2011 Update

Alright alright, I admit it’s been entirely too long since my last blogpost. In my defense, I’ve been trying my hardest to get my various visitors to write accounts of their trips, but I am repeatedly met with “don’t hold your breath” or simple “nah” responses, so looks like you guys are stuck with me. But where to begin? My problem now is that most things that happen to me that would have seemed outrageous a year ago are pretty standard now. Getting on a bus and having the person sitting next to me hold a bag full of live chickens the entire ride is no big deal. Arguing with the fruit vendors that each apple costs 20 cents instead of 25 is my new normal. In that sense, I might fail in painting a full picture of my experience- when I mention a bus ride and you picture a Greyhound while I’m remembering a campo Unidos bus, there’s bound to be some misinterpretations. But maybe that’s what you want to hear about- the little intricacies of how my life has changed and what will come of these changes. Or maybe you are just someone my mom met in the grocery store who has a third cousin twice removed who one time took a trip to any country in South America so she slipped you this website. Either way, here are some of the moments of the past few months that have made impressions:

First, I’ve become a somewhat part time employee of the tienda that Jaime and Sara own in Cebadas. It started out because I usually go over there every few days to check in and sometimes when they got busy I would help out. They started to take notice and eventually asked that I watch the tienda one day when they both “needed” to go to Riobamba. I guess I did a good enough job- didn’t burn down the place or get robbed or anything like that- so now I have a somewhat regular gig holding down the fort for them. To be sure, it’s a pretty boring gig, but I’ve been turning it into something worthwhile. I’ve been teaching Jaime some basic business practices- keeping track of inventory, supply and demand, price points, etc. I also helped facilitate the arrival of a Banco del Barrio, which is pretty huge for Cebadas. There isn’t really an American equivalent to a Banco del Barrio, but it’s kind of a cross between at ATM, a place to reup cell phone minutes (recargar), and a place to pay bills. Before, the closest place you could go to take money out or pay a bill was in Riobamba, but now with this Banco del Barrio, Jaime and Sara’s tienda has become a one-stop shop.

Second, once a week (Tuesdays 7:30-1, to be exact) I teach an English/ Environmental Ed class to 14 third and fourth graders. I am by no means qualified to be teaching an English class, but the kids seems to enjoy our time together and when they see me around town then usually yell out various English words (days of the week, animals, colors, etc), so I feel all right about their progress. It’s been a really cool and challenging experience so far. The minis love me and you all know how much I love minis, so it seems like a perfect fit. Their first language is Quichua (the indigenous language) so I feel completely comfortable talking to them in Spanish as it’s neither of our strong suits- but out of the 3 languages taught here (Spanish, Quichua, English), it’s neither of our worst either.

So, I had another site visit- we have them once a year so this was my second and final check up. Everything went fine, but I explained my main concern to my boss: that I don’t really have much accountability or structure in what I do here so we went together to the Junta Parroqial (local government) to talk to the president of Cebadas to see if there was any way I could tighten things up a little bit. There is a small ag department in the Junta. By small I mean one man, Alberto, who deals with all things agriculture. He was more than happy to take me on as an assistant of sorts. I began accompanying him on visits to various communities to check up on the progress of various projects. Before I came on board, Alberto had started a few projects- giving out seeds, helping set up gardens, etc. So when Alberto and I would go up to the communities, we were mostly checking up on the progress of those projects- what had come of the seeds we gave out, how the garden was being maintained, etc. After each visit, it was my job to write up a bulletin about what we’d seen. They were pretty simple and straightforward but the best part was that I had to include pictures. I took this opportunity to take my nice camera with me and snap some great shots of the indigenous people and the countryside. Ordinarily, the people are a little bit reserved and don’t really like having their pictures taken, but with Alberto by my side and the pretense of these bulletins, the people were more than happy to oblige. I got some great shots and was able to see the various stages of agriculture and the assorted problems that come with it. Things have kind of cooled down as far as my work at the Junta is concerned, but I still get to accompany Alberto to the communities every once in awhile, which has been great.

Since I’ve been here, Cebadas has seen a number of changes. I am not going to stand on my high horse and claim that all (or any even) had to do with me, but I do believe that having a strong American presence here (not only 1 PCV, but 2) has helped transform this little pueblito into- as a visiting PCV once called Cebadas- “a thriving metropolis.” The stretch of highway that connects Riobamba to Cebadas and then continues on to Macas (the oriente/ jungle) is now fully paved. When I first arrived, I would say less than half was paved and the bus ride was anything but comfortable. Now, not only is the view incredible, but the ride is smooth and relatively fast (it takes around an hour to go 35.6 km, but that’s pretty standard for bus travel around these parts because the roads have to snake around the Andes). The main plaza is now equipped with a stage and both soccer and volley canchas. This past month, Cebadas hit another milestone with the installation of home phones and internet! Pretty soon the plaza will even be a free wifi zone. Again, I’m not claiming to have had a huge deal to do with any of this (although I did go door to door with the phone/internet company to help sign people up), but when I think of how much Cebadas has changed in the 19 months I’ve been here I can’t even imagine how different it will be in 10-20-30 years.

Well, I think that’s about all I have to report of my various site projects. Apart from what I do in Cebadas, I have a few projects going on in Riobamba. There is a volunteer who lives there who works at a school for the deaf and I have helped him with a few video projects. We put together short videos for the school’s 25th anniversary, a day in the life of some of the students, and a how-to-sign video. It’s been really cool to see a different group of Ecuadorians, ones I might not have otherwise met had it not been for my amazing videography skills.

Of course, I’ve managed to travel around quite a bit since I last checked in with you. I’ve had a few visitors and have even been able to go as far south as I’ve even been, to Peru! Mom and Dad took me to Peru and it was a great trip. Peru is amazing on it’s own, but it was especially cool for me to be able to compare it with Ecuador. True, my view of Peru is a bit skewed as we were playing the roles of tourists the whole time and stayed in nice hotels whereas in Ecuador I feel like anything but a tourist, but either way, it was an amazing trip and a good chance to see and spend time with Mom and Dad! Shelby, Aunt Lenore, and my friend Barbara have all been down to visit and each time it’s been a different and incredible experience. I have a couple months left, so anyone who’s thinking of coming down better make your arrangements pronto!

Well, hope this gave you guys enough to talk about around the Thanksgiving table this year! Sorry I can’t make it again, next year I’ll try my hardest to get back to Sac to break bread with everyone and shake up a few martinis, deal?