‘We look like you, sometimes we talk like you, but we do not think like you.’
—Colonel Borja from the book, Tumult at Dusk: Being an Account of Ecuador by Walker Lowry
The Catholic Church arrived with the Spanish conquistadors. It played a critical role in Spain’s conquest; as an excuse to abuse the Indians in the guise of converting the indigenous population to Catholicism and, more beneficially, as a foundation for the development of educational institutions. The Catholic Church became one of the largest landowners in the country and was closely allied with the Government, especially the political power in the Sierra.
After independence, the Church continued to have a close relationship with the Government but continued to spark debate between the conservatives in the Sierra and the liberals on the Costa. When Eloy Alfaro seized power in 1895, it marked the beginning of the separation of the Church from the state.
While the Catholic Church is still the dominant religion in Ecuador, it has lost some of its power over the last 25 years. One of the earliest groups to enter Ecuador was the Christian group HCJB. This Christian organisation began in 1931 and has one of the largest radio stations on Earth, broadcasting its Christian message to the world. Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Baptists and Pentecostal groups have all made inroads. Much of this progress has been due to the increasing poverty of Ecuadorians. I remember seeing few other churches than those of Catholics and Mormons in the early 1980s. Now, numerous churches abound, especially in the Costa. The Protestant groups now account for about 10 per cent of the population and the Catholics are about 90 per cent. There is also a smattering of other religions in Ecuador.
One word that is loaded with mystique for visitors to Ecuador and much of Latin America is the word shaman. It is believed by some that the word originated from Russia and means ‘someone who has powers over an individual’s soul’. Shamans play an active role in the medical field in Ecuador, using both the physical and spiritual world to treat maladies. They are also consulted to settle issues and provide solutions to problems. Many refer to themselves as medicine men.
Numerous tools such as dolls, beads or other items may play a role in the shaman’s efforts to help an individual. Dead animals and their body parts are sometimes also used. Shamans pass down their art from father to son. They are also highly skilled with the use of herbs which play a major part in Ecuadorian medicine.
Godparents play a very important role in Ecuadorian society. As Ecuador is primarily a Catholic country, the role of godparents is considered an important responsibility in helping to guide a child’s spiritual life. Parents will choose a married couple as godparents who, in effect, become coparents with the female becoming a comadre and the male a compadre.
The godparents play an active role in the child’s baptism with the godfather providing a gift to the child. The mother and father incur the cost of the baptism while the godfather will also provide small gifts to the altar boys. The godmother will provide the dress for the godchild and small gifts for the people who attend the ceremony. These gifts are small ceramic pieces with the child’s name inscribed on them. Such items are available in many party shops, which can be found at most of the major shopping centres. After the baptism, there is usually a large party at the child’s home. There will be loud music with lots of dancing. Baptisms are often video taped by professional cameramen to record the start of a lifelong relationship between godparents and godchild.
Godparents will usually give the child a gift on his or her birthday, first communion, graduation, Christmas, New Year and any other important event in the child’s life. The godchild also has an obligation to visit the godparents at least on New Year’s Day. The godchild should also send an invitation or announcement of his or her first communion and wedding to his or her godparents.
The first communion often begins with a breakfast with the family, sometimes a new set of godparents and maybe a few close friends. After the ceremony, there will usually be a party at the child’s home, beginning at about 5:00 pm and ending not too late in the evening. Acceptable gifts may include a bible, CDs or cassette tapes of classical music, a crucifix, rosary beads, watches or jewellery. The child is obligated to provide a small gift or memento of the occasion to the priest who conducted the ceremony.
Many marriages in Ecuador are formalised both by a civil ceremony and a church wedding. The civil ceremony is required for a marriage to be considered legal. The chief of the civil registry oversees civil marriages. Civil registries are located in the capital of each province. In rural areas, the Teniente Politico, who is the local police head or official, oversees the marriage. Two witnesses are required, who must provide identification and proof of voting. The couple getting married should provide their birth certificates. The civil ceremony usually takes place prior to a church ceremony.
