Things have been going pretty cheque in Victoria these past few weeks. I had my sitemate and a friend (Elizabeth) come over for Thanksgiving. We started cooking at 10am and didn't get to sit down to eat until around 9pm. Obviously, we were pretty busy-but well worth it. Almost just like at home except there was no turkey and I couldn't quite get the deviled eggs like Grandma's or the green bean casserole like Aunt T's. No worries though, I was in a totally different country so what can I expect?
It's strange to be in a tropical climate when it's almost Christmas time-kinda missing that bone chilling air at the moment. However, there is a lot of Christmas cheer in Victoria, just the other day people in the community started getting together at night to do Christmas carols. It's called the Posada, and they do it everynight until Christmas. It's very cool, and everyone has a fun time watching me trying to sing to songs that I don't know. We've also had quite a few fiestas or dances- those are usually a great time and I am completely exhausted at the end of the night, or morning...around 3 or 4 am. Since my normal bedtime is 9pm, I try to take a power nap before- sounds pretty pathetic to me. Oh well, asi es la vida.
I am going to be spending Christmas in Victoria as well. My host family will actually be in another part of Honduras visiting family, and my sitemate will be traveling, so I might just be solo- not truely though-I don't think the friends I have in Victoria would let me spend Christmas by myself. I've heard a great deal of awesome stories about Christmas in my site so I'm excited. I'll probably stay in Victoria for my birthday as well, then travel to Lake Yojoa to celebrate the new year with some Peace Corps friends. All plans but we'll see if Dios lo quiere.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
¿Wanna help?
¡Saludos!
Things are moving right along in Victoria-keeping busy and getting the ball rolling. The baseball tryout was great, we had more than 50 kids come. It was a little overwhelmed, but I am so excited that so many have the interest. Therefore, instead of picking 20 kids for one team, I decided to form 3 different teams. Anyone have any old baseball equipment they don´t need? :) I have what one would call a varsity team, JV, and C team. We have temporarily named them the Medias rojas (Red Sox), Yankees, and the Cubs. Joe (my sitemate) and I thought about naming the C team the Royals to commemorate my Kansas heritage, but I thought naming the C team that name would only reemphasize what the real Royals team is lacking. So, it´s the Cubs instead. I´ll probably be practicing 3 times a week soon so they will keep me busy.
I have just recently figured out that if I had some friends or family from Kansas come visit me they´d probably laugh at the sight of me walking around in my community. I have become good friends with my host family´s dog Lucky. He likes to follow me around to my office, to meetings, and has even gone running with me. I don´t mind of course, and I think it´s pretty cute. What I just figured out, however, is that he looks a lot like Dorothy´s dog Toto in the Wizard of Oz. Kinda weird, huh? A Toto wanna-be following the only Kansas girl in Honduras (or at least 1 of the very few). Maybe I´m just easily amused nowadays...
If anyone is interested, my reading club is in need of some books. Books in Spanish would be preferred, but books in English would also be great (I´ll be teaching them a bit of English). Also, any sort of school supplies would also be welcome-we´re going to be doing a variety of artistic/creativity projects that would require some crayons, glue, scissors, etc. I just had a parents informational meeting and everyone is very excited about this project. This makes me very happy because I know that I have the support of the parents.
Adiós y ¡que tenga buen día!
Things are moving right along in Victoria-keeping busy and getting the ball rolling. The baseball tryout was great, we had more than 50 kids come. It was a little overwhelmed, but I am so excited that so many have the interest. Therefore, instead of picking 20 kids for one team, I decided to form 3 different teams. Anyone have any old baseball equipment they don´t need? :) I have what one would call a varsity team, JV, and C team. We have temporarily named them the Medias rojas (Red Sox), Yankees, and the Cubs. Joe (my sitemate) and I thought about naming the C team the Royals to commemorate my Kansas heritage, but I thought naming the C team that name would only reemphasize what the real Royals team is lacking. So, it´s the Cubs instead. I´ll probably be practicing 3 times a week soon so they will keep me busy.
I have just recently figured out that if I had some friends or family from Kansas come visit me they´d probably laugh at the sight of me walking around in my community. I have become good friends with my host family´s dog Lucky. He likes to follow me around to my office, to meetings, and has even gone running with me. I don´t mind of course, and I think it´s pretty cute. What I just figured out, however, is that he looks a lot like Dorothy´s dog Toto in the Wizard of Oz. Kinda weird, huh? A Toto wanna-be following the only Kansas girl in Honduras (or at least 1 of the very few). Maybe I´m just easily amused nowadays...
