Friday, What a Day!
I got the phone number for a man I wanted to speak with in Cuenca. I was scared my poor Spanish would make me sound dumb and there for not useful. I was definitely a little nervous about talking to other people and calling some that I do not know to talk business; this was different. But after a week I manned up and gave Pedro a call yesterday. He owns the only brew pub in Cuenca.
We scheduled the meeting for today at 5pm at the brew pub, of course. I show up a bit early, and ask if they have any of their three microbrews on tap. “no.” This is the third week in a row they have not had their own stuff and one of the questions I had for Pedro.
I was not sure what kind of person Pedro would be like. He is a taller guy, mid thirties maybe, wearing stylish clothes and a taste for Marlboros. He walked in, greeted me and passed a $5 bill to the bartender who ran out of the pub and was back in seconds with a pack of Marlboro Reds. He looked at me and asked me to talk about what my idea. He then had the same bartender get him a beer.
I told him that I wanted to learn to brew beer in large quantities and that I brewed back home. In exchange for that I could help him a little with the business. I told him that I am a PCV living in Baños working with the Padre and Junta. I told him I would be here two years and wanted a place to go to have a good beer.
He took a long drag way past the point that most people smoke on a cigarette and then snubbed it out. He then leaned back from the ashtray on the bar, looked at me and more or less said “ok.” I was dumbfounded. That was too easy. I thought I would have to put up a fight, give more reasons or even beg. Well great that I did not have to beg.
“So why no beer?”
Apparently his malted barley and other grains are from Argentina and apparently they do not rush things and take their time shipping. This did not seem to faze Pedro at all. Then I realized this is probably his side project business, he clearly has money and this place is not making much. He did not seem concerned at all that he has to wait another two weeks for his key ingredients and that there is no rush to make a new batch. He orders his hops from Washington State. He said he is unable to brew beer during their winter because he cannot get hops. There have to be other places to get hops; in fact I know there are. Perhaps I can be useful after all.
After awhile of just hanging out talking about this and that I excused myself to meet up with friends. I asked him when I should give a call about the next batch and we set a rough date to brew. I plan on calling a few days early just in case.
I left feeling pretty good and then realized I do not know any of the brewing terms in Spanish. I need to put together a list of useful words and phrases I thought to myself as I went to meet up with Clint and Mitch for a beer.
A little later we went to meet up with Sonya, another volunteer at her friend’s house. We were told buy some at the bar the place were walking to was only 15 min away. Well it is not, it is like an hour walk. So we got a cab halfway. Have not gotten reliable directions here yet, we must be asking the wrong questions.
We met Sonya and her friend Carlos at his house and then promptly went out to solve his lack of beer problem. Mitch, Clint and I went to grab pizza from a nearby place. As it just so happens it was the pizza we have had here. I was a big fan of the ham, pineapple and peach one especially. After some beers and talking I feel like bed. Then around 11-ish Sonya suggests we go to a dance club. We all agreed, at least if we did not feel like it our hostel is only a block away.
There was a three dollar cover charge at the dance club! No matter we all went in. We stayed for an hour or two in a very overcrowded club. It felt like I was in a small closet with 300 people, we were not really dancing. From above we probably just looked like cells under a microscope bumping into each other.
We pulled the plug around one and we walked to our hostel. It was a nice sleep for me, because the hostel is much warmer than my attic room in Baños. It was a nice change to get out of bed and not be cold.
Saturday
I walked around with Clint for awhile because Mitch had to split off to buy a new cell phone. So we thought about seeing a movie in theatres. Nothing peaked our interest but at least we now know where the movie theatre is. Clint decided to go home and leave me to my shopping. I was in need of hot sauce, instant coffee and some other random stuff for the kitchen. I think I got Rosa hooked on the sauce, she puts it on everything. Luckily she does so sparingly.
My day was made complete when I came home and found Edgar watching WWF dubbed over in Spanish drinking a Budwieser. We said hola and he told me that there is fried chicken in the kitchen and to grad a beer from the fridge. Wow, not what I was expecting but a welcome surprise none the less. After WWF we watched the new Bruce Willis film Cop Out and laughed the whole time. I retired to my room to read Brewing Up a Business by Sam Calagione, the owner of Dogfish Head Craft Brewery. It felt like an appropriate time to start up a book I had been anticipating to read since my friend Tim gave it to me. So far so good! But man it makes me miss a good beer.
Monday September 20th-Thursday September 23rd.
I now go to the Junta Parochial every day to talk to people about the many projects I have in the works. A newer project is designing pamphlets about not littering; a large problem in my community.