When a couple decides to get married in Ecuador, the parents of the man need to seek the permission of the woman’s parents. This practice is known as pedir la mano (to ask for her hand). If both sets of parents know each other fairly well, they will invite the prospective bride’s parents to their home for dinner. If they don’t know each other well enough, they will visit the woman’s parents with her suitor to seek their permission for the marriage. If a commitment is made, the bride and her mother will visit the groom’s parents’ home within three days.
If you are invited to a wedding, you are obligated to attend and to provide a gift. Many couples will have a gift register at one of the better department stores in Ecuador, such as Casa Tossi or De Pratti in Guayaquil. Your gift should be delivered at least three days before the wedding to the home of the bride or groom, depending on whom you are closer to. You shouldn’t bring your gift to the wedding. Cash gifts are traditionally given only by the families of the bride and groom. However, a cash gift (averaging about US$ 40) is usually appreciated by the couple and is increasingly the practice. The bride’s family is obligated to purchase most of her necessities for the wedding. This includes the banquet after the wedding and the flowers for the ceremony and banquet. Her family will pay for the invitations as well as the cake and wedding mementos. The groom pays for the ceremony including the services of the church and the priest. He also incurs the cost of the wedding rings and the honeymoon. Both rings will be inscribed inside with the names of the bride and groom and the date of the wedding.
In coastal areas, most weddings take place between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm and in the Sierra region, at about noon. After the ceremony, the party proceeds to a banquet and dance. After dinner, the bride cuts the first slice of the cake. The bridesmaids then cut the rest of the cake for the guests and the waitresses serve it.
Champagne is served and the toasts begin. The following people make toasts: the groom, the best man, a close friend of the family and the father of the bride. Women usually do not make any toasts. After the cake and toasts, a dance will start. The bride and groom will have the first dance together. Dancing usually lasts until midnight and it is considered rude to leave before the bride and groom.
Ecuadorian law requires that corpses be buried within 24 hours after death. Many Ecuadorians still adhere to several basic funeral customs. However, many of these customs have been relaxed over the years.
While many velorios (wakes) are conducted in sala de velacion (funeral parlours), it is just as common for the wake to take place in the home of the deceased. A wake in the home is the norm if the deceased passed away in his or her home or if the family doesn’t have enough money for a funeral home. If there are not enough funds for a casket, a collection is often taken up. In the home, often all the furniture is moved against the walls and windows are often shut. Many valuables are put away, including pictures and mirrors.
If the body of the deceased is lying in a funeral home, someone will stay with the body around the clock until it is buried. The wake will usually be in full swing by 10:00 pm, with the older people in the main living room and the others in the adjacent rooms.
Appropriate flowers for funerals include lilies and marigolds. Rosquillas (pastry shaped like horn shells) are usually served to the friends and family, who will also be offered chicha (corn beer) or cognac. Turkey or chicken broth is also served around midnight. People take this time to sit around and remember the deceased with fondness and respect.
The wake may last all night. The body is buried the next day between noon and 5:00 pm. The most common practice is a procession accompanying the casket to the graveyard. The priest will usually have a small mass in the home or the funeral home before the burial. Family and friends will then offer prayers for the deceased for nine days. Remembrance masses are held one, six and 12 months after the funeral and are often announced in the newspapers. After the first 12 months, a mass is usually held once a year.
Mourning or luto (grieving) is a very important part of Ecuadorian society. The general rule is that the spouse will mourn the deceased for two years. The mourning for children or grandparents usually lasts six months. Aunts and uncles are mourned for three months and cousins for three months.
Very young children wear white for mourning. Adults wear black and white clothes and black shoes. A black tie is appropriate. When half of the mourning period is over, subdued colours such as grey or burgundy are appropriate.
If you are told about the death of someone only after the funeral, you should stop by the home a few days later with a card, conveying your condolences. The remaining spouse will not socialise or visit others for about three months and they should not attend parties or dances.
Understanding Ecuadorian culture will require some adjustments and study. Those who think Ecuador is like all other Latin American countries are very mistaken. While there are resemblances, Ecuador has its unique cultural mores. You will no doubt make blunders in your communication no matter how good your intentions. This section will introduce you to some of the intricacies of Ecuadorian life, customs and etiquette. I have had to make some generalisations and beg your forgiveness if some of my observations are not always accurate. I do hope, however, that they will lead you a short way into the maze of communicating in this country.
