Feed Them and They Will Come

Building a brick house does not come under the list of things that we know how to do. It was suggested that we hire a maestro (a master builder) with some ayudantes or helpers to assist Jake.

Our good friend, Serafin, attends church in La Pista. When Jake was attending the dedication of the church, Serafin introduced him to one of his ‘brothers’ who happens to be a maestro but prefers to farm. A number of other ‘brothers’ offered to work so we soon had a team that works well together.

We had first intended to drive them back and forth to their homes every day. That would mean 4 hours on the road but it was much better than if they walked. However, when we picked them up the first day, they came with their belongings for the week and informed us that they would build a shelter and stay a week at a time. Wow! I wouldn’t have to get up early and drive to La Pista every morning. But – that meant I would be feeding them three times a day instead of once!

Now that could present a challenge. Maybe they won’t like my cooking (and are too polite to say so). How much food do I make? What do I make for three meals a day? OK, when we ate here before we had a bowl of soup and then a ‘segundo’ or second plate of rice, some veggies such as tomatoes, onions, and carrots, and a small piece of meat. That would do for a start.

So now to buy the veggies and figure out what to do with meat without refrigeration. I picked up the basics for the first few days and then headed into town for a weeks supply. The shopping list was:
Black pepper
4 l. oil
large margarine
bottle of coffee
1 flat eggs
12 ½ lbs. onions
25 lbs. carrots
12 ½ pounds potatoes
12 green peppers
12 garlic
5 lbs. tomatoes
2 celery
bunch of parsley
5 lbs. beans
3 lbs. salt
10 lbs. rice

At the end of the week I had used nearly everything. I had some carrots left but had to buy more eggs, peppers and tomatoes. Some of the neighbours also gave me some cabbage, okra, peanuts and a few other veggies. We have out own plantain. I bought a frozen chicken to cook at the chaco but also took along frozen cooked hamburger. Lentils were also used for one meal.

A sample recipe for 3 Bolivianos, Jake and I for one meal.
3 cups lentils
3 lbs. swiss chard (I also used one of the lettuces from the garden)
8 carrots
6 potatoes
lots of celery leaves
some parsley
5 tomatoes
4 green peppers
1 large onion
3 cups of rice

The meal began with a bowl of rice and veggie soup. In addition I sliced the usual 4 tomatoes and 1 large onion. Everything is eaten with fresh tomato and onion.

When I am in Yapacani I bake since they love to have cake in the morning and afternoon. They are used to plain white cake but decided that banana cake was good, and chocolate cake was great!

They are a great bunch of guys and are eager to teach me traditional Bolivian cooking.

Big Red - The Little Red Truck

Deciding the type of vehicle to purchase was a major decision. We wanted something reliable since Jake is not very mechanical. Because we were not familiar with the country we didn’t want to purchase something that did not have the correct papers; thus creating problems. That meant buying something new. We felt we needed something that could haul a fair amount of stuff since we would be building the house and other buildings. After looking at a number of trucks we ended up with a Chevrolet Work LUV. It is a cheaper truck, not as heavily built as some of the others. We certainly notice that difference. But it does what we need it to do.

We have had the truck since April and already have 10,000 kms. on it, much more than we ever anticipated. It seems like the truck becomes a taxi to the doctor many times a week. The doctor is located in La Pista, 11 kms. away. The road is rough with many potholes and it takes about 35 to 40 minutes to drive one way. But when a mother comes with a small child that has diarrhea and is vomiting, I cannot refuse to take them. When I go, I usually pick up a number of people along the way, either going to La Pista or returning to Patajusal.

Because the men working on our house live in La Pista we pick them up early Monday morning. Sometimes we are on our way from Yapacani and have a load of supplies and equipment. It is not unusual for us to have the truck loaded and then add more stuff – bags of rice, bikes, chain saws, machetes and bags of personal belongings. One day we had 8 men on the back of the already full truck, then added 4 more, plus a woman and her child. Not only were they hanging on the back, they were also perched on the top of the cab. Some of the passengers were going to another community farther into the jungle. They walk or bike 17 kilometers to and from their farms so they were very glad to get a ride for the first 11 kms.

On Sundays we bring a load of people from Patajusal to La Pista to the Evangelical Church. There might be 12 persons on the truck; there might be 20 persons, along with their musical instruments. If the service is in Patajusal, Jake drives to La Pista first and brings those members back to Patajusal. It means a lot of driving but it is part of what we do.

Last week included a trip to another pueblo, Cascabel, about 40 kms. from Patajusal. I had never been there before so I was interested to see it. The purpose of the trip was to bring two couples and the pastor to obtain marriage licenses. I was driving – speeding at 60 kmp – when they told me to stop. I had passed the office of the notary without even knowing I was in the village. It was just another small village that spreads along the road with no true beginning or end.

