Well, I haven't checked in awhile and don't really have anything new to say about my work right now besides school and family gardens, and trying to finish up this application for peace corps partnerships. But I have been living in Ecuador for a little over 9 months so I figured write a few things that the 5 people who read this might find interesting about Ecuadorian culture or what I have experienced at San Lorenzo, so without futher ado, here are 8 things that I can say without being over the top....
1. "Ecua-Time"
This basically refers to anything time related, whether it be a meeting that should start at 2 and ends up starting at 3....or 4....or 5....especially if you're living out in the campo like me. It's funny, some people will show up an hour late to something and then complain about the meeting not starting on time...what?! This used to really be a pet peeve for me but slowly I have gotten used to it.
2. My Height
Now I guess being a little over 6 feet would make me fairly tall in the states but in Ecuador...I know how pro basketball players feel. I get this question all the tall..."are you the tallest person in the united states?" from fully grown men. Now I understand that I maybe the 5 or 6th gringo that they have ever seen and maybe am the tallest one, but I still find it kind of funny.
3. My Feet
Just so that you know I have gigantic feet here...it makes everyone awestruck when we compare shoe sizes. So basically I think either I am a giant and have somehow found myself in middle earth with hobbits. This somehow boosts my ego.
4. English
Obviously being the only american here, I get about 54908357 questions a day about how you say this word or that word in english. Usually they ask about cuss words or animal names so that the kids can insult their friends and the friend who got insulted gets this bewildered look on their face like "I don't understand what i was just called but it i know it was mean". Favorite insults that are said down here by the kids include "goat", "guinea pig" and my personal favorite, "look at my little chicken"
5. White Rice
Staple of all diets in Ecuador (and probably a lot of other countries outside of the US), I have learned to eat and enjoy it 2-3 times a day. Now when I haven't eaten it in two days, I feel really excited when I eat it. This probably makes me a really wierd person, I know.
6. Hideous Horror Movies
All of my ecua-friends absolutely LOVE these movies. All of the Freddy and Jason sequals, all of the Saw movies, the Texas chainsaw massacre remakes, you name it, they love it. I don't know if it is all the violence or maye just watching gringos being stupid and then being chopped into pieces or tortured but it really makes their day. Also with movies, blockbusters that come out in the states (like Transformers) are immediately available down here, illegally filmed in the movie theater then sold down here. Usually they are in terrible quality and come in DVD's like "6 of the best Will Ferrel comedies", so 6 or 7 movies come on one DVD. I found this pretty cool for some reason.
7. Busses
Just so you know, if you're like 80 percent of ecuadorians and have to get somewhere, you need to take the bus. For me (somebody that never really took the bus before) it has been a refreshing and fun experience. A lot of times, I will be waiting for a bus to leave and everyone will take their seats until all of them are filled up, except the one next to me and other times, people just can't wait to talk to me and ask up their pent up questions about the states. I have definitely met some interesting people on the bus for sure. Also, just know that when you ride on a bus in ecuador, you maybe be going only 40 miles, but it will take 2 hours to get there because of the non-stop "stops" to pick up people on the side of the rode and drop them off. Plus, there are usually no bathrooms on the busses (I haven't been in one that has had one) so be prepared to hold it.
8. 1.50 almuerzos (lunches) and meriendas (dinners)
Quite possibly one of my favorite things in Ecuador. At any middle class restuarant, you can usually order an almuerzo during lunch time or a merienda during dinner time and get the following:
A. A tasty soup (sometimes chicken noodle, sometimes a creamy soup with the serve popcorn on the side (I love this by the way) or something with quinoa in it) for the appetizer
B. White rice with some sort of vegetable (beet or carrot) or plantain or bean (lentils, beans) and a decent portioned piece of meat (usually chicken or beef)
C. A fresh juice (lemonade, papaya, pineapple, tomate de arbol (don't know the english word), orange) or other types of tropical fruit. Delicious.
All for 1.50 or sometimes 2.00 for all that...are you kidding me?! Makes me never want to pay 6 or 7 bucks for a sandwich in the states...
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Peace Corps Partnerships
Just a quick note today. I am working on funds for my shredder project and am filing for a grant with the USDA for support. However, there is a limited amount of funding that PC Ecuador can get (100,000) for all the applicants, which may seem like a lot but since every recipient gets around 7,000...and when there are a lot of applicants, not all of them get accepted. Soooo....there is another program that Peace Corps does for funding called Peace Corps Partnerships. In this program I fill our my project sheet (what I am doing, the materials needed, how it is going to affect the community, etc) and hopefully, I recieve donations from friends, familily, organizations (profit or non-profit) from the U.S. to help finance the project down here, since my community can´t afford to pay for everything.
So if any of you are reading this blog (all 5 of you haha) and would be interested in supporting my project (if you don´t know what the project is...read my post called ¨a project¨), respond to the blog with your contact info (name, address, phone number, organization) and I will put your name of the list of potential people who could donate. Or if you have rich friends or know of someone or an organization that would be interested in donating, reply or send an email to me. In the form, I have to put down 8 or 9 people or organizations that could show an interest just so Peace Corps knows that there are people that could support this project, it doesn´t mean that peace corps is going to contact you asking for money, but it is more to gauge an interest. Check out the link below to read about other projects that PCV´s are doing around the world and to see how peace corps partnerships works...I kind of sound like a Peace Corps tool but hey...have to get the word out about this.
Here is the link
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors
So if any of you are reading this blog (all 5 of you haha) and would be interested in supporting my project (if you don´t know what the project is...read my post called ¨a project¨), respond to the blog with your contact info (name, address, phone number, organization) and I will put your name of the list of potential people who could donate. Or if you have rich friends or know of someone or an organization that would be interested in donating, reply or send an email to me. In the form, I have to put down 8 or 9 people or organizations that could show an interest just so Peace Corps knows that there are people that could support this project, it doesn´t mean that peace corps is going to contact you asking for money, but it is more to gauge an interest. Check out the link below to read about other projects that PCV´s are doing around the world and to see how peace corps partnerships works...I kind of sound like a Peace Corps tool but hey...have to get the word out about this.
Here is the link
https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
lets have a strike!
I guess when ecuadorians decide to do something, they really put their hearts into it. It really doesn´t matter what it is, drinking, partying, working, or in this case, striking. We don´t have just one national strike in Ecuador right now, but two. First, the teachers are striking because their benefits are being cut and many of the teachers that have put in the years are set to get a pay cut, some of them get their salaries cut in half. So basically the teachers in the large cities (Quito and Guayaquil) are striking and all the schools around the nation fall in line, usually. Some schools are teachers in Guaranda have crossed the line and have resumed school, others haven´t, especially in San Lorenzo. I think that some of the teachers are enjoying it because they get some extra vacation time but who knows how long they will be on strike. This means that I can´t work with the schools doing gardens and environmental education...which is a large part of my work, but it gives me more time to work on other projects so I guess their is an upside to everything.
