We’re pretty full right now, but are loving every minute of it.

March 20-26, 2006

It’s been hectic down here this week in Bahia. Even as we were driving Dan and Valentina to the bus station on Monday night, Mark and Heather arrived to volunteer until May. This weekend we also welcomed Sarah and Catherine into the Planet Drum family. We’re pretty full right now, but are loving every minute of it. Lots of positive energy and ideas.

We planted about a hundred trees on the Espinoza land and in Bosque Encantado this week. Some additional trails were also cut in Bosque Encantado with the landowner in order to get an idea for how many more trees can go in there this season. We luckily found the majority of trees we planted at Maria Piedad that were previously thought to have been destroyed by a new corn field. It was especially warming to see how large the trees have become at the Interamericano School. Ceibo and Samango trees that were planted in January are now almost two metres tall!  Fantastic!  

I attended an International Water Day seminar here at city hall on Wednesday and received a great introduction to the problems and future improvements that are planned for Bahia’s strained drinkable water supply.

The greenhouse continues to produce hundreds of seedlings of a week. We were out there twice last week transplanting, composting and preparing the trees to move to El Toro and Bosque Encantado for planting. For some added excitment, upon lifting up a sack of transplanting bottles in the greenhouse, we discovered an Equis snake curled up underneath. As he lay there camouflaged and sleeping, the staff from the university informed us that it was quite poisonous and promptly “prepared it” to be preserved for their collection. 

We have continued to give away fruit trees to friends, neighbors, and now the ladies from Arte Papel, who are ecstatic about receiving them. 

Un abrazo,
Pat