Happy Holidays

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Christmas and are preparing for a festive New Year! In all of my preparations for Aunt Franceen´s visit I forgot to post a Merry Christmas message. Aunt Fran has already come and gone and it was probably the fastest time has gone since I got here. We did all kinds of fun stuff. Upon her arrival we stayed in Asuncion for a night as she acclimated to being once again in a developing country. Then we made the trip out to my site where she got to participate in my English class, the workout group for women and Book Club. We spent Christmas Eve day making butter cookies and then delivered them on Christmas Day. We went to mass at my local chapel and ate Christmas Eve dinner with my new host family. The families traditionally eat dinner at midnight after a toast and prayers around the nativity scene, but we ate around 11 before the toast. They toast with either fermented apple cider or clerico, which is fruit salad with wine in it.

Although I was very sad because this was my first Christmas away from home, I am glad that I was able to spend it in a place where I learned new customs and traditions. I am also super thankful that Aunt Fran was here because she pushed me to do stuff that I might not have if I were here alone, like go to Mass.

After Christmas we travelled to Iguazu Falls to visit one of the seven natural wonders of the world. They are beautiful and although its a long bus ride out there, it was definitely worth it! The week flew by and now I am relaxing a little bit. I plan to spend New Years Eve with some other volunteers out in the campo. Should be a fun time! Hope everyone gets to party and enjoys their holiday!

Summer Vacation

School is out... finally! And the end of the year brings with it lots of celebrations and graduations. This week I have been to several pools with the kids from the community centers and a few different lunches with teachers. It has been fun, but time to get to work! I have been working very hard to design some summer programs so that the kids don´t just stay home all day watching tv in the heat. The one that I am hoping has the most sucess is Book Club. The kids will come once a week for 2 hours to read, play and have fun! I recruited some of the teenagers to help me so that we can read in small groups. I am really hoping to have sucess. The kids seem really excited, its just the teenagers I have to keep motivated! I have also finally given in to the requests for English Classes. I will be teaching 4 classes a day 3 days a week... that will be exhausting, but I put it off for soooo long! So they will finally get what they´ve been asking for...

I hope that everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I was able to spend the weekend in a beautiful Hotel near Encarnacion, a city that borders Argentina. There were several beautiful pools and great scenery. We went to visit the Jesuit ruins which were pretty cool and for those who eat meat, there was a great big turkey dinner prepared by some of the other volunteers. Although nothing beats dinner in Grandma´s basement with the fam, Thanksgiving in Paraguay came in a close second!

With Thanksgiving down and school over it is now time to start planning for Aunt Fran´s visit! Can´t wait til I get to show someone around the wonder that is Paraguay! It´ll definitely be interesting!

Liberation

I have finally moved out into my own place, a small two room apartment behind the home of one of my students, and the freedom that I feel to do what I want when I want is exhilarating. My host family was not in any way controlling, but it was their home, not mine. I never felt like I could cook when I wanted, make a mess if I wanted, etc. I always felt like I had to cater to their Schedule and it felt like I was always walking on eggshells afraid if I made a mistake I´d be yelled at like one of the kids. Now I can walk around naked if that’s what I want. I can cook and make a huge mess where and when I want. I can leave the door open or close it. Its soooo liberating to have the freedom to do what you want. I love it! Growing up in that huge family of mine my biggest fear was that I would get extremely lonely and be sad in a place of my own, but because I am behind the home of a family and there are other renters I almost always have someone that I can go talk to if that desire to be around others becomes overwhelming. So far it hasn´t gotten that bad!
I was able to buy a used fridge and stove so they were much cheaper than getting them new and the family loaned me a bed to use. I bought a ropero, to store my clothes, and a table with one chair when I first got to site so I brought them with me to the new place. The principal at one of the schools I work at is loaning me some dishes but there are still some other things I´ll need. It seems so pointless to buy some of the stuff, since I´ll only be using it for a year and a half, but I guess I can donate it when I am done. And one person doesn´t really need that much stuff anyway!
I have been trying to keep busy in the evening so that I don´t get bored. I am leading an exercise group with some of the women in my women´s group three times a week. They are loving it, and I get the added benefit of an extra workout! I hope that in the summer I can keep busy with activities as well, it makes the time go by so much quicker. School is ending within the next couple of weeks and that means all of my classes and youth groups are ending too. I am currently trying to plan an English course for the community center and I am thinking about starting a library Project as well as a group to teach about HIV and AIDS. Hopefully all these activities will keep me moving! Summer has already started… or at least it feels that way. Its already getting up to 90 degrees during the day and stays around 75 or 80 overnight, unless there´s rain!

Please Vote

As I sit here in Paraguay thousands of miles away from home I feel like a passive participant in this year´s election. I wish there were something more I could do as a US citizen to help with the election. But I have done my part. As an American living overseas I sent in my request for an absentee ballot way back in August and just last week I filled out and sent in my vote. I hope that Americans living at home make the effort to go to the polls and elect our next President. I hope that rather than being lazy or failing to register that everyone who is able to vote does so... and if you don´t then there you can say nothing when the inevitable comes, a change made by whichever candidate won that you don´t like. The decisions will be made and the complaints will be heard, but only those who made the effort to vote should be able to complain with validity. Here in Paraguay they ask me about the election with regularity. They all know that Barack Obama is the black candidate and if elected will be the first black president, but most of them don´t even know McCain´s name. They know about Bush and the mistakes he has made and they don´t want that again. They know that whichever candidate is elected President will effect not only Americans but people all around the world. Please make the effort to vote, its our country, its our decision!

Safe and Sound plus a Request

So I have made it back from my amazing adventure to Paraguay. I arrived this morning after two nights on busses with swollen feet and greasy hair, but after a quick shower and a walk I feel like a million bucks! I will return to site later this afternoon and its back to work in the morning.

