Legal
It feels so good to have our driving licenses. Only took a year. Wow. As we sat around watching the ridiculous chaos at the Ecuadorian equivalent of a DMV, we were struck with how fabulous American bureaucracy is by comparison.
Since we got to sit around most of the day, I had the opportunity to do some serious people watching. There were a lot of things I saw that really taught me more about Ecuadorian culture. Some things that you and I would consider rude are not at all rude to them...and vice versa. For example, the concept of a line is very loosely adhered to. Basically, he or she who shoves his or her documents into the face of the official the fastest is the next in line. Can you imagine the uproar if that happened in one of our government offices?! On the flip side, any time someone entered or left the building, they made the rounds to shake the hands of those nearby and greet them or tell them good-bye -- even if they are complete strangers. I doubt you've ever seen that at your local DMV.
But we aren't that different. I saw Ecuadorians get just as frustrated with the process as we were. We made some "friends" during the process and soon we were all watching out for each other - signaling one another when it was some one's turn, giving instructions about the next step (and there were innumerable steps), sharing bits of news gleaned from an official, and, often times, sharing exasperated eye rolls. I was genuinely happy for the fellows in our particular group when they finally had their licenses in hand. It wasn't just us Gringos who had a stressful experience trying to get legal!
Since we got to sit around most of the day, I had the opportunity to do some serious people watching. There were a lot of things I saw that really taught me more about Ecuadorian culture. Some things that you and I would consider rude are not at all rude to them...and vice versa. For example, the concept of a line is very loosely adhered to. Basically, he or she who shoves his or her documents into the face of the official the fastest is the next in line. Can you imagine the uproar if that happened in one of our government offices?! On the flip side, any time someone entered or left the building, they made the rounds to shake the hands of those nearby and greet them or tell them good-bye -- even if they are complete strangers. I doubt you've ever seen that at your local DMV.
But we aren't that different. I saw Ecuadorians get just as frustrated with the process as we were. We made some "friends" during the process and soon we were all watching out for each other - signaling one another when it was some one's turn, giving instructions about the next step (and there were innumerable steps), sharing bits of news gleaned from an official, and, often times, sharing exasperated eye rolls. I was genuinely happy for the fellows in our particular group when they finally had their licenses in hand. It wasn't just us Gringos who had a stressful experience trying to get legal!
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