Never a dull moment at Escuela Katitawa

So last Friday, similar to the Friday before, was quite eventful. In the morning I was standing next to Antonia (the preschool teacher) looking at the beautiful view when she turned to me and said, ¨look, the tour bus.¨ I had no idea what she meant by that until I saw a bright blue tour bus coming up the dusty road. At the same time, one of the kids yelled, ¨los francesas!¨ (the french!) and all the kids started running down to take a look. Evidently everyone knew what was going on but the volunteers.

The French Tourists

We were quite surprised as about 50 older french tourists exited their bus, cameras in hand. The preschoolers and I had been searching for rocks that day to make concrete to stabilize the chicken fence posts so I continue to search for rocks with 4 of them. (Note: here the preschoolers are called kindergarteners though they range in age from 2-5). We then decided to chase each other around, as kindergarteners like to do, and as I was chasing little Elizabeth, an elderly French lady stopped us to take a picture. I can now say that it feels very strange to be on the other side of the lense, being the oddity that tourists are curious about and want to capture on film. Luckily for them and us volunteers, the little children LOVE posing for pictures, putting their hands on their hips and sometimes even singing for the camera.We showed the French people around and those volunteers who could speak a little French helped with some translations.

From left to right: Hannah, Lora and Hayley

The British girls, Lora, Hayley and Hannah have been tending to the garden and were eager to show off their work to two women who had made their way down there only to find out that the women were not necessarily admiring their handiwork but taking advantage of the secluded area for a bit of an outdoor leak.

The kids singing and dancing for the tourists

After a short tour around the grounds the children all made their way to the second floor ´balcony´to do a song and dance for our guests. In the time we´d been here, we had never seen them get in a line much less a participate in a coordinated song and dance. Some of the older kids were then asked to speak some of the English phrases they know (note: these people did not speak English). How are you? Where are you from? and my personal favorite, What is your name? to a group of about 50 people. The school solicited some donations and then they were on their way again.

Evan and the puppy (Yanif)

Elisabeth and puppy!

The following week at school Yanick, one of Matt´s faves had an adorable little black puppy at school. We asked around to see who it belonged to but nobody would claim it. Although many of the kids and even the director named people who they thought owned the puppy. At the end of the day Oli brought it home and put it in the bedroom of Alex and Hannah, who were gone for the week. The volunteers can´t keep the puppy because we already have Blaze and Blaze is a rather jealous dog who upon seeing little Yanif (we named the puppy) attacked her! I slept with the puppy that night to keep it from whining all night and it was a great reminder that having an infant would be a giant pain in the ass.

Chuck and some chickens.

The same day we had an incident on the farm. I was on library shift that day which is about 30 minutes away from school when the power went out so I decided to head up to school rather than stay in the dark library with nothing to do. When I arrived I found out that Chuck, the duck that thinks he is a chicken, attacked one of the real chickens and split open the chickens head! Since we have been there Chuck has been quite aggressive, forcing two ofthe chickens to sleep under the coop in fear of his wrath, but this just took it to the next level. The other chickens, seeing the blood on their fellow chicken´s head and neck started pecking at the poor chickens gaping wounds. Matt then put the wounded chicken in the coop with some food and water until we could decide what to do with it.

Lunch

We all decided that this runt of a chicken wasn´t going to survive and did what we thought best for it. We killed and ate it. Mario, a volunteer from Mexico/San Jose, California nominated himself to take care of the chicken. He grabbed some gloves, took the chicken by the feet and took it to the kitchen for Marta, the cook. Mario tried to break her (the chicken´s) neck but she just wouldn´t die so the cook gave Mario a knife and he took it outside and sawed the neck until she was dead. It was quite exciting! And for all those curious, no she did not run around with her head cut off. We then had chicken soup for lunch! Delicious!!!

Our last day at Katitawa was a sad and lazy one. We layed one more post for the fence and Matt and Robert, with a little help from me, put up one side of the fence. It was satisfying to see our hard work pay off even if the entire fence is yet to be finished. Everyone who worked on the fence took a picture together to commemorate the moment.

Also during the day the director´s son, Omar (nicknamed by the volunteers: rat-features) pooped his pants until they were quite saggy and stained his pants brown. Luis, the director, didn´t notice for quite some time but when he did his solution was to just take the pants off and let his little man parts hang out. I don´t know if we have told ya´ll how dusty it is in Salasaca but lets just say little rat-features may have now have a rash from the waist down.