The other strike involves the indigenous population, who are striking over water rights because the government wants to privatize water, or so is the rumor. The indigenous people are blocking the roads, especially near cities in the Oriente, where there are lots of groups. Honestly, I am not sure what to make of all of this but people rallying together against ¨the man¨is a pretty common theme in latin america, especially ecuador. We´ll see where it goes from here.
Oh, by the way, in addition to me duties in San Lorenzo, apparently I am a part-time firefighter as well. A few weeks ago I was tending to the garden I have at my house when my host-mom´s sister tells me to grab a shovel and help with a small fire that was on a hill in San Lorenzo. I wasn´t too shocked as most of the farmers here burn their land after they harvest their crops, in this case, corn. But this fire wasn´t exactly a controlled one burning just the intended area. So I rushed up the hill to join my fellow san lorenzens and put out the fire. The closest homes to the fire didn´t have hoses that could help put it out so we took our shovels and smacked down the flames while putting dirt on the others. The fires weren´t that big, but I would like to exaggerate the fact because it makes me sound like a real badass to put out blazing flames with a shovel and dirt. Anyways, the good part was that these fires were happening around 6pm in the afternoon so the cold of the night soon put them all out. That is about how exciting things get in San Lorenzo, you have to start fires to get people really excited about something.
The other strike involves the indigenous population, who are striking over water rights because the government wants to privatize water, or so is the rumor. The indigenous people are blocking the roads, especially near cities in the Oriente, where there are lots of groups. Honestly, I am not sure what to make of all of this but people rallying together against ¨the man¨is a pretty common theme in latin america, especially ecuador. We´ll see where it goes from here.
Oh, by the way, in addition to me duties in San Lorenzo, apparently I am a part-time firefighter as well. A few weeks ago I was tending to the garden I have at my house when my host-mom´s sister tells me to grab a shovel and help with a small fire that was on a hill in San Lorenzo. I wasn´t too shocked as most of the farmers here burn their land after they harvest their crops, in this case, corn. But this fire wasn´t exactly a controlled one burning just the intended area. So I rushed up the hill to join my fellow san lorenzens and put out the fire. The closest homes to the fire didn´t have hoses that could help put it out so we took our shovels and smacked down the flames while putting dirt on the others. The fires weren´t that big, but I would like to exaggerate the fact because it makes me sound like a real badass to put out blazing flames with a shovel and dirt. Anyways, the good part was that these fires were happening around 6pm in the afternoon so the cold of the night soon put them all out. That is about how exciting things get in San Lorenzo, you have to start fires to get people really excited about something.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
A project
Well, I finally have a long term project to work on, something that I can busy myself every day since family or school gardens are exactly a 9-5 job and I think I might go crazy if I don´t have something to do everyday. The project is basically constructing a shredder that can chop up food and organic wastes and then can be descomposed in beds to fertilizer, with the help of the cure all of animal shit. Then, these bags of fertilizer will be sold out of my counterpart´s cooperative to farmers at discount prices that are far lower then the chemical stuff they buy in the city. Hopefully this project can be small business project as well as we can hire some jovenes (young men) from San Lorenzo to be the employees and then long term would be to form a sort of ecological club in San Lorenzo using this project as a base.
But before that happens, a lot of stuff needs to happen first. We need funding for this project, so I am filling out a PL-480 form, which is like a grant from the USDA to help fund a developmental project abroad. It can be up to 7,000 dollars which could easily covers the costs of this project. However, I am primarily responsible for doing the PL-480 and it should be interesting because I have never written a grant before, let alone in Spanish. Lets just say I am wearing out my spanish-english dictionary as we speak. It is really tough and frustrating at times but it is helping my vocabulary so I guess there is always a benefit. So if we get the funding, we can either buy or construct the shredder. What is exciting is that a friend of mine´s cousin actually makes the exact shredders that we care looking for...it really is a small world. Then we have to ask for the support of the local government to help us gather up the kitchen scraps and organic wastes from the families around San Lorenzo. There is a truck that comes by once a week that picks up the trash so this could be doable. If they don´t want to support us, then it might be a little harder. You never know with small town politics. We´ll see, but I am really exciting about the potential of the project in the benefits (organic fertilizer, education for the young kids who work, employment, small businesses, and the knowledge for the farmers that they can actually cust their costs and improve their soil at the same time).
Also, I am excited about our reconnect conference next week, I will be able to see some other PCVs that I haven´t seen in a few months, though we won´t all be together, since it is regional and they split us up depending on the region (coast, highlands, jungle). But something is better than nothing I figure.
Till next time....
But before that happens, a lot of stuff needs to happen first. We need funding for this project, so I am filling out a PL-480 form, which is like a grant from the USDA to help fund a developmental project abroad. It can be up to 7,000 dollars which could easily covers the costs of this project. However, I am primarily responsible for doing the PL-480 and it should be interesting because I have never written a grant before, let alone in Spanish. Lets just say I am wearing out my spanish-english dictionary as we speak. It is really tough and frustrating at times but it is helping my vocabulary so I guess there is always a benefit. So if we get the funding, we can either buy or construct the shredder. What is exciting is that a friend of mine´s cousin actually makes the exact shredders that we care looking for...it really is a small world. Then we have to ask for the support of the local government to help us gather up the kitchen scraps and organic wastes from the families around San Lorenzo. There is a truck that comes by once a week that picks up the trash so this could be doable. If they don´t want to support us, then it might be a little harder. You never know with small town politics. We´ll see, but I am really exciting about the potential of the project in the benefits (organic fertilizer, education for the young kids who work, employment, small businesses, and the knowledge for the farmers that they can actually cust their costs and improve their soil at the same time).
Also, I am excited about our reconnect conference next week, I will be able to see some other PCVs that I haven´t seen in a few months, though we won´t all be together, since it is regional and they split us up depending on the region (coast, highlands, jungle). But something is better than nothing I figure.
Till next time....
Friday, August 14, 2009
Fiestas
One of the first things I learned about Ecuadorian Culture (besides ecua-time) are these annual events that each community has called fiestas. They are usually held one month a year every year where everyone in their respective communities, plus it seems like every known relative, get together and have fun, ecuadorian style. For what reason? Supposedly it is religion (catholic) as one weekend my community celebrates the patron saint (Lorenzo, hence the name of the town), another is the virgen, another is something I can´t remember off the top of my head. All that I can tell is that their may be a lot of religious sentiment and some people do go to church and worship, I see a lot of booze, bullfights, and baile.
Now I haven´t been to fiestas in every town across Ecuador, but I have been to three or four, and as far as I can tell, the majority consist of these few items. If you don´t have them, it can´t be an Ecuadorian fiesta.
