Cocido (video 2)

Making Cocido

If you have never heard of Cocido, Cocido is charred tea and sugar. You blend this together and then add boiling water. It is delicious. I drink it every morning at breakfast. What´s even more fascinating is seeing how it is made. One usually mixes the sugar and tea together dry. Next your drop a flaming piece of charcoal in the dry mix and scoop the tea and sugar over the piece of flaming coal to char the tea and somewhat carmelize the sugar. Once charred really well, you dump this mixture into boiling water. You then remove the charcoal shortly after and drink what´s left.This is calicious.

WHERE I`M FROM

Since beginning training her in Paraguay, all of the volunteers have become pretty close. We are all experiencing many of the same things and given that we only have each other to talk to about our experiences, it has brought us together like a little family. In an effort to get to know each other better, we decided we would write poems titled ``Where I´m From``. Each of us wrote poems about our home towns, families and other things that are important to us. At the beginning I thought this was one of the most stupid ideas I had ever heard of. When my day finally came to share, I decided to give it my best shot. After receiving ver good feedback from my poem I have decided to post it. Please let me know what you think of it. I didn´t like it a first, but the process was fun. If you liked it let me know and maybe I will continue to write. See Poem below.    Unitl Next time!     WHERE I'M FROM I am not from the mixing bowl, or a place well known. Many of you have heard of it, but have never visited my home.   I am from prominent and pervasive plains...clean air, lots of space, and we know all of our neighbors by name.   I am from dirt, dust and tractors. Where I come from the local church, in our lives, is still a major factor.   I am from a family were house rules are not broken and most are simple, mostly based biblical principal.   I am from discipline that might include a switch, hand or belt, but always ends with a kiss a hug and conversations that are memorable and heartfelt.   I am from a family of loud talking, shouting, cooking, dancing and music. Respecting your siblings was expected "Now, now you know the consequences...you choose it." I am from going grocery shopping at 2am..as a family.   I'm from skating rinks, skating parties and couple skates. I am from parents who lived, saw and experienced brutal race relations, but have encouraged me to express and share love and compassion with other nations.   I am from Oklahoma. I am from the Black side of town. I am from the white side of town. I am from the "no-body-wants-to-go-to-side-of-town" This side is usually full of the other brown people, restaurants, cumbia ranchera and duranguense music. Also on this side of town, some of the most loving, compassionate and caring people can be found.   I am from heartfelt smiles & firm handshakes. I am from Sunday entertainment that includes a drive around the lake.   I am from big sky sunrises and sunsets, slow living that's free from the complex.   I am from a place where a "how are you?" is followed by an "I'm doing fine"... a conversation ensues because we are not as concerned about time. However, I am also from one of the many places that populate the military and for you, we put our necks on the line.   I am from a place where the list of professional dress items will likely include cowboy boots.   Lastly, I am from the United States. Were many flaws exist. However, given my race, the U.S. has done more for me than any other place.

3 man band

This is the band that came to serenade my host Dad Don Eddie. If you have been keeping up with he blog you`ll remember a previous post about this group that came to my house for my host dad´s birthday. Though I did not record the song that I liked so much, maybe this one can give you a hint of what it was like.

The Bubble, The 4th of July, Disney, The Embassy and Pigpen (from Peanuts)....

