In-Site Visit!

1/31/12

Well, time is flying here. It seems crazy that I’ve only been down here for 3 weeks, but it’s been wonderful so far! Days are getting into a rhythm in our little training community. Language classes every morning and technical classes in the afternoons, then usually homework and talking with the family or pasear-ing around the community at night. But this past weekend was a little different – we got to go visit PCVs in their sites! I went to the province of Coclé. My host’s, Jessica’s, site was about 45 minutes outside of the capital city of Penonomé. A group of us traveled to Penonomé together and met up with our volunteers. We walked around at the market, got some lunch, then Jessica and I ran some errands. We picked up a package at the post office, which was a good process for me to see, as well as bought some paint for a new room in her house.

We ended up back at her house around 5 that afternoon. We walked down the street to the store, bought some chicken, eggs and a refill for her stove’s gas tank, and also were able to see the school because people were practicing their dance for the fair. So that was nice to be able to see where she works. We cooked dinner – salad, chicken and rice – then just chatted before going to bed. On Saturday we painted her new room in the morning. Her house is basically attached to this other house and she just rents it from the family. Originally it was just one room and a bathroom, but the dad has since finished the kitchen and another room, which she’s going to turn into her bedroom. So with the help of the mom and daughter of the family, we painted the room! They told us first we had to put down a layer of “Concreto Blanco” which I think just functioned as primer. But even with that, the paint seemed kind of splotchy. But we evened it out as best as we could, and it looked better than we expected the next morning. We ended up putting a second coat over some of it the next morning, until we ran out of paint haha.

But also on Saturday we went into a neighboring town to their fair. It was much different than the fair in La Chorrera. It was smaller, but had more small food vendors with fresh veggies and things like carrot muffins. Jessica and I both got a carrot muffin, we bought some corn for dinner (funny story…), we shared a coconut – well, actually it was called leche de pipa, which is basically when you drink the coconut milk from a still-green coconut. It was pretty good, but a little bland. She also bought some plantain chips which were delicious and I got an orange. All of the fruit here is delicious, of course. Then we thought about going back to the fair for the baile (dance) later that night, but we were too tired after dinner. We had a good dinner of chicken nuggets (that we made ourselves!) rice and the corn.

But the funny thing about the corn… So normally you boil corn for 8-10 minutes, right? Right. Well we kind of forgot and probably cooked it longer than that. But it should be alright, right? Right.

Wrong.

It was still really hard and the kernels all came out whole, not breaking apart like they usually do. It was really strange. Tasted alright, but was just kind of tough to chew. We ate some of it. But from this little experience came my list:

Things you would never do/say in the US.

Item #1: I think this corn might be just for chickens.

It was really funny. But that’s life.

Then on Sunday we walked a little over an hour to a gorgeous swimming hole at a river and spent the afternoon there. There were kids that were jumping off of the probably 15- or 20-foot waterfall into the swimming hole. They also jumped off of a tree that was even higher… it was crazy! I dived in, but definitely not from that high up. It was deep though, so I guess it was alright. It was a beautiful area, just on the edge of the mountains. And also only about 45 minutes from the beach! It seems like a place that I would really like to be because it was a smaller community – only about 2,000 people Jessica said, and close to the mountains, but it still had good roads and transportation.

It was a really great weekend and I was able to learn a lot from her about PCV life. It made me really excited to get to my own site! And I REALLY enjoyed cooking. Reyna is a great cook and is always making sure that I’m happy and healthy and not sick or anything, but it was so great to be able to eat things that I decided and wanted. We had chips and salsa, a PB&J, biscuits that we made, a salad, and Honey Nut Cheerios for breakfast. It tasted like home and it was so good. 

