Patience in the Peace Corps….
Takes on a whole new level of meaning…
WAITING. I don’t think I have ever spent as much time WAITING in my life as I have here…
WAITING for the school year to start…which it eventually did 2 weeks late…
WAITING for people to show up to meetings…typically 30-45 minutes late…sometimes an hour or two…
WAITING for class to begin—which meetings often cut into or completely cancel without any notice…
WAITING for someone to schedule your big meeting so you can work on a big project/great opportunity for the community….currently still WAITING…been waiting 3 weeks….
WAITING for one person to sign a form for a friend’s project…I have been every day this week—sometimes twice a day--- to pick up a piece of paper for another volunteer…every day I am told it is not there but to come back tomorrow at a different time..WAITING now for 4 days…
WAITING WAITING WAITING….let’s just say, I read a lot. And am slowly learning to not get so frustrated about these things, but it’s hard. I would like to plan other activities, DO things with my time, but how can you make new plans when you already have plans even though you know the plans you already have probably aren’t really going to happen? Welcome to the life of a PCV!
MY 5 DOLLAR PILLOW
So, we recently had our MID SERVICE—that’s right! MID SERVICE Medical appointment. It went smoothly, no big issues, no cavities etc. I told the nurse that my neck has been bothering me for a couple months on one side. She felt it for a few seconds and declared it safe—suggested I buy a real pillow from the fancy grocery store near the office. For those of you who don’t live here, pillows are pretty dang hard to come by—especially out in our little town. If they exist, they are usually pillow cases stuffed with balls of sorts etc. So, I followed her advice. I bought my close to five dollar pillow in Managua—and I AM SO ABSOLUTELY IN LOVE WITH MY PILLOW. I can’t believe I haven’t done this sooner…We’ll see if it helps the neck joint or not, but man oh man, I have never loved a pillow so much!
The Maternity Ward
As many of you know, our host sister here just had her little baby girl, Nicole or Nicolita. Well, before she arrived, I spent a Saturday night in the maternity ward at the hospital here in our little town. It was a small room with about 6 or 7 cots in it. A few little fans…which when the power goes out here, of course, they don’t work. There were about 7 women in there, all looking ready to pop. And it was so hot! But, I don’t know how to explain it, there was just this overwhelming feeling of happiness in that room despite what many of us at home would consider “tough conditions”. Despite the fact that the women were discussing whether or not the doctor would actually arrive to deliver because there was a holiday that week----so maybe they have to wait a few more days---no one knew…. But as we sat around and chatted and shared food and coffee, I got that awesome feeling again…the feeling that this is something special…that my being welcomed into such a personal part of these women’s lives so openly and warmly is pretty incredible. And the smile spreads wide across my face, and I think, yes, this is what life is all about.
WORK
Haven’t had much of it lately…No class for a variety of reasons…sort of makes me crazy…and lazy…and out of practice with having good practices. Now I am a little nervous about our next “site visit” or when one of our bosses comes allllll the way out here to watch our classes and see how we’re doing.
On the plus, Matt got a gig working a camp at the US Embassy in December. He will be teaching Nicaraguans who are studying to be English teachers. Pretty cool.
RAIN
Still not as rainy as I expected rainy season to be…but we hear October is the worst. Recently it has started raining HARDER. So hard that the gutters on our tin roof can’t handle the flow and our house pretty much floods. Well, just the hallway so it’s all good. We almost have enough buckets to catch it—and then we just sweep the few inches left over on out to the street.
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Things You Don´t Write Home to Mom about...
Hmmm let’s start this one with a small disclaimer. Moms—don’t worry, we are in good health and good spirits and all is well!
Of course, illness is something that virtually every Peace Corps Volunteer eventually experiences..or maybe experiences constantly. The most common illness, at least it seems to me so far, is that of the tummy bug type. This means cramps and diarrhea--occasionally accompanied by vomiting. This is usually caused by a bacterial infection or a parasite, OR maybe the glorious combination of both. What happens? You poop in a cup or plastic jar or bag or whatever appropriate item you have handy…carry it to a lab or nearest hospital and have it tested. You call the Peace Corps medical office and read them your results once you have them (usually within an hour or two). They tell you what medicine to buy…usually a strong dose of antibiotics….you’re then laid up for a few days…exhausted and dehydrated—typically in a hot hot place with no AC, and sometimes no fan if there happens to be no power that day…it’s awesome!
Other illnesses include but aren’t limited to…all kinds of strange itchy rashes and bug bites…the glorious Dengue Fever which 3 out of 21 of us came down with during training…(they call it the Bone Breaking disease or something like that because your bones supposedly literally feel like they are breaking….), staff infections…etc.
All that being said, oddly enough, overall-- I think I have been healthier in Nicaragua than in the US of A…weird huh? And I think I am going to knock on some wood now….I can’t say the same for many other volunteers I happen to know….who encounter stomach infections what seems like once a month or more….
THE OTHER THING—WOW, the buses. Especially as of late. With the rainy season—the roads have become monstrous. At least, all the dirt roads…and to get out of and into our town, the road is dirt…for an hour and a half..or longer…Twice now the bus we’ve been on has not made it up one of the last hills to our town the first try..or the 7th…The tires start spinning and then comes the smell and the smoke…usually a few guys hop off and find some branches around and place them in the deep, muddy ruts that keep us from moving forward—then the bus backs up and we gun it and make it up over the hill. Recently though, after the 6th or so attempt, allll the men were ordered off the bus to help patch up the deeeeeep muddy ruts and then push from the back of the bus….Matt and our site mate included. I had the good fortune to be on the bus and be recognized by some students of mine—so we watched the guys do their thing as we flew over the ruts and bounced up on down on our school bus…I think after the 2nd or 3rd time we made it….then my student gave us some tamales and corn on the cob….oddly, it was kind of fun….
