I just discovered the following article while visiting here in Cuenca. It was published in Cuenca High Life, the people that put out the "Gringo Tree" news letter that you can subscribe to for free through Cuenca High Life. Well worth the time if you are living in Cuenca. Wish we had the same kind of thing in Guayaquil.
The article is by Lee Dubs and covers some of the points that were being discussed by Margaret, Willywuver and David in another recent thread. It is called "The Ugly American revisited: arrogance plus ignorance is a recipe for trouble as more N. Americans move to Ecuador"
Here is the link:
http://www.cuencahighlife.com/post/2012/02/10/The-Ugly-American-revisted-arrogance-plus-ignorance-is-a-recipe-for-trouble.aspx