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Helados de Paila
One last indulgence before leaving for the village high up in the Andes...ice cream made in a copper wok, bursting with fruit flavors. I had a Taxo Cone. Yum!Welcome to Blog #40. Sorry it's coming so fast on the heels of the last entry, but now is when I have time to catch up. In 10 days I'll be back at Hosteria Mandala, working 16-18 hour days and barely finding time to pee!!
Late January I arrived back in Quito for a day of doctor's appointments before meeting up with the first of the volunteer engineers. The results of my colonoscopy show my Crohn's disease to be in full remission! I could have told the doctor that, based on how good I've been feeling, but I'm glad I had the tests to check it all out medically. I also indulged in a facial and had dinner with a friend before heading to the airport.
This was Joel's 4th visit to Ecuador and though he speaks only rudimentary Spanish, he could have made his way to the hostel on his own, but I insisted on meeting him - after a long day of international travel, it's nice to have a familiar face waiting at a foreign airport. He arrived on time and zoomed thru immigration and customs.We got back to the guest house at
Rural Literacy Outreach Program
As promised in my last blog, here are a few photos frm the library visit to Ulba near Banos. It got too loud in the room upstairs, so Jessie came down to the truck bed to read to the kids. a decent hour, despite his late night flight arrival. We had a full day to kill until the other engineer was due to arrive. We planned out our errands for the following day.
One of the tasks was to procure several copies of a book about reforestation in Ecuador. There's a volunteer group in Colorado that wants to come down and do some planting for erosion control in the village, and they'd requested that I send this book back with the engineers. I'd done some preliminary footwork which determined that it was published quite some time ago by Fundacion Natura, but the major bookstores had not received stock in a number of years. I went onto the foundation's website but NONE of the phone numbers were current. I had been told that the foundation's offices were in a new location in Quito, but no one knew exactly where. I went into the largest of the bookstores and asked if they could help. Just my luck, the cashier had a friend who worked at Fundacion Natura. She gave me the phone number and I was able to get in contact with the archivist, who agreed to photocopy and
Pipecleaner Eyeglasses
These two little girls fell in luv with one of the volunteers. spiral bind the out-of-print book in question. I was to pick up the copies at 5:00pm.
Joel wanted to have some shirts made so we found a tailor who agreed to have them completed in time for Joel's departure the morning after we came down from the mountains. Following the tailor's directions, we went off to buy the fabric. It was a new adventure for me and I liked being able to help Joel with this challenge. (Alas, when we returned from the village and the shirts were nowhere near ready at the agreed-upon time, I calmly but firmly insisted that the only solution was for the tailor to return the $$ we'd spent on the fabric and do what he wanted with the partially-sewn shirts. I said that we'd assumed that this was a responsible, professional business and therefore the proprietor would have to make good on the agreement somehow. Joel was amazed that I was able to get his money back, and in such a civilized manner!)
As evening rolled around it was time to pick up the books. The foundation is tucked away on a short dead end street and after
Origami for Everyone!
Who's having more fun here, the volunteer or the kids? driving around lost for nearly an hour (afraid that he might not be there when I finally found it). I finally asked a taxi driver to help me out. I was so relieved to get to the place, meet the archivist and collect the bound copies. I felt proud of myself for having been able to carry out this challenging assigment (mission not impossible!!)
By this point we'd found out that the other engineer would not be arriving that evening as planned. Dave had been bumped from one of his flights (a different flight had been cancelled due to weather and they needed his seat for another passenger), which caused him to miss his international connection. The airlines paid for him to overnight in Salt Lake City and then again in Atlanta (yes, it took him 3 days to get down here!!) but Joel and I decided that we couldn't afford to lose another day of time in the village so we set up lodging and transport for Dave, left some drinking water and an Ecuadorian cell phone in his room at the hostel, and in the morning Joel and I set off for the village.
Hardware Store in Latacunga
En route to the village we stopped in the city to buy electrical supplies. At this shop, called La Fluorescente, we spent close to $1000! Before arriving at the village of Malingua Pamba, we stopped in Latacunga, the nearest big city, to pick up some supplies. We met up with Paulino (the village president) at the electrical hardware store and purchased nearly $1000 worth of lighting fixtures, switches, outlets, wires, breaker boxes. The ultimate goal of this visit was to "electrify" a large, new building that had been constructed in the previous months. This "Edificio Grande" (big building) is Pam's "last hurrah" before beginning to disengage herself from village affairs. In the past six years she has built a high school, brought countless groups of volunteers and hundreds of thousands of dollars in donations to benefit Malingua Pamba and its neighboring villages. Now she's getting ready to "retire".
