La Virgin del Cisne

In Southern Ecuador, the Virgin El Cisne is Queen... eh, Virgin.  All around Ecuador (and Latin America) different names represent the Virgin Mary, associated with a local sitting of the Virgin.  In my old site, Guaranda, La Virgin del Guayco is Virgin

Every year, there's a pilgrimage from El Cisne to Loja and then back to El Cisne.

Simon Bolivar first declared the pilgrimage in 1824 - pilgrims bring their wooden replica of the Virgin El Cisne (picture on left) from the village El Cisne (picture down below) to the provincial capital Loja.  Thousands of devotees from around Ecuador and surrounding countries make the pilgrimage every year.  Some walk days starting from their home towns to El Cisne where they meet up with the Virgin and pass through Catamayo to arrive in Loja.  The walk from Catamayo to Loja starts at 6am ... climbing hills from the sub-tropic city, the pilgrims arrive in sierra Loja around 4pm.

Last Sunday, the Virgin arrived in Loja.  The procession was two block from my apartment.  Most of the stores in Loja were closed all day, and traffic was rerouted from Ave. Gran Columbia.  She will stay here through the month, and then return to El Cisne in November.  During the month, she's at the Cathedral in Loja - there are daily masses, devotees to visit her, and sellers to provide all with candles, rosaries, necklaces and other memorabilia. 

An interesting article and photos about the pilgrimage and its diverse pilgrims. 

Guadalupe

Getting to Guadalupe from Loja:

7:30am bus from Terminal Terrestre in Loja to Zamora 

9:10am arrive in Zamora

10:00am bus from Zamora to Guadalupe

11:00am arrive in Guadalupe

Guadalupe is located in the Provence of Zamora-Chinchipe, and serves as an organized epicenter for the Parroquia, surrounded by dozens of small villages.  The word villages is used loosely, scattered houses on a hill-side are often grouped together and given a name.

Guadalupe is centered around the Mission "Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe" which includes a parish church and a clinic, that offer a variety of services and activities for the surrounding villages. To get to the Mission, you cross a beautiful jungle bridge (although, a little wobbly, there's a great view of the river and the Mission from the middle).

In Guadalupe, Soluciones Comunitarias has 6 asesoras - we'll be starting campañas at the end of the month, once La Virgin del Cisne leaves Loja (I will post a blog about La Virgin in the coming weeks).  Additionally, we will be starting an improved stoves project in the area :)

Guadalupe is a growing, organized center - there's a Cultural Center, 3 colegios (one during the days, one night, and one distance program), 3 escuelas, restaurants in the center, and buses pass more than 5x a day.  However, it's still an untouched community, where our lunch cost $1 a plate and it is not uncommon for a family to have 10 children.

In Guadalupe, many of the women pass their time making hand made goods - wood crafts (and painting them), necklaces, bracelets, earrings, as well as embroidering traditional dress.  Mercedes and Carmen are sisters from Guadalupe.  Apart from being asesoras for SC, they also make and sell handi-crafts.  Last summer, summer interns (Social Entrepreneur Corps) visited Guadalupe and seeing potential in their work, have returned to the United States and now want to receive samples of their product to begin looking for a market in their University towns.  Good Stuff Good Works, will be sponsoring products from Nicaragua, Guatemala, South Africa, and Ecuador (the four countries where SEC programs were held this past summer.

 

  

The weather in Guadalupe was perfect for the day - the sun was out, and there was a fresh breeze moving down the main street.  The sun is STRONG though, and bugs are not uncommon.  Common foods include yucca and plantain (verde), as well as frog.  Since coming to Ecuador two years ago, I have converted into a carnivore.  Don't get me wrong - I still love my veggies and don't cook meat in my house.  But, there's no way I'll turn down trying frog!  We sat and chatted with the artisans and their families (daughters, grand-daughters, neighbors), while listening to their stories.  They were all strong women who proved to be searching for a better life for their families - better health, better education, and more opportunities.

Getting to Loja from Guadalupe:

3:50pm start waiting for bus (one passes around 4, another at 4:30)

4:15pm neither bus has arrived, but a camioneta passes and gives us a ride to the junction 20min away

4:30pm bus passes junction, and picks us up to Zamora

5:15pm arrive in Zamora

6:15pm bus to Loja

7:45pm arrive in Loja

Loja

I left Guaranda a little less than a week ago, I still feel like I'm heading back in a few days - back to my secret garden house, 7 Santos, work in the campo, tortillas de yucca, stadium running, old friends and a special someone. 

But, I'm not.  I'm here in Loja -- and so far, honestly -- I'm loving the new changes and the new opportunities.  A few things I've experienced in my short week down South...

- They have trails (dirt) where you can go running with trees around the Parque Jipiro, where no dogs chase after you (I did see stray dogs, they just didn't run after me barking and snapping).

