Little Annoyances

Some irritations are because I am in a third world country, but some are because I'm in a third world country and I'm still thinking like I'm not. The washing machine is cute. Sherry will remember the one we used in Otavalo that's called manual even thought it is electric. You put a hose on your faucet turn on the water and fill the tub. Put the clothes in and turn it on and it agitates. When it's done you open the valve so that it will drain. Here in lies the problem. The drain hose comes out of the bottom and I have to drain into my sink. Funny thing is water doesn't want to run uphill. Undaunted, I drained the water into a big trash can a little at a time and dumped it into the sink. Then fill again for the rinse. Drain again, ( I moved the washer into the bathroom so that I could drain into the shower. Still the little lip into the shower was to high) refill, agitate, drain. Then you take the clothes out and put them into the spinner. Standby with the bucket to catch the water spinning off of the clothes. Exhausting, but do-able until you forget to close the drain when you go to fill the tub with the rinse water and by the time you figure this out your apartment is flooded. I've never been so thankful for tile floors. I'm sure the 2 apartments below me are too. And now I have a load of towels to do. Yes, a third world modern convenience, but a brain that just can't grasp that some things don't just turn on and do it all for you. All of you with your fancy washers and dryers (hanging my clean clothes on the line 3 flights down) don't take them for granted.  Isn't it cute?

So, I'm not complaining (even though it does sound like it) just making some comparisons in my own mind.
Now, here's a complaint. You all know I'm a cook. Love to cook, it's my passion, it's my joy, it's what keeps me sane, mostly. My complaint is that things don't taste the same here.
Case in point:
Side story - Tonight there is a going away party for 4 friends that have been here for a month. They are young people who took a month off of work to come to Ecuador to help where the need is great. They are from Germany and they are very sweet wonderful new friends. The group is making Mexican food for the party so I said I would make chicken enchiladas.
I did, but they only vaguely resemble what I made in the States. That's mostly because nothing tastes the same here. I spent over an hour in the local grocery just trying to figure out it they had anything resembling green chilies. I bought a few things that might come close, but when I got to the produce I was excited to find pablano peppers. Not in a can so should be even better, right? Not as much flavor as I would have liked, but I just used more of them. Cream cheese is about the right consistency, but it just tastes like thick cream. The cheese here is just weird. It does melt nice, but the flavor of cheddar and jack is just not what you expect. I'm told that the package says "sour cream" but it is not even sour. Flour tortillas aren't bad, but very expensive. I may have to learn how to make them from scratch. So what I have is not what I want to have, but think most here expect that. They have been dealing with it for longer than me. Good news is that my Butter Almond Cake turned out great and I have won the heart of my neighbor, Rylan. At 10 he has very discerning taste.