I went with Dodie the other day as she ran some errands.
This is part of the mercado…eggs or chicken, anyone? No extra charge for the flies.
We are making a big trip to the mercado on Wednesday. Everything is much fresher and cheaper there than at the supermarket, though I’ll take a hard pass on the chicken, I think!
We also went into one of the barrios. Dodie & Randy don’t just rescue needy dogs & cats, they rescue people too. They have formed a nonprofit foundation called Ecuador From The Heart. Please give if you can! https://ecuadorfromtheheart.com
When Covid hit, Ecuador did an extremely hard lockdown. Dodie got permission to go distribute food in the barrio and they help the young people get training and education. A bunch of young adults got EMT certification, a group of single moms learned how to cook corn dogs, french fries and onion rings and sell them every Sunday in the barrio. Donations also allow people to get free food if they can’t afford the $1 price tag. They’ve been cutting the dogs into 4 pieces so a family can all have a little bit of a treat for just $1. This past week each of the moms took home $16 total after expenses! That’s a HUGE boost in income for people whose normal monthly income is about $50! They also have programs for seniors.
Here are a few pictures from the barrio. I didn’t want to be too obvious about taking photos. Most of the shacks are made of bamboo but there are a few cement block homes. The square cement boxes are sewer hookups, almost finalized, and running water is not far behind! Again, thanks to the foundation! I saw one motorcycle while I was there but not a single car except our taxi.
I’ve never seen such a gigantic avocado! Even the small ones here are bigger than the avocados at home. I bought one of the smallest for $.35.
Little Bitty Living 