Day 11 (1/11/20):
We arrived in Saraguro around noon today and checked in at the hotel. The first person to greet us at the hotel was Ruth. Ruth was dressed in the traditional style of the indigenous Saraguro women. It is tradition for indigenous Saraguro women to keep their hair long and wear a shawl that is closed in the front with a metal clasp. Ruth’s clothes looked expensive and she had on beaded jewelry. Diego helped translate what Ruth was saying throughout the day. Most indeginous people speak Kichwa. Ruth spoke Kichwa as well as some Spanish and English.
After checking in we headed out to visit the indigenous people of Saraguro. We traveled around on a vehicle with wooden benches that was open on the sides so we were able to see all around us. We passed by adobe brick houses as Diego provided us with some background information on the Saraguro people. Family and community are very important to the Saraguro people. They are Catholic but also revere nature. They have a special cross called the Chakana to represent nature and both the male and female genders. The word Saraguro means “golden corn”. Corn is the biggest agriculture crop for the Saraguro people. They developed a method of hanging the corn to dry so that it may be utilized for many years. Their main diet is low in meat which reflects Incan times. However, over the years their farming practices have evolved. For example, in the last ten years, greenhouses constructed of wood and plastic film have become popular for growing some food like tomatoes. They also raise livestock such as sheep. The men wear hats made from sheep’s wool.
Our first stop was to watch the creation process of the wool hats.
Below are videos I took of the process.
Pulling apart the wool and then refining it.
Forming the hat shape.
Application of heat and a mold.
After checking in we headed out to visit the indigenous people of Saraguro. We traveled around on a vehicle with wooden benches that was open on the sides so we were able to see all around us. We passed by adobe brick houses as Diego provided us with some background information on the Saraguro people. Family and community are very important to the Saraguro people. They are Catholic but also revere nature. They have a special cross called the Chakana to represent nature and both the male and female genders. The word Saraguro means “golden corn”. Corn is the biggest agriculture crop for the Saraguro people. They developed a method of hanging the corn to dry so that it may be utilized for many years. Their main diet is low in meat which reflects Incan times. However, over the years their farming practices have evolved. For example, in the last ten years, greenhouses constructed of wood and plastic film have become popular for growing some food like tomatoes. They also raise livestock such as sheep. The men wear hats made from sheep’s wool.
Our first stop was to watch the creation process of the wool hats.
Below are videos I took of the process.
Pulling apart the wool and then refining it.
Forming the hat shape.
Application of heat and a mold.
The black paint on the hats is actually a wax that is natural from the Amazon wasps and it is heated to become paint.
After seeing how the traditional hats were made we traveled some more to a more mountainous region. We passed many fields. Agave plants are used to mark territory between neighbors fields. The Agave plant is native to Ecuador and very common in the Saraguro region. In fact, when we reached our next stop we all got to try a special fermented agave drink. We all tried the drink and also said “cheers” to mother earth ( Patchi Mamma). However, before we were treated to this honor we first had a meal prepared by some members of the community. All of the food at the meal was organic and grown on-site except for the rice. Cuy (guinea pig) was the featured protein of the meal. I had the vegetarian option which included rice, potatoes, eggs, cheese, and bread sweetened with Agave.
We headed back to the hotel and attended a presentation by Turismo Saraguro. This company set up our tourism visit to the indigenous people. The presentation explained the process behind the community tourism industry that was established in 2000. In four years they developed the tourism program working on first on community organization. The community organization step is essential as it involves assessing the potential for tourism in the area and the willingness of locals to participate. The next step of establishing community tourism involves communicating with the people who will be providing tourism services. This step includes teaching the community about tourism and who tourists are. It also involves finding out what tourism service people in the community would like to contribute, for example, make their house a hotel, serve food, educating the kids in the community about the impact of tourism, etc.
After establishing all of this, investments are made by different organizations to develop tourism. Many investments are needed from organizations or community members to start changing the community to encourage tourism. Ritual centers are also developed as a part of the tourism industry to showcase the meaningfulness of the rituals to tourists. The hotel we are staying in Saraguro was developed through community investments when this tourism movement emerged. The hotel uses the money from tourists to help with reforestation near-native plant species and to support local families that are struggling economically as well as all of the workers who support the tourist community. Tourism is a way for people to make money without exploiting their environment. I learned that the tourism in Saraguro revitalizes the culture. Many youth are abandoning indigenous traditions after attending universities and experiencing a new way of life. Tourism can increase pride in one’s culture and encourages youth to maintain tradition.
After Turismo Saraguro presented, we headed back out to see a demonstration of textile weaving by the Saraguro people. Traditionally women wash and spin sheep wool while men weave. Spinning the wool is a very time consuming process which requires practiced and nimble movements. Watching the women spin wool was fascinating as it was so fast and something I had never seen before. If colored fabric is desired, the women also dye the wool using different plant extracts. To weave the fabric one must sit at a loom. The weavers wear a belt which is essential to the weaving process. Sliding back and forth with the belt on while threading the wool between layers with one's hands is how textiles are created.
After the weaving demonstration, we had another meal prepared by some members of the community. The soup featured key crops such as the potato and faba bean. Following the meal was music. Four men played traditional Andean music as well as music specifically from the Saraguro region. Some of the instruments used included, a drum, a pan flute, a guitar, and something similar to a recorder. We participated in dancing with a few Saraguro people. One dance that we did was just a simple move of stomping hard on the ground but it was very meaningful. It was explained to us that during special occasions the Saraguro people stomp heavily on the ground to wake up “patchi mama” or mother earth. The Saraguro people are Catholic but also deeply revere nature. This acknowledgment of mother earth in the dance is similar to when we shared in a fermented agave drink and said cheers to mother earth.