My journey...

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For some reason all the last pictures I put on are on one specific and old blog entry, I did not figure out how to separate them so you will have to bear with me for now as I am still learing! So... Since the 12th of October, that special day where I left you last, I had a wonderful birthday party with all of Uncle David´s friends but had to leave early with two of the guests that dropped me off at a bus stop so that I could get back to Otavalo before it was really late, especially since I had school the next day!
School on Monday went well, I help out a lot in the bar at school and in exchange I am probed (not against my will!) to try new fruit, new dishes and I am never allowed to pay for them. Such hospitality and friendliness here that my heart fills to overflowing with love and happiness every day and I feel so privileged to be here!
Every Tuesday I accompany Joselito to a yunjior youth class in Punyaro where if little children come to the group, instead of helping with the junior youth, I take over an impromptu childrens class and play lots of games, lots of drawing and teaching as much as possible to the younger kids.
On Wednesdays I accompany Claudia to her Juior Youth class, although for the next few weeks this class has been moved to Saturday becuase Claudia is taking driving lessons. On the 15th we had a 19-day feast, my first experienced here in Otavalo and although not as rich in food and ambience as those in greece, it was deffinitely full of love and warmth of the heart and joy overflowing from the soul. Quite a different experience but in no ways a bad one! After the feast I watched the Ecuador-Venezuela soccer game at Jorge´s with my and his family and then was happy to return home to bed!
My neighbors are very friendly, a family with 4 kids, Nancy (19), Mari, Kevin and Tamia but I do not know the other ages! Nancy is home late every day but Mari and Kevin LOVE to play with me and are constantly knowcking on my door asking to play and colelct blackberries from our back yard, or capulis, another fruit red when ripe that has the pit and size of a cherry but ot the taste!
I usually eat breakfast and then once in the aftyernoon after school. The portions here are huge and they eat rice for every single meal so I never feel hungry for dinner! Although my family does eat dinner and they invite me over and every now and then I join them but it is hard for me to explain that after coming from a country where we eat more salad and lighter meals it is hard for me to eat two huge meals a day! The food can be quite different but I am enjoying it and when people ask whether I miss food from Greece, I can only say that I miss the salads! Here you might east a tomato or a bit of cucumber with lunch but salad is rare!
ON Saturday the 18th I traveled to Ibarra where I met Uncle David and Rachel and from there we traveled together to about the most far and off teh chart place that exists! It was incredible! About a 3-hour bus ride to go and 2.5 hours to return, with two buses going per day at 1.30 and 3 in the afternoon and two buses to return at 4 and 6 IN THE MORNING!!!
IN Buenos Aires, or rather a little vilalge called San Fransisco before Buenos Aires, we stayed with a family of 8 (six children!) This family was really incredible, always smiling and laughing and so poor that I wish I could have left all my clothes with them had it not been so cold! They had no electricity and there was no cellphone service in the area. They had running water but only recently was it connected from the waterfall nearby and the stream to their house with a hose and it was freezing but very fresh. Their washing machine consisted of a hole carved out under the waterfall which pounds he clothes until they are clean. The family makes a living by milking cows and after so many years of living at the farm school and having milked only a sheep at Taki´s farm, I was finally able to try milking a cow! It seems so easy when somebody who has been doing it all their life does it but although I could do it, I was definitely not as fast nor as efficient as they were!
The Mother of the family made us lovely meals while we were there and offered us freshly baked bread (by here own hands) and homemade cheese and milk from their cows as well as many other things. The m¿family was so incredible! I cannot wait to go back there but this time take a few things with me to help them out. I also prepared some keftedakia (meatballs) to go with our lunch on Sunday and then luckily (and only sundays!) the bus passed at 2.00 in the afternoon to take us back to Ibarra where we had an icecream all together before I parted ways with Uncel David and Rachel to get back to Otavalo in time for a shower (because I smelled vividly of smoke and cows!) and get to the Bahá'í Institute for the celebration of the birth of the Bab. On the bus bcak to Otavalo I met a girl from the USA who is living and working in Otavalo and loves it here and although I haven't seen her since, I know that if I ever need to 'speak my own language' I have somebody to talk to!
Again the celebration was carried out very differently from the Greek ones, with a lot of games with the kids and a specially prepared meal of chicken and rice with cheese, beet salad and coke afterwards.
On Monday we had the day off school as a Sacred day and so I made pancakes with blackberries for my family and played all day with Dagmar and Kendy and the neighbors, who would not leave me alone for a minute! I had to beg to have a nap in the middle of the day!
We had a small party in the evening with my family and Jorge, Claudia and their son Yazid and we made empanadas, a special treat like a cheesepie but here they also eat them with honey, making it very rich and tasty! During this time we read out the letter from the Universal House of Justice dictating that right here in Quito, one of the 41 conferences all around the world is to take place... This has put all the Baha'is of Otavalo and Ecuador as a whole! in a frenzy to get things done, to orgaize everything by the 22nd and 23rd when the conference is to take place with Baha'is from all over south america! A huge number of people and an incredible feat! I feel so privileged to be so close to this and to be a part of what is happening here!
ON Tuesday the 21st as well as the childrens class, I also went with my family to the Cachicullá community for devotionals (which are again quite different! no music for example...) and then was happy to get back home to sleep...
On Wednesday after school I travelled to Morales Chupa with Fabiola, another community part of Otavalo but not in it and there I studied (taught) book 1 to Javier while Claudia and Eduardo taught a childrens class and Fabiola taught book 1 to another group.
On thursday I accompanied Fabi to Gualapuro to study some of the ruhi books but no one was home so we returned slightly let down but at the Bahaí Radio I was snatched up by Joselito and Jose Luis to practice some native Ecuadorian songs which we will be presenting at the conference and I am going to play to bass!
Today, Friday the 24th was a funny day at school becuase they have a coming of age for the ninth graders called the Dia del Novato which took place the last two hours and was very interesting! with lots of games and spoofs and fun. At the moment I am using the time in which I was supposed to be teaching book 4 to write up my latest adventures but since I forgot my camera cord the pictures will have to wait till nest time... hopefully this weekend! In about an hour we have another music practice and this weekend is full woth busy things such as a unity feast with lots of fun, food and games on Sunday and teaching on Saturday and definitely a lot of other unplanned things that will crop up!
Apparently the community here is very happy to have me here, and I am very happy to be here!
Until next time... Lots of love nad hugs and kisses!

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