Last week, on my way to my high school in a nearby community, the bus hit one of these so called muddy ruts and leaned pretty dang hard to the left….so that the tires on the right were almost off the ground…Yup, I thought we were going to fall on our side…of course, there were about 30 people standing in the aisle and myself and my counterpart were part of this bunch….someone screamed “SALIMOS!” or “let’s get out of here”! Basically, and people started shoving and running to get off the bus….good times! We made it off the bus, which the driver had shut off, but not without almost toppling a few 3 year olds on the way out….we passengers walked probably about half a mile down the road and waited for the bus to catch up…they had to take a lot of the stuff off the top of the bus and re-load further on down the road…we were simply over-loaded with people on the inside and stuff on the top….Unfortunately, materials my counterpart and I had spent some time making for class the day before, got dropped and trampled on during the mad rush to exit the bus….and we arrived late to school so didn’t have the chance to re-make said materials…..ummmm I was pretty happy just to be in class that day though…..materials or no….
Sometimes, the buses are now running with tire chains on them---I think it should be a must this time of year….but who knows?
Anyways, that’s just some little stuff that happens from time to time. Are you ready to sign up!?
On the super plus, the bats have left our house. One of the girls that works in the store that connects with our house says that she killed one with a broom and then left it around for a day for the other bats to see….more power to her…I haven’t seen a bat in about 4 or 5 days…weird…\----------------------------------------
Wednesday, August 17, 2011
For soon to be Volunteers or anyone interested...
Take note this might bore you if you aren´t that interested in the questions posed below....it´s kind of long...But possibly more interesting are the random tid bits posted in the blog just before this one (-:
Well, the first week of August did fly….Happy Birthday Mom! And grandmother, Sister, aunt, and multiple friends—popular Birthday month (-:
This little tidbit is for all those considering the Peace Corps that scour the internet blog stalking these entries, especially when they find out their assignment…and are looking for information on subjects such as Teaching in Nicaragua, Being a TEFL Volunteer in Nicaragua, typical day of a volunteer in Nicaragua, being a married couple in the Peace Corps, etc. Ummm because maybe I did this? And am inspired to write this because the new group of volunteers is arriving in less than 2 weeks….which means in less than 2 weeks, we will have been in Nicaragua for a year! (future perfect continuous! Check that out!)
So in that order,
Teaching in Nicaragua….I’m not gonna lie, in my opinion, it’s hard! It depends on many factors though, such as your counterpart, your particular school’s atmosphere, location of the school and class size etc. Considering the students don’t have books, supplies can be limited, and sometimes there aren’t enough chairs for students, being creative and dedicated really pays off. You also shouldn’t be surprised to find 16 or 17 year olds in seventh grade---I have a 26 year old in 10th grade….For me, personally, discipline is a pretty tough area. Especially because Spanish isn’t my first language and when several kids are screaming stuff at the same time, I often cannot understand them---I am not sure if they are just trying to participate in the class, or if they are yelling obscenities…..ahhh I could get into the school system at large, but you future volunteers will find out about that soon enough (-: Let’s just say that classes are cancelled and cancelled often for a variety of reasons….and that school started 2 weeks late this year….Students are not accustomed to many communicative activities either…their main form of learning has been copying and memorizing over and over and over…..so they are excited to do new things---but sometimes they don’t view it seriously and get out of control easily because we aren’t copying….
TEFL volunteer in Nicaragua—I guess the above covers many of the same themes. Again, so much just depends on where you end up and who you end up working with…and course, it depends on you! Many volunteers like being part of TEFL because we have an automatic sense of identity in our communities—ie. professors, and a set schedule in the schools. On the other hand, some folks don’t like having such a set, routine schedule…
Typical Day of a TEFL volunteer-- who knows exactly?? Let’s just say that during training, you will be BUSY every second of every day…exhausted, and soaking up soooo much you may feel like your head will explode….then everything changes when you swear in. In my case, now, I don’t really have any typical day….I only teach 16 classroom hours a week…have one community class…play basketball with little kids, and read story time to first graders at my elementary school. The biggest part of my week is co-planning with 2 different counterparts. Co-planning takes HOURS and I am pretty sure any TEFL volunteer will tell you it is the most exhausting part of our jobs, and maybe the most important….So my typical week: Monday, teach from 7-9:30am at my main high school, hop on a bus to my other high school out in a community at 10:15, teach 1230-500, get back to my house at 5:30-6. Yes, Mondays are looonnnnggg. Tuesday: 9:30-10:30 meet with counterpart1, practice English in her free hour or she practices using the computer. Teach 12:30-2. Maybe meet with counterpart2 to plan extra. Wednesday: Teach 10:30-1:15, Offer extra tutoring to English students from 1:15-2:15, Maybe plan with Matt for our adult community class. Thursday: 8-8:45 meet with counterpart1, teach 840-10:30. Friday: 9:20-10:30 story time at elementary school with first graders to encourage reading for fun. Co-plan with counterpart1 12-4pm. Saturday: 10-12 basketball with kids in nearby barrio, or neighborhood. Generally a good day for the market and/or laundry Sunday: Coplan with counterpart2,1-4 or 5-9pm. Or help with community class that just switched to Sunday 6-8 pm.
Sometimes it doesn’t sound/look like much, but throw in functioning every day in a foreign language, buying all your food from the market, finding time to visit Nicaraguan friends/host family, washing all your clothes by hand etc….and your week can fill up pretty fast!
Being a married couple serving in the Peace Corps, is, for the most part, WONDERFUL, and I highly recommend it. Though not as strong as in other countries, gender stereotypes DEFINITELY exist here and do get on my nerves from time to time….I think maybe in the bigger cities it is different, but in our medium sized agricultural town up in the mountains in the middle of nowhere, it is somewhat shocking that my husband cooks and cleans. I think we are so lucky to be going through all this together, even though it can be challenging at times…especially when one of you is going through a rough time and the other is pretty happy.
I could go on and on and on….but this probably isn’t that interesting for those of you that read this that aren’t coming to Nicaragua any time soon….for anyone blog stalking that wants more information, feel free to email me at jcwesterman@yahoo.com
PEACE.
Well, the first week of August did fly….Happy Birthday Mom! And grandmother, Sister, aunt, and multiple friends—popular Birthday month (-:
This little tidbit is for all those considering the Peace Corps that scour the internet blog stalking these entries, especially when they find out their assignment…and are looking for information on subjects such as Teaching in Nicaragua, Being a TEFL Volunteer in Nicaragua, typical day of a volunteer in Nicaragua, being a married couple in the Peace Corps, etc. Ummm because maybe I did this? And am inspired to write this because the new group of volunteers is arriving in less than 2 weeks….which means in less than 2 weeks, we will have been in Nicaragua for a year! (future perfect continuous! Check that out!)