If anyone is interested, my reading club is in need of some books. Books in Spanish would be preferred, but books in English would also be great (I´ll be teaching them a bit of English). Also, any sort of school supplies would also be welcome-we´re going to be doing a variety of artistic/creativity projects that would require some crayons, glue, scissors, etc. I just had a parents informational meeting and everyone is very excited about this project. This makes me very happy because I know that I have the support of the parents.
Adiós y ¡que tenga buen día!
Friday, November 14, 2008
The happenings in Victoria
Well, after a month and a week in site I have definitely had my share of interesting experiences-and I have had some questions about what I am actually doing right now so here is a little list of the projects I am currently working on.
Baseball team- probably will have 2
Rompiendo el Silencio (Breaking the Silence) : a Domestic Violence eduation group of women
Grupo de Adulto Mayores- Elderly person's group (we do arts and crafts, support group sorts of things)
Pregnant women's club- I am working with the local clinic and I am going to start giving "talks" or charlas to the women about health concerns and life skills (self-esteem, caring for children, nutrition, etc).
High School Counselor- I am working as a high school counselor for the graduating high school seniors helping them with scholarship information, resumes, career decisions, finding a job, etc.
Club de Lectura- or a Reading club- This is a brand new project but I hope to teach this 20 3rd graders how to help others to read and then we can go to the poorer parts of town during the school break and read to other children.
Life Skills talks- School is almost out so I won't be doing this for awhile but I was giving life skills charlas in the high school and elementary schools. I have been plans when the school year starts up again (Drugs and Alcohol, Sexuality, Making good decisions, communication, how to be a leader charlas, etc)
Escuela para Padres- Teaching parents how to talk to their children about Sex, Drugs, Alcohol, how to disclipine, teaching your values, etc. I haven't started this project either because it is still in the planning stages, but it will be started soon I hope.
There are many other projects that are going to be starting at the beginning of the school year, and I know it's going to be crazy. But i'll keep everyone posted as to other projects I will be starting.
Also, I am planning on doing a bake sale to raise money for my baseball team to travel and play against other teams in Honduras. Does anyone have any good receipes or baking ideas they would like to share? Please email me and let me know!!
Baseball team- probably will have 2
Rompiendo el Silencio (Breaking the Silence) : a Domestic Violence eduation group of women
Grupo de Adulto Mayores- Elderly person's group (we do arts and crafts, support group sorts of things)
Pregnant women's club- I am working with the local clinic and I am going to start giving "talks" or charlas to the women about health concerns and life skills (self-esteem, caring for children, nutrition, etc).
High School Counselor- I am working as a high school counselor for the graduating high school seniors helping them with scholarship information, resumes, career decisions, finding a job, etc.
Club de Lectura- or a Reading club- This is a brand new project but I hope to teach this 20 3rd graders how to help others to read and then we can go to the poorer parts of town during the school break and read to other children.
Life Skills talks- School is almost out so I won't be doing this for awhile but I was giving life skills charlas in the high school and elementary schools. I have been plans when the school year starts up again (Drugs and Alcohol, Sexuality, Making good decisions, communication, how to be a leader charlas, etc)
Escuela para Padres- Teaching parents how to talk to their children about Sex, Drugs, Alcohol, how to disclipine, teaching your values, etc. I haven't started this project either because it is still in the planning stages, but it will be started soon I hope.
There are many other projects that are going to be starting at the beginning of the school year, and I know it's going to be crazy. But i'll keep everyone posted as to other projects I will be starting.
Also, I am planning on doing a bake sale to raise money for my baseball team to travel and play against other teams in Honduras. Does anyone have any good receipes or baking ideas they would like to share? Please email me and let me know!!
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Kinda like in Romancing the Stone
So, everyone remembers the bus in the movie Romancing the Stone with Michael Douglas....they were going through Colombia on a very interesting and somewhat scary bus. I have been asked a few times if the buses here are like that. I would say no-- typically the buses are the old yellow school buses from the states that have a sub system installed with all sorts of pretty grafitti on the inside and outside. Normally those buses don't break down like the one in Romancing the Stone.
