El Castillo….fireworks tower

Fernando’s Dance Group

This may have been the most thorough clean we’ve done in years!

At harvest. They are so heavy, that I need Don Fidel’help to hoist.

While the last couple of weeks have been full of activity, I don’t have much to show for it. My phone fell into the toilet AND I’ve been locked out of my personal gmail account. I have no way to access any of the photos taken immediately after my last blog post. 

I have a new phone now (an old hand me down), which I’ve used to document some fun events of the last week or so. 

Our nephew, Fernando, and his dance group were invited to perform at local annual ‘fiestas’ with three other local youth dance groups. It was nice to get out on a Friday night and enjoy music, dance, and fireworks. We also got to see them win, which was the icing on the cake of a fab night!

The water drama of the dry season continues. We’re still pumping water from the area of our creek where we are pooling trickles of water for house consumption and fish pond needs. We’re able to oxygenate the fish pond water regularly with the pump but for lack of water circulation the pond has turned opaque over the last few months. So, we spent two Saturdays ago cleaning it out and trying to push out as much moss from the rocks and sediment from the bottom of the pond before refilling it with fresh water. Only as a family activity and with a lot of extra hands were we able to get the water level down low enough to clean without losing any fish. Did it help? It’s a mixed review - fresh water is always good, but the pond is still very green and opaque.

Make sure no fish escape!

We are not wanting for bananas at the moment. We’ve harvested multiple bushels in the last two weeks. Some we kept for ourselves, others we left for the birds and squirrels, and we were even able to send some home with family. They are so big and have so many individual bananas that it’s impossible for us to eat them all - I wish they didn’t ripen all at once. We hang them so they can ripen without smashing as well as to keep them away from the chickens.

Ready to eat.

One of the most exciting events of the last 10 days or so was making chocolate from cacao seeds harvested at Nido de Vida for the first time. Our nephew, Paul, did the work to grind the cacao seeds into a paste. It took 7 rounds of grinding to get there. The paste was then made into little raw chocolate discs. We melted down one disc for fresh hot chocolate which was perfect for five of us.

Nothing like shrimp ceviche and chifles (fried plantain chips) for World Cup watching!

I’ll end this post with some World Cup news. If you haven’t been watching, Ecuador has done far better than expected (I don't want to jinx it) with the most recent performance ending in a tie with the Netherlands. Don't’ be deceived by the tie though - Ecuador played infinitely better. 

In any case, we love our soccer and we go all out! 

The best place to watch the World Cup!

That’s the most recent news from Nido de Vida. Thanks for reading and stay tuned for the next update.

This past week was (mostly) fantastic. We got new chicks; had water issues (not so fantastic); had loads of araza; hosted our first booking.com guests; and celebrated Lucia’s birthday.

Look at these faces! There are 21 in total and they are doing wonderfully so far.

We’re technically in the rainy season, but it’s incredibly dry. Lucía and I have been here about a month, and it hasn’t rained once. This is very unusual for these parts, especially during this season. We share our water source with two neighbors, and we’ve had a few days in which we’ve run out of water completely. We moved some tanks around, and set this one up at the bottom of our creek so it can pool more water. We then pump it up to the house.

Araza is in season…

We have a few trees around Nido de Vida.

They’re very sour and their outer layer is similar to a peach. It’s mostly used here for smoothies; the milk and some sugar really cut down the acidity.

Since we had so many, I wanted to experiment and try to make something different. I chose jam.

I didn’t have to add in any pectin (the natural substance that makes jam firm) since fruits typically have some degree of it already. Turns out that the more acid a fruit contains the more pectin it does too. In araza’s case, it must have a lot because it didn’t take much for the jam to get very firm. Actually, I’d say that the next time I make it, I’d like to make it slightly more runny. Despite macerating the fruit overnight and adding quite a lot of sugar, it turned out to be a sour jam. Next time, I’ll remove the skin and see if that makes a difference. 

On Thursday, we got a booking.com reservation request for our cabin, La Dolly. We were surprised because the reservation was for the next day. It was a fast turnaround, but we were elated to finally have our first guests. They stayed with us for one night and were fantastic people. They came in from Quito, so I met them at our closest town, La Orense, and they followed me to Nido de Vida. That afternoon we hiked and went to the river. They relaxed for the rest of the evening, and the following morning we surprised them with tamales and an araza smoothie. They left midmorning as they were headed in search of a waterfall.