Today was the 4th of July and the Embassy is always nice enough to invite the Peace Corps to the Embassy to participate in the festivities. Really, the festivities consist of grilling hamburgers and hot dogs with all the fixins. Of course, we played volleyball and basketball, threw the frisbee and enjoyed the scenery of the embassy and listen to music. In other words, a normal 4th of July that many do back in the states. I think the reason I (as well as others in the group) enjoyed the event so much was because the embassy is a bubble of the United States. Don’t get me wrong, I knew it would be, but it’s a different experience when you actually do it. What am I talking about? Okay, for the last 5 weeks we have been learning many different ways to integrate into the culture here in Paraguay. This includes learning the language and practicing the saying “when in Rome, do as the Romans do…” This means that we have been eating a lot of the Paraguayan food and drinking the Paraguayan tea etc. This also means feeling like you are in a doll house. No matter where you go, people stare like at you like you are inside of some department store window or some doll house. Kids will walk within 5 feet of you and just stare at you right in the face. This has never been a problem before, when I travelled other places, but here in Paraguay, given its geographic position (or isolataion), the people rarely see individuals that look different than they do and the staring is so pervasive, so I just smile and wave. On numerous occasions I have been told that I was Brazilian. While I don’t mind this too much, being “on display” does get old after a while. So many times little kids hear you speaking English and walk up to you and say the only English word they know, to see how you react and if you understand. This happens all the time. What’s worse is when the adults do it. The adults don’t walk up to you; instead they constantly scream broken English at you, just to see if you understand. So what do they say? This of the worst curse-words you can think of, and then combine them into some sentence that doesn’t make sense. Something like “eFuck-a-shit-you!!!) There not being mean, but want to practice their American move experience. Anyway, this “being on display” is sometimes scary (especially when on a bus) because you know the people recognize that you appear to have more than they do. So we have to be really careful because some may decide they want to forcefully “borrow” for good, what I have.
Switching back to the atmosphere here in Paraguay, part of the Paraguayan experience also includes dealing with the litter covered streets, the poorly maintained and mistreated trees and foliage. On top of this, the streets are full of motorcycles spewing stomach churning exhaust. This is only topped by the numerous diesel engine trucks and cars that fill the air with such a thick exhaust that you might believe the area you are standing in is on fire. This is the city of Asuncion (don’t get me wrong, it has its nice parts too) and among all of this is where the United States Embassy is located.
As we figured, the embassy would be rather difficult to get inside. High security, many police officers with guns and an expectation of obedience on behalf of those entering the embassy, sets the atmosphere at the entrance. Upon entering the embassy (the bubble) the whole world seemed to change. “Where was the smog, the loud traffic, the ugly trees”, I thought to myself. It was as if the Embassy had hired Disney to create and imaginary bubble. Where were the staring kids? No one looked at us because we spoke English loudly. In fact everyone else also spoke the same infamous language. I wasn’t concerned about anyone cutting me, or having to watch my back. The trees were HUGE and impeccably trimmed. The grasses seemed to be greener than I remember grass back home. I don’t think I’ve ever seen palm trees so tall. Innumerable types of flowers and plants decorated the grounds of the embassy. At this point I had been walking for about 10 minutes in one direction and could not see the end of the embassy grounds. As I continued walking I noticed that water dispensers were set up throughout the grounds also, these are the kind you would see in the offices, with the big blue jug on top (these might have been there because of the 4th of July event, but I’m not sure). Every tree and plant was labeled with a name indicating the kind of plant it was. Also each tree was numbered with a dog-tag-style tag. Although, the temperature didn’t really change, however I couldn’t argue against one who would say that the temperature even seemed to get cooler. I guess I could just sum up the experience by saying that I was very impressed with the size of the embassy and the attention to detail, to make the embassy look impressive. It might help to mention that although we are in the season of winter here, it still gets very warm on some days and then changes to freezing a week later. Today it must have been 80 degrees out. I think by the end of next week it will be in the mid 30’s.
Okay, so why was the embassy so big? The American Embassy in Paraguay is the second largest embassy in the world, after the one in Iraq’s green zone. Why? You history buffs can probably figure it out. Let’s take a trip down history lane (a quick one, I promise). After World War II the cold war begin. You history buffs will remember that Argentina had many dictators in the 1950’s. Chile in the 1960’s and the U.S. over threw Salvador Allende in Chile in the 70’s. In reality, this was the Cold War experience of S. America at the time. Paraguay is at the heart of S. America and has always accepted war criminals. Paraguay was one of countries to allow the most World War II war criminals to seek asylum here. The fallen dictator of Nicaragua (Anastasia Somoza) also lived here in Asuncion. In other words Paraguay is a place where lots of trouble foments, given its geographic isolation. Paraguay had its own dictator (Alfredo Stroessner) from 1954 to 1989 who ruled with a brutal iron fist. So, during the cold war, the U.S. heavily supported Stroessner. The idea behind the control was to allow Stroessner to rule, but the U.S. to a large degree controlled Stroessner by supplying him with whatever he needed to fight communists, and hated communists Stroessner did. So as far as the U.S. was concerned the U.S. had a great thing going. So, basically, the embassy is so large because of the critical role it played in managing the interior and all of South America during the cold war and protecting the world from communists.
Okay, back to the embassy. Well, by now it’s time to leave. As I left the embassy I stopped to pick-up my huge Leatherman pocket knife (the one that almost caused some problems on the way inside). When the security placed the knife in my hand, he gently guided my through the door and outside with his other hand. This was as if he used the knife to “pop” my Embassy-Disney created bubble and reality again hit me in the face. If you remember Charlie Brown’s friend Pigpen for the comic strip Peanut’s, this is how I imagined myself. I said goodbye to the Bubble and walked to down to the street with the smog, the noise, the children and the stares from all the passersby closing in around me once again. Back to reality.

My House (4of4)

You`ve wanted to see where I live, well here it is. Please excuse the video quality.

My House Video (3of4)

You`ve wanted to see where I live, well here it is. Please excuse the video quality.

My House (2of4)

You`ve wanted to see where I live, well here it is. Please excuse the video quality.

My House (1st of 4 videos)

You`ve wanted to see where I live, well here it is. Please excuse the video quality.

3rd Dia de Practica (3rd day of Practice)...

