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Kichwapolitik I - und Die Minga Meeting die

Like every Monday morning when the Amazoonicoküche the meeting takes place, we see Jaime in top form. He is (I've already written a few times) keeper of Selva Viva, also father of Sacha and the Padres de familia (Parents) Secretary. He has also held positions else, something political. Jaime likes to talk a lot and, as it should be for a politician, and not everything is one hundred percent true, or at least exaggerated, as befits so well for a politician. In any case, he always has an impressive list of animals he claims to have seen in the forest, while Ruben, another keeper and I think the more competent, his weekly report is usually presented in a short time. Whatever the case ...

At a Monday meeting four weeks ago we asked Jaime if the Minga, we would have agreed with his wife at the parent meeting, now taking place. Yes, he'll come anyway, even up to the school, then he can inform the children of the same, he said. He appeared, however, is not and so we assumed that he would organize the Minga writing.

A Minga is an occasion where all parents of students required together for the good of the school contribute. In our case, this is cut with machetes, for example, the knee-high grass around the building, freeing up the stairs of debris, the broken cook house appeared clear away, etc.

When, on Friday none of the Padres de la familia, it was clear that the Minga would not take place. Jaime said, hinting that it did not fit his personal time.

A week later I saw him in the morning walk from the nursery, so rather sneak, which made him a bit suspicious. When I asked for Gloria, what Jaime had wanted, she showed me the template that he had pushed her to the Hand: An Invitation to Minga, formally set up, with instructions to copy the Gloria was to him 15 times by hand.

Yes where to go for that? Jaime is the secretary and not Gloria, even if an older man and she is a younger woman. I asked Gloria, not to make copies and Jaime wrote a friendly but firm letter: Gloria was responsible at our school teacher and not in that position (and also not have the time) for the copying of invitations. We hoped to be understanding. Best regards, Directora blabla (because it sounds good and gives the dish an official Touch).

The Minga took place. Jaime has somehow organized, but I do not think he had written the invitations themselves. Lucilla, his wife gave us toxic Look, very likely she had to play the secretary of the secretary, but it is actually president of Parents. Kichwapolitik ...

Jaime has swung the machete for the entire Minga never did but always with the Chichabecher the round, which was also an important task. For working with Marisol, as she had not released two weeks ago a girl.

these spontaneous Minga led a parents' meeting - a reunion. I was taken and then sat in a circle like the others, either squatting, sitting cross-legged or sitting on boards. First, on Kichwa school debt recited every family, then we came to the "Agenda Item" wrap party. (This agenda item replaced it in our teacher's house the first big row made since last August, but such ugly scenes, I need you're not in a more or less public blog to describe, right?) For parents, it was clear that the party on should find the Friday before the big holiday instead, that each family bring a chicken and chicha, and should otherwise have food, so it would be enough safe for my family. Then the music system, the generator and the Gasolina were organized for the generator. Fortunately, words like Gasolina were made in English, or I had always understood from the giggles and hearty laughter interrupted by Kichwa nothing.

The most important came at the end: The Padres de familia have decided to send the following Monday, a committee in the Bilingüe in Tena and finally the demand by the President of Bilingüe personally promised reward for Gloria. They asked me to accompany the committee and to close the school, their older children should watch out finally at home on the kids when they were all in Tena. We teachers were called the plan accepted by heart! We also wanted to finally, that Gloria got her well deserved reward. (We still do!)

PS: I'm sorry I mean the reader such a long, confusing text feel, without him at least to lard it with colorful pictures.

Platelet Proliferation

Tierisches

What in the jungle so all creeping and crawling ....


We are well used to all the different animals and their constant noise level in the jungle, in the morning shaking the boot is now routine. I have often wished that we had a competent, ever-ready leader who could give us all the professional information critters. But there is something not very many species of rain forest have yet to be discovered scientifically. And amazed we only - without the name or anything to do with the animal.

frogs we kept in our apartment. You always feel at home - it's everywhere wet. A very impressive toad we have seen in the branches of a fallen tree. She was very well camouflaged as a tree and moved under our close monitoring, not so much they trusted in their camouflage.

we almost always find scorpions the toilet of the school building. Your stitches should be comparable to a bee sting, said the volunteers, who had not shaken the boots.