My tree planting project has expanded to putting in small stone walls around the trees and benches. It is really nice to see the enthusiasm the project gets from people when I explain it.
I have met with different people about supplies and architects to get all the pricing in order. Everyone is very eager to help because they know this project benefits the whole community. The man who supplies the volcanic rock is willing to donate all the rock we need for free if we get him the permit from the municipality to mine more of it.
Cold calls in Spanish are not something I enjoy doing. Then again, does anyone enjoy cold calling? I was trying to get people to sign up for the marketing class I am going to start teaching next week. I definitely confused a lot of people; luckily Estella from the Junta was there to bail me out when she heard the confusion on the line. Overall, it looks like I will have a class of 15 starting next Wednesday!
Thursday the volunteers in the immediate Cuenca area had a very unique opportunity to have coffee with US Ambassador to Ecuador, Heather Hodges. She was great to talk to and was generally interested in our projects and what our experiences have been thus far. She says she enjoys here work here; however the red tape she has to cut through to get stuff is frustrating at times. I feel very comfortable knowing she is keeping a watchful on the Peace Corps. and its volunteers.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
First bottle of hot sauce is gone
Saturday September 11th
There was a front page article in the Cuenca paper about mourners gathering at ground zero in New York today. It was well written and sympathetic from what I understood.
Later that day I met up with Clint, a PCV who lives an hour outside of Cuenca, to go with the Scouts to an orphanage. As it turns out there was a kink in the plan and we ended up not going to the orphanage. Instead we played a few games and helped brainstorm community service projects and fundraising ideas for the Scouts.
After the meeting Clint and I met up with two other PCVs, Jaime and Miguel(PC loves acronyms) at the Cuenca house. Some family apparently has extra space in their house and likes volunteers. So the deal is we get a bed, clean sheets, a key to the house all for the shockingly low price of $3.50. Most hostels cost at least $10 a night.
So the four of us went out to grab a few drinks a play some good old Texas hold’em. The buy in was a dollar, and Clint who has the least card experience of us all walked away with the big pot of $4. Later on in the night we stopped by a club to dance, but only stayed for a few minutes as we were all tired.
Sunday September 12, 2010
Ceviche for breakfast! For those readers who missed that blog I shall explain. Ceviche is a delicious seafood soup with a base of citrus juice (orange and lime), tomatoes and onions. Serve that up with a little hot sauce, of course rice, and some fried plantains all for a $1.50. Perfect PC breakfast.
Since I do not get much in the way of dairy products in my diet I treated myself to an Oreo milkshake for lunch. I am glad I did, it was perfect. I really dislike the feeling of having a craving for food, getting it, and then being disappointed because it is not up to par.
Today was our cluster picnic/meet and great. A cluster is the volunteers who live within 5 hours by bus from a major city, more or less. So in my cluster there is about 10 PCVs. Most of us met in Parque Calderon, which is in the center of Cuenca to catch a pick up to the park.
I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the park. It had multiple full sized futbol fields (do not call it soccer) volley ball courts, basketball courts, a surplus of benches, vendors, wild dogs, domesticated dogs, a few undomesticated PCVs, paddle boats, a pond for the paddle boats and a very long line for the boats and an even longer sentence to explain it.
We talked about our sites and hometowns and crazy stories. After awhile I was overcome by the urge to pass out and did just that. Not from a lack of interest in the conversations, but just because. There is something serene about sleeping in the grass on a warm day.
So after an all day event of snacking on homemade cookies, cheese, crackers and salami we were hungry for dinner. To me this was a good sign that I am still the same person I was in the US. So we walked west towards the city and stopped at the Mexican place I had been to the week prior.
After my burrito, guacamole and salsa I was ready to be in my bed to commence my food coma. However I had a thought, brief and fleeting as most of mine are. Are there buses to my site at this time of night on a Sunday? It is only 8pm, there should be. If I had an Iphone I would have know that there were not. But I do not own one, so hear is a quick story.
I get to the bus stop and see two women waiting which was a good sign so I thought. After about 20 minutes a beat up looking white station wagon rolls up stops and out comes an off duty mall Santa. This guy was a spitting image of Father Christmas. He asked the ladies “taxi?” He looked at me and asked the same. I wish my Spanish was better because I would have asked him what would he say if he was in my shoes. But alas my language ability is not there yet and I simply said “no gracias.”
Being a gringo sucks because you attract unwanted attention. Being me can be a pain because I have a bum magnet. They pick me out and talk to me, just me, even when I am in a crowd of people.