1. ¨Toros¨ - I am not sure why they´re called toros since the ecuadorians actually use young cows, but I guess toros sounds better than saying, lets go to the vacas. Usually there is a fenced in area, similar to a corral, and people stand around watch as people bullfight the cows. In San Lorenzo, they built a small stadium out of wood and charge people to see the toros, but hey, atleast you get a stadium seat. A lot of times people from the crowd hop it and give it a go, it is pretty fascinating to watch. Usually, it ends up being drunk people who run in the ring and try to get the cow´s attention, once successfully done, they run to the side of the ring and hop over before the cow rams them. Sometimes it is successful, sometimes it isn´t. The crowd gets into it when someone get tromped, as long as they are not too hurt. By the way, there are red cross people in the crowd as well. Being stomped and showing off your scars in alomost like a badge of honor. My local friends want me to give it a shot, we´ll see how it goes.
2. ¨Baile¨- or dance for all you gringos out there. Pretty self explanatory, as it starts around 10pm and goes to about 2 or 3 in the morning, when the music shuts off. Mix lots of beer and trago (a rum type liquor) plus a DJ on the stage plus ecuadorians and you get the drift. 80% of the men are drunk and even some of the women drink too, but not as much. What gets me in that the songs are mixed into sets, so during one song you can dance from 15 minutes to sometimes 45 straight minutes. It is no wonder that ecuadorians don´t move around a lot when they dance, you would get too tired and the buzz might actually wear off. Not to worry though, there are people that walk around and hand you bear or trago during the dance. We wouldn´t want to lose the drunkeness factor.
3. ¨Games and Fireworks¨- A small old ferris wheel was built in our plaza, foosball tables are here, endless vendors hocking food, trinkets, music, and DVDs are everywhere. At night before the baile, firecrackers and small fireworks are blown up. Firecrackers are a big deal in San Lorenzo, everyone loves them.
So there you have it, enjoy.
Now I haven´t been to fiestas in every town across Ecuador, but I have been to three or four, and as far as I can tell, the majority consist of these few items. If you don´t have them, it can´t be an Ecuadorian fiesta.
1. ¨Toros¨ - I am not sure why they´re called toros since the ecuadorians actually use young cows, but I guess toros sounds better than saying, lets go to the vacas. Usually there is a fenced in area, similar to a corral, and people stand around watch as people bullfight the cows. In San Lorenzo, they built a small stadium out of wood and charge people to see the toros, but hey, atleast you get a stadium seat. A lot of times people from the crowd hop it and give it a go, it is pretty fascinating to watch. Usually, it ends up being drunk people who run in the ring and try to get the cow´s attention, once successfully done, they run to the side of the ring and hop over before the cow rams them. Sometimes it is successful, sometimes it isn´t. The crowd gets into it when someone get tromped, as long as they are not too hurt. By the way, there are red cross people in the crowd as well. Being stomped and showing off your scars in alomost like a badge of honor. My local friends want me to give it a shot, we´ll see how it goes.
2. ¨Baile¨- or dance for all you gringos out there. Pretty self explanatory, as it starts around 10pm and goes to about 2 or 3 in the morning, when the music shuts off. Mix lots of beer and trago (a rum type liquor) plus a DJ on the stage plus ecuadorians and you get the drift. 80% of the men are drunk and even some of the women drink too, but not as much. What gets me in that the songs are mixed into sets, so during one song you can dance from 15 minutes to sometimes 45 straight minutes. It is no wonder that ecuadorians don´t move around a lot when they dance, you would get too tired and the buzz might actually wear off. Not to worry though, there are people that walk around and hand you bear or trago during the dance. We wouldn´t want to lose the drunkeness factor.
3. ¨Games and Fireworks¨- A small old ferris wheel was built in our plaza, foosball tables are here, endless vendors hocking food, trinkets, music, and DVDs are everywhere. At night before the baile, firecrackers and small fireworks are blown up. Firecrackers are a big deal in San Lorenzo, everyone loves them.
So there you have it, enjoy.
Saturday, July 25, 2009
little by little
When I first got to San Lorenzo nearly three months ago, the first week was exciting and filled with moments like ¨wow, its great that I am here¨and älright, the peace corps experience is finally happenning¨. Yet, after a week here, I started to get bored...really bored. On the pamphlet that details my project, at the bottom of it, it says ¨this site is devoted to someone who has a lot of motivation¨, so I guess that is what the Peace Corps thinks I have. There is no set project that I walked into, as most things that I work on are based on the seasons or when schools are in session.
So with me being bored, I just started walking around my community and tried to get to know people in my broken spanish. As expected, some interesting moments with a lot of lost in translation. It is especially tough with the older people because I can´t tell if they are speaking spanish or quechua or if i just can´t understand it...probably the third option. Anyways, people would ask me what I am doing and I would tell them that I am walking around (they give me the weirdest looks...especially if i am on a hike...if you are walking somewhere, it usually is because you are working, but not exercising).
What has really helped me out are these CAT tools, which have forced me to talk to practically every different family in san lorenzo and usually during the interviews I tell them my job description and often help with their gardens or doing something with english after that. This has opened the doors into doing other projects, like creating organic fertilizers and things like that. Though one part of my work is working on the canal, we have finished up the mingas (workdays) to clean up the canal so it can be used, doing projects at this point is going to be challenging because trying to communicate with the canal president is like talking to a wall. It is amazing how this guy got elected as president because everyone I talk to complains about the water situation here. Yet...he´ll probably get re-elected...that is small town ecuadorian politics for you I guess.
It really is amazing how time goes by faster when you have something to do nearly everyday, I finally feel like I am actually doing something. The first large project that I want to work in is getting a large shredder that can take food waste, chop it up, and in time, can be used as a compost/fertilizer mixture for gardens and farms. But the shredder must be built because I doubt anyone has one at a reasonable price in Ecuador. So I am going to have to talk to engineers in Guarandsa to see if they can help a gringo out, we´ll see.
I am also excited about august as San Lorenzo has its fiestas, in which the whole town parties every weekend for a reason I really don´t know, but I am sure I will find out soon enough.
So with me being bored, I just started walking around my community and tried to get to know people in my broken spanish. As expected, some interesting moments with a lot of lost in translation. It is especially tough with the older people because I can´t tell if they are speaking spanish or quechua or if i just can´t understand it...probably the third option. Anyways, people would ask me what I am doing and I would tell them that I am walking around (they give me the weirdest looks...especially if i am on a hike...if you are walking somewhere, it usually is because you are working, but not exercising).
What has really helped me out are these CAT tools, which have forced me to talk to practically every different family in san lorenzo and usually during the interviews I tell them my job description and often help with their gardens or doing something with english after that. This has opened the doors into doing other projects, like creating organic fertilizers and things like that. Though one part of my work is working on the canal, we have finished up the mingas (workdays) to clean up the canal so it can be used, doing projects at this point is going to be challenging because trying to communicate with the canal president is like talking to a wall. It is amazing how this guy got elected as president because everyone I talk to complains about the water situation here. Yet...he´ll probably get re-elected...that is small town ecuadorian politics for you I guess.
It really is amazing how time goes by faster when you have something to do nearly everyday, I finally feel like I am actually doing something. The first large project that I want to work in is getting a large shredder that can take food waste, chop it up, and in time, can be used as a compost/fertilizer mixture for gardens and farms. But the shredder must be built because I doubt anyone has one at a reasonable price in Ecuador. So I am going to have to talk to engineers in Guarandsa to see if they can help a gringo out, we´ll see.