A very exciting, if ultimately a bit nerve-racking experience we had with the Tamarinaffen, which were released to third. The first day they were
observed by the volunteers every turn, to respond immediately should anything go wrong. I met the 10-Clock-break (something there, just ohni Kafi u croissants) I met Olivia, the large females looking for. I promised to notify me if we should discover it. We actually found two hours later in our rat trap had renewed because of the visitation made by these rodents sharp stood in the kitchen. The Tamarinäffchen looked relaxed on chirped a bit and went after his release unimpressed next to the tree. He seemed to have fallen so much that it took both his colleagues in the afternoon and again broke into our house in our house. We were hours busy trying to plug the loopholes and the herauszubefördern Chichicos with brooms and buckets again. It seemed a never-ending story to be. As you can see, one of the little guy has even sipped my coffee ...

Christmas Greeting For My Boss

News

Querida familia, amigos queridos en Suiza!

I decided to finally return to Switzerland in the summer. There are good reasons to get back home. However, there were also several reasons to stay in Ecuador. For example, experiences of this kind:


Cayman
You know, the Cayman is a bit like the Morpho my hobby and it remains a challenge a photograph of the two can. In the Cayman Islands is now a good picture of me succeed, at least when you consider that my camera zoom can not wait. On the way, is called the Cayman Kichwa lagarto. In high school we practice at the time including all the animal rescue center on behalf of the Kichwa, English and German. I've already learned a lot here - the students hopefully ;-).



Cocoa Cocoa is Anya's absolute favorite fruit in amaZOOnico and there are also some of them because of the secondary forest was formerly a cocoa plantation. From the cocoa fruit to eat only the white, slimy flesh into which the seeds are embedded. The cores themselves are purple and extremely bitter. The Kichwas they can dry in the sun (in the most unlikely places by the way: in the street in a wheelbarrow, etc.) and then sell them for processing. The paradox is that while cocoa is grown here, but really good chocolate is made in Switzerland. Thus, the fruit travels to Europe, where it is refined with honey, sugar, cream and, then, for example, in a package of a dear relative or friend (it was like to express once more) back in the Ecuador.

The first real snake
So, now it is: I saw my first real snake. By properly I mean that they are neither locked up nor down and therefore less immobile was that they still had only the size of an earthworm. At night on the way to Huasi Runa, where a farewell party of volunteers took place, was this black fine specimen on the way, but he proceeded immediately from the dust. The brief encounter was enough that I walk in the dark now more cautious and actually put on my rubber boots. Anja is borne out of principle, ultimately be so a bite can not be challenged, even if the probability is quite low.

What you need geometry ...
This is actually an addendum to the blog "parent phone calls."
When we were with Ruben and his wife are the parents of Gloria and Abdón, I said a few words of praise to Abdon work habits in mathematics. Normally he does not expect so much, but the subject geometry, drawing with circles and the exact work to tell him much. Ruben was pleased at the praise, but wanted to know what you could do geometry. I thought of on the fly is nothing better than: for house construction. As Ruben looked pretty blankly - he had for his beautiful house he had built himself, probably needed nothing, that just sounded like geometry.

school mascot
currently houses our classroom a tarantula of considerable size. This was two weeks ago, hanging from the ceiling, the poor Micaela made on the head and harvested a lot of laughter. As if that were not enough, a bit later, a Squirrel Monkey, who are actually looking to do in our classroom, his business done in Jan's book. Imagine this situation in Switzerland ...

