Año Viejo ...Old Year

An Año Viejo in the building where I had yoga classes.

The año viejos started to appear at the beginning of December. I was a little shocked when I saw my first año viejo, which was a life-sized ragdoll, dressed in a business suit, and being carried over the shoulder of a man who was also dressed in a business suit and walking on the sidewalk in downtown Guayaquil.  The año viejo “dolls,” which symbolize sins and regrets, are burned on December 31 just before midnight to give hope for a better new year.

This Año Viejo is posing with one of the guards
at Colegio Americano's main gate.

The dolls are displayed along with a box, which at first I thought was where you were supposed to put your sins. But no, the boxes are for donations…some say to help pay for the año viejo, others say for booze money. Although the dolls can be made in the image of a person you dislike, such as a politician, most of the ones I saw were fantasy or cartoon characters. Smurfs were popular. I’m sorry I’m going to miss the burnings.

Maybe one of my friends in Guayaquil will send a photo???

Año Viejo at Colegio Americano's Primary Bar



At the Library.
Is this the copy machine man?



A headless Año Viejo posing with one of the guards at Colegio Americano's Primary School gate. I donated a dollar to this one. I thought it needed some help.



At our favorite Domino's Pizza Restaurant.
I'm sure that taking photos of the Año Viejo confirms that I'm an extranjera.

This one is catching a ride home.
They were stopped in front of my favorite tienda about a block from our apartment.