Casita Girasol

Monday mornings are never my favourite, but in my case it meant leaving Cuzco and heading into the campo. And while a part of me felt there was more to Cuzco to see, I know that I will have to head back that direction on my way to Bolivia. So there I was, sitting on a bus surrounded by tourists heading up to Saqsaywaman, and Pisac. I sat next to two different grandmother age women. The first was friendly and pleasant. The other had a lazy eye who gave me dirty looks and smelled like a butcher shop.

My arrival in Calca was met by some confusion. I didn’t have the name of the place I was going. Only the two men I knew to work there and a phone number. Being in a city that not many foreigners go to visit, I thought just by asking for them by name would be sufficient. And it sort of was. In the end though, I felt more comfortable calling than continuing to ask people for Michael or Mateo. A tuk tuk driver took me to Hukie (no idea on spelling) and somehow managed to end up at the farm. Thanks to some helpful locals, who turned out to be employees on the farm too.

My first impression was a good one. Not only is the setting in the valley surrounded by the Andes, within the Sacred Valley itself, but it is truly a charming place. There are two houses, one for the owner and farm manager and the other for us volunteers. But the most impressive part of this place are the plants. Not only the flowers, like the nine metre sunflowers, but the vegetables too.

Kale, collard greens, romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, artichokes, squash, bok choy, carrots, radishes, and beets are all grown here. This farm also follows Permaculture principles. And basically I’m in heaven. The host, Michael, has just started hosting WWOOFers and I have felt incredibly welcome here. The volunteer house has its own kitchen, a room for guys and a separate one for girls (bathrooms too), seating area, and a telescope. The view outside is of the garden, the surrounding corn and quinoa crops, and the beautiful mountains.

While it is certainly cool here and there are spiders in my room, I am really content to be here. I feel really inspired by this place. And the soil is that perfect near black brown, that is coveted by gardeners everywhere. And the growth here is incredible. The garden appears to be several years old, rather than the actual five months.

And while my day starts off with picking up another animals excrement once again, this time it is dogs and not pigs. But other than that, it is all gardening/farming bliss. Harvesting the cherry tomatoes from the vine, weeding the squash beds, and just generally getting into the gardening groove. I really love the potential here too, the fact that it is producing so much for such a small plot of land. And perhaps the coolest thing was seeing the quinoa plant! I am a fan of the ancient grain, and to see it growing is simply shocking and wonderful. I am a fan of the purple variety growing next to the property.

But most importantly, I love being about to sit outside in the afternoons with a big mug of local tea and play some guitar.

I can describe my mood in one word: bliss.