One cultural thing that I found really interesting this weekend was the chiva drivers. So chivas are basically tiny little buses that function as public transportation and usually there is a driver and a "pavo", or door man. For those of you that know Spanish, yes, that means turkey. Don't ask me why. Anyway, so along the route from the fair back to her site, the driver kept stopping and either dropping off packages (like groceries or food) or picking up things to drop off farther along the route. It was so interesting - he knew every single house along the 20 minute drive and would blow his little horn (which actually sounds like a somewhat quiet car alarm) to let people know he was coming. I thought that was really cool - it really felt like a close-knit community. He even knew that we weren't from that town where he originally had picked us up (we had the same driver going to and then back home from the fair) and he took us all the way to our site! It was really nice - and only 10 cents more!

But things are still happy here! Still loving life and am enjoying everything!

Hope everyone there is doing well. Hopefully I’ll be able to get internet sometime today so I can actually post this!

Finally time for some internet!

So we finally have a little bit of free time today! We are all in Panama City on a scavenger hunt, basically. We had three places to find this morning, which took about 2 hours round trip, now we´ve just been playing around in the city. We got to go to Casco Viejo - if you google it you will probably find out more about it that I know, but it was a really beautiful old part of the city right along the water. Very European feeling. Now we´re at the mall, have been shopping some and walked into a Digicel store to buy some more phone minutes and found free computers with internet! Woohoo. Best part of the day haha.

Yesterday was awesome too. There was a fair in La Chorrera, the town pretty close to ours, and a bunch of us went. It was a typical fair with a bunch of food, vendors, rides, and some animals. It was pretty cool. Ate some really good chicken on a stick and some delicious fries. Also I had cotton candy, typically. We had a great time, then I went home and got to meet my host family´s daughter, who is probably in her 30´s and her daughter, who is 9 - Qerima. She was soooooo sweet. I hope she comes around a lot because she was so cute and great to speak Spanish with! She would correct me and would help me find the words that I needed. So that was fun.

Also, I´ve had several people asking me about the bugs. Of course at night, when you turn the lights on, moths and little bugs come out. But there haven´t been many mosquitos, which has been great. I saw one cockroach in the latrine the other day. But I told me host mom and she went and sprayed. Apparently they come out a lot more during the rainy season, so I´m not looking forward to that. But otherwise, it´s been relatively bug-free! No bug bites (for me) to speak of yet!

Now I should probably get off of the computer.... haha

Chao!

Week #1 in Panamá

1/20/12

One week into Panama.

I can’t believe I’ve been here a week. In one way, the days have flown by. But they have also been giving us so much information and I’ve been trying to absorb everything that it feels like we’ve been down here for months.  But here are some highlights from the past week.

Sunday we all got on the buses in order of our houses, and got to our communities for training. The CEC volunteers (Community Environmental Conservation) are in another town about 20 minutes from us TE (Teaching English) volunteers. My host parents are Reyna and César. They are about 60 and are super sweet. César is a taxi driver, so he frequently works from 3-11 and so Reyna and I usually eat breakfast (he sleeps later than us because he comes home so late) and dinner by ourselves. She is always checking to make sure I feel ok and am liking the food, which is really nice. I am the 5^th PCT they’ve hosted, so they know the drill.

On that note – the food has been really good so far. Lots of carbs, but that doesn’t bother me all that much. Some of my favorite meals have been 1) arroz con guandu (rice with the little green beans that I have never seen before), carné (beef), and tomato and 2) sopa de vegetales (vegetable soup – with several vegetables that I haven’t ever had before, but are good) and rice. I also had fish yesterday and have been eating a lot of arroz, though not as many beans as I was expecting. We also had tortilla one morning for breakfast and also one night with dinner – it’s not like tortillas that we are used to, but it’s ground corn and plantains made into a thicker patty and then just cooked on the stove. It’s pretty good, though I like to put some kind of sauce with it to give it a little more flavor.