In addition to my role as driver/interpreter for the two engineers who came on this visit, I had been given the challenge of finding answers to lists of questions from Pam and from the Reforestation Foundation. I was also sent surveys and inquiries from the Engineers Without Borders who worked on the Potable Water System (3 years of visits and over 700 people have a tap running to their home!), and fromthe
Interviewing Irrigation Recipients
The last group of Engineers Without Borders started an irrigation project in a group of villages just below Malingua Pamba. Here I am in Chimbusig, chatting with Gerardo and his father. EWBs who recently started up an Irrigation Water System.
So, while waiting for Dave to arrive, Joel and I drove down to Tunguiche, the village below, to see what we could find out about the progress of the Irrigation System. While searching for the president of the irrigation water board (he was back up the hill helping out in a minga work group to build a house for his son-in-law) we stopped to chat with farmers in the outlying villages who were on the irrigation lines. Then we worked our way up to meet with the president to hear what he had to say.
I have learned (and am continuing to realize) that in order to get a clear answer to a basic question sometimes you have to ask it 5 or 6 different ways....and there was nothing straighforward about the lists of questions I was sent to research. Many times, even if someone doesn't know the answer they'll make something up -- try to give you what they think you want to hear. Within the same sentence they will contradict themselves, backpedal, tell outright lies... Factor into the responses issues of jealousy, deception,
President of the Irrigation Board
The Engineers asked me to find out how the irrigation system is working (it's not) so I had a list of questions to seek answers to. Pedro, the president, had a lot to say. and shame...
The last group of irrigation engineers had benefitted from a Rotary Club International Matching Grant which meant that they had been able to purchase tens of thousands of dollars of irrigation equipment (hoses, tanks, sprinklers, etc) Due to time constraints, the volunteers were unable to leave the system fully operational. There were saddle taps, pass valves, and connectors still missing. It was up to the village's local water board to solicit minimal contributions from the users and get the missing links installed as well as coordinating the shared use of irrigation hoses among neighbors.
After hours of interviewing people, writing their responses, getting conflicting information, I realized that due to a serious lack of motivation, organization, cooperation and coordination almost all of the donated equipment was lying around, useless. It appears that the president of the water board lacks authority and initiative, without which the final steps to completion seem insurmountable.
It was with great disappointment that I compiled the answers in legible form (including my observations and conclusions). I realized that it would be important, if not essential, to set up a meeting to address these concerns. Was
The Sacatoro Brothers
Paulino (in hat) is the president of Malingua Pamba. His younger brothers, Ignacio (L) and Lautaro were avid participants in our Electrical Course. it my place to do this? Did I have enough information to move ahead with such a meeting? Well - I had as much insight as anyone and with Paulino by my side, we met with the irrigation president and a half a dozen of the users. I was frank and straightforward and felt good about the outcome of the meeting. On the day we were leaving, even as I was starting up the truck, the irrigation board president came running over to assure me that they have begun to make progress and to please tell the engineers not to give up on them.
But the real reason I accompanied the volunteer engineers this time was to help them teach a course on electrical wiring. What made me think I could do such a thing?? Well, why not! In the past I'd been able to assist the plumbing engineers, often learning the terminology in both English and Spanish at the same time! Sure, there would be words & concepts I wasn't sure of - but between my teaching skills and my cultural experience with these villagers, I felt certain I'd be able to somehow transmit the necessary
Interpreting Electrical Concepts
While Joel & Dave presented the concepts, I had to be sure I understood them well enough to explain them in Spanish to the Malinguans. information.
So, when Dave finally arrived in Malingua, Joel shared his outline of the course. I arranged for us to use one of the classrooms that wasn't needed for High School lessons that day. We gathered up as many pliers, screwdrivers & wirestrippers as we could find, and we set off to teach! All of the 10th, 11th & 12th graders were required to attend and another dozen or so community members took part. Right off the bat I realized that there was no way I could merely interpret the words that the engineers were saying -- I needed to comprehend the concepts being presented before I could put them into intelligible Spanish. Needless to say, I learned A LOT and it required a great deal of concentration and skill for me to be able to carry out my task.
We started out the course by asking how many had electricity in their homes (all but one). How many of them had ever changed a light bulb? (most everyone). Who among them had ever received an electrical shock? (quite a few). As the engineers explained the difference between AC & DC, I flashed back
Dave instructs the class
We had over 30 learners, all engaged and eager to master new, useful skills. on the 9 volt battery experiments I'd done in 5th grade Science class (direct current). When it came to explaining alternating current, I needed to clarify the concepts of volts, watts, amps, breakers, grounding, etc. We spent quite a lot of time on SAFETY, drawing upon our personal experiences to illustrate how dangerous electricity can be.