He then proceeded to tell me in broken English that my Spanish was very good. I thought to myself for a second. I said two words, one of which is an English word as well so I really only said one. And gracias might as well be English. Sir you need to work on flattery skills because as of now I am still not riding in your busted vehicle with you behind the wheel.
Shit. I paused too long. I was then told his life story. He lived all over the US, Chicago, New York and L.A. However provided little details, so I figured he was bull-shiting me. So I told him I lived in Tokyo for most of my life and practiced Kung Fu as child. At least it passed some time, about 40 minutes or so. I also figured if potential muggers saw me talking to this guy, they would not even bother with us and move on to look for people who might actually have something worth stealing.
At this point it was getting late and my poor diet was catching up with me and consuming my patience. So I went to hail a legit taxi. I felt rude, but when it comes to my safety I do not mind be a little bit of an asshole. He asked me why I do not let him take me. I told him it is illegal for me as an employee of my company to take an illegal cab. That answer was good enough and I hailed a cab and was in Baños and in my baño in no time. Worth the $4.
11:38pm, just fallen asleep. Nuclear sirens! What the fuck?! This was a scene straight out of an old war movie combined with a comedy. I jumped out of bed fumbled in the dark for my pants, shirt and started down the stairs trying to get dressed in one motion. My brothers saw this and just laughed at me. I am glad that clumsy is funny worldwide.
When we got outside most houses in my hood had people outside not looking overly concerned. I asked Pablo what all this was about. Apparently if there are thieves, riots or some kind of crime going on they “sound the alarm.”
After 10 minutes of nothing, everyone seems satisfied and head inside.
Sleep.
The rest of the week September something to today,
I realized my blog entries have become a bit repetitive and thought I would spice them up a little bit.
So here is a list of likes and dislikes and whatever else.
1. Rice, I am glad I like it. I know I have said it before, but it is a sanity saving factor.
2. Dislike that the V button on my keyboard is not functioning as well as before.
3. Dislike the lack of beer variety here, but like that I can get a G&T for $1.50 at the places I frequent on my weekend getaways.
4. I am not a big fan of the intimidating barking dogs on this one road in my town. But it is a good substitute for the instant coffee. (Rabies shots are up to date)
5. Glad I brought my guitar.
6. I like my town, but not the random fireworks at odd hours of the night.
7. I like that most of the veggies I eat are grown out back behind our house by Rosa (the grandmother)
8. I had cuy Tuesday and the experience was much more enjoyable this time around. Also, I was extremely hungry.
9. DVDs cost a dollar fifty! Not that I buy them… because that would be a violation of copyright laws.
10. The Coca Cola is way better here because it is made with real sugar!
11. Ice cream has made its way into my diet more so than back in the states and I am ok with that.
12. Dislike the way my jeans are too big. A problem some Americans pay to have.
13. Dislike that someone or group repainted the futbol field before I could.
14. Happy it got painted though!
15. I like that so many people read my blog and give me feedback and questions. Thanks everyone!
16. Like that my Spanish skills are improving and that my mistakes are still funny.
17. Like the updates Nanny and Pops!
There was a front page article in the Cuenca paper about mourners gathering at ground zero in New York today. It was well written and sympathetic from what I understood.
Later that day I met up with Clint, a PCV who lives an hour outside of Cuenca, to go with the Scouts to an orphanage. As it turns out there was a kink in the plan and we ended up not going to the orphanage. Instead we played a few games and helped brainstorm community service projects and fundraising ideas for the Scouts.
After the meeting Clint and I met up with two other PCVs, Jaime and Miguel(PC loves acronyms) at the Cuenca house. Some family apparently has extra space in their house and likes volunteers. So the deal is we get a bed, clean sheets, a key to the house all for the shockingly low price of $3.50. Most hostels cost at least $10 a night.
So the four of us went out to grab a few drinks a play some good old Texas hold’em. The buy in was a dollar, and Clint who has the least card experience of us all walked away with the big pot of $4. Later on in the night we stopped by a club to dance, but only stayed for a few minutes as we were all tired.
Sunday September 12, 2010
Ceviche for breakfast! For those readers who missed that blog I shall explain. Ceviche is a delicious seafood soup with a base of citrus juice (orange and lime), tomatoes and onions. Serve that up with a little hot sauce, of course rice, and some fried plantains all for a $1.50. Perfect PC breakfast.
Since I do not get much in the way of dairy products in my diet I treated myself to an Oreo milkshake for lunch. I am glad I did, it was perfect. I really dislike the feeling of having a craving for food, getting it, and then being disappointed because it is not up to par.