3rd Dia de Practica…
Well, today (July 3rd) was our 3rd dia de practica. We decided that since we had interviewed the community, the municipality and the directors of the schools, the next logical step would be to do a focus group with the students at the school. We chose a 6th grade class from a public school and a private school. So today we went to the public school first at 8am. We got there to find out that instead of our requested 9-12 students we would have about 18-20 students. This was not terribly bad, we just didn’t know if we would be able to control the whole group.
For the most part Jesus and I decided that the best method would be to pretend that we had not done any research and simply have a conversation with the children and see where it lead. If you remember our topic is “Basura” (trash). We have been investing why Gurambaré is completely covered with litter and trash. This includes contaminated streams and parks that are full of litter. We have been wondering if the people even see the trash, and if they do, why don’t they clean it up? We used visual prop called “The Arbol del Problem” (The tree of problems), which was basically white construction paper with a tree drawn on it, with the roots at the bottom and a big, full, green tree at the top. The tree was more symbolic than anything else. The goal was to question the students about the causes (roots) of litter and trash in the community, and then discuss the effects (the budding green part of the tree) that the trash can have on the community.
To begin with, we passed out paper and had the children make themselves nametags so that we could call on the children if they didn’t want to speak up. From the start the children we very active and were eager to interact with 2 Brazilians (yes, the initially thought we were from Brazil). To make a long story short, we find out that most of the children’s parents burn their trash each night, instead of paying for the local trash service which takes away the trash.
This school had children that were very active and eager to participate.
At 10am we arrived at the private school with high hopes. When we arrived with checked in with the director and waited for the 6th grade teacher to come down and get us. (so far so good, the public school just allowed us to walk into the school, past hundred of kids, and appeared to not have any means of security to keep the children safe.) The teacher soon arrived and took us to her classroom. On the way to the class we noticed that all of the children had uniforms on (not uncommon at any school) and the school was much better kept. The teacher lead us to her classroom but allowed us to enter first, while she waited outside. Upon entering all of the children stood in unison a practically remained “at attention” until we told them to be seated. Ten seconds later the teacher came in, and again they stood immediately an in unison. With this kind of welcome I was impressed with the children and of course had high hopes about the outcome of the class.
Sadly, I can sum up the whole class period in one word “mudos” (mutes). Jesus and I worked that class, promised dance lesson, promised candy, told jokes, had the kids make a circle, had the kids stand and shake their hands and I even had to break dance in order to show them how loose and relaxed we wanted them to be…….all of this and nothing. The students barely spoke and didn’t want to answer or participate at all. Don’t get me wrong, none of the children were falling asleep or even slouched in their chairs, they just simply did not want to answer any questions.
Upon talking to our trainer, he indicated that many of the private schools may have more resources, but they also have more rigid teachers. In other words he was describing the fact that many of the students in the private schools are more accustomed to taking orders from the “authority” figures, but rarely are the asked to respond to anything or contemplate their thoughts, but instead simply obey.
So in conclusion, the dia de practica went very well. We learned that some of the classes just won’t go as planned and not always will we have what it takes to make the children talk and speak up. All-in-All a productive day. See picture below.

Progress...

As the saying goes… "Everything changes, the only thing constant is change itself…" While I don't remember who said that,  I believe it to be true. In fact, the saying is so true that one does not even need to know the author to recognize the astuteness behind the comment. During my time (5 weeks) here in Paraguay I think I changed tremendously already. I think what scares me the most is that I will be here for 26 more months…what other changes will occur, and to what degree?  It does not seem like I have been gone that long but when I think about the other volunteers that I have met, the families that I have met and stayed with, it seems like that I have know them for a lifetime. Paraguay is a Latin-American country that still practices the siesta or the early afternoon nap. Perhaps maybe not so much in the capital of Asuncion, but even there, one is not surprised to see many businesses closed, or posts unmanned during the siesta hours. Throughout Paraguay (especially in the countryside) the typical business/social hours maybe from 7am to 11:30am. From 11:30 to 1:30 the town is quiet, store doors shut and barred, and families are eating lunch together. At 1:30 people take naps (siestas) until about 4pm. At 4:30pm stores open up once again and business is conducted as usual until about 7:30 pm. Though these hours maybe vary by an hour or so here and there, this schedule is pretty common of all type of businesses. For example, banks are only open from 7am to 1pm. Municipal buildings quite frequently have the same hours. Therefore you can see that most business and services tend to somewhat operate around a schedule that permits people to enjoy the siesta or mid-afternoon nap. Just for a side note, our Peace Corps training is about the only organization that does not adhere to this practice. This is how I know the streets are completely empty at these times. I am the only lunatic out walking the streets during siesta time. State policeman protect co-op locations from riots and manifestations that can get out hand.  They normally carry 12-guage shotguns. During siesta hours I have seen them sitting down asleep at the doors of the co-ops. In the short time that I have been here I have learned that "progress" and "development" look very different depending on where one comes from.  I have noticed that many Paraguayans see what other countries (U.S. Western Europe) have an comment on how rich they are. Then they look at themselves that talk about how much they don't  have. Strictly looking at material gain, Paraguay does not have anything.  I watched a man trim tree branches today, with a machete. He hacked away at it for hours. This would have been much easier had he had a simple chainsaw.  Anyway, as I look around myself and at the families that we as volunteers stay with, I have come to the conclusion that the family focus and importance that is seen here in Paraguay could not be transposed to the U.S. nor could the hyperactive, consumption and work focused culture of the U.S. be installed here in Paraguay. The Paraguayan values a tight (sometimes too tight as far as I'm concerned) family unit and time to spend with the individuals. This is seen in the many hours that family and friends spend drinking mate and terere (both herbal drinks) in the morning, afternoon and evening. Seeing it through the eyes of an American, I might think that this "lazy" behavior is exactly why there is so little productivity here.  I imagine that a Paraguayan looking at the U.S. would think that we simply don't love our families, after all,  they spend so much time working and worrying about work and rarely do they spend time with their families. With all of this said, I have realized that "progress" takes on a different presentation than what I realized. I have come to understand that development of Paraguay will not mean to make the country look more like the U.S. but to instead find out what the people what to achieve and then assist them in being more efficient and productive while preserving their preferences and cultural norms. After all, the Peace Corps was invited here to "help" not invited here to change Paraguay as we see fit, but instead to help them accomplish what they see fit for Paraguay.