I am also excited about august as San Lorenzo has its fiestas, in which the whole town parties every weekend for a reason I really don´t know, but I am sure I will find out soon enough.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
truly inspirational
first off i would like to say happy 4th of the july to the millions of people (or 10) who read this blog, it is always interesting being in a foreign country on major american holidays, especially when you´re literally the only american in your whole province. on the fourth of july, i thought i would write about an ecuadorian...obviously, right?
now i am working with as many farmers and families as i can with their fields or indivividual gardens. one of them is named luis, and he has literally inspired my work here...not to get all cheasy here or anything like that. luis lives with his family (wife and two kids) and has only 9 fingers because he lost his thumb in a late night accident in Guayaquil (where he used to live) before coming to san lorenzo. He lives in a large house (shack might be the most appropriate word) with no running water, no electricity, soil as a floor, and numerous holes in the wall. This might not seem too bad but it gets pretty cold here in san lorenzo and makes for a pretty cozy sleep. Luis has never been to school and his knowledge come from life experiences-
this may not seem to bad as many ecuadorians live without running water, electricity and have soil as a floor. but luis lives with such a passion in his life, every time i see him or work with him, he has a smile on his face as if he is lucky just to be living today. their family does not have any expendable income but he grows everything his family needs (organically by the way) with all ailments to illnesses coming from plants that he grows, like manzanilla. He has a real passion for the environment and the land he works on, he really respects it. He tries to pursuade people to grow different crops (instead of corn, wheat or potatoes) and grow them the natural way because when you don´t have the money to afford fertilizers, you have to figure out another way.
every time i have ¨one of those days¨, i go talk to luis and his energy seems to cheer me up and make me realize that even the worst days here aren´t that bad.
oh on a side note, my mom sent me a camping shower so now i am not showering with cold water like the pervious 4 months. i thought i would look forward to this day like christmas morning but a part of me is going to miss those cold showers, something about them is psychotically refreshing. i mean, i could take them whenever i want but when you´re in the sierra, it doesn´t seem too tempting.
for those of you in the states, blow up a piece of america for me today
now i am working with as many farmers and families as i can with their fields or indivividual gardens. one of them is named luis, and he has literally inspired my work here...not to get all cheasy here or anything like that. luis lives with his family (wife and two kids) and has only 9 fingers because he lost his thumb in a late night accident in Guayaquil (where he used to live) before coming to san lorenzo. He lives in a large house (shack might be the most appropriate word) with no running water, no electricity, soil as a floor, and numerous holes in the wall. This might not seem too bad but it gets pretty cold here in san lorenzo and makes for a pretty cozy sleep. Luis has never been to school and his knowledge come from life experiences-
this may not seem to bad as many ecuadorians live without running water, electricity and have soil as a floor. but luis lives with such a passion in his life, every time i see him or work with him, he has a smile on his face as if he is lucky just to be living today. their family does not have any expendable income but he grows everything his family needs (organically by the way) with all ailments to illnesses coming from plants that he grows, like manzanilla. He has a real passion for the environment and the land he works on, he really respects it. He tries to pursuade people to grow different crops (instead of corn, wheat or potatoes) and grow them the natural way because when you don´t have the money to afford fertilizers, you have to figure out another way.
every time i have ¨one of those days¨, i go talk to luis and his energy seems to cheer me up and make me realize that even the worst days here aren´t that bad.
oh on a side note, my mom sent me a camping shower so now i am not showering with cold water like the pervious 4 months. i thought i would look forward to this day like christmas morning but a part of me is going to miss those cold showers, something about them is psychotically refreshing. i mean, i could take them whenever i want but when you´re in the sierra, it doesn´t seem too tempting.
for those of you in the states, blow up a piece of america for me today
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
parades, elections and bucket baths
So San Lorenzo celebrated its 475 anniversary on June 1st and they have a parade evey year to show off the organizations that they have in the community. One of the organizations is the cooperative of san lorenzo in which my counterpart in the manager of. So I wake up that day knowing that there is going to be a parade and celebration but what I didn´t know is that I was going to be in it as well walking with her. It definitely was a little awkward since we walked in the front of the parade just behind the president of the junta parraoquial (its like the mayor ) and no one walking behind us for a great length as everyone in town is there looking at you. I didn´t know whether to wave and stop or just keep walking while drunk people are yelling in a mixture of slurred spanish and kichwa (or quichoa)...at 10 am.
Last sunday the community had their junta parroquial elections (city council), in which my counterpart and her brother were on one of the lists. I would consider their veiwpoints to be more along the lines of the green party, or some type of a liberal candidate. Suffice to say, they ended up coming in 5th place out of 5 lists (although, one person was chosen from each list to be on the city council, so my counterpart´s brother made it that way). Anyways, this is important to me because in small towns, to get any projects going, you need to converse with the junta parroquial. I haven´t talked with the president too much but from what I hear she is pretty easy to get along with so I feel this won´t hinder anything moving forward, but who knows. What I am really glad for is that the elections are finally over in this town. Not a day didn´t go by that I didn´t hear a song from each of the party´s (yes, they all have songs) lists being played ad nauseum for hours every day. 6am? why not....10:30pm?....sure, lets give it a go. Then, we have each people who represent the lists drive around in their trucks with megaphones attached to the top of the trucks yelling out their propaganda. They sure enjoy their politics down here.
On a different note, at our house, we were out of running water for about a week at the start of june so i learned how to live without running water for awhile (wasn´t too bad, just a little more work). Anyways, I had to bath myself and learned the time old tradition of the bucket bath. I don´t think I have taken one of those since I was washed as a baby in the sink of our house. I found it a little hard not to get the shampoo out of my eyes when I washed my hair, I think I need to lean back further on attempts in the future. Live and learn I guess.
Last sunday the community had their junta parroquial elections (city council), in which my counterpart and her brother were on one of the lists. I would consider their veiwpoints to be more along the lines of the green party, or some type of a liberal candidate. Suffice to say, they ended up coming in 5th place out of 5 lists (although, one person was chosen from each list to be on the city council, so my counterpart´s brother made it that way). Anyways, this is important to me because in small towns, to get any projects going, you need to converse with the junta parroquial. I haven´t talked with the president too much but from what I hear she is pretty easy to get along with so I feel this won´t hinder anything moving forward, but who knows. What I am really glad for is that the elections are finally over in this town. Not a day didn´t go by that I didn´t hear a song from each of the party´s (yes, they all have songs) lists being played ad nauseum for hours every day. 6am? why not....10:30pm?....sure, lets give it a go. Then, we have each people who represent the lists drive around in their trucks with megaphones attached to the top of the trucks yelling out their propaganda. They sure enjoy their politics down here.
On a different note, at our house, we were out of running water for about a week at the start of june so i learned how to live without running water for awhile (wasn´t too bad, just a little more work). Anyways, I had to bath myself and learned the time old tradition of the bucket bath. I don´t think I have taken one of those since I was washed as a baby in the sink of our house. I found it a little hard not to get the shampoo out of my eyes when I washed my hair, I think I need to lean back further on attempts in the future. Live and learn I guess.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
you can teach english, right?