Well for all of those who were half-way excited that I might be riding on buses like that down here I have to say that I rode on one that was border-line "Romancing the Stone like." This bus wasn't as nice as the other buses I was used to... the seats were falling apart (falling off the brace and had giant bites taken out of them) and I swear I kept feeling something crawl over my feet. Also, because of the massive rain fall we have been experiencing, everytime we came to a big mud-covered hill we had to all go towards the back of the bus and jump to try and give it more leverage. People were laughing at me because I guess my face showed that I was a little nervous the bus would get stuck or breakdown from the abuse it was taking (it was going to be dark in a few hours and it would be bad to be stuck out in the middle of no where). I didn't think this was too great because I was at the time experiencing a bit of motion sickness from the back and forth rowing motions... and, to top off the experience, there was livestock as well. Yes, I was sharing the bus with chickens. No pigs though. So all of you that were so excited about the possible magnitud of my experiences, I hope this one satisfies you for awhile.
Well for all of those who were half-way excited that I might be riding on buses like that down here I have to say that I rode on one that was border-line "Romancing the Stone like." This bus wasn't as nice as the other buses I was used to... the seats were falling apart (falling off the brace and had giant bites taken out of them) and I swear I kept feeling something crawl over my feet. Also, because of the massive rain fall we have been experiencing, everytime we came to a big mud-covered hill we had to all go towards the back of the bus and jump to try and give it more leverage. People were laughing at me because I guess my face showed that I was a little nervous the bus would get stuck or breakdown from the abuse it was taking (it was going to be dark in a few hours and it would be bad to be stuck out in the middle of no where). I didn't think this was too great because I was at the time experiencing a bit of motion sickness from the back and forth rowing motions... and, to top off the experience, there was livestock as well. Yes, I was sharing the bus with chickens. No pigs though. So all of you that were so excited about the possible magnitud of my experiences, I hope this one satisfies you for awhile.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Massive Rain
Things are just now starting to get back to normal again. Massive amounts of rain have flooded the country and caused Honduras to be in a state of emergency. It's over with now, but a lot of communities, including mine, are still trying to get on their feet. Victoria had some serious damage to crops and had a few deaths. Some homes are falling apart, and we were out of water for over a week. Electricity was around most of the time, but it did shut off every now and then. Transportation was pretty non-exisitent, and people in the surrounding towns had to have helicopters bring food and portable water brought to them. But, even though the roads are pretty bad, things are getting better.
With the weather the way it has been, there hasn't been a lot going on in Victoria--I'm starting more projects though and I am starting to feel more comfortable with each day. Saturday night dancing has also been a fun distraction... and I am getting better at dancing to bachata and merengue...give me two years and I'll be a pro!! :) We will see.
With the weather the way it has been, there hasn't been a lot going on in Victoria--I'm starting more projects though and I am starting to feel more comfortable with each day. Saturday night dancing has also been a fun distraction... and I am getting better at dancing to bachata and merengue...give me two years and I'll be a pro!! :) We will see.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
An official volunteer
It is official!! I am now a Peace Corps volunteer. It seemed like this day would never come! The ceremony was nice and relaxed-a perfect ceremony for the Peace Corps I would say. We definitely celebrated that night-and it was really hard to say goodbye to the people that you have spent the past 3 months with. Especially when you know that you most likely will not see them until the new year (we are not allowed to stay over-night anywhere for the first 3 months). Hopefully it will go fast!
Well I have been in Victoria for approximately 3 days now and I already know that I will never run out of work here… I am already set to have my first baseball practice this Saturday and I will be giving a Domestic Violence charla or a presentation (Rompiendo el Silencio) to different groups of women in the surrounding small towns on this Saturday as well. I have not even met my other 4 counterparts but that is an endeavor for tomorrow, and we will see what awesome projects they would like to do. No worries, I am going to try not to overfill my plate-just going to be a busy bee…
As for adjusting to my new home, I definitely feel like a newcomer, with an immense amount of people staring at me whereever I go. It is a little strange, but I know it will not always be that way, just another thing to adapt to. My host family here is great—they are always trying to make me feel comfortable—will write again when I have more time!
Well I have been in Victoria for approximately 3 days now and I already know that I will never run out of work here… I am already set to have my first baseball practice this Saturday and I will be giving a Domestic Violence charla or a presentation (Rompiendo el Silencio) to different groups of women in the surrounding small towns on this Saturday as well. I have not even met my other 4 counterparts but that is an endeavor for tomorrow, and we will see what awesome projects they would like to do. No worries, I am going to try not to overfill my plate-just going to be a busy bee…
As for adjusting to my new home, I definitely feel like a newcomer, with an immense amount of people staring at me whereever I go. It is a little strange, but I know it will not always be that way, just another thing to adapt to. My host family here is great—they are always trying to make me feel comfortable—will write again when I have more time!
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Back in Las Cañadas with one week left!