Today was our cluster picnic/meet and great. A cluster is the volunteers who live within 5 hours by bus from a major city, more or less. So in my cluster there is about 10 PCVs. Most of us met in Parque Calderon, which is in the center of Cuenca to catch a pick up to the park.
I must say I was pleasantly surprised by the park. It had multiple full sized futbol fields (do not call it soccer) volley ball courts, basketball courts, a surplus of benches, vendors, wild dogs, domesticated dogs, a few undomesticated PCVs, paddle boats, a pond for the paddle boats and a very long line for the boats and an even longer sentence to explain it.
We talked about our sites and hometowns and crazy stories. After awhile I was overcome by the urge to pass out and did just that. Not from a lack of interest in the conversations, but just because. There is something serene about sleeping in the grass on a warm day.
So after an all day event of snacking on homemade cookies, cheese, crackers and salami we were hungry for dinner. To me this was a good sign that I am still the same person I was in the US. So we walked west towards the city and stopped at the Mexican place I had been to the week prior.
After my burrito, guacamole and salsa I was ready to be in my bed to commence my food coma. However I had a thought, brief and fleeting as most of mine are. Are there buses to my site at this time of night on a Sunday? It is only 8pm, there should be. If I had an Iphone I would have know that there were not. But I do not own one, so hear is a quick story.
I get to the bus stop and see two women waiting which was a good sign so I thought. After about 20 minutes a beat up looking white station wagon rolls up stops and out comes an off duty mall Santa. This guy was a spitting image of Father Christmas. He asked the ladies “taxi?” He looked at me and asked the same. I wish my Spanish was better because I would have asked him what would he say if he was in my shoes. But alas my language ability is not there yet and I simply said “no gracias.”
Being a gringo sucks because you attract unwanted attention. Being me can be a pain because I have a bum magnet. They pick me out and talk to me, just me, even when I am in a crowd of people.
He then proceeded to tell me in broken English that my Spanish was very good. I thought to myself for a second. I said two words, one of which is an English word as well so I really only said one. And gracias might as well be English. Sir you need to work on flattery skills because as of now I am still not riding in your busted vehicle with you behind the wheel.
Shit. I paused too long. I was then told his life story. He lived all over the US, Chicago, New York and L.A. However provided little details, so I figured he was bull-shiting me. So I told him I lived in Tokyo for most of my life and practiced Kung Fu as child. At least it passed some time, about 40 minutes or so. I also figured if potential muggers saw me talking to this guy, they would not even bother with us and move on to look for people who might actually have something worth stealing.
At this point it was getting late and my poor diet was catching up with me and consuming my patience. So I went to hail a legit taxi. I felt rude, but when it comes to my safety I do not mind be a little bit of an asshole. He asked me why I do not let him take me. I told him it is illegal for me as an employee of my company to take an illegal cab. That answer was good enough and I hailed a cab and was in Baños and in my baño in no time. Worth the $4.
11:38pm, just fallen asleep. Nuclear sirens! What the fuck?! This was a scene straight out of an old war movie combined with a comedy. I jumped out of bed fumbled in the dark for my pants, shirt and started down the stairs trying to get dressed in one motion. My brothers saw this and just laughed at me. I am glad that clumsy is funny worldwide.
When we got outside most houses in my hood had people outside not looking overly concerned. I asked Pablo what all this was about. Apparently if there are thieves, riots or some kind of crime going on they “sound the alarm.”
After 10 minutes of nothing, everyone seems satisfied and head inside.
Sleep.
The rest of the week September something to today,
I realized my blog entries have become a bit repetitive and thought I would spice them up a little bit.
So here is a list of likes and dislikes and whatever else.
1. Rice, I am glad I like it. I know I have said it before, but it is a sanity saving factor.
2. Dislike that the V button on my keyboard is not functioning as well as before.
3. Dislike the lack of beer variety here, but like that I can get a G&T for $1.50 at the places I frequent on my weekend getaways.
4. I am not a big fan of the intimidating barking dogs on this one road in my town. But it is a good substitute for the instant coffee. (Rabies shots are up to date)
5. Glad I brought my guitar.
6. I like my town, but not the random fireworks at odd hours of the night.
7. I like that most of the veggies I eat are grown out back behind our house by Rosa (the grandmother)
8. I had cuy Tuesday and the experience was much more enjoyable this time around. Also, I was extremely hungry.
9. DVDs cost a dollar fifty! Not that I buy them… because that would be a violation of copyright laws.
10. The Coca Cola is way better here because it is made with real sugar!
11. Ice cream has made its way into my diet more so than back in the states and I am ok with that.
12. Dislike the way my jeans are too big. A problem some Americans pay to have.
13. Dislike that someone or group repainted the futbol field before I could.
14. Happy it got painted though!
15. I like that so many people read my blog and give me feedback and questions. Thanks everyone!
16. Like that my Spanish skills are improving and that my mistakes are still funny.
17. Like the updates Nanny and Pops!
Friday, September 10, 2010
Punk Rock, Pizza and Rain.