So for the request...
As a member of the Gender and Development (GAD) Commitee here in Peace Corps Paraguay I participate in many activities to increase awareness about gender, gender roles, discrimination, etc. I am posting a request for those who may be willing to donate any amount to a fund that provides scholarships to Paraguayans. Do not feel obligated to donate, but know that I will be submitting applications with three girls from my community for the scholarship.

Hello,

Each year, the Gender and Development Committee (GAD) of Peace Corps Paraguay, along with two local organizations, work together to provide at least 50 underprivileged youth with both technical training and educational scholarships. The technical training includes workshops on leadership, self-esteem, personal finance management, gender empowerment, and networking. The scholarship program includes four different educational levels available for financial aid:

High school level ($100)
Vocational level ($150)
Trade school level ($250)
University level ($500)

The PATF program aims to help young, female Paraguayans pursue their education in diverse fields of study and increase their ability to achieve financially independent and fulfilling lives. Since 2004, the program has awarded 143 scholarships to female Paraguayan youth throughout the country. This year, in order to promote gender equity, the program has expanded to include 10% of the scholarships for male beneficiaries.

You can help Peace Corps raise funds to enable bright, young Paraguayan youth to further their education. Even the smallest contribution can make the biggest difference in raising the tuition that Paraguayan youth need for his/her education. By clicking on the following link you will find further details on the program and information on how to donate to the project:

https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=526-187

Thank you for your generosity!

Marathon, Buenos Aires, and Patagonia

After a long 16 hour bus trip from Asuncion I arrived in Buenos Aires and fell in love! The city is amazing and beautiful and I truly enjoyed it. It reminded me a bit of New Orleans. We stayed in the San Telmo neighborhood where there were tons of cafés and lots of stuff to do. The marathon was Sunday and it was raining the entire day. I finished though and am proud to say that I beat last year´s time running it in 4 hours and 4 minutes. Next year 4 hours flat! Monday I jumped on another bus headed to Bariloche in Patagonia. The view here is beautiful. I will be putting up tons of pictures very soon. So far I´ve been biking through the mountains, hiked up 3 different mountains and now I am headed out to do Paragliding! This is an amazing break from volunteer life in Paraguay! Tomorrow I´ll be on a day trip to El Bolson. Monday it´ll be busses all the way back to Paraguay.

Here it is... the pre-tech problem post

After 5 months in site I have finally adjusted to the point of contentment. I no longer wake up in the morning wishing I was somewhere else, dreading the hoards of kids and ungrateful adults and listing the things I could be doing in the States. I am actually quite happy to hop on my bike and hear my name called out at least 10 times. I look forward to the puzzled faces and the excitement they exude each and every time they do something right. I can´t even imagine the possibility of never having come here. This is my life and I am going to enjoy it! I have always had trouble living in the present, I feel like I always have to be concentrated on planning the next step, where will I go from here? I finally feel like I have achieved the ability to live in the here and the now. Not to say that I don´t think about the future and what it holds for me, but I am much more conscious of what is going on today.

So what is going on today? Well work as usual… my “Vegetarian/American” cooking class met for the final time last week. After 3 months of cooking dishes without meat the class dwindled from about 10 to 2. But the two who did participate were extremely enthusiastic and asked if I can do it again next year! I am continuing with computer classes, teaching about 300 kids ranging in age from preschool to 9^th grade the basics. I am also assisting with a theater group at a colegio where we plan to put on a play at the end of the school year in November. A woman in my community came to me asking for assistance with a Women´s Group recently so we are in the beginning stages of forming a committee. I have also begun to work with an 8^th grade class doing activities relating to self-esteem and leadership. The kids love doing something out of the ordinary in class. They are used to just copying form the board, but we do actual activities, I hope to expand to work with more classes next year. I do similar activities with my youth group, but they are slightly more difficult to work with. My weeks are pretty busy when I factor in all the planning that goes into classes and activities as well as my marathon training and of course some time to relax!

The marathon is coming up soon. I will be traveling to Buenos Aires at the end of next week and running on Sunday the 12^th! I am looking forward to the run but I am still a little nervous. 26.2 miles seems never ending! After the marathon I will be traveling to San Carlos de Bariloche which is in the northern part of the Patagonia region in Argentina. Although the skiing season is likely to have ended before our arrival we hope to engage in other outdoor fun activities like hiking, white water rafting and biking and just relaxing and having a good time. The prospect of going on vacation may also be what has led to my happiness in site, but I am hoping that it is more because I have adjusted and not just the idea of getting away for awhile!

Technological Problems

So I wrote a blog post about a week ago while I was taking a break from teaching computer classes at the Elementary School but when I went to post it online I found that because I wrote it using Vista and the new Word it won´t open with any of the older programs which are utilized everywhere in the city, including on my laptop! How frustrating! Now it makes me wonder, I am teaching these kids how to use Vista, will they be able to utilize the older versions of Windows that are prevalent throughout the city and the country? Is it worth it? Eventually everything will be updated to newer versions, but here eventually could be 5 or 10 years from now. I too will eventually post that blog, but hopefully it will be more like 5 or 10 days from now!

Cold, rain, running and AIDS Education

So I seem to have forgotten the best part about running the marathon, an excuse to travel! I get to go to on vacation in Buenos Aires for about a week and we might even hit up the beach in Uruguay. There are about 7 volunteers that I know of who are running and we are all takng the bus down, about a 16-hour drive, but cheaper than a flight. It should prove to be an interesting trip seeing as I hardly know anyone who is going. I am very excited; it will be a well-deserved break almost 6 months into my service.

