The Hardest Part

I’ve been away for a while. I mean Peru . I have lots of things to share about our first international and longest backpacking trip, but first I want to continue with Ned’s interview. Sorry for the delay. He sent me the answers on time when I was out of this world trying to get the things done before the trip.

In case you don’t know Ned Cresswell yet, he’s the owner of the San Antonio Farm in the Intag region, here in Ecuador. Here are the previous questions and answers:

#1 From London to an isolated village in Ecuador

#2 Why sustainable tourism in San Antonio

My third question is:

For you, what`s the hardest part of being in charge of a farm? Are there things you’ve learnt the hard way?

Ned’s answer:

Well, perhaps the hardest part of being in charge of a farm is the endless work. In fact, I would say that it is closer to the truth that the farm is in charge of me! I generally start around 5am and finish about 7 in the evening – quite a long day.

Most things I have had to learn the hard way, as I had little experience either of farming or of the realities of life in Ecuador. For example, when I first started to milk the cow, I could just about get enough milk for a cup of coffee!

I try not to take life too seriously, but I have learnt that you do need to be a bit careful in Ecuador if someone asks you for a favour. There are certain situations where Ecuadorian law converts the favour into a legal right. For example, if someone asks permission to use the water on your land for their household, the moment you say “yes!”, you have given legal, irreversible right to that household to take water by hosepipe from your farm for ever after. A bit scary, because the favour is often requested (and therefore granted) as if it were trivial.

So yes, I have had to learn the hard way to be more cautious and guarded in my dealings with other people. A simple friendship, which is relatively common, for example, between two Ecuadorians or two Englishmen, is actually very rare, in my opinion, between an Ecuadorian and a “gringo”. Nearly always, the relationship is complicated by the perception that the “gringo” has money to spare, and can easily be parted from that money.

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Related posts:

1. The Best And Worst Memories In San Antonio
2. The Only Foreigner In An Isolated Ecuadorian Village
3. Why Tourism In San Antonio
4. From London To A Remote Village In Ecuador