New Episode - Ecuador 3.0

Welcome to a new episode of "Klosterleben Pur".

Today our dear Rosa, also known as La Gordita, is our live guest.

At the beginning, we would like to thank all our readers/viewers for the many questions and comments we received :D

Unfortunately, due to time constraints, we can only address one of the questions, which was probably asked by our oldest reader. Thank you, Opa Siegl & greetings to beautiful cold Jagenbach.

So, what weather are we having??

Well, usually the weather forecast always shows clouds, wind, and rain. But to our delight, that's not the case at all. In the morning, it's still relatively cool at around 15 degrees. But from 11 a.m., the sun shines with full intensity from the CLOUDLESS sky and blesses us with around 25 degrees. In the late afternoon/evening - usually when we leave kindergarten - it starts pouring rain and sometimes it rains all night long. That's why everything is so green in the area.

... and a quick note about the time difference!! You're 6 hours ahead.

Our Rosa

Now, let's briefly switch to our guest in the studio... Señora Rosita.

Not only articulate, funny, and small, NO, she is also athletic at the proud age of 80. A noon kick-about with the volunteers (we have doubled in number + a child now) keeps body, mind, and soul young. Left hook, right hook, feint, and shot, all part of Rosa's repertoire.

Important Lesson for 'Young and Old'

For those of you who are less experienced travelers...

... You can't put toilet paper in the toilet like at home - NO!! You can't do that here. It goes in the trash can next to it. You get used to it quickly. In Vienna, they have bags for poop - here, it's a bucket for the trouble!

Speaking of getting used to things. Sharing a blanket initially proved to be a challenge and a test of relationships. The nightly fights over it and the discussion at 3 a.m., about who stole the blanket from whom, are decreasing day by day.

Cultural Lesson #2

We had our first encounter with shamanism on Friday (16.11.) together with our two Spanish teachers. Since we are such good and diligent students, we were allowed to skip school once and had the pleasure of experiencing another piece of culture together.

La limpieza (the cleansing). Traditionally, it takes place every Tuesday and Friday. Why? We don't know for sure, but let's just say it has something to do with the planets Mars (martes = Tuesday) and Venus (viernes = Friday).

This is the cleansing of the soul and the spirit. With certain herbs and flowers, tied together in bouquets, the whole body is tapped or actually beaten, and you have to pay for it. Just kidding... The ingredients in the plants release the negative energies and vibrations in the body.

Then, the whole body is wiped with a raw egg to absorb this negativity and free the person. The curious thing about all of this was being "spit on" in the face/on the belly and back with a certain liquid (we're not exactly sure what it was). These parts of the body were also marked with a cross (no religious meaning) made of cabbage. The sense of smell and breathing were also part of the procedure. An incredibly intense, slightly spicy herbal water tincture was spread in the palm, deeply inhaled, and spread on the arms.

What is really interesting is what was taken out of you during the process. For this, the egg is cracked open (in a transparent bag) and the shaman reads from it.

Very fascinating. We will repeat this two more times next week... It is said that the cleansing should be performed 3 times to show its actual effect.

Fruits and Vegetables as Far as the Eye Can See

After being fresh and cleansed, we took a stroll through the market. It was full of knick-knacks and traditional Christmas figures.

Furthermore, we went to a large market hall (Mercado 9 de Octubre) filled with fruits, vegetables, meat, and delicious treats.

For all men with potency problems - here they even have juices/smoothies with stimulating ingredients. Is that why there are so many kids here?

Oh, and there was also work

I had the opportunity to present my minimal Spanish skills together with the other volunteers in an introduction round at the kindergarten. The ice-breaker was emphasizing that Michi is MY friend. Unimaginable how sad some of the kindergarten teachers looked. They apparently lost all hope for the Austrian kindergarten teacher, the only male in the group of girls. Some of them apparently still hoped until the end that we weren't a "love couple" but a "siblings couple". It was a crazy situation.

... a brief note about our first impressions at the kindergarten (called Guarderia here)

Simone...

That's what most of the little ones call me. I work with Isabel and Andrea with 18 - 20 very young children. In Sala 2, there are children aged 18 - 20 months. I just noticed that my numbers here seem to be 18 - 20. We're still far from playing together. Changing diapers (so far, I've been spared that), helping with meals, wiping noses, changing clothes, and drying tears are part of the daily program. Full action and full volume. One thing that stands out here... the little ones are not carried, they are comforted while sitting on the floor. Why? I can't say yet. But I don't care, I still cuddle as much as I can and catch drools and runny noses. Fortunately, starting next week, I'll get an apron to protect my few clothes.

The many little germs and constantly being drooled on have unfortunately forced Simone to stay in bed for 3 days. Thanks to Rosa's magic tea (herbs from the garden), she quickly recovered. The recovery was accelerated by Michi's care and his room service.

Michi...

I work here with around 20 children aged 3-4 years. Together with the two caregivers, Lady (yes, that's a name) and Veronica, I help the kids brush their teeth, get dressed, and keep them busy until their parents pick them up. In general, all the children are very sweet and easy to get along with, but there are exceptions everywhere.

As a man, I notice that many of the little ones have a great need for my attention and closeness. And again, one of the children is hanging on my leg. This is probably due to the lack of a father figure in the family.

Quick example: Diana, the youngest of 9 children in her family, is growing up without a father. Unfortunately, her story is not unique here.

In general...

... it can be said that growing up without a father is a "national problem". One of the main reasons for this is that many women are forced to raise their children alone because men often have no interest in the family or lack knowledge about proper contraception and its use. We don't have much knowledge about that yet. We will ask a lot of questions, gain experience, and get to know families better in the near future. Then we will give you more detailed information about these sad facts.

What is very noticeable in the kindergarten is that the children ALWAYS eat. Since the kindergarten is also state-funded, there are very strict rules regarding food (times, quantities, ingredients,...). They have something to eat about 5 times a day.

Indulging a Little! 

Speaking of food. Rice and bananas still taste good. BUT Saturday is our day for international food and breakfast outside. We found something wonderful in the city. A super cozy café with fantastic food (Café San Sebas). Pancakes, muesli, burritos, Huevos Rancheros (see photo - in the background), and so on - good food as far as the eye can see.

Continuation of the Ecuadorian Culinary List!

Granadilla (Michi's absolute favorite) - Hard orange peel, many small seeds surrounded by a slippery, sweet-sour flesh - sounds delicious, right?

Guava - looks like a giant bean on the outside, has hard inedible seeds surrounded by a furry flesh that tastes slightly like vanilla

A different kind of mango - after massaging the fruit extensively, the juice can also be sucked out of the peel.

NEWS NEWS NEWS!!!

No, Simone is not pregnant :)

We were asked if we want to accompany a sister to Quito at the end of November to represent the kindergarten there and exchange ideas with other organizations in the country. Or something like that, we didn't quite understand. We should maybe ask for more details about this. We only heard Quito and that was it...

We will continue to investigate, ask questions, and research for you.

Hasta luego....