Best usages and practices in Ecuador

Priscilla wrote:

new rules or habits regarding transportation, the environment or health in Ecuador? Are there innovative and useful practices or services that make daily life simpler?

Priscilla

1.  Transportation:  When climbing aboard a city bus, assume that the bus will move before you have taken a seat or found a place to stand.  Do not completely let go of the rails, straps or balancing posts -- even for one second -- until you have stabilized your position.  Otherwise, you could wind up being tossed around or thrown to the floor of the bus.

2.  Health and Environment:  In Quito and other cities, avoid taking an apartment along a bus line.  The cheap gasoline turns into black contaminación when going through the systems of many buses, creating a pollution problem, especially in bus-line neighborhoods.

3.  Avoid living in hilly areas of highlands cities:  Retirees may find that as their mobility is reduced over time, navigating compromised sidewalks becomes a greater problem, especially on inclines.  Also, the lack of oxygen at high altitudes makes walking even one city block on an incline a challenge for some.

cccmedia

Thinking like locals is perhaps the best thing in terms of making my life simpler. At times I would seek advice of Ecuadorians in dealing with a situation with other Ecuadorians. Using this method has made the impossible possible. There are a few keys to successfully achieving this practice, the first is to understand how or why Ecuadorians feel about an issue and secondly is to convey your position directly to them and yes in Spanish because it's  personal this way rather than having someone else convey your message. For example my rental contract states no pets are allowed but I was able to change that. There were other impossible things from fiber optic internet to local credit card that I got by thinking like locals. I can write a lengthy post about detailing how to think like a local which essentially begins with gaining their trust and confidence. And this is very important because there is a deep mistrust of foreigners and particularly neighboring ones but which also extends to other foreigners.

Another practice that I’ve acquired here is haggling and oh how much I hate it. I had a custom made sofa with imported fabric and negotiated the price down which is customary. But I further negotiated that price down by another 10% when they were three weeks late in delivering it. One of the reasons I don’t buy fruits and vegetables at the Mercado anymore is because I’m not willing to exert energy over 10 or 25 cents. But I’ll definitely haggle over a custom made coat or at places like the spiral mall on Amazonas which has some cool stuff. I also negotiate nighttime taxi fares because I use them so often. Last night I went out to a pub at 10:30 p.m which costs about 2.25-2.50 with meter but the driver wanted $4. We settled at $3, and with that markup it’s fair because there aren’t as many fares late at night.

So basically the best practice is to adapt the local way of thinking when dealing with them and in doing so I basically get what I want provided it's reasonable,

I think cccmedia pretty well has the answers covered, but I would add (in light of vsimples very common experience with the custom order) that patience is key. Ecuadorians will tell you that something will be ready on a certain date, but it will not be so. They honestly don't expect you to show up right away for the much awaited item. For simple throw pillows we waited three weeks (two and a half weeks longer than expected) and one of the fabrics we ordered wasn't used. It isn't personal, they aren't messing with you, this is just how things operate here. This applies to all things: grocery shopping, dealing with the government, walking down the street, trying to get help in a store...they all take the time they take and cannot be rushed (unless they are in a car, of course).

Also, learn as much Spanish as possible, it goes a long way to getting what you want, closer to when you want it. Always ask how much something will cost, in advance and ideally get a receipt for the full price minus any deposit you pay (if the item or service isn't completed or coming with you when you walk away), just to keep things clear and simple and avoid surprises later on.

One more item that relates to the Ecuadorians in cars aside...while pedestrians (by law) have the right of way, never assume that the drivers notice that you are there. Err on the side of caution and make sure there's a good clearing before you cross a street. Oh, and be prepared for cars to pop out from narrow openings as you walk down the sidewalk.

My final piece of advice is make friends with the locals. It makes your walks pleasant, they notice if you aren't around and they are an excellent resource when you need help.

PEI Red,

I agree that people should expect things to be late in Ecuador in general, but the financial district is an exception in some extent. We expect businesses to be professional with delivering orders in a timely fashion. Many of these businesses are owned by returning Ecuadorians from Europe and N.America and are establishing a more professional atmosphere in this sector.

If this was from Avenida América furniture outlets it would be a different story.

This is the problem here.  Ecuadorians think they can pull one over on the gringos because no one stands up for themselves.  I live with the manana thing, although if I never hear that word again in my life it will be paradise.  But I refuse to pay for something that is switched on me and wasn't agreed upon.  It's common practice here against the gringos, and trust me I know.  It happened to me on a written contract with an English speaking Ecuadorian who charges high prices, on my pool pump.  Save everything, never pay everything up front, argue, raise hell, cause a scene and you will get the agreed upon product.  It's a sad life when you have to live that way because you have white skin.