Jueves, Viernes, Tarantula

Thursday and Friday are now my favorite days of the week, and possibly Wednesday too. I have successfully unwed myself with ADICTA and I believe that now we have a more healthy relationship as divorcees than we ever had while so intimately united.

Thursdays I now work in solely in Tuisinsé (possibly Wednesdays too) and Fridays in Armenia. As already reported, I told one of my NGO's that I was not pleased with my current working situation. I said that I wanted to work more on my own and focus on only two communities to start, because as things were, I was not accomplishing the goals of my program: to start family vegetable gardens to promote better nutrition in the homes of subsistence farmers.

ADICTA was very supportive of my taking initiative and helped me select and a couple nearby villages. Tuisinsé is right across the valley from my home, it's on one of the ridges below Tajumulco if you're looking at one the photos from my front porch. I could hike there in two and half hours I think. So far I've only hiked from about half of it and taken the surprisingly good public transportation they have here for the rest.

Yesterday, I visited a home near Tusinsé and we planned out their garden together with a neighbor. I'm going to return there Wednesday and we're going to plant, then I'm going to the neighbors house to help her plan her garden.

Side note: While in training I thought how can I teach these people anything; they are farmers, they're great-great grandparents were farmers. What's a punk kid with a philosophy and English degree and 3 months of training going to be teach them. However the truth is that many of the farmers here know how to grow corn and beans and that's about it. They have no or very little experience growing hardly ever any experience growing without using chemical fertilizers and pesticides. My program promotes organic methods because it more feasible for the families because it uses resources that they already have, is safer and produces vegetables with more nutrients.

Side-Side note: Unlike in the states it's not a fad of the rich and informed to eat organic and local here, it's natural and a necessity. However, here chemical and organic produce is not differentiated in the markets. You could ask the vendors who are also the growers but of course they will say anything to get you to buy. So on the downside growers are not rewarded with higher prices for using organic methods like they are in the states, because here the people just want to buy the biggest watermelon. They don't care how it got that way or perhaps that it has less vitamin B, they just want that big one, and they'll pay more for it.
However, none of that really applies that much to my work because I'm working with small family gardens. The produce is for feeding the family, so it's irrelevant what price they can get in the market for it. The important thing is that it's feeding them (and feeding them well) and hardly costing a thing.

As you can see, I have faith in my program.

Back to my recent divorce from ADICTA, I went to Armenia today and was able to help advise Doña Elda Días with her little garden that already looked quite beautiful but was lacking a few major elements and later another family. Then afterwards in the group meeting we fixed up the demonstrative compost pile so it will actually start composting and made some progress on the group garden! It's really good to finally get into some work that I can sustain and have complete of which I have complete control. Meaning it's not dependent on program of ADICTA or Intervida which may or may not receive funding. This I can simply do.

In other news, this Tarantula scared the hell out of me a few nights ago. I was throwing a beetle out of my room that landed on my head while I was reading so I went to throw him out of the room and felt something touch my bare feet so I looked down and found this delightful little creature. I´ll post more pictures on flickr shortly, but I´m out of free space this month.

I was telling my landlord, Don Catilino, about it (he likes to come and hang out almost every night and chat. I think he's quite worried about me, and thinks me a bit odd for living in a house by myself.) When describing the incident, I just used the word "araña," spider, and after viewing the picture, he said, "no that's actually not a spider that's a 'tarantula!'" so he gave me a little life science lesson and then reprimanded me for not killing it. I really ought to have caught it and put it in a glass jar. I think Don Catilino is greatly entertained by me.

Volcan Tajumulco Yet Again

Tajumulco looms over my village Tejutla at a height of 4,220m or 13,845 ft. or 2.62 miles above sea level, making it the highest point in Central America. If you have a clear day you can see into Mexico, the Pacific Ocean, volcanoes around Xela, and if your really lucky volcanoes surroundingthe capital. It takes 4 to 6 hours to ascend and 2.5 to 4 hours descend.