So in that order,
Teaching in Nicaragua….I’m not gonna lie, in my opinion, it’s hard! It depends on many factors though, such as your counterpart, your particular school’s atmosphere, location of the school and class size etc. Considering the students don’t have books, supplies can be limited, and sometimes there aren’t enough chairs for students, being creative and dedicated really pays off. You also shouldn’t be surprised to find 16 or 17 year olds in seventh grade---I have a 26 year old in 10th grade….For me, personally, discipline is a pretty tough area. Especially because Spanish isn’t my first language and when several kids are screaming stuff at the same time, I often cannot understand them---I am not sure if they are just trying to participate in the class, or if they are yelling obscenities…..ahhh I could get into the school system at large, but you future volunteers will find out about that soon enough (-: Let’s just say that classes are cancelled and cancelled often for a variety of reasons….and that school started 2 weeks late this year….Students are not accustomed to many communicative activities either…their main form of learning has been copying and memorizing over and over and over…..so they are excited to do new things---but sometimes they don’t view it seriously and get out of control easily because we aren’t copying….
TEFL volunteer in Nicaragua—I guess the above covers many of the same themes. Again, so much just depends on where you end up and who you end up working with…and course, it depends on you! Many volunteers like being part of TEFL because we have an automatic sense of identity in our communities—ie. professors, and a set schedule in the schools. On the other hand, some folks don’t like having such a set, routine schedule…
Typical Day of a TEFL volunteer-- who knows exactly?? Let’s just say that during training, you will be BUSY every second of every day…exhausted, and soaking up soooo much you may feel like your head will explode….then everything changes when you swear in. In my case, now, I don’t really have any typical day….I only teach 16 classroom hours a week…have one community class…play basketball with little kids, and read story time to first graders at my elementary school. The biggest part of my week is co-planning with 2 different counterparts. Co-planning takes HOURS and I am pretty sure any TEFL volunteer will tell you it is the most exhausting part of our jobs, and maybe the most important….So my typical week: Monday, teach from 7-9:30am at my main high school, hop on a bus to my other high school out in a community at 10:15, teach 1230-500, get back to my house at 5:30-6. Yes, Mondays are looonnnnggg. Tuesday: 9:30-10:30 meet with counterpart1, practice English in her free hour or she practices using the computer. Teach 12:30-2. Maybe meet with counterpart2 to plan extra. Wednesday: Teach 10:30-1:15, Offer extra tutoring to English students from 1:15-2:15, Maybe plan with Matt for our adult community class. Thursday: 8-8:45 meet with counterpart1, teach 840-10:30. Friday: 9:20-10:30 story time at elementary school with first graders to encourage reading for fun. Co-plan with counterpart1 12-4pm. Saturday: 10-12 basketball with kids in nearby barrio, or neighborhood. Generally a good day for the market and/or laundry Sunday: Coplan with counterpart2,1-4 or 5-9pm. Or help with community class that just switched to Sunday 6-8 pm.
Sometimes it doesn’t sound/look like much, but throw in functioning every day in a foreign language, buying all your food from the market, finding time to visit Nicaraguan friends/host family, washing all your clothes by hand etc….and your week can fill up pretty fast!
Being a married couple serving in the Peace Corps, is, for the most part, WONDERFUL, and I highly recommend it. Though not as strong as in other countries, gender stereotypes DEFINITELY exist here and do get on my nerves from time to time….I think maybe in the bigger cities it is different, but in our medium sized agricultural town up in the mountains in the middle of nowhere, it is somewhat shocking that my husband cooks and cleans. I think we are so lucky to be going through all this together, even though it can be challenging at times…especially when one of you is going through a rough time and the other is pretty happy.
I could go on and on and on….but this probably isn’t that interesting for those of you that read this that aren’t coming to Nicaragua any time soon….for anyone blog stalking that wants more information, feel free to email me at jcwesterman@yahoo.com
PEACE.
August Tid Bits
Yesterday I felt somewhat Nica-nized. At least, my wardrobe if nothing else….
I was sitting in the yard at my host family’s house, just “platicando” or chatting, and my host mom asked me if my shoes were from the USA. (A common question for me). I said, “Actually no, I bought them here in Nicaragua but in another town.” She said “Oh, well they are pretty. Your blouse is really pretty too.” I smiled and said thank you, then looked down at my blouse---and realized it was bought in Nicaragua too….then my eyes traveled down to my plain black skirt and I realized this too came from a second hand shop in Nicaragua….then I realized the purse I had in my lap was a gift from my host mom and host sister….and to top it off, as I played with one of the yellow butterfly earrings I had on that day, I realized these too were a gift from one of my Nicaraguan counterparts…..I have been Nica-nized!
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DIFFERENCES…
Some of ‘em smack you across the face….others are more subtle….
Anyhow, I was just thinking about my last conversation with my counterpart…she asked if my mom and dad and little brother were the only ones that lived in their house---“yes” I said. Then she asked if my sister and her husband were the only ones that lived in their house---“yes” again….Then she asked if my other brother and his girlfriend lived alone in their house too---“Yes” again….I watched her as she thought this over, her eyebrows raising a little with every “yes”. It seemed shocking, I think, to her that so few people could occupy one house---if she only knew how big these houses were compared to any that I have seen here her eyebrows would probably fly right off her face….It made me realize that folks here probably think it is pretty luxurious that Matt and I share a place with 2 rooms AND a tiny kitchen AND a garage-type area….Just the concept of space has been occupying my mind all morning…I have yet to meet a Nica here that sleeps alone in their own bed----no matter their age….I think the norm is more 3-4 people in a bed….
At the end of the conversation with her, which included lots of discussion about boyfriends and girlfriends, how much college costs and how you can pay etc, all I could say was, “Yeah, it’s different.” I don’t know if I could ever accurately explain just HOW different….
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UP and Down and Up and Down…Randoms….
