Monday 1/23/17 - Working Remotely When we woke up this morning, it was so cold! It was 51 degrees in the casita. Brrr! But the good part is that the truism "clear and cold" was in effect. Even at 1 p.m., the sun was out, there were barely any clouds in the blue sky, and the mountains were completely visible. Mount Cotacachi had much less snow than even the day before, a testament to the strength of the equatorial sun! And the gleaming white snow-capped Mount Cayambe was shining in the sunlight as well. Craig was not feeling well this morning (headache, dizziness, body aches, stomach problems, etc.) We feared that it was an MS attack, and he stayed in bed all day without any energy. But when the kids got home from school (and Antonio got home from guiding tourists on a Lago Cuicocha hike), they were all feeling sick as well. Only Rosa and I were spared. So it seems much more likely that there is a bug going around, and that Craig has fallen victim. That is actually a big relief! For breakfast, we had scrambled eggs with veggies, bread, juice, and coffee. Craig stuck to bread since his stomach wasn't feeling the best. I heard pigs squealing from my office and looked outside. Rosa had tied up 3 of the piglets, harness-style, using a rope made from braided fabric. The piglet that I call Cinnamon was especially unhappy, squealing and bucking. I went down to see what was happening and Rosa said that they need to be forcibly weaned. Their mom Juanita is becoming too thin, and unable to bulk up again because they keep nursing. Why did only 3 of the 4 piglets have harnesses? They only have three ropes. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the correct one. I think the one who is not tied up is the runt, and therefore could use some more milk, as opposed to the other three (who include a very fat black piglet!) It turns out that they are only being weaned during the day (I found this out when three of them, ropes dragging, entered the kitchen during dinner.) At night they are allowed to cuddle with Mom for warmth at bedtime. I ate lunch in my office because I had a meeting. It consisted of soup, beef, lentils, rice, veggies, and juice. In the afternoon, two biologists from a college in Iowa arrived (Molly and Dawn), as well as their guide Daniel and driver Leo from Quito. They stayed in the guest house overnight. When they arrived, I was hanging laundry, as the internet was unavailable from 2 o'clock on, and I was unable to connect to work. I chatted with them, and then they went with Rosa to deliver some party leftovers to her brother-in-law and get a look at the village. We all ate dinner together, except for Craig and Antonio, who were in bed feeling sick. We had soup with popcorn, rice, beans, chicken, and pineapple juice. We brought Craig some soup and juice in the casita. Craig never even left our casita all day! Molly and Dawn gave the family some gifts, and the kids played with a deck of cards with Iowa on the back. There was still no internet after dinner, so Craig and I went to bed early.

Rosa weans the piglets Volcan Cotacachi Dinner with Molly, Dawn, their driver, and guide See all photos from this day