A Piece of Culture & Something special...

Today I slept in. Why? Because I think I’ve been exhausted here lately. Not physically, but mentally. I think we have all been here at one time or another. So, today (Sunday July 6th) I woke up about noon and ate lunch with my host mom and my host brother’s girlfriend. I noticed that my host dad wasn’t there and my family told me that some friends had shown up to serenade him for his birthday (3 days before). His friends are from the far parts of Paraguay and rarely make it into town. My host mom suggested that I go in to the living room to listen to them play. Before going in there I had no idea what was in store for me. Three men were in the living room with instruments creating a spellbinding-sound. Two were playing guitars and one gentleman was playing an accordion. My host dad told me that they do not play formally or for money, but because they enjoy playing and love traditional Paraguayan music. Those of you who know my well, also know how special music is to me. It was truly a pleasure to listen to the 3 men sing and play. My host dad told them that I was really fond of Mexico and that I had a Mexican girlfriend. Immediately the commenced to sing a traditional Paraguayan song, but (al estilo Mexicano, hasta el grito hicieron) performed in a Mexican style. The song was absolutely heart wrenchingly beautiful. I didn’t even know what to do, I just felt my face start getting warm and felt my nostrils start to flare, and next thing I knew I was crying. This song was that good. Thinking back, I didn’t know why I cried, but I know now. I’m in Latin America. There are characteristics that run through all of Latinamerica, however, there are characteristics that make each country distinct from any other. In this case, I think the reason I cried was because every where I look around here, I see Mexico. In many ways Paraguay and Mexico are exactly alike, yet at the same time they are completely alien to one another. Specifically, what made me cry was that the song was so beautiful and I know that my girlfriend Karla would have loved the song, but moreover, she would have really appreciated the gesture and effort on the part of the gentleman to make her feel as much at home as possible through their music. I guess what I cried over, was the fact that I was not able to share the moment with her, I know she would have loved it and would have loved to have shared it with her.

I didn’t get to record the song I really liked, but do have a video of a different song. The video is a very large format, so be paciente with me and I will do my best to try and get it posted a.s.ap. Here are some pictures.

San Juanazo

This is a video of a San Juanazo. To be very brief, a San Juanazo is a Catholic celebration of saint john. The events that take place at a San Juanazo are (or don´t appear) to be at all related to the catholic faith. In this video the children are trying to lick a coin off of the back of a skillet. Yes, that´s right, I said ``lick``. The skillet is hung from a string so this task is rather difficult, not to mention SUPER unsanitary. The children take turn trying to lick it, and the winner gets a good prize. See the video.

Training Compound (Video 2)

This is a contiuation of the first video.

En Continuacion del primer video.

Training Compound (Video 1)

This is our training sight. I hope this video works. Please excuse the long delay in correcting these posting. Aqui veras nuestro sitio de capcitacion. Aqui aprendemos lenguaje y cultura.

Other Volunteers

Here are some of the other volunteers. Here we are at a San Juanazo. This was at the beginnig so we were al about to fall asleep. I´ll have more pictures later.

Terrifying Image....

Recenlty we went to a San Juanazo. A san Juanazo is an catholic celebration of the death (birth, I don´t know and neither to most people) of Saint John. There is a big festival that has lots of different aspects included that (from my perspective) have nothing to do with catholicism. Anyway, some of the volunteers and I decided to go to the festival in order to learn more about the culture of the place where we are. I and another girl are from African--American decent. The photos seen below did not help my security feeling down here at all. Take a look.


Recientemente fuimos a un San Juanzao. Un San Juanazo es una celebracion catolica del muerto (o nacimiento, parece que nadie sabe) del San Juan. Aqui hacen una fiesta grande, pero el problema (para mi) es que parace que los caracteristicas de la fiesta no tiene nada que ver con catolocismo. Bueno, para aprender mas de la cultura de paraguay, unos voluntarios e yo decidimos irnos a la festival. Otra voluntaria e yo somos de asendencia Afro--Americana. Si te acuerdas de la historia de morenos en EEUU las fotos que aparecen abajo, debe de explicar nuestor temor, y la incomodad tremenda que sentiamos estando en est lugar.

The Muncipality...

The Municpality...

June 28, 2008.
Today we went to town of Nueva Italia. We went to visit the Municipality there and meet the town mayor. The best way to explain the set up of a Municipality here in Paraguay can be explained as: The Mayor holds basically all the power. The only check on the mayor’s power is the Junta that has to approve all of his work. However, the Junta cannot create any type of project. Their only role is to approve the Mayor’s proposals or reject his proposals. The Junta is usually split between the two national political parties. They junta also usually reflects the political party of the town in which it resides. If the town is split between the two parties, the junta will be split to reflect the representation of the town.