That is vida, or life, in the peace corps, for sure! Still sweating bullets here in The Q, as I now refer to my town….IT IS SO HOT!!! STILL!!! Even though some days it does POUR rain…last week they had to stop my bus that goes to my school out on the mountain to put tire chains on it to combat the dirt road that had turned to mud and small ponds….I also found out one of my favorite students out there (though I don’t have favorites (: ) is 26 years old and in the 10th grade….Now I know why she is so mature! I admire her so much for going back to school after a 9 year gap---for as much as I whine and moan at times about this or that (which is probably too much), it’s moments like those when I have to stop, and remember where I am….and just sort of, revel in gratitude for so many things….I also found out that my school out there didn’t offer high school until 4 years ago….Many of my students already walk an hour or so just to get to the road where our school is…..so this means before they offered high school there, my kids would have had to walk an hour on trails on mountainous terrain to get to the road and then get on a bus for another hour or so just to get to class…..wow. Perhaps I can always have more patience and understanding…
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I wonder if I will find it odd that not almost EVERY business is operated out of someone’s living room….or that no one just walks by the house yelling that they are selling anything from ice cream, beans, corn, remote controls, guitars, shoes etc….I have to admit, it is pretty convenient.
Our new boss says one of the things that struck him the most when he returned from his previous peace corps service was that in the US, you put toilet paper in the toilet….something I haven’t done in almost a year!
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Happy Moment: at all teacher conference, taught English teachers how to make a type of material I have already been using with my counterparts, the glorious “mini-board”…anndddd Matt reported the next day that he and his counterpart used the material in their class and the kids loved it! Something accomplished….
I was sitting in the yard at my host family’s house, just “platicando” or chatting, and my host mom asked me if my shoes were from the USA. (A common question for me). I said, “Actually no, I bought them here in Nicaragua but in another town.” She said “Oh, well they are pretty. Your blouse is really pretty too.” I smiled and said thank you, then looked down at my blouse---and realized it was bought in Nicaragua too….then my eyes traveled down to my plain black skirt and I realized this too came from a second hand shop in Nicaragua….then I realized the purse I had in my lap was a gift from my host mom and host sister….and to top it off, as I played with one of the yellow butterfly earrings I had on that day, I realized these too were a gift from one of my Nicaraguan counterparts…..I have been Nica-nized!
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DIFFERENCES…
Some of ‘em smack you across the face….others are more subtle….
Anyhow, I was just thinking about my last conversation with my counterpart…she asked if my mom and dad and little brother were the only ones that lived in their house---“yes” I said. Then she asked if my sister and her husband were the only ones that lived in their house---“yes” again….Then she asked if my other brother and his girlfriend lived alone in their house too---“Yes” again….I watched her as she thought this over, her eyebrows raising a little with every “yes”. It seemed shocking, I think, to her that so few people could occupy one house---if she only knew how big these houses were compared to any that I have seen here her eyebrows would probably fly right off her face….It made me realize that folks here probably think it is pretty luxurious that Matt and I share a place with 2 rooms AND a tiny kitchen AND a garage-type area….Just the concept of space has been occupying my mind all morning…I have yet to meet a Nica here that sleeps alone in their own bed----no matter their age….I think the norm is more 3-4 people in a bed….
At the end of the conversation with her, which included lots of discussion about boyfriends and girlfriends, how much college costs and how you can pay etc, all I could say was, “Yeah, it’s different.” I don’t know if I could ever accurately explain just HOW different….
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UP and Down and Up and Down…Randoms….
That is vida, or life, in the peace corps, for sure! Still sweating bullets here in The Q, as I now refer to my town….IT IS SO HOT!!! STILL!!! Even though some days it does POUR rain…last week they had to stop my bus that goes to my school out on the mountain to put tire chains on it to combat the dirt road that had turned to mud and small ponds….I also found out one of my favorite students out there (though I don’t have favorites (: ) is 26 years old and in the 10th grade….Now I know why she is so mature! I admire her so much for going back to school after a 9 year gap---for as much as I whine and moan at times about this or that (which is probably too much), it’s moments like those when I have to stop, and remember where I am….and just sort of, revel in gratitude for so many things….I also found out that my school out there didn’t offer high school until 4 years ago….Many of my students already walk an hour or so just to get to the road where our school is…..so this means before they offered high school there, my kids would have had to walk an hour on trails on mountainous terrain to get to the road and then get on a bus for another hour or so just to get to class…..wow. Perhaps I can always have more patience and understanding…
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I wonder if I will find it odd that not almost EVERY business is operated out of someone’s living room….or that no one just walks by the house yelling that they are selling anything from ice cream, beans, corn, remote controls, guitars, shoes etc….I have to admit, it is pretty convenient.
Our new boss says one of the things that struck him the most when he returned from his previous peace corps service was that in the US, you put toilet paper in the toilet….something I haven’t done in almost a year!
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Happy Moment: at all teacher conference, taught English teachers how to make a type of material I have already been using with my counterparts, the glorious “mini-board”…anndddd Matt reported the next day that he and his counterpart used the material in their class and the kids loved it! Something accomplished….
Saturday, July 23, 2011
JULY breaks, bats and cockroaches
July July….What happened in and to July??
Well, let’s see…there was my counterpart’s birthday—happy birthday Melbita! And she came to our house and cooked US lunch…seems to be pretty norm that if it is YOUR party or event YOU do everything for everyone else---a little different than at home eh? I gave her a watch and a Snickers Bar. It was a really nice day. Then we had a week of school as normal, then it was off to a training conference in Esteli which included some of our counterparts. It was pretty intense but great to see everyone and hopefully my counterpart and I will start to apply some of the things we learned back in our site. We also got to meet our new boss and he seems wonderful, but it was sad to say goodbye to our old boss. Really it was great to see all the other volunteers---many many of whom we haven’t seen since January….but we didn’t sign up to hang out with each other all the time (-:
We then had the pleasure of a quick visit with some friends from the USA that happened to be in Granada, Nicaragua with their film project “Actuality Media” for about a month. They take students or anyone interested really, to different parts of the world and they learn how to shoot and edit and create a documentary of sorts---they tell the story of people working towards change in their site location. I am sure their website explains it better! You should check it out! It was pretty strange to hang out with a group of gringos for a bit and just sort of, well, hang out…it was actually a sort of culture shock experience in and of itself….it was almost like going home for a quick visit….i cant imagine what actually going home will be like….