It’s September and while that means the changing of leaves and end of summer for those of you up north, here in the Southern Hemisphere it means the end of winter and hopefully a steady stream of warm days. The winter here is much lie the many winters I have spent in New Orleans and Tampa. It never gets cold enough to snow, but there is the occasional freeze. There are some weeks where the weather is sunny and in the 70s and 0s and others when it is rainy and cold. The difference here is that with a lack of air conditioning and heat, as well as proper nutrition, the constant change in weather causes a lot of ongoing sickness. This past week has been rainy and freezing… The rain brings with it a steady slew of canceled classes and activities, which sometimes s a relief and other times leaves me stir crazy. When you rely on a bicycle as your main means of transportation, the other option being your feet, the rain and cold make leaving the house something to do only when it is absolutely necessary. So far this week I have read three books and am working on my fourth!

But I will be up and working hard again soon, kinda. Starting tomorrow I will be in Asuncion attending a 3-day workshop with a community contact to learn about AiDS education. This is a secondary project for many volunteers and something I haven’t really gotten into yet, but when I mentioned the workshop to one of my contacts he was elated. The funny thing is he is a staunch Christian and he handed me a magazine on the topic of sex designed by a Christian group with whom he works. The magazine describes in detail the “proper” manner of conduct relating to all things sexual. This includes only having sex if you are prepared to have a baby… ok I can handle that line of thinking, but lets get real teenagers and young adults are going to have sex so lets instead talk about birth control and condoms, which are free in the health clinics and hospitals, but even the married people around here seem to be embarrassed to ask about. The magazine also goes on to castigate pornography, masturbation, abortion and homosexuality. While I may not be a big fan of porn, I don’t think it should be condemned as something that will ruin the life of any person who watches it. If this is the way that my contact thinks we will definitely have a very interesting week! In a country where Catholicism is the norm safe sex is a touchy topic, but one that I guess I will be touching on very soon!

The Top 10 Obstacles to Training for a Marathon in Paraguay and Why I am Doing it Anyway

After months of debating with myself I have decided to train for the Buenos Aires Marathon to be held October 12^th. I had actually begun to train without actually committing myself to the race and at this point I am in week 11 of 18. This morning as I ran my 8 miler in the rain I thought to myself, why am I doing this? Most people wouldn’t attempt to train for a marathon in the states let alone a third world country. While running I came up with a list of the things that make it difficult to run in Paraguay.

10. Lack of any real area for running. There are dirt roads with huge potholes, cobblestone roads, which are hard to run on, or the asphalt ruta which has too much traffic.

9. Rain… it turns the best option, dirt roads and paths, into mud rivers.

8. Paraguayan attitude. They think that I am super strange because I go out of my way to exercise. I am constantly getting strange looks and stares.

7. Herds of Cows

6. The presents the herds of cows left behind.

5. The fact that its “dangerous” to go down this street or that and to be out when its dark or getting dark.

4. More laundry.

3. Dogs barking and nipping at my feet.

2. Dirty Air, burning garbage is a health hazard on its own, try inhaling the stuff when you are already short of breath!

1. Piropos, otherwise known as cat calls. The men here are so macho that they think every time a girl passes they have to hoot and holler at her. It is multiplied exponentially because I am doing such a strange thing as exercising. Especially if I wear shorts.

Why am I doing it anyway?
I enjoy the challenge, it forces me to exercise and stay in shape, I like having a goal to work towards, this way I have something planned for at least four days out of every week, and I hope that one day at least one of the Paraguayans will stop thinking of me as that weird American out running again and be inspired to do it too!

I have become increasing thankful for my I-pod. My personal soundtrack to the weird world around me! It definitely gets me through my runs.

Yet Another Holiday or Three

Paraguayans definitely like their holidays. This week we are celebrating three. On August 14th is Flag Day, August 15th the Founding of Asuncion and August 16th is Dia del Niño (Kid´s Day). For Dia del Niño all the schools and the community centers had cake, hot chocolate and music for the kids. For Flag Day there doesn´t seem to be much celebrating. They have been talking a little bit about the origin of the Paraguayan Flag, but it seems to have been kind of forgotten about. For the Foundation of Asuncion all the businesses are closed and everyone has the day off. In addition to being a major holiday the government will also change tomorrow. For the first time in 60 years the Liberal Party will take charge. The new president will be sworn in. In my Department we will also have a new governor. We hope to see positive change.

Dia de Amistad

Last Wednesday here in Paraguay we celebrated Friendship Day. Paraguayans take this holiday very seriously. They arrange parties and exchange gifts, it kinda felt like Christmas, only the gifts are super cheezy. At the Church my host family attends there was a white elephant party the weekend before Dia de Amistad. The weekend after my host family had their own gift exchange. I received a small diary that says ¨Wishing you Best Wishes¨in English on the front... kinda funny. I also received lots of little key chains and little card sized pieces of wood that describe me as a great friend. Everyone asked how we celebrate the day in the States... the unfortunate truth is that I don´t think I´d ever even heard of Friendship Day in the States. Does that make us unfriendly? Maybe we should pick up on this trend. At least make us look more friendly!

Last week also marked 3 months in site. I attended a three day training on language called the 3 month reconnect. All of the volunteers from my training group returned to our training community to learn a little bit more Guarani and Spanish and to hang out and compare experiences. Our sites are so different so it was good to hear about what everyone else is doing. I think it´s actually the last training that we´ll have all together as a training group.

In site I am continuously trying to become more involved. One of my friends is starting a theater group at one of the high schools so I plan on helping out with that. Our garden is starting to grow and this weekend my youth group is having a soccer tournament.

