Turns out, I am a lot more focused on blogging when I'm in Honduras than when I'm in the USA! After a painful layover in Atlanta when my flight was cancelled and the snowstorm was making air travel nearly impossible, I am finally home. And my overwhelming emotion about being home is simply how nice things are in America. Things are really, really nice here. The bathrooms smell amazingly disinfected. I can flush my toilet paper. The public sinks have hot water. I had also forgotten how efficient things are in the USA. I went into a drugstore yesterday, and there were aisles and aisles of makeup, shampoo, groceries, skin care... pretty much anything imaginable, under the bright glow of fluorescent lights. I felt similarly overwhelmed in the grocery store- so much fresh food that doesn't have to be washed in bleach, so much room in the aisles, so many varieties of salad (pasta salad, potato salad, chicken salad, tuna salad).
So, America's nice. However, America is also cold. It's freezing, actually. My skin and lips are so dry and chapped, and I hate standing outside. Ohio is very flat, also. I miss the mountains. I miss the expanse of the Honduran night sky. I miss not having the television as a distraction. I miss the river. I miss speaking Spanish. I am already starting to appreciate the things about my life in Honduras that I took for granted, like the slower pace and the simplicity of my life. I definitely miss my friends and neighbors.
I love being home and seeing my family. I like America a lot. But my heart is definitely in two places. I like all the efficiencies of home, but I don't need them. I am really excited about having two weeks here, but I know when I go back to Honduras, I will feel excited for many reasons. For now, I will simply enjoy the niceties of American life, which includes delicious food, time with family, movies, and central heating.
In any case... happy holidays and merry christmas to all :)
Tuesday, December 22, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Go tell it on the mountains...
...that the Christmas show is over!!! Yesterday was exhausting, frustrating, and rewarding all at the same time, and right now my overwhelming emotions are ones of relief and excitement for what's to come. Our day was just about as long as we expected it to be. First, let me explain a little more about this Christmas show. The "show" is actually songs and dances that come between scenes of acting. It was just a huge joke to me- the scenes weren't spoken by actors, they were played on a CD and the actors would lip-sync the lines. Furthermore, the actors weren't students from our school. They were students from the Vida Abundante school in Tegucigalpa. Weird? Very. But furthermore, FURTHERMORE, the scenes had nothing to do with Christmas! There was one scene of Jesus healing a blind man, another of Jesus healing a man who couldn't walk, and Lazarus made an appearance also. As we were walking out, Jacki commented, "I missed the part where Jesus was born in this Christmas show." Very unfortunate that in the story of Jesus' birth, baby Jesus didn't make an appearance. But whatever. It wasn't like the songs were all that Christmas-y either. (My song, "He was born in a barn," was one of the better ones. For anyone familiar with Pink... think of the Pink song, "I'm coming out so you better get this party started," and imagine the lyrics, "Time's running out so we better get the season started.-- yeah... that was one of the songs.)
So, the actors had never been to the church in Gracias before, and the children had never practiced with actors before yesterday. It was very, very frustrating to do all of that on the same day as the actual show. My children also received their hats for the first time yesterday, which is a pretty major prop in their dance.
However, although we had many frustrations with the organizational aspects of the program, the show itself was really, really cute. How could it not be? It was a bunch of little children bopping around in cute costumes on stage. I have my share of complaints about the show, but at the end of the day, the parents were just really happy to see their children on stage. A mom of one of my students came up to me after the show and grabbed my face and said to me, "Dios le bendiga, Dios le bendiga! Muchas, muchas gracias por todo!" (God bless you, God bless you, thank you so much for everything) and then she gave me a huge hug and kissed my cheek and ran away. My students were so excited and proud of themselves. It was really cute. As soon as I get home (this weekend!!!) and have fast internet, I'll post the video of my students dancing.
Unfortunately, the students were also really exhausted... they had such a late night last night. One of my little boys actually fell asleep on my shoulder before the show ended, and today in school they were so tired. I had trouble trying to get them to focus enough to learn anything. They are done, and ready for their vacations.
And so am I. I have expressed my love for Honduras, for my job, and for my life here before... but I am so ready to see my family and get a little dose of America. The next time I update this blog, I will probably be home! So, culture shock here I come. I couldn't be more excited.
So, the actors had never been to the church in Gracias before, and the children had never practiced with actors before yesterday. It was very, very frustrating to do all of that on the same day as the actual show. My children also received their hats for the first time yesterday, which is a pretty major prop in their dance.
However, although we had many frustrations with the organizational aspects of the program, the show itself was really, really cute. How could it not be? It was a bunch of little children bopping around in cute costumes on stage. I have my share of complaints about the show, but at the end of the day, the parents were just really happy to see their children on stage. A mom of one of my students came up to me after the show and grabbed my face and said to me, "Dios le bendiga, Dios le bendiga! Muchas, muchas gracias por todo!" (God bless you, God bless you, thank you so much for everything) and then she gave me a huge hug and kissed my cheek and ran away. My students were so excited and proud of themselves. It was really cute. As soon as I get home (this weekend!!!) and have fast internet, I'll post the video of my students dancing.
Unfortunately, the students were also really exhausted... they had such a late night last night. One of my little boys actually fell asleep on my shoulder before the show ended, and today in school they were so tired. I had trouble trying to get them to focus enough to learn anything. They are done, and ready for their vacations.
