Food Adventures

1) spoiler alert: I am writing this from my house in El Cerrito, so you can probably figure out how this day is going to go 2) started pi day off with breakfast with the whole host family, which was nice. 3 yr old was excited about ketchup with eggs 3) morning class session on GMOs, or more technically, trangenic or genetically engineered crops. talked a bit about the science behind them, their uses/motivations, and arguments for and against. this was prep for upcoming debate on GMOs 4) after class we discussed the upcoming week schedule, filled with lots of academic class and a few speakers 5) we had a group lunch talking about planning our wrap-up retreat, gratitude practices, and ways to maintain the group community once we go home to our respective locations 6) went to supermaxi to buy pie ingredients! planned for apple-peach and mixed berry 7) was waiting in a vegan cafe before our plans for pie baking when we received a message that Ecuador is putting restrictions on flight...

1) friday the 13 2) woke up way too early after staying up too late finishing my tv show...not enough sleep! 3) baby morning run 4) big breakfast, eggs and toast and butter and fruit and lots of granola (i also took a bunch of granola, the kleptomania persists overseas) 5) morning anthropology session to talk about methods, not the most interesting but really good to have some structure and activities again 6) lunch break at a vegan spot but i just ate my tomatoes bc still full from breakfast 7) afternoon talk about poverty measures and ecuador context specifically. multidimensional poverty index (MPI) seems to be the most comprehensive and effective in figuring out target areas for public policy. also coronavirus is hurting ecuadors economy bc china is a big receiver of their exports 8) last trip to the market, bought some purple pants and more chocolate. the market space stresses me out bc i always feel like i could get a better deal if i were just better at haggling but also ...

1) what a weird day 2) morning run and then giant hotel breakfast 3) checkin session where we talked about our feelings, some crying, people mostly ready to go home 4) ate a mango for lunch and talked to mar and mags which was lovely 5) everyone is feeling so weird 6) quito is taking precautionary measures and the supermaxi is crazy! people are stocking up 7) not to be dramatic, but everything feels fake and also a little like the end of the world? 8) 4 people have decided to fly home tonight so we had a little bit of a good bye party, lots of crying and hugs 9) ive been binge watching four weddings and a funeral tv show from mindy kaling as a coping mechanism? 10) word of the day: confusing

1) apologies for not blogging on time last night, it was a weird day 2) started off with a leisurely morning run and breakfast with the host family 3) did some packing and last minute fruit shopping and then went to meet people at the hotel 4) dropped off laundry and then went to the artisan market 5) bought a poncho 6) checked my phone and got the news that we are not going to malawi anymore, was confused/sad/feeling weird 7) went in search of ice cream, got some coconut ice cream 8) had a call talking about malawi situaton and the plan to stay in ecuador for the next 2 weeks with our program director and everyone. lots of mixed emotions, some crying from others 9) a weird blur of an afternoon as people felt and processed, then a group dinner together at a cuban restaurant that was nice but also i dont think i truly had the social energy for 10) word of the day: lost

wow i really had to pee when i woke up! went on a run on the road by the hostal. pretty peaceful and definitely jungle vibes, saw some cool birds and fruit trees and a lot of rural houses had the hostal version of manado (mashed plantains and eggs) for breakfast. also its served with aji which i can’t believe i haven’t mentioned yet! its a spicy sauce made with tomato de arbol and its delicious although the hostal version was a bit sweet for my liking had a very chill day in the hostal before going back to quito did some yoga made some cookies with butter from the hostal that tasted more like margarine so they’re a little funky but not bad for 3 ingredients cookies picked and ate a cacao fruit, our new favorite pastime! the flesh is sort of sweet and tart and creamy and then its fun to peel the seeds. I’m saving them to try and roast into cacao nibs long ride back to quito, some intense rain, lots of jungle views and muddy roads was great to see my host family again! ate moroc...

1) Slept well last night and kind of managed to sleep in! 830 lol 2) Small exploratory walk around the hostal grounds and then some core work 3) Omelet for breakfast and then cacao fruit! One of my favorite unique things 4) Went to laguna azul, a beautiful spot near the river with pools 5) Did some exploring along the river beach! Lots of rock scrambling   Amazing butterflies! So many beautiful colors that don’t seem natural   6) A little bit of swimming in the pools and chatting with Kichwa local who sort of acts as the lifeguard 7) Others in the group tried maito which is tilapia cooked in a leaf Started to rain as we were riding back to the hostal! Lucky weather timing for us 8) Really glad that we came to the Amazon, I like it better than baños even if being stuck in the hostal is sort of intense, it’s a very pretty location 9) Finally finished my snacks for dinner! Have been working on this jar of peanut butter since Georgia. Also ate my mango from th...

1) Morning yoga inside the hostal 2) Trip to the market to get some mangoes and a pita haya   3) Massage which revealed a giant knot in my calf 4) Long hot bus ride to Tena with some nice scenery 5) Amazon is way more humid and warm! Our hostal here is out of the city along the river with bungalow style rooms   6) Nice pool so we took a swim   7) dinner at the hostal since it’s very isolated, yucca fries for me plus my leftover snacks 8) Had a lovely call with Jae-An! Always good to check in and catch up and I appreciated having social interaction with someone who knows me so well 9) we have befriended a fellow traveler, a girl from Israel, interesting situation in terms of balancing personal politics with social situations 10) word of the day: adjustments

1) Started the morning with a long run/hike that was much longer than intended because I decided to go up to casa del Arbol, a tree house with a swing that is a big tourist attraction and wasn’t really worth it especially bc it was too cloudy for views, but I enjoy a good 800 meter climb 2) Lots of stairs at the beginning of the trail and then wandering through te mountainside past farms 3) Was originally planning to take the bus down but it wasn’t leaving for another hour so I decided to run instead 4) Finally found an empanada de verde with cheese for lunch! Made friends with the two little girls in the cafe, they were very curious about why I had spots on my face and whether or not I had a boyfriend   5) Some people watching in the park 6) Had a nice phone call with mom whilst baking a cake! Thinking about everyone at home Cake turned out pretty ok despite being very very thin due to a giant pan size 7) Starting reading a borrowed copy of Americanah. Reminds me a ...

1) Woke up sort of early as our hostal mates (3 British boys) were leaving   2) Went on a run around the town and ended up on a trail to a viewpoint overlooking Baños. It’s a super small town! And the viewpoint didn’t have th best view bc it was cloudy, but the hike was nice 3) Spent the morning wandering around markets in search of fruit, veggies, and cookie ingredients. Bought uvillas, carrots, and broccoli and got my first yapa! A yapa is like something extra they add on for you, I got two extra carrots thrown in my bag 4) Finally had real cevichochos for lunch! I enjoyed them but was stuck with a lingering onion taste 5) Walked around the town a bit, it’s feels super touristy! Not sure how I feel about that. Popped into various supermarkets as I am often prone to do hehe 6) Spent time just lying in our room, it feels very strange to have no obligations to work or do anything 7) Went to Pailón se Diablo waterfall! It’s along the ruta de cascadas which is a highway t...