My First Paraguayan Wedding

Saturday nights I am usually at home watching a movie on my computer or trying to reading yet another book, but this past weekend I had the opportunity to attend my first Paraguayan wedding. My contact Julio got married on Saturday night. The wedding was probably not the ¨traditional¨ Paraguayan wedding due to the fact that it was held at a Baptist Church, but it gave me an idea of what they are like. First off the wedding was supposed to start at 7. I, being the typical American, arrived about 10 minutes early only to find that the Church doors where still closed and they were not quite done preparing everything inside. The wedding actually got underway at about 8 pm. It started with the civil proceedings and then the religious ceremony. For the civil ceremony both the bride and groom must have two witnesses each that can testify that they are single and can therefore marry. The religious ceremony seemed much like any non-Catholic ceremony in the States. After the wedding we proceeded to an outdoor reception hall which was like a really nice big pavillion. There the couple took pictures and there was a buffet dinner. The bride tossed her bouquet and there were cake pulls. After the cake was cut by the couple, they didn´t shove into each other´s faces, the party was over. It was kind of disappointing because I was looking forward to dancing. The wedding in its entirety lasted only about three hours. Can you imagine? That definitely wouldn´t fly with my family!

Geography Camp

So after one day of intensive planning and three days of chaos my geography camp has come to an end. I had about 70 kids come in all, 25-35 at a time. Even with the help of another volunteer it was rough. The kids were rowdy and didn´t really want to listen, but I am hoping that they got something out of it. We were unable to finish the World Map, but I am hoping to work on it over the next week and possibly finish it up. I am putting up pictures from the camp on the Flickr site. Next week I plan to take a break and relax a little bit. We´ll see if that actually happens!

Two Months In Site- What am I Doing?

So I have been in my site for two whole months now! Can you believe it? Only 22 months left... yes that means I am still counting. So what have I been up to? Tons of stuff! My main contact is the community center/after-before school program and I go there almost daily to do work. What type of work? Some days I am tutoring kids other days I am helping to serve snacks to the kids and others I am working on our new garden. Garden? With the youth group I formed at the community center we have cleaned an area and prepped it for a vegetable producing garden. Which we will hopefully be planting soon. We have youth group every Saturday morning at the community center and we have been doing some random fundraisers to start out with. I am also teaching computer classes at an elementary school two days a week. There are about twenty classes in all which is really overwhelming. We are on winter vacation for the next two weeks and I have planned, or am in the process of planning, a three-day day camp for the kids at the community center. They'll be learning about geography and some American culture. The theme came to me when one of the kids pointed to a map of Paraguay and asked me to show her where my county is located. I have another volunteer coming to help me with the camp and on the last day we will be painting a large World Map as a project. I can't wait! After winter break is over I will be teaching cooking classes to some of the mothers from the center. That should be interesting. We will be cooking without meat and Paraguayans are not exactly open to the idea. But it will help to reduce food costs and improve their health so I am going for it! So other than that I attend meetings for some other youth groups in the area and accompany my host mother on an hour walk nightly to sell sandwiches at a night school. I haven't been nearly as bored as I thought I might be. Living in a big city there's always something to do!

My Trip to the Campo

Last Saturday I had my first taste of Campo (rural) life in Paraguay. After a quick trip to visit another UYD volunteer for lunch and ice cream I was off to a San Juan celebration at the site of a rural health volunteer. I boarded the bus and gave them the name of the nearest town when asked where I was travelling. Then as we got closer I asked the driver if he could let me off at Km 110 or a little bit past the chicken factory. Luckily the driver knew the place because there is no sign to mark it or even a street light to let you know that there is a street off of the Ruta. And seeing as I arrived around 6 pm, it was already dark. My friend Truman was waiting on the side of the road to greet me and we walked the short kilometer to the compañia where he lives. His site is probably the closest rural site to the Ruta, there are some volunteers that have to travel 50 Km to get to the Ruta. In those sites there are often local buses that run, but not very frequently. During our walk from the Ruta to his site I glanced up at the sky and I could not believe my eyes. I had the most amazing view of the stars. I could even see the Milky Way with a clarity that I have never known before. It was wonderful. Already I knew I would love the Campo! When we arrived at the house I where I would stay for the night they had already prepared a dinner for me and had it waiting, talk about hospitality! Unfortunately it was empanadas filled with ground beef. I kindly ate one but passed on seconds. The site does not have running water or modern bathrooms. Latrines and wells. This was the life I was expecting in the Peace Corps.
The celebration of San Juan is celebrated all throughout the month of June. A lot of schools and groups host the celebration as a fundraiser. They sell typical Paraguayan foods such as Kavure, Mandioca Empanadas and Mbeju. They also have a dj with lots of music and dancing. There are games which the kids pay to play and then win prizes. The most interesting is the one in which they grease a pole with pig fat and then the kids try to climb it to reach a prize at the top. There is also a lot of playing with fire, which I found somewhat disturbing seeing as we are constantly telling kids not to do so! The party was great.
The community was small and only has about 40 houses or in the neighborhood of 200 people. Everyone knows the volunteer and the people are a lot more open and inviting than in the city where I am much more annonymous. It was a great experience to have, but I´m not so sure I would love it so much after more then a few days!

Winter in Paraguay

After four months of warmth with few ugly days, winter has finally descended on Paraguay. Last week was freezing! Well maybe not literally freezing but its as cold inside as it is outside. I spent much of Saturday in the warmth of my sleeping bag reading a book and trying to keep from freezing. All the cold and rain leaves the ground wet and muddy. My half hour plus walks to get everywhere and anywhere are now spent trying to dodge puddles and keep my pants out of the mud. And often when I finally arrive at my destination I discover that whatever activity I planned to attend has been cancelled due to cold, rain or the chance of rain. This is life in Paraguay. On a positive note my tutoring at Gotas de Leche, the school reinforcement program I am working with, has helped me get an in with the kids. They are much more likely to want to play and hang out with me now than they were a month ago. The more confidence and trust they have in me the more likely they will be to listen when I start giving talks and actually dong more of the work I am here to do. I also went to an elementary school where I will most likely be a gym teacher for the kindergarten through third graders. Although I have absolutely no experience teaching gym, I guess I’ll have to figure it out as I go. Teaching gym will not only allow me to promote gender equality, self-esteem, leadership slls and a more active lifestyle, it will help me get to now the teachers and might proved an opportunity to work with some of the older kids in other classes. Not sure when I will be starting but it is sure to be yet another adventure in Paraguay!

