Gangsta Farm

The world is getting smaller. You can now tweet 10,000 people what you ate for breakfast. But the world of electronic closeness seemed far away as Zack and I hiked through the remote villages of Ecuador’s Quilotoa Loop.


I’m talking: grazing cows, dirt roads, and long stretches of empty land. Cell phones didn’t work. Small flocks of sheep ate grass unattended by the side of the road. After miles of passing through farms and pine groves we came to a little town that consisted of: a school, a church, two farms and a few smaller dwellings. Imagine my surprise when I heard the tinny, staccato intro of that 1995 rap favorite, Gangsta’s Paradise by Coolio.


I’d be lying if I said I didn’t get down and dance like I was at the club. This was an opportunity for cultural exchange that I was not going to miss out on. I let my inhibitions go as five or six town townsfolk looked on. They were hoeing in the garden and I was dancing to Coolio. After a few beats they looked away from my spectacle and went back to work.

Check out the scene I stepped into.



Thanks to Zack for the camera work!

***I didn’t get into the true digital, digital get down until I was off camera***

So it seems globalization is alive and well even in the remote villages of Ecuador.

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13 comments:

  1. looks like a great trip so far - and I wanna see the true digital get down!

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  2. Wow, what a fantastic trip. How cool is that. I hope you took tons of photos! Thanks for bringing us along!

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  3. Cool photos, I am being a slacker at work, but I don't want to get caught watching you get-down to Coolio. I will check out the vid at home tonight

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  4. People and animals - you can't go wrong including them in the pictures. And just when I thought I was missing seeing you dance, I went to the 'official' TT site, not my FB, and found the
    video - thanks. Glad you traveled with a good photographer!

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  5. I absolutely love this post. What an amazing opportunity. This is just another reminder that the world is as big, as it is small. Thanks for sharing this with us.

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  6. That's funny, you dancing down the road to Gangsta's Paradise! That's one of my old favorites.

    Come on by and check out my latest post; I gave you a shout out in it.

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  7. oh what a great experience! keep sharing!!!

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  8. Loving your travelogue, Devon!

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  9. What an amazing opportunity. This was a great post to read and imagine. Thanks for sharing it with us!

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  10. My Dear Devon... you are living my life. Where are we going next? I love traveling on your coat tails. Keep them coming!

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  11. Dev, a friend recently went to a wine tasting in Rockland, Mass. and I purchased the following bottles of wine for us to try -- all reds: Bogle Petite Sirah from California; Bogle Old Vine Zinfandel from California; Cannonball Cabernet Sauvignon; Malbec Sauvignon Merlot; Tapena Garnacha Tierra de Castillo; Tapena Tempranillo, Tierra de Castillo; Rivarey Tempranillo Crianza, Rioja (Spain) and Coppola Claret "Diamond Collection", California which is a cabarnet, merlot, malbec, petit verdot and cabframe blend. Interesting huh?

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  12. This is just Hilarious! I don't know what to say? Whoa!

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  13. That sheep looks gangsta. Love this blog!

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FOOD IS ONE OF THE MOST VISCERAL ASPECTS OF A CULTURE; IT CAN BE EXPERIENCED WITH NO LANGUAGE SKILLS, NO GUIDE, AND MOST TIMES WITH VERY LITTLE MONEY.