Upon returning to the Q, as I now like to refer to Quilali, we found a few surprises in our house. Our pila, or our source of water for laundry, bathing, dishes, and flushing the toilet, was full of 30 plus dead, floating cockroaches…well a few were still sort of alive…and the one or two bats we had living with us have multiplied to about 20…So….matt emptied our tank and scrubbed it clean with just a touch of bleach…It’s quite a process and I can’t tell you how much I love him for doing it---Look for a pic of process on facebook soon. And the bats, well the bats, are still hanging around, pun intended…I am slightly embarrassed to say we tried garlic and then a Nica friend suggested we hang a red cloth up in our entry way….again look for pics of hanging bats and our attempt to combat the on facebook. Also fun times, was the search for bread…and how there was none….I forgot that often times in the Q, simply “no hay” or there is none of what you so desperately had your heart set on, you know, like bread. I suppose I had gotten used to having options for bread on our mini out of the Q adventure in July….but I remember now….and the good news, the bread man made it to the Q a couple days later (-:
We haven’t had class since our return to the Q, but start up again on Monday. We did have an all teacher meeting—Matt and I prepared a small workshop to give, but it never happened…I still couldn’t tell you the point of the 5 hour meeting…but it was good to reconnect with the other teachers and practice Spanish. I spent many hours lesson planning—one hour which was spent explaining how stoplights at intersections work (ie. when pedestrians can cross the street etc). Needless to say, there are no stoplights or intersections in the Q, in fact, I don’t think there are even any traffic signs of any sort----makes it awesome to teach a class on traffic and warning signs(-; But the best thing has been reconnecting with our adult English class---we couldn’t have class at our normal spot because our friend had an event in his house where we normally have it—so I decided to invite everyone to our house—though it is smaller and has less space and classroom amenities. I was so excited to see most of our group! And we had the opportunity to chat for a bit with the principal of one of my school’s (she is in our class) about a project idea we have. We are thinking about constructing a classroom out of bottles out there for the seventh graders who have a classroom with wood boards and dirt floors at the moment. I think I mentioned this before so I won’t repeat. It is still just an idea, and we have to see how the community feels about it etc. before we can even begin with the process of writing a proposal etc….So I am trying not to get to excited until we see what the actual interest level is….if you are interested in this crazy concept of bottle buildings I encourage you to google something like “bottle classrooms” or “bottle houses”—there are quite a few projects going on all over the world of a similar nature.
I feel tired but motivated. We have almost been in Nicaragua for one year now and that surprises me. I think it still surprises me more that we have over a year to go…
Ready to get back in the swing of things, but I would be a huge liar if I didn’t mention how excited we are to be making a visit home in December!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, let’s see…there was my counterpart’s birthday—happy birthday Melbita! And she came to our house and cooked US lunch…seems to be pretty norm that if it is YOUR party or event YOU do everything for everyone else---a little different than at home eh? I gave her a watch and a Snickers Bar. It was a really nice day. Then we had a week of school as normal, then it was off to a training conference in Esteli which included some of our counterparts. It was pretty intense but great to see everyone and hopefully my counterpart and I will start to apply some of the things we learned back in our site. We also got to meet our new boss and he seems wonderful, but it was sad to say goodbye to our old boss. Really it was great to see all the other volunteers---many many of whom we haven’t seen since January….but we didn’t sign up to hang out with each other all the time (-:
We then had the pleasure of a quick visit with some friends from the USA that happened to be in Granada, Nicaragua with their film project “Actuality Media” for about a month. They take students or anyone interested really, to different parts of the world and they learn how to shoot and edit and create a documentary of sorts---they tell the story of people working towards change in their site location. I am sure their website explains it better! You should check it out! It was pretty strange to hang out with a group of gringos for a bit and just sort of, well, hang out…it was actually a sort of culture shock experience in and of itself….it was almost like going home for a quick visit….i cant imagine what actually going home will be like….
Upon returning to the Q, as I now like to refer to Quilali, we found a few surprises in our house. Our pila, or our source of water for laundry, bathing, dishes, and flushing the toilet, was full of 30 plus dead, floating cockroaches…well a few were still sort of alive…and the one or two bats we had living with us have multiplied to about 20…So….matt emptied our tank and scrubbed it clean with just a touch of bleach…It’s quite a process and I can’t tell you how much I love him for doing it---Look for a pic of process on facebook soon. And the bats, well the bats, are still hanging around, pun intended…I am slightly embarrassed to say we tried garlic and then a Nica friend suggested we hang a red cloth up in our entry way….again look for pics of hanging bats and our attempt to combat the on facebook. Also fun times, was the search for bread…and how there was none….I forgot that often times in the Q, simply “no hay” or there is none of what you so desperately had your heart set on, you know, like bread. I suppose I had gotten used to having options for bread on our mini out of the Q adventure in July….but I remember now….and the good news, the bread man made it to the Q a couple days later (-:
We haven’t had class since our return to the Q, but start up again on Monday. We did have an all teacher meeting—Matt and I prepared a small workshop to give, but it never happened…I still couldn’t tell you the point of the 5 hour meeting…but it was good to reconnect with the other teachers and practice Spanish. I spent many hours lesson planning—one hour which was spent explaining how stoplights at intersections work (ie. when pedestrians can cross the street etc). Needless to say, there are no stoplights or intersections in the Q, in fact, I don’t think there are even any traffic signs of any sort----makes it awesome to teach a class on traffic and warning signs(-; But the best thing has been reconnecting with our adult English class---we couldn’t have class at our normal spot because our friend had an event in his house where we normally have it—so I decided to invite everyone to our house—though it is smaller and has less space and classroom amenities. I was so excited to see most of our group! And we had the opportunity to chat for a bit with the principal of one of my school’s (she is in our class) about a project idea we have. We are thinking about constructing a classroom out of bottles out there for the seventh graders who have a classroom with wood boards and dirt floors at the moment. I think I mentioned this before so I won’t repeat. It is still just an idea, and we have to see how the community feels about it etc. before we can even begin with the process of writing a proposal etc….So I am trying not to get to excited until we see what the actual interest level is….if you are interested in this crazy concept of bottle buildings I encourage you to google something like “bottle classrooms” or “bottle houses”—there are quite a few projects going on all over the world of a similar nature.
