Ecuador
Manna Project International
From USA to Shandia: Embracing Slow Living and ...

Leo Saunders, a Program Coordinator with Manna Project International, reflects on his first three weeks in Ecuador, navigating cultural differences, teaching in local schools, and embracing life in the Amazon.

From USA to Shandia: Embracing Slow Living and Community in the Ecuadorian Amazon
Manna Project International
Nurturing Community Growth: How Manna's Chicken ...

Chickens are an essential asset in numerous communities, offering not only a reliable food source but also serving as a vehicle for economic empowerment. The consistent production of eggs and meat from chickens significantly enhances nutritional intake and can increase family incomes, particularly for those facing food insecurity.

In various initiatives, we have integrated chicken farming as a sustainable agricultural practice. By equipping local community members with training in effective poultry care and management, we not only advance food security but also create pathways for entrepreneurship. Chickens require a relatively low initial investment, making them an accessible option for families aiming to improve their financial stability while thriving in diverse environments.

Additionally, involving families in chicken farming promotes cooperation within the community. Neighbors come together to share knowledge, resources, and support, thereby reinforcing the community's social fabric. As families acquire the skills necessary for raising chickens, they also develop an appreciation for sustainable farming practices, which can be transmitted to future generations. Thus, chicken farming evolves into more than just a means of sustenance; it becomes a vital catalyst for comprehensive community development.

Nurturing Community Growth: How Manna's Chicken Project in Ilayaku is Transforming Lives
Ecuador, Community, Program Director
Manna Project International
When Soccer Isn't Just a Sport: Futbol in ...

Growing up in Maryland, I played soccer until around middle school, when I realized I wasn’t all that good at it and that I was in love with basketball instead. Since then, I’ve been known to kick the occasional ball around, but I was pretty nervous when I was invited, along with my friend and fellow PD Patrick, to play for Once Valientes B (in English: eleven brave ones) in the Shandia soccer league.

When Soccer Isn't Just a Sport: Futbol in Shandia
Ecuador, Community, Events
Manna Project International
Music, Colors, Foods … and lots of Laughter - ...

As in many parts of the world, this past week in Shandia was all about the celebration of Carnaval. Originally coming from an area that calls the local Carnival the annual “fifth season”, I was especially excited to see what Carnaval in Ecuador would look like. What would the local customs, foods and music be like?

Music, Colors, Foods … and lots of Laughter - Carnaval in Shandia
Manna Project International
A Day in the Life of the Amazon Rainforest: ...
A Day in the Life of the Amazon Rainforest: Welcome to Shandia!

The Girls and The Quito

This past weekend, Jos and I planned a girl's weekend in Quito for the four of us. We rented 2 rooms in a hostel and spent the weekend wandering through our beloved city as (slightly more informed and jaded) tourists. Serena and Dana joined us Saturday night for a nap, some dinner, and a lot of dancing, per usual. When there's a live cover band singing a medley of Beatles, Led Zepplin, and Doors songs, one has no other option. One must dance. Please enjoy the pictoral account of our weekend.


On Saturday morning, Jos and I had bagels and fresh fruit juice for breakfast and wished our house had potted plants in our window sills.



We spent a late morning in silent awe inside a church painted in such decadent colors it felt as though we had walked into a sorbet coated, South American Versailles.








We walked through a tent city protesting PetroEcuador's presence in the rain forest.




We climbed two huge metal balls in a park. And then some spray painted helium canisters because they looked lonely.






We ate a lunch of red bananas, pineapple, freshly baked wheat bread, and avocado-black bean-onion-tomato-lime salad on our little hostel balcony.



Then we took a nap and readied ourselves for a classic-rock jam session with 100 of our closest Ecuadorian friends...


On Sunday, Dana reorganized some of the cement parking aids...


while Jos found herself a handsome boyfriend at the mall.


Then we all watched Transformers 2: Rise of the Fallen. And we LOVED IT. Seriously. It was hysterical.

At 9pm, we hailed a cab, piled all our bags into it's trunk, and let out collective sighs every few minutes as we drove our tired, city-dazed little souls back to the boys, the summer vols, and the fresh-aired valley.

