NHESP 2009 Update 4

Wow. I am still a little dizzy. It is a whole other world down here in Ecuador.

Traveling was pretty fun. It took us an entire day. Lynne drove us to Boston to catch our first flight, and then we had a three-hour layover in Miami. The flights went smoothly. We had plenty of time to talk and catch up on writing assignments and sleep. We saw incredible cloud formations outside the plane windows. By the time we got to Quito, it was night-time, and we marveled at the city lights sparkling below us.Some people have gotten obsessed with knitting.

At one point, in the airport there was a line of five people knitting! On the plane, during our nightly meetings, any time they have a spare minute, they whip out their knitting needles.

Thomas met us at the airport, and when we got to Palugo, we were welcomed by Tupac, Natividad and Roberto, the new Ecuadorian additions to our group. It was a very happy meeting, even though most of us don’t speak the same language. We walked up the path to camp together, where we found our cabins waiting for us, and a delicious dinner prepared by our new friends.

Just walking up the hill was exhausting, due to the high altitude. The air was dry and dusty, and rich with the smells of savory plants. I noticed that the rocks under our feet were different, red and black and shiny. In the distance, we could still see the city lights sparkling, and the next day I found out why. There are virtually no forests up here, just scrub. The only tall trees are the rows of eucalyptus planted along the roads and fields. You can see for miles and miles. I woke up the first morning to people outside our cabin exclaiming about the view. “Oh my gosh, come outside! You have to see this!”

The mountains are beautiful. They are a patchwork of fields and trees and roads. You can also see cities, and in the distance stands Mt. Cotopaxi, tall and white and waiting for us.

We arrived here at the end of the dry season. There has been no rain for the past three months, but we are expecting it any day now. Every day we watch the sky and say, maybe tomorrow it will rain.

The first few days we took it relatively easy, adjusting to a new place and altitude. I felt weak and dizzy. The air is too thin and the sun was way too bright.

Now we are mostly adjusted and are getting back into gear with lessons and projects and whatnot. Those of us who speak English have been working very hard on our Spanish, and those who speak Spanish are working hard on their English. Everything takes longer to say because someone always has to translate. Melody has been very helpful in bridging the language gap. So has Hannah C., even though she keeps denying that she speaks Spanish.

Yesterday, we made our knives, with handles made from deer antlers. Nati, Tupac and Roberto have also begun working their spoons and backpacks.

Here is a backpack quote from Mathias. (Read with an Ecuadorian accent) “If you pack your backpack right, you need no pockets.”

Daily chores here are a little different than in NH. I have felt right at home helping out in the garden and with milking. Francisco, Thomas’ dad, has a beautiful herd of Brown Swiss cows. The cows are on pasture and the gardens produce food year round, which is quite a novel idea to me. It has been challenging trying to communicate with the farm workers, who don’t speak any English. Most of them have been here for many years and are a big part of the farm.

One day we had a tour of a neighboring farm, which is run by Thomas’ uncle. Another day we walked to town to buy shoes. It was interesting seeing the different culture. We bought some tasty fruit that I had never even heard of before!

Melody asked me to include this quote about kefir, a tangy drink made by culturing milk with kefir “grains”. She has been making both kefir and yogurt for us.

“The first Kefir grains are said to have been a gift from Allah, delivered by his prophet Mohammed. The grains were treasured by the people who possessed them, passed down from generation to generation, and definitely not shared with strangers.” - Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz

For the NHESP, this is April.