The trickiest obstacle: the language barrier

Sitting cross-legged on the biggest bed in the cabin I flipped through the brochure. This was an attempt at English, right? It said English version on the cover but most of it was in Spanish. Two sets of eyes peered over my shoulders; I knew they were just as confused as I was. Among the three of us I spoke the most Spanish, so we were in trouble, but we managed to choose a sample of everything the spa had to offer. Massage, facial and pedicure, which would total at least $200 in the States. Here it was $55.

Banos from our front steps

The volcano, Tungurahua, seen traveling into Banos

Banos is a famous tourist spot in Ecuador; it translates to “baths” in English, named after the hot springs in the area. The tiny city sits at the base of an active volcano named Tungurahua. We planned to end our trip by relaxing in Banos and the plan went well. No volcanic erruptions, no landslides, just a trip to the spa.

Before this trip I had been to a few spas and based on price alone I wasn’t expecting the same treatments. But I was pleasantly surprised, despite the significantly lower price it was well done. After the treatments were over I met up with the other two girls and we went to tip the masseuses. Danielle found them outside and decided to take the role of speaker.

“Tipo… tipo,” Danielle said turning to us. “guys how do you say tip?”

Before we could reply, she began again.

“Tipa, yes, tipa,” she said confidently to the woman.

The woman accepted the money with a hurt look on her face. Like she’d just been slapped. The other two women exchanged a stunned look but also accepted the money.

Later at dinner we asked our local tour guide why the women reacted that way and told him the story. At the “Tipo” part he chuckled and told us that was regional slang for Dude. As we finished the story he listened intently and when we were done he asked if we were sure that was what Danielle said.

We said yes and he covered his face with his hand and laughed deeply. After a few minutes he said:

“Tipa is… how you say, prositiute or loose woman. Out at a club with the guys, you say ‘Que es una tipa’… that is a loose woman.”