Getting to Work

The mood around the breakfast table this morning was one of great cheerfulness. Even after being informed of the absence of students at the school due to a teacher strike, the group remained cheery as we all reviewed some basic Spanish phrases with Pam. After Spanish class, we marched down the steep hill to the conservation office. Once there, we reunited with Walter and Wendy, and met Oscar and Adolfo, our coworkers for the day. After splitting up into two teams, the Metz family being one of them, we got to work. The Metz family worked on planting a row of hydrangeas on a hill outside the office and digging a drainage trench at the bottom of it. Adolfo spoke almost no English, and Gifford and I took this as an opportunity to work on our Spanish. The cheeriness of this beautiful town is made apparent through random interactions with happy strangers and their appreciation of our work. After being interrupted twice by heavy rain, we took a lunch break. After lunch, we planted small trees in green bags filled with soil, while chatting animatedly with Oscar. He gave us a tour of the farm owned by the school, complete with 30 cows, 11 pigs, 100 chickens and a pretty man made pond. The products of these animals are sold by the school for profit, a far cry from any schools in the New England area. After work, we reunited at the Treehouse Cafe for dinner, and returned tired.