Francisco with the school picture we handed out

About 30 minutes before school let out, Francisca, one of the girls from the youngest level fell down and cut her forehead open on a rock. We grabbed her and rushed her to the workshop where Hannah had a first aide kit. I sat Francisca on my lap and David (dry sarcastic British guy / volunteer) started wiping up her forehead. Many of the children gathered around which made her cry more and even worse her sister began to cry in sympathy. Once we were able to get all the children out, two of the teachers, Antonia and Rufino, came in to have a look. Rufino is a curandero, which in the dictionary translates to witch doctor but is more like a shaman. He gave us some aloe to put on her head and we wrapped her whole head in a bandage. I don´t exactly know what happened after school but it looked as though she really needed stitches.

Kevin

Our goodbye ceremony was great. We had our favorite kids give us our medals so Yanick, the preschooler, gave Matt his and Kevin gave me my medal. It was a bittersweet day at Katitawa but we hope to visit again on our loop through Ecuador in December. We also gave all the kids group photos of the school and lollipops on the last day.

We are now heading to Machu Picchu and then we will travel back north towards Ecuador to do a big loop of the two countries.

We dedicate this blog post to all our friends at Katitawa: Alex, Alex, Hannah, Lora, Hannah, Hayley, Evan, Mario, David, Oliver and of course, Robert and the kids!

Cake and True Blood night

***Oh and Antonia´s burns have healed up now and she is doing just fine.***

Chimborazo, an Insane Duck, and Communal Dinners

Life in Salasaca begins every morning with my Timex Ironman (best 30 bucks I have ever spent at Target), beeping at 6:30am.  Elisabeth and I roll out of bed, pull on sweatshirts, and head upstairs for breakfast.  On our way upstairs we have to go outside and walk through an outside porch area with an INCREDIBLE view.  Salasaca, the town we are staying in, is 2,800M (9,200 feet) above sea level and situated amongst the highest peeks in all of Ecuador. To the south we see Carihuairazo, a dormant snow caped volcano that looks absolutely stunning on the blue sky.  It is a rare treat to see it though, as usually clouds cover the tops of the peaks.  From the porch to the west sits the piece de resistance in the jaw dropping skyline -- Chimborazo.  Chimborazo, at more than 6,200M (more than 20,000 feet) towers over every other mountain in the area and is actually the closest place on earth to the sun!  It is even harder to see than Carihuairazo though, and I have probably looked at the skyline 25 times for it and every time but ONCE it has been shrouded in clouds.  Fortunately, one morning at 6:30am, it was totally visible!  What a way to start the morning!

The view at sunset from our back porch.  Typical cloud cover...

Chimborazo!  Visible bright and early!

Elisabeth reluctantly posing for a photo at 6:30am.

The mornings are generally pretty routine -- a filling (but pretty uninspiring) breakfast of ¨porridge¨ (apparently this is what British people call oatmeal) and sugar cane extract we set off to the school.  In the mornings, sans coffee, the journey to school is slow and chilly.  We arrive at school (to see more about the organization we are volunteering with check out www.skyecuador.org) by 7:30 and get to work.  After a few days of playing with the kindergartners (I was often a ¨caballo¨ and every kid wanted at least one ride), Elisabeth and I focused our energy and tried to solve the problem of the chickens living area (the school includes a farm).  9 chickens, and one duck who actually THINKS he is a chicken, live in a 10 foot by 7 foot pen.  It is a pretty sad state.  The duck quacks around all day and harasses the chickens, ripping their feathers out one by one until the chickens all take the appearance of Belle´s hind quarters (Belle is my parents dog, she has a bald spot on her back left leg).  These mangey chickens run around all day and hunt for non existent grubs.  All 10 of them subsided on a diet of corn (before we started supplementing with table scraps), aren´t laying eggs, and generally don´t´t seem to love life.  Elisabeth, myself, and about 5 volunteers have set out to enlarge the area and give all the animals space to breathe (there is a pond the duck could go into so he would stop harassing the chickens) and live a happy life.  We first went and bought 60 meters of chicken wire to enclose the pen.  We thought we could knock it out in a few days, but the project has taken on a life of its own and now probably will not be done for a few more weeks.

Two of the kids (Christan and Yanic) who treat me as their personal horse.

The pond, to be utilized by the duck in the near future.

The current state of affairs.

Elisabeth, hard at work digging the trench.

