Sorry for the delay of posting. It was a crazy month and then my laptop broke; so here I am, a month and a half after the last post!
Due to the craziness from the day before, Asha, Katelyn
and I had been planning on sleeping in and taking the first chunk of day
slowly. However, our host mom had a different idea and woke us up at around
seven. We proceeded to hear her say “Saca la leche?” She had woken us up so that we could help to
milk the cows. We had asked to help milk the cows a few days before but hadn’t
had the opportunity. This time, the cows were grazing in the pasture right
outside of the house and it was prime time to do the milking. So, in the haze
of being woken abruptly, we got ready to milk the cows. Talk about something
you don’t typically experience at home.
The kicker was that she waited until seven to wake us up, typically you
milk the cows around 5:00am. Thank goodness she realized we wouldn’t have been
functioning people that early in the morning.
We
gathered the buckets and headed across the street to the cows. It started with
her tying the cows back feet together so it couldn’t kick us while milking. She
started showing us how to milk the cow (it’s harder than you might think) and
gave us the smallest of the two pitchers to try and fill. We alternated and we
struggled to fill it; she however was almost done filling the large bucket. Like
I said, harder than you might think. When we finished, we took the fresh milk
to the house to make hot chocolate. Let me tell you, It was the BEST hot
chocolate I’ve ever had. It’s amazing, the difference in a product, when it’s
not filled with all the chemicals and artificial crap we put in our foods here.
All we had to do to make it safe to drink was boil it. That is one of the
things I have loved most about my travels, is that the food is so fresh and
natural. It just feels better to eat things that aren’t filled with things that
aren’t naturally there. It’s just an interesting point of reflection to think
about.
Anyways,
we also decided that we wanted to cook breakfast for our host family before we
left and needed some ingredients that we couldn’t get at the local stores in
Pijal. There was a market happening in San Pablo, a larger town a short bus
ride away. So after a delicious breakfast of fruits and our freshly collected milk and hot chocolate.
We decided to go and our host sister Cyntia brought us. We were
walking down the hill, just at the end of the road to catch the bus when Omar called
Cyntia looking for us. Lauren was being released from the clinic she had spent
the night at and they were looking for someone to come and get her with Omar
and Juan Carlos. Next thing we know, the bus is coming down the road and
pulling over. I don’t know HOW they knew where we were, but they did. I opted
to go and pick up Lauren, and Katelyn and Asha could continue to the market to
get the things we needed as this was our last chance to do so. On the bus I
struggled through conversation but between my rough Spanish, gesturing and Omar
and Juan Carlos’ decent English, we were able to enjoy the bus ride. The ride
was only about 40 minutes and we were at the clinic. It was one of the nicest
clinics I had ever been in. Lauren had a private room and immediately she
looked better then when we had seen her the day before. I helped her get
dressed, pack her things and then headed down to pay. She got the dreaded
stomach bacteria that can come from untreated water and/or food. Juan Carols
had gone off to buy food for all of us since it was right around lunch time and
hopefully Lauren had an appetite.
Once
we were on the bus and on our way back, the decision was made that Lauren would
move into my homestay as it was at the bottom of the hill and closer to Jeff and
Eric if something happened. Lauren was obviously
stressed/overwhelmed/tired/etc. due to the excitement from the previous 24
hours. My host mom, Lucia, was incredibly welcoming and made sure Lauren got
settled. She even got her own room so she could go to bed whenever she needed
without having to worry about being disturbed. We ate some soup for lunch and
then all of us headed up to a traditional mass that was taking place at Don
Antonio’s. The mass was interesting as I have never been to a Catholic service
before, and the entire thing was in Spanish. It was cool to participate in the
service, as much as I could anyways. I couldn’t’ take the Eucharist as I’ve
never been confirmed and am nowhere near being Catholic. There were some very
different things that happened, including the blessing of a rooster statue
(because the rooster represents the clock that the village runs on?) and also
the blessing of a statue of baby Jesus. These apparently are not things that
happen in a traditional service in the U.S, so it was interesting to see how
the practicing Catholics responded to it.
Immediately
after there was a traditional medicine workshop that explained the use of a
variety of plants in traditional treatment. They also gave an example of a
traditional shaman treatment. When someone is ill, they will take a guinea pig
and rub it over the person. They rub it over the person until the animal dies
and then cut it open to see what is wrong/what caused the guinea pig to die.
Once that is determined, they’ll know how to treat the person. If the animal
doesn’t die, they’ll know that something isn’t seriously wrong. Now, they
didn’t actually demonstrate to the extent of the animal dying, but gave a rough
demonstration by rubbing the animal on a volunteer. Granted, this is something
you would NEVER see in the U.S, and I can’t say I’m sorry this hasn’t and never
will be used on me. However, these traditions come from somewhere and must have
some source of validity to them. If it didn’t work, or seem to work, they wouldn’t
continue doing it. Even if it’s a placebo effect, it doesn’t matter because it
brings a positive sense of reassurance to the people receiving the treatment.
Again, not sure if I would actively want to participate in it, but who am I to
judge another persons’ culture that clearly, works for them.
The
last chunk of the day was probably one of my favorite moments in my time in
Ecuador. Lauren had gone home early, but my host mom gave us money to go buy
her a bunch of bananas as they were some of the only things she could eat. We
were also going to be making empanadas that night, which Lauren couldn’t eat.
The other three of us walked to the corner store and there was a group of drunk
taxi drivers with whom I had very little patience. After promptly telling to
them to move; we started getting ready to leave. Next thing we know, the bus
come up the path with Omar and Juan Carlos. They told us that we should get on
the bus with them, as well as our host brother and a few of his friends. We
were of course, surprised that for the second time today, the bus had been able
to find us without actually knowing where we were. As it turns out, when I had
(jokingly?) said they should come make empanadas with us, they took me
seriously. Omar and Juan Carlos had gone out to buy all the makings for
empanadas with my host family that night. We learned how to make cheese and
plantain ones, and I miserably failed at being able to fold the edges properly.
There was singing, and wonderful food making. They were delicious in the end,
and we ate most of them within the next day.
There
are so many reasons why this is one of my favorite nights. One of them being
that when Lauren came down, still very overwhelmed, the entire house was ready
to comfort her. This was the first time my host family had met her and Lucia
was so willing to take care of her. The sense of care overwhelmingly clear.
Also, it was an unscheduled event. Everything on trips like this are scheduled;
even earlier in the week when we had to talk/interview our families. This was
one event that was totally spontaneous, and a cultural exchange with some of
the most genuinely wonderful people I’ve ever met. There was no need to stumble
through language exchanges. Everyone was just there making empanadas, listening to music, laughing and actually
enjoying each other’s company. It felt like a home and a community, created by
people from all walks of life. And, I got to learn how to make empanadas.
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