Well, it has been a long time since I have had the chance to give an update on my complicated, busy life as a Peace Corps aspirante. I made it through FBT training and I am back in Las Cañadas for the last few weeks of training. It is crazy to think that a week from today I will an oficial PC volunteer. It will definitely feel good to get through training. I had great experiences in Talanga- I could not have asked for a better family, and I learned a lot through training. There´s still so much that I don´t know though--hopefully I can pick that up soon.
So, the big question of where I am going to be spending the next two years of my life.... I will be in Victoria in the department of Yoro. It is a town in a valley surrounded by mountains. Yes, it is beautiful- there is an awesome river that is right outside of town and there are a number of creeks that run throughout the town. When I visited last week I was able to get a ride through the mountains, wow. I am really lucky in that aspect. The people are also very nice and excited for me to be there. I am also positive that I will never run out of work. Unlike most volunteers who only have about 3 counterparts, I oficially have 7 and 2 more unoficial (counterparts are just people or organizations that I will work with).
They are:
Two elementary schools
A high school
A dentist´s officeç
The women´s office in the municipality
The youth office in the municipality
Health center
Other possible:
Ayuda en Acción (Non-government organization)
A high school teacher
To give an idea of what I will be doing, the best I can do is give a list:
-Domestic Violence Education
-Leading a pregnant woman´s club
-Teaching computers and how to use the internet
-Coaching baseball ( I will have at least two teams)
-Coaching a women´s volleyball team
-Teaching multiple English classes
-Giving life skills talks to elementary schools
-Giving talks to high schoolers about drugs, alcohol, HIV, and life skills
-Leading a parenting class (yes I know i´m not a parent)
-Giving business management classes
-Environmental Education
-Trying to get a Reicken Library put in Victoria
-etc
Those are the things I was asked by my counterparts, and they don´t include some of the ideas that I have. We´ll see what will happen. Needless to say, I am going to be very busy and there will always be work to do. Once I am in Victoria I am not allowed to travel for 3 months, but after that I will be able to travel and take a little vacation if need be. Actually the first day that I am able to travel is my birthday, the 26th of December-how appropriate. :)
People have been asking me some of the things I might need, so, here is a little list:
-art supplies (crayons, paints, colored pencils, pastels, chalk, markers (for writing on posters),etc
-magazines that can let me know what´s going on in the States
-any letter that lets me know how are you doing
-pictures
-burned cd of some music i´m missing out on
I do want to say thank you to everyone who has emailed me, send me little letters of kindness, or called me... it has helped me very much. Thank you.
So, the big question of where I am going to be spending the next two years of my life.... I will be in Victoria in the department of Yoro. It is a town in a valley surrounded by mountains. Yes, it is beautiful- there is an awesome river that is right outside of town and there are a number of creeks that run throughout the town. When I visited last week I was able to get a ride through the mountains, wow. I am really lucky in that aspect. The people are also very nice and excited for me to be there. I am also positive that I will never run out of work. Unlike most volunteers who only have about 3 counterparts, I oficially have 7 and 2 more unoficial (counterparts are just people or organizations that I will work with).
They are:
Two elementary schools
A high school
A dentist´s officeç
The women´s office in the municipality
The youth office in the municipality
Health center
Other possible:
Ayuda en Acción (Non-government organization)
A high school teacher
To give an idea of what I will be doing, the best I can do is give a list:
-Domestic Violence Education
-Leading a pregnant woman´s club
-Teaching computers and how to use the internet
-Coaching baseball ( I will have at least two teams)
-Coaching a women´s volleyball team
-Teaching multiple English classes
-Giving life skills talks to elementary schools
-Giving talks to high schoolers about drugs, alcohol, HIV, and life skills
-Leading a parenting class (yes I know i´m not a parent)
-Giving business management classes
-Environmental Education
-Trying to get a Reicken Library put in Victoria
-etc
Those are the things I was asked by my counterparts, and they don´t include some of the ideas that I have. We´ll see what will happen. Needless to say, I am going to be very busy and there will always be work to do. Once I am in Victoria I am not allowed to travel for 3 months, but after that I will be able to travel and take a little vacation if need be. Actually the first day that I am able to travel is my birthday, the 26th of December-how appropriate. :)
People have been asking me some of the things I might need, so, here is a little list:
-art supplies (crayons, paints, colored pencils, pastels, chalk, markers (for writing on posters),etc
-magazines that can let me know what´s going on in the States
-any letter that lets me know how are you doing
-pictures
-burned cd of some music i´m missing out on
I do want to say thank you to everyone who has emailed me, send me little letters of kindness, or called me... it has helped me very much. Thank you.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Family Life in Talanga
Right now I´m in Tegucigalpa at my host grandmother´s home, and she has quite graciously let me use her computer. This is incredibly nice and it has reminded me that I have yet to speak of my family in Talanga thus far. So, for those of you who are interested, I currently live with 11 other people in one house. It´s really not as crowded as one might think, and I actually quite like all the company that I have. My host parent´s names are Miguel and Marlen, and I have 5 host sisters, one brother, one brother in-law, and a niece. Iliana (21 and married with a baby girl Victoria), Christopher (21, brother in-law), Ilza (19), Michelle (16), Susan (15), Dany (13), Lizbeth (6), Victoria (2). I also have a live-in maid named Marixzá. This may sound pretty fancy and that my family has a lot of money, though in reality having help around the house is very common in this culture. In all, my family is extremely helpful when I´m trying to speak Spanish and they treat me very well. I am truly treated like I am part of the family. We have definitely had our share of laughs when I have tried to say some tongue twisters and instead said a few crude and bad words on accident. Lizbeth is always helping me with my Spanish while I help her with a little English homework. Lizbeth is actually here with me write now and she wanted me to say this to you all: (I had to translate this to English, I haven´t quite got her English this good yet).