Another trip brought me to a new community that borders Patajusal 1. The trip started with a baby that needed to be brought into La Pista to the doctor. Before we left the community we picked up the veggies from one of the chacos so that they could sell them in La Pista. The doctor was not around that night but the trip was not in vain. We returned, minus the veggies but with the additional company of three loud squawking ducks. Thankfully, they were in bags in the bed of the truck and not in the cab. While returning to Patajusal, we were stopped by the micro (small bus) and asked if we would take some passengers back to Patajusal. This did not make sense since the bus was returning from there. The driver thought the road was too wet and muddy to proceed. Since I had just driven the road I was somewhat surprised. I hadn’t seen any wet, muddy road – but this is Bolivia! We proceeded for a few kilometers and came across a group of about 12-15 people who had been dropped off, along with all their purchases from Yapacani. Normally the micro would take them another 2.5 km. It was very dark and the people were tired so they all clambered on the truck and off we went. I thought that all the people would get off at the crossing between Patajusal 1 and 2 where I turn to go home. Then I was told that there was another community farther –much farther – down the road. So what do you do? Part of the problem was a lack of understanding of the language so I ended up driving them up the road – one kilometer, 2 kilometers, 2.5 kilometers to the last bus stop, 3 kilometers (the road is now a track) to 4.5 kilometers. At this point they said they had to walk in the rest of the way since I could not drive any farther. I still don’t know how far they walked that night but I know they were very grateful for the ride. On the way back I was again flagged down and asked to take a young man with his bags of products that needed to go to Yapacani. I agreed to take him to the crossing where he would sleep so that he would be there when the micro came in the morning – if the micro came in the morning. There is no hotel at the crossing so I am sure he just found a place to sleep somewhere on the ground. During the previous conversation at the crossing I agreed to be at the crossing at 6 in the morning in case the micro did not come. I had to take the child to the doctor anyway. So at 6 I arrive – and no micro. By the time I arrived in La Pista, Big Red (the truck) was loaded with 10 bags of stuff, four half bags of stuff, gas cans, bikes, baby baths, and 20 people. It was then that I realized how important some type of reliable transportation was needed for the community. When we arrived in La Pista the people piled out and boarded the micro for Yapacani. No one became really upset at the driver but one man asked why he didn’t come that morning. When the driver started to make excuses about not being able to drive down the road he was told quite calmly that the lady could drive it quite well – implying that he should have been able to do it also. That was probably harder on the driver than if the man had shouted at him.

So we are very thankful that we have Big Red. She hauls lots of stuff for us from the road to the house – bricks, sand, gravel. She enables us to get our food and supplies from Yapacani and Santa Cruz. But she performs a much more important job in providing needed transportation to the people of the community. We are truly thankful that we have our faithful red truck.

Oh, one more duty of Big Red. She is a playground for the kids!

Our First Winter in Bolivia

It is winter in Bolivia. That means that the temperature is lower and they say that the insects are less. Watching the weather in North America we realize that the temperature has much less variation and I am not sure that it ever gets as hot as it does in some of the areas in North America. We spent some time in Cochabamba and it was very cool at night, cool enough that I wore a sweater. While in Coch airconditioning was installed in our truck and we bid farewell to our good friends, the Watts, who are returning to Canada. I also signed up for a couple of weeks of Spanish lessons starting August 21. The month in Canada was a good one. We arrived in time to attend our grand daughter’s play, the anniversary celebration of some good friends, another grand daughter’s graduation, as well as birthdays for Marg, Tim and KerryAnne. Jake’s was busy tying up the business and getting solar panels and a generator to take along. He also made a low flying trip to his family in Iowa. And all of this in three weeks. Next time he might have to stay longer! Marg’s 94 year old aunt was hospitalized and is nearing the end of her life. Although we thought she might die while we were home, she didn’t. Marg spoke at a couple of churches and hosted a dessert and information night. Jake came back to Bolivia on July 7 and has been busy organizing the materials for the house. The windows and doors are ordered and the bricks are on site – well, close to the site at the road. Men from an adjoining community have been hired to help build the house. Jake attended the dedication of the evangelical church in La Pista on July 14,15, and 16 – a three day celebration was filled with singing, sermons, and food. It started Friday night about 7 and lasted until Sunday at about 3 in the afternoon. Our little truck took about 22 people from Patajusal each day. As well, about 250 people came from neighbouring communities to celebrate. About 30 to 40 people came on an old International farm truck which served as there motorhome. The excess people slept in the old church. The community gave their all and were very happy to share their meals with their neighbours, even though it was very little by North American standards. Both baptism and communion were celebrated on Sunday and the sermon was delivered by Matther Zoller, a missionary with World Concern. It was the one sermon that Jake could understand. It was a great time for Jake to get to know the men on the community. And where was Marg – she was having her last day with the kids and grandkids in Canada. Marg arrived back on the 19th. We spent couple of days in Santa Cruz and then headed for Cochabamba to spend some time with our friends, Kent and Susan Watts and their daughter, Anna. Kent has served the last year as the minister to the Baptist English congregation, Susan acted as head librarian at the Baptist Seminary, and Anna attended school. They are returning to Canada at the end on July. Marg also signed up for another couple of weeks of language school in the end of August. Keeping up with the language in the community has been difficult. Our life now will be centered in the community. Marg will spend many hours on the road between Yapacani and Patajusal bringing materials for the house. She will also drive each day to La Pista to provide transportation for the men who will be helping with the house. Jake will supervise the building of the house and a driveway. We plan to attend church services in La Pista and provide taxi service to the members of Patajusal. We are scheduling a visit to Santa Cruz once a month to attend an English church service and visit with the rest of the EFCCM team. And about the weather here. We do get some cold nights -- or at least cool! I ended up wearing a couple of sweatshirts a couple of nights and one day I wore one for most of the day. The next day the sun was shining and it was back to shorts and t shirts. Oh, what a winter!