Article written by Gonzalo Fernández , mobile application developer and digital project manager
How many moments in your life have marked a turning point, transforming you into a different person? What were they, how did you identify them, and what led you to these situations? Are you able to identify them and take a step back to see them more clearly and recognize them?
A few months ago, I was debating whether to return to Fuerteventura (thanks to the original Pueblos Remotos – Old Edition ) or attend the new edition in La Palma (held in Fuencaliente). Thanks to Elsa and Carlos for letting me repeat the Pueblos Remotos experience, this time in the Fuencaliente edition.
Participating in this edition has been momentous and very emotional. For me, and I think for some other participants, it has marked a turning point in my life; I can feel it, I can sense it.
How a group of people align themselves and become part of the environment.
We were in Fuencaliente , a remote municipality in the southwest of La Palma . A new and unfamiliar environment for the vast majority of the participants (teleworkers) of Pueblos Remotos (Remote Villages); not so for the local stakeholders, who knew the area well. Even so, as I wrote these lines, I kept wondering if the participants were only the teleworkers, but that wasn't the case. The participants of Pueblos Remotos included teleworkers (Marta, Kang, Juan, Rayco, Ana, María Jesús, Magda, Vera, Dany, Yessica, and myself, Gonzalo), local stakeholders (Gustavo from Herrumbre Vivo, Jordan from Dulcería Mi Gusto, Vicky from Victoria Pecis Torres – Vino y Viñas, Juan José from Oliva La Palma , and Diego from Vino y Tierra), and the creators of the project (Elsa and Carlos).
Anyone who has worked with such a large group of people knows how difficult it is to align them around the same goals. Pueblos Remotos, combined with the magic of La Palma (if you've been there, you know why it's called La Palma; for me, it will never be just La Palma ), has managed to strike a balance between activities (to learn about the environment and the businesses of local stakeholders), the challenges faced by local entrepreneurs ( one of the objectives of Pueblos Remotos is to create synergies between remote workers and local stakeholders so that, during the 21 days of the experience, collaboration takes place between remote workers and local stakeholders to help foster connected rural life and enable the businesses of these local entrepreneurs to improve, stabilize, or take off ), and the environment .
Every single person who has shared this experience knows how emotionally transformative it has been. Especially the last few days, when, during the feedback session, the group connected with the energy of Roque Teneguía, and all the emotions that had accumulated throughout the experience blossomed and flowed freely . This has all taken place over 21 days, during which new habits and new bonds are formed . That's why it hurts so much to write these notes that signify "see you later" (if you ever participate, you'll know what I mean).
Showing off the logo of the new Pueblos Remotos t-shirts during the feedback session, with Roque Teneguía in the background, Fuencaliente, La Palma
How people with businesses in Fuencaliente open the door of their home, their town, their soul, and their life to you.
How we accompanied Gustavo , while we collected the trash from the ditch near his house and ended up eating ribs with potatoes, pineapple and green mojo sauce, cooked by his partner, as if it were a banquet.
How Vicky led us to her house by the light of the full moon, to water our happiness with wines (which we paired with cheese and figs) while we shared experiences as if we were at a family celebration.
How Juan José (like a patriarch, or grandfather of the family) prepared a borrallera, made with potatoes and sweet potato, to accompany the rabbit cooked by his wife.
How Jordan guided us to prepare traditional sweets, using lemons from our lemon tree, to make one of the best sponge cakes we have tasted during our stay in La Palma .
And how Diego guided us by the palm of his hand, to take us to places that probably only a group of people (which I would dare to say can be counted on the fingers of one hand) already know, family traditions such as eating some old women (accompanied by potatoes and cabbage boiled with seawater) all washed down with local wine in the hut where his father and his friends enjoy his company and tradition every Wednesday in front of the sea.
Photo taken during the farewell event for Pueblos Remotos Fuencaliente
Thank you
If Pueblos Remotos isn't about aligning body, mind, and soul, then what is it?