One of the first projects we are supose to do as PCVs is called CAT, which is basically a community needs assessment project. I am suppose to interview 50 or so families and find out what sort of long term porojects I can develop over the next two years. We give a presentation at our reconnect conference in a few months with our counterpart and then give the presentation again to our community. Anyways, during my interviews with the families (the ones that actually agree to talk to me...I think most people think I am a missionary or something), I inevitably talk about what I am doing in the community. I give the whole thing about community gardens, working on the irrigation canal, small businesses, and then I mention casually that I am willing to help out with english classes, or atleast tutor people who want help.
Usually people just smile and nod until I tell them that I am willing to help their son, daughter and themselves with english, then they perk up like it is christmas morning. ¨clases de ingles, en serio?¨ is usually the typical response. And word has gotten around town that the gringo is willing to help out with english, so this has given me something to do on top of the other stuff i am working on. I have to remind my fellow san lorenzons (i am sure that is what they are called) that i willing to help and tutor but that I am NOT an english teacher. It certainly has been a learning experience for me as one day I am helping a 10 year old kid who basically knows nothing to a 29 year old woman who can read and write but needs help speaking. I am trying not to make this my number one goal here but it has helped fill out the schedule and hopefully some of the kids will use it later in the their lives.
As far as the other projects go, i have my own demonstration garden going and have had a few workdays getting the community garden going at the local health center. Also, we have had a few mingas (workdays) on the canal outside of san lorenzo, avalanches of dirt get into the canal as must be cleaned out with many of the following combination: shovel, pick, hoe, 35 to 40 ecuadorians, one tall gringo. Any of these combinations will suffice to cleaning out a canal. Make sure that it is really hot while you´re at it.
Other than that, I am just trying to intergrate with my community, really try to get to know the locals, it has been fun at times, awkward at others and plain hilarious when you see people who are afraid to talk to you sober but when they are drunk (usually sundays), they absolutely love slurring their spanish to the new gringo.
Till next time
Usually people just smile and nod until I tell them that I am willing to help their son, daughter and themselves with english, then they perk up like it is christmas morning. ¨clases de ingles, en serio?¨ is usually the typical response. And word has gotten around town that the gringo is willing to help out with english, so this has given me something to do on top of the other stuff i am working on. I have to remind my fellow san lorenzons (i am sure that is what they are called) that i willing to help and tutor but that I am NOT an english teacher. It certainly has been a learning experience for me as one day I am helping a 10 year old kid who basically knows nothing to a 29 year old woman who can read and write but needs help speaking. I am trying not to make this my number one goal here but it has helped fill out the schedule and hopefully some of the kids will use it later in the their lives.
As far as the other projects go, i have my own demonstration garden going and have had a few workdays getting the community garden going at the local health center. Also, we have had a few mingas (workdays) on the canal outside of san lorenzo, avalanches of dirt get into the canal as must be cleaned out with many of the following combination: shovel, pick, hoe, 35 to 40 ecuadorians, one tall gringo. Any of these combinations will suffice to cleaning out a canal. Make sure that it is really hot while you´re at it.
Other than that, I am just trying to intergrate with my community, really try to get to know the locals, it has been fun at times, awkward at others and plain hilarious when you see people who are afraid to talk to you sober but when they are drunk (usually sundays), they absolutely love slurring their spanish to the new gringo.
Till next time
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
The U Curve
During our training, the peace corps does a session on your state of mind once you get to your site. It is said that volunteers go through a U curve of some sorts. First you arrive in Ecuador or at your site, and you are in the honeymoon period. Everything is so exciting to you, the food, the culture, learning spanish, getting to know your fellow PCVs, etc. Then reality starts to set in, you start missing your family, friends from back home, miss having all the creature comforts that you had back in the states. It is said that you enter a depressed period. Then with time, you either stay depressed and truly start to dislike this country or you start heading back up the U curve, into the humor/ acceptance stage of your perios of service. Well, apparently, this weekend I went through the whole damn U curve...
So for the first time last weekend, I really got sick. Not the ¨oh, I have diarrhia, i just need to drink some water and I´ll be alright¨, that happens all the time...or atleast to me. Not only did I have diarrhia, but I had these sulfur type burps, which are not fun and they taste absolutely disgusting. I would of thrown up too had I actually been able to eat some food. The reason I got sick...maybe it was playing with animal shit all day trying to get a compost pile going while later cooking that night with meat that was probably better left untouched. This was sunday...monday and tuesday really didn´t feel that great. Everything little thing that bothers you about a place becomes compounded when you are sick. The cold showers, eating plates of white rice after white rice, the bumpy bus rides that take twice as long as they should, that fact that in most houses, I can´t stand up straight because the walls are made for 6ft gringos and that you have lost weight from being sick. All those things, and then you realize ¨why am I here right now...what am I doing here?¨
Yet then you wake up one day (i.e. today) and you feel better. The air smells cleaner, you can actually eat breakfast, the spanish just seems to flow out of you, you don´t have to think about it. You realize that life here doesn´t suck, it would of sucked if I was sick in the states too. And you´re heading back up that U curve...
So for the first time last weekend, I really got sick. Not the ¨oh, I have diarrhia, i just need to drink some water and I´ll be alright¨, that happens all the time...or atleast to me. Not only did I have diarrhia, but I had these sulfur type burps, which are not fun and they taste absolutely disgusting. I would of thrown up too had I actually been able to eat some food. The reason I got sick...maybe it was playing with animal shit all day trying to get a compost pile going while later cooking that night with meat that was probably better left untouched. This was sunday...monday and tuesday really didn´t feel that great. Everything little thing that bothers you about a place becomes compounded when you are sick. The cold showers, eating plates of white rice after white rice, the bumpy bus rides that take twice as long as they should, that fact that in most houses, I can´t stand up straight because the walls are made for 6ft gringos and that you have lost weight from being sick. All those things, and then you realize ¨why am I here right now...what am I doing here?¨
Yet then you wake up one day (i.e. today) and you feel better. The air smells cleaner, you can actually eat breakfast, the spanish just seems to flow out of you, you don´t have to think about it. You realize that life here doesn´t suck, it would of sucked if I was sick in the states too. And you´re heading back up that U curve...
Saturday, May 2, 2009
The next step
After nearly a 10 month application process (how many times did I have to go to the dentist?), then a 5 month wait after learning that I would be going to Ecuador and 9 weeks of training, I am officially a Peace Corps Volunteer! It is...finally...here. Omnibus 101 swore in last wednesday at the ambassador´s office in Quito in the lawn in front of the building. I have mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I am exciting about getting to my site, integrating into the community and continuing some projects however I will miss my fellow volunteers from 101 that I have gotten to know pretty well over the last 9 weeks. Anyways, I guess all good things must come to an end as I get ready to the real Peace Corps experience. I got into San Lorenzo on Thursday, a day after the swear-in celebration...I´m not going to lie...the 6 hour bus ride wasn´t the greateast experience I have had ;-). Anyways, I am excited to be here and glad that training is over (another safety and security session and I don´t know what I would have done...)
