A traditional part of the Fiestas de Quito, which are dedicated to the first week of December but actually last for the whole month, is a typical Ecuadorian card game, Cuarenta. There are championship games all over the city, and ACLAS hosted their very own tournament on Monday with students, staff, and faculty members. There were about 7 students from our group, 5 or 6 teachers, and a few of our favorite staff members.
The game is played in partners, and the goal is to pick up cards by "summing," "matching," and "cleaning." Each person starts with 5 cards in hand, and each person takes turns laying down one card at a time, essentially trying to match a card previously played or play the sum of two cards already down on the table. There's a whole lot of luck involved, a little bit of strategy, and a lot of fun!
My partner was Eugenia, and we lost in the very first round. I didn't actually know all of the rules by the time we had already lost... ;) It took me a few games to figure out the scoring and strategy, because they were explaining it to me in spanish, and nobody seemed too interested in slowing down to make sure I understood. Fun, nevertheless. And, we lost to the pair that ultimately won, so we can't feel too bad about it.
After the game, a bunch of us got together to watch Love Actually, and then we had a little birthday celebration for Bill, one of two males in the group. It was a loooong day at ACLAS, but a good day of closure there for me. I will be in Peru during the farewell dinner. I WILL BE IN PERU!
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