Hybridization

We´ve only got about two weeks left in Ecuador, and we´ve spent at least a month total living here in the city of Cuenca. We´ve all heard the term "globalization" over the past few years, but it´s amazing how obviously real the process of globalization is, especially when it slaps you across the face like it does here in Cuenca. The symptoms are obvious, and the results are both good and bad. About a month ago, some B.W. friends and I met some students from the University of Azuay here in the city, and all of them were studying the same subjects: tourism and English. It seems that the mindset of Ecuador is becoming increasingly globalized. If they are having difficulty maintaining economic stability through exports and domestic industry, they must depend increasingly on income from tourism, becoming an increasingly americanized society.

Instances of cultural imperialism are everywhere. Although family-owned small businesses still have a large role in Cuenca, including hair salons, clothing and shoe stores, bookstores and restaurants, international corporations have become very prevelant, and their advertisements dominated the city´s billboards and advertisements.  Multiple western-style malls dot the map of Cuenca, each with its share of KFCs, McDonalds´, Nike and Adidas outlet stores, etc.

Although the culture of Cuenca remains rooted in the traditional, a clear tendency towards hybridization has developed. Children, for the most part, still live with a heavy influence of Catholic education and family values, and traditional music and foods still play a huge role in Cuenca. However, the tempations of a materialistic, western-style culture  have left their mark on the youth. This hybridization has created a young generation of cell phone-toting, Abercrombie-wearing, pop music-listening youth who, often times, still hold dear the traditional cultural phenomena of their Cuencan upbringing.