Paul, Maureen, Kelly and I climbed it yesterday. It was the girls' first time, Paul's second (read about his first and my second on his blog), and my third. Kelly is a volunteer in village about an hour and a half from Tejutla, and Maureen is a volunteer in Huehuetenango. We were planning to climb and descend in one day, but bought 3 sleeping bags and a 3-person tent to share amongst the four of us in case something went terribly amiss. Or in case the weather looked like it was going to clear up, and we wanted to freeze our asses off in order to see a stunning red sunrise from the top of Central America.

We began hiking around 10am and it was a pleasant hike for the first half, mostly cloudy with some views. However, by the time we reached the summit there it was completely overcast with occasional distant thunder.

We had lunch on the peak around 2pm, grasping onto the slim hope that we would catch a glimpse of the crater, rumored to be used as a soccer field by some Guatemalans, or the afore mentioned spectacular scenery, but it only grew colder and the distant thunder became not so distant.


3:00pm: As we were descending it began to sprinkle, then rain,
then hail and rain. At first it this was fun and nice little something to take my mind of my aching right knee and exhausted and quivering legs. However, after sometime the awareness of my muscular fatigue returned and now I was cold, wet and a little worried we wouldn't make it to the base in time to hitch a ride back home to Tejutla.

But, of course, we arrived at the base at 5:30pm and twenty minutes later were able to catch a bus going our way. After arriving in Tejutla, we took hot showers changed put on dry clothes and made soup and grilled cheese sandwiches and watched a movie. All of us quite pleased with our decision to return and were not at that time freezing our four wet asses off on the mountain in a three person tent.

initial sucess

I went to Tuisinsé yesterday and told them that I would like to start family gardens with anyone that is interested. Also, that I would like to begin giving charlas (talks) on topics of organic agriculture: composting, organic pesticides, good gardening practices, etc. Eight people showed interest and I got their names and several phone numbers! I´m really excited about this. If only half of these people start gardens with me I will be ecstatic.

Today, I´m going to Armenia to offer the same deal. I hope they are interested too. We are going to plant a demonstrative garden today, and possible work more on the abonera (compost pile).

reconnect

Well, I just got back from Reconnect. I was dreading going and spending a week in Antigua but it turned out to be alright. We had two days of general sessions, where we talked about our frustrations and problems and strategies to overcome them. Then we had several days of Spanish classes. It was great to see how far I have progressed.

I have resolved to work more on my own and less with Intervida and ADICTA because with them I´m not accomplishing my program´s objectives. What this will look like I´m not sure, but I´m sure that it needs to be done.

I was told yesterday by the cordinator of Intervida Tejutla that the program of seguridad alimentaria (food security, my program) would continue. This is good news because recently I haven´t been able to work in my field, other than selling seeds, because there hasn´t been funding.

I told him that I was not content with the work that I have been doing that I would like to do more. He told me to be patient and more work would come, and so I felt encouraged and decided that I would give Intervida another chance.

Yesterday, yet again, they did not have transportation for me so I was stuck in Tejutla left to study spanish and agriculture. And then I remembered why I need to work on my own. I would love to colaborate with Intervida but that is really not a possibility right now.

Likewise with ADICTA, they also are not really working with family gardens anymore nor small animals. They have one project right now that´s keeping them somewhat afloat: Veterianarios sin Fronteras (Vets without Borders). However, that´s a small project that´s paying two salaries and giving micro loans to buy livestock. Also, not exactly in my area.

My sitemate, Paul has been working with them on a solicitud for NED (National Endowment for Democracy). It´s a US organization that promotes civic particapation. http://www.ned.org/ Also, not in my department of promoting vegetable gardens and better nutrition.

Also, today I was asked if I could get a couple ¨vasitos de miel¨ bottles of honey in the US Embassy... Olivia?

What I need to do is make a Work Plan and execute it. Focus on just a few communities and try to do my work. But first, I´ll try to help Virginia, my counterpart in ADICTA, type up some ¨solicitudes¨ for micro loans...