I feel tired but motivated. We have almost been in Nicaragua for one year now and that surprises me. I think it still surprises me more that we have over a year to go…
Ready to get back in the swing of things, but I would be a huge liar if I didn’t mention how excited we are to be making a visit home in December!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Pigeons, Power Outages, Fun stuff and not so fun stuff....
Pigeons Power Outages and more fun stuff…
Always hard to remember where I left off…
Anyways, most recently there was a giant pigeon in my house…the space between the walls and the roof make it easy access and in our garage/house, there is the corrugated tin roof then a large space and then a layer of cardboard-like tiles. We have discovered the space makes a great home for all sorts of critters….like the pigeon. So my young, cute tiny counterpart is over working with me—and I am screaming about the pigeon and calling matt to come and get it out of the house….she laughs at me like I am the most ridiculous person on the planet and starts chasing the thing all over our house…in our bedroom, down the hall, there are feathers everywhere, before she finally catches it with her hands. She strokes it for awhile and talks to it, and enjoys shoving it in my face before I convince her to put it outside, where I firmly believe it belongs (-: So I didn’t exactly grow up on the farm…but I am SUPER grateful my counterpart, as all other Nicas I know, is so down to earth and comfortable with all things we like to classify as critters. Did I mention that while I was pointing my finger at the pigeon perched on our ‘fridge 2 small bats came flying out of the same space into my face!? It was a fun moment. Really, I am actually serious here; it was really fun and funny!
On another note, the power has been out SUPER SUPER frequently this month. Pretty much every other day for hours at a time. Now, I feel like a big brat of a PC Volunteer, because there are plenty of peace corps volunteers living in the world that NEVER have the good ‘ol “luz” or light (electricity)…but I am sort of accustomed to life here with it. Maybe I should try just never using it for a whole week to get some additional perspective? It really only bothers me when it goes out in the middle of the night and it is like 90 something degrees out still….and you wake up…sweating…thinking…why am I awake? Oh….then you hear the whir of your fan as it goes out….Usually I go throw some cold water from our bucket bath on me and try to go back to sleep in one of the hammocks when this happens….I mean, it is rainy season, sort of, and it is cooler, sort of. Meaning that it rains SOMETIMES but not always…and as soon as it STOPS raining I think it is actually HOTTER than it was before! In any case, the rain is welcome and needed to produce everything we depend on around here….
So work! The workshop, or “taller”, we gave at our last teacher conference went pretty well. That isn’t to say it didn’t start an hour late, teachers didn’t talk or text on cell phones during, and no one came and went from the room (hmmmm the students are oddly similar….), but we felt super happy with it at the end. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to do everything we had planned (recall we started an hour late) but the written, anonymous feedback we got from the English teachers was awesome…we heard things like “I didn’t even feel the time. I wasn’t bored and I actually learned something!” Yeah, so that might give you a picture of what these monthly or so teacher days are like…Everyone seems excited at the prospect of us giving more workshops during every conference=more work for us, but we are SOOO happy to do it…and ultimately, of course, we want to include our counterparts in the presentations and have them doing it on their own before we leave…..moments like these 2 years almost doesn’t seem long enough (;
Things at my high schools are sort of the same…I still struggle with the unpredictability of whether or not there will actually BE class every day….and it kills me that when my students ask me “Hey teacher, when is our exam?” I know I can’t really answer because that is subject to change on a whim too….makes it sort of easy to see why some kids lose faith in the system and simply stop showing up…Also, out in my community (means outside of city limits in Nica terms), the 7th graders are losing TONS of class time because of the rain—all the other grades have the normal classrooms made out of bricks —but the 7th graders (the youngest in the high school), have a classroom made out of wooden boards, the corrugated tin roof, and a dirt floor. When it pours, which it does a lot out there, their floor turns to mud….so they usually just go home instead of getting dirty---which if I haven’t mentioned before is pretty much a crime here. I constantly have students out there patting dust and chalk off me and fixing my shirt collar etc. I just got wind that a group called Builders without Borders is going to be working with Peace Corps in Nicaragua the next two years---they build things such as CLASSROOMS, letrines, etc. I was super excited thinking I might be able to work with them to get my 7th graders a classroom of their own out there….BUT one of their requirements is to be 4 hours from Managua on a direct bus……so yea…have I mentioned we live kind of far out there? Like 7 and half hours minimum from the capital of Managua---IF you catch all the right busses? Sigh, I can certainly understand their desire to be near good medical facilities etc. And they sound like a really neat organization if anyone cares to check them out---they are based in Connecticut. I will just have to look elsewhere to get the kids a room….if they really want one! (Peace Corps always warns, and it is good to think about, NOT to start projects WE think people need/want, but first find out what THEY NEED/WANT). There are zillions of examples of people just barging into a place, taking a look around, and deciding what people need for them---and then as soon as the project is complete, it fails. Because the idea wasn’t homegrown. (-:
Ok, lots of rambling! I know! Excited about training that is coming up in a few weeks…also have a friend from the States who is IN Nica-land already and we might get to see here in July too! I have been in site for a very long time without a break and it will be a few more weeks before I get one….let’s hope I don’t get the Q La Li Crazies. (That’s what I call it anyways…)
Love you guys….Miss you guys….SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!!! XOXOX
THE VERY NEXT DAY
On a personal level, a good friend of ours’ lost her dad this morning—well she is the wife of one of my principal’s..and she is in our adult English class. I still cant get over how quickly people form friendships with us here, well some of them, and how you are immediately considered family. I spent my hour break between classes at her house sitting with the rest of the community, and then sitting on her bed holding her hand and just talking. She insisted on feeding me and making me coffee before allowing me to go back to work…..matt and I refer to her as our fairy godmother, because she really is like the fairy godmothers from Cinderella. We talked about how when someone dies, we have similar traditions in the States, ie. the whole family usually comes together etc., but of course, how some things are different. I talked about my grandparents---living and deceased--- and what it was like when they passed away and about various friends and family members whom have suffered losses recently and in the past….It was kind of a sad moment, but one of those human moments, where you know that people feel the same things no matter where you are in the world….It really made me miss my family…..and friends….I really can’t wait to hug all of you.