My favorite drink so far has been chicha – it’s basically a fruit smoothie. Mi madre made chicha piña a few days ago by just putting pineapple in a blender, adding some water and sugar and boom – chichi! I have also had chicha de maiz which was the extra corn stuff from when she ground the corn for the tortillas mixed with water and sugar and I think some milk. The other good one I’ve had was arroz con piña which was basically the same kind of chicha piña as described above, without as much pulp, but plus water that has been boiled with rice, and plus some sugar. It’s actually pretty delicious!

As for my house – it’s a 3 (small) bedroom house with a living room and kitchen. It’s a nice rosy color and the windows are just little decorative openings in the wall. During the day all of the doors to the house are left open as well so the breeze comes through and cools things off. The shower is outside, but attached to the house. The water works in our town most of the time, but sometimes it doesn’t when the reservoir needs to be refilled to increase the water pressure. So most of the time it’s a normal (but cold) shower, but other times it’s just a bucket bath. It’s been good though – really not too difficult to adjust to. As for the bathroom, we have a “latrine” though it really just feels like an out-house where you don’t have to flush. There is also a little sink in the latrine where you can wash your hands, brush your teeth and César shaves there. We also have electricity, which is nice at night so I don’t have to rely only on flashlights.

The weather is still really nice. From about 12 or 1 – 3 it’s probably in the lower 90’s, so it’s really hot when you’re walking around in the sun, but in the shade it’s not bad. Also now, since it’s the dry season, there is a nice breeze that is pretty consistent which feels good. But it did rain a little for a few minutes a couple of days ago, which cooled things down nicely. At night it also cools down – probably to 65 or so, which, for me, is perfect. I usually don’t even need the fan that Reyna gave me at night. Though sleeping has definitely been a bit difficult between all of the dogs – both wild and owned, all of the chickens and roosters, and the little iguanitas that croak at night and crawl along the top of the walls.

My room is small, but pretty nice. I have a standard sized bed, pillow (yes, I’m saying this because not everyone has a pillow), bar and hangers to hang my clothes, a little desk and chair, and an overhead light. But really, my favorite thing about my house is our hammocks on the front porch. This is a big thing here in Panama, and I love sitting on our porch, looking out at the community and reading.

But I’m definitely happy here – the people are great and I’m quickly learning all I can about Panama and the Panamanian people! Our schedule is usually language classes from 8:30-11:45 am, then home for lunch, then from 1:00 – 5:00 we have technical sessions where we learn about our jobs with PC and with the schools. Basically we’re here to support the teachers and help bring new teaching ideas to the classroom

A couple of funny little tidbits:

- I found a Panthers shirt in a tiny little shop in La Chorrera – the larger city closest to our training communities.

- One of the women in my group knows by best friend at home’s old theater teacher. SMALL world!

- I also found out that Panama ranks 129^th of 139 countries tested for educational systems, so working with the schools and the English teachers down here will certain have it’s challenges.

- Recently a big plant that needed many English-speaking engineers was going to put an operation in Panama, but because of the lack of English speaking engineers, they couldn’t and they moved it to Argentina (I think… someone told me this story and I don’t remember all of the exact details). So if you were wondering why I am in Panama working in the schools, these are some of the reasons! Just having a native English speaker in the classroom is a HUGE asset to the teacher and gives the kids access to someone with a different accent as well as a different culture.

So that’s a not so short overview of my life here so far! I don’t have internet in my training community, that I know of as of now, so I’ll only be able to update when I come into the PC Office.

Besos de Panamá!

P.S. Struggle with 54 volunteers trying to access the internet at the same time, so I'll add photos later!

What has happened since I wrote the last post

So since I wrote that last post, we have been inundated with much more medical, safety, and general information. Yesterday we were in the office all day with info sessions. We also had our first Spanish lesson! I was in a group with 4 other students - probably one of the lower-middle groups - and we just reviewed how to say personal information, so that we can communicate basically with our host families, and other descriptive words through describing pictures and US landmarks.