The 6th, a Monday (let me redo this one with a little more information)
Today I had my long awaited meeting with Estella from the Junta Parochial. We discussed the plan for the marketing class and decided that next week it will begin. 11 classes in 11 weeks and each class will be about 2 hours. We decided that tomorrow we would go to all the local businesses to see if there was an interest.
I also mentioned the Scout troop I met had some interest in doing some projects here in Baños. She was very excited and asked if they would come clean all the trash in the streets once a week. I explained that they probably would not have an interest in that. Instead, that they would prefer projects that can be done in a few hours and require only one trip. For instance, repainting the lines on the basketball/futbol court (which is cement). She liked this idea and asked me to find out how much the project would cost and then she would present it to the board for approval.
Cool, left the meeting feeling pretty good. Spent the rest of the day reading and writing the previous blog. Also Skype chatted with the family. They told me of all the wondrous steaks, pizzas and beer they have had recently. Thanks guys.
A rainy Tuesday in Baños
Woke up to loud rain hitting a metal roof.
I arrived at the Junta at 9am (well, more like 9:15ish) for the meeting. Turns out there was some other event going on and I have no idea what it was. It was just a big line of people. I inquired what the line was for and received an answer that I did not understand. So I nodded and asked if tomorrow might be better. I was told tomorrow afternoon would work perfect.
More rain.
Lunch was a repeat of yesterday’s veggie soup. I decided to be semi creative and threw some parmesan cheese in it that was leftover from Friday. I also added hot sauce, but that is pretty much a given.
Just hung around and played guitar until 2pm when my next meeting was. This one was with a group of teachers and local movers and shakers that the previous volunteer helped organize. I got to the meeting spot and found no one. So I walked to the Iban’s store to see what happened.
Iban owns the local photo, fax and any other miscellaneous electronic item shop. He is also the tech guy for the Junta.
He told me that the meeting had been moved to next week because school started this week and things are hectic. Or, at least that is what it sounded like. He then asked me if I had some time to help him with a problem. I tried not to look too excited, I needed to do something!
At first it seemed like he wanted me to smuggle in a DVD copier machine from the US. Then after some more questions on my part I figured out he only wanted help ordering it from the US. He showed me the website and it was some place in Manhattan. He wanted to know if they ship to Ecuador, how much and all the other normal things.
The device itself cost around $230, but shipping cost $140. Seemed like an expensive purchase. I then had to talk with UPS to see where in Ecuador they could be delivered to but got no answer.
So then he asked if I could come back tomorrow to help order them. Sure!
It is fun waking up, having a schedule and knowing that it is all going to change.
Wednesday
I spent the first part of today walking around the town trying to generate some interest in my marketing class with Estella, from the Junta. We got a lot of interest, which was a relief to me. While walking I asked her about another project.
I want to create a proposal for the Junta to purchase metal trashcans to place throughout Baños. Hopefully this project would cut down on the amount of trash in the streets, and there for get rid of some of the street dogs that rely on this trash for food. Along with the trashcans I want to have signs made that say something like “Help keep Baños clean” to put on the trashcans.
Estella also asked me to draw up another proposal to buy some trees to plant in by the soccer field. I really liked the idea. As of now there is no shade anywhere. There are just these little shrubs that get planted every year. What is the opposite of a perennial, anyone?
After dinner, Pablo, the older brother asked me I could show him some stuff on guitar. I brought my guitar downstairs and he did the same. We spent a good hour just talking and playing music. He started to teach me a few songs in Spanish and I showed him some in English.
Afterwards I went with Isabel to the town center (next to the church) for some fireworks. Baños is in festival right now, which means there is something going every day. The fireworks were pretty cool, similar idea to the ones in Cayambe, except there was no Vaca Loca.
Thursday
Today I went into town to buy a few things I needed and some others that I wanted. I got 4 DVDs for $5 (wanted). Then I walked around trying to find a store that sold large trashcans to get prices for my proposal. My efforts were fruitless. Oh well.
So then I ambled on over to the super market to buy ingredients for pizza making tomorrow! The rest of the day I played guitar and caught up on world news.
There was also a rock concert going on that I had to listen to until about 2am, from my room. It was pretty terrible punk rock. I am just glad my current residence is not any closer to the square. Wow, I sound really old writing that. Kids and their loud music! Yarg, insert more old man rambling here.
