A picture paints a thousand words

This is the one-room school I attend every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning in Rio Blanco

from left: Daniela, Sharon, Elizabeth (the teacher), Nicole, Daniel, Kevin, Tamara. Lindsey and Jefri no longer goes to our school.

Nicole is Martín and Clara's (our neighbours and workers) youngest daughter. We've become good pals.

Kevin, Daniel and Tamara having a snack during recess.

Daniela is 12 years old and she was very shy with me at first, but she's now more smiley and talkative.

The bridge we have to cross was destroyed in a hurricane 2 years ago. Pedestrians who do not want to wade through the river have to cross over this log. You can't see it, but at the very end of this log, the wood is quite a bit more narrow than the rest. I have no problems (when it is dry) to cross from this side, but I can never do it going the other way. I just freeze with fear. And I can't do it either way when it's wet. The log gets so slippery! So I opt to walk through the river each time. Today, I just noticed that Martín added the handrail and a flat piece of wood over the narrow bit. So much better - and safer!!! Thank you, Martín!

This is the river we have to cross. Not a big deal if you have the right footwear. A very cold and wet experience, if you don't.

Our hens - inside their 5-star coop.

Stepping out for a bit of fresh air.

This is my vegetable garden. The patch in the foreground has carrots and radishes growing. I can now see some greenery sprouting. The rest is still covered with plastic to keep the rain from washing away the soil. I'm waiting until after October to plant the rest of our vegetables so the rain doesn't drown the seeds

Here are the seeds that I planted in our greenhouse: broccoli, lettuce and Cosmos flowers.

These are golden berries. They grow in this paper-like lantern.

And when you split the outer portion, this small golden fruit is ready to eat. It has a same consistency as a tomato, but it's sweet and oh so delicious. These are native to the mountains and grow easily. We'll be planting more!