After the sessions at the office, we all took buses into Panama City to a HUGE mall and the national bus station. My two main goals were 1) get a local phone and 2) get dinner. Well, getting a phone in a group of about 15 people took about an hour and a half... it was crazy. But I got a phone which was exciting! Ended up just getting some pizza in the food court before hopping back on the bus to head back to the area where we're staying.

Today was exciting because we got to visit a PCV's site! It was about 45 minutes away and we got to see the school where she teachers, meet the Minister of Education's Regional Supervisor for English, see the volunteer's host family's home, as well as her home (AMAZING for a PCV's house), and have lunch at a typically Panamanian restaurant - I had chicken, rice and red beans. It was an exciting day. Now a few of us are in the office on the internet before heading to dinner and packing. We get to go to our host families tomorrow! I'm excited, but a little nervous too. I haven't lived with a host family since I was in France the summer of 2004, so it's been a while! But all that I've heard about the families from past PCVs is that they are great.

In other news, my current roommate - Ally - was a French minor and studied abroad in the same semester that I did! So we've been practicing our French a little in order to not completely lose it. Also, one of the first sights that I saw when we were driving to our villas for the past few days were people playing......... FRISBEE!!!!! Haha I immediately started laughing and smiling - so good to know people play it here! Some other people also brought discs, so hopefully during training in the next few weeks we can play some.

Not much else to report. Getting more excited about being here every day and still loving getting to know the others in Group 70!

I'm in Panama!!!!

Written: 1/12/12 in the morning

I made it to Panama!! Peace Corps Trainees (PCTs) Group 70 landed around 3:00 pm on Wednesday the 11^th, and we were promptly greeted by Joel Alvarez, the Associate Peace Corps Director (APCD) for the Teaching English sector (TE), then by Brandon Valentine, the Training Director (this one doesn’t need an acronym). It’s been great so far, but let me backtrack a little.

First of all, it seems much longer ago that I boarded the plane in charlotte than just two and a half days. It was an early flight, but fairly smooth, and immediately when I landed I met up with another PCT in the airport and we navigated to the shuttle together. Of course as soon as we sat down we realized that there were 3 other PCTs on the shuttle as well – one who knows my friend Carol from home! When we got to the hotel, we checked in and I was able to relax in my room for a couple of hours before Staging started. Staging included waiting a long time to hand in paperwork, receive our new passports and some ice breakers before a long session of information regarding PC expectations, our expectations and fears, along with safety and security information. The facilitator, Emily, is an returned Peace Corps Volunteer (RPCV) from Panama, so it was great to hear some first-hand stories.

It has been wonderful to meet the other PCTs. They are all super nice, and it’s great to be around people who are all in the same situation. Though that’s not to say the past few days haven’t had their ups and downs.

Kelsey, a friend from home, was sweet enough to contact a lot of my friends to write me plane letters, which were absolutely wonderful, though they did make me a bit sad the night in Miami and in the airport the next day. The morning we actually left for Panama was full of anxiety and some sadness for me, but once the plane came into sight of Panama, I got really excited. Being with all of the other PCTs during was really great at getting me excited too. Our whole group is full of awesome people, and we are from ALL OVER, but it’s interesting how we are bonding quickly though. I guess it comes from being thrown into the unknown together.

Once we got to Panama, we were put on buses and transported to the PC office and to our housing, schlepping all of our stuff up to our rooms. I’m living in a little villa with 3 other girls and 1 guy. Us girls are sharing 2 rooms on the third floor, and the guy has a little room on the bottom floor. I’m with all of the other TE PCTs, and all of the others (Community Environmental Conservation – CEC) are in a hotel just a little ways away.

Today was full of lots of information sessions, walking back and forth from the villas for meal, which are all being catered by PC which is great, and lots of forms – typical government haha. The next few days will bring some more of this, but also a site visit to a PCV! Which will be really exciting.

