Now it doesn't get more rustic than this! As you see the Tetley is brewing so all is hunky dory. This is a traditional stove, known locally as a 'plancha', and will be our main source of tea and hot food. We bought a stack of wood which the local kids cut down with enormous machetes in the neighbouring forest – which is next to our house. We do not have a fridge so it's powdered milk all the way; it´s not too bad.
We have a washing area to do the dishes and wash the clothes by hand. This is hard work but in for a penny … There is no fairy liquid and they have these tubs of solid soap which you scrape with a scouring pad instead. The soap for the clothes is also a solid bar. When we arrived we washed all the sheets and towels that the owners left for us and there´s something to be said for a bit of hard grind, Vanessa and I had a laugh doing it and part of us coming here was experiencing how the locals do things.
Our neighbourhood is a poor one and we have already had so much help from the people in our street, their generosity puts most of us to shame. Candelaria is our local contact, she is one of the local mothers that helps to run the organisation (dining room or 'comedor'), more of this later. She has lent us pots and pans, plates and a type of rug cum duvet. Her kids, she has five ranging from 7 years old to 16, all love us unconditionally and come round all the time for a bit of footie and to wake us up at 5.30am!
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