Well today, we went to the Municipality in Nueva Italia. We had the opportunity to listen observe the Junta in session and listen to them discuss the issues of their town. After that, we were allowed to review all of the requests (pedidos) for funds of projects. The way it works, if you want to money for a project you have to gather support by creating a neighborhood commission (comsion vecinal) and formally present all of the details of your project and then you can request the money. There are hundreds of neighborhood commissions and there is never enough money to go around. So today 6 of us reviewed all of the pedidos and we decided which ones would be approved. It was interesting to see what the people were requesting. The sad thing was that rarely anyone request money for capital expenses. All of the money was for immediate benefit or consumption. For example, no one requested money for a tractor in order to be able to farm a piece of land for the next 10 years. Instead, people were request money to pay for a man to come and spray their crops. These kind of projects we didn’t approve. Why? Because next year, they are gonna be looking for this money again. They type of projects we wanted were ones, that might have brought a guy in to teach that area different ways to protect their crops from pests, or teach them how to spray their own crops. Either of these aforementioned ideas would help the group to be better prepared and more independent from help from the outside. It was an interesting day. We learned a lot and I think, our work will be very similar to this when we go out to our sites. Another job we might do at our sites, would be to go out to these specific communities who are requesting money and help teach them on how to prepare and better pedido (request) in order to help them get the funding approved, by helping them to understand that sustainability and independence will help the municipality be more likely to approve their request. The way things are set up now, the people continue to deal with the same problems year after year (like pests eating up all their crops) and the only way they solve it is waiting for the municipality to come and give them some money to spray their crops. On too many occasions there crop harvest is little or nothing because they wait for someone to come and do it for them.

Korean Barbecue...

Korean Barbecue!!
Korean barbecue is great! When I went to visit my host volunteer in Aregua, we came into Asuncion to have Korean barbecue. It’s even better when shared among friends. So what could make it better? When you get to cook it yourself at your table. Many people have probably visited a restaurant of this type in the states. It’s not a new thing, but for me it is. I get the feeling that the restaurant is really good, because many Koreans frequent the restaurant. My feeling was confirmed when I tasted the food. CALICIOUS!!!! (Delicious x 100= Calicious)

The Cell phone saga....

The Cell phone. Before I get started I need to explain a bit about how some Peace Corps Volunteers experience Paraguay. Here in Paraguay, many volunteers have experienced outright request for the property by Paraguayan friends and family. From what I’ve heard this is not uncommon. Many Paraguayan adults and children will look at your tennis shoes, being named bran (Nike), and say something like “ Wow, I like those…How much did they cost? Can I have them?” or “Oh my gosh, that’s a nice camera, it takes pictures and films? The pictures look nice, Can I have that camera?” The Peace Corps has told us that this is common and there will be lots of people that ask us for our stuff. They have suggested that we not give it away or they will think that we are a walking bank. On the other hand the Peace Corps also says, that whether or not you give them your stuff, they still think you are a walking bank. In many occasions they believe that an american’s presence can get money to come down easily. So what does all this have to do with a cell phone? Well, my host family knows all of the aforementioned. Furthermore, many of the families make sure that their kids and family member do not ask the Peace Corps volunteers for their stuff. They do this for many reasons, but the main reason is because to flat out ask also implies that the person is needy. In order to save face many Paraguayans with just compliment on what you have hoping that you will give it to them. As I mentioned, most host families know this and won’t behave that way with volunteers. Being that my host mother knows this, here is the story of the Cell Phone.

Upon arriving in Paraguay I realized that my phone did not work here. I also knew that the Peace Corps is going to provide us with phones once we go out to our sites in August. On top of that, I remembered why I got cell phone. I originally got it because Karla went to OU when I went to OSU. When Karla came back to OSU they had changed the phone service whereby was required to choose and pay for a long distance phone plan, no longer could one just have local service in Stillwater. For this reason, I kept my cell phone. If the peace corps is going to give us phones, then I don’t need mine. If I want a cell phone when I come back to the US I will be able to get a free phone when signing the phone contract This was my thinking. Continuing with more background info, here in Paraguay one may get robbed for their cell phone. This is very common because cell phone use, text messages and things of that nature are relatively new and everyone wants to try and get one. For this reason cell phone are really popular and frequently stolen. One night when talking to my family they were explaining to me all the things that we need to be leery of when in the capital city of Asuncion. We have a maid that works here at the house with my host family. She practically lives here and goes home on Saturday afternoons and comes back again on Monday. While telling me this, my host dad mentioned to me that Gladys (the maid) had been robbed a few months back and had her cell phone stolen.
This is where the story begins. One day I gave me cell phone to Gladys. I told her that I didn’t think it would work, but if she could get the phone “unblocked” and hooked up here she could have it. Three days later she goes to Asuncion and comes back chatting away to her friends and boyfriend on the phone. My host mom darn near threw a fit. While I was at school, the host mom bombarded her with questions about where and how she got the phone. My host mom didn’t believe Gladys when she told her that I had given her the phone. When I got home my host mom waited until Gladys was gone to the store and she asked me a number of times if I had given her the phone. I told her “yes” and then my host mom assumed that Gladys had asked me for it. Then my host mom didn’t believe that Gladys had not asked me for the phone. So, I had to pull both my host mom and the maid together and clarify before both of them. “Señora, Gladys did not ask me for the phone. I gave it to her. Gladys, I didn’t tell the Señora that you asked me for the phone.” After that things were fine. But needless to say it caused a big mess, all because they are not accustomed to someone giving away something that they perceive as expensive. I can remember Brett Mardis giving me his old cell phone. But I guess here it’s just unheard of. On top of that, I think my host mom would have been embarrassed for her family, had the maid asked me for the phone. Anyway that is the Cell Phone Saga.

Brrrr......