And so am I. I have expressed my love for Honduras, for my job, and for my life here before... but I am so ready to see my family and get a little dose of America. The next time I update this blog, I will probably be home! So, culture shock here I come. I couldn't be more excited.
Friday, December 11, 2009
He was born in a barn?
That's the name of my class's Christmas song.. "He was Born in a Barn." I am guessing that I have heard it approximately... a million times in the past week. Today we had another 3 and a half hour practice in the tiny church, and it was an exhausting way to end the week. However, despite my frustrations I found some redeeming qualities about the rehearsal. First of all, I'm impressed with my students. Most of them are seven years old, and they were able to sit for all that time and behave. I am really proud of them for following directions so well. Secondly, they're incredibly endearing. They were hot, and grumpy, and bored, and the fact that they're little kids just really comes out under those conditions. They were sitting in my lap and putting their heads on my shoulders, and I just love little kids! I just want to hug them all the time. It's also really nice when the whole school is together. It's nice to see the ninth graders interacting with the first graders, and watching kids in their element. It's weird, being a teacher and seeing it all happen from this angle.
There are a few stereotypes about Americans that I have encountered during my time in Honduras. One of these stereotypes is that all Americans are rich. The second is that all Americans are lazy. Now, because I do not want to perpetuate the second stereotype, I hesitate to complain about work here on this blog. The truth is that I love my job, I love being around the students, and it hardly ever feels like work to me. But today the administrators told us our schedule for Monday, the day of the Christmas show, and it's unbelievable. We have to be in town at 7:20am. (They had originally told us 8.) Because we live in the mountains, that means we're going to have to call at mototaxi to pick us up at 6:45. The children are practicing in that church from 7:20-noon. That's over four hours. From noon to 1, we have a break for lunch. Then we are supposed to decorate the church from 1-4:30. From 4:30-5:30 we can eat dinner, and then we have to be back at the church from 5:30 until the end of the program, and then we have to clean up the decorations. The program is supposed to start at 7. So that means if we are out by 10pm, we'll be lucky, and then we'll get home at 10:30. So, it's a day that will go from 6:45a-10:30p, and then we have school the next day. It's insane. Absolutely insane. It's going to be singularly the worst day I've had in Honduras. And the next Tuesday will be a close second.
A variety of people read this blog, but for anyone who's reading this: if you're a person who prays... please pray for me. All I want to do is go home!
There are a few stereotypes about Americans that I have encountered during my time in Honduras. One of these stereotypes is that all Americans are rich. The second is that all Americans are lazy. Now, because I do not want to perpetuate the second stereotype, I hesitate to complain about work here on this blog. The truth is that I love my job, I love being around the students, and it hardly ever feels like work to me. But today the administrators told us our schedule for Monday, the day of the Christmas show, and it's unbelievable. We have to be in town at 7:20am. (They had originally told us 8.) Because we live in the mountains, that means we're going to have to call at mototaxi to pick us up at 6:45. The children are practicing in that church from 7:20-noon. That's over four hours. From noon to 1, we have a break for lunch. Then we are supposed to decorate the church from 1-4:30. From 4:30-5:30 we can eat dinner, and then we have to be back at the church from 5:30 until the end of the program, and then we have to clean up the decorations. The program is supposed to start at 7. So that means if we are out by 10pm, we'll be lucky, and then we'll get home at 10:30. So, it's a day that will go from 6:45a-10:30p, and then we have school the next day. It's insane. Absolutely insane. It's going to be singularly the worst day I've had in Honduras. And the next Tuesday will be a close second.
A variety of people read this blog, but for anyone who's reading this: if you're a person who prays... please pray for me. All I want to do is go home!
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Christmas preparations
I can't remember the last time I was this tired. Our Christmas program is next week, on Monday. The administrators decided that for today and Friday we would leave school at noon to go practice in the auditorium where the show will be. They scheduled the practice to be from 1-4:30.
So allow me to paint a picture. A relatively small auditorium with fold-out chairs, and ten grades of children running around. The room is not ventilated whatsoever, so it's incredibly hot and smelly. There is nothing for the children to do when they're waiting for their turn to dance, and the administrators have been really vehement about telling us (the teachers) that the church didn't want to let us rent the space so we have to be really careful not to incur damages, etc etc. (As a side note, I brought coloring books and colored pencils for my children to play with while they were waiting, and the principals told me that the children weren't allowed to color because they might get colored pencils on the tiled floor.) So, the students are all expected to sit on the floor quietly and just wait for the other nine grades to finish dancing. Surprisingly, though, most students were willing to do that... for the first two hours. But three and a half hours of that? They and I were all almost crying by the end.
On top of that, my students were so unaccustomed to a big stage that they couldn't get the blocking right at all and they looked really silly. They also didn't look like they were having fun, because they weren't! They were hot and bored and wanting to go home.
Overall, it was a really unfortunate afternoon, and I am absolutely dreading Friday, when we have to do it again.
Right now I'm going to order a cafe con leche and then I'm going back up the mountain to sleep. I'm annoyed and really ready for a break.