One Month In

So they say that once you stop counting down the months to your close of service and start to just live your life in Paraguay that the time flies by, even faster then you might want it to... I am still waiting for the day when that becomes my reality. Here I am just under one month into service and hoping that I will reach that point of comfort. I know that I am still in the integration process, still trying to get to know my site and not actually expected to do any work yet, but if you know me then you know that I am a busybody and I like to have something planned for just about every hour of my day. So that is what I do. I plan and I plan and I plan. But in Paraguay it is hard to live by my plans because a meeting that is supposed to start at 9 am probably won't actually start until 11 and the one that I walk forty minutes to get to will likely be cancelled. But I am getting used to it.

The work that I have started has been equally frustrating and rewarding. I have found here that like in many of the poorer education systems in the States, there are many children that will be passed from grade to grade without actually ever learning anything. There are kids in fourth and fifth grade who haven't learned their ABCs. They don't know how to add or subtract. But they keep passing the grade. Is it because they somehow manage to pass the tests? Or is it more likely that their teacher doesn't want to have them as a bother in her class again the next year? I don't know. I just know that due to a lack of support both within the school and the home the children suffer. So that is where I have started. Teaching the ABCs. Teaching basic addition. Not sure if that's what I thought I would be doing in Peace Corps, but here I am with something to do. And on the days when I have something else to do and cannot teach it makes me happy just to hear that the kids were asking what happened to Profe Melissa. It means that I have on at least some level made a difference in someone's life. I have accomplished what it was that I set out to do... and now I have 23 months left to do it over and over and over again!

Top 10s

The top ten things I am glad I brought to Paraguay:
10. Pens and Markers... they give you tons of papers and manuals in the Peace Corps, but nothing to write with!
9. A towel... Paraguayan towels are thin and rough.
8. Sleeping bag... really useful for cold winter nights.
7. Hiking shoes... even though I am in the city it feels like the Campo with red dirt roads.
6. My recipe book... I am actually Vegetarian food for myself!
5. Lots of underwear... hand washing and air drying does a number on all your clothes... especially underwear.
4. A jump rope... good for exercising inside or in the yard where there aren´t a million Paraguayans looking at you like you are crazy!
3. My Camera... I already of tons of great pics!
2. A pillow... Paraguayan pillow are hard pieces of foam, my travel pillow rocks! Thanks to Tasha and Jessica!!
1. My Laptop... it´s really useful for writing emails and blog posts, listening to music and watching DVDs. Eventually I actually plan on using it for work.

The top ten things I wish I would have brought to Paraguay:
8. A hand or face towel... it takes awhile for mine to dry.
7. DVDs... I kinda forgot to pack them... but thanks to Danica I already have some to watch!
6. An extra supply of contact solution.
5. Girl Scout books... they have lots of good ideas for working with youth.
4. Coffee... Paraguayans usually drink Nescafe, luckily Mom put some in the mail... hopefully I get it one day!
3. A converter from 220 volt to 110 volt... some things I can plug and some things I can´t.
2. Cute shoes... even though its PC we do get to go out once in awhile!
1. MORE clothes... the ones that I´ve got are started to get old and boring already.
So I could only think of 8... I guess that´s a good thing!

I have been in site for about two weeks now. Things are equally frustrating and exciting. I haven´t really done too much ¨work¨ yet. But I am making lots of contacts and doing some observing. I need to improve my Spanish a lot more before I´ll feel totally comfortable giving charlas. The first few months in site are supposed to be more observation and integration than anything else. So that´s what I am doing... although it tends to get boring. Hopefully I will be doing more ¨work¨ soon.

Fun in Asuncion and Out to Site

On Friday afternoon I took the oath to protect the constitution, so help me God, and with that officially became a Peace Corps Volunteer. OK so there was a lot more to it than that, but I am officially a PCV now, so those of you who send mail can change my title from PCT to PCV! Thanks again to those who do send mail. It is always really exciting when I go to my mail box and there is actually something in it other than the PC papers! I love it! So our swearing in ceremony took place at the American Embassy, which happens to be the largest American Embassy in the World right now. Apparently Iraq will have a bigger American embassy one day... we´ll see how that goes. After the ceremony we had the best chocolate cake I have ever had in my life from a place in Asuncion. It was amazing! I then spent the weekend in Asuncion ¨relaxing¨and travelled to site on Monday afternoon. So far so good here. I am working on getting some furniture for my room, right now all that's in there is a bed and my huge bags. I was worried about being completely bored in the beginning, but so far I haven´t had that problem. I am sure that it will come along shortly though! Although the town is pretty big and there is plenty for me to get to know around the area. I am still focusing on not getting lost going between my community center and my house. I´ll get there soon enough.

One More Week...

Today began my final week of training, which means I get to pack up all my stuff and lug it halfway across the country to my new home next week. But first this week will be packed with tons of activities including a party with our host families and our swearing in ceremony. I will be spending the weekend in Asuncion with the other new volunteers having a great time before I head out to site. Going out to site means integrating with a new family, getting to know a new city and trying to convince the locals to trust me so I can work with them. It won’t be easy, but I am always up for a challenge. My days will be much less structured and there won’t be Americans to talk to and hang out with. That might be the hardest part!

Yesterday the Paraguayan elections were held. The two major parties were still campaigning hard until Thursday night in Asuncion. There was no campaigning allowed after Thursday night so things were a lot quieter during the weekend. They also have a law here that prohibits the sale and consumption of alcohol on election day to help prevent rioting after the election. The voting is done via paper ballot. The Liberale party won! It will be interesting to see what happens as the Colorado party has been in power for 60 years and this is the first time the Liberales has won since the democracy was established in 1989.

