Food Systems Week 4: Tropical Farming and Gardening Comes to an End #WeLoveVern

This week’s blog post is brought to you by @CaptainTortilla @mosquitomagnet12 and @ReinaDeFotos in a Twitter format, where each tweet is “live” from our different locations. *Disclaimer: these are all fake twitter names, but real (and obviously funny) accounts of what we did.  

Monday, March 24^th

9:00 AM @CaptainTortilla: Going 2 Solexico to edit our group paper about San Isidro from noon to 2, can't wait to see what everyone had to contribute! #collaboration

11:59 AM @ReinaDeFotos: Glad to be out of the heat for 2 hours and see everyone prepared in the classroom with their water bottles #HotWeather #Hydration

2:39 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Our paper turned out great, and even better news, I survived the walk home to comida with only 2 bug bites! #DontScratch #WhyMe #BugSpray

2:40 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Almost forgot the link! Click on “Class Writing Project, 2014: Visit to a Mixtec Village” #FoodSystems #Wheat #Corn #Tortillas #Donkeys http://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/OaxacaFoodSystems/welcome.html

9:24 PM @CaptainTortilla: Off to #bed early, big day tomorrow!  

Tuesday, March 25^th

6:19 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Meeting at Conzatti park at 7 to leave for chat @ 8 w/students at ITVO- Instituto Tecnológico del Valle de Oaxaca #WhyAreWeUpThisEarly

7:30 AM @CaptainTortilla: Whew, quick van ride! Ready 2 to learn about the students and majors the university offers! #agronomy #computerscience #biology

8:07 AM @ReinaDeFotos: We just had to introduce ourselves and our majors in Spanish, now they’re splitting us into small groups to talk with students... #WishUsLuck

11:37 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Got a nice tour of the ITVO campus and saw so many greenhouses, cacti, and animals! #CactusGarden

11:38 AM @ReinaDeFotos: Saw the saddest goose sitting atop a compost pile where his dead mate is buried. Very sad time, but at least he was cute! #PhotoFromMarge

12:09 PM @CaptainTortilla: A tour of the campus AND free cookies and coffee?! #BestMorningEver

1:15 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Back in the van to go to Cuilapam where Oliver has land and is growing things? We’ll see! #FarmerFrohling

1:41 PM @ReinaDeFotos: I put on all this sunscreen, but it turns out we’re listening to someone talk in the shade about #Milpa #Corn #Beans #Squash #Jicama

2:00 PM @CaptainTortilla: Yikes, there goes a farmer chasing his bulls! #BullsInTraining #MexicanRunningOfTheBulls #RunningFree #FarmLand #UhOh

8:33 PM @ReinaDeFotos: Host mom just asked where we’re going tomorrow, and I said “No sé” #IDontKnow and dug out our schedule. This happens todos los días.

    

Wednesday, March 26^th

8:40 AM @CaptainTortilla: Conzatti park, we meet again. Vern is here. Waiting for rest of group to go 2 the small organic tomato farm #Yum

9:00 AM @mosquitomagnet12: A nice woman, Louisa, has joined us today. She’s helping us by translating at the farm #Ready2Go

9:33 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Learning about the organic markets, not as easy to be a part of one in Oaxaca as I thought! #WishfulThinking

10:26 AM @CaptainTortilla: Holy @#$% this greenhouse is HOT. Gr8 to learn about organic tomato growing vs. large scale like last week, though! #Infierno

10:27 AM @CaptainTortilla: Just saw a tomato that looks like a chile pepper, but it’s a tomato. Imagine that- a spicy pepper tomato #Genius

10:40 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Got a picture of that pepper-like tomato

11:01 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Drove past San Isidro Zegache where I stayed for my village stay with Sarah, Marge, and @ReinaDeFotos! Off to women’s farming/growing co-op #SpeedBumps

12:49 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Hannah better wash her hands after holding that baby pig! #cute #scared #bacon

3:31 PM @CaptainTortilla: Went to an amazing restaurant with the group. All of the food was #local and grown in the community #CreamOfCarrotAndSquashSoup #Fish #Tortillas #Salsa #Riquísimo

4:45 PM @mosquitomagnet12: A Mexican man approached us as we were walking around and spoke English with a southern accent. I don’t make these things up.