Ecuadorians are by nature optimistic and positive in many of their attitudes to life. There is a feeling within the Ecuadorian spirit that one should not fight one’s fate but make the best of a bad situation. Common expressions may include ‘Asi es la vida’ which translates to ‘Life is so’ or, more literally, ‘What can I do? What happened, happened. So let’s start all over again!’ Another popular expression is ‘Si Dios quiere’ which means ‘God desires it’.
Many Americans, in contrast, believe that their destiny is in their own hands and that they can control the outcome. Ecuadorians concentrate more on being content with their station in life. But this doesn’t mean that they are static or rest on their laurels. For example, millions of Ecuadorians left their country in the late 1990s to seek better financial opportunities abroad.
Ecuadorians prefer to converse in an indirect way, as opposed to the American style of frankness and directness. Ecuadorians tend to be very good at paying compliments and showing respect to get what they want. They will often tell the listener what they want to hear and not necessarily what they intend to do. The language used is often courteous and diplomatic. Being straightforward is considered being rude in most situations. This also applies to telephone conversations.
A person’s dignity is of utmost importance in this society, no matter what their social or economic status. Relationships are often based on developing a state of trust, which may grow over many years. You will find that many Ecuadorians will not be confrontational in their opinions and that to tell someone they’re wrong may cause a very serious break in your relationship.
This is especially true in a public situation. I once criticised a new security agent at a check-in counter at the airport for discarding my tourist visa. It happened to be her first day on the job. When the agent didn’t respond, I realised that I had made her lose face in front of her colleagues and superior. Her manager responded very delicately and acted as if it was not important, in an effort to restore her dignity. One needs to be patient and to maintain calm at all times. Yelling in public or raising your voice is also considered ill-mannered and inappropriate.
There is a lot more handshaking going on in Ecuador than in the United States. But in Ecuador, handshakes are not as firm, are almost expressionless and last between two and three seconds. Almost always you would shake hands with someone when greeting them or parting with them. Also, the man will initiate the shaking of a woman’s hand not vice versa. The handshake between a man and a woman is less firm than that between two men. Handshakes from indigenous people are often very soft and almost a brushing of the palms.
Ecuadorian men familiar with each other will often hug and pat each other on the back, especially if they are good, old friends. A familiar greeting between a man and a woman and a woman and woman is a light kiss on the cheek.
Another rude hand gesture is to give the height of someone with the palm down. This is only used when giving the height of an animal. If you were giving the height of a person or child, you would turn your palm sideways at about a 90° angle.
Waving or beckoning to someone to come over to you by using your forefinger or wrist with your palm up is not done. Instead, Ecuadorians make a motion of waving with the palm down, their fingers towards their bodies.
Whistling may also be used to get the attention of a person such as a waiter or porter. But, while this is practised, it is considered poor manners.
Yawning in public is considered rude.
The personal space between Ecuadorians is much closer than what most North Americans are accustomed to. Queuing can be quite frustrating for the non-Ecuadorian.
Space within Ecuadorian homes is often cramped as large families are common. In many middle- and lower-class homes, extended female family members will often be entertained in the mother’s room. My Ecuadorian wife, when visiting her mother, will often sleep with her in the same bed.
This different culture regarding personal space can become quite frustrating especially when standing in a queue. I have to consciously control my discomfort. There also doesn’t appear to be much respect for queues. Social status might indicate who can cut a queue and often people who are white, considered to be of a higher social class, or those more senior in age, may take a place in front of others or are given preferential treatment. In place of queuing, people tend to bunch up next to a counter, no one knowing whose turn it is next. Friends of the counter staff are often better taken care of. This happens quite often at airports as domestic flights are often very crowded.
Remaining calm and trying to move up is the best way to handle this situation. Yelling, making a commotion, getting irate or complaining will work against you, especially if it is an elderly person who moves in front of you. Employees or counter staff might sometimes procrastinate in direct relation to how hard you push.
Time is seen as being quite open-ended in Ecuador and is referred to as hora ecuatoiana or the ‘Ecuadorian hour’. There is a mañana (Spanish for ‘tomorrow’) attitude and few people arrive on time for appointments and parties. Half an hour to one hour late is the norm.
