A Travel Totem Who Was Inspired By Mr. Hunter!

Mr. Hunter and I were honored to learn recently that the original Mr. Hunter Wall outside my old office inspired one of my former coworkers to start his own travel totem project.  Meet BeeTuu.

I love how BeeTuu's beak presents interesting compositional opportunities.

Paris, France

June 2011

BeeTuu's caretaker, John, tells more about this traveling toucan's background: When I was new to Yahoo, I was wandering around and saw a cube wall decorated with photos of what I now know is Mr. Hunter.  I filed away the idea of getting my own talisman.  Much later I watched Inception. They called their talismans "totems."  I then filed that idea away.  My girlfriend and I went to Costa Rica and I saw BeeTuu on a table with other carved animals.  I knew he would be my totem. 

When I was in fourth grade, my class published a newsletter.  Of course we needed a mascot.  Our classroom was the second bungalow so our room number was "B2".  Of course our newsletter needed a tagline. "If the B2 Toucan can, so can you!" Naturally, my totem had to be called BeeTuu. 

BeeTuu has taken me to France and around California.  This summer, we're going back to Europe and I plan to take more photos. 

Textures of Ecuador: A Pile of Bricks

I spotted this pile of bricks as we walked from the studio of Jose Cotacachi to Nanda Manachi, where we would learn to make traditional flutes.  Stacks of bricks were a pretty common sight in the Imbabura area, as were unfinished buildings made of cinder blocks.  I thought it would be cool to have Mr. Hunter pose on some bricks.   

Peguche, Ecuador

June 2011

In the Workshop of Master Weaver Jose Cotacachi

Mr. Hunter saw a master weaver at work when we visited the workshop of Jose Cotacachi.  Jose C, as he signs his tapestries, is well known in the area.  Check out this Christian Science Monitor article on one traveler's search for the real Jose Cotacachi.

We saw Jose C working on his loom... and I wished that we could purchase the hummingbird-themed tapestry he was weaving.  

Rest assured that we did not leave the showroom empty-handed.  I bought a small tapestry whose colors reminded me a bit of Paul Klee's work.  My mom and my brother each bought tapestries featuring the blue-footed booby birds that we'd be seeing in the Galapagos.  My nephew chose a penguin tapestry (penguins are also found in the Galapagos, by the way.)  And even though we were in close quarters, my brother even managed to plot with my mom to buy a scarf as a surprise for my sister-in-law.  

A Jose Cotacachi tapestry showing Galapagos creatures. 

Jose Cotacachi at work at his more modern loom.

Another weaver demonstrates
the older style of loom.

A much-coveted tapestry featuring Blue Footed Boobies.

Some of the items used to create the dyes for the wool.

Jose C

Here's a video of Jose Cotacachi at work:

I was tempted to get a hummingbird tapestry,
but the one I really wanted
was the one Jose C was still working on!

Mr. Hunter and another Galapagos-themed tapestry.

Somehow this tapestry's image reminded me of Paul Klee's art.

The Jose Cotacachi sign.

Studio of Jose Cotacachi

Peguche

Cotacachi, Ecuador

June 2011

A Bed of Corn

We stopped outside the workshop of master weaver Jose Cotacachi to learn about the many varieties of maize found in Ecuador.  Mr. Hunter felt that he belonged in this maize mix, too.

Our guide shows us how the purple corn
 has white flesh inside.

Cotacachi, Ecuador

June 2011

The Wooden Horse

Mr. Hunter stopped to make friends with this cute wooden horse

in the small central square of Peguche village.

One of my favorite photos from that day:
a kitten naps on a corrugated metal roof in Peguche.
This was after we'd walked from the village square to the path
up to the Peguche waterfall.  

Peguche, Ecuador

June 2011

The Peguche Waterfall

On the second day of our tour, we hiked up to the Peguche waterfall, 

an indigenous ceremonial site used for ritual baths before the Inti Raymi summer solstice festival.

We stopped to admire the view
as we hiked down to the Peguche village.

Walking on the muddy path near the waterfall.

Mr. Hunter poses in front of the higher bridge.

A video of the Peguche waterfall splashing down past the bridge:

                                                  

Cascada de Peguche

Peguche, Ecuador

June 2011

Two Heads in Ecuador

Mr. Hunter feels an affinity for other carved and sculpted heads.

Here's one -- the bust of a monk, presumably -- that he encountered at Hacienda Cusin.

Nice haircut!

Hacienda Cusin

Imbabura, Ecuador

June 2011