- There's hiking on official trails.  This morning I went hiking with some other Peace Corps Volunteers across from the Botanical Gardens, at the Universario, there was a Visitor's Center, a trail-head, we even had to pay an entry fee and got a trail map.

- The land is F L A T - Loja is at the base of the Andes Mountains it sits at 2100 m (6890 ft) above sea level, submerged in the Cuxibamba Valley it stretched down the valley along two main rivers - Rio Zamora and Rio Malacatos.

I'm currently living with a host family (a divorced woman and her 20 year old son).  I have a SMALL room in their apartment, but will be moving out (into my own apartment) in October.  There are three other Peace Corps Volunteers who live in the city of Loja (and 5 more TEFL volunteers who will be moving here at the end of the month!), they are all amazing people - and love to have dinner parties :)  let the cooking begin!

I was in Cuenca last Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, where I did some training for my new job.  Currently, two Italian women work for Soluciones Comunitarias in Ecuador.  They both work out of the Cuenca office, and I'll be in Loja developing the work here and helping to "set up the office".  Soluciones Comunitarias is a US based organization, currently operating in Guatemala, Ecuador and S. Africa.  I won't lie, I'm ecstatic to work for a US company again, before you shoot me down for that comment, let me try to explain.  I was at the office last week, and was preparing to fill out a receipt for some travel costs.  Without thinking, I asked, "what color pen should I fill out these receipts with? Blue or Black?".  My boss looked at me, and goes, "I don't care, pink, green, red, what ever color you want."  In Ecuador, the color of pen that you use on official documents is critical - if the ink is black, you have to use a blue pen.. so people know it's the original copy.  In schools, the school kids are fanatics with the type of writing instrument and color they use - pencil? pen? blue? black? red?

I immediately started laughing, I HAD been working in an Ecuadorian office for 2 years.

Maybe I did extend my stay in Ecuador because it's easier than the thought of reintegrating into the US culture.  But this job is providing me with good professional experience - it's a blending of my undergraduate business degree, my love for social entrepreneurship, and my new passion for nutrition.  And, offering me a step towards integration, before heading back to the states.

After spending three days at the office in Cuenca, I learned more about the work I'll be doing.. I'll be helping to train and develop (mainly) women entrepreneurs in the rural areas of Loja to start their own businesses and sell health products (water purification systems, solar lamps, organic seeds, and reading glasses).  Plus, we're starting projects to see the need and potential for watering systems and smart stoves in the area.  Currently there are 5 group of entrepreneurs who have received training and have started to sell the products (through bimonthly campañas).  I'll be working with them to strengthen their knowledge and to help create more opportunities for them and their clients.

I'm hopeful, excited and ready for the challenges of this next year, and will be sure to share the stories of the people I meet.

Hasta Pronto Guaranda!

The last few weeks have been a blurrr (more photos) - finishing with projects, spending time with loved ones, planning for my move, attending despedidas (going away parties), and packing up my house. I've changed communities/ jobs/ host families ...but Guaranda is and always will be a part of my heart.

It really hasn't sunk in yet that I've left Guaranda, staying in Ecuador and having plans to go back to visit every 2ish months (half marathon in October, Christmas in December, and CARNAVAL in February).  I filled the last few weeks with seven despedidas - between schools, the Fundacion, CEMOPLAF, friends and family - I realized the despedidas are really for everyone else. 

My despedidas ranged from elementary school kids dancing Danza Kuduro..

(LEFT: students of Santa Ana, during their Despedida Program)  In the last few months, we've been getting things ready for the new volunteers - finishing up the Literature Program for the year, organizing the Youth Entrepreneurship Group, finalizing requirements for student scholarships, setting up the Ludoteca (Youth Center) and Library at the Foundation.






Sheep (kiillings and) BBQs...

At the beginning of the month, my host mom (Teresa) asked me what food I wanted for my Despedida ... "lasagna? guacamole?", she asked, listing my favorite dishes to make.  She joked about the idea of killing a sheep - "sheep lasagna?!" A week or so after that, she approached me again, timidly proposing the idea of having a sheep killing - they wanted to do it, but weren't sure if I would eat it.  I told Teresa, it was her last chance to castigarme (punish me), so she might as well do it by making me eat yaguarlocro (sheep intestine soup) and bbq'd sheep meat.

 Saturday night the neighbors came over and Thomas was killed.

I better explain something; Thomas is the new PCV who will replace me at the Foundation.  Teresa named the sheep Thomas - she said the sheep is named Thomas because he's sacrificing his life so I can go to Loja and be successful.  For the past two years I've been working and sacrificing my life to live in Guaranda and preparing the people here and the work for Thomas to come.  He needs to sacrifice (his life?) to make sure I have success in Loja.  Ecuadorian Culture or Quick Cover-up?  I'm still debating...

