Tienes un novio??

When I first meet an Ecua--my family, people in my classes, taxi drivers, talkative strangers, all of the above--this is one of the first conversations we have:

Ecua: Do you have a boyfriend?

Me: Nope.

Ecua: How about in the US?

Me: Nope.

Ecua: Why don't you have a boyfriend?

(OK, pause. What is the appropriate response to this question? Seriously, what are they looking for?? I had one...but I killed him. I have gonorrhea. I prefer to stay single so I can hook up with boys on the reg without feeling guilty. I'm a lesbian. I don't have one, I have five. I like dungeons and dragons. I'm busy becoming a professional curler. I'm too perfect...committing to any boy would be settling.)

Me: I don't know, I just don't.

Ecua: You are very tall.

Me: Yes, yes I am.

Ecua: You need a tall man.

Me: Yes, yes I do.

Ecua: How tall are you?

Me: 1.8 meters.

Ecua: (staring up at me bewildered) Wow.

I'm not exaggerating when I say that I've had that exact conversation at least 10 times since I've gotten here. Even more so now that it's Valentine's Day.

Speaking of, here Valentine's Day is called Dia de Amor y Amistad (Love and Friendship Day). It's much more common to celebrate with family and friends than it is stateside. So, me and the girls got dressed up and went out to a fancy dinner, no boys allowed, and did secret Valentines so we each got a little something to celebrate! We ate at a restaurant downtown where you could look out over the whole city lit up. It was beautiful. It was a super chevere Valentine's day. I mean, I had 3 Valentines...what more could a girl want?