After several hours in the classroom, we took a stroll around to see how the various buildings had been wired...most of them incorrectly, using inexpensive shortcuts. In the classroom where we had been teaching, the school bell was activated by touching two stripped wires together! There was a live wire hanging down over the head of the bed where Joel was sleeping! We explained that by spending a little more money to do things properly, the work would last a lifetime. For example, using 2 cent plastic caps instead of black tape to make wiring "pigtails" can ensure longer life for the wires. Many times the difference in price is only a few cents, but when financing a project out of their own pockets, the villagers think about the next meal for their families. Long range thinking and planning is not
Joel helps the learners
The hands-on part of the course included small groups practicing wiring plugs. a common concept for most of these people, given their frame of reference.
I often have to remind the engineers who come to volunteer in the village that the simplest things that we take for granted are not as readily evident to these indigenous people, many of whom have never left their village. I urge them to give explanations that are explicit and basic, and to explain the reasons for how and why things are done. Sometimes the volunteers shake their heads in amazement when something so obvious to them seems so inconceivable to a Malinguan. A large part of my job as an interpreter is not only to bridge linguistic gaps, but also to bridge cultural gaps.
The highlight of the classroom part of the course was the hands-on practice. When we asked the learners to form groups of six, they sprung into action, moving the two-seater desks into clusters. Clearly they had experience with cooperative learning! Each group was given an outlet to wire, along with the necessary tools. After some instruction from the engineers and explanation from me, they set to work. There was much focus, concentration and cooperation - but
Wiring Outlets
Don't be fooled....this course also served as a "social outlet" for the young people of the village. also a good deal of laughter and joy.
From there we moved over to the big building (El Edificio Grande) -- just a concrete shell at this point. The interior tubing that had been laid as the concrete was being poured was sometimes blocked with debris, kinked around a bend, or smashed and damaged. This required some creative thinking and alternative measures to be able to pass the wires through the conduits. In spite of many challenges, we found solutions and succeeded in wiring every switch, light, and outlet after two days of work. There were many helping hands, sometimes too many, and it was a bit of a relief when the less interested adolescent boys wandered off to play soccer.
To reach the ceiling for the light fixture wiring, some very creative and cooperative solutions came into play. As one person scaled an upended rickety wooden box, three or four others held it steady. Climbing a ladder in the middle of thin air (no nearby wall to lean it on) is less frightening if several of your buddies are holding it on each side. There were two sawhorses (burros) and a plank of
Joel teaches wiring
It was so great to work with these folks (both the engineers and the villagers)...big hearts and such dedication. wood to lay across them, but even this arrangement was none too stable and it was a hassle to move from place to place.
I closely followed a trio of teenaged girls who were always the first to arrive and the last to leave. Our loyal female electricians carefully and painstakingly wired every outlet, affixed each switchplate, and chased off the guys who tried to elbow them away from their tasks. At one point I asked Enma, Blanca & Marcia, "How many Ecuadorian women do you think are learning about electricity today? How many indigenous women do you think are wiring a building?" Pam has created amazing learning opportunities for these young people, fostering in them a hunger and thirst for knowledge. Eighteen year-old Enma is the school's librarian and dreams of becoming a teacher. Education represents a future for her, and for her village.
I had a chance to visit with the family I had "adopted" on my last visit, just over a year ago. I had been asked to be the godmother of the 2 youngest daughters. Hortensia just turned 30 and she has 5 children, ages 2-14. I brought boxes of
Evaluating Existing Electricals
Paulino was a good sport as Joel used the incorrect and dangerous electrical "short"cuts at his house as examples of what NOT to do! clothes and shoes for their family and of course I was invited to eat with them (two types of potatoes with fried egg on top). Within a few hours I was expected to eat another big plate full of potatoes with the engineers at Paulino's house. I do love papas, but we were served them at every meal. The tiny yellow "mellocos" (finger potatoes) are my favorites, gooey and glutinous inside, they taste like they're already buttered.
All in all, it was a very positive and successful visit. I think I appreciated the village more this time, having had a pause since my last visit. We had very little rain on this trip, and even though it got cold at night it was sunny and warm during the days. I was grateful for a long, hot shower when we got back to Quito! One of the things I love best about my life here in Ecuador is the variety of landscapes and experiences. The opportunity to interact with all kinds of people, to appreciate the country's diverse natural beauty, and to use my language skills in different ways is very gratifying.
Thanks for reading
Wiring the building...
...and girlwatching at the same time! and stay tuned for my next installment...my 50th birthday excursion to one of my favorite beaches!!
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charmaine
non-member comment
Hi Jill what a wonder filled life you have. You are inspiring! xcharmaine