So allow me to paint a picture. A relatively small auditorium with fold-out chairs, and ten grades of children running around. The room is not ventilated whatsoever, so it's incredibly hot and smelly. There is nothing for the children to do when they're waiting for their turn to dance, and the administrators have been really vehement about telling us (the teachers) that the church didn't want to let us rent the space so we have to be really careful not to incur damages, etc etc. (As a side note, I brought coloring books and colored pencils for my children to play with while they were waiting, and the principals told me that the children weren't allowed to color because they might get colored pencils on the tiled floor.) So, the students are all expected to sit on the floor quietly and just wait for the other nine grades to finish dancing. Surprisingly, though, most students were willing to do that... for the first two hours. But three and a half hours of that? They and I were all almost crying by the end.
On top of that, my students were so unaccustomed to a big stage that they couldn't get the blocking right at all and they looked really silly. They also didn't look like they were having fun, because they weren't! They were hot and bored and wanting to go home.
Overall, it was a really unfortunate afternoon, and I am absolutely dreading Friday, when we have to do it again.
Right now I'm going to order a cafe con leche and then I'm going back up the mountain to sleep. I'm annoyed and really ready for a break.
Saturday, December 5, 2009
The moon and the mountains
I absolutely love Honduras. I love living here. My life is so peaceful. I rarely face unpleasant conflict. I never watch TV or hear the sound of traffic. Every morning I wake up early enough to see the sun rise, and every morning (unless it's really dense up in our cloud forest) I can see it peek up over the magnificent mountains. I am surrounded by mountains; they are on every side of me.
I have never felt so appreciative of nature before this experience. When I eat my breakfast, I often see incredibly brightly-colored birds in my trees. The trees in my yard grow fruit that I can eat. I have no idea what the fruit is, but it's delicious. The sound of the river is my only background noise. I have never seen a night sky as magnificent as it is here. I can literally see galaxies. Last week the moon was so bright, I couldn't look directly at it without squinting.
Sometimes seeing things every day can make them seem commonplace, but somehow the mountains and the night sky remain as staggering as they appeared the first day I saw them.
I love the girls I live with. I love my students. I love teaching. And I absolutely love my life in Honduras. I have never felt so lucky.
In two weeks, I will be home. I am so excited to go back to something familiar in order to see how and if I've changed during my time here... by that I mean, if my priorities have changed, my habits, what I think is important, how I choose to spend my time, etc etc. Sometimes it's really hard to tell if things are changing, but the past four months have been so dramatic for me that I feel like I must be different now than I was when I came! Hopefully in good ways. We'll see.
I have never felt so appreciative of nature before this experience. When I eat my breakfast, I often see incredibly brightly-colored birds in my trees. The trees in my yard grow fruit that I can eat. I have no idea what the fruit is, but it's delicious. The sound of the river is my only background noise. I have never seen a night sky as magnificent as it is here. I can literally see galaxies. Last week the moon was so bright, I couldn't look directly at it without squinting.
Sometimes seeing things every day can make them seem commonplace, but somehow the mountains and the night sky remain as staggering as they appeared the first day I saw them.
I love the girls I live with. I love my students. I love teaching. And I absolutely love my life in Honduras. I have never felt so lucky.
In two weeks, I will be home. I am so excited to go back to something familiar in order to see how and if I've changed during my time here... by that I mean, if my priorities have changed, my habits, what I think is important, how I choose to spend my time, etc etc. Sometimes it's really hard to tell if things are changing, but the past four months have been so dramatic for me that I feel like I must be different now than I was when I came! Hopefully in good ways. We'll see.
Monday, November 30, 2009
Homestretch until Christmas
Well, we didn't go to Tegucigalpa but we had a really fun, really delicious weekend! We spent no less than seven hours on the internet on Saturday. Let me say that we don't get internet that often. Usually I'm able to get online twice a week, and usually it's an extremely slow connection. So this weekend I was able to spend a bunch of time online and connect with my family and friends. I'm not able to keep up with many people while I'm here, so I really cherished the opportunity to talk to everyone.
Now, I know for most people, a long list of the meals they ate over the weekend wouldn't make for very good blog substance. However, when you live in Honduras and live mostly on beans and tortillas, a list of weekend meals is worth writing about. So this weekend we made... corn dogs, onion rings, green bean casserole, balleadas, quiche, french fries, cookies, and chili. Yeah... yum.
So we ate a lot and laughed a lot and had a lot of fun up in the mountains. I don't want to go back to school tomorrow! But it's really cool to think that there are only two and a half weeks left until I get to go home for Christmas.
Now, I know for most people, a long list of the meals they ate over the weekend wouldn't make for very good blog substance. However, when you live in Honduras and live mostly on beans and tortillas, a list of weekend meals is worth writing about. So this weekend we made... corn dogs, onion rings, green bean casserole, balleadas, quiche, french fries, cookies, and chili. Yeah... yum.
So we ate a lot and laughed a lot and had a lot of fun up in the mountains. I don't want to go back to school tomorrow! But it's really cool to think that there are only two and a half weeks left until I get to go home for Christmas.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Fun times in Villa Verde and Gracias
An arrangement of random photos taken by everyone... some by Jacki, some by Sarah, some probably by Rachel and LB and some by me. Villa Verde and Gracias...
Our little town of Gracias. Amazing photography by Jacki.
An example of the bugs we find...
... and are no longer scared to kill
Our Charlie-Brown-looking Christmas tree
Bonfire night...burning our garbage
Alex wanted to lean there
We live in a cloud forest
Our two adorable neighbors
The view from our home
My roomies
Our little town of Gracias. Amazing photography by Jacki.
