I arrive in Mendoza, in central western Argentina, and am excited by two things- the change in landscape and the heat.
Mendoza the city, as opposed to Mendoza the province, is full of palm trees, lush plazas and some very pretty colonial style buildings. It feels like summer here and I love that I can run around in a sundress, sandals and my sombrero. No more long johns and 3 different layers of fleece! The city´s streets are wide and tree lined, so there´s plenty of shade to hide from the blazing sun.
I have one day in the city before heading off to the next farm, so I do some important things- eat ice cream and chocolate, hang out in the plaza and treat myself to a delicous Spanish seafood meal and glass of Mendoza wine (only costs $10!).
The farm is in Tunuyán, a town located an hour south of Mendoza city. As I head there, I´m surprised that I´m so excited to see farmland again. I´m greeted by the proprietress of the farm and a 63 year old American man, who has been there for the past 10 months and has gone from being a volunteer to something of a patron for the farm. He gives me a tour and I find a nice, secluded spot in the woods to pitch my tent.
We work from 8am until 12pm, take a siesta from 12-5pm when it´s just too darn hot to work, and then work again from 5-9pm. We have Wednesday afternoon and Sundays off. While the working hours are longer than on the previous farm, I feel like I have much more free time, thanks to the midday siesta.
I really like it here and prefer it to life on the other farm. There are less people, only 4 volunteers (the American, an Argentine couple and myself), I live in my tent so I have my own space to escape to, the weather is better and the work is more interesting. The other volunteers are so nice and there are more "conveniences" here, such as a garbage and an indoor sink. Real luxuries. Overall, it´s really very peaceful and relaxed, even though it´s work, and I wish I had more than 2 weeks to spend here.
Jobs around the farm vary. So far we´ve been doing more of the natural construction that I did on the other farm (and which I´m so sick of), tending to the plants in the greenhouse, clearing trails on the far end of the property with hoes and machetes (sounds like a hip hop song), using these old, dirty sheets to take dried oregano off of hte stalks and taking care of the animals (my favorite jobs). They have 3 horses which need to be brought out to the pasture twice a day, 40 or so chickens which need to be fed and you also have to check for eggs (and watch out that they don´t peck your eyes out) and rabbits to feel. There are also 4 cats and 3 dogs which need food and lots of love.
My Spanish is really improving here as I spend most of the day working with the Argentine couple. We talk about everything. My second day here, we talked about UFOs. They´re really very patient with me, speaking slowly and explaining things when need be. I´ve been so frustrated because my Spanish stinks, but it´s really very good considering I´ve only studied it for 2 months. I can get around on my own and never have to consult my phrase book anymore. Baby steps.
Last Sunday, on our day off, the Argentine couple and I took a day trip to the towns of Uspallata and Potrerillos. We rented bikes in Uspallata and rode to these old furnaces where the indigenous peoples used to smelt metals found in the nearby mountains. We had a picnic and then rode down a tree lined road and into the desert. The landscape was beautiful with all these multicolored canyons surrounding us, but it was so hot and a completely uphill ride. We wanted to see these cave paintings, but had limited time until the bus came, so we had to turn around before making it there. In Potrerillos, we hung out by a beautiful lake, which was sullied by the presence of all these Argentine daytrippers from Mendoza who pull their cars right up to the shore and blast their music and are generally loud and obnoxious. But overall it was a nice day out.
This past week, I was sick and spent two days in bed. Three of the other people on the farm out of six were also sick with the same thing, so we think it was some sort of food or water poisoning. It´s not very surprising to me. On this and the other farm, cleanliness is not on the top of their priority list. The water in the sinks (that we use to wash the dishes) and the shower comes from this dirty river on the far side of the property. Sometimes the water smells because people throw their garbage into it. The other day, someone saw a dirty diaper floating by. They get the drinking water from a spring, but I´m not 100% sure that I trust that either. And they put the water in these dirty plastic jugs which have probably never been washed. All of the plates and cooking utensils are perpetually dirty and, even though we have a fridge on this farm, food is left out in the heat (including egg dishes) and then we have to eat it again. I had gotten used to this type of "simple living", but am becoming more sensitive to it after having been sick.
It was really strange being sick here. I slept for two days on a dirty, lumpy mattress in the farmhouse. I had weird, vivid dreams about flying in the sky and seeing pandas dressed as witches on broomsticks and about a violent Indian curse which was unleashed and which I could stop only by drawing a comic strip of it.
I was relieved to feel better and move back into my little tent in the woods. It was a mesh top and I love looking up at the stars. Sometimes I keep myself awake at night just looking out. I can more or less tell the time now based on the position of Orion in relation to my tent. Every night I look for shooting stars and I usually see at least one per night. My first night here, I saw a weird one- big and bright and green. I made a very special wish on it, one that, if it comes true, will make me the happiest person in the world.