Lizbeth Sarai Elbir Martín says: To all of Sara´s friends, I hope you have a wonderful day with your family-and if you think you would like Talanga, come visit us! I hope you all are well!
About some projects I am currently doing. I am still working at the Buena Vista school is the mornings and I am not working at Project Manuelito in the afternoons. This program works with street children from around Honduras. Some of you might know that this is right down my alley! I am very excited to be able to work with these children. So far I have only been able to visit the project twice, but it was a great experience working on self-esteem art projects. Currently there are 18 children who live on a property outside of Talanga. Each child has their own section in the family garden, and the project raises their own pigs, cows, chickens, corn, and beans. They truly work together to provide themselves with the food they need. I asked them about their funding, and I was told that the government is supposed to provide funds, however they receive none. Therefore, they rely strictly on donated funds. In all, it is spectacular program--I hope with time they can accept more children.
Lizbeth Sarai Elbir Martín says: To all of Sara´s friends, I hope you have a wonderful day with your family-and if you think you would like Talanga, come visit us! I hope you all are well!
About some projects I am currently doing. I am still working at the Buena Vista school is the mornings and I am not working at Project Manuelito in the afternoons. This program works with street children from around Honduras. Some of you might know that this is right down my alley! I am very excited to be able to work with these children. So far I have only been able to visit the project twice, but it was a great experience working on self-esteem art projects. Currently there are 18 children who live on a property outside of Talanga. Each child has their own section in the family garden, and the project raises their own pigs, cows, chickens, corn, and beans. They truly work together to provide themselves with the food they need. I asked them about their funding, and I was told that the government is supposed to provide funds, however they receive none. Therefore, they rely strictly on donated funds. In all, it is spectacular program--I hope with time they can accept more children.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Assistance needed
Hey everyone,
So i´m pretty positive that I am going to have a baseball team, and I have a lot of aspirations as to what I am going to do with that team. I want to include a lot of life skills training within certain drills, but I am a little concerned with running out of ideas for drills. Do any of my softball and baseball friends have any contacts or ideas?? I am welcome to any sort of help anyone can offer me. Just send me an email. Thanks a lot!!!
So i´m pretty positive that I am going to have a baseball team, and I have a lot of aspirations as to what I am going to do with that team. I want to include a lot of life skills training within certain drills, but I am a little concerned with running out of ideas for drills. Do any of my softball and baseball friends have any contacts or ideas?? I am welcome to any sort of help anyone can offer me. Just send me an email. Thanks a lot!!!
Saturday, August 16, 2008
PC Training Week 6- Field Based Training in Talanga, Honduras
I appologize for not being able to post for awhile- pc officials usually find things to fill my time nowadays. Instead of being in Las Cañadas, I moved to Talanga about 2 weeks ago. They moved the three different projects (Municipal Developement, Youth Developement, and Protected Areas Management) to three different towns for FBT or Field Based Training.