Future Site Visit

So I have now met my contact and spent six days in my site! It was one of the most awkward times in my life. But I am starting to get used to awkwardness. The city is pretty big with plenty of shops, a big market and several ice cream shops, yum! Unfortunatley, the barrio I will be living in is about a 20 minute walk from all of that. I guess I get to work off the calories after I eat them! The barrio is also extremely poor and I give major props to the kids I will be working with just for putting in the effort. I only hope that I can do something to make a difference in their lives because I know they will surely make a difference in mine!

Site Assignments

This post is what I wrote to post last week but the internet wasn´t working so here it is...

After eight grueling (or maybe not so grueling) weeks of training the time has finally arrived, G-26 (my training group) now knows where they will live for the next two years. Friday afternoon we received out site assignments. Friday morning was spent distracting us by driving us around the country to various places. I went to see a 200 year-old Church built entirely from wood, the home of a war hero and former Paraguayan President and an Artesinal School where they teach how to make the material for hammocks and blankets. We also went to a market where they sell a lot of hammocks and I was able to buy one for pretty cheap. After all of the distractions and anticipation I found out my site, which is located pretty centrally in the Eastern part of Paraguay. It is halfway between Asuncion and Ciudad del Este and is at the crossroads for people to turn off and head north or south from Ruta 2. The city is the birthplace of the current president and has about 85,000 people. I will likely be working with a program that assists kids who work on the street, a community center and a school. My site is also the former site of my technical trainer, although I will be in a different neighborhood. They did not provide us with a ton of information, just enough to get started. On Tuesday I will meet my main contact and then travel to my site to spend a week there getting to know the area, trying to find housing and trying to figure out how I can start my work there. It will be another awkward week of meeting new people and staying in a strange place but this time there won’t be any other Americans… which means nothing but Spanish for almost a whole week! Scary!!

My First B-day in Paraguay

Thanks to those who sent birthday wishes! I had a pretty good birthday here in Paraguay. I think I was sang to about 10 times! I celebrated by having some fellow trainees over for some snacks and drinks which was fun! I also think we´re going to a party on Saturday night which should be interesting and hopefully better than the last one.

Tomorrow is the big day of site announcements and the anticipation continues to rise. We will be out in different towns all day doing Cultural Visits to keep us occupied while we wait for the program directors to come with the info!

Last week´s long field practice was really fun. I went with one other trainee to stay in a volunteer´s site for five days to practice volunteer life. We taught about 5 classes on self-esteem, leadership and emotions. We also got to meet some of the volunteer´s contacts who include a youth group leader and a women´s group leader. I enjoyed getting the chance to meet people outside of the Peace Corps World. There are some really hard working Paraguayans... this gives me hope. It was great!

One of the crazy things about Paraguay is that politics filter into everything. They even impact whether or not a school will get supplies. The election is April 20th so things are really starting to heat up. There are political rallies everywhere and the corruption is becoming more and more visible. The Colorado party has been in power for about 25 years and this is the first time that the opposing party, the Liberales, have a chance to win. The election will definitely provide some excitement. Tonight, Thursday night, a debate between the candidates is being broadcast for the first time. It´ll be heated!

Semana Santa

Sunday was Easter, and in the States Easter usually means finding your hidden Easter basket full of candy, possibly an Easter egg hunt, going to Church and a big dinner. In Paraguay Easter is not celebrated for a day but for an entire week. Palm Sunday signifies the beginning of Semana Santa (Holy Week), which ends on Easter. Monday and Tuesday most people go about their usual routines with work and school, but starting Wednesday everything changes. I had a half-day of training on Wednesday but most schools were closed and many people had off from work. All over Paraguay on Wednesday families were making Chipa. Chipa is a traditional bread made from corn meal, yucca flour, eggs, pig lard (or butter), anise and of course Queso Paraguaya. It usually tastes pretty good when it’s fresh, but after a few hours it gets hard and dry. Thursday is the day of the last supper. Many families eat pork for lunch. I was lucky enough to arrive home Tuesday afternoon in time to see my host dad’s sister, who lives next door, slaughter and butcher the last of three pigs to be sold for the week. On Thursday most families also make Sopa Paraguaya, which is like a Paraguayan cornbread with many of the same ingredients as Chipa. Friday is the most important day of the week because that is the day Christ was killed. Most businesses in Paraguay are closed on this day, including the Dispensa at our house. The traditional families fast for the entire day eating nothing but Chipa and Sopa Paraguaya and drinking cocido, brewed Yerba with charcoal burnt sugar. On Saturday most businesses are open, but it is a very relaxed day. There was a three-hour mass that began at 9 pm. Sunday was a pretty normal day with no extra special celebration. Semana Santa is the most important holiday is Paraguay. Many people travel to spend the week with family in other parts of the country, like we would for Christmas. One of my host brothers who currently lives in Buenos Aires came into town for the week. It was nice to have a few days off from training. I read a lot, watched a few movies and taught Laura and Santiago how to play Rummy 500. This week I am in another town visiting a volunteer for my Long Field Practice. We got here Monday and we´ll be here until Friday. Next Friday we find out our sites... the anticipation is building.

One Month in Paraguay

It has been one month since my arrival in Paraguay and of course I have two contradictory thoughts the first being that I can’t believe it has already been a month and the second that I can’t believe that it has only been a month. To celebrate the other Urban Youth Development (UYD) trainees came over to my house and we hung out on my front porch drinking boxed red wine with Fanta. Not exactly the ideal celebration in the States but hey we do what we can! This brings me to the social life of a Paraguayan.

