It was going to be our last dinner with our host family and they were asking if we were coming back and we told them soon!! Our host parents were telling us how someone a few years ago who stayed with them for a couple of years said she was coming back after graduation, which was shortly after that, never came back. Therefore, it was hard for Tamia because she remembers and is scared that it will happen again. Karissa and I told her that we would come back!! Not sure when, but we will and soon!!
As we were heading back home, a police car had pulled over next to the bus and talked to Juan Carlos. The police had informed him that there was a rock stuck in between the tires and we needed to get it out before it flew out and could potentially severely hurt someone. Therefore, Juan Carlos and Omar tried to get the rock out of the wheels. They tried everything, even pulling the bus over another rock and elevating the bus to see if it would work. It seemed pretty dangerous that the bus was going to fall off the rock and Juan Carlos was under the bus at this time. It was great how they were both laughing, despite the situation. Thus, we went to the garage and there was a technician there and he was able to loosen the wheel and get the rock out from between the wheels!! The rock was huge!! It was about 5 inches in diameter, the long way. I was wondering how a rock got in there. Luckily, the rock was taken out!! It is called the Guinea Pig Lake because it takes the shape of a Guinea Pig. We were joking that we should go swimming in the water, even though it was probably freezing!! It would have been great to go swimming there. We went on a boat around the island centered in the middle and then went one of the hiking trails. Since we did not know where we were going, we saw some people and asked them for directions. This is where we met Nancy, her husband, and Lars. They were from Chicago, Illinois and have been living in Ecuador for the past 5 years. I told her that my digital imaging professor is from Chicago and how he says that there are many great museums there. We told her that we were from Providence College, and many of us were from the New York-New England / Tri-State area. We learned that she and her husband worked in both the United States and Ecuador, so they traveled back and forth quite frequently. She explained me to how she has been to Cuycocha Crater Lake several times, but never had the chance to go on any of the hikes. However, since, Lars, who is from Switzerland and now living in the United States, was visiting them, they decided it was time to go on a hike. We went for a short hike and took a lot of jumping photos!! The altitude was hitting us again. However, Nancy, her husband and Lars just kept going!! We had to stop for breaks to take photos. The scenery was amazing!! Since we had to be back for lunch, we turned back while they continued on their hike. In the middle of lunch, they came back and were eating at the same place that we were eating. I went over and asked them how their hike went. They had climbed two of the mountains and they climbed pretty fast. She was explained to me how she was going to climb the whole trail one day, which is about four hours. I woke up at 6:00 AM and went to go milk cows with my host mom. It was a new experience and one I may try again. The sunrise was amazing, especially over the mountains!! Milking a cow is much harder than it looks. I tried several times, however, the milk did not come out… However, when my host mom milked the cow and with both hands might I add, there was milking coming out!! We also saw Shadow’s mom. When we finished milking three cows, we walked back. Our host mom was carrying a huge container on her back. It was amazing how she was able to get the container of milk on her back and walk back to the house with it. It was a great adventure after we made bread in the morning. Tamia had informed us that it would take about an hour to walk over to Antonio’s house where mass was going to take place. As we were leaving, we saw the bus on the bottom of the hill and we decided to run after it!! Normally I would say yes lets go catch the bus, but this time we just finished eating and running down a cobblestone hill was probably not the best of ideas. However, we did run after the bus and we made it down the hill before the bus even got there, but we were out of breath!! Really out of breath!! Except Tamia… Omar and Juan Carlos were in the bus and we were able to get a ride to Antonio’s house. When we got there, there were a few people there, so we explored. There was an unfinished house and I asked if I could get on top of it. I had an amazing view from up there. After everyone showed up, mass started. Omar received the blessed rooster, and Eric the baby Jesus. After mass, Bolivia explained the different plants, fruits and vegetables and their functions. If someone got sick, then they would use a certain plant to cure it. Then, they explained how they sacrificed guinea pigs to get rid of the evil sprits. After that, we started to make tortillas. As that was happening, I went back onto the roof with some of the children and started to do some jumping photographs!! Have not done that in a while and decided to do that. We did that and then went to go pick Mora berries to eat. I had a whole lot of them!! They were really tasty!! It was a very exciting morning!! Tamia had informed us that there could be hot water when we showered; we asked her how that was possible. The last couple of days, we had taken freezing showers. I was happy that there was water, but hot water would be a welcoming change. She had turned on the gas and lit the boiler. She said to take a really fast shower because if I do not the box will blow up… I took that to heart and took a 3-minute shower and turned off the water. The next thing I knew, there was a lot of commotion. When I came out of the bathroom, Karissa said that I burned down the house… I was... Then, I went outside to see that there was a hole in the pipe. I did not understand how that happened but it did. Guilmer and I fixed the pipe and everything was good. Now it was time to make bread!! They had an industrial oven and it was great. From cleaning the