Update from Cuenca, Ecuador

¡Hola, Exeter!There is so much more to Cuenca than Jebari: the trip has been life-changing for every member of the group. Evan now sports a gold chain and the occasional gold tooth. Jack has pierced both ears and his collarbone. Jacie wears exclusively jean overalls that Rex found in a supermarket, much to Joon’s fashion dismay. Ethan opted to shave his head. Rex has adopted a completely new persona and asks that everyone call him “El Hueso,” a facade which bears a striking physical, social and mental resemblance to El Chapo. We haven’t seen Tessa in a little over two weeks. Maya has assumed the life of a mime and can now only communicate with gestures in Spanish. Kiernan is an utter savage—no surprise there. Kaitlyn is a part-time street performer and recently had the words “Las Olas” tattooed across her body. Jebari occupies his time by petting, feeding, and impersonating street dogs and occasionally, but infrequently, searching for Tessa.For context, the decision to become a monk was surprisingly easy for Ethan. For several weeks, he would spend hours mulling over where his next meal would come from. Subsisting on a meager diet of hot chocolate for breakfast and no dinner for dinner, his only hope for survival was to look inward for strength and solitude.We always have an eye on the future. Next week, there is the national holiday of Carnaval, which is essentially a city-wide maelstrom of projectiles that include water, oil, eggs and blood. It’s the food fight we always wanted but really never needed.