Brrrrr…..Cold
Does 37-50 degrees seem cold to you? Well here it is freezing, freezing to the bone. Why? Well here since all of the homes are made of stone or cement, and none of the houses have insulation you are basically sitting in 37-50 degrees all the time. I have to wear a coat all the time, even while inside the house. What´s even worse is that July is the worst. It will be getting colder. The good thing is that it does not get as cold as it does at home. Anyway, my big hat the Karla gave me for Christmas has really come in handy. See below.

Interesting statue...

In one of the previous postings I told you about my trip to Aregua. I went to visit another volunteer just to get an idea of how a volunteer lives. As I mentioned, the city is really nice and very colonial. Anway, if the front yard of my host volunteer is an interesting statue. He says that it was there when he moved in, but nevertheless, it´s very interesting. I decided to take a picture with it.

El Colectivo - El Bache (Paraguay)

To get a good look at some of he buses here in Paraguay, take a look at the video here. I don´t know what they look like in other places, but I believe the buses (called colectivos here) are probably some of the most unique. Check them out)

Para ver los autobuses que cubren el pais de Paraguay vea el video. No se como comparan con los del otro paises del latino america pero supongo que los de aqui son muy distintos. Vea el video

Pictures of Areguá...Fotos de Areguá

Picture of an old train that ran through Aregua, years ago. Now it only runs a few times a month. Foto de un tren que iba desde Asuncion a Aregua hace años. Ahora viene unos veces al mes.




View of the lake at the bottom of the hill in Aregua (contaminated though). Vista del lago al fondo de la loma principal de Aregua. (pero una bella vista no más, el lago esta contaminado)




A cool church at the top of the hill. This church faces the lake with a nice few for the patio seen in this picture. Esta iglesia linda esta encima de la loma que mira hacia el lago abajo. Un vista de maravilla.

Teaching English...Enseñando Inglés

Teaching...

Okay, I can´t relate to what a teacer goes through, neither teaching older kids in a university setting nor children in low income schools in the inner city. BUT, I can tell you a cool story.

This past weekend and until tuesday I am on a sight visit, visiting another volunteer out in place call Aregua. Aregua is a really pretty area that many of the volunteers fight to get placed at. I will try and post pictures and video soon.

So, continuing with teaching, I arrived Saturday morning and walked to the municipality where the other volunteer works on Sats. I get to the Muni. and can´t find the other volunteer. I finally ask someone where the other american is. They take me to the courtyard and at one end of the courtyard I see my other volunteer on the escenario (´´stage´´ I think) with a lot of desks and students sitting in them trying to learn english. I walk up with my big bags and join the group. I look around at about 20 bright eyed little young boys and girls staring up at a Peace Corps volunteer, with good spanish, but a not so good accent, teaching the children english. The kids were attentive and the kids were learning a lot and asking really astute questions. I really wish I would have taken a picture because the picture looked just like what you would see on the Peace Corps mailings, advertisements and propaganda. The Kids sat in a big circle and tried their best to say hi to me in English. I sat there for about 2 hours but during that time period the kids were asking me questions about how to form sentences and all the easy stuff that is usually confusing for first time english learners. Karla, I especially wish that you could have been there to not only answer their questons, but to feel how it feels to be able to answer a simple questions and see the satisfaction that comes over the kids face from feeling like they are learning something REALLY cool and new. Perhaps you have felt that when working witht the interational students on campus. Also, I think you would have enjoyed it because you could have spoken to them in Spanish that they could have better understood.

I think I better understand the challenges a teacher faces. They are some of the greatest, but I also think that the reward a teacher gets from seeing their students grow and learn is one of the greatest also. In other words, big rewards come from great challenges.

Ensenando....

Bueno, no puedo indentificarme con los dificultades que un profesor se tiene que enfrentar en la clase, ni en una situacion universitaria ni una escuela con escasos recursos en la ciudad. Sin embargo les puedo contar un cuento muy lindo.

El fin pasado fue a vistar a otro voluntario en su sitio en un lugar que se llama Areguá. Fui de viaje por autobus de una hora norte de Asuncion. Es un lugar precioso con vistas de maravilla, una iglesia bella que esta ubicada un una loma con bellas vistas sobre un lago lindo.

Bueno, llegue a la municipalidad en busca del otro voluntario. Pregunte al seguridad por el otro americano. Me llevó al jardin principal y al fondo de un lado estvó el otro voluntaro en el esencario con pupitres y unos 20 alumnos de 11 a 14 años enseñando el ingles. Me acerque al esenario y deje mi equipaje a un lado y me senté. En un circulo estaban todo los estudiantes con ojos brillantes fijados en el voluntario del cuerpo de paz, e esuchando al voluntario con español bueno, pero un accento horrible. Los niños le hacia preguntas buenas y bien astutas. Quisieras que hubiera sacado fotos por que la vista y ambiente fue igualito que los que vemos en los folletos de Cuerpo de paz y los video que un apirante ve la propaganda. Estuve yo, unos 2 horas, pero en esas 2 hora me hacian preguntas en como se forma oraciones y conjuga verbos y sustantivos. En tan poco tiempo nos hicimos amiguitos. El dia siguiente casa todo el pueblo de Aregua supo que el Americano (Josh mi compañero) tenia otro amigo visitandole de EEUU. Karla quisiera que estuvieras no solo para contestar los preguntas con mas eficaz que nosotros pero tambien saber como se siente poder contestar las preguntas de los niños y ver la satisfacion en sus ojos al pensar que estan aprendiendo algo importante y tambien ver en los ojos de ellos que se sienten el orgullo de haber aprendido un poco de ingles. Tal vez has sentido es eseñando los alumnos en la unversidad con los estudiantes del extranjero. Tambien te hubiera dado mucho gusto poderles explicado en castellano perfecto.