Talanga is kinda like what some people thought Kansas was like when I was living in Virginia Beach. I would get questions like, “So, are there like cows and horses walking around in the streets?” Well, here in Talanga, yeah. There are horses, donkeys, cows, ox, chickens and other animals without ropes tied to them, and they are just walking around chillin on the side of the road, or if they feel like it, right in the middle taking a nap. It is quite comical at times and oddly enough, sometimes reminds me of my old farm. The town is fairly big, but is largely under developed despite the amount of commerce that goes through. It only gets pretty hot during the hours of 12-3, and other times it is fairly comfortable. It isn´t the prettiest place in Honduras, but the town is surrounded by mountains, so there is a nice view. Today I´m actually going to hike up one of the mountains to a big cross where I hear there is a cave. I have actually never seen a bat, so i´m pretty excited.
Since I have been here, we have had some rigorous training that lasts from 7:30 am to “5pm.” I usually have 4 hours of Spanish class, like before, and then the rest of the afternoon is training me how to do my job. So far I have learned SOME info on how to give talks about Domestic Violence, Life skills training, how to teach middle school teachers how to teach English, etc. Also, I was just assigned a school with 3 other aspirantes to work in for the next 3-4 weeks. It´s called Buena Vista, and is located about 2 miles outside of Talanga. It is very small, with about 70 students, but only 2 classrooms and 2 teachers. One teacher teaches first, third, and fourth grades, while the other teaches second, fifth and sixth grades. I am sure you could only imagine how effective that learning process would be. Yesterday was my first day there and I was pretty astounded with the situation both the students and the teachers are in. My role in this school will be to give some talks on things such as AIDs, teen pregnancy, drugs and alcohol, life skills (decision-making, relationships, self-esteem), and come up with art projects, reading activities, and fun, interactive games. FBT is going alright but because some of the training is vague, which makes the process a little frustrating and nerve-racking. Nonetheless, I am hoping that I will be more prepared by the time they send me off by my lonesome to my site.
About the poverty here in Honduras, the poverty level is very sad... about 60% of the population here is considered below the poverty line, and 40% are considered extremely poor which means they are sometimes not able to afford food, potable water, electricity (if it´s available), or adequate shelter. Many people do not have running water and electricity only works part of the time. Also, in many places people have latrines or out-houses as their only bathrooms. There are children working in the fields not going to school, and many times when children are able to go to school, the teachers are on strike and they can´t go. The average education level of the people here is 6th grade, and it´s rare for people to go to high school, let alone college. To make it short, there´s a reason PC is in Honduras.... it´s one of the poorest countries in central and south america. If I remember right, it´s the 3rd poorest country.
Now, that I am done with my depressing news on the state of Honduras, I have a little news for everyone,
Despite my rigorous efforts to explain to certain people my real reasons for going into the Peace Corps, some people still think I went into it to find myself a latino boyfriend or husband.... I would like to clarify that I have not yet found that husband, however, I have found a very handsome, playful, fun, comical, and sweet boy to spend some of my time. He´s always fun to be around and has given me quite a chase. His name is Isidro and he has made my Peace Corps stay a better experience. Even though he doesn´t have a job, or always wipe his face clean after he eats, i still appreciate the heart he has and how he makes me feel... We´ll see how our relationship progresses. Ohh, I forgot to say his age... he´s eight years old and is the brother of one of my fellow aspirantes..
Disclaimer: I want to apologize if some of my words or sentences might sound a little funny. There´s a joke that goes around in the PC that volunteers start to lose some of their English speaking and writing skills because we are doing everything in Spanish. I am going to try very hard to not let that happen to me, but I do catch myself using the wrong word or forgetting the name of something in English at times. Some day when i have time to read a book this might help this issue, but until then please bear with me.
Also, I was told that some people were having a hard time figuring out how to leave me messages on my blog. Look at the bottom right hand side of the page and it will say __ commentarios. This means, ___ comments. Click on that and it will take you to a page where you can see other´s comments and also a space where you can write something. You might have to sign up to be able to post something but it shouldn´t be too hard. Try going to www.freetranslation.com and type the words you need to know. I have tried multiple times to set up a blog in English, but for some reason it´s not wanting to work for me...soo...until I can figure something out I´ll have to stick with this one.
Talanga is kinda like what some people thought Kansas was like when I was living in Virginia Beach. I would get questions like, “So, are there like cows and horses walking around in the streets?” Well, here in Talanga, yeah. There are horses, donkeys, cows, ox, chickens and other animals without ropes tied to them, and they are just walking around chillin on the side of the road, or if they feel like it, right in the middle taking a nap. It is quite comical at times and oddly enough, sometimes reminds me of my old farm. The town is fairly big, but is largely under developed despite the amount of commerce that goes through. It only gets pretty hot during the hours of 12-3, and other times it is fairly comfortable. It isn´t the prettiest place in Honduras, but the town is surrounded by mountains, so there is a nice view. Today I´m actually going to hike up one of the mountains to a big cross where I hear there is a cave. I have actually never seen a bat, so i´m pretty excited.