An example of the bugs we find...
... and are no longer scared to kill
Our Charlie-Brown-looking Christmas tree
Bonfire night...burning our garbage
Alex wanted to lean there
We live in a cloud forest
Our two adorable neighbors
The view from our home
My roomies
Fiesta Tipica Photos
Photos of our school's biggest annual fundraiser. These were also taken by Jacki...
These girls are my family here... I love them xoxo
Two of our neighbors in Villa Verde
These girls are my family here... I love them xoxo
Two of our neighbors in Villa Verde
Copan Photos
Well, since I haven't had a camera, I haven't been able to post many photos on this blog. But my friends have given me photos so I can post some of those! Today I have internet that's a little faster so here are some photos from the last month.
These are from Copan, most of which are compliments of Miss Jacki Warren...
More to come...
These are from Copan, most of which are compliments of Miss Jacki Warren...
More to come...
Corn dogs and onion rings
I can't believe Thanksgiving is over! Actually, it feels like Thanksgiving didn't happen at all. We've been having a really fun weekend at the house and I'm definitely appreciating the time to relax. However, it feels oddly Thanksgiving-less without turkey and home. On Thanksgiving day, we came to town and stocked up our kitchen with all sorts of goodies. On the night of Thanksgiving, at the last moment we decided that what we really wanted to do was make homemade corn dogs and onion rings. So that's exactly what we did! We very quickly mastered the recipe and made some completely delicious fried food for Thanksgiving. A few weeks ago we figured out how to make homemade donuts (a very dangerous discovery) and now we know how to make corn dogs and fried food. I can see myself expanding in size here in Honduras!!
Last night we had a Thanksgiving feast with all of our neighbors. Our feast consisted of french fries (supplied by the Americans), sweet and sour chicken and cake (from our Filipino neighbors), and lemonade (from the Hondurans). It was so delicious! And really awesome to spend time with our neighbors. I love them.
Although I love it here, with each passing day I get more and more excited to go home. I have no idea if I'll experience serious culture shock or just feel comfortable as soon as I get there, but I don't even care. I'm just really looking forward to spending some time in my home country!
Tomorrow are the national elections. I really hope they're 1) free and fair and 2) uneventful.
A couple of weeks ago, Laura Beth and I were in the forest looking for sticks for roasting marshmallows, and we noticed a really small tree that had lots of sticks on one branch. So I took the machete and chopped it down (we were being really silly) and came back with a huge branch. When we brought it back into the house, we all quickly discovered that it was the perfect Charlie-brown looking Christmas tree! So we decorated it and now we have a Christmas tree.
Happy Holidays from the girls in the mountains! :)
Last night we had a Thanksgiving feast with all of our neighbors. Our feast consisted of french fries (supplied by the Americans), sweet and sour chicken and cake (from our Filipino neighbors), and lemonade (from the Hondurans). It was so delicious! And really awesome to spend time with our neighbors. I love them.
Although I love it here, with each passing day I get more and more excited to go home. I have no idea if I'll experience serious culture shock or just feel comfortable as soon as I get there, but I don't even care. I'm just really looking forward to spending some time in my home country!
Tomorrow are the national elections. I really hope they're 1) free and fair and 2) uneventful.
A couple of weeks ago, Laura Beth and I were in the forest looking for sticks for roasting marshmallows, and we noticed a really small tree that had lots of sticks on one branch. So I took the machete and chopped it down (we were being really silly) and came back with a huge branch. When we brought it back into the house, we all quickly discovered that it was the perfect Charlie-brown looking Christmas tree! So we decorated it and now we have a Christmas tree.
Happy Holidays from the girls in the mountains! :)
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Thanksgiving in Gracias
Oh man, so much to write about! Well, times are interesting here in Honduras. The elections are this weekend. For anyone unfamiliar with the political situation here, there was a military coup in June to oust the then-president Mel Zelaya. Since June, there have been riots, parades, demonstrations, and curfews. When Zelaya came back into the country, school was cancelled for two days because the de facto president, Micheletti, imposed a national curfew. My friends and I were tear gassed in San Pedro Sula. It's been quite an interesting couple of months, and now the time to elect a new president has come.
Unfortunately, the elections fall on the same weekend as Thanksgiving. The school offered us a really generous Thanksgiving weekend, and I have been really excited about it. They offered to drive us to the capital, put us up in a hotel, and pay for our meals for the weekend. I've been out of college for a year and a half, but I still usually follow my collegiate instincts, which tell me to go where the free food is! However, I couldn't shake the little feeling of nervousness that it might not be a great idea to travel to the capital city during election weekend. Especially after I received an email from the US Embassy saying not to travel to Tegucigalpa. And then most of the Hondurans I talked to confirmed that it would be dangerous. And the organization in England that's associated with our school explicitly forbade its volunteers from traveling to the capital this weekend. And bombs have been going off in various places around the city.
So at the very last minute, me and three of my fellow teachers decided to opt out of the weekend. It kind of sucks-- I had really been looking forward to this weekend, and anyone who knows me knows that I don't turn down free food lightly. At the same time, however, I think we will have a really relaxing five days at home. We are planning to have a big thanksgiving meal with all of our neighbors (I think that should be pretty funny, actually...between my broken Spanish and their tortillas, it should be a colorful meal!), and we're considering staying in a hotel with wireless internet (just to treat ourselves to wireless in bed) and maybe traveling to a nearby city to get a change of scenery and some iced coffee. I am disappointed to be missing out, but I also feel like I made a responsible decision by staying home.
