Old Town Quito and Honey Pot door

7/1/08

The sign read, “Look carefully because the goods will only pass once.” It was placed at the top of a small dark brown revolving door in a wall at the Monasterio del Carmen Alto. The Rough Guide Lilli had brought suggested rapping on the door to request goods from the Carmelite nuns. As the nuns were living in complete isolation, they passed objects to customers around a lazy Susan type revolving door, so they wouldn’t be seen.
The sign didn’t give any hints as to what one could actually purchase or how one was to go about the transaction. The guide book listed honey, herbs, and wine as possible choices for consumption.
I thought it was best to get on with it and rapped three times on the small door in the wall resting at about chest height. We waited a few minutes and nothing happened, so I knocked again. This time I heard a muffled young voice ask me something in Spanish that I couldn’t quite understand. I figured I should have the appearance of knowing what I was doing.
I leaned forward and spoke into the brown paint, ”Puedo ver su miel?” “Can I see your honey?” This has to be one of the single most odd things I have ever done. There I was standing in the foyer of a nunnery asking someone I couldn’t see for honey. The lady uttered something in reply and then the door began to move.
Believe it or not, out popped a rather large jar of honey.
“Do you have anything smaller?”, I asked.
“No”, was the answer from beyond.
“How much is it?”
“4.50”, was the reply.
“Do you have any herbs?”, I asked next. I think she asked me what kind of herbs, so I asked her if she had anything for chicken as I couldn’t think what else to ask about herbs from a lady behind a revolving door.
Nothing else came around from Netherland and I didn’t feel right asking a Nun for wine. She wanted to know what else we might like. I told her we didn’t know what she had. The lady at this point seemed a bit bemused and I got the impression that I was somehow entertaining her. In the end she indicated that the shop outside had samples of the wares for sale. As we didn’t want the large jar of honey I thanked her and the honey disappeared around the corner of the moving door.
That was certainly a strange experience and one I am quite sure will not be repeated in the near future.