trays, mixing the dough, making the bread and baking it was hard work, but very rewarding!! I was with Tamia cleaning the trays and the table that we were going to use to make the bread. After that we buttered the trays so the bread would not stick to the pan. Berta had come back from school with an amazing painting that she did. Meanwhile, our host mom and Karissa were mixing the dough. After we finished buttering up the pans, we went outside and watched Berta mixing the dough. That was a lot of dough that was being mixed!! When that was finished, we went back into the room with the industrial size oven and started making the bread. After a while, Guilmer came in and turned on the oven. We had to close the door because we had to keep the heat in. The room got pretty toasty after a while and we were sweating. We were making fun things with the bread. We made our names, braids and flowers. Once in a while, Guilmer would take the trays out of the oven and turn the bread around to make sure that both sides were cooked. It was amazing to watch how fast Berta and Tamia were able to roll the bread and make the designs. When we were about done, our host mom came in with blankets to cover us because she did not want us to catch a cold when we left the steaming room. She explained us that it all started with the head; how if your head goes from extremely hot to extremely cold one will get sick. When we left, it was pretty cold outside, event though normally it would be hot. Since we were in an extremely hot room and left, it seemed like it was cold. Our host mom had made a pineapple drink and it was scrumptious!! We had soup and some of the bread that we made for lunch!! During dinner, we learned that our family was very artistic. We also learned that our host dad had practically built the whole house. He had four jobs: florist, carpenter, electrician and beekeeper. He was also an artist. He showed us that under the tablecloth, he had painted the table as well as making it. It was amazing. There was a tray on the wall that I thought was just there, but he had painted a bird on the other side. We also learned that our host parents had each other’s name tattooed on their hands. It was amazing!! Our host mom went to bed because she had to herd the cows at 2:00 AM. I was amazed that she was able to wake up at 2:00 AM and go herd the cows, let alone walking in the dark. Then she said that she had to go milk the cows 6:00 AM. That takes a lot of determination and self-discipline to do that. Then, Guilmer comes and eats fire!! He showed us how he would put a lighted match into his mouth and then close his mouth, opening without the fire. After this, we went to bed. However, when we went to our room, Guilmer came and showed us his notebook. He really likes graffiti and was really good at it. He also showed us the music that he liked. He said that his favorite artist is Eminem. Then he showed us break dancing videos and told us how he would like to learn. We learned tonight that we are amongst artists!! We went to Peguche Waterfall. We had gone there last time, but we did not go to the actual waterfall. Last time, instead of the waterfall, we had enjoyed the scenery and ate ice cream. This time we went to the Waterfall and it was amazing!! There was a trail to the waterfall that was pretty flat and easy to walk. When we got there, you could feel the water splashes because the water was coming down extremely hard. We climbed a rock that was pretty close to the water and had gotten drenched!! I love being in water and on the beach. I enjoy getting wet. There is something about the water that is remarkable. I enjoy swimming and it is a place where I can think and relax. Afterwards, Alexandria and her family, Tamia, Guilmer and I went on another trail and saw a swimming pool. Instead of going back the way we came, we explored a different route!! There was a bridge overlooking the trail; the sight was stunning. Yohan had enjoyed the shaking the bridge and I joined him. However, everyone else did not like the fact that he and I were shaking the bridge. There were parts of this trail, which were not flat, and climbing was bad but it was a great adventure!! When we got back we decided to play catch with a mini basketball. Something else that I enjoy doing is playing sports!! Yohan, Nando (Jeff’s godson) and I were playing catch. However, Yohan made the decision that he should be kicking the ball instead. Therefore, we had a combination of catch and kickball happening. Later on, Kiley and Giovanna joined in. It was great. However, after a while I was out of breath again. But I kept on playing!! We played for a while and the next thing I knew, only Nando and I were playing catch together. We kept on playing until it was time to go. We went to the Otavalo craft market where all the arts and crafts were being sold. Tamia and Guilmer came along as well. We were going to see Alexandra and Johan!! We met them last time we visited and they also went hiking with us last time to the waterfall near La Rinconada. They had moved to Otavalo and we had not have a chance to see them yet. I was really excited to see them!! While in the market, we were so excited to see them that we did not realize we were blocking someone’s stand. Then, they came!!!! I do not think words can express how I happy I felt to see them again!! We walked around the market and perused the different items being sold. Johan kept playing with the little wooden animals that bobbing heads, like bobble heads but in animal form. Then, we went to La Casa de Intag, a fair trade coffee shop, to have something to drink and rest. Johan took quiet a few photos with my camera, like he did last time with Eric’s camera and he was exploring the different ways of taking photographs. He would press different buttons and see what would happen. Afterwards, we continued to look through the market some more. Inti Raymi is the Festival of the Sun. We dressed in traditional clothing and danced in a circle. The dancing is wishing for a good agriculture cycle the following year. Tamia and I were twins; we were wearing the same color. Our host dad played the guitar with Antonio. There was the Aya Uma, a mask with two faces and twelve horns. |