We spent three days in Quito before heading out, it was kind of crazy because Ecuador just had its presidential elections and Rafael Correa got re-elected, which is apparently the first time that has happend in the last 40 years. There have been 8 presidents in the last 10 years...so stability might be a good thing. I don´t know too much about Correa so I won´t comment on it, but it seems opinions are mixed. The interesting thing is that when we were in Quito, we were all standing on a street corner and a guy told us that ¨Correa was coming around the corner and we couldn´t cross the street¨. Not 30 seconds later, a caravan rolls by and Correa passes us by with his window down not 5 feet away. I was dissapointed I didn´t get a pic but I did wave as us and ask us where we were from. Ahhh, the glamarous life of a peace corps volunteer!
Anyways, I got an address at my site, if you want to send me something (letters, paperbacks, non perishable food would be appreciated). Just don´t declare anything and limit it to under 4.4 pounds (4 pounds to be safe), I don´t want to go to customs to pick it up.
Josh Raser
Casilla 02-01-32
Guaranda, Ecuador
South America
till next time...
We spent three days in Quito before heading out, it was kind of crazy because Ecuador just had its presidential elections and Rafael Correa got re-elected, which is apparently the first time that has happend in the last 40 years. There have been 8 presidents in the last 10 years...so stability might be a good thing. I don´t know too much about Correa so I won´t comment on it, but it seems opinions are mixed. The interesting thing is that when we were in Quito, we were all standing on a street corner and a guy told us that ¨Correa was coming around the corner and we couldn´t cross the street¨. Not 30 seconds later, a caravan rolls by and Correa passes us by with his window down not 5 feet away. I was dissapointed I didn´t get a pic but I did wave as us and ask us where we were from. Ahhh, the glamarous life of a peace corps volunteer!
Anyways, I got an address at my site, if you want to send me something (letters, paperbacks, non perishable food would be appreciated). Just don´t declare anything and limit it to under 4.4 pounds (4 pounds to be safe), I don´t want to go to customs to pick it up.
Josh Raser
Casilla 02-01-32
Guaranda, Ecuador
South America
till next time...
Monday, April 20, 2009
tech trip
A lot has happend in the last two weeks as I have not had time to update this thing. It was cool spending Semana Santa in Pesillo with my host family and have some down time with them. One of the days my host mother made us fanesca, which is a typical ecuadorian dish, consisting of soup and other vegetables (supposedly it has 12 grains in it). It was really good...served with this drink that tasted like a cross between oatmeal and horchata. During that weekend, I got to experience something rather incredible. One of the PCTs, Ian, who is jewish, hosted a sader at the restaurant in Pesillo, where one other PCT, Mike, lives. Mike´s host family was there and so was every other PCT in Pesillo. It was interesting to say the least because first I didn´t know what a sader is and second, it was mostly in Spanish. You really have to love the cross-cultural immersion of Jewish and the Catholic religions together. My contribution to the whole thing was helping Mike´s host family paint their restaurant, pretty random but they were doing it and I offered to help.
After that, our entire group headed to Porto-Quito to start our 8 day cultural/technical trip. Porto-Quito is located about 2 hours west of Quito in what is known as a transitional zone. It was extremely hot and the conditions were almost jungle like...very humid. It was fun hanging out by the pool, playing soccer, and just relaxing for a few days. Even the cold showers felt nice! Anyways, we did do some organic gardening sessions, mixed in with a ¨leadership¨ session, which was actually very informational and not boring. I have tons of bug bites on my calfs to prove that I went there, the itching has just started to subside. After that, the sierra group (all the volunteers heading to work in sierra region, about 16 of us) headed to Riobamba, which is about 4 hours south of Quito. One of the larger cities in Ecuador, it was a good change of pace to actually experience a larger city in Ecuador. The agricultural group headed to an organic farm just outside of Riobamba and visited a farm with its own microclimate that can grow fruit (such as oranges, blackberries, and limes) that normally cannot be grown in the sierra because of its climate. Fascinating stuff and something to aspire to at my site. After Riombamba, the group headed to Salinas, which is about 2 hours west of Riobamba and 1 1/2 hours north of my site in San Lorenzo. Salinas is known for its cheese, chocolate and other value added products like soccer balls. Spending time there (along with some breathtaking hiking) showed me what could be done with local resources if used properly, definitely something to aspire to.
Really tired from traveling all day...10 more days until my projects begin!
Ashta Cama
After that, our entire group headed to Porto-Quito to start our 8 day cultural/technical trip. Porto-Quito is located about 2 hours west of Quito in what is known as a transitional zone. It was extremely hot and the conditions were almost jungle like...very humid. It was fun hanging out by the pool, playing soccer, and just relaxing for a few days. Even the cold showers felt nice! Anyways, we did do some organic gardening sessions, mixed in with a ¨leadership¨ session, which was actually very informational and not boring. I have tons of bug bites on my calfs to prove that I went there, the itching has just started to subside. After that, the sierra group (all the volunteers heading to work in sierra region, about 16 of us) headed to Riobamba, which is about 4 hours south of Quito. One of the larger cities in Ecuador, it was a good change of pace to actually experience a larger city in Ecuador. The agricultural group headed to an organic farm just outside of Riobamba and visited a farm with its own microclimate that can grow fruit (such as oranges, blackberries, and limes) that normally cannot be grown in the sierra because of its climate. Fascinating stuff and something to aspire to at my site. After Riombamba, the group headed to Salinas, which is about 2 hours west of Riobamba and 1 1/2 hours north of my site in San Lorenzo. Salinas is known for its cheese, chocolate and other value added products like soccer balls. Spending time there (along with some breathtaking hiking) showed me what could be done with local resources if used properly, definitely something to aspire to.
Really tired from traveling all day...10 more days until my projects begin!
Ashta Cama
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Lovin´ San Lorenzo
As stated in the last blog post, my site will be in San Lorenzo, a tiny pueblo of about 800 people 6 hours south of Quito by bus. This week I got to visit my site for a few days, meet my counterpart, and look at some of the projects that I will be continuing. On sunday I headed down with Mary, who is one of our co-trainers and the PCV which I will be replacing. The bus ride was long...but once I got there, it was all worth it. San Lorenzo is a nestled in the mountains of the sierra, on a clear day you can see Chimborazo, which is the highest mountain in Ecuador. I arrived to meet my host-family, who is all super nice and welcoming. It helped to know that I am the 2nd PCV to ever be there, so everyone is down didn´t seem to shocked to see another gringo...I think. My host-mother is my counterpart (the person I am working closely with) and she also happens to be pretty amazing. She is a single mom, raising three kids (20 year old daughter, 13 year old son, 5 year old daughter) and is also the president of the cooperative that I am working with. I honestly don´t know when she sleeps but it has to be sometime during the night. I got along with the family instantly even though my spanish is not where I want it to be (which is to say...perfect) but it helps to be able to laugh at yourself.