 And good old fashioned dancing and friends...

As I mentioned in a previous blog, Peace Corps Ecuador accepted my proposal for a Professional Development Extension for 10 months.  This past Tuesday I moved to Loja, the Provincial Capital of the Southern most Provence.  It's a larger city - close to 240,000 people.  It is located at the bottom of the glacial Cuxibamba Valley, and lies between the humid Amazon Basin and the Peruvian sechura - making it the perfect geographic location for paramo, cloud-forest, and jungle.  Podocarpus National Park (a massive cloud-fores reserve) is located just minutes outside the city.  To make things even better, Loja is the Music Capital of Ecuador and is knows as the City of the Parks.  It's going to be a great next year!

Tuesday morning at 3am, my host uncle, aunt, and grandma drove me the 9 hours to my new home.  (And, thank goodness, if I had gone by myself on public transportation, it would have been 2 buses, 1 scary Guayaquil terminal, 12+hours, and cutting my number of bags in half!)

I absolutely adore my new host family - a divorced woman and her son.  They are both very smart, charming, caring,  and well connected within the Loja area.  After spending less than 24hs in my new community, I took a 5hr bus ride up north to Cuenca.  My new counter-organization, Soluciones Comunitarias, has their office there, and everyone who work for the organization (2 Italian women) lives there.  We reviewed methods, products, accounting, logistics, history, and goals for 3 days!  The work appears innovative, hands-on, dynamic and is focused in social entrepreneurship, nutrition and woman empowerment.  I'll be working with entrepreneurs in the rural area - focusing on training and development.  Additionally, I'll be helping to set up the Regional Office in Loja - building the professional and social network for Soluciones Comunitarias and social entrepreneurs.

Oh, I'm accepting applications for visitors this coming year :)  Please apply ASAP!

Media Maratón

Last weekend in Guayaquil, 4 Peace Corps Volunteer friends and I participated in the Guayaquil Half Marathon. I say "participated" because training has been S L O W. Two of the girls ran with parasites (and who knows what other stomach friends). The race started at 6am, which might seem early, but the Guayaquil sun gets up at 6:30. By the middle of the race, I was dehydrated and sweating like crazy. Training in the sierra is good for the lungs, but doesn't help at all with the humidity! Spirits were high, as we all ended with PRs, receiving our medals at the Finish Line.

María teresa Guerrero (Flaca), a famous TV anchor and news reporter in Ecuador was at the race too! She competed in the 10k, finishing with an impressive 47min. She was recently hit by a car while running, but it appears her recovery is going very well.

We made Peace Corps Running Shirts!! 

This is the BACK:

and ... the FRONT:

Programa de Literatura

In Carbon Chimipamba, the students have been hard at work. Starting in October, we organized our Programa de Literatura at La Escuela Galo Vásconez Ocampo, 11 students participated. Their goals were focused on reading as many books as possible, demonstrating their understanding of the books, and rewarding both the individual students and the whole school for their achievements. Here's how we broke down their goals:

After 8 books: The school will receive more books
After 18 books: Invite our parents for a "Parent's Reading Day"
After 28 books: Paint murals on the school walls

The BIG mural... the quote on the book says ""Aprender es descubrir que algo es posible." - Fritz Perls (to learn is to discover that something is possible)

Murals for the little kids...

Another Mural "The Ugly Duck"                                           Mural of kids playing a local game around a tree

After hard work and weekly reading circles, the school completed all their goals ... and received CERTIFICATES.

Not only did they complete their formal goals … we began to see several changes around the school as well … every morning the students pick up trash outside their school building and then wash their hands before opening their books to learn. During their recess time, the kids enjoy reading in pairs. After several art projects and the murals went up in the school, two students have expressed interest in learning to draw. The students minds are ideas are starting to open.

A HUGE Thank You to everyone who helped donate books!! Especially Mr. Bobby’s Class!

New Photos

New PICS!!

Quickie...

I know, I know, it's been forever!

Every time I thought about writing, there were always a million things to write about, a billion things to say, and I never seem to have enough time/ energy to sit down and write them all. So, I've decided to use this blog space to write short tid bits on my life here in Ecuador - interesting people that I meet during my day, new communities that I visit, a new food I try. "The Daily Happenings"

First off, I have less than two months left in Guaranda!! TODAY is my 2 year anniversary in ECUADOR!! The time has flown by - the days sometimes long, but the weeks slip though my fingers all too quickly.

I have accepted a 10-month extension with Peace Corps Ecuador. I will move sites, to Loja; and switch counter-organizations, to work with Soluciones Comunitarias!! It's an awesome opportunity for me - and I'm excited to surround myself with business-like minds working on entrepreneurial endeavors to change the health of their communities.

That's all for now, a short a sweet quick up-date to jump-start my re-blogging for the final happenings in Guaranda and the preliminary adventures down South.