Rain drain.

It rains a lot here, particularly now that it is "winter." (They have 2 seasons here, winter and summer. It's a little cooler and rains more in the winter. That's all.) I've started carrying my umbrella everywhere with me, because it has rained every day since October first. Quito isn't really set up to handle all the rain they get though. The streets turn into rivers and there are little lakes all over the place that must be avoided if you want to be even remotely dry by the time you get home. Not only are the roads poorly drained, but my neighbor's gutter system isn't exactly top-notch.

I just had to take a picture of it. There's a gutter that is falling off the edge of the roof, connected by another loosely attached and ill-fitted piece to what seems to be the downspout, which is wired to the roof and hangs at an angle, shooting the water down onto the other roof and completely missing the dust pan that I assume is there to catch it. What you can't see in the picture is that the water then runs to the edge of the roof and is directed into the street through a similarly faulty set-up. Gotta love that drainage!