I got to see the canal that I will be working on, it extends about 5 km back from the city in the hills...beautiful hike with amazing views of the city and surrounding communities. So if anyone comes down to visit me...you know of one place where we are going. Checked out the gardens at the schools...i said i would offer to help out teaching english...don´t be surprised if I am english teacher to go along with peace corps volunteer in a few months. I am really excited about a few reforestation projects that I can be involved with and the vermicomposting project as well. Basically we would take food waste from the city and chop it up in a shredder and use it in worm beds to make compost. We would still need to design and make the shredder, which mary would help me with.
As far as the cooperative goes...I will be helping Maria (my counterpart) make value-added products to help create small businesses. Two of the highlights are making marmelade out of sambor (similar to watermelon) and making wine. Wine is usually not grown in this part of Ecuador but it will be interesting to see what happens with that.
I am really excited about everything right now...I always thought my peace corps experience would be living in some shack by myself in the middle of nowhere with no running water and electricity. I don´t know if I got lucky or not, maybe I should of applied to go to Africa then. I guess I came in with such low expectations that everything I recieve is a luxury, I don´t know. Anyways...I got a week then we head out on our technical trips (a week learning agricultural practices with other volunteers that will be living in the Sierra)...stoked about that.
Ciao
I got to see the canal that I will be working on, it extends about 5 km back from the city in the hills...beautiful hike with amazing views of the city and surrounding communities. So if anyone comes down to visit me...you know of one place where we are going. Checked out the gardens at the schools...i said i would offer to help out teaching english...don´t be surprised if I am english teacher to go along with peace corps volunteer in a few months. I am really excited about a few reforestation projects that I can be involved with and the vermicomposting project as well. Basically we would take food waste from the city and chop it up in a shredder and use it in worm beds to make compost. We would still need to design and make the shredder, which mary would help me with.
As far as the cooperative goes...I will be helping Maria (my counterpart) make value-added products to help create small businesses. Two of the highlights are making marmelade out of sambor (similar to watermelon) and making wine. Wine is usually not grown in this part of Ecuador but it will be interesting to see what happens with that.
I am really excited about everything right now...I always thought my peace corps experience would be living in some shack by myself in the middle of nowhere with no running water and electricity. I don´t know if I got lucky or not, maybe I should of applied to go to Africa then. I guess I came in with such low expectations that everything I recieve is a luxury, I don´t know. Anyways...I got a week then we head out on our technical trips (a week learning agricultural practices with other volunteers that will be living in the Sierra)...stoked about that.
Ciao
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
My site
So after 6 months of knowing what country I am going to in the peace corps (Ecuador, duh...), I finally know where I will be spending the next two years. My site is a small town about 6 hours south of Quito (by bus) in the Sierra called San Lorenzo, in the province of Bolivar. It is a town of about 800 people with a surrounding community of 2,000, sort of like Pesillo. The neareast city is Guaranda, which I will be going to for supplies and Riobamba (which I heard was really nice as well). One of the 4 co-trainers that we have right now worked and lived at that site so I get to pick her brain about everything. My official job description is a bit open-ended but here are the highlights:
1. I will be working with an agricultural cooperative that is interested in promoting small value-added projects and also work with the community to improve record-keeping and collection mechanisms.
2. Improve irrigation use and water management, especially field level irrigation
3. Crop diversification, school, and family gardens. (also help with solid waste management using worm composting)
It sounds like a lot and I guess it is, but I will be working in an unstructured environment and need to ¨self-motivated¨. We´ll see how it goes...very excited about the whole thing. I will be doing a site visit on sunday through thursday of next week in San Lorenzo to check it out and get to know my counterpart, the person who I will be working with the closest (she happens to be my host mother for the first 3 months so that is cool). From the map, San Lorenzo is sort of in the middle of Ecuador, maybe a little south...but I like it because I am in the mountains and can get to the coast or oriente (jungle) within a day, so I can visit other volunteers as well.
It is great knowing where I will be going to...finally, now I can prepare myself for the next stage of Peace Corps life.
Til´ next time
1. I will be working with an agricultural cooperative that is interested in promoting small value-added projects and also work with the community to improve record-keeping and collection mechanisms.
2. Improve irrigation use and water management, especially field level irrigation
3. Crop diversification, school, and family gardens. (also help with solid waste management using worm composting)
It sounds like a lot and I guess it is, but I will be working in an unstructured environment and need to ¨self-motivated¨. We´ll see how it goes...very excited about the whole thing. I will be doing a site visit on sunday through thursday of next week in San Lorenzo to check it out and get to know my counterpart, the person who I will be working with the closest (she happens to be my host mother for the first 3 months so that is cool). From the map, San Lorenzo is sort of in the middle of Ecuador, maybe a little south...but I like it because I am in the mountains and can get to the coast or oriente (jungle) within a day, so I can visit other volunteers as well.
It is great knowing where I will be going to...finally, now I can prepare myself for the next stage of Peace Corps life.
Til´ next time
Thursday, March 19, 2009
10,000 ft and feeling good
Here is the thing about living your whole life at sea level...living in a city that is 10,000ft above sea level is kind of hard to do at first. When I arrived in Quito...walking uphill on a street was like running a marathon, I felt exhausted. Everyone says that you need a few weeks to adjust to the altitude and they were not kidding, it takes a while. This is entering my fourth week in Ecuador and I finally feel like I am back to where I was before I left. I went for a hike in these hills outside of Pesillo with a few other PCTs (that is what we are called...Peace Corps Trainees) and actually felt really good, it felt great to actually do physical activities again and it is good to have people around me who share that passion. Also, the other thing I am getting used to is being at such as high elevation right on the equator...I got burned even though it was cloudy that day and I already put on sunscreen in the morning. So, I am putting on sunscreen even if it is snowing around here.
My birthday was last thursday and I, along with other sustainable ag volunteers got to go to this town called Puembo and spend a day learning organic agriculture practices on a farm. It was a beautiful day and the food was excellent (it all came from the farm!). WHen I got home, my ¨parents¨surprised me with red roses and a delicacy in Ecuador...Cuy! Cuy (guinea pig) is only eaten during special fiestas and days. I had been wanting to try it forever and I got to...pretty good I must say. It tastes like a gamey chicken with a duck-like crust. I enjoyed it a lot (and a good change of pace from the rice!). Things are going by pretty quickly down here, next tuesday (24th i think) I will find out where I will be spending the next two years of my life...very excited, think I will be happy wherever I go...Ecuador is a very beautiful and ecologically diverse country. Thanks for the birthday wishes everyone!