The machisma culture here dictates what is acceptable for men and women in all aspects of life, including the social scene, although things are becoming more progressive and women are gaining ground. The typical young adult male has much more freedom then a female. This independence may start as early as childhood. Boys are much more likely to be running around freely coming and going as they please while girls shouldn’t be out past dark and should never go anywhere alone. This may just sound like the over-protectiveness that is necessary in a dangerous culture, but I assure you that while bad things do happen, they are not likely going to happen to a 23 year old female in the middle of the day just because she is walking alone for a few blocks. I am pretty lucky though because my family gives me tons of freedom.

In terms of dating traditional Paraguayan culture has some strict guidelines. Young men visit the home of their girlfriends on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings. The other days are for the secondary girlfriend or the girl that the guy doesn’t like as much. At parties, which are held Saturday nights at the soccer clubs, which are basically soccer fields that double as a meeting/party place, a guy will ask a girl to dance and then if she dances with him for more than two or three songs it means she likes him and they will soon be boyfriend/girlfriend. The parties are interesting because they start around 10 and last until about 6 in the morning. I went to one last week and there weren’t very many people there but Laura has convinced me that it was because people don’t really go during Lent. She claims they will be much better after Easter. The parties cost about 10,000 to get in and the beers are 5000 each. In Paraguay it is very rare for people to order and drink their own alcoholic beverage. Usually a group will have one or two drinks that they pass around taking a few sips each. The first time we went out in town I heard later that same night about the Americans who were each drinking their own beer. We quickly learned to share. Not a good thing for germ phobics!

By spending most of my time with the family I have learned many of the Paraguayan norms and customs. It is amazing how there are such distinct differences between their culture and that of the United States. I feel like I am learning new thing everyday! Oh yeah and by the way I pretty much witnessed my host mom killing a chicken today, I am guessing that´s dinner.

Also want to let you know that Jill sent me a letter using only one stamp and it made it here. I don´t know if that was a fluke but it got here!

The Tranquilo Life of a Volunteer

My four days with the volunteer sparked a light at the end of the tunnel. Training will eventually come to an end and so will the monotonous hours of 8-5 in a classroom. The life of a volunteer is much more relaxed while still getting work done. It was great. In addition to seeing the professional side of volunteer life I got to go to some great places around Asuncion. The Centro is the downtown area of Asuncion and there is a plaza there where they sell the traditional Apo’i shirts, tools for Terere and jewelry of all sorts. I am excited to return there once I have a little bit more cash. We also went to a really nice gelato place and out for sushi. It was tranquilo.

My language class has transitioned to learning Guarani. We started with common phrases last Friday and learned a little bit more on Thursday of this week. The language has a format that makes it easy to understand on paper but listening to people talk is a whole different story. It is definitely not easy trying to learn two languages at the same time. Hopefully I will get the hang of it. I have 8 more weeks of training to get down the basics and two years to figure it out!

Trying to Beat the Heat

It has been HOT HOT HOT here! We have been doing nothing but sweating for the last 5 days. On Monday night at 11 pm in my room it was 95 degrees, or so said my handy dandy LL Bean alarm clock, and this was with the lights off, window open and fan on! You can only imagine what the days are like. Sunday was probably the hottest day since my arrival, but I was lucky enough to go to a place called Salto Cristo for the day. Salto means waterfall in Spanish. Laura’s youth group from Church went and I got to tag along. It was the perfect way to cool off. The heat continues until it rains to cool things down. Although it did rain on Tuesday afternoon, the cool front that it brought lasted only about 4 hours. Wednesday was sunny and hot once again. So it is definitely as hot (probably hotter) as NOLA or Tampa in the summer. And we do not have those afternoon rain showers or AC to cool us down. On the positive side I am starting to get a tan!

The terrain here is pretty flat, lots of green grass and trees but no big mountains. We did see a few small mountains on the excursion on Sunday. In the city where we are training the roads are mostly dirt. There are some brick roads and also a few paved roads, which are the main routes. The dirt is red and sticks to all your shoes. It’s kind of like going hiking everyday!

The big thing here right now is “Fiebre Amarailla” or Yellow Fever. There have been outbreaks of Yellow Fever over the last week and the rumor is that it caused someone to die and put another person in the hospital here. We had to get the vaccine on our first day in country from the Peace Corps, but for the Paraguayan people obtaining the vaccine is a problem. There are not enough vaccines for everyone in the country so they give priority to certain sectors. Children under 10 can all get the vaccine but no one over 60 can get it through the Public Health Department. The Dept gives them out for free but people often have to wait in long lines or take a bus to Asuncion to get them. It’s very scary for the people here because the threat is very real and it seems unfair that the vaccine is not obtainable for everyone. Other frightening diseases transmittable through bugs are Dengue Fever and Chengas, neither of which are preventable and both can be deadly. Dengur is a viral infection transmitted through mosquitos and causes flu like symptoms but exacerbated. Chengas is transmitted through a type of bug that lives in the walls and furniture and comes out a night. The bug bites you and then deficates on your skin. If you get its feces into your body in any way and the bug had Chengas you get the disease. It doesn’t cause any immediate problems, but results in heart problems later in life. We have to get tested twice during the course of service to ensure that we don’t have the disease. Those are the scariest ailments. PCVs get lots of other bugs like parasites, piques and worms that can be taken care of pretty easily. I am not so worried about those.

So this weekend I am going to stay with a volunteer for a few days near Asuncion. I already know the volunteer because last Saturday we went to her site to do have our first hands on experience with Paraguayan youth. I will be spending about 4 days with her and learning what life is like for a volunteer as opposed to a trainee. It will be a nice change in pace. Training is very structured and exhausting. I am guessing that life as a Volunteer is a little bit more relaxed.
More next week…

El Dia de Las Enamoradas

El Dia de las Enamoradas, also known as Valentine’s Day, is similar here to the US. The concept is the same but the Paraguayans are not nearly as materialistic as Americans, so it’s not as big of a deal. We were in a slightly bigger city last weekend and I saw a few stores with teddy bears and chocolates, but for the most part one might not even know that the day was coming. My sister Laura and her boyfriend exchanged gifts and one of my teachers brought in cookies. There were a few venders selling flowers in the streets. The Paraguayans tell each other Happy Valentine’s Day as we would in the US. Very exciting… I was able to check my email though and I want to say thanks for all of the Valentines that I received. They were wonderful and I was glad to see you haven’t forgotten me yet!

