Vacation Part I: The Galapagos Islands
April 20, 2011

She looked at me and then asked me whether I believed in God. I was shocked. I took a moment to take stock of the situation: an old Ecuadorian lady was asking me philosophical questions. I had just crawled through lava tubes and was returning the flashlights to her. And oh yes, I was on the Galapagos Islands. I was on my vacation.
I like to think that I had a different experience than other people on the Galapagos Islands. From what I saw, most people visit the Galapagos Islands with tour agencies. These agencies take care of everything for…

The Keys to my House
April 5, 2011

It is a bit funny to me how much time and effort is put into security in the United States. Although robberies do occur, they are often infrequent events where I live. From my experience, in Long Island, NY, a house robbery occurs maybe every few years. Then again, we have alarm systems, video cameras and secure locks on our doors.
When I first arrived at my house in Apuela, I was annoyed that my host family did not give me my own set of keys to the house. I soon learned that this was unnecessary. Applying the right amount…

Tour Of the Coffee Farm
March 31, 2011

Welcome to my farm! After living here for a while, I have now become able to distinguish between different crops and their ages. (It’s a very important skill to have). Besides coffee, yucca, guava and papayas, we also have begun to grow carrots, radishes, lettuce and more garden types of food. We have orange trees and naturally an extensive herb garden as well. Enjoy the video!

…

My First Communion or How I Learned the Word for Sin
March 16, 2011

I think this blog post should begin with an apology. I kind of gave my host family the impression that eating meat was a sin for Jews. I apologize to all the meat loving Jews for making my host family think that all Jews cannot eat meat.
So I went to Church (again). Although this time it was a Catholic Church and I was sitting up front, actively listening to the service. I felt a bit uncomfortable entering the Church wearing my muddy boots and rain jacket and not in nicer clothing. I was consoled by the multitude of woman…

Garbage Trucks
February 14, 2011

I saw a garbage truck in Apuela. My first thought was that it was not real. My second thought held such certainty that I almost could not believe that it was not true. I thought that the world had ended. I physically had to walk around the truck and touch it, both to confirm the fact that it was real and to confirm the fact that I was not lifeless.
One of the first things that I noticed about Apuela was that people would throw their garbage on the ground. At first I could justify their actions: why throw a…

The Amazon
February 6, 2011

I close my eyes and try not to take a deep breath. I feel the healing man hover above me, blowing tobacco filled smoke into my face. All I could think was, “Is blowing this smoke into my face really going to cleanse me? It seems so dirty.” I relax a little as the healing man brushes my face and shoulders with leaves from nearby trees. The local healing man is getting rid of my mal aire (bad air) and replacing it with buen aire (good air). And if the practice was not strange enough, I am at his house,…

Another Side of Coffee
January 28, 2011

Usually I stay in the lab growing, cultivating, reproducing bacteria and fungi. However, recently I had the opportunity to visit the farms. Part of lab work is going outside and seeing results. Did the trichoderma (a bio-fungicide) work? Is the coffee healthier and stronger? So I went on one of these excursions to see how AACRI evaluates the farmers that are part of the Association.
A few months ago, I went to the health center to try and volunteer a part of my time there. What I saw was that people would come to the health center with all sorts…