The Art of Giving

This post is in honour of Diane Boudreau, my mother. Ever since I can remember she has been donating her time and money to people less fortunate than herself. I remember Soeurette from Africa whom she has been sending money to for years and there's  the Santa Claus fund that she volunteers for every Christmas. Let me not forget, all the times that she has helped me with funds, buying me clothes and helping my family out. She has a heart of gold and so it wasn't a surprise when she donated $100 to our fundraiser.  Her request with the money was that we use it to help the community   where   her cousin lives and where we were to visit.  Here is our story of spreading my mother's joy of giving.

We are in Puyo in the pastaza province, which is at the edge of the rain Forrest. It's a small community of 60,000. Jean is Canadian and married to Nancy who is native to Ecuador.  Jean, my mothers cousin has lived here for 5 years. Nancy teaches at a local school and he works for 3M.  Although, jean is my second cousin. I have never met him. They are graciously hosting us in their beautiful home and have been driving us around, showing us the awesomeness of this country. Yesterday, we went to the jungle where we walked on a very wobbly, falling apart, walking bridge and saw monkeys, parrots, multicoloured flowers and so much more. We are lucky, we are blessed and having so much fun!

Today, we took my mothers $100 and bought bags of rice, sugar, salt and cooking oil. We delivered some of these goods to a family that's really struggling. This family lives in a guard shack with very little and is in survival mode. The mother left the father with their 2 children and he is struggling to stay afloat. We delivered them their food and they were so appreciative. It felt so good to give. Thanks mom for giving us this opportunity to deliver your good will. 

    Our next stop was an indigenous village about 20 Kms from Puyo. The road to get there  was bumpy and not well maintained.  The village itself was small with about three huts.  The people live off the land and sell sugar cane for their income. It's somewhat of the same story that we see with tribes around the world and Canada's First Nations, they are left behind and struggling. 

When we drove up, families started gathering one by one.  They received the food with great gratitude and we were invited to stay and hang out for a while. We got to see their simple way of living.  The children watched us with their big brown, innocent eyes.  Although, we speak very little Spanish, we communicated through gestures and smiles. 

Eventually, we were guided down to a path that lead to the school house. The building was a small hut about 20 by 10. It had 15 desks and not much more. The children sat at the wooden desks and the adults stood around.  I loved this moment. It was for me the moment of the trip. We shared English songs and they shared their native songs. The smiles on those faces and innocence in those eyes, tugged at my heart. 

There is something special about these people, who have no electricity, who live off the land and in the thick of the rain Forrest. A few meters away from the school flows 3 rivers, each river has a name and is said to have different healing properties. 

Zoe and Owen had such a special time as well. Owen stated that it was the best place he had ever been to. I love that my children are getting the fact that not everyone has an iPod and even electricity. I love that they are experiencing life outside of Canada.  In fact this has been great for Zoe and Owens friendship. At the start of this journey they were bickering a lot and just today, I noticed them laughing and playing like they use to. They were even singing in the car on the way home. I have not heard them sing together in a very long time. Sometimes, I feel like I am doing a good job of parenting my children, and today is one of those days.  

Mom, we thank you for the gift you gave to this little village in the jungle. It was so much fun delivering the food and befriending the villagers. They say that a source to happiness is giving from the heart and today, I got that. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I am so blessed. 

Tomorrow, we leave for a jungle tour.  Stay tuned. 

Puyo

On the bus towards puyo, the edge of the amazon. The bus is like a greyhound, big with comfy seats. The scenery of soft,  rolling mountains is breath taking. The vegetation hugs the mountain side like quilt patches of different shades of green.  Bungalows, a Farms and plantations dot the hills. Grey Clouds heavy with the promise of rain loom above. I love taking local transport and watching the world go by. I read the Spanish signs trying to decipher their meaning. I watch the people walk the streets: selling food, chatting, waiting for the bus and life unfolds like it does in every country.  People are people and whatever race we belong to, we want the same things; happiness and health. Everywhere around the world we work, we eat, we sleep and have our worries and our joys. 