Friday
Woke up early, I needed to start getting my PowerPoint ready for my first class as a teacher next week. I had to translate the slides I made into Spanish and start writing a basic script. That took awhile, but the subject is fun for me. Marketing is a fun topic I think, much more so than any engineering class I would dare say.
I could not wait to make pizza. I kept bugging Isabel asking her when she would be ready to start. She likes to see how I cook and writes down the recipes.
Finally around 5ish we started making the dough.
Ingredients
• 1 ½ cup slightly warm (85-90 degrees) water (don’t kill the yeast)
• 1 tsp yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 ½ cups flour (1/2 whole wheat if you like)
Directions
Place water and yeast in a large bowl and stir until dissolved. Add the salt and 6 tablespoon olive oil and mix well to combine. Add 1 cup of the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until it becomes a loose batter. Add more cups of the flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, incorporating as much flour as you can with the wooden spoon.
Bring the dough together by hand and turn out onto a hard clean surface. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes, until dough is smooth and firm. Place in a clean, lightly-oiled bowl, using remaining tablespoon of oil and cover with a towel. Let rise in the warmest part of the kitchen for 45 minutes (if you can stand waiting that long).
You can put in refrigerator and use within a few days or even freeze.
For individual pizzas or calzones, cut the dough into 4 equal pieces and knead into rounds. For one large pizza, knead into 1 large round. For either, let rest for 15 minutes.
Top with anything you like or just olive oil and salt.
Bake in a hot oven (400-450 degrees F (about 200C)) for about 10 minutes depending on how much stuff you put on top!
Recipe provided by Pt Schreck the famous painter (lesser known as my mother)
We topped our pizza with parmesan, mozzarella, Portobello mushrooms (love’em), pepperoni, broccoli and onions. The two pizzas we made came out great! We even have leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
PS Dear parental units, this is a reminder to tape the Eagle’s game Sunday. Thanks!
Sorry no pictures of the pizza. I guess I accidently deleted them while transfering them. Ugh, next time!
Today I had my long awaited meeting with Estella from the Junta Parochial. We discussed the plan for the marketing class and decided that next week it will begin. 11 classes in 11 weeks and each class will be about 2 hours. We decided that tomorrow we would go to all the local businesses to see if there was an interest.
I also mentioned the Scout troop I met had some interest in doing some projects here in Baños. She was very excited and asked if they would come clean all the trash in the streets once a week. I explained that they probably would not have an interest in that. Instead, that they would prefer projects that can be done in a few hours and require only one trip. For instance, repainting the lines on the basketball/futbol court (which is cement). She liked this idea and asked me to find out how much the project would cost and then she would present it to the board for approval.
Cool, left the meeting feeling pretty good. Spent the rest of the day reading and writing the previous blog. Also Skype chatted with the family. They told me of all the wondrous steaks, pizzas and beer they have had recently. Thanks guys.
A rainy Tuesday in Baños
Woke up to loud rain hitting a metal roof.
I arrived at the Junta at 9am (well, more like 9:15ish) for the meeting. Turns out there was some other event going on and I have no idea what it was. It was just a big line of people. I inquired what the line was for and received an answer that I did not understand. So I nodded and asked if tomorrow might be better. I was told tomorrow afternoon would work perfect.
More rain.
Lunch was a repeat of yesterday’s veggie soup. I decided to be semi creative and threw some parmesan cheese in it that was leftover from Friday. I also added hot sauce, but that is pretty much a given.
Just hung around and played guitar until 2pm when my next meeting was. This one was with a group of teachers and local movers and shakers that the previous volunteer helped organize. I got to the meeting spot and found no one. So I walked to the Iban’s store to see what happened.
Iban owns the local photo, fax and any other miscellaneous electronic item shop. He is also the tech guy for the Junta.
He told me that the meeting had been moved to next week because school started this week and things are hectic. Or, at least that is what it sounded like. He then asked me if I had some time to help him with a problem. I tried not to look too excited, I needed to do something!
At first it seemed like he wanted me to smuggle in a DVD copier machine from the US. Then after some more questions on my part I figured out he only wanted help ordering it from the US. He showed me the website and it was some place in Manhattan. He wanted to know if they ship to Ecuador, how much and all the other normal things.
The device itself cost around $230, but shipping cost $140. Seemed like an expensive purchase. I then had to talk with UPS to see where in Ecuador they could be delivered to but got no answer.
So then he asked if I could come back tomorrow to help order them. Sure!
It is fun waking up, having a schedule and knowing that it is all going to change.
