It's hard to believe, but as October ended and November began, everyone at Manna Project Ecuador has been as busy as ever, and we just celebrated midterms and Halloween!
Our English classes have been a huge success this semester and we're already expecting a full roster for each of our classes come January, based on interest shown throughout these first few months!
After adult midterms, everyone at the Centro joined in for some homemade Colada Morada and Guaguas de Pan! One of our community members, Clemencia (also an active Diabetes Club participant), led us in the making of the typical hot berry drink. The Guaguas de Pan were made by our friends at our neighborhood bakery.
Colada Morada and Guaguas de Pan are typically eaten here in Ecuador during the holidays at the end of October and beginning of November each year, as part of the Día de los Difuntos (Day of the Dead) celebrations.
October 31st in Ecuador isn't typically celebrated with candy and costumes; rather, it is officially Día del Escudo, or National Seal Day, celebrating the seal on the Ecuadorian flag that differentiates it from Colombia and Venezuela. But at the Manna Project Centro, we had to celebrate Halloween, too!
Over 75 people came for the kids Halloween party on the 30th! We had a haunted house, an array of spooky snacks, creepy crafts, and the cutest little kids in the land! The haunted house was definitely the most popular attraction, as the kids lined up multiple times to enter the transformed Teen Center.
It was three hours of wild fun. Here's to the rest of the semester!