When we finish up working at school (between 1:00 and 2:00 most days) we trudge back home on the downhill path that takes about half an hour.  The walk home is pretty incredible, not just because of the views and the much easier downhill trek, but because it is spring time in Ecuador and on the way home everyday we see piglets, lambs, puppies, calves, baby donkeys, and chicks.  Not a day passes without oohs and awws from both of us!

The afternoons usually consist of naps, backgammon, reading a book, and games of chess.  Once a week we also work a five hour shift at the library (run by the volunteers in conjunction with the school).  Mondays - Thursdays we divide the 15  volunteers into small groups and cook communal dinners.  Preparing a meal for 15 people in a town without a proper supermarket is quite a challenge.  Usually this means busing half an hour to the closest big town and stocking up on groceries.  Even when we are in a large town it is quite the experience getting everything we need.  We have to usually go to a bakery to get bread, a supermarket for anything packaged or dairy, an outdoor market to haggle for fruits and veggies, and then lug it all home on the bus.  The cooking at home is pretty inventive, one person has turned fresh cows milk into ricotta cheese!!  Elisabeth and I have cooked three times now, the first meal was open faced toasted sandwiches with roasted veggies, fried potatoes, and fruit salad with whipped cream (which one the prize for best meal that week!).  The second time we cooked we did a tomato and basil soup, twice baked potatoes, and a strawberry cobbler (a close second place in the voting).  The third time we cooked french bread pizza, roasted red pepper soup, and brownies (voting is next week!). 

We are leaving the volunteer program some time early next week (the 25th or so) to travel to Machu Picchu!  We will be meeting two friends from home, Jason Norris and Thomas Minter, to do the trek.  I am giddy with excitement already!

Escuela Katitawa

We made it to Salasaca a small town about 1/2 hour north of Baños, a big tourist destination for both foreigners and Ecuadorians alike. Salasaca is a small, mainly Kitchwa (Quechua) town that has one main road. When we arrived we were dropped off in front of a row of camionetas (trucks) that charge anywhere from 10 cents to a dollar to take you where you want to go in Salasaca. We got ripped off the first ride and the man charged us each a dollar to Pachi Mama hostel (Mother Earch in Kitchuwa) where we would be staying during our volunteer stint.

While a small town with mainly dirt roads can sound boring we have not experienced that in Salasaca. The second day of volunteering, which was last Friday, started off pretty typical. On the 40 minute walk to school we constantly had to yell at the house dog, Blaze to stop chasing chickens and once had to yell at her to get off of a puppy she was attacking. Upon arriving at school, we all we to our respective classrooms and projects (mine at the time was preschool) and at 9:30 am the siren, which sounds like an air raid siren went off and all the kids lined up for colata time, the white soupy grainy substance they have for snacks provided by the ministry of education. The children also get packaged cookies from the ministry of education that they throw on the ground and stomp with their feet, crushing them to add to the colata.

About an hour after colata is when things got crazy! I was outside playing with some kids wondering where a little girl named Jessica had gone when I heard an explosion and saw a giant fireball in the kitchen window. All of a sudden, Antonia, the preschool teacher, the cook and three little girls, including Jessica ran out of the kitchen. We yelled to everyone to stay away from the kitchen and started scooping up kids to take them up the hill. We had no idea what was going on, only that we could hear the hissing of gas continue. After the hissing sound subsided, we realized that Antonia´s face was severly burned but everyone else was okay. We later found out that when changing the gas tanks for the free-standing stove, they disconnected the gas feed but forgot to turn off the gas which fed the flame of the fireplace standing right next to it, creating the giant fireball. The kitchen itself was pretty much undamaged but some of the ministry of education granola was burned up. The rest of the school day went by without incident except that for some unknown reason Antonia rubbed onion on her burns.

Later 15 of us gringos headed out in the back of a camioneta to the festival! What we were celebrating I am still not quite sure. We arrived just as the sun was setting and the ´fireworks,´ which were really dynomite, were let off scaring the horses into running all over the place nearly trampoling young and old alike. There were about 500 people present, 10 vendors selling different Ecuadorian treats, an arcade and lots of men on horseback. At the forefront was the band of drunken teenagers playing the same song on loop in sweet black jackets with gold buttons all over the back. Once we got a feel for the party, Matt and I grabbed some sugary emapandas and some impossible to chew meat on a stick. Matt also got a beer but could not walk away from the stand without giving a deposit for the bottle which would have to be promptly returned once finished. We all milled around checking out the church and more of the crazy partying. Once all the teenagers and many of the older Salasacans seemed sufficiently drunk (we knew this by the woman crying and screaming ´pendejo´while being carried away by two other women, a guy urinating on himself because he couldn´t stand up straight and numerous swerving and stumbling others) and the horses started running amock (apparently Salasacans don´t really know how to ride horses but bring them out for all the big parties) it was time to move the party to the town center.