Lucia’s birthday was yesterday, and we threw her a little party on Saturday. Paccha and I baked up a storm and made: apple pie (Lucia’s favorite), chocolate cake, and white chocolate chip cookies

Nido de Vida’s 2nd Annual Thanksgiving Celebration

Thinking about Thanksgiving plans yet? We’ve got the perfect plan for you -  join us at NIdo de Vida for our 2nd Annual Thanksgiving Celebration, and let us do the heavy lifting! Nido de Vida is our family farm in the county of San Miguel de Los Bancos (Pichincha). 

Photo courtey of Carlitos

Spend Thanksgiving with us, and you can focus your time on your family and friends by exploring the jungle, enjoying our farm projects, and eating good food. This is a perfect way for you to celebrate with the people you love while also sharing a new adventure together.

Most importantly, you’ll get to celebrate Thanksgiving without the stress of cooking, cleaning, and hosting. 

Your Thanksgiving meal will be prepared entirely by us at Nido de Vida, and you can expect a traditional meal of turkey, stuffing, mash potatoes, breads, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, and pies.

Bibi Al-Ebrahim, co-founder of Nido de Vida, is a US American from Pittsburgh, PA. Not only do we know our way around Thanksgiving cooking, we also understand how important a holiday it is. As Bibi’s favorite holiday of the year, we have been celebrating Thanksgiving as a family for years.

Here’s what to expect during your stay!

DAY 1

12-2p Arrival

Get a snack, settle-in

Take a guided tour of Nido de Vida

4p THANKSGIVING DINNER

R&R and evening party/hangout

Spend the night at Nido de Vida

R&R and evening party/hangout

Spend the night at Nido de Vida

DAY 2

8-9a Country Breakfast

Guided hike & river swim or American 

Football game (optional)

12p Lunch

Departure

Photo courtesy of Madel.

The all inclusive cost per person is:

Adults = $125 USD

Children (15 and under) = $75 USD

We’re offering celebrations twice this season:

1. November 25 - November 26, 2021 (Thanksgiving)

2. November 27 - November 28, 2021 (Saturday - Sunday

To make your reservation or to hear more, please contact us at nidodevida@gmail.com or via whatsapp: 001 412 759 4660. 

Visit our website at www.nidovida.com

*Activities are optional. We will try to accommodate your preferences; instead of a hike we can happily set up a fun game of American football. If someone prefers to peel off from the group to relax around the house, that also works.

2020 has been marked by COVID-19, and all of the myriad of challenges we have faced as a result. With restrictions lifting, you may be feeling the slow return to normalcy, and are ready and excited to think about your Thanksgiving plans. You may even be considering a Thanksgiving reminiscent of previous years, but the thought of hosting, cooking, and cleaning add to the stress that none of us need right now. 

Since nothing about this year has felt like normal, why not consider an entirely new Thanksgiving tradition that can help avoid stress?

This year at Nido de Vida, we are hosting Thanksgiving celebrations as private parties on our farm. This is a perfect way for you to celebrate with people you care about while also sharing a new adventure together without the stress of the cooking and cleaning. 

We will host one group at a time (see dates below). You are responsible to organize your own group of at least 7 people and no more than 12 (including children). During your time at Nido de Vida you will be the only guests, so you can worry less about social distancing, and focus more on the opportunity to enjoy what the property has to offer and very importantly, the Thanksgiving celebration. 

Your Thanksgiving meal will be prepared entirely by us at Nido de Vida (you won’t have to worry about a thing), and you can expect a traditional meal of turkey, stuffing, mash potatoes, breads, mac and cheese, green bean casserole, and pies. Bibi, co-founder of Nido de Vida, is a US American from Pittsburgh, PA, and  married into this beautiful Ecuadorian family. This is to say, not only do we know our way around Thanksgiving cooking, we also understand how important a holiday it is for many  (As Bibi’s favorite holiday of the year, we have been celebrating Thanksgiving as a family for many years).

