Ready, Set, GuaranGO

It has been a little over a week since I arrived in Ecuador, and I am still in the process of settling in. I have appreciated and felt your thoughts and prayers!

8/29

All went well with my flights, and Alfredo, President of FBU, and his spouse María Fernanda, kindly picked me up at the airport. I spent the night at their lovely home in Quito. I didn’t end up experiencing the altitude sickness I was bracing myself for!

8/30

In the morning, Alfredo drove me to FBU, and it was a somewhat harrowing ride on a winding section of the Pan-American Highway—with only two lanes, people swerve into opposing traffic to pass slower vehicles. Alfredo took me around to meet the farm’s employees: Carlos and his son who are working on building a roof for a stable, Vinicio and his son Andrés who work with the cows and sheep as well as other tasks, Patricio who does construction, Verónica who is a master gardener, Antonio who also lives in the volunteer house, and my new Venezuelan family, Gerardo, Gilbert, and Susane! Also the dogs, Kiara and Beto (he’s my buddy, even though I still wish there were some farm cats). This was the first of multiple days where I helped with packing small plastic bags with soil for transplanting guarango seedlings (more on that later). This repetitiveness of the task is good for having conversations and getting to know people (I can mostly understand what people are saying, though I’m still learning lots of new vocabulary). I later settled into my room and Alfredo took me to get a SIM card, so I have a local phone number. Lunch was my introduction to Susane’s amazing cooking (I will miss that when the Venezuelan volunteers leave at the end of October!) and juice culture (there is always delicious fresh fruit juice with lunch, and that’s usually what I help prepare). In the evening, I hopped on a Zoom call with some other members of my BVS unit and it was good to see familiar faces when so much around me was unfamiliar!

8/31

Today I learned how windy it is in the summer here—sitting by a heap of dirt filling packets I got an ear and nose full of dust. This would have been less of a problem if I had been able to have a nice hot shower to clean off. Alas, today began a four-day saga of cold showers while my Venezuelan family kept telling me the water gets so hot it burns and trying to explain how they get it to work. Days later when I was starting to think the gringa was being gaslit, I finally figured out how to get hot water, which was a major win because it gets down into the 40s at night and there’s no heating in the house. I hung up my hammock in the front yard in the afternoon, and then, despite the breeziness, I taught the Venezuelan guys how to throw frisbee.

9/1

Today I wore ripped jeans to work and the Venezuelans and Antonio (who is Ecuadorian and a big-time jokester who likes to practice his English saying phrases like “ohmygod” and “wow” with an exaggerated American accent) clowned me for it—later I realized that the intense sun left me with some unique tan lines where the rips are! I taught the Venezuelans how to play Dutch Blitz in the evening (and beat them handily—but they are determined that my winning streak will soon come to an end).

9/2

In the morning I learned how to use the washer—clothes are hung dry. I am still working on learning to successfully light the gas stove with a cigarette lighter to be able to boil water and the milk that comes straight from the cows. Every day I learn lots of new things, but still never feel like I know exactly what’s going on! I am learning to go with the flow and relinquish control and am so grateful for everyone who has been welcoming and wise teachers. In the afternoon, María Fernanda, her daughter Valentina, and Valentina’s partner Cristián drove me back to Quito. We had fun discussing Ecuadorian expressions over a late-night cup of coffee (very typical here).

9/3

María Fernanda kindly drove me 20 minutes into Quito to drop me off at a church where two friends, Michael and Sarah, from Messiah University have been attending since arriving in Quito to study abroad. After church, they showed me around the neighborhood and Sarah and I had calzones and ice cream for lunch! Then I used an app called DiDi (which is similar to Uber, and like Uber, is technically illegal in Ecuador but is frequently used) to get a ride back to Alfredo and María Fernanda’s house—it cost $4 for a 20-minute ride and from my driver I got my first dollar coin, which is super common in Ecuador! It felt good to get into the city and become a bit more confident navigating the area.

9/4

This morning Alfredo and I headed back to FBU. Today we finally got to start transplanting the beautiful little guarango seedlings from one of FBU’s greenhouses into the 2,000 bags we stuffed! Guarango is a native tree whose seeds boast an impressive array of benefits, from reforestation to nutrition to creating medicine and beauty products. My understanding is that the guarango we are transplanting will be given to community members so that they can develop businesses and bring in extra income, as well as being used for reforestation. This evening the Venezuelan guys and I took a bus to the nearby town of Tabacundo in search of a rotisserie chicken for dinner. I had been nervous to navigate the bus system, so I was glad for the company and the little outing!

9/5

A typical work day for me—8-12 working with guarango, break for lunch 12-2, and work again until 4. I have had a lot of free time in the evenings which has helped me adjust but has also at times left me searching for things to do to pass the hours after it gets dark at 6:30pm! Soon, I will start working on some projects other than farm work, which may include helping with social media, teaching English, and working with youth to learn about environmental stewardship.

9/6

This evening I made the error of trying a few sips of a fermented Venezuelan beverage called guarapo made from pineapple rinds and sugar cane. I thought it would be fine because the water had been boiled and besides, fermented beverages like kombucha are good for your gut…however, this morning (9/7) I woke up with stomach pain and let’s just say that a more appropriate name for the beverage could be guarapoo… But I was feeling better in time to help plant zucchini, beets, lettuce, onions, leeks, cauliflower, and mint. I am looking forward to the arrival of my Uncle Jeff who will be arriving to Quito tonight and will be visiting FBU for a few days!

I hope to do a better job of taking pictures in coming days and am eager to continue getting to know the area and my coworkers and housemates better. My BVS year is off to a good start!