Since I have been here, we have had some rigorous training that lasts from 7:30 am to “5pm.” I usually have 4 hours of Spanish class, like before, and then the rest of the afternoon is training me how to do my job. So far I have learned SOME info on how to give talks about Domestic Violence, Life skills training, how to teach middle school teachers how to teach English, etc. Also, I was just assigned a school with 3 other aspirantes to work in for the next 3-4 weeks. It´s called Buena Vista, and is located about 2 miles outside of Talanga. It is very small, with about 70 students, but only 2 classrooms and 2 teachers. One teacher teaches first, third, and fourth grades, while the other teaches second, fifth and sixth grades. I am sure you could only imagine how effective that learning process would be. Yesterday was my first day there and I was pretty astounded with the situation both the students and the teachers are in. My role in this school will be to give some talks on things such as AIDs, teen pregnancy, drugs and alcohol, life skills (decision-making, relationships, self-esteem), and come up with art projects, reading activities, and fun, interactive games. FBT is going alright but because some of the training is vague, which makes the process a little frustrating and nerve-racking. Nonetheless, I am hoping that I will be more prepared by the time they send me off by my lonesome to my site.
About the poverty here in Honduras, the poverty level is very sad... about 60% of the population here is considered below the poverty line, and 40% are considered extremely poor which means they are sometimes not able to afford food, potable water, electricity (if it´s available), or adequate shelter. Many people do not have running water and electricity only works part of the time. Also, in many places people have latrines or out-houses as their only bathrooms. There are children working in the fields not going to school, and many times when children are able to go to school, the teachers are on strike and they can´t go. The average education level of the people here is 6th grade, and it´s rare for people to go to high school, let alone college. To make it short, there´s a reason PC is in Honduras.... it´s one of the poorest countries in central and south america. If I remember right, it´s the 3rd poorest country.
Now, that I am done with my depressing news on the state of Honduras, I have a little news for everyone,
Despite my rigorous efforts to explain to certain people my real reasons for going into the Peace Corps, some people still think I went into it to find myself a latino boyfriend or husband.... I would like to clarify that I have not yet found that husband, however, I have found a very handsome, playful, fun, comical, and sweet boy to spend some of my time. He´s always fun to be around and has given me quite a chase. His name is Isidro and he has made my Peace Corps stay a better experience. Even though he doesn´t have a job, or always wipe his face clean after he eats, i still appreciate the heart he has and how he makes me feel... We´ll see how our relationship progresses. Ohh, I forgot to say his age... he´s eight years old and is the brother of one of my fellow aspirantes..
Disclaimer: I want to apologize if some of my words or sentences might sound a little funny. There´s a joke that goes around in the PC that volunteers start to lose some of their English speaking and writing skills because we are doing everything in Spanish. I am going to try very hard to not let that happen to me, but I do catch myself using the wrong word or forgetting the name of something in English at times. Some day when i have time to read a book this might help this issue, but until then please bear with me.
Also, I was told that some people were having a hard time figuring out how to leave me messages on my blog. Look at the bottom right hand side of the page and it will say __ commentarios. This means, ___ comments. Click on that and it will take you to a page where you can see other´s comments and also a space where you can write something. You might have to sign up to be able to post something but it shouldn´t be too hard. Try going to www.freetranslation.com and type the words you need to know. I have tried multiple times to set up a blog in English, but for some reason it´s not wanting to work for me...soo...until I can figure something out I´ll have to stick with this one.
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Sara´s Peace Corps Training Experience- Week 2.6
Wow, now that I have finally set up this blog I am unsure of what to write. So much has happened in the past 3 weeks that I really do not know where to start.
The last that most people heard from me it was the day before I left for Honduras with a group of 51 aspiring PC volunteers- (I say aspiring because in order to actually become a volunteer we have to pass a few tests and have made an effort to integrate into the Honduran community). The morning we left for Honduras we had to be in the hotel lobby by 2:00am with all our luggage. I, however had to be in the lobby earlier because the day before I thought it would be a good idea to elect myself to be a "group leader" for 1/4 of the group. It turns out that I was a lot more enthusiastic and energtic about the idea of being a group leader rather than actually being one. Let´s just say that at the end of 15ish hours of traveling I slept pretty damn well.