When attending a party, if the appointment is 9:00 pm, you should not arrive at the person’s home at 9:00 pm sharp. You will find your host still preparing and maybe not even dressed. It would be safer to arrive a half hour to 40 minutes after the stated time. Going out for the evening usually gets started later in Ecuador too. If you’re going to dinner it would not be abnormal to eat at nine or later and stay out until two or three in the morning.
Ecuadorians are more punctual for work and business engagements. My experience, however, is that most appointments with business people, especially if it is an owner of a small- or medium-sized company, will not start before 10:00 am, and that the latest appointments will probably not exceed 6:00 pm. The provision of services is, also, not as prompt as what I am used to in the United States.
It is one thing for the Ecuadorian to be late but if the foreign business counterpart is late, it might be perceived by the Ecuadorian that you are not taking them seriously. I once had an appointment with a buyer in Quito who was already a customer for the company I represented. I wasn’t too worried about being on time, and in fact, missed the appointment by a day. I was embarrassed to find, when I met him, that he was far from amused with my untimely manner. My speculation is that the reason his perception of time seemed different was because he was educated in Germany. Ecuadorians often use the phrase ‘German time or Ecuadorian time’, German time being on the time stated and not later.
Generally speaking, in the Sierra, most offices will be open from 9:00 am to 6:00 pm. Lunch is usually for two hours, starting at noon. Working hours are generally the same on the Costa but lunch may last for two to three hours, especially during the hot months of December through to April.
Banks are generally open from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm. Many banks have longer hours than posted. Most banks have branches in the major shopping centres that are usually open as long as the shopping centre is and even at weekends. Most shopping centres close by 8:00 pm.
This is an important part of Ecuadorian society, both for social and business reasons. Here are some guidelines:
Gifts when visiting a home may include chocolates and sweets. Ecuadorians love chocolate.
Flowers, such as roses or a small bouquet, are always welcome. However, if they are for a business associate’s wife, be sure not to pay her too much attention. Never give artificial flowers to anyone.
If you know the gift-recipient well, something to decorate the home would be appreciated.
Perfume is always a nice gift especially if you know the person well. I always carry small bottles of perfume with me and present them to secretaries and staff. They will always remember you for that and it also becomes easier to work with them afterwards.
Appropriate gifts for men include cologne, soap, books (self-help or business in Spanish) and alcohol. I also purchase small bottles of Chivas Regal and other well-known brands of alcohol that only cost a few US dollars. They don’t take up much space and are always appreciated.
CDs always make nice gifts, especially jazz ones.
If you’re going to a home with young people, take along pens, pencils, decals (transfers) or small rubber stamps as I always do.
Postcards are appreciated as well, especially to show locals where you are from.
In business, women need to be very cautious about what they present as a gift to men. A book on a business subject is considered acceptable.
If a woman enters the room, men will stand and greet her after extending a handshake and a small brushing kiss on the cheek. When a man enters a room, women often remain seated.
You should also acknowledge each and every person in the room with a hello and handshake, especially if it is a small group of people. I have even been to large parties and functions where a new person entering the party will introduce himself to every person. If you enter a room and have been introduced, you shouldn’t make a quick exit. It is considered courteous to stay and talk for at least a while.
For the most part, a high level of service does not appear to be the norm in most retail establishments here. Sales assistants are generally not well-paid and many establishments are family-owned. One tip about paying your bill is that Ecuadorians often refer to it as cancelar or literally ‘to cancel’.
Window Shopping
Both sales assistants and merchants frown upon window shopping. You may even be treated rudely if you say you are just looking. But this may not always be the case in more tourist-oriented establishments.
Before you pay for an item, many establishments require a sales assistant to write a ticket for the item. He will hold on to the item while you go to a window to pay for it. You will then pick the item up from another sales assistant or window before leaving. However, this system is changing in most large or modern establishments where you go to a checkout queue. When entering some establishments, including grocery shops, your briefcase or other items will be checked as you enter. Your property will be placed in a cubicle and you will be given a claim ticket.
One’s educational accomplishments, family name and titles count for a lot in Ecuador. People are treated differently depending on their gender, age or social status. Titles are used even in conversation. (Please refer to the titles section of Chapter Eight, Language.)