Creo que ahora entiendo los retos que los profesores tienen que batallar. Son dificilisimo. Pero a la vez la recompensa al ver a un alumno que entienda o que por fin capturo la esencia de tal leccion es un algo que siente muy lindo tambien.

Mark

Hamburgers

For those of you who have ever eaten street food in Mexico City know that the hamburgers therer are wonderful. Last night I had one that compared. These hamburgers come with, meat, cheese, ham, mayo, ketchup, lettuce, tomatoe, mayo, salt and all made fresh. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention, an over easy egg is also added to it.. Peep the pictures.





Para ustedes que han comido comida de la calle en Mexico, saben de las hamburguesas ricas que hay. Ayer en la noched comi uno que comparò con los de mexico. Esta tenia la carne, queso, jamon, ketchup, mostaza, lechuga, jitomate, mayo, sal, y tambien huevo duro. Riquisima fue! Vea las fotos.

El Terere

Terere is a herbal tea that people drink here. It´s actually kind of good, although it does not have much taste. It kind of tastes like steeped herbs. I guess that´s what tea is supposed to taste like. Not too bad though. However, here el Terere is a national past time. EVERYONE, and yes I mean EVERYONE walk around with their thermos of hot water (or maybe cold) and there little wooden cup (called a guampa pronounce "gwam´pa") and drinks this tea. Old people sit in their window and drink the stuff. Store owner, students, and construction workers and homeless people all do too. Well the interesting part, is how they share it. There are unwritten rules on how one shares their terere. There are unwritten rules on what ones is supposed to do with the metal straw, how to stir the tea, who can stir it etc. It´s kind of cool to watch the "ceremony" when people drink it. So how do they share it? Well they have one wooden cup and a metal straw. Then they pass the cup around so everyone can drink it. Needless to say EVERYONE drinks from the same metal straw. This does not make us too happy because we are not used to this. But I guess it will be something that I have to get used to and take my medicine and Pray that there are no serious risks to drinking the tea this way. Below is a picture.

Everywhere you go people carry these things around. It´s kinda like an country ritual. It´s pretty neat to see.

Terere es un tea medicinal. Me imagino que la mayoria de ustedes ya saben lo que es, asi que aguardense mientras que les aburren con mi explinacion y experiencia. Aqui en Paraguay se toma mucho el terere. Todos cargan su thermos con agua caliente y sus copa de madera (el guampa) La manera en que lo tomen es super interesante. Todoavia no he averiguado la signficancia de las maneras en que toman. Parece un ritual pero es super interesante. Lo mas me hace preocupar es el hecho de que comparten el tea entre mucha gente, todo bebiendo de la misma bombilla (popote, sorbete). Hasta ahora no se me ha emfermado de la gripe pero suspecho que me falta poco para enfermarme. Bueno no les aburro con todo los detalles. Esperen para la proxima actualizacion.

Paraguay

I have arrived here in Paraguay, and so far things are going well. My host family is wonderful and have taken me in like there own. The food has been good so far and should continue to be. I expect to lose some weight (which I need to do) and I suspect that I will be a bit more healthy. The food here is more natural than the food at home. Language? Uhm, yes the Jopara (Spanish mixed with Guarani) is rather difficult, but my family says that I will learn quickly. I hope I do.


He llegado aqui in Paraguay. Hasta ahora todo me va bien. My familia con quien vivo aqui is fabulosa. Me han brindado todo y haba abierto su casa como si yo fuera uno su hijos. La comida ha sido rica y parece que toda la comida sera media rica. Parece que me voy a bajar de peso ( eso es bueno para mi....el pansón) y creo que sera yo, sano. La comida aqui me parece mas natural que la comida en EEUU. Lenguaje? Ehhh, si, Jopara ( Espanol mezcaldo con el Guarani ) es un poquito dificil, pero me dice mi familia que lo aprendaré rapidisimo. Eso, yo espero.

Points of Departure....Puntos de Partida

Today we did the final touches of our training. I have been in my graduate program (International Studies) since august of 2006. I have been listening and preparing for this peace corps experience since that time. I don't think more training will fit in my head. Im ready to step foot in Paraguay and begin my work. Currently we are here in Miami waiting for our bus to pick us up for our ride to the Miami International airport. Though sad to leave my family and girlfriend, I think I'm ready....

Hoy terminamos los ultimos puntos de la capicitacion. Desde que emepece mi programa de postrgrado en 2006 he estado aprendiendo y estudiando todo del Cuerpo de Paz. Ya estoy harto de capacitacion y listo para pisar la tierra de Paraguay. Se que ahi me espera mucho mas para aprender. Sin embargo estoy listo. Ahora estamos esperando el autobus para ir al aeropuerto. Aunque me da mucha tristeza dejar mi noiva y mi familia, creo (espero que, ojala que) que estoy listo.....


