So for the past week i´ve been volunteering with WWOOF (world workers on organic farms), on a farm called Madre Tierra in Tunuyan, a small town outside of Mendoza. There is a family of four, Azuzena, Jorge and their two kids Paloma who´s 10 and ,,, Nacho who´s 5, and a butload of volunteers who crash in the dorms or in tents in the yard. There are two girls from England, Charlotte and Catie who are utterly English in every way down to the proper accents, total sweetness and then need for proteccion del sol todavia. Two girls from Quebec Gabrielle and Arienne, and Gabrielle´s bf Guiellme who´s from France. Also Corrienne who is French as well. Leah from Ireland, there was Jullian from Colombia, but he left yesterday, Marco from EEUU, and Sergio from Argentina/Israel. And yesterday a new volunteer from Germany as well. The main language spoken is always spanish, although when alone we sometimes cheat, i´ll have to admit. The cats are insane and meow all the time including this baby one which looks like a kitten but is really just a runt.
We get up around 830 every morning and eat bfast then usually work in the fields ho ing weeds or planting or hand weeding until about 1pm then have an enormous lunch and two hour siesta, then commence to work construction or other odd jobs, construction including building little houses for canning and a new dormitory out of willow branches weaved through the structure then throwing Barro, a horseshit- dirt- hay mixture to seal the branches.
The farm is in a valley that on a clear day can see the Andes mountains which are quite magnificent. They have two horses, muchos chickens, five cats, two dogs, and yeah the two exhuberant and volatile but enjoyable children. There is also a wonderful rio near el fondo of the farm with wild mint growing up the banks where little Paloma, Juli, Arienne and I went for a glorious swim before lunch on friday after a long morning of planting in the fierce sunshine. We´ve planted zapillos, or pumpkins up and down many rows, cleaned beet root and parsely, eaten a boatload of cebollas todadia, had dirty fingernails and smelly clothes, made flatbread with our caloused hands, drank hot mint tea and eaten warm potatoes, slept for two straight hours in the afternoon and climbed to the top of houses. It has been and will be a badass adventure.
Also there was a full moon the second night we were here and earlier that day Jorge, the ever wise older man o the fenca took the group out on a tour of his land and we all had a group meditation in the minty fields by the river. Which would have been totally serious if Guillme had been able to stop cracking up. That night after eating the delicous bread that we meditated over while making( not. we actually chatted throughout the proccess and were in return scolded by a fellow patronising(only bc he´s older and speaks better spanish) volunteer.) The bread we made we turned into spanish tacos as we piled them high with hot chutney and pickled onions and peppers. After devouring these by the bondfire all the volunteers were taught a full moon dance. Azuzena cleansed each of us with i think rosemary and then we all did the full moon dance-hand holding and running furiously around in a circle and running towards the fire(all while holding hands) and away from the fire together. Then a dance of two to the left an two to the right , and a spin( women hands on the woom) and a little jig. Quite an interesting and awesome way to welcome the full moon onto the Finca(Farm)
It has been chilly and it has been warm and the mosquitos have been out all the time. We´ve been eating vegetarian, a polenta,veggie, salad, homemade bread regime that is quite healthy and filling. And Azuzena makes the best sauce you´ve ever had. Also on friday we were such good volunteers all week that Azuzena made two enormously delicious pizzas dripping with savory goodness that we ate by the bondfire with exhausted enthusiasm. (But the volunteers traipse to town every so often for chocolate.)
Currently, Juli and I and Arienne a volunteer from Quebec, are in Mendoza for the weekend to take some hostel showers and drink some cold cervezas and eat some bad ass food. En Domingo we will return for another week on the farm and then who knows where to go from there.
That is all for now and will return in a week to describe more of the adventure.
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