Ashta Cama
My birthday was last thursday and I, along with other sustainable ag volunteers got to go to this town called Puembo and spend a day learning organic agriculture practices on a farm. It was a beautiful day and the food was excellent (it all came from the farm!). WHen I got home, my ¨parents¨surprised me with red roses and a delicacy in Ecuador...Cuy! Cuy (guinea pig) is only eaten during special fiestas and days. I had been wanting to try it forever and I got to...pretty good I must say. It tastes like a gamey chicken with a duck-like crust. I enjoyed it a lot (and a good change of pace from the rice!). Things are going by pretty quickly down here, next tuesday (24th i think) I will find out where I will be spending the next two years of my life...very excited, think I will be happy wherever I go...Ecuador is a very beautiful and ecologically diverse country. Thanks for the birthday wishes everyone!
Ashta Cama
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
Cuy Shit
I guess the one thing to make you stick out in a town of 1,000 Ecuadorians if you aren´t already an over 6 feet gringo is to go around town with your peace corps buddy and pick up animal shit with a shovel and a wheelburrow. Sounds like good times on a saturday afternoon, huh? We actually had a good reason for this besides the pure entertainment we caused the onlookers. Our group that lives in Pesillo officially started a garden project (which everyone does) and it is currently taking place at mi casa. Our garden should have the best compost pile because A) we have cuy (guinea pigs for the gringos) shit, which has the most nutrients in it B) we have egg shells, C) because during a field trip everyone else was giving us their wasted food scraps, indirectly helping our cause, and D) because we are badasses, duh.
We spent all day saturday working as group with the help of a few neighborhood kids (mi hermanito, Paul, is a great worker by the way) and tilled the soil with hoes and raised the beds. It is amazing what one day of working can do when everyone is working together. I am really excited about this garden. I will post pictures of that and my house and the nieghborhoood where I live in next time...if I remember. Other than that, things are moving along. I should find out where I am living for the next two years in a couple of weeks, I am really excited about that. Some of the meeting that the Peace Corps have are very thorough...if you catch my drift, but it is in our best interest I guess. I am learning more than I ever wanted to know manure and compost, but it should help me in the long term with whatever my project calls for.
Ciao
We spent all day saturday working as group with the help of a few neighborhood kids (mi hermanito, Paul, is a great worker by the way) and tilled the soil with hoes and raised the beds. It is amazing what one day of working can do when everyone is working together. I am really excited about this garden. I will post pictures of that and my house and the nieghborhoood where I live in next time...if I remember. Other than that, things are moving along. I should find out where I am living for the next two years in a couple of weeks, I am really excited about that. Some of the meeting that the Peace Corps have are very thorough...if you catch my drift, but it is in our best interest I guess. I am learning more than I ever wanted to know manure and compost, but it should help me in the long term with whatever my project calls for.
Ciao
Monday, March 2, 2009
D.C to Pesillo
It has been a busy last 7 days, flying to D.C., meeting up with the volunteers, there are 46 of us! We flew down to Miami, then arrived in Quito with no problems, where we took buses to the hostel where trainers and other peace corps volunteers were there greeting us, it was nice. In Quito, we spent 3 days doing orientation stuff, like getting shots, taking a language interview test (I tested at intermediate, which surpised me) and letting us know what we could and could not do while we are peace corps volunteers...the list is pretty long. Anyways, we really didn´t have time to explore Quito since we were so busy but from the parts I did see, it seemed pretty nice. During our three days, we go to do a tourist thing but taking a bus up to the mitad del mundo (middle of the earth, equator) which was pretty kids, they had some scientific experiements that blew my mind.
As far as the host family siuation goes, we were put into groups of five based on our undertsanding of spanish. So since I tested out as an intermediate, I am with a group who all speak spanish at a similar level to me, which is nice. Our group got assigned in a small town called Pesillo, which is about 40 minute bus ride from Cayambe. This sounds a lot, but we only have to go into Cayambe two days a week for a technical training (for me, that is learning how to deal with donkey poop) and the buses go about 25 miles per hour since the roads are far from straight. Pesillo is a cool little town, most of the people farm and have pigs, chickens, dogs, or donkeys in the backyard. My place is a little nicer than I thought it would be, but you definitely know that you are in the third world, but I find the life down here refreshing and simple, which is a nice change of pace from the states. My family owns a little store in front of their house and have about 10 diary cows in a location about 5 miles from their house. I am now milking cows everyday in the afternoon! My forearms are getting a workout. My family is really nice, they have a son, 20, that works in Quito, a dughter, 13 and a another son, 7. I am getting along with them really well. I don´t think I have embarrassed myself too much...I think.
I am enjoying my time so far, relearning spanish quickly and looking forward to our agriculture sessions in the upcoming weeks and am safe as can be!
Hasta luego
As far as the host family siuation goes, we were put into groups of five based on our undertsanding of spanish. So since I tested out as an intermediate, I am with a group who all speak spanish at a similar level to me, which is nice. Our group got assigned in a small town called Pesillo, which is about 40 minute bus ride from Cayambe. This sounds a lot, but we only have to go into Cayambe two days a week for a technical training (for me, that is learning how to deal with donkey poop) and the buses go about 25 miles per hour since the roads are far from straight. Pesillo is a cool little town, most of the people farm and have pigs, chickens, dogs, or donkeys in the backyard. My place is a little nicer than I thought it would be, but you definitely know that you are in the third world, but I find the life down here refreshing and simple, which is a nice change of pace from the states. My family owns a little store in front of their house and have about 10 diary cows in a location about 5 miles from their house. I am now milking cows everyday in the afternoon! My forearms are getting a workout. My family is really nice, they have a son, 20, that works in Quito, a dughter, 13 and a another son, 7. I am getting along with them really well. I don´t think I have embarrassed myself too much...I think.
I am enjoying my time so far, relearning spanish quickly and looking forward to our agriculture sessions in the upcoming weeks and am safe as can be!
Hasta luego
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Here goes nothing...
Welcome to the long anticipated and hopefully highly entertaining blog of my experiences in Ecuador for the Peace Corps! I figured since I am leaving for the Peace Corps next Monday, February 23, I might as well kick this thing off. For those who don't know me and randomly stumbled onto this blog...thanks for reading! Anyways, my name is Josh and I am going into the Peace Corps as a Sustainable Agriculture Volunteer in the country Ecuador. I hopefully will be working with small farmers to adopt sustainable agriculture practices to increase production, develop small business projects with agriculture, among other things that involve agriculture and sustainability. Sounds like a lot...and I guess it is...but the reality is that I will probably be shoveling around animal poop all day. As of right now, I am doing my last minute packing (who knew I needed a vegetable peeler...) and working on my español before I take off for DC next monday.
Anyways, here is what my schedule looks like (for the next few weeks at least):
February 23: fly to DC
February 24-25: Meet up with other volunteers, get shots, orientation and fly to Quito on the 25th
February 25-28: Hang out in Quito, get acclimated to the altitude, do language and culture training
February 29: Take a bus to Cayambe, Ecuador (a city about 1 1/2 hours north of Quito) and live with a host family and do the vaunted Peace Corps language and culture training for 9 weeks.
Throughout the next 27 months, I hope to update the blog as much as I can with posts and pictures. I will have a laptop down there but obviously getting on the internet will be a bigger challenge and who knows how often that will happen.
Til' next time...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)