There is a phenomenon that happens on the bus that I am not sure of its purpose. Locals enter at different stops and stand in front of the bus and talk to the audience in transit to wherever.  An older man came on and talked about his madre (mother), 

Padre (father) and familial. I got the idea from bits of his conversation that he was asking for money to help his family.  The passengers   donated money and he got off at the next stop and a young man came on. He wore a shiny Adidas jacket and sunglasses. He presented himself as Luis. He began what sounded like a sermon. Ten minutes into it people are answering questions in unison, laughing, exclaiming: "Si amigos". He showes crystals and pendants and I was not sure what he was saying but he spoke with passion. It would seem like he was selling something but I was not sure about that. I wish I could have understood what he was saying.  It was one of those travelling moments where you are on the sidelines, not really understanding what's going on.   Zoe sits with me and was not sure what to think about him. It was a good moment to discuss non-judgment. 

As we descended the mountains our ears popped and we got beautiful views of waterfalls, rivers and landscapes. We arrived in Puyo safely. Our huts in the jungle are cute. This morning we woke up to an orchestra of birds and insects. How lucky we are to be in this land of lush green beauty. 

At the moment my traveling companions are sleeping and I sit on the terrace absorbing the sounds and smells of the amazon. Wow!  I am so grateful to be here with my family.  

Culture shock

Quito is 10,000 feet above sea  level and the highest capital in the world.   Jay and Manuel (taxi ) picked us up from the airport and drove us the hour to the Secret Garden, our guest house.  We took many twists and turns to get there. At one point the fog enveloped around us and with zero visibility. It was like, we'd been transported by a cloud.

The kids were excited, talking and goofing around all the way to the hostel.  Then as soon as the car stopped, boom, so did their excitement.  Owen looks up at the orange wall of our guesthouse with the painting of a an indigenous person, and said: " I am not staying here." Goodbye excitement, "hello" culture shock.

The door man greeted us, as we opened our taxi doors. He wore a black jacket and a  black balaclava and to the kids a little scary. In the dead of night, after travelling for nearly 24 hours,  I knew how Zoe and Owen felt. I have been there before.  It's difficult to be dumbo dropped in the middle of the unknown. It can really rattle your cage. 

In 1997, while in Indonesia, I got off a night bus in the middle of what felt like no man's land. My travelling partner and I were the only Caucasians in a dark bus station.   The taxi drivers swarmed around us, vying for our business. Finally, we chose a driver and he walked us behind the station towards his van. He opened the van door and kicked his sleeping buddy out.  As soon as we sat down, the door was closed and he walked away. Warning bells  started going off.   Wasn't he suppose to be driving us to our guest house?  After a few  minutes of him gone we tried opening the door but the doors were locked and stripped from their respective places. We were locked in the van. By chance, We figured out, that we could leave through the passenger window and that's what we did. We fed our bags and our bodies through and escaped our jail.  As we were walking away our taxi driver appeared walking with a group of men. Luckily, we were back under street lights and around friendlier taxi driver's. I pointed my finger at our jailer and said ;"you don't lock people in vans!"  I wish I had something more clever to smash but alas thus is what spewed out of my mouth. Another taxi driver promise to bring us to the relax guesthouse. By then our adrenaline was high and we had trouble trusting anyone. As the taxi inched its way through the streets of Jogjakarta things looked gloomy. Garage doors were shut indicating closed businesses and people slept along the sidewalks, homeless.  In that moment I wondered, what I was doing there. The streets seemed to loom with danger and I felt so very out of place. I imagine that Zoe and Owen felt this way,  out of sorts. Like, one of these things don't belong here and that thing was them.  The man clad in black helped us with our bags and started leading us to our rooms.  Both Zoe and Owen were echoing statements of wanting to leave and not stay there.  Owen said: " this is not like Canada and he was right. We weren't in Kansas anymore, Dorothy.  The halls were so narrow that only one could fit at a time. The stairs were so steep that it like you were climbing a mountain.  Also, the altitude had us short of breath and feeling weird. Our hearts beating in our chest from the thin air.  By the time we got to our rooms Zoe and Owens faces wee stricken with grief. We want to home was the analysis. Both their feet were planted firmly to the ground stating how strong feelings of  conviction. "We are not staying here " they reaffirmed. In that moment, it came back to me. Thailand, and their reaction to arriving at our final destination after 5 days of travel; fear, worry and pure culture shock.  We'd been here before and I knew we would get through it. Jay and Tyler brought Owen up to the roof top restaurant to get bearings. I stayed with Zoe and we talked sitting on her bed.  She asked me: "why do you bring me to strange places."  I answered that I think it's for us to step out of our boxes and experience something different together. Aks that I loved her very much and that I was looking forward to spending all these days together. It seemed to appease her. In time the guys came down from the roof and eventually found ourselves sleeping. 

