Jag Sameach!

Keeping Passover in the US is enough of a challenge.

But trying to keep Passover in a country where you can only buy matzah from the JCC is another story.

It has forced me to make a few adjustments to my standard Passover diet.

First, I have been forced to eliminate matzah pizza.

Second, there is no Manischewitz in the entire country. I don’t know if it is part of the import restrictions imposed by Correa or if another kosher wine company has a monopoly on the Ecuadorian market.

Third, I am adopting a Sephardic, kitniyot-based diet.

Fourth, I will eat anything my host family gives me, except bread, because they think I am atheist.

And with those parameters I will embark on my first Pesach away from the friendly confines of family.

Because the second seder coincided with Holy Thursday in Ecuador, I got permission from the Peace Corps to go to the JCC in Quito for it.

If you recall my summer travels, this is my second visit to this JCC.

It just felt good to be with a Jewish community.

The seder was held in the ‘gran salon’ at the JCC. There were seats for 100 people, and it was just about packed.

The rabbi conducted the seder in Spanish and I was able to follow along. It was my first seder not held in someone’s dining or living room, so it was a bit of an adjustment to a bigger crowd. But I got to know the people sitting around me. Everybody who came to the seder has an interesting story, whether they are from Ecuador, volunteering here, working here, or studying here. It was a lot of fun to meet people and learn how they ended up at the Quito JCC for Pesach.

Through Jewish Geography, I was able to find three friends in common.

Estoy fleishig

For the first time since I arrive in Ecuador, I was able to say this. I have been able to maintain my vegetarian diet without much effort in Ecuador. This was the first time I came across kosher meat — no kosher butcher in Cayambe though I heard Harvard Row is considering of moving in near the Parque Central.

There was matzah ball soup served before dinner and chicken breasts during the main course. I was happy.

Homemade Maror

Before the seder, I went to the supermarket in search of horseradish and couldn’t find any. From my conversation with the rabbi, I learned that they don’t sell horseradish in this county and that you have to make your own.

I had no idea this was possible. But a friend I made at the seder sent me a simple recipe for horseradish — horseradish root and vinegar.

My first business idea for when I get out of Peace Corps...