rios claros y bonitos

Upon waking I feel a renewed excitement for our work and adventures here. We have just begun our work. Yesterday! We are focussing on two distinct projects....

On one hand we have solidified an internship with an experienced certified organic farmer/organizer with several acres of yuca, tomato, peppers, onion, banana, plantain and coffee amoung many other local semi wild beans and fruits. He maintains his own small farm and manages/organizes a few others that all together supply organic produce to Balú, a natural health food store in the capital, Bogotá. Balú is the name of tree, which I believe is native to this region, that has edible beans. His wife offered us a very delicious Balú custard. Delightful. Their certified organic farm is set in the mountains with breath-taking views all around. We just got notice that we can pick up the keys to a small cabin and live there while we are interning on the farm. It will be heaven to have a space to call my own! I want to clean and cook and decorate and cook some more!!!! It is challenging being a vegetarian here when very sweet and caring people are preparing your food, or when you are in a small village.

On the other hand we are helping with an organic farming project that is just budding. In fact, we have just attended the priliminary planning and cleaning "meetings." This is very exciting as well because we have so much agricultural, country living, and life experience to share with these young Rasta brothers and sisters. This location is truly paradise, set in the mountains with running water coming from a fresh mountian spring, the sounds of water crashing on rocks is heard from all directions. There are rivers and streams in every direction. A half hour hike down the mountain is a crisp, clean river. A half hour trek down river is a glorious series of waterfalls, slides, and cristal-blue pools that tumble down through the jungle, sparkling in the sun, joining the larger river. The main challenge so far is that it is a hour and a half hike to the nearest tiny little pueblo to buy water and some veggies and dried beens and rice. Otherwise we have to boil the water before we drink it. One think I will always bring next time is a fancy water filter.