This week we took in a “guest” that may end up being a long-term “neighbor” in our guest house. She’s a 46-year-old Peruvian woman who has been in Ecuador for 7 years. She was in a relationship with an expat for all of that time—he took her from Peru when her business had to close […]

Tracking the spread and outcome of the coronavirus in Ecuador: UPDATED FOR MONDAY, AUGUST 17, 2020 Over the last few weeks, we’ve discussed what we believe to be the country’s failures in its COVID-19 testing program, including low levels of sample collection, extreme delays in sample testing, and a near complete lack of contact tracing. […]

Since March 17, 2020, airline travel both to and from, and within Ecuador, has been reduced due to restrictions, economics and testing requirements that many travelers were unable—or unwilling—to conform to. Ove the last few months however, the country has loosened restrictions, the airlines have worked on ways to make reduced passenger loads work economically […]

The coronavirus put Julio Gonzales into the intensive care unit (ICU) in Hospital del Rio, where doctors tried everything to treat his respiratory failure—but he showed no improvement. His situation was critical. So, doctors decided to try convalescent plasma therapy on Gonzales (a physician himself), and like eleven other patients who received the therapy, his […]

Since February of this year, Ecuador has been dealing with the growing impact of the coronavirus, on the economy, on the healthcare system, and on the social impact of the loss of lives across the country. Much of the focus since then has been directed toward the difficulties the country’s healthcare system has had in […]