It is a way of life.
The plastic bag is everywhere in Ecuadorian society.
At the market, paper or plastic isn't an option.
You just choose what size plastic bag you want to carry home.
But plastic bag usage goes well beyond the realm of groceries. It seeps into aspects of society you would never consider.
Imagine it's a scorching hot afternoon, like yesterday. You are hoofing through town, sweating bullets as you track down kids in your newspaper group.
You are dying for some cold water, so you go to the corner store and ask for some cold water.
The owner reaches into his fridge and pulls out a bag. Drinking water comes in bags down here. You can find it in small bags of one liter, which are for personal consumption, or the larger four-liter variety, perfect for groups.
The proper technique for opening a bag of water is biting a hole in the corner of the bag and sipping the water out of the opening - using the power of suction. For the four-liter bag, one should use scissors to create an opening near the top of the bag and rely on gravity to pour the water into waiting cups.
Small bags of water cost ten cents, while the larger ones will run you forty. The small bags of water actually come in a larger bag of bags of water. (They say he carved it out of an even bigger spoon)
Now, let's say you are thirsty for some juice. So you go to your juice stand.
As the juicer is juicing the fruit to make juice, you realize you don't have enough time to sit and enjoy your juice in the glass cups the juice stand offers. (Five times in that last sentence) You are in a rush.
So you ask for it to go. As soon as it is out of the blender, the employee pours your beverage in a waiting plastic bag with straw sticking out of it.
Maybe you want to treat yourself to an ice cream. Who needs the stick? Why not just squeeze it out of a bag.
I know that in the States, you have ketchup packets. But here, it's not just the personal sizes that come in a squeezable container. You can find large quantities of the most common condiments in a bags. Sorry, I don't have a picture to go with this example.
Just take my word for it. (Ugh, I can actually hear you getting fatter.)
2 comments:
Where is the picture of you slurping mustard from a bag?
How does it compare to Shoko?
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