About the place I am staying right now- As it turns out, Zarabanda really is outside of Tegucigalpa and I wouldn´t have had internet access if I had not traveled to Valle de Angeles (about a 20-30 bus ride north). I thought I was going to be living in Zarabanda where the PC training office is but instead I am living in Las Cañadas (10-15 min bus ride). It is beautiful there and the people are wonderful. Weather wise, we are in the mountains so it can get cool but it´s usually a comfortable 70 degrees. My living arrangement is a little...actually quite a bit different from a lot of the "aspirantes" (what us wanna-be volunteers are called until we are swore in on September 26). I have a house that is nicer than the one I had in the United States- before I met my host family I was told on a piece of paper that "La casa es muy lujosa--pero este no es la realidad en Honduras." Basically, the house is very luxurious but I better not get used to it- it´s not the reality. My host parents actually just moved to Honduras from Miami two years ago. My host madre, Ana, is Honduran and had been living in Miami for 21 years-where she met my host padre, Tyrone. He is actually from Jamaica and had also immigrated to Miami. They are both very sweet people with kind hearts. I also live with two very beautiful and nice pitt bulls named Luna and Dante. ---I would love to keep talking about my Las Cañandas host family but time is precious for me at the moment.
A typical day for me consists of getting up at 5:30 am to take a shower, eat breakfast, and walk to the bus stop by 7 am. By 7:30 am other aspirantes and I have arrived at our training site and we go to Spanish class. Spanish class is between 4-5 hours long. In case certain people are curious, a volunteer has to have reached a mid-intermediate level of Spanish to pass the language requirement and become a volunteer. Luckily, I tested into the high-intermediate Spanish level so I do not have to worry about not having the Spanish skills. yay! Anyways, after spanish class we usually have some sort of safety, core, or specific project training that lasts until 4:30. Then by bus we are taken home- sometimes us aspirantes get to hang out, other times we are with our families speaking spanish and doing homework. There´s definitely a handfull of new experiences everyday.
Got to go for now, but another update will come soon!
The last that most people heard from me it was the day before I left for Honduras with a group of 51 aspiring PC volunteers- (I say aspiring because in order to actually become a volunteer we have to pass a few tests and have made an effort to integrate into the Honduran community). The morning we left for Honduras we had to be in the hotel lobby by 2:00am with all our luggage. I, however had to be in the lobby earlier because the day before I thought it would be a good idea to elect myself to be a "group leader" for 1/4 of the group. It turns out that I was a lot more enthusiastic and energtic about the idea of being a group leader rather than actually being one. Let´s just say that at the end of 15ish hours of traveling I slept pretty damn well.
About the place I am staying right now- As it turns out, Zarabanda really is outside of Tegucigalpa and I wouldn´t have had internet access if I had not traveled to Valle de Angeles (about a 20-30 bus ride north). I thought I was going to be living in Zarabanda where the PC training office is but instead I am living in Las Cañadas (10-15 min bus ride). It is beautiful there and the people are wonderful. Weather wise, we are in the mountains so it can get cool but it´s usually a comfortable 70 degrees. My living arrangement is a little...actually quite a bit different from a lot of the "aspirantes" (what us wanna-be volunteers are called until we are swore in on September 26). I have a house that is nicer than the one I had in the United States- before I met my host family I was told on a piece of paper that "La casa es muy lujosa--pero este no es la realidad en Honduras." Basically, the house is very luxurious but I better not get used to it- it´s not the reality. My host parents actually just moved to Honduras from Miami two years ago. My host madre, Ana, is Honduran and had been living in Miami for 21 years-where she met my host padre, Tyrone. He is actually from Jamaica and had also immigrated to Miami. They are both very sweet people with kind hearts. I also live with two very beautiful and nice pitt bulls named Luna and Dante. ---I would love to keep talking about my Las Cañandas host family but time is precious for me at the moment.
A typical day for me consists of getting up at 5:30 am to take a shower, eat breakfast, and walk to the bus stop by 7 am. By 7:30 am other aspirantes and I have arrived at our training site and we go to Spanish class. Spanish class is between 4-5 hours long. In case certain people are curious, a volunteer has to have reached a mid-intermediate level of Spanish to pass the language requirement and become a volunteer. Luckily, I tested into the high-intermediate Spanish level so I do not have to worry about not having the Spanish skills. yay! Anyways, after spanish class we usually have some sort of safety, core, or specific project training that lasts until 4:30. Then by bus we are taken home- sometimes us aspirantes get to hang out, other times we are with our families speaking spanish and doing homework. There´s definitely a handfull of new experiences everyday.
Got to go for now, but another update will come soon!
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