Yes. Things are good. Very good, very good. Justin and I have been volunteering on a farm located 12 km outside of Villarica for the past two weeks. It has been challenging, it has been inspiring and it has been a learning experience.

We had absolutely no idea of what to expect. We were in contact with a lady whom we thought we would be working for, but when we arrived at the farm we found out the lady lives and works in Santiago. Instead, we would be working for a lovely young couple (Hans and Fransica) with an adorable child named Sol.

Ten families purchased the land for the farm. Right now, only one family lives on the farm (this is the family that is hosting us) and another family has started builiding their house. There is a huge garden with any type of vegetables/fruit you can imagine, a green house, chickens and horses. The family lives mostly off the land. They live in a tiny, dirty, dirty house where mice scamper on the roof during the night, with no electricity, no running water and a dry toilet. They get their water from the stream, they heat their water with the stove and they use candles as electricity. Its like camping every night.

Duties:

Duties have ranged from planting raspberry bushes to digging up a road to recreate it. Justin has worked on the house that is being built and I have learned how to spin wool into yarn. We spent three days moving dirt from one side of the road to the other to improve their driveway. We have stayed very busy, working hard, learning new skills and speaking so much Spanish our brains hurt by the end of the day.

We are rewarded at the end of each day with a delicious vegetarian meal with vegetables from their garden. We have shared stories and talents with one another. Justin taught Fransica how to crochet a hat and in return she taught Justin how to make her oh -so -very- good bread. She taught me how to spin wool and make creams with the plants from around their house.

Villarica is surrounded by a least 100 volcanos, therefore, there are thermals, thermals EVERYWHERE!! We went on what we thought was going to be a 30 mintue drive to a hotspring, but it ended up being a 3 hour drive to a beautiful, remote thermal hotspring. We thought we were just going for the day but we ended up staying in a cabin and soaking in the water for hours.

The family we are staying with has helped us to think differently about the way we live. We are lucky to have been able to find such a wonderful family to learn from and live with for a couple of weeks. Hans speaks little English, but he is always quick to tell us we are doing "very good, very good." We are the first WWOOFers to come to their house and they are pleased with our work.

We venture on to Peru in a about a week. Thank you for following along. Sorry, no pictures this time. I can´t seem to upload them right now.

Until next time,

Justin y Anna

"Not all those who wander are lost." - J. R. R. Tolkien