You may or may not know that roses are one of Ecuador's largest exports (along with bananas and shrimp). Today I had the experience of visiting a rose farm. A good friend from Luther, Beth, studied abroad here in the Spring of 2006. She connected me with a few of her Ecuadorian friends. Paul is one such friend and after meeting with him last week I learned that he works with roses and could take me to visit a rose farm.
Today we visited the farm located in the small town Nono, an hour West of Quito. It was quite incredible to watch the process of cultivating roses. The roses grown at the farm we visited are purchased by Russians and businesses in the U.S. For Valentine's Day this farm can sell 140,000 roses! They grow roses of the Forever Young and Blush varieties. Russians like to purchase long stemmed roses... 150cm long to be exact!!!!! Wow! I didn't know roses could even grow that tall.
They also cultivate artichokes, radishes, onions, and Calla Lillies there. It was a beautiful morning spent in Spanish conversation with Paul and my girlfriends Becca and Cammie.
Last Thursday I had a chance to meet up with my friend and former Wapo co-worker Kelsey Cambronne. She is here in Quito for the month studying with the SIT program. It was great to finally meet up with her and have our own Wapo reunion.
This weekend I had another outing with my Environmental Diversity class. We visited Mindo, a cloud forest 2 hours from Quito. We took an Ecoruta to arrive there... which took us past Mitad del Mundo, Nono and Bellavista. It took us 5 hours to arrive in Mindo after stopping many times to learn of different changes in ecosystems, flora, and geography. In Bellavista we visited an Ecoreserve where the hummingbirds were plentiful!
In Mindo our class visited a Mariposaria, or a Butterfly Garden. It was awesome to be so close to so many butterfly species, and we were even able to touch them. We also visited an Orchid Garden- I am amazed at how delicate the flowers are.
Six girlfriends and I spent Saturday night and Sunday in Mindo. We spent a lot of time hiking and being out and about in the cloud forest. I also visited a local coffee plantation. Our hostal was like a glorified treehouse; there were no windows, orchids spilling into the rooms and a beautiful hammock patio. We slept under mosquito nets (my first time doing so since living in Malawi). In the morning I awoke to numerous birds chirping in the trees besides us. Tranquila! Peaceful!
I again find myself rejuvenated and ready to tackle city life and approaching finals. Tomorrow is Halloween and I have yet to make my costume: I have decided to be Jefferson Perez: 3 time world champion race walker from Ecuador. Should be fun!
New photos here.
No comments:
Post a Comment