It is now6am and I lie here in bed writing in attempt to let go of these feelings of anxiety. The altitude is getting to me. I went to washroom and I got short of breath, dizzy and my heart started pounding. These symptoms are similar to a panic attack which I have had once before. These feelings started making me feel anxious as though I was going down the road towards a panic attack nits not a good feeling.   It's helping though, lying here, writing my story going through my own version of culture shock. There Is nothing like this experience to feel totally alive or on the brink of death! Do to worry, that's the anxiety talking. I'll get over it.  I've been breathing slow, relaxing my body and moving through this. All is good people and there is an adventure ahead of me. 

Hasta luego!

Book of Awesome

We did it. We woke up at 3:00 I must admit to barely sleeping from fear of missing our flight. Kids were troopers, got up with no complaints. 

Our first stop over, New York City!  Zoe's dream city where she hopes to live some day. Our landing into Laguardia airport gave us, a perfect vantage point, of the Empire State Building, the Statue of Liberty and Central Park.  Zoe sat in 7b, behind Owen and I. Her seat mate pointed out land marks for her to find.  Owen marvelled at the world before him. He said: "seeing New York from a plane goes into my book of awesome." My children's joy and excitement goes into my book of awesome. 

We ate a  New York pretzel and now sitting at gate C9, waiting for our flight to Houston.  

I feel it in my bones, the best part of this trip is going to be connecting with my children. As a busy parent, I often feel as though I am missing the mark, somehow.  I do my best, I really do, and yet it feels like it's not enough. These trips we take together is a gift that I give to ourselves to remove ourselves from our busy lives and do something that is out of the box. This coming out if the box together, brings us closer.  It reminds me of one my life Motos; live with passion, love with passion and learn with passion. Of course one doesn't need to fly to Ecuador to unplug. All one needs to do is leave the devices at home, pack the car up with the family and go find the great outdoors. Did you know that they (whoever they are) have identified a condition called "nature deprivation"?

Yes, we  brought our devices such as iPhone and iPods.  There will be days where we do not use them. But a day like today, where there is a lot of hanging around, it's nice to have. 

Enjoy and may your passion be with you.

❤️ love annie, Zoe and Owen 

Jay, we are on our way!

The Eve to Ecuador

All or our bags are packed and kids are sleeping.  It's 11:30 and I just finished my scramble to get every little detail ready.

There were so many scrambles!  For one, there was a typo on Owen's passport. It read Conforth instead of Cornforth (note the missing "r").  That had me scrambling to the passport office, thank goodness they gave us a new one.  How did we ever get to Thailand last year?

There was the last minute shopping, when we discovered that Zoe outgrew her swim suit (do they ever stop growing?).  We found one tonight for way more money than I wanted to spend.

 There's the 2 school assignments, I just finished, 5 minutes ago.  Yes, you might not know this but I am in the process of getting my Early Childhood Education certificate.  I am having so much fun with the program.  I love learning and learning about children and education is very interesting.

The scrambles, the lists, the shopping, the planning is all worth it.

Tomorrow morning we are waking up at 4 to fly out at 06:30.  Ecuador will be an adventure for sure.  It will be our first time in this part of the world.  We will be landing in Quito which is 10,000 meters above sea level (hello altitude sickness).  This is followed by some time in Puyo and the Amazon (hello snakes, piranhas and pink dolphins!).  Last but not least, we will find ourselves on the beach in Playas.