Wednesday
I spent the first part of today walking around the town trying to generate some interest in my marketing class with Estella, from the Junta. We got a lot of interest, which was a relief to me. While walking I asked her about another project.
I want to create a proposal for the Junta to purchase metal trashcans to place throughout Baños. Hopefully this project would cut down on the amount of trash in the streets, and there for get rid of some of the street dogs that rely on this trash for food. Along with the trashcans I want to have signs made that say something like “Help keep Baños clean” to put on the trashcans.
Estella also asked me to draw up another proposal to buy some trees to plant in by the soccer field. I really liked the idea. As of now there is no shade anywhere. There are just these little shrubs that get planted every year. What is the opposite of a perennial, anyone?
After dinner, Pablo, the older brother asked me I could show him some stuff on guitar. I brought my guitar downstairs and he did the same. We spent a good hour just talking and playing music. He started to teach me a few songs in Spanish and I showed him some in English.
Afterwards I went with Isabel to the town center (next to the church) for some fireworks. Baños is in festival right now, which means there is something going every day. The fireworks were pretty cool, similar idea to the ones in Cayambe, except there was no Vaca Loca.
Thursday
Today I went into town to buy a few things I needed and some others that I wanted. I got 4 DVDs for $5 (wanted). Then I walked around trying to find a store that sold large trashcans to get prices for my proposal. My efforts were fruitless. Oh well.
So then I ambled on over to the super market to buy ingredients for pizza making tomorrow! The rest of the day I played guitar and caught up on world news.
There was also a rock concert going on that I had to listen to until about 2am, from my room. It was pretty terrible punk rock. I am just glad my current residence is not any closer to the square. Wow, I sound really old writing that. Kids and their loud music! Yarg, insert more old man rambling here.
Friday
Woke up early, I needed to start getting my PowerPoint ready for my first class as a teacher next week. I had to translate the slides I made into Spanish and start writing a basic script. That took awhile, but the subject is fun for me. Marketing is a fun topic I think, much more so than any engineering class I would dare say.
I could not wait to make pizza. I kept bugging Isabel asking her when she would be ready to start. She likes to see how I cook and writes down the recipes.
Finally around 5ish we started making the dough.
Ingredients
• 1 ½ cup slightly warm (85-90 degrees) water (don’t kill the yeast)
• 1 tsp yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 ½ cups flour (1/2 whole wheat if you like)
Directions
Place water and yeast in a large bowl and stir until dissolved. Add the salt and 6 tablespoon olive oil and mix well to combine. Add 1 cup of the flour and mix with a wooden spoon until it becomes a loose batter. Add more cups of the flour and stir for 2 to 3 minutes, incorporating as much flour as you can with the wooden spoon.
Bring the dough together by hand and turn out onto a hard clean surface. Knead for 6 to 8 minutes, until dough is smooth and firm. Place in a clean, lightly-oiled bowl, using remaining tablespoon of oil and cover with a towel. Let rise in the warmest part of the kitchen for 45 minutes (if you can stand waiting that long).
You can put in refrigerator and use within a few days or even freeze.
For individual pizzas or calzones, cut the dough into 4 equal pieces and knead into rounds. For one large pizza, knead into 1 large round. For either, let rest for 15 minutes.
Top with anything you like or just olive oil and salt.
Bake in a hot oven (400-450 degrees F (about 200C)) for about 10 minutes depending on how much stuff you put on top!
Recipe provided by Pt Schreck the famous painter (lesser known as my mother)
We topped our pizza with parmesan, mozzarella, Portobello mushrooms (love’em), pepperoni, broccoli and onions. The two pizzas we made came out great! We even have leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
PS Dear parental units, this is a reminder to tape the Eagle’s game Sunday. Thanks!
Sorry no pictures of the pizza. I guess I accidently deleted them while transfering them. Ugh, next time!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Laughter is universal
What are the sanitary conditions like? Running water/indoor plumbing? How’s power there available and always on?
These are some frequent questions I have received and will now address. Sanitary conditions are pretty good here (in my house). Most houses in my community have running water and indoor plumbing (don’t flush the TP!) and electricity. Power has yet to go out, that I have noticed. However it is the dry season, despite that, it still rains about twice a week. But because it is the “dry” season every once and a while the water is turned off for conservation. The time varies from 2 hours to a day and I have to figure out how they pick the times to turn it off, it is never the same.
About a mile or so up the road (where I went for the walk in the previous entry) cell reception is spotty at best and the toilets are mostly in an outhouse out back.
My host family always has some kind of soup for lunch. Sometimes we have a second dish that always has rice and some kind of meat (canned tuna, chicken, beef, some things I am not sure of).