The other thing I'm trying to figure out is my crazy Christmas show. My little students are trying so hard, but we've only gotten through 50 seconds of our ridiculous hodunk country song. I have some serious misgivings about this Christmas show and the way our school is going about running the program. Seeing as this is a public blog, though, I'll just save the details for the people who want to know enough to ask. Suffice it to say that I miss the days of a good old fashioned Christmas pageant with "Silent Night" and "Away in a Manger," where costumes are cheap, choreography is minimal, and the glitz and glam of a materialistic Christmas is nonexistent.
I'll post this weekend about my first Honduran Thanksgiving. I think it will be really fun.
Unfortunately, the elections fall on the same weekend as Thanksgiving. The school offered us a really generous Thanksgiving weekend, and I have been really excited about it. They offered to drive us to the capital, put us up in a hotel, and pay for our meals for the weekend. I've been out of college for a year and a half, but I still usually follow my collegiate instincts, which tell me to go where the free food is! However, I couldn't shake the little feeling of nervousness that it might not be a great idea to travel to the capital city during election weekend. Especially after I received an email from the US Embassy saying not to travel to Tegucigalpa. And then most of the Hondurans I talked to confirmed that it would be dangerous. And the organization in England that's associated with our school explicitly forbade its volunteers from traveling to the capital this weekend. And bombs have been going off in various places around the city.
So at the very last minute, me and three of my fellow teachers decided to opt out of the weekend. It kind of sucks-- I had really been looking forward to this weekend, and anyone who knows me knows that I don't turn down free food lightly. At the same time, however, I think we will have a really relaxing five days at home. We are planning to have a big thanksgiving meal with all of our neighbors (I think that should be pretty funny, actually...between my broken Spanish and their tortillas, it should be a colorful meal!), and we're considering staying in a hotel with wireless internet (just to treat ourselves to wireless in bed) and maybe traveling to a nearby city to get a change of scenery and some iced coffee. I am disappointed to be missing out, but I also feel like I made a responsible decision by staying home.
The other thing I'm trying to figure out is my crazy Christmas show. My little students are trying so hard, but we've only gotten through 50 seconds of our ridiculous hodunk country song. I have some serious misgivings about this Christmas show and the way our school is going about running the program. Seeing as this is a public blog, though, I'll just save the details for the people who want to know enough to ask. Suffice it to say that I miss the days of a good old fashioned Christmas pageant with "Silent Night" and "Away in a Manger," where costumes are cheap, choreography is minimal, and the glitz and glam of a materialistic Christmas is nonexistent.
I'll post this weekend about my first Honduran Thanksgiving. I think it will be really fun.
Saturday, November 21, 2009
uh..
I'm currently sitting at the hotel where we all come to get free internet. We also often eat at the restaurant here, because even though the food is overpriced, it's also good and convenient. So I ate my truly delicious chicken sandwich with platanos, and I was just sitting here, enjoying my internet access, when all of a sudden we heard a really loud squawk come from the kitchen. Then a lady came running out, clutching a black bag. There was no doubt in any of our minds as to what had just happened... they definitely killed a chicken in the kitchen of the restaurant. ick ick ick ick ick... I have so many mixed feelings. The most overwhelming one is that I'm happy I already ate. I'm also seriously reconsidering vegetarianism (I lasted a year the first time, I could do it again!) and I'm also pretty grossed out that 1) there was a chicken chilling in the kitchen of the restaurant and 2) they killed it in there. ick ick ick!
We are currently trying to convince the school administration to give us two extra days of school off before winter break. That would allow me to come home almost a week early. I found out that I can change my plane ticket for free, and I am just really, really anxious to get home and see my family. A year is a really long time to be out of the country, and while I don't exactly feel homesick, I do feel very excited to be home. I miss my mom and dad and brothers so much. I miss water from the fridge and warm houses and consistent internet and speaking english. And while a week might not sound like a lot, it feels like a huge difference to me. I could spend the christmas season with Riory! I really hope it works out.
We are currently trying to convince the school administration to give us two extra days of school off before winter break. That would allow me to come home almost a week early. I found out that I can change my plane ticket for free, and I am just really, really anxious to get home and see my family. A year is a really long time to be out of the country, and while I don't exactly feel homesick, I do feel very excited to be home. I miss my mom and dad and brothers so much. I miss water from the fridge and warm houses and consistent internet and speaking english. And while a week might not sound like a lot, it feels like a huge difference to me. I could spend the christmas season with Riory! I really hope it works out.
Planning for Christmas
Well, the school gave me my assignment for the Christmas show. My class has been given a country music Christmas song. Yes, you read that correctly. The song is called, “He was Born in a Barn,” and let me just say… it’s a keeper. To be honest, I’m a little overwhelmed by what they’ve asked me to do. The principal literally handed me an old, homemade DVD of the Tegucigalpa's school's Christmas program, and said, “Teach them number six.” Well, number six is not only a country Christmas song, it’s also filmed with little kids who clearly don’t really know what moves they’re supposed to be doing. So I have no idea how to teach the dance. I hope the school doesn’t take this too seriously, because I think it’s going to end up being hilarious. I’ll post a video of our performance after it happens.
