Last week I accompanied the children as they went on an excursion to see how food is produced. As Murcia is the “vegetable garden of Europe” it seems prudent to educate young children on this very important role their region plays in food production. We went to the farmlands located between the cities of Murcia and Cartagena. Here, you can see vast fields of artichokes, aubergines, lettuce, and an abundance of trees, bending under the weight of luscious oranges, lemons, and grapefruits. For someone who is accustomed to seeing oranges and lemons only in fruit carts, this was really impressive. Actually, every time I pass an orange tree I gape at the oranges in total fascination. It’s silly but I just can’t help myself. :o)
So, we went to see how vegetables are produced. And it was pretty interesting. Murcia has a huge problem with drought, and as there is not a lot of rainfall (except this year), they have to make sure every single drop of water goes to where it’s needed the most. Basically, what they do is they hydrate plants by giving them a few drops of water at certain intervals. In that way, the plants stay hydrated without using up too much water. In order for this to work, they invented all sorts of irrigating technique, the names and differences of which I forgot the moment we went to see something else. Later on, our “guide” started talking about how plants also need food, and that they have special nourishing “cocktails” for plants. At this point, my stomach began to turn a bit. I mean, I know that these “cocktails” are fed to plants, but standing right next to these cocktails, and seeing how they are fed to the plants really isn’t as appetizing as you might think. :D
In a few hours we had seen everything they were willing to show us (AKA they spared us the “toxic tour”), so we went home. This excursion took 5 hours, during which I had talked Spanish and Spanish only. I’m telling you this, because that day I slept for 17 hours. That’s right, SEVENTEEN hours!!! It seems that all that talking drained me of all my energy. I guess that happens if you are forced to talk in a language you are just beginning to learn. :D
To continue in the spirit of fruits and vegetables, let me tell you one more thing... Rosa, the English teacher I work with most of the time, kindly invited me to go with her to the La Reina de los Huertos (Queen of vegetable/fruit gardens) competition. She got tickets for the event form one of our students who was in the running of Reina de los Huretos – Infantil.
This competition could be compared to Slovenian Vinska Kraljica (Queen of Wine) competition. There was a bunch of girls wearing traditional Murcian clothes and a group of musicians performing typical Murcian music and dance. But to tell the truth, I really don’t understand the point of this competition. I thought that the future queens would have to show some sort of skill or knowledge about vegetables, orchards or production of fruit. Needless to say I was wrong. It was just your typical beauty pageant, except for the fact that they were wearing traditional clothing. Don’t get me wrong, it wasn’t boring. But it wasn’t boring because I’m a foreigner and it was the first time I saw something like this. :D
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