The phrase ‘it’s not what you know but whom you know’ is a predominant aspect of the Ecuadorian culture. While this is true of any place on Earth, it critical to operating in Ecuadorian society at all levels. Palanca, which means ‘lever’ in Spanish, is the use of connections to obtain favours, employment and business deals.
If you think having the lowest price and even a higher quality product is going to get the sale, you may find yourself mistaken. I learned this the hard way. I represented a manufacturer of universal joints that were new to the market and identified a distributor who could purchase a substantial quantity. My initial contact at the company identified himself as the general manager and buyer for the firm. He seemed quite interested in the product and liked the price.
However, he said they had been happy with their supplier but would be interested in a lower price. After several visits, he said that if we would make a concession of 5 per cent they would place a sample order. I left happy, thinking I would get an order and a commission cheque. After getting the ok for the discount, he told me that they needed more of a discount to make a purchase.
I made a visit with the sales manager from the United States. We made another price concession and the manager said to wait a few minutes. After a long wait, the manager returned and said that he was checking with his superior. I realised then that a sales manager is not always a decision-maker and that the real decision-maker usually has his own office. Upstairs, we met the owner of the business who was very polite and considerate but explained that they had a long relationship with their existing supplier who had agreed to meet our prices so they would not be changing suppliers. Having the best product and the lowest price didn’t help at all.
I strongly suggest that if you’re new to Ecuador and trying to develop palanca that you join several organisations as soon as possible. One excellent group is the Rotary, which is quite ubiquitous throughout Ecuador and has numerous high-ranking business officials as members. Joining the Ecuadorian/US Chamber of Commerce is another viable alternative.
The Importance of Friends
Relationships take time to develop in Ecuador and they need to be cultivated. It is also a good idea to make as many friends from both the Sierra and the Costa. If you live in the Costa you will always been seen as a costeno by your customers in the Sierra and vice a versa.
Ecuador is often referred to by international organisations as being one of the most corrupt countries in the world. While most Ecuadorians denounce bribes, culturally speaking, this is a grey area and payoffs, especially for services at the lower levels of government and in business, are a part of daily life. The longer you are in Ecuador it will become evident that what many North Americans call bribes are seen by Ecuadorians as a means to smoothen situations to obtain what one needs. Many Ecuadorians will blame corrupt politicians for the cause of the country’s ills and in the next breath conduct such a transaction.
I was once in a heated conversation with an Ecuadorian who was criticising the politicos (politicians) for having their hands in the till. When I then asked him if he would pay a traffic officer to get out of a ticket, he smiled and said “Of course” with a large smile. I then asked him where the practice of paying bribes started. He responded frankly, “That is the problem.”
The art of paying for services is deeply rooted in the Ecuadorian psyche and is well documented since the Spanish conquest. Politicians will often espouse their intent to eliminate graft but often find themselves participating in it. A case in point is ex-president Bucaram who appeased the poor with promises of improving their position but who was accused of stealing from the public coffers. One of his ministers was caught, after the fall of Bucaram’s government, trying to leave for Colombia with suitcases filled with millions of dollars.
The government continues to try to tackle the problem, having set up the Comisión Anticorrupción or Comisión de Control Civico de la Corrupción (Commission of Civic Control of Corruption), which tries to make inroads. You can read about them and their efforts at:
http://www.comisionanticorrupcion.com.
This author would never recommend that you do anything illegal. It is important, however, to understand that there is such a system. One of the ways to understand payoffs in Ecuador is that it is not always seen as dishonest behaviour but a tip for a service. Bribes are also seen as a way for lowly paid government workers to keep bread on the table. However, they pervade all levels of government. The judiciary is notorious for its corrupt practices. One attorney I know well says it makes it very difficult to practise law without paying bribes to judges and states “Justice is politicised in Ecuador.” One example is, if you are arrested and your case does not call for the normal bonding requirements, a bribe of between US$ 300 and US$ 1,000 is usually given by the attorney to the judge’s secretary. The more serious crimes require a larger amount, especially for drug charges. Another bribe would then be required for a reduced sentence. Several Americans I have visited in prison for drug charges and who have not been released prior to trial indicated they kept paying and paying but there would always be something else coming up and then their money would run out.