At the town center we all gathered around the big stage with all the rest of the Salasacans dressed in their finest attire. The men were wearing white pants and button up shirts with their traditional black panchos and the women dressed in white shirts with red shawls and a `skirt` that is actually a long black piece of cloth that they pleat and wrap with a colorful belt. After about 15 minutes the drucken teenage boy band arrived waving around liquor bottles still playing the same song. After about 20 more minutes of their shenanigans a band and an announcer arrived on the stage and the proper entertainment began. Not long after, more drunken men on horses arrived with the leader´s horse galloping and bucking. Unfortunately an innocent (probably sober) Salasacan woman got in the way and was knocked over by the valiant drunken horseback rider and then trampoled by the next horse. She had to be carried away and everyone took extra precaution to stay out of their way. This was not the last appearance of the horse brigade; they came back a handful more times even when the crowd had filled in the plaza. Luckily nobody else was hurt. The dancers then arrived on stage with their bright orange mini skirts with matching track jackets. The Salasacans seemed scandelized and mesmerized at the same time. At this point Matt disappeared to find beer and came back with a liter bottle of home-made sugar cane alcohol to share! It was a hot sweet liquid that we couldn`t finish between our group so Matt enlisted a local Ecuadorian to help us out. After several swigs we finally finished and we were glad to be done with it. Unfortunately, our wonderful new friend wanted to pay us back for our kindness and bought another bottle of the sickly sweet alcohol. We tried to refuse but he wouldn`t have it and we had to finish an entire second bottle.

Once the outdoor party died down we decided to check out the only discoteca in Salasaca. It was $1 to get in which was too steep for us so we were about to turn around when the owner came out and invited us in as his guests (as long as we bought alcohol). It was the strangest sight I have seen in Salasaca. The salsa and cumbia music was going and all the young Salasacans in their best traditional attire were dancing as if at a tame 6th grade dance, holding hands and rocking side to side avoiding eye contact with their partner. The owner was so excited to have us there that the hype man kept welcoming us americanos though only about 3 of us were actually from the states, but no one took offense. After about an hour there we headed home on the camioneta exhausted from the excitement of our first Friday in Salasaca.

Otavalo

Our first stop in Ecuador was Otavalo, home of the largest artisinal market in all of South America.


We spent Matt´s birthday checking out the goods and buying loads of awesome crafts. The Quechua or Kichua (not sure which indigenous group) people sell most of the goods at the market from alpaca socks, beautiful hand-sewn linens, and paintings. They also sold many grains and spices and we got fresh sqeezed orange and carrot juice which was well needed after an entire day of shopping.


The market is open every day of the week in small capacity but the Saturday market which we attended went on for many blocks. I bought a beautiful alpaca coat, some jewelry and a new pair of pants which was quite exciting. Though I know we paid more than the locals because the vendors would say they were giving me a great price for tourists, it was a successful shopping trip!

Chau Colombia!!!

So thought we would add a good-bye message recounting odds and ends from Colombia.

First, there are so many different kinds of fruits down here that we don`t have in the states. The one that is most memorable is the guaynaba which is a fruit that looks like an orange from the outside but has a very hard shell that cracks when opening. On the inside is a gooey jelly with little seeds that looks a bit like frog eggs. It is really sweet if you can find a good one. On a bus ride from Pitalito to Macoa I had to sit next to the driver, being the smallest passenger, and we had a lovely conversation. He bought a bag of gyanaba, gave me one and then the rest to the army. Bribe maybe or just being nice-who knows.

In Salento we ran into our first aquaintance. So for those of you who don`t know Eliza, she is the best friend of Matt`s sister`s boyfriend. Crazy world right? Her and two friends ran up to the jeep as it was leaving for the Valle de Cocora and by some coincidence we figure out we had met her multiple times in San Francisco.