Sigh. We will certainly miss this place.

-Holly

Maps and Cobblers

For my birthday yesterday, Taylor Brown (a summer volunteer, family friend and fellow Coloradan) and I decided to do a birthday project.

This birthday project involved 50+ maps from our massive supply of National Geographics...


3 canisters of Ecuador's version of rubber cement...



2 different types of accents (British and Indian, if you must know)...


some pretty clutch dance moves...

and a lot of pasting, stepping back, realizing it was horribly crooked, peeling, and re-placing countless maps.

And then laughing at ourselves.

Coming home to a peach cobbler baked by my housemates was the perfect end to a really wonderful birthday.

I love my housemates. And summer volunteers, too :)
~Holly

Rainstorms and Dry Pipes


This past weekend was a whirlwind for everyone down here, and we're still recovering. With Dana back in the states (until tonight, hurry home to us!), Mark, Eliah and Seth out on the coast, Priya and Tim in Otavalo and Dunc and I leading summer session 2 to the cloud forests of Mindo, Jocelyn and Serena had the house all to themselves. There was probably a lot of eating, screaming, dancing and youtubing with all the boys away and unable to whine (like old men, maybe?) about all the noise.

Despite the huge rainstorm that hit the valley this afternoon, our house still doesn't have running water (3 days and counting), making daily tasks like laundry, dishes, cooking and showering quite difficult. The summer vols have been wonderful, volunteering to go buy big jugs of water, lugging their laundry to a local laundromat, and keeping the whining to a minimum.

Making soup for tonight's community meal was an ordeal and a half; I have a new found appreciation for frontier women who ran huge houses with no running water (even though I still dream about having a homestead in Montana...), especially when it comes around to dish duty. Running back and forth between the sink and the little pump outside to fill up my bucket with enough dishwater was an exhausting way to spend an afternoon; thankfully I had Mari to help me dry and a glass of wine to relax with :) We make do down here.

~Holly

(our new dish washing system)


(Stormy June skies)

Mindo is Lindo

Mindo: Adventure weekend in a cloud forest.


Our home away from home for the weekend, Casa de Cecilia.


My Swiss Family Robinson dreams come to fruition.


Most of the group heads out to zip-line, while...


Dunc and Ryan enjoy a Pilsner by the river.


Early morning contemplations on the porch are very serious.


The girls talk around the breakfast table.


An ideal breakfast. Followed by pancakes.


Scott, Meghan, Michael and Ryan learn about coffee roasting.


Roasting Coffee Beans!


Coca beans ready to be shelled, roasted, ground and spread on our pancakes.


View out the back of our hostel.


Scott, Taylor, Meghan and Ryan sit on one side of the truck bed...


While Dunc, Michael, Mari and I sit on the other.


Getting the "hold on really tight" speech before tube-rafting.


Everyone's ready for the river. Especially Dunc and Meghan...

Markers, Blokus, and Picture Books

Yesterday was the first official day of programs for Summer Session Two (ss2 from here on out).

The day started early; 7:30am found half the group prepping for language school at the house and the other half out at Christian's with Eliah working on the community garden project. After lunch we split again; Priya, Tim, Mari, Michael, Taylor and Sarah headed out to the library to teach English class, play ping-pong in the teen center, and read with the 35+ kids who showed up, while Meghan, Scott, Ryan and Fiona joined Jocelyn in kicking off another 3-week English class in San Juan, our neighboring community. Follow that with women's exercise, family dinner, board games at the dining room table, and Spanish homework, once we actually took a breath, stretched our bones and realized how exhausted we were, it was already 11:30pm... summer around here is anything but dull!


(Michael reads with Issac Suntaxi Suntaxi (seriously that's his name, amazing))

(Priya and Selena put some important details on their cat drawing)


(Mari and Priscilla contemplate their next moves in Blokus)


(Selena and Wendy crack me and Michael up)

(Sarah and Taylor lead English class)


(Tim and Sarah excite the kids with an English memory game)