Pictures of Miami Below

Staging/Orientacion

I arrived here in Miami yesterday. Staging is not really much of anything other than an orientation before going to the host country. It's been very weird experience. It feels a lot like vaction (the hotel, the luggage, the new scenes), but with the uneasy feeling that it will end like anything other than a vacation. In training today the trainer told us to "look around at all of these people....these people will be your family...." The people look nice enough, but I just can't imagine that for the first few months these people are gonna be my "close" friends. I don't even know any of them yet.... I guess the peace corps knows what they are doing.

Tomorrow evening (wed) we board our flight for Asuncion, the capital of Paraguay. Word has it, that the same day that we arrive (thursday) each of us will each go to stay with our host family. I feel for the volunteers that do not know a word of Spanish.


Llegue aqui in Miami ayer. La orientacion, de verad no es nada. Es mas para ubicarnos y prepararnos para nuestra destinacion in Asuncion. Bueno, eso es orientacion...no? Es una experiencia muy extrano. Es como una vacacion (el hotel, equipaje, ambiente nueva) pero la sensacion extrano es de que este "viaje" sera cualquier otra cosa aparte de un viaje al fin y acabo de todo. En la orientacion, el lider nos dijo que fijaramos muy bien en a la gente en nuestros alrededores, "porque" dijo el senor, "estas personas sera tu familia durante los proximos 27 meses. Ne entiendes mal, la gente me parece buena gente, pero es super dificil imaginar que estas personas seran mis buenos amigos durante el tiempo mas dificil, durante el tiempo de capcitacion--apenas los conoci. Bueno, manana embarcamos para nuestra Asuncion querida! Dicen que ese mismo dia, nos vamos a quedar con nuestras familias. Siento por la gente que ni hablan ninguna palabrita de espanol.

The Next step may prove more difficult./ El proximo paso puede ser lo mas dificil

Phew!! Now that school is complete I can concentrate on trying to prepare for my tour in the Peace Corps. I honestly thought that once school was complete it would be easier to focus. However, the difficulty now is actually following through with doing this. I thought it would be easy to leave, like any other trip. But of course, this one is much different. 27 months away from my home and my girlfriend is going to be A LOt more difficult than I had orginally anticipated. I try not to let it show, but I think I'm a nervous wreck. This is not good! Or on the other hand, maybe this is normal...who knows....

Ahhhh, Ahora que he terminado con mis estudios puedo concentrarme en la preparacion para mi turno en el Cuerpo de Paz. En veradad, yo pensaba que cuando termine este semestre seria mas facil enfocarme en la preparacion. Sin embargo, la dificultad ahora es seguir con mis planes de ir y cumplir mi acuerdo con el Cuerpo de Paz y fisicamente pisar el avion para comezar mi turno. Pense que seria facil alejarme, como cualquier otro viaje. Pero claro este viaje sera pero muy diferente. 27 meses lejos de mi familia y novia va a ser MUCHO mas dificil que anticipaba antes. Trato de no demostrar el estres de que estoy sufriendo, pero en verdad siento que me estoy volviendo loco emocionalmente. Esto no es bueno....o tal vez es normal.....quien sabe.

Struggling...

Before recieving my assignment in December, I anticipated receiving it so much that I found it very difficult to focus on my studies. However, now that I have received my assignment I find it more difficult to concentrate on my work. I am working on my creative component as part of the final step in completion of my M.S. I understand the importance of completing the work, but I find myself daydreaming and wasting many hours doing absolutely nothing. Please pray for me as I struggle through this semester. I guess to be specific, pray that I use my time wisely.

Antes de recibir mi invitacion para servir en el Cuerpo de Paz en Diciembre, la anticipaba tanto que no podio concentrar ni hacer mis tareas. Fue muy dificil. Sin embargo, ahora que tengo mi invitacion y mi proyecto, me encuentro desperdiciando mas tiempo que antes. Se que me falta casi dos meses para terminar mi tesis como el ultimo paso para terminar mi maestria, pero lamentablemente diario me encuentro sonando despierto hora tras hora. No sabes lo dificil que es ponerme a atencion y cumplir mis trabajos a tiempo. Favor de orar por mi. O sea ora para que utilize el tiempo que me queda con mas eficaz.

The New Year

Well, the New Year has arrived. This means that I have roughly five months before my departure to Paraguay. I cannot explain the excitement, the fear, the sadness that I feel. I have yet to leave and already am experiencing mixed emotions about serving in Paraguay.


Pues, el ano nuevo ha llegado. Tengo unos cinco meses antes de irme a Paraguay. No tengo las palabras para expresar el temor, la tristeza y la emocion que traigo. Ni he salido, me quedan cinco meses y estoy inundado con emocion.

Receipt of Invitation. Me llego la invitacion

Well, I received my invitation about 3 days ago. I am very excited and I don't think it has quite sank in as of yet. Hopefully, by the time I leave in May I will feel more comfortable. This blogging things is something new. I'll learn as I go so I hope you will bear with me.

Pues, recibi mi inivitacion hace uno dias. Estoy muy emocionado pero no creo se me haya caido el veinte. No siento que todo de eso es real. Me queda un semestre todavia, asi que tendre que seguir poco a poco y espero que sienta mas preparado antes del Mayo.