4:46 PM @CaptainTortilla: Just peed my pants jajajaja. This old guy from Mexico spoke to us with the thickest southern accent #Mississippi

11:11 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Everyone make a wish! *Wishing for mosquito net to magically appear* #itchy

Thursday, March 27^th.

9:00 AM @ReinaDeFotos: Well rested and ready 2 go! Here at Conzatti (surprise!) ready 2 go to INIFAP to learn more about #corn and #seedbanks

9:40 AM @CaptainTortilla: @ federal research center that is protecting local maize genetics. So much info about corn, Sarah is LOVING IT.

9:41 AM @CaptainTortilla: All of this info is pretty corny if you ask me #punny #JonathanPuns

9:45 AM @CaptainTortilla: 60 types of maize in Mexico and 35 in Oaxaca, ¡Qué chido!

10:02 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Aw shucks, our host Flavio just complimented how good our Spanish is! #shucks #punny

11:30 AM @ReinaDeFotos: Went into a seed bank and saw pink corn. If you don’t believe me, look at this picture!

11:49 AM @mosquitomagnet12: What an a-maize-ing experience! Time to go write a reflection paper for Vern before comida! #punny

3:30 PM @CaptainTortilla: Fresh tortillas at comida today and all I could think about was where the corn came from #YES

3:31 PM @ReinaDeFotos: @CaptainTortilla bit eye holes out of his tortilla for a mask at comida today because he’s Captain Tortilla #Ready2SaveTheDay

7:34 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Could not be more excited for tomorrow!!! Organic farmers market, coffee tasting, and going 2 a restaurant 4 class!! #Foodie4Life

Friday, March 28^th

9:30 AM @CaptainTortilla: All the girls in our Food Systems group are a little too excited about this organic farmers’ market right now #local #organic #granola #coconutoil

9:45 AM @mosquitomagnet12: Just bought the CUTEST pressed flower earrings. Last time I got freshly squeezed juice. Not this time. Ready for the coffee tasting!

11:59 AM @ReinaDeFotos: I. Haven’t. Had. This. Much. Caffeine. In. 6. Months. So. Many. Kinds. #CoffeeCoffeeBuzzBuzzBuzz

12:05 PM @CaptainTortilla: This Sustainable Harvest place is in Oregon, too?! Bringing in Fair Trade coffee all day every day. #Caffeine

12:06 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Here’s the website for Sustainable Harvest! My hands are too jittery from caffeine to write about all the cool things they do http://www.sustainableharvest.com/

12:10 PM @mosquitomagnet12: After sampling 4 kinds of coffee, I’m ready to EAT. Vern is now going to try and navigate the streets of Oaxaca to find a certain restaurant #hangry #HungryAndAngry

2:30 PM @CaptainTortilla: At Itanoni, no one can figure out how to order. It’s literally just a tally mark on the menu.

2:41 PM @CaptainTortilla: Despite the confusion, the food was so gr8! A la carte style, fresh off the comal tacos, quesadillas, and other stuff. I like tacos. And tortillas.

2:45 PM @ReinaDeFotos: Our week with Vern has sadly come to an end, but I think he will be pleased with all of our reflection papers and the blog post!!!

4:45 PM @mosquitomagnet12: Recovering from comida. Trying to nap. So much caffeine. And too many bug bites. Still can’t figure that last one out #BloodType #SweetBlood

That’s all for now!

@CaptainTortilla (Carter Lincoln)

@mosquitomagnet12 (Lauren Truncellito)

@ReinaDeFotos (Caitlin Safford, Photo Queen)