You should never allude to someone that a payment is a bribe. Any proposition for a payment would be dealt with in a very discreet and unobtrusive matter. I hope the examples below will demonstrate how such a system works.
When I first moved to Ecuador, I was in severe need of a casilla (post office box). I went down to the main post office and inquired about this. The clerk was very pleasant and said there were none available. He said to return next week. I returned the following week, anxious to get my box. However, he explained he was sorry but that there were none. This went on for about a month until a family member told me he could get me one within a day. I was upset that he hadn’t told me this earlier. To my surprise, I found out I could have it the next day but it would cost me US$ 200. I thought he was kidding. He took me to a grungy old building where we walked up several flights of stairs and entered an office that looked like it was out of an old detective film. There were several people typing away on old Royal typewriters. My relative introduced me to a gentleman who said that he would be happy to secure a box for me. I handed him US$ 200 and of course I didn’t ask for a receipt. He then told me to return to the post office the next day and a gentleman would be at the window to provide me a post office box. I returned the next day to be greeted by the same fellow who had told me there were none available, except this time he was smiling. He handed me a key and had me sign a few papers and I got my box! I have kept that box for the last 20 years even though I don’t use it personally.
Traffic police, especially in Guayaquil, are notorious for graft when it comes to traffic violations. Several years ago, during the Christmas season, I was in a friend’s car with two of my sons when we came across a roadblock set up by the police known as vigilantes. The officer came up to the window and instructed my friend to drive his vehicle just down the block. My kids were anxious to know what we had done wrong. We parked and my friend got out of the car and approached the officer. He returned to the car, took out some papers and returned to the officer. Our friend’s back was turned to us as he handed the officer the papers. When our friend returned, he said his papers were in order and that he had given the officer something for Christmas. Traffic officers are respected, feared and hated here. Female officers should never be offered a bribe as they are considered above reproach.
My most revealing moment of understanding the payment system in Ecuador came many years ago. On that day, I must admit I actually appreciated the ‘something-for-a-cola’ system. In my early days in Ecuador, I would often ask others how bribes were conducted. I was always told that there would be no outright request for money but that the person asking for a payoff for a service would comment “How about something for a cola.” I didn’t believe this until one day I had the chance to buy some Ecuadorians a cola and was happy to do so.
My family had suffered through the wet heat in Guayaquil for six months while I attempted to open a sales agency. I had imagined difficult times but had not anticipated some of the worst rains and floods in the history of Ecuador. It was during the January of 1983 and I had never imagined that we would be living in a mosquito net for eight to 10 hours a night. Even with the netting, my family would wake up with large, quarter-sized bites, which made me fearful that they would catch dengue fever, or worse, malaria.
The climate was terrible but the economy was worse. I was a self-employed sales representative but could not make a sale. I could not believe that this was the same country where, a year earlier, I had sold US$ 50,000 worth of car parts in one week. Worse, I was broke and concerned about making my meagre savings last.
Some months later, my wife and I decided to throw in the towel. If I was going to be poor, the United States was the place to be, not Ecuador. We were depressed as both of us wanted to remain here. My wife’s dream was to be with her family in Ecuador. My dream was to go to some exotic land, build a fortune, wear Indiana Jones hats and smoke Cuban cigars, while my employees worked my large banana plantation. I went to bed that night knowing tomorrow I would have to start making plans to get back to the US, broke. I thought, ‘What a hero, my friends will call me Indiana Loser’. I was hoping a large mosquito bite would wake me from the reality of this terrible nightmare.
The next day, I went to see my Ecuadorian attorney about my visa. My tourist visa had expired and I was trying to obtain a permanent working visa. The permanent visa was as yet unavailable since my attorney had not paid off several bureaucrats to obtain it. She advised me that immigration would understand my predicament and I would have no problems at the airport. Boy, was she mistaken. I left her office shaking my head. I never understood this game of paying people off to get things which should be available through regular channels to the masses. My wife had explained to me many times that this was the way of life in her country and public servants supplemented their meagre salaries in this manner. It was viewed as a tip for faster service.