Other than that... we have three more days until our weekend in Tegucigalpa, and then three weeks until Christmas. I am getting so excited to come home. There are some things I just can't wait to enjoy again- central heating, consistently warm showers, grocery stores, fresh fruit and vegetables that don't have to be washed in bleach, non-moldy rooms, rooms without bugs, a significant lack of moths and spiders, good hot chocolate, an abundance of ice, Target, people who can speak English, and American men. Ah, I'm so excited for the holidays :)
Other than that... we have three more days until our weekend in Tegucigalpa, and then three weeks until Christmas. I am getting so excited to come home. There are some things I just can't wait to enjoy again- central heating, consistently warm showers, grocery stores, fresh fruit and vegetables that don't have to be washed in bleach, non-moldy rooms, rooms without bugs, a significant lack of moths and spiders, good hot chocolate, an abundance of ice, Target, people who can speak English, and American men. Ah, I'm so excited for the holidays :)
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Almost thanksgiving
I cannot believe this, but in one month I'll be home. That's crazy to think about. We're given a pretty nice vacation- I'll be home from December 18th until January 3rd. I have no idea what that time will hold for me. I want to see friends and I'm kind of considering going to Ann Arbor, but I also really want to spend as much time as possible with my family. I might also not really want to navigate the snowy roads of the midwest after four months of not driving at all.
Before December 18th, I have a lot of fun stuff coming up! The school is giving us a Thanksgiving weekend in Tegucigalpa. I do not even know how to describe how excited I am about that weekend. They are driving us to Teguc (it's a really big deal for us that we don't have to take the chicken buses) and then they are putting us up in a hotel for the weekend and giving us a Thanksgiving dinner. They have also given us Monday off to travel back. It should be pretty exciting- that's the weekend of the elections, so the capital city is sure to be...hopping. We'll stay safe! (a.k.a far away from all government buildings) It's so nice to have plans for my first Thanksgiving away from home.
The week following Thanksgiving, we are putting on a Christmas show at the school. I am in charge of the second grade dance. I haven't actually seen the dance, but I think the whole thing will be pretty funny. We will probably be practicing a lot between Thanksgiving and December 9th. Then we have one more week of classes before going home! I think the time will fly- it always does.
I still adore it here. Every single day, the magnificence of where I live stuns me. Sometimes when I walk to school, I have to stop to look at the mountains, because I don't really know how to take in their beauty. I have never seen a night sky like we have here- it's like a planetarium. I can look at the sky and literally see galaxies. I just love it here. Even with everything-- my moldy house, lack of central heating and little to no TV and internet-- I am so, so happy.
That reminds me though. This weekend, our neighbors (who are Philippino missionaries) invited us to their house for lunch. It was so awesome! First, when we walked into their house, we were really stunned because they actually have a home. Whereas our houses are like porches with furniture, their house is an actual home! They have tiled floors (I'm so jealous) and curtains on their windows and couches and lots of rooms and a TV! Just for the sake of perspective- when I say "lots of rooms," I mean a small living room, a kitchen, and two bedrooms. Haha, anyway, so they invited us in, put on a movie-- "The Proposal"-- and fed us homemade pizza and homemade soy milk. It was such an amazing treat! Then I kind of had to laugh at myself... sitting in a house and eating pizza and watching a movie has never seemed like such a luxury.
That's probably what I'll end up spending my whole break doing...eating pizza and watching TV. Sounds amazing! :)
Before December 18th, I have a lot of fun stuff coming up! The school is giving us a Thanksgiving weekend in Tegucigalpa. I do not even know how to describe how excited I am about that weekend. They are driving us to Teguc (it's a really big deal for us that we don't have to take the chicken buses) and then they are putting us up in a hotel for the weekend and giving us a Thanksgiving dinner. They have also given us Monday off to travel back. It should be pretty exciting- that's the weekend of the elections, so the capital city is sure to be...hopping. We'll stay safe! (a.k.a far away from all government buildings) It's so nice to have plans for my first Thanksgiving away from home.
The week following Thanksgiving, we are putting on a Christmas show at the school. I am in charge of the second grade dance. I haven't actually seen the dance, but I think the whole thing will be pretty funny. We will probably be practicing a lot between Thanksgiving and December 9th. Then we have one more week of classes before going home! I think the time will fly- it always does.
I still adore it here. Every single day, the magnificence of where I live stuns me. Sometimes when I walk to school, I have to stop to look at the mountains, because I don't really know how to take in their beauty. I have never seen a night sky like we have here- it's like a planetarium. I can look at the sky and literally see galaxies. I just love it here. Even with everything-- my moldy house, lack of central heating and little to no TV and internet-- I am so, so happy.
That reminds me though. This weekend, our neighbors (who are Philippino missionaries) invited us to their house for lunch. It was so awesome! First, when we walked into their house, we were really stunned because they actually have a home. Whereas our houses are like porches with furniture, their house is an actual home! They have tiled floors (I'm so jealous) and curtains on their windows and couches and lots of rooms and a TV! Just for the sake of perspective- when I say "lots of rooms," I mean a small living room, a kitchen, and two bedrooms. Haha, anyway, so they invited us in, put on a movie-- "The Proposal"-- and fed us homemade pizza and homemade soy milk. It was such an amazing treat! Then I kind of had to laugh at myself... sitting in a house and eating pizza and watching a movie has never seemed like such a luxury.
