Manta, Ecuador

Hello South America!

Our trip to Manta was absolutely fascinating as we found out how much work it takes to manually make anything these days ... and in some places it’s still the only way (and often the best way). Manta, is a port city known for tuna fishing, and fish markets. It is a large city of 200,000 people. There are some great beaches and surfing here too, making it a big tourist destination.

Next to our ship, they were loading nets full of fish onto trucks around the clock. (photo 1)

In 1735 Charles Marie de La Condamine used this port as he was measuring the location of the equator. The airbase here was used extensively by U.S. air forces in 1999-2009 to support anti-drug operations against Columbian drug cartels.

First, we went to the archaeological museum and learned all about the history in Equator and how people lived for the first half of this Century. They were very clever in their use of materials to make household items and building materials and in deconstructing plants and trees, made incredible efforts to figure out that every piece of material was utilized in some productive manner.

We saw how the beautiful Guayacan wood is used to make boats. Usually, they are high tech fishing boats with instrumentation and fishing equipment making them cost upwards of $800,000. I would just like to have one in case I met Noah one day and he needed a replacement (below, photo 2).

In the Cabuya Factory we were treated to a demo of plant weaving in the last factory that still makes coffee bean bags by hand (mostly they are now made/shipped in plastic containers).

In order to make woven bags and coffee bean bags the plant fibers are extracted from the leaves (see video clip at https://youtu.be/fnaIGam4fPM) (photos 4, 5, 6 and 7)

Next, the course leaves are softened and separated by "smacking" them against nails and then individual fibers are wound together and connected by hand to make spools of fiber. (photos 8 and 9)

The last steps take 144 spools and bring them together into 1 spool that is weaved together to make it tighter and stronger (see these two videos of how they make this into a coffee bean bag https://youtu.be/fb2s8118aGs and https://youtu.be/yG_rdzpL-Yo)!!!!

In total, 144 spools make 50 bags (see photo with the tour guide above in the green shirt with the owner that has been making these bags for 60 years) at $4 per bag. Now thats a lot of work $200 (50 x 4). (photos 10 and 11)

Our next stop was a demonstration of how to make the famous "Panama" hats (which are actually "Montecristi Hats" from Ecuador that made their way to Panama and became famous there when President Roosevelt wore one for a photo op at the Canal). You know the type, a traditional brimmed straw hat, made from the plaited leaves or jipijapa palm or toquilla straw.

They are light-colored (not white, these are the knock-offs), lightweight, and worn in the summer. The tightness of the weave and time spent making them determine the quality and price ($50 - $25,000). It can take days, weeks or up to 3 months to make one hat! (photos 12, 13, 14 and 15)

Watch this video of the weaver doing her magic as she makes a hat!
https://youtu.be/LuZ57eZYrBw

Lastly, we watched as buttons and incredible pieces of art were made from TAGUA. It is a vegetable that looks like ivory and hardens to a hard finish that can be made into shirt buttons, carved into animals (we got a blue-footed booby), and made into other sculptures.

The plant that comes off the tree (photo 17)
Button (photo 18)
After a busy day (photo 19 and 20)Read more