Always hard to remember where I left off…
Anyways, most recently there was a giant pigeon in my house…the space between the walls and the roof make it easy access and in our garage/house, there is the corrugated tin roof then a large space and then a layer of cardboard-like tiles. We have discovered the space makes a great home for all sorts of critters….like the pigeon. So my young, cute tiny counterpart is over working with me—and I am screaming about the pigeon and calling matt to come and get it out of the house….she laughs at me like I am the most ridiculous person on the planet and starts chasing the thing all over our house…in our bedroom, down the hall, there are feathers everywhere, before she finally catches it with her hands. She strokes it for awhile and talks to it, and enjoys shoving it in my face before I convince her to put it outside, where I firmly believe it belongs (-: So I didn’t exactly grow up on the farm…but I am SUPER grateful my counterpart, as all other Nicas I know, is so down to earth and comfortable with all things we like to classify as critters. Did I mention that while I was pointing my finger at the pigeon perched on our ‘fridge 2 small bats came flying out of the same space into my face!? It was a fun moment. Really, I am actually serious here; it was really fun and funny!
On another note, the power has been out SUPER SUPER frequently this month. Pretty much every other day for hours at a time. Now, I feel like a big brat of a PC Volunteer, because there are plenty of peace corps volunteers living in the world that NEVER have the good ‘ol “luz” or light (electricity)…but I am sort of accustomed to life here with it. Maybe I should try just never using it for a whole week to get some additional perspective? It really only bothers me when it goes out in the middle of the night and it is like 90 something degrees out still….and you wake up…sweating…thinking…why am I awake? Oh….then you hear the whir of your fan as it goes out….Usually I go throw some cold water from our bucket bath on me and try to go back to sleep in one of the hammocks when this happens….I mean, it is rainy season, sort of, and it is cooler, sort of. Meaning that it rains SOMETIMES but not always…and as soon as it STOPS raining I think it is actually HOTTER than it was before! In any case, the rain is welcome and needed to produce everything we depend on around here….
So work! The workshop, or “taller”, we gave at our last teacher conference went pretty well. That isn’t to say it didn’t start an hour late, teachers didn’t talk or text on cell phones during, and no one came and went from the room (hmmmm the students are oddly similar….), but we felt super happy with it at the end. Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to do everything we had planned (recall we started an hour late) but the written, anonymous feedback we got from the English teachers was awesome…we heard things like “I didn’t even feel the time. I wasn’t bored and I actually learned something!” Yeah, so that might give you a picture of what these monthly or so teacher days are like…Everyone seems excited at the prospect of us giving more workshops during every conference=more work for us, but we are SOOO happy to do it…and ultimately, of course, we want to include our counterparts in the presentations and have them doing it on their own before we leave…..moments like these 2 years almost doesn’t seem long enough (;
Things at my high schools are sort of the same…I still struggle with the unpredictability of whether or not there will actually BE class every day….and it kills me that when my students ask me “Hey teacher, when is our exam?” I know I can’t really answer because that is subject to change on a whim too….makes it sort of easy to see why some kids lose faith in the system and simply stop showing up…Also, out in my community (means outside of city limits in Nica terms), the 7th graders are losing TONS of class time because of the rain—all the other grades have the normal classrooms made out of bricks —but the 7th graders (the youngest in the high school), have a classroom made out of wooden boards, the corrugated tin roof, and a dirt floor. When it pours, which it does a lot out there, their floor turns to mud….so they usually just go home instead of getting dirty---which if I haven’t mentioned before is pretty much a crime here. I constantly have students out there patting dust and chalk off me and fixing my shirt collar etc. I just got wind that a group called Builders without Borders is going to be working with Peace Corps in Nicaragua the next two years---they build things such as CLASSROOMS, letrines, etc. I was super excited thinking I might be able to work with them to get my 7th graders a classroom of their own out there….BUT one of their requirements is to be 4 hours from Managua on a direct bus……so yea…have I mentioned we live kind of far out there? Like 7 and half hours minimum from the capital of Managua---IF you catch all the right busses? Sigh, I can certainly understand their desire to be near good medical facilities etc. And they sound like a really neat organization if anyone cares to check them out---they are based in Connecticut. I will just have to look elsewhere to get the kids a room….if they really want one! (Peace Corps always warns, and it is good to think about, NOT to start projects WE think people need/want, but first find out what THEY NEED/WANT). There are zillions of examples of people just barging into a place, taking a look around, and deciding what people need for them---and then as soon as the project is complete, it fails. Because the idea wasn’t homegrown. (-:
Ok, lots of rambling! I know! Excited about training that is coming up in a few weeks…also have a friend from the States who is IN Nica-land already and we might get to see here in July too! I have been in site for a very long time without a break and it will be a few more weeks before I get one….let’s hope I don’t get the Q La Li Crazies. (That’s what I call it anyways…)
Love you guys….Miss you guys….SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH!!! XOXOX
THE VERY NEXT DAY
On a personal level, a good friend of ours’ lost her dad this morning—well she is the wife of one of my principal’s..and she is in our adult English class. I still cant get over how quickly people form friendships with us here, well some of them, and how you are immediately considered family. I spent my hour break between classes at her house sitting with the rest of the community, and then sitting on her bed holding her hand and just talking. She insisted on feeding me and making me coffee before allowing me to go back to work…..matt and I refer to her as our fairy godmother, because she really is like the fairy godmothers from Cinderella. We talked about how when someone dies, we have similar traditions in the States, ie. the whole family usually comes together etc., but of course, how some things are different. I talked about my grandparents---living and deceased--- and what it was like when they passed away and about various friends and family members whom have suffered losses recently and in the past….It was kind of a sad moment, but one of those human moments, where you know that people feel the same things no matter where you are in the world….It really made me miss my family…..and friends….I really can’t wait to hug all of you.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
JUNE!
JUNE!!!
Ok, so everyone says time flies by in the Peace Corps, despite the slower pace of life in most PC countries. For me, this hasn’t been true until recently. I think it is a good sign. I cannot believe it is already a week into June! We now have a little less than a year and a half left of service…and in September we will have been in Nicaragua for one whole year!
