Visiting Papa Correa

Papa Correa waving to his people

Every Monday at the President's palace there is a changing of the guards ceremony. This is very popular ceremony with Ecuadorians because President Rafael Correa, or Papa Correa as he is often fondly referred to, comes out onto his balcony and waves.

In typical Ecuadorian fashion, there was no official information about what time the event would start. There was no information online (apart from other blogs, which didn't seem to sight an exact time), and we had heard a range from 9am to 11am from friends. Chelsea and I decided to play it on the safe side and arrive at 9:30.

When we arrived at the Plaza Grande (one of the first places my host family took me with the Statue de Independencia) it was already quite crowded. We figured that they were protestors because of the current issues arising with drilling in the Amazon region called Yasuni. Many of the signs held by people were about the drilling, but seemed to be supporting it claiming it will bring wealth and security to many Ecuadorians. There were people of all ages. It was very interesting because many people wanted their picture taken with their signs or with their groups.

As we waited out in the sun, the plaza became even more crowded. The police arrived and started to organize the crowd. There were also rows and rows of chairs being set up along the street. Eventually around 10:45 or so bunches and bunches of school children filed in and sat in the seats that had been set up. Right around 11am (so that does seem to be the official time) music started, and people began to line up on the balcony. The important ministers, the Vice President, and President were all introduced. They were waving, and everyone was cheering and waving. There was not much sign of any protest, the Ecuadorians love Correa, hence his nickname.

There was music from a marching band, the school children sang, the guards marched/changed, the flag was raised, there was lots of pushing and shoving in the crowd (especially from old pushy Ecuadorian grandmothers), the police tried to keep the crowds in order, and the sun beat down.

The whole thing lasted for about 45 minutes to an hour. Chelsea and I were unsure if the ceremony was this big every week (with all the school children, and about 20-30 people on the balcony who seemed to be getting some sort of honor for the week). It was fun to be there and to watch, and really interesting to see the people who had come from all over the country to protest or support Correa, but in the end looked at him with admiration.

Of course I became photo happy...this is a pretty edited down version, but still deserved a slide show. Enjoy!