This week we worked in both the Frutales and Medicinales
departments.
In the Frutales department we were working with Osmin. This
department was initially misleading as I thought we'd be growing and picking
fruit. Instead, the frutales department grows fruit trees and sells them to the
public, earning around 5000 - 6000 cuban pesos each month. Mango, fig, avocado, peach, guava and coffee trees are just some of the
few that are grown in the department. Osmin is one of the two men that make up
the Frutales department; his coworker Jesús is on vacation. Our main job during
our time in Frutales was to replant countless avocado tree from small bags
containing exhausted hardened soil to larger bag with freshly mixed organic
soil (See photos).
During our shorter time in Medicinales we were weren't too
useful but learned a lot. The Medicinales department consists of two men as
well, Ramón and Roche. Ramón and Roche have been working on the organopónico
for years and have become well known by their many customers. The plants grown in
the Medicinales department include plants for cooking and seasoning such as
spinach, mint, and many varieties of basil, as well as plants knows to help
stomach pains, inflammation and diabetes. The best sellers however, are the
plants intended for spiritual rituals. Santeria is widely practiced in Cuba,
and many practices within the religion require specific herbs and plants.
(Basic
Introduction to Santeria: http://www.llewellyn.com/journal/article/2048)
Ramón
told us that in a day anywhere between 50 and 60 people will visit and leave
with plastic bags full of herbs. You can get a lot for your money here; five Cuban pesos buys a regularly sized plastic bag packed full of
fresh basil. One thing's for sure, of all the departments we've worked in, Medicinales smells the
best by far.
One thing that Frutales and Medicinales share in common is
their low labor demands, each requiring only two workers. With so few positions
available, one can imagine it's difficult to get a job on the organopónico. Each
week Medardo Naranjo, the "subdirector cientifico-técnico" or deputy
scientific-technical director, sits down with Katherine and I and answers any
questions we have about what we've seen and experienced on the organopónico. This week
he explained to us that in order to be hired, a person must first be selected
from the list of applicants in Human resources and work for three months before
going before the general assembly after which they are either hired or not.
While this process seems a little daunting, once hired an employee is part of the
cooperative, and is allotted shares based on how long they have worked on the
organopónico. The longer you work, the more shares you have, and the more money
you earn.
On a completely unrelated note, this week on the bus they
played the most entertaining assortment of music. Normally, if music is playing
on the bus it's Spanish music but this Wednesday we were serenaded by Michael
Jackson's "Billie Jean", followed by The Eagles' "Hotel California" and last
but not least Elton John's "Can you feel the love tonight?". It was a great
start to the day.
Hasta luego!