We have our Fundraiser $$$ all tucked into my money belt. I raised nearly $500.  Jay also raised funds on his own.  I am not sure how much yet, stay tuned.   He is already in Ecuador, waiting for us.  We can't wait to see you Jayman!!!  I already know that a highlight of this trip will be spreading the good Canadian generosity to the Ecuadorian children.  So far we will donate money to a community in Puyo where my mother's cousin lives.  His wife is a teacher and once we get there we will find out how our donations will be spent.  In Playas we will be purchasing books written by Ecuadorian authors and giving them to a community of children.  We will keep you posted :)

There is still one loose end. Owen forgot his running shoes at school.  He will wear rain boots tomorrow and hopefully there are good deals at some airport!

Hasta Pronto (Spanish for see you soon!)

Ecuador the Anticipation

This post is short but it is full of excitement!!!!  I drove Jay to the airport this morning.  He is going ahead to Quito and we are to meet him there on March 5th.  I am so excited to go to a country that I have never experienced before.  I have been learning spanish and cannot wait to see the mountains of the Andes, the rainforest of Puyo and the beaches of Playas.   Also, sharing this with Zoe and Owen is such a gift.

Thanks to all, who have made donations to our Books for the Children of Ecuador, fundraiser.  So far we have raised $480.   Sharing our wealth with these children of Ecuador will be a simple joy.  Thanks to all who have donated and for those who still wish to give, there is still time :) You can email me at: anniebdr@gmail.com

Loads of love your way.  Annie and the gang.

Pics from last year's Thailand trip...

Back on the old dirt road…

 Greetings family, friends and fellow travellers.  Team Jbong, Annie Bananie, Zoe (12), Owen(9) and now Tyler (17) are out on tour again giving it our best shot to make the world a better place.

 In 2013, our travels found us jetting setting across 12 time zones, to Thailand.  It was Zoe and Owen’s very first experience, on a plane and in Asia.  The experience was rich and brought us together as a family. 

One of our best memories of this adventure was collecting donations from our Canadian friends, which went towards purchasing school supplies for Burmese refugee children. With the generous donations of $1200 we bought soccer nets, school supplies, school uniforms and shoes.   The giving and receiving of these gifts was an experience of pure joy.  Zoe was amazed at how the children seemed so happy even though they had so little.  It was magical.

"Ecuadorian children"

This year our wings take us to Ecuador and as an offering of gratitude for all that we have, we want to help Ecuadorian children.  Ecuador is a third world country and in great need.  Our travels will bring us to Quitto, Banos, Puyo and Playas. Playas is on the southern coast and where our Canadian friends live.  They have helped us identify a need for children’s books in their community.  This year, our goal for giving back is to raise funds and purchase books and hand deliver them to these children, as well as whatever other needs the kids identify ( like the soccer nets last year)

We invite you to donate and come along for the journey.  We will keep our blog updated with our adventures and the unfolding of our Canadian spirit and generosity.

 Your donations are most welcome and can be given to Jay or myself before March 1rst as we are leaving on march 5th, woohoo! Otherwise just send us an email and we can front you the cash.

We are hoping for donations of around $20, and hope to raise a bit over $1,000. We will do so e cool stuff with the money.

We look forward to sharing our adventure with you!

To have a look at this short video we created for Festival Promotions who sponsored us last year, have a look here…

http://anniebananietheclown.blogspot.ca/2013/05/here-is-little-video-i-compiled-from.html

So it's off to a corner of the world that we know nothing about and check out a new culture.  Everyone we have met from Equador has been friendly.  We know there's the beginning of the Amazon, lots of jungle, piraña fishing, indigenous people, the Galapagos, a few beaches...

We are the scouts.  Check out Annie's blog at www.anniebananie.ca and come with us. 

We will make another video to show what we did with everyone's hard earned cash.

With loads of love,

J, A, Z, & O