Zone Conference & the Finca

This week we traveled with President Barlow to Riobamba and Ambato for Zone conference.  We left early Wednesday morning to go to Riobamba where President Barlow conducted interviews with the missionaries who are serving in that zone.  After a day of interviews in Riobamba, we traveled back to Ambato and spent the night.

While President is conducting interviews with the missionaries, Elder Lewis and I are visiting with the missionaries, learning about them and their families, asking about the missionary work they are doing in their assigned areas, checking on their health and living conditions, and sharing our thoughts and testimonies.

On Wednesday in Riobamba, I also administered an online English test to Elder Huerta.  About 50% of the missionaries in this mission are Latino.  They are strongly encouraged to learn English while serving a mission and are almost always paired with an English speaking companion.  That arrangement helps both the Spanish missionary learn English and the English missionary learn Spanish.

Sister Barlow oversees the English program available for Latino missionaries by distributing materials for them to use in their personal and companionship study, tracking their progress, and administering their final online test. Once a missionary has finished the 3 text books in the program, he or she can take the online test.  Latino missionaries generally take the English test a few weeks before they finished their mission.  If they score high enough, they are eligible to enter the PathwayConnect Program.

PathwayConnect is a reduced-cost online program that prepares students to start or finish a college degree by building spiritual confidence and teaching foundational academic skills.  All course credits count toward a bachelor's degree.  (See https://byupathway.lds.org/pathwayconnect)  It is a great opportunity for the Latino missionaries to obtain a college education from a US university at very low cost.  Elder Huerta was excited to tell me on Thursday that Sister Barlow had informed him that his test scores were high enough for him to enroll in PathwayConnect.

Thursday was Zone Conference for the Ambato, Oriente, and Riobamba zones.  It was wonderful! We echo President Barlow's words......the Ecuador Quito Mission IS blessed with outstanding young men and young women who are humble, obedient, hard-working, and have a great love for the people of Ecuador.  They work diligently to share the message of the restored gospel of Jesus Christ and invite others to come to Him, make and keep sacred covenants, and received the blessings of His atoning sacrifice.

On our travels to Riobamba and Ambato, we saw some of the beautiful Ecuadorian countryside and almost got a glimpse of the well known volcano - Cotopaxi.  Cotopaxi is on our list of sites to see.  We will be making a trip to hike the volcano in the near future.

Patchwork of Ecuadorean farmlands.  It's amazing how high up the mountainside the farms go. 

A glimpse of Cotopaxi, an inactive volcano. This picture was taken at 11,200 ft, and the volcano rises up
from this base to an elevation of 19,347 ft!  When we hike Cotopaxi we will only be going to the first refuge.

Elder Lewis in Ambato at the Parque De Los Enamorados a few blocks from the Ambato Chapel.
Translation = Park of the Lovers.

Sculpted cypress at the Parque.  Yes, we did see a few couples besides ourselves enjoying a stroll through the park.

Elder Lewis standing next to a sculpted cypress.

We returned from our zone conference trip Thursday night.  Friday morning we were at the mission office until after lunch and then we left with the Guerrero family for an overnight trip to their cacao farm - finca, located about 3 hours northwest of Quito.  It is a mountain descent from 9600 feet elevation in Quito to 2000 feet elevation at the finca; thus the tropical/jungle terrain at the finca. 

We made a few stops to pick up supplies and then arrived at the finca after dark.   Once there, we turned on the electricity, primed the well for water, unpacked, and prepared our rooms for the night.  We then helped Sister Guerrero prepared a pot of homemade chicken soup for dinner.  After dinner, we visited, planned for the next day, and went to bed.

Sleeping with a mosquito net.  We haven't done that since our trip to Africa in 2003.

We awoke the next morning and headed into the jungle with Brother Guerrero to see the finca and to get breakfast supplies - it was literally "farm to table" for breakfast.  We gathered long stalks from a grassy plant to make a lemony tasting breakfast drink.  Then we cut down a bundle of plantains and carried them back to the farmhouse to make tortillas.

Elder Lewis on the edge of the jungle.

Fresh plantains for breakfast.

Once we had delivered breakfast supplies, we headed back out to see more of the farm........ There were bamboo trees, sugar cane, banana trees, plantain trees, heart of palm, cinnamon trees, lemon trees, lime trees, orange trees, avocado trees, pineapple plants, mango trees, and lots of cacao trees.  It was amazing!  We tasted about everything that was ripe and edible - sugar cane, heart of palm, yuca, lemons, plantains, and cacao.

Standing outside the farmhouse in our rubber boots.  

After our farm tour, we went back to help make a breakfast of lemon drink and plantain tortillas.

Plantain tortillas - boil 9 plantains until soft.  Mash with 2 Tbsp. of butter, fresh chopped cilantro and onion, and
1 clove of finely minced garlic.  Pat into a shallow cup, filled center with fresh mozzarella cheese,
cover center with dough, pat into a round pancake about 1/2 inch thick, fry.

After breakfast we hiked through the jungle to the river - Rio Blanca.  Brother Guerrero wielded his machete like a pro!  He cut down trees, sliced up sugar cane and heart of palm, and cleared a path to the river.  Once we arrived at the river we enjoyed exploring, sucking the sweet juice of the sugar cane, dipping our bare feet into the water, and taking photos.

Rio Blanca

Elder Lewis on the bank of the Rio Blanca

The Guerrero Family

Brother Guerrero finding the "heart" of the palm with his machete.

Getting a taste of the inside of a cacao pod.  The cacao beans are encased in the milky white center that is
edible and sweet. The cacao beans are removed from the center, dried, and sent to the market. 

When Brother Guerrero purchased his farm, much of the land was wet and swampy.  He was teaching Primary at the time and one of his Primary lessons shared the story of the early saints draining the land in Illinois to build the city of Nauvoo.  He felt impressed that he could do the same with his property - drain the swampy land and plant cacao trees.  He dug a few large ditches with a piece of machinery, but most of the drainage ditches were dug by hand.  It's impressive!

After our hike to the river we return to the farmhouse, gathered some wood, and cooked a delicious lunch in the open air kitchen before packing up and traveling back to Quito.  It was an Ecuadorean experience to remember.  We sincerely appreciated the hospitality of the Guerrero Family!

Brother Guerrero preparing a fire to cook lunch - chicken marinated in a cilantro sauce,
yuca, plantains, rice, and a tomato/cucumber/pepper salad.  Yummy!

Through our travels and experiences this past week, we have felt a deeper appreciation for God's creations, and for those like the missionaries and the Guerrero family, who exemplify God's love in word and deed.

Sending our love to all from Ecuador!
Elder & Sister Lewis