We have arrived at our lovely hacienda near the base of Cotopaxi! After finishing up our community service and independent projects, we spent time with the people of Iltaqui Thursday and Friday, preparing for our emotional goodbye. On Thursday evening after our last bit of work, we decided to give back to the village that provided so much for us by cooking a meal for the people we have been working with. We divided into four smaller groups to make guacamole, chilaquiles, burgers, and apple cobbler and invited the cooks, workers, and other members of the community and their families. Despite some difficulties with the limited cooking facilities, the dinner went really well and we felt great that we were able to serve 40+ people from Iltaqui!

For our final night the president organized a huge despedida where they cooked a huge amount of traditional food (chickens, potato, corn) and invited the community to share different dances and music with us. The Putney group also sang a song to the village and danced as a group in front of everyone. It was an amazing evening! Our time in Iltaqui was incredible and we were all sad to say goodbye.

On Saturday morning we headed up higher into the Andes to the hacienda. We arrived in the late afternoon and explored the picturesque mountain location. On Sunday morning we went out to a high ropes course on the property, which was challenging and fun for everyone. After lunch we suited up in our cowboy gear and got on horseback. We headed up into the hills to see a stunning view of Cotopaxi, which we will be hiking up a portion of Monday morning!

— Dan & Fedora