That's probably what I'll end up spending my whole break doing...eating pizza and watching TV. Sounds amazing! :)
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Parent-Teacher conferences
Well, okay. It's hard to believe, but I've been teaching for nine weeks now, and we had to turn in our grades for the first quarter last week. Yesterday, we had parent-teacher conferences to discuss the children's grades. haha, ah I don't even know where to start. Overall, the conferences went well. They were, however, extremely exhausting. The students left at noon, and the parents could come for conferences anytime between 2 and 6. That's a really, really long time to be sitting at a desk, waiting for parents to come. Every non-bilingual teacher was seated next to a bilingual teacher to help with the translating. That was great, except that we all had conferences at the same time. So most of the times that a parent came over, my translator was already in a conference so I had to do it by myself.
It was then, while I was trying to communicate with parents about their children, that I realized that I have a long, long way to go before I will consider myself good at Spanish. I have never in my life felt so frustrated with my inability to communicate. I thought I was doing pretty well with Spanish. I can pretty much understand what most people say to me, and I can carry on a decent conversation. But I am learning that language is so much more than grammar and vocabulary and small talk. Language has nuances. Different words mean more than dictionary definitions; they have more or less weight, they can imply different things. I love language; I love playing with it, I love being clever and having a decent vocabulary and using language to make implications. I simply do not know the nuances of the Spanish language, and that's a level of language proficiency that I don't know how to attain. It probably would take years to get that. But I feel like until I reach that, I won't be satisfied with my ability to communicate in Spanish.
So that was my disappointment for the night. I really wanted to talk to these parents, and tell them about their children's academic lives and explain to them my excitements or concerns, and I just didn't really know how to do that. There were a couple times when I had to find someone to translate for me. I can't be speaking broken Spanish to the lady whose son still can't count, or the lady whose son might very well be dyslexic.
I only had one or two parents who really gave me a problem. One of them asked me which teacher was in charge of taking care of the students' things. I thought I didn't understand her so I asked my translator to help me. But it turns out that's really what she was asking me. So, I told her that there is no teacher in charge of that, the students are responsible for their own things. So then she got mad because she told me that she had given her son a ruler, and now he can't find it. It took everything in me not to just shrug at her. I said that I constantly remind the children to respect each others' things, and that if I find things floating around the classroom, I always ask who they belong to. I said that I was sorry her son lost her ruler, but I don't have any room or time to take care of 19 students' school supplies. She responded by saying not to worry, but she's going to punish her son when she gets home for not taking care of his things. So I thought, that's great. I'm sure your seven year old son lost his ruler on purpose, and in the future he won't lose it because you spanked him. Does sarcasm translate over blog posts?
I was so tired when I finally got home, I didn't even know what to do with myself. I felt completely dazed. My mind was exhausted from all the Spanish, I was emotionally exhausted and I just felt physically done also. I really sympathize with my students. They probably feel tired all the time from listening to English all day. It must be so hard to go to a bilingual school.
I was really, really ready for the weekend after yesterday. It's doesn't feel real- it's only a week and a half until Thanksgiving, and then less than three weeks after that, I'll be home for Christmas! Where has the time gone? I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving. It kind of blows my mind.
It was then, while I was trying to communicate with parents about their children, that I realized that I have a long, long way to go before I will consider myself good at Spanish. I have never in my life felt so frustrated with my inability to communicate. I thought I was doing pretty well with Spanish. I can pretty much understand what most people say to me, and I can carry on a decent conversation. But I am learning that language is so much more than grammar and vocabulary and small talk. Language has nuances. Different words mean more than dictionary definitions; they have more or less weight, they can imply different things. I love language; I love playing with it, I love being clever and having a decent vocabulary and using language to make implications. I simply do not know the nuances of the Spanish language, and that's a level of language proficiency that I don't know how to attain. It probably would take years to get that. But I feel like until I reach that, I won't be satisfied with my ability to communicate in Spanish.
So that was my disappointment for the night. I really wanted to talk to these parents, and tell them about their children's academic lives and explain to them my excitements or concerns, and I just didn't really know how to do that. There were a couple times when I had to find someone to translate for me. I can't be speaking broken Spanish to the lady whose son still can't count, or the lady whose son might very well be dyslexic.
I only had one or two parents who really gave me a problem. One of them asked me which teacher was in charge of taking care of the students' things. I thought I didn't understand her so I asked my translator to help me. But it turns out that's really what she was asking me. So, I told her that there is no teacher in charge of that, the students are responsible for their own things. So then she got mad because she told me that she had given her son a ruler, and now he can't find it. It took everything in me not to just shrug at her. I said that I constantly remind the children to respect each others' things, and that if I find things floating around the classroom, I always ask who they belong to. I said that I was sorry her son lost her ruler, but I don't have any room or time to take care of 19 students' school supplies. She responded by saying not to worry, but she's going to punish her son when she gets home for not taking care of his things. So I thought, that's great. I'm sure your seven year old son lost his ruler on purpose, and in the future he won't lose it because you spanked him. Does sarcasm translate over blog posts?
