Onions on a Mountainside

Cayambe Volcano peaking thru the clouds

Ecuador is beautiful.  And that becomes even more evident when one escapes the concrete jungle of Quito and ventures a few hours by bus through the mountain passes overshadowed by sleeping volcanoes to rural communities like Cangahua.  A couple weeks ago my coworker and I left our computers behind and spent most of the day on buses snaking through the mountains and in an ancient pickup truck bouncing along rock studded roads.  The ultimate goal was to reach José’s plot of land in the Andes highlands.  When the pickup finally stopped beside the evangelical church of Lote 4, we had a gorgeous view of the valley below and the communal field on the opposite mountain.

View from above a rural Evangelical Church

Edwin and Jose at the edge of Jose's onion field

We first went to José’s house, but his daughter informed us that he was at his onion field halfway up the mountain.  The only way up that mountain is to cross a footbridge over the stream, walk past a dilapidated house, and climb…climb…climb.  A half hour later we reached the plateau on which José and his wife were harvesting onions.  Standing against a strong wind, we talked with him about the onion harvest, the local association, the construction on the church, and how his loan payment was going.  Ending in prayer, we said farewell and headed back down the mountain to the awaiting pickup for a bumpy ride back to the town of Cangahua.  From there we caught a ride to the city of Cayambe to purchase some of its famous cheese and then returned to the concrete jungle of Quito.

Photo break on the way down the mountain. My left hand is blocking Jose's house where we started.

Waiting for the bus in the Cangahua town square