5th April -a spectacular win for the toon!

5th April- a spectacular win for the toon! 

The electric was still off this morning, so we still haven't been washed ( we possibly smell worse than the sheep now). I was chatting to Emily whilst brushing my teeth, and had ran my toothbrush under the tap before putting it back in my mouth. Then noticed the water was the colour of mud. Maybe there's an electric pump somewhere for the water? Oh well…people pay good money for mud treatments, just not usually for their intestines. 

After a hearty breakfast, today's morning task was more fence maintenance - yep, pulling nails and winding barbed wire. I am covered in bites this morning too- particularly around my wrists, waist & elbows. Graeme was digging post holes and came across a bit of pottery. Charlie was quite excited. They both kept digging and unearthed quite a bit. 2 of the pieces were clearly a pot rim. Charlie said they were Inca pottery, saying something about the colour and the black oxidation on the outside- in Spanish, but I think that's what he was saying. He then got even more excited & a bit puzzled when he found a ring. Of course I recognised it instantly, as I am wearing the same one…it was Graeme's wedding ring- but he had him going for a minute. 

We then put fences up at the garden with Nancy, as Charlie went off on horseback with Emily to collect the camera traps. They will be analyzed & put back out at a different spot on the grid. Hilariously, I was now unwinding barbed wire…I may be an expert wire handler by the time I get back, although I'm not sure there's much call for it in North Tyneside! 

We also discovered who has been eating all of the Inca cucumbers from the garden, as the culprit was spotted- a huge rat! I am not fighting him for it! 

In the afternoon we had a cookery session with Elsa, making empenada's from boiled plantains. Basically, you boil the plantains in salt water for 5 minutes, then drain and mash with a cup. Then knead the plantain into a dough. Roll out between plastic sheet ( or cling film) and put some grated cheese and sliced spring onion onto the rolled out dough, fold it over using the plastic, and using the handle edge of a fork, over the plastic, draw the edge into a half moon shape. Open the plastic & you have an empenada. They are then fried in oil until brown & are absolutely delicious. It was hilarious as I made loads & they looked great. Greame, who is usually the cook in our house, just couldn't get the hang of it at all. All of his split and the cheese fell out, or the dough dropped to bits when trying to roll it. He was so frustrated - I couldn't stop laughing at him. Even when Elsa rolled his dough for him, he still couldn't get it right! Too funny. We then roasted more coffee and cacoa, grinding a big bowl full of coffee and a good bit of chocolate paste. Although Danny did most of the roasting, so for breakfast tomorrow it will be an LA blend.

Graeme got the football scores, and the goals kept coming. There's no phone signal in the kitchen, so he had to keep going out to see what was happening. It was unbelievable. In the end, Newcastle United beat West Ham 5-1 away. Absolutely bloody brilliant. 

Then we went to see to the animals, I went to bring in our lovely black goat. She had her back leg pulled up behind her and was trapped in an awful tangle. Her rope was pulled tight around her leg. Poor thing. It took me ages to get her free. I was so worried that she would be cut, have a broken bone or had stopped the circulation to her hoof. She was a bit wobbly at first when I got her free, but seemed to shake it off and was ok, thank goodness. I let Charlie know anyway, so he can keep an eye on her. Then, joy of joys, I spotted our depressed chicken out of the hen house for the first time. On closer inspection, she had one tiny yellow chick with her. We were all delighted. I thought Emily was going to cry she was so happy. We went back after dinner, in the dark and pouring rain to make sure mother & chick were settled and the hen house door secured, so no hungry animals could get in. There are Martin's around that would take a chick, so we didn't want to tempt fate. On the walk to the farm we saw ground nesting birds. Elsa is off on a day off after lunch tomorrow, so we won't see her again, so she lit a fire in the fire pit and made bread dough, so we had stick bread and some of the chocolate we made this afternoon. I will miss her. She is the beating heart of this house & a truly lovely woman. We had a giggle around the fire as Danny's stick bread looked very falic, which needed no explanation, and mine started to unravel. It was so tasty though. We should have left La Hesperia this afternoon but decided to stay an extra night- it was going to be a Quito rest day, but in truth, the time has gone over so fast, I just don't feel ready to leave yet. We haven't left yet, but already want to come back. I'd love to see the feline project do well too- a proper cat protection program would be amazing. We have decided we will make a donation to buy some equipment too. Danny is in talks with Emily regarding setting up a go fund me -  he is a marketing exec in LA & has worked with Disney among other big clients, so must have a few contacts. His Dad is a retired pilot, so he didn't have to pay for his flights here , other than the taxes, Lucky sod. The flights have been our biggest expense. I wish my dad was a pilot, I'd be throwing darts at a map to see where to visit next. 

Night night,

Caroline