Temescal

Well we are back in Quito.  This week will be dedicated to more health brigades and lots of Spanish class.  I think the brigades will be going a little more smoothly from here on out, now that we have figured out a little about what our roles are when we get to the communities.  The more populated brigades should be an interesting change from the ones in rural communities and I´m lookign forward to observing the differences.

For our last night in Peguche we all participated in Temescal.  In temescal there is a dome with a pit in the middle.  Everyone piles in and sits in two circles surrounding the central pit.  In the pit they put hot stones in and then close the door so it is dark.  There are four rounds, water, wind, fire and eartth.  Steam and incencse fill the dome and it gets very very hot.  Most of the time I put my head on the floor even while we were singing since heat rises.  It was a lot easier to breath with my head down low.  The point of Temescal is a cleansing and spiritual journey.  I´m glad I participated but I´m not sure if I would do it again, perhaps if the opportuinity presented itself since it really was a fascintating experience.

The worst round was the third round or Fire.  This was the worst because the woman in charge poured water over the steaming hot stones in the middle and a rush of extremely thick, hot air filled the dome.  My eyes were burning.  I was a bit overwhelmed but breathing through it until others panicked and started crushing me in an attempt to get away from the heat, that was not so fun.  Overall, our entire group was able to make it through all four rounds and I was proud of everyone for sticking with it.

Afterwards we prepared a very traditional dinner of many veggies and chicken that is cooked in a hole in the ground.  We put very hot stones in a hole and then put the food down in layers with layuers of cabbage separating some of the bigger and smaller types of food.  When the hole was filled the entire thing was covered with two blankets, dirt and traditional decorations and left to cook for about an hour.  When we removed everything it was extremely delicious and we were able to eat with our hands which was awesome.  Overall, it was a great experience and one I am grateful to have had since I don´t think too many people really get to immerse themselves in another culture the way our group was able to experience this traditional ecuadorian meal and cleansing.

Anyway, that´s all for now.  I´ll try to write again in a couple days!