude meadows above the tree line, is
used for grazing. |
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Yawarkucha or Yawar Kucha (Kichwa yawar
blood, kucha lake, "blood lake", hispanicized spellings Yaguarcocha,
Yahuarcocha) is a lake in Ecuador located in the Imbabura Province, Ibarra
Canton. The lake is formed from glacial meltwater. It is the locale for many
folklores. The name is an allusion to a violent battle that was fought here
centuries ago.
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Close to Ibarra there
is a lake called Yawar kucha, lake of blood or Yaguarcocha in Spanish, because it was tinted in blood when
Incan and Karanki warriors fought for the land.
Ibarra, and Imbabura,
the province, are place of agriculture, millennial cultures and artisans.
Otavalo, known around
the world to tourists, is in Imbabura with its huge artisan market that sells
products from the villages all around Imbabura.
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Zuleta
is a small village
in the beautiful highlands of Imbabura Province in Ecuador.
This agricultural area is famed for its traditional
embroidery, dairy products, alpaca farming and highland crops such as
wheat, maize, potatoes, lentils and quinoa. The village is
home to Hacienda Zuleta, a large farm once owned by an
ex-president of the country. Many people in Zuleta wear their
traditional costumes on a daily basis and the village is a tranquil
place. Attractions include the community library and various
embroidery workshops.
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There is also
Kutakachi, or Cotacachi in Spanish, famous among retired ex-pats because of its
climate, and artisan leather products.
And right next to
Ibarra, there is San Antonio de Ibarra, village full of sculptors who work
beautiful statues with wood and stone in the age old Quito school style.
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| Members of Zuleta's evangelical church in Sunday service. |
In the mountains
around, in the slopes of Taita Imbabura, Volcan Father Imbabura, live the descendants
of Karankis, Zuleteños, Angochagueños.
Around them rise and
descend of the mountains and hidden valleys, waterfalls and stony peaks.
Amongst the eucalyptus
and pine trees rise the chakiñans, hidden footpath, on slopes so steep that
sometimes the sheep are torn from the ground by the wind and dropped in the
valley below.
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| Traffic in Ibarra. |
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| Typical Northern Ecuadorian construction and vegetation. |
Above them the
equatorial sun, the clear blue sky, and el condor rey, Andean giant condor.
Here the food of
preference is potatoes, papa, and kuy, the guinea-pig, both indigenous to Andes.
One of the dishes I
especially fell in love during the years I lived in Ibarra is locro de papa, a
potato soup with fresh cheese.
To do a locro de papa
you need:
- Potatoes (mealy or
floury potatoes that you would use to make mashed potatoes)
- One small onion
- Fresh cheese
- Milk
- Scallions
- Salt
- Pepper
- Avocado
Add water until it
barely covers the potatoes.
Boil the potatoes in
the water, with salt, pepper and the small onion, until they start to undo and
there is no more water.
I put the onion whole
because my son doesn’t like to eat onion.
This way I get the
taste but there are no onion pieces.
Add the milk when
there is no more water.
Cut the cheese in
little cubes.
Cut the scallions and
add the cheese and scallions in the soup.
Boil until the cheese
starts to melt.
Enjoy.
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Locro de papa with slice of avocado and fresh lemonade.
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Otavalo
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