So what’s going on? Well first, I’d like to give a shout out to my little brother Jake who just turned 8 years old!!! And also to my older brother John, who’s age I shall protect, though he isn’t old! And happy Father’s Day to my Papa Bear. ANNNND good luck MAV’s! We are trying desperately to keep up with the NBA Finals here….oddly enough someone can change the channel on the TV’s here while you are watching, so we got the first 5 minutes of the game last night, then the channels magically started changing….finally settling on a friendly soccer match that no one cared about! I don’t have to tell you guys how this made Matt feel…..oh well, I mean I guess it is pretty amazing that we have internet and phone service up here in the mountains!
2 weeks ago, our friends from our TEFL group of volunteers came to visit us in Quilali! It was sooo amazing that 3 people made it to our site! (have I mentioned that we sort of live in the middle of nowhere???) Unfortunately, it rained almost the whole wknd., but it didn’t matter---we talked A LOT, shared classroom battle stories, cooked food, shared some drinks, toured the town a little bit, and got to make dinner by flashlight the last night and make shadow puppets for hours because the power was out most of the night (something we are noticing happens a lot more during rainy season)…..
We recently went back to our training town for a wknd. Because Matt’s host dad passed away not too long ago. Sadly, his host mom lost her mom 3 weeks before her husband died, so she was pretty depressed---it was pretty heartbreaking to see one of the sweetest people in the whole world so upset….but like all Nicas, she has TONS of family around allllll the time…granddaughters, and sons, kids, sisters and brothers…..it really is amazing the emphasis placed on family here and how tight they are in every situation. We watched the funeral on DVD as is the custom and there were lots of hugs and coffee and chatting. It was sort of a sad trip, but REALLY good to see them. And to be out of town for just a bit (we don’t get out a lot and find it makes a HUGE difference in our general attitudes).
Work is going alright….Matt and are planning on presenting at our monthly teacher’s conference this month, so that is exciting. Usually there is not much planned or organized for the English teachers….and we have sort of been waiting to offer a training session until we had a bit more credibility with the teachers…..trust me, it really is a delicate process. I don’t know how to explain it, but this is hard in a way I never imagined…..and like I said, I don’t have the words to explain it quite yet…..maybe someday….
In July we have our second In Service Training---all the volunteers in our group and one of our counterparts get together for about a week and work work work! Somewhat unfortunately, it is planned for the one week we have vacation from school…..a vacation we could really use! But ni modo, or oh well…..then before you know it, it will be August….September marks our one year anniversary of being in country=our mid service doctor check up…and also the big Independence Day celebrations=lots of missed class because of parades and band practice, then October, and then November and the elections….a lot of people are saying that school will end in October instead of December this year because of the elections (I guess they use the schools for casting votes). But this could all be just talk, it is a given, however, that we will miss at least a week or two in November….I won’t comment too much on the elections, but they are pretty controversial this year---I encourage you to read up on it if you have any interest.
Ok, that’s pretty much it for now. Hangin in there and watching the months on the calendar start to fly by, hoping we are making an impact and trying to stay dry in the beautiful rainy season!
Ok, so everyone says time flies by in the Peace Corps, despite the slower pace of life in most PC countries. For me, this hasn’t been true until recently. I think it is a good sign. I cannot believe it is already a week into June! We now have a little less than a year and a half left of service…and in September we will have been in Nicaragua for one whole year!
So what’s going on? Well first, I’d like to give a shout out to my little brother Jake who just turned 8 years old!!! And also to my older brother John, who’s age I shall protect, though he isn’t old! And happy Father’s Day to my Papa Bear. ANNNND good luck MAV’s! We are trying desperately to keep up with the NBA Finals here….oddly enough someone can change the channel on the TV’s here while you are watching, so we got the first 5 minutes of the game last night, then the channels magically started changing….finally settling on a friendly soccer match that no one cared about! I don’t have to tell you guys how this made Matt feel…..oh well, I mean I guess it is pretty amazing that we have internet and phone service up here in the mountains!
2 weeks ago, our friends from our TEFL group of volunteers came to visit us in Quilali! It was sooo amazing that 3 people made it to our site! (have I mentioned that we sort of live in the middle of nowhere???) Unfortunately, it rained almost the whole wknd., but it didn’t matter---we talked A LOT, shared classroom battle stories, cooked food, shared some drinks, toured the town a little bit, and got to make dinner by flashlight the last night and make shadow puppets for hours because the power was out most of the night (something we are noticing happens a lot more during rainy season)…..
We recently went back to our training town for a wknd. Because Matt’s host dad passed away not too long ago. Sadly, his host mom lost her mom 3 weeks before her husband died, so she was pretty depressed---it was pretty heartbreaking to see one of the sweetest people in the whole world so upset….but like all Nicas, she has TONS of family around allllll the time…granddaughters, and sons, kids, sisters and brothers…..it really is amazing the emphasis placed on family here and how tight they are in every situation. We watched the funeral on DVD as is the custom and there were lots of hugs and coffee and chatting. It was sort of a sad trip, but REALLY good to see them. And to be out of town for just a bit (we don’t get out a lot and find it makes a HUGE difference in our general attitudes).
Work is going alright….Matt and are planning on presenting at our monthly teacher’s conference this month, so that is exciting. Usually there is not much planned or organized for the English teachers….and we have sort of been waiting to offer a training session until we had a bit more credibility with the teachers…..trust me, it really is a delicate process. I don’t know how to explain it, but this is hard in a way I never imagined…..and like I said, I don’t have the words to explain it quite yet…..maybe someday….
In July we have our second In Service Training---all the volunteers in our group and one of our counterparts get together for about a week and work work work! Somewhat unfortunately, it is planned for the one week we have vacation from school…..a vacation we could really use! But ni modo, or oh well…..then before you know it, it will be August….September marks our one year anniversary of being in country=our mid service doctor check up…and also the big Independence Day celebrations=lots of missed class because of parades and band practice, then October, and then November and the elections….a lot of people are saying that school will end in October instead of December this year because of the elections (I guess they use the schools for casting votes). But this could all be just talk, it is a given, however, that we will miss at least a week or two in November….I won’t comment too much on the elections, but they are pretty controversial this year---I encourage you to read up on it if you have any interest.
Ok, that’s pretty much it for now. Hangin in there and watching the months on the calendar start to fly by, hoping we are making an impact and trying to stay dry in the beautiful rainy season!
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