We decided to leave the following week. We arrived at the airport and waited through the long line of people making the trek to Miami. After saying our good-byes to friends and family, we exited through the security gate to leave. My wife and son presented their documents and were signalled by the immigration officer to pass. I then presented my passport and began to walk through the second security clearance gate when the officer yelled, “¡Alto!” The officer had a grin on his face as though he had caught a thief. He explained to me that my tourist visa had expired and I could not leave the country. I was told I must report to the immigration office on Monday to clear up the matter. Of course, it was Saturday and Immigration was closed. I pleaded with him to no avail.
At that moment, I suggested to my wife that possibly this matter could be resolved with some type of payment. It’s funny how one’s perspective changes when one is in a serious predicament. We decided that she would conduct the negotiation since they might put me in jail if I was suspected of trying to bribe a public official.
My wife got the attention of the officer who seemed to sympathise with our plight. She offered him US$ 60. He went to the sergeant and we watched as they discussed our fate. My heart dropped to my shoes when I saw him start shaking his head at the offer. At this point, I thought I could hear the plane’s engines revving up to depart. I looked around a pillar and saw the door on the plane close. I told my wife to offer more money and to beg the junior officer. My wife handed her passport to him, who then handed it to the sergeant. The junior officer returned and gave my wife back her passport.
The sergeant then contacted airline officials and told them to open the door for three more passengers. I couldn’t believe it. We were running like crazy as security officials rushed us to the tarmac of the waiting plane. I could hear people laughing but did not know why until I realised that my Sansabelt slacks had drooped to my knees, exposing the rear portion of my anatomy. It was moon over the Guayaquil airport. At that point I didn’t mind being the butt of laughter.
As we were running towards the plane, the junior officer accompanied us. I began to shake his hand to thank him for his assistance. He then looked me in the eye and asked, “May I have a little something for a cola?” Clearly he was paying me a compliment by knowing that I understood his culture so well that I would not be offended. He explained that the cola money we previously supplied was only for the sergeant. I reached into my pocket and only had twenties. At that point only US$ 20 separated me from home. This was no time to be budget conscious or to ask if he had change. I handed over a twenty and told him I hoped he enjoyed the cola and to drink one for me. I had a feeling it would be some wonderful Ecuadorian cold draft. He smiled as he shook my hand and felt the bill pass to his. He then said that he hoped I had a good trip and to return to his country.
As I buckled my seatbelt, sweat pouring down my face, I took my wife’s hand and yelled, “Yes!” My wife asked me what had happened with the officer. I told her that I had just contributed to the officer’s emergency fund. She smiled and congratulated me, saying that I was now officially Ecuadorian.
As I reran the recent events through my mind, I could not believe the whole event had taken place. Was I wrong in paying or was I simply following the rule of a culture different from my own? I could even rationalise that I was being fined for my visa having expired. Whatever had happened, I was glad I had followed the cultural norms that day. I reclined in my seat and started to drift off to sleep when the stewardess came by and offered me a cola. Coca-Cola would never taste the same again.
Like people all around the world, Ecuadorians are just as fond of making broad generalisations of each other. People from the Sierra and Costa, especially, have many stereotyped ideas of each other. These distinct regional groups do not have a lot of affection for each other. Here are some examples:
What people from the Costa say about people from the Sierra:
They are tightwads.
They are crybabies and are often referred to as chichihueros.
They are hypocrites.
They think they are aristocrats and won’t admit that they are mestizos.
They always want more after an agreement has been made.
What people from the Sierra say about people from the Costa:
They are monkeys.
They spend all the money they make and party all the time.
They can’t keep a secret.
They don’t do what they say they are going to do.
These divisional differences are important to keep in mind if you’re assigning representatives to the country or hiring.
I know of an operation based out of Quito which hired an office manager from Guayaquil. After looking at the situation, I understood why. Clearly the office staff didn’t like the fact that she was from Guayaquil and not one of them. However, being from Guayaquil himself, the manager figured that the office manager’s loyalty would probably be with him and that she wouldn’t team up with the staff. She was also good-looking, and that was good for business. Many Serrano men find women from the coast particularly alluring.
If assigning an agent in Ecuador, one should try to have representatives both in the Costa as well as the Sierra. Many manufacturers will assign dual representation in Ecuador despite it being a relatively small market for most products.