Also in Salento we went to the coffee farm of Don Elias. It is quite a small finca but the family of 8 is able to get most of their food from the farm. The grow coffee, bananas, mandarines, pineapple and limes among other things and also raise chickens and fish. They grow two types of coffee the names of which escape me. The first has a red shell and will produce coffee for about 20 years; the second has a yellow shell and produces coffee for about 10 years but is more resistant to diseases. Don Elias`grandson showed us the farm and explained the process from plant to great cup of coffee.
Steps of producing coffee:

1. pick the beans
2. shell the beans with shelling machine
3. dry the beans
4. take the second shell off the beans
5. roast the beans
6. grind
7. brew and drink!
Don Elias`farm sends most of the coffee to the regions cooperative because they do not have a license to sell in stores nor do they have a roaster big enough. They keep a small amount for themselves and to sell to tourists visiting the farm.

There was also an incredibly cute puppy and some pigs when we visited!

We also tried the Starbucks of Colombia in Cali which is Juan Valdez. It was really like a Starbuck with is frappachino´s and iced lattes and such. It was a great break from our day of shopping in the giant Cali mall called Chipichape.
Our favorite restaurant in Colombia was Crepes and Waffles. While looking for ice cream in Cartagena we asked locals for a good spot and all pointed to this places. Its a chain so we were able to get it in all the big cities and it had an entire menu dedicated to ice cream sundaes!

We have also started to cook for ourselves. It is cheaper and sometimes we just want to be able to cook the food we want to eat. We now carry around a small traveling kitchen made up of salt and pepper, olive oil, soy sauce and rice. There are fresh fruits and vegetables everywhere and generally we stay away from meat when cooking after the fiasco in Villa de Leyva.

On the bus from Popayan to San Augustin there was a commotion on the bus between another America traveler and a local. As the local was getting off the America started shouting, saying ¨give me back my money, I know you have my money.¨ The local showed him his wallet and ran off the bus. Of course Matt and I immediately checked our bags which were in the overhead compartment; Matt`s was right above us and my just behind us and sure enough ALL my money was gone. It was the equivalent to $35 US but here that is a whole day`s allowance! Thankfully, he left my credit and ATM cards, passport and camera. The other American guy was not so lucky having lost the equivalent to $140 US and his Ipod. Matt`s bag was safe, possibly due to the American figuring out soon after he had rummaged through our two bags what had happened. An unfortunate event but it could have been worse and I am thankful all I lost was $35 and no more.

Our last voyage to the border was loooong and tough. We started in San Augustin which is a small town that is known for its large statues that may have been created while taking copious amounts of drugs. We took an hour cab to Pitalito then a 2.45 hour minibus to Macoa. The toughest part of the journey was the 6 hour minibus ride through the mountains on unpaved roads to Palto. I was unfortunate enough to get a seat that was not secured in the bus so I would rock back and forth on the rocky path for about 5 hours of that wonderful trip. It was quite a beautiful journey overlooking a large lake at sunset. We debated staying in Palto a night but hearing it was only 1 hour to Ipiales we pushed on.
Tip: If ever traveling in South America add an hour or so to the time the bus companies tell you it will take to get from place to place.

This post is dedicated to two very important people. Robert, from Austria, our first and dearest friend that we met in Colombia. We shared great memories and were so lucky to have spent his last week with him before returning home. And Greg, who has been an avid read of the blog and has delighted us with his postings. (Sorry Greg, I don`t have a picture of you)

Coup in Ecuador?

Yesterday (September 30th) was monumental for 2 reasons.  Firstly, Elisabeth, Sue (South African friend), and I spent 12 hours travelling among 5 forms of transportation.  Taxi, bus, van-bus hybrid, taxi, taxi.  The travelling was a test on the patience (an understatement), but the carrot at the end of the rope was leaving Colombia and getting to Ecuador.  The second monumental event of the day was an attempted coup in Ecuador.

When we arrived in Ipales (a town 2km from the border) at 9:00pm last night.  In the taxi we listened to the radio and heard there was an attempted coup in Ecuador.  Heart warming news for three people who have put up with 12 hours of switchback dirt roads.  Apparently, the national police, upset over pay cuts, detained the president for 12 hours in Quito and he eventually had to be rescued by 500 special forces operatives.  There was a decent amount of rioting in Quito and Guayaquil, but it seems like most of the other parts of the country are stable. 

Needless to say it feels slightly odd to be sitting in Colombia, 2km away from Ecuador, trying to get INTO Ecuador after a coup was attempted yesterday.  Instead of going to Quito (original plan), we are getting to divert to a town called Mindo that is right on the equator. We will spend  few days there, see how things are going in Quito, and reassess the situation.

The trials and tribulations of travelling!