Discovery

This passed week has been the week of connections and discoveries. When it comes to my plans for Puerto Hondo, the community I am working with, I’ve met many people that have inspired me to think BIGGER. It all began with an Ecuadorian friend of mine, Raquel, who owns a small NGO consulting organization here in Guayaquil. When she told me about her organization a few months ago, I instantly offered my help if she ever needed any volunteers. Her few months of silence led me to believe that help wasn’t something that she required. Nevertheless, to my surprise she called me one evening after work and asked for a strange favor. “Can Lindsay and you go to Bucay to do some food tasting please?” My love for food forced me to instantly agree with excitement. The conversation was very short because she had a meeting to attend; she thanked me for the favor and quickly hung up. After my happy dance was finished, I began to realize that I had absolutely no idea exactly what I was doing for her.

Bucay river

The following day arrived quickly, and Raquel was in the cab that picked Lindsay and I up. She gave us some more details, Bucay (pronounced BooKayi) is a small farm town located about 1hour and a half east of Guayaquil. It has about 8000 habitants, and is known for having the highest amount of natural resources in the Guayas province. They are currently developing their ecotourism sector, and want to strengthen their cultural identity through food. Most of the cities in Ecuador have a specialty dish, that dish sets them apart from others and gives them a sense of identity. It also increases the chances of returning customers, they will be more likely to come back if their taste buds were satisfied by a unique recipe that can only be found in that region. The dish has to incorporate locally produced ingredients. A great majority of the farms in Bucay are organic forest farms, meaning that, they grow fruits and vegetables that are native to that area, they do not use any chemicals, nor cut the surrounding plants that grow around their food producing plants. They grow their food in an ecosystem, and are blessed with lots of bananas, pineapples, citrus trees and much more. 

Marcel and I beside Nobis sign

When we arrived, the groups were preparing their tent displays, Marcel, a chef that was also volunteering for this event, provided us with even more information. In Canada there are several governmental social services such as (welfare, unemployment, child benefits and disability funding assistance) For that reason, the poverty rate of Ecuador is very high. Unlike Canada, the Ecuadorian government doesn’t fund many things at all. That being said, there are many NGOs that have taken the initiative to provide social assistance to help small less fortunate communities grow economically. The organization that was funding this event was named Nobis. Founded in 2004, Nobis works to contribute to the progress of the Ecuadorian society. They achieve this by creating favorable conditions for improving the quality of life for Ecuadorians, through the provision of education services, health and family welfare. 

There was a total of 6 groups at the competition. All of them were (non official) restaurants. These type of restaurants are common in Ecuador. They are usually family owned very small restaurants that make a big pot of food for lunch and dinner and sell it at 2 to 3 dollars a plate to others until supplies last. Before this competition, Nobis has been working with these 6 restaurants for a 3 months. During that time, each group received workshops on the following topics: Sanitation standards, customer service, marketing, supply chain management, production, inventory management and data collection. 

The vision of the Nobis Foundation is “to become an institution that promotes social change, so that Ecuador is more able to face the challenges of the future.” 

 Good thing Lindsay and I were both hungry, because we had a lot of food to taste. Each group was going to be judged based on their uniforms the presentation of their food, the flavor, and the temperature of the food. The winner of the competition received free advertizing on the website, tourism books, and posters and pamphlets made. They also received a sum of money that goes towards their restaurant renovation, expansion and employees.

There were several members of the community that came to watch. And knowing what was at stake, the contenders were extremely friendly, and all let us know how hard they worked on it, how much they would love to get chosen, and how they could really use the money. Every time we took a bite, the air filled with silence, and several eyes were attentively watching our every move desperately seeking for the slightest reaction. When we said (mmmmmm) some groups cheered and chanted. Others had permanent smiles, and winked at us as if knowing we would choose them. 

I personally found all of the meals so very delicious, take a look for yourself: 

Team 3- Pork in pinapple sauce, with vegatable salad

Fruit salad

And potato and egg salad loaf

Team 1: Pineapple glazed pork loin, rice with peas, steamed vegetables, eggs and yuka potato stuffed with cheese

Team 2 Dessert Pineapple glazed pastry

Team 2 Main coarse Pineapple glazed meat, veggies and corn with rice

Team 5 Fruits with sweet cream glaze, Pork with sweet kiwi sauce, steamed vegetables with yuka fries

Team 4 Rice with (Cassoulet) Pork and beans, served with avocado and barbecued bananas

Team 6 Dessert empenadas

Team 6 - Pork stew, eggs with rice and vegetables in light sauce

Discovering the Nobis foundation through this event, made me realize how many people were wrong about Ecuador. People have told me countless times that because of the governmental situation in Ecuador nearly no progress is being made within the country. This led me to believe that without international aid, Ecuador would not get very far. Connecting with the passionate people of Nobis showed me differently. There are in fact NGOs within Ecuador who are also making a difference. The international aid is most definitely a plus that is greatly appreciated, however, not the only driver of social and economic change. Reading about a country can easily make you underestimate them in some ways, it’s true what they say, “We have no idea what the water is like until we dive in.” I'm hoping to keep working with Nobis, and see if Puerto Hondo, the community I am working with, qualifies for this type of project. Now my small initiative ideas have grown in size. If I could somehow connect the community with the Nobis foundation, the benefits would be endless. Nobis doesn't just give money away to anyone that needs it, there needs to be initiatives in progress, a detailed proposal written with plans on how tourism development will be executed. If only if I could attend a town meeting to propose my idea of community based tourism. . . 

We were given flowers, fruit and recipe books as thank you gifts

"Nothing is better than discovering new possibilities." - Jane Goodall