visit from Misahualli
During the holidays, I helped turn a day out with the volunteers. The coincidence was just that on this day the class of Misahualli that we had visited in September and wanted to look at our school. Unfortunately there was not much to see, except the offices and desks without children. Therefore, we made then still together amaZOOnico the tour and I tried in my meager English something to say about the various animals. The children listened with interest and asked several times, from which country the animals are for. They could not believe that, for example Trompeteros and spider monkeys in the Ecuadorian rain forest are domestic animals. I was very surprised.
The teacher helped me out often, if not for an explanation of my English enough. In order to shorten my long debauchery, why sea turtles are endangered, he asked the students: What happens when people see a turtle in the Napo? -Matanlo (you kill them), the unanimous answer. But there are too few of these reptiles, among other reasons, should they could not understand properly.
conclusion on this tour, I praised the country of Ecuador, especially the natural beauty of the jungle and tried to lay them to his heart, to guard this treasure for their own country. I felt like an Ecuadorian nationalist propaganda on tour.

Palm Sunday
This is now so long ago that it will soon no longer true. Nevertheless, I want to show this picture yet. With such beautifully processed palm leaves could be seen on this sacred Sunday, the people in Tena stroll through the village.


Harry Potter movie night
To the English vocabulary and reading comprehension of the older to encourage students, we read together Harry Potter - La piedra filosofal. It was not an easy task, even though it made the kids fun. They saw as not see why they should read along, if someone read aloud. Or why should they even read alone, if all had the same book and could read to someone. And then of course there were level differences very great, so I had to have a slow time and the other always a helping hand if we wanted to bring it to a joint degree. Finally it was done and we crowned the project with the film Harry Potter - La piedra filosofal.
The boys were on fire, the generator and the computer together with a good print of the film (there is nothing to buy other than copies in Tena) responsible for the girls for dinner and the subsequent clean up. My notions of fair division of labor which is not identical with those of Kichwakinder. After the girls - although late - had arrived, had been in the Amazoonicoküche at lightening speed and with great skill a dinner on the legs, in the Rio Arajuno had bathed spend (on Clean place all Kichwas large value), making it even the fire of the guys. Apart from the fire made this their cause but also very good: We all had a pointed plug for the bread, the generator ran without Muck and the film print was excellent (she had only two or three dead).
We had teachers from the house, the 4 spare mattresses and Christine von Steiger dragged up old blankets and the students are taught a cozy. While watching the movie all captured on the laptop screen from Jan. Abdón Besides, who knew the movie by heart and always simultaneous voice and Gloria, his sister, sleep well for the same reason. After the film there was a short pillow fight and then the boys were allowed to play among themselves and the girls quietly among themselves something else. Approximately at 1:00 clock all were asleep, when moving it on a mattress to a liability under a blanket. Adrian could not understand why I slept between the boys and the girls, but they were j ow already large, and would not need a minder. When I replied that I do it precisely because they are now just been great, he did not understand me. The others chuckled.
actually a sign that Adrian would indeed have needed no overseer ;-).
The next morning everyone was pretty tired, including me. The fact that we have made the first hour of instruction still in bed, was estimated. And Beata, the disabled, female spider monkeys, said the beds: In the ten-Clock-break they had made themselves comfortable in the soft beds.

Cristian's sister
Cristian, Adrian, Randy, and Jerson Willinton have finally got a little sister, and are obviously proud of it! She has no name and will get even for the time being no. But now at last has Willnton short hair, which makes the Kichwa namely grow until the child is 2-3-year junior or just come.
Just as Randy tells us, was the midwife of Cristian! inconceivable to us Europeans. (How, incidentally, the pregnancy without ultrasound or regular doctor visits ...). In the early days it was Marisol, the mother, not good and the children (Randy and Jerson) were hungry. We gave Cristian Adrian and a loaf of bread and chocolate home with what she gladly accepted. She is now doing well but, at the Minga of last Thursday it swung in any case the machete again, the baby was in kindergarten in the hammock. Steffi and what got me thinking: the mother of six is the same age as the two of us.

night walk
Steffi and I also nocturnal foray. We have searched, poked with sticks and leaves have turned, but not a single non-insect-like creature seen. But did the photo shoot fun.