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Here’s what you can expect from this experience:

DAY 1

12-2p Arrival

Get a snack, settle-in

Take a guided tour of Nido de Vida

4p THANKSGIVING DINNER

R&R and evening party/hangout

Spend the night at Nido de Vida

DAY 2

8-9a Country Breakfast

Guided hike & river swim*

12p Lunch

Departure

The all inclusive cost per person is:

Adults = $125 USD

Children (15 and under) = $75 USD

We will host three private parties this Thanksgiving season. Your group size must include at least 7 people and no more than 12 (including children). To confirm your reservation, we require a $300 USD deposit no later than 7 days prior to your stay (full payment required before arrival).

Available overnight stays:

1. November 21 - November 22, 2020 (Saturday to Sunday

2. November 26 - November 27, 2020 (Thanksgiving)

3. November 28 - November 29, 2020 (Saturday to Sunday)

To make your reservation or to hear more, please contact us at nidodevida@gmail.com or via whatsapp: 001 412 759 4660.

As I sit here trying to put a feeling into words, I’m at a loss. How do I describe the people and place that have impacted my life so much? 

If I could afford to give all of my loved ones the gift I most want them to have, it would be a stay at Nido de Vida.  I wouldn’t be simply gifting them a trip, but rather a life-changing experience that would send them home having been introduced to a new country, culture, language and food, and to a beautiful land fit for National Geographic, but most importantly, to a new family who exudes warmth, positivity, love, and kindness. 

There’s an indescribable sense of comfort, peace, and strength at Nido de Vida.  One that I haven’t found anywhere else I’ve traveled and one that I long for when I’m away and that I look forward to returning to every time I leave. 

As I stood out on my porch this morning and listened to the rain fall, memories of Ecuador and Nido de Vida came flowing through. I’ve spent many rainy days in Ecuador through the years and just the sound of rain takes me back to happy memories of sitting on the couch talking to Doña Julia, lying with Lucia in the hammock chatting and laughing, Lenin trying to teach me how to fish in the tilapia pond (it’s not what you think!), dancing in the kitchen with Don Fidel, laughing with Martha about different foods we eat, and loving on sleepy dogs as puddles formed outside. Not to mention our family style meals filled with laughs and questions about how to say certain words in Spanish and English and sharing stories about our loved ones. 

I thought of “late” nights (9:00!) with Bibi discussing our dreams for Nido de Vida and how blessed we are to have been adopted by the Minga family.  And as much as I’d like to think I’m one of the special ones, they adopt and nurture everyone who comes into Nido de Vida. Everyone is sent off with amazing experiences that will turn into happy memories, rejuvenated by the warmth of their new family, and wishing their stay would last at least one more week. This year’s trip was canceled due to COVID, but until I return, I’ll wait for the next rain to bring back some of my favorite memories and until next time, I’ll reflect on the magic of Nido de Vida and my second family.    

Two months ago, we launched our virtual campaign - #untilyoucancometous - as a way to keep in touch with people during stay-at-home orders and social distancing. Check out our introductory videos of the campaign here.

This past Sunday, our virtual campaign took on new form with a live zoom cooking class. The majority of our most cherished memories (might I also say some of the funniest) at Nido de Vida have involved enjoying the process of learning by doing together. Over these past few years, we’ve had the privilege of working with people who’ve contributed in unforgettable ways to the advancement of our mission, and who have become an important part of our Nido de Vida family and history. A virtual cooking class seemed like the perfect way to catch up, to continue learning together, and to continue strengthening the network of amazing people who have walked through Nido de Vida’s doors. 

Why empanadas? Well, eating empanadas is one of the most popular activities at Nido de Vida among almost everyone who visits:) It’s impossible not to love them when they’re beautifully golden and crispy likes these.

Courtesy of Paola.

At 4p ET on Sunday, July 5, 2020, we were joined by seven Nido de Vida family from three different universities - Gannon University, University of Illinois Urbana Champaign, and University of Michigan. They represented different types of Nido de Vida programs from winter break service learning programs to long term project-based internships. It was a really special moment for us at Nido de Vida knowing that we were the common denominator that brought all of these wonderful people together.

During one hour Brandon guided us through the step by step process of making empanadas. Alison acted as videographer, and gave us the visual of what Brandon was doing. We are happy to report that only one smoke alarm was triggered (no fire was actually started), and everyone made beautifully golden empanadas. A few even reported getting their family seal of approval.

Stay tuned for our next Nido de Vida virtual gathering!