Panama is gorgeous so far. And the weather is great. We’ve been inside during the hottest part of the day, but walking around during lunchtime it was pretty warm. Thankfully right now there seems to be a decent breeze most of the time, even though it is pretty warm and humid.

That’s about it for now, but my goal is to try to blog every two or three days, and post when I can access internet.

Thanks again to all of you who wrote me letters – I will keep them with me throughout my time here!

Lots of love and besos de Panamá!

Miami bound... and Panama tomorrow!

Well friends, only one more day until I am in Panama!

The last few days have been filled with running errands, purchasing last-minute things, and seeing the last few people here in Charlotte. It's certainly been a whirlwind.

For any of those interested, here is what I am taking for the next 2 years that will (hopefully) weigh less than 80 pounds!

Clothing:
3 pairs jeans
1 nicer pair of black pants
1 pair khakis
1 pair capris
4 knee-length skirts
3 pairs shorts
2 pairs running/frisbee shorts
rain jacket
poncho (yes... both)
Northface (old, thin jacket)
2 light sweaters
5 t-shirts
2 long-sleeve t-shirts
5 normal/nicer t-shirts
4 button-down shirts
3 long-sleeve shirts
5 tank tops
2 sets sleep pants/sleep tank tops
underware (lots)
3 bras
3 sports bras
socks (lots)

Shoes:
tennis shoes
Chacos
Flip Flops (mainly for showering)
Silver walking-type shoes (for teaching)
1 pair nicer flats (for the occasional dressy event)

Toiletries:
small bottles of body wash
shampoo
conditioner
toothbrush
toothpaste
floss
small bottle of shaving cream
razor
make-up remover
face lotion
make-up (just a little...)
hairbrush
small lotion
sunscreen
bugspray
tiger balm (helps heal bug bites/protect against them - my friend Veronica swears by it!)
neosporin
cortizone cream
bandaids
gauze
aloe vera
thermometer
a few iodine pills to purify water

Other things:
lantern (rechargeable), headlamp & flashlight
Nook
laptop
camera
battery recharger (AA  AAA)
Photos to put on my wall
gifts for host families (books of NC stuff & NC soap)
umbrella
letters & a couple of books from friends
bible
notecards to write people (just a few)
PC forms and paperwork I've accumulated

Bags:
Camping backpack (Osprey Ariel 65)
Duffel
Plane bag

I'm sure I've left a few things off of this list, but it's pretty extensive as is... so there you have it. The majority of my life for the next two years. Seems crazy!!

Yesterday, especially, was very stressful and emotional. Saying goodbye to the last few people except my parents, and trying to scramble to get all of my stuff together. Not a surprise that it's coming together at the last minute. It's been hard thinking of everyone and everything that I'm leaving behind for two years. While it's true that I will have some means communication - I won't be completely MIA - it's still hard to know that I'm leaving people who are so dear to me. I can only reconcile this by thinking of the incredible experiences that I will have, how many amazing people I will surely meet (both other PCVs and Panamanians), and how I will, hopefully, make some sort of impact on at least a few people there in return.

This whole thing definitely seems like a leap of faith. I don't know where I will be living, who I will be living with, who I will be teaching, what age exactly I will be teaching.... but I know that I will grow in ways that I can't even imagine right now. I was told yesterday by a great friend that an RPCV told him that she had some really awful days during her 2 years of service. But almost all of the best days of her life were during those same 2 years. It will certainly be hard at times, but in the end, it will most certainly be worth it. I think God has been leading me to do this, and I have to trust that he will get me through the bad times and lead me to enjoy the amazing experiences that are waiting for me. I can't wait to meet all the people in Group 70 at Staging today and find our way to Panama tomorrow!!

Please be in touch via email and Facebook and I will respond as soon as I can! Letters and packages are great too.

Also, I have the absolute best friends in the world. Thanks especially to Kelsey and Christine who organized getting "plane letters" from a ton of my friends. These mean more to me than you guys know! So thank you!

Love you all!