My favorite soup is Chicken Soup and vegetables – Sopa de pollo y verduras. It is my favorite because it has lots of veggies, something my diet here could always use more of.
Put chicken parts in a pot of water with a little bit of salt and sliced up carrots. Bring this to a boil.
After 20 minutes add chopped potatoes.
After 30 minutes add peas and broccoli and any other veggies.
Stop after 40 mins. Let sit for a minute and enjoy
Super simple recipe and it can easily be jazzed up more if the chef feels like it.
Friday September 3rd, 2010
Tonight I was on a mission to cook dinner for my family. I decided Portobello mushroom risotto would be the dish. They love rice and my brother lovessss mushrooms. So should be a big hit, I hope.
So as I am about to start cooking, I realize I have to find a wine opener. I figured since there were some wine bottles in the house, they have a wine opener. Don’t assume. So Isabel told me the neighbor have one. So we walked the 10 feet across the street and rang the bell. Sure enough they had one! Thank god.
Wait? It’s already sort of broken. So Isabel starts to use the opener, not well. I ask if I can do it. She looks at me like “what the hell could you possibly know about this.”
Finally the cork is ready to be pulled out. Isabel is unable to muster the strength required to open it. So finally I get my chance to open it and prove my worth. So what do I do? I end up breaking the handle of the opener right in half. Shiiittttt. This got a lot of laughter from the neighbor and Isabel. I felt dumb. But in my defense, that opener was made of the cheapest metal known to this earth.
Now what? Isabel suggests we go to the spa nearby because they probably have one. Sure enough they did and we finally got the bottle open. Ecuador is not a wine culture. Lesson learned.
The risotto came out pretty good, my brothers even got seconds, something I have never seen them do. This week I am going to cook homemade pizza and see how that goes.
Later that night, Isabel tells me it is time to go to the reigna competition (queen competition). I was expecting it to be pretty low key, or maybe the wine was. So I just wear jeans, hoodie and my camo nascar hat. We walk into the place and it was like how I would imagine it would feel like walking into a fashion show. Everyone was dressed up in nice dresses and suits. Crap. I ran home and changed so I would not stand out TOO badly. I always stand out, being the only gringo and all.
The 5 reignas aged from 16-20. They all did their initial runway walks (yeah there was a runway). After, came some famous singer who sang a few songs. I was not too impressed. Next up was the reignas dressed in different types of traditional clothing. The clothing ranged from coastal, sierra and oriente. It was neat to see how different the styles were in one country.
The next act had me in stitches from trying not to laugh out loud. Two back up dancers, and one long haired guy in a very tight gold suit. The all had very serious looks as they stood like statues. Until, Micheal Jackson’s Beat It came on. They were good, but it was just pretty damn funny and out of the blue. They also danced to MJ’s “they don’t really care about us” Shout out to the Bioko crew!
The oldest competitor of the Reignas won. She did not seem too surprised though.
Saturday the 4th,
Woke up. Ate breakfast. Read. Then I putted around for awhile until it was time for me to go my meeting in Cuenca. I was meeting up with the Cuenca scout group to check it out.
So it turns out scouts here are co-ed. They had about 30 boys and girls between ages of 7 and 20. They were all really nice and respectful. The scout master was really excited that I wanted to work with them. He told me if I ever have projects in Baños and need their help, they will gladly lend a hand.
So we hung out, played some games and I got to meet a lot of the older kids. Apparently most of them are very new and do not know each other. This worked great for me in getting to know everyone. Next weekend we will all be going to an orphanage to play with the kids there.
Afterwards I met up with a bunch of other volunteers to celebrate Jaime’s birthday. Ate way too much shwarma (gyros).
Sunday the day after Saturday,
Food Festival! Cool! Tents were set up all over the center and the futbol field. Selling a wide variety of food and trinkets. Isabel and I picked a stand that had some kind of traditional soup. Sure, why not, we will have a bowl. Turns out it was goat foot and intestine soup. Yum! No, not really. But interesting.
Then a bunch of guys started to build what looked to be a wrestling ring. Turns out it was for boxing. Not entirely sure why the food festival had boxing… but I am glad it did. We watched three matches before retiring back to the house for dinner.
Monday, Happy Labor day!
Met with Estella, the president of the Junta finally. So next week I will begin teaching marketing! Also we discussed a couple projects to include the scouts on. First project will be to repaint the cement basketball/futbol field. I have to come up a budget and pricing for the project, but it seems like it will be approved.
I hope to have my mail situation figured out this weekend so I can finally give my address out.
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