Grammar Police Correcting Graffiti in a country of paradoxes: Quito, Ecuador
I almost pissed myself when I came across this story. A couple of blokes are cruising around this sprawling incoherent city and fixing spelling and grammar mistakes in graffiti.
According to Simon and Garfunkel, 'the words of the prophets are written on the subway walls' - Sound of Silence.
I live in Quito, Ecuador, nestled in the Andes, 10,000 feet above sea level .
Whilst I cannot say too much about the modern architecture, there are some lovely old buildings between the eyesores.
Ecuador is a very fragmented country - unity really only comes through Football, the language of South America. Poverty and discontent are rife, though not as rife as theft, lies and corruption. The outgoing President, Rafael Correa is a billionaire on a salary of $80,000pa. The media is government controlled. Inertia results.
This is a country of extraordinary beauty. It is also one of the richest countries in the world in terms of mineral wealth, yet they have no mining know-how. It is the biggest producer of roses in the world (I can buy a dozen large roses for US$1). It is home to 10% of all the land animals in the world.
The Amazon basin is on the eastern side, the Galapagos to the west. The magnificent Andes separates jungle from lowlands which are so fertile that fence posts will grow, forming what they call 'magic fences'.
The very finest dark chocolate and wonderful coffee are produced here. They buy Nestle and Nescafe!
Education standards are poor. One teacher whom I knew briefly, as will become apparent, set about his work with great dedication and attention to detail. He was given the curriculum to follow and was amazed at the low levels of competence. After the end of term exams he failed every single student as they did not meet the criteria he was asked to follow.
He got fired.
This leads conveniently along to the point of this post: Graffiti Police. Normally one would expect this to entail law enforcement officers catching hooded youths adorning public buildings with their stylised lettering and anti-authoritarian slogans.
No, this is a couple of young people who trawl the city of Quito and have taken it upon themselves to correct the spelling and grammar of graffiti artists. The movement has become an International crusade to make graffiti an art form which respects literary constructs. "Accion Ortografico", run by Agent X and Agent Full-stop.
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Namaste!
This is a scene straight out of Monty Python. Seriously.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=IIAdHEwiAy8
I forgot about that - very well spotted!
Thank you!
Life imitates art, imitates life, imitates art. Hilarious!
Not that part about the graffiti-grammar police was funny! Made for a real contrast the the low standards of competence in the educational system...
How hard is it to breathe up there?
The altitude is a strange phenomenon. Everyone is affected - for me days 3-5 are tough - no sleep, short of breath, dehydration, digestive issues. Coca tea is the panacea - it really is a cure-all!
After a few days you are fine. Digestive issues remain - there are very few fat people here - overeating is uncomfortable.
You do realise the effects when you get down to sea level if you get there quickly. A flight sort of screws it all up.
Thank you for the comments - much appreciated
Glad to. Nice to see you picked up on me meaning the altitude.
Ecuador is a lovely place.
I was only robbed twice when I visited.
I met some nice doctors and nurses at the hospital, I learned to appreciate the fragility of life itself while traveling on a bus to Quito.
I flew through the Andes and marveled at the mountain tops above us, glimpsed through gaps in the clouds.
I saw many things and met many people.
I'd love to go back. :-)
Thank you @trevor.george for your reply - great to hear that you enjoyed the medical fraternity! I have been robbed, stabbed (multiple), drugged etc but it is, as I said, a country of paradoxes!
Nice to see someone use their name, as I do - Edward.
Have a great day and look me up if you return!
I have just seen that you are a kiwi - one of my very favourite places on earth!
Have just watched the Test match there - what an extraordinary match
Sending greetings to the shaky isles!
Thanks for that. While my comment was a bit tongue-in-cheek, I did actually like Ecuador. I met some really nice people and had some awesome experiences.
I would have preferred not to be robbed, especially of my camera and all of my photos. But at least I wasn't stabbed.
I learned a lot about myself on that trip. I also have some enduring memories that make me smile, like someone trying to sell me a German Shepard puppy on the bus to Quito.
And the guards at the bus terminal inviting me inside to watch TV with them while I waited for the bus.
And the jungle...... just amazing.
My first post on steemit - I did not know how to format anything but you might enjoy the jungle memories: https://steemit.com/ebryans/@ebryans/centeramazing-amazonian-experience-center-centeryasuni-national-park-ecuador-center
Wow! Loving it.
I stayed at Sasha Lodge on the Napo. Just amazing.
Great, glad to have been able to rekindle a memory or several! Napo Lodge is just a few km's further down the Napo and then about 5or 6 km's down a tributary. Very beautiful and difficult for an amateur like me to reproduce in photos.
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