A bugs life

MAF has an apartment in Quito that we rent for our staff and other missionaries to use when we need to be up there. It is part of an 11 story apartment complex, and it has a neat view from the roof. Unfortunately, our apartment is practically in the basement. It is definitely NOT luxury living, but is totally adequate for it's intended purpose. The occasional trip in the elevator up to the roof for a great view and some fresh air make staying in that basement apartment bearable!

A few weeks ago when we were in Quito Brooklyn and I were on the roof. All of a sudden she said, "Wook dad...big bug....oooooh, gucky." Sure enough I looked over at this piece of pipe that she was indicating, and there was a HUUUUGE grasshopper. We are used to seeing huge and interesting bugs in the jungle of Shell, but in the high mountains of Quito it took me by surprise. See below for the pic...

The thing I am trying to convey is the grasshopper's size. That is a one and a half inch pipe he is on. The grasshopper is probably 50% bigger in real life than in this picture. I had a hard time trying to get a scale picture of him because he really looks like an ordinary grasshopper... except he was BIG and I could see his teeth! He was as long as my hand, from the tip of my middle finger down to the bottom of my wrist. I bet they used to call him a protein bar in the old days...yum!