Slowly but surely I am beginning to become a Spanish speaker. In just one week I feel like I have learned more than in my six years of Spanish in school. I can understand just about everything that Laura is telling me and a lot of what she is talking about with others. Which I assure you is great progress.

So far things have been great in Paraguay. I feel like I have been gone for a lot more than twelve days. It seems more like months because so much has happened. Just so you all know I am currently living in a “city” which is about an hour south of Asuncion. The concept of a city here is much different then in the States, so I can pretty much walk anywhere within the city in about 20 minutes. But there are bigger cities as well. For the next three months I will remain with my current host family. When I swear in as a volunteer and go to my placement I will be required to live with another family for six months in order to integrate into the community. We won’t find out our placements until week 8 or 9. I am hoping for something somewhat close to Asuncion. Laura is praying that it is close so we can hang out.

The training program is 11 weeks long and is run by a company called CHP. We have classes Monday through Friday from 7:45-11:30 and 1:00-5:00 and Saturdays from 8-12. The long lunch break is called La Siesta. Lunch is the biggest meal of the day here, as in many Latino countries, and is often accompanied by a nap. After almost two years of eating my lunch at my desk or on the run, if at all, I love La Siesta!

In case you were wondering the water here is very clean. I have been drinking it since my second day and haven’t had any problems. Luckily my family lives across the street from the water sanitation center so our water is probably the cleanest. The great thing about the water is that when showering you never run out of hot water. However the heating element is contained within the showerhead creating a somewhat dangerous situation because it is run by electricity and the wires could potentially touch the pipes. The bad thing about the water here is that there are not enough pumps keep it running for the whole city and often times the water shuts off around noon and doesn’t start running again until late. So that means using buckets of water to flush toilets, wash your hands, brush your teeth, etc. Luckily my family is innovative and they have an outdoor bathroom that has a tank on top. This way we always have running water, even if we have to go outside to get to it.

Dad you would be proud. I have been to Church more times in the last week then in the last five years. Laura is very involved in the Church and while I am trying to learn about Paraguayan culture and language I go everywhere with her, including mass and choir practice! The priest here is a 27 year-old Polack, which I find very fascinating. In the US it is rare to encounter such a young priest. It was interesting to see him perform mass especially since I could not understand most of it!

Well I am off for now! Thank you to everyone for your emails and posts. Keep them coming. Chao!

In Paraguay!

Hola! I am finally here! After many months of anticipation and preparation I have arrived in Paraguay. We got in on Thursday evening and spent the night at a retreat center. Then we took a bus Friday morning to Guarambare where the training center is located. My group, Urban Youth Development, is living in the same town. The other two groups, Rural Health and Early Education, are in satellite towns nearby. We took care of a lot of the logistics during the morning. We received all the information for training and our medical kits. We also started our immunizations today. I had to get one for yellow fever and I think I have about a hundred more to go! We learned some informational tidbits about Paraguay, such as the value of a Guarani… they are about 4700 to the dollar. Then around 4:30 we finally met our families.

My host family is very nice and extremely accommodating. My host sister Laura, 26, seems to be the most invested in my presence in the home. She came to get me from the center and has shown me everything around the house. Also in the home are an older sister and her husband with their three children, as well as the parents. They run a small store next to the house. My host father built the house himself. Laura and I went for a walk around Paraguay and she is going to walk with me in the mornings for exercise. I am the first volunteer in their home. The children are very interested in their new tia. There are two boys and a girl, ages 9, 7 and 5. Mara is the little girl and she helped me unpack all my things, telling me exactly where to put them.

Speaking of things. I had no problems with getting all my stuff on the airline. My large bag was exactly 50 pounds and I know it was over on the measurements, but they did not even check. I had my backpack wrapped at the Miami airport so the straps would not get stuck and cause my bag to be lost into the great abyss of cargo.

My family has electricity and running water so don’t worry. They even have a washing machine. I definitely need to work hard on my Spanish because I can barely understand anything Laura is saying, but she tries to slow down and explain which is great. Well I am off for now to learn more about the Paraguayan culture. Don’t worry about me I am safe and sound and most importantly HAPPY to be here!

Staging

Just heading back to my second day of staging in Miami. We are staying at the Crowne Plaza Hotel and they are basically just going over the facts of the Peace Corps. We went out in Miami Beach last night which was fun. The Peace Corps provides plenty of cash for it. The group is pretty interesting. Lots of people from Wisconsin. The Midwest seems to be taking over! I will tell you all more about it once I get to Paraguay!

One More Day

Well I am down to one more day in Cleveland before my journey begins. I would like to thank everyone for making my last weekend in town a lot of fun. A special thanks to Lauren and Mom for a great party! Thank you to everyone who came! Now if I can just get this packing situation under control all will be ready for my departure. All except the part about saying goodbye. I am sure that there will be even more tears tomorrow night and again on Tuesday morning. Thanks again to everyone for your support... I'm sure I will need it over the next two years!

Address in Paraguay

Well I am down to about 5 weeks to departure and I just want to let everyone know what my address will be in Paraguay, so here it is:

PCT

Cuerpo de Paz

162 Chaco Boreal c/Mcal. Lopez

Asuncion 1580, Paraguay

South America

The PCT will become PCV when training is over... if I make it. If you send letters be sure to number them. Only about 80% of the mail actually arrives at it's destination. If you send packages be sure to brand them with crosses and other Catholic icons so that they are more likely to make it through Customs.