I was so tired when I finally got home, I didn't even know what to do with myself. I felt completely dazed. My mind was exhausted from all the Spanish, I was emotionally exhausted and I just felt physically done also. I really sympathize with my students. They probably feel tired all the time from listening to English all day. It must be so hard to go to a bilingual school.
I was really, really ready for the weekend after yesterday. It's doesn't feel real- it's only a week and a half until Thanksgiving, and then less than three weeks after that, I'll be home for Christmas! Where has the time gone? I can't believe it's almost Thanksgiving. It kind of blows my mind.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Robbed...again
Why can’t I travel without someone stealing my money? In Europe, Brian Cole duped Alex and me, had us thinking he was a nice English renter when in reality he was a big fat thief. Now, someone at my school is stealing my money straight out of my wallet. I noticed last week that I had 500 lempiras missing from my wallet. It just wasn’t there. 500 lempiras is the equivalent to about $25.00. So, it’s not an obscene amount of money, but a guy in Mexico hijacked my bank card number last month, so I had to cancel the card and I no longer have access to my money at home. $25.00 isn’t a ton of money, but it goes a long way here. And since I only have access to my Honduran bank account, 500 lempiras really is quite a chunk.
Anyway, after my money went missing, I wrote how much I had in my wallet on a small piece of paper to prevent any confusion in the future. I updated that paper on Monday. Then, yesterday, I realized that I was 100 lempiras short of what I had written on my paper. Someone straight up went into my bookbag and into my wallet, during the school day, to steal my money. The same thing happened to another girl at the school- she also realized that she was missing 500 lempiras from her wallet.
I’m pretty sure I know who it is, but situations like these are so difficult. What if I’m wrong, and it’s not the person I think it is? That’s a big accusation to make. I really don’t think it’s any of the students—they can’t unlock my door. I want to catch the lady who I think is doing it in action, but I have no idea how to do that. I tried to be nice, and just say to myself, “well, at the end of the day it’s only $30, and I’m sure she needs the money more than I do.” But after I found out that another teacher had also been robbed…well, it really creeps me out. I feel like I can't leave anything in my classroom now, and I have no idea what to do about it. I talked to the school administrators and their answer was to tell me to "keep the door locked." Does anyone have any good ideas about how to catch a thief in action?
Anyway, after my money went missing, I wrote how much I had in my wallet on a small piece of paper to prevent any confusion in the future. I updated that paper on Monday. Then, yesterday, I realized that I was 100 lempiras short of what I had written on my paper. Someone straight up went into my bookbag and into my wallet, during the school day, to steal my money. The same thing happened to another girl at the school- she also realized that she was missing 500 lempiras from her wallet.
I’m pretty sure I know who it is, but situations like these are so difficult. What if I’m wrong, and it’s not the person I think it is? That’s a big accusation to make. I really don’t think it’s any of the students—they can’t unlock my door. I want to catch the lady who I think is doing it in action, but I have no idea how to do that. I tried to be nice, and just say to myself, “well, at the end of the day it’s only $30, and I’m sure she needs the money more than I do.” But after I found out that another teacher had also been robbed…well, it really creeps me out. I feel like I can't leave anything in my classroom now, and I have no idea what to do about it. I talked to the school administrators and their answer was to tell me to "keep the door locked." Does anyone have any good ideas about how to catch a thief in action?
Saturday, November 7, 2009
My moldy house
I just want to start out again by saying that I was chased by a cow again today. Why am I so attractive to cows?
Anyway, this week was good. I feel like as long as the weeks follow the routine, they always go pretty smoothly. The only thing I really had to struggle with was my house. The lady I rent it from told me that it was ready, so I went in there to try to clean it a little before moving my stuff. I pulled all the furniture and stuff out of the room (and by furniture I mean the tiny shelf I keep my things on and the mattress), and my room was totally empty except for the bed frame. I decided to try to mop the floor, but the floor is made of stone…the type of stone that you might normally see on a patio or something. As you can imagine, the mop didn’t really do much. Then I realized that there were huge clumps of mud caked to the floor, and I couldn’t get them off. I finally had to get a kitchen knife and scrape the mud off the floor. It was really hard and tedious though, and I finally just plopped on the floor, feeling really defeated. I had no idea how I was going to live there. I couldn’t believe someone would rent a house that dirty to me. I still can’t believe I slept there for several weeks. It's really no wonder that I got sick. I had to stop working on it because my whole body was aching and I felt like I wasn’t making any progress at all. I just had a bunch of muddy water on the floor. I tried to wash the mold off of the wall, and ended up taking off a layer of paint. Just to emphasize how poorly painted this wall was…I used the soft, yellow side of a regular house sponge to wash the walls. It was outrageous that the paint came off like that.
So anyway, I felt really overwhelmed. Yesterday morning, though, I walked to school with one of our neighbors and she told me that she would come over on Saturday and look at the house with me. So this morning, she and another neighbor came over, armed with soap and brooms. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but they opened my door and one of them exclaimed, "Que barbaro!" Which, directly translated, means "how barbaric!" She said that there is no way I should have been living there and that if they don't fix it, I'll keep getting sick. So I watched, fairly overwhelmed, as they sprinkled this soap on the floor, put water on it, and then started going crazy with their brooms. They were literally sweeping the dirty, soapy mud around the floor, and then they swept it right out the door. Then they proceeded to bring all my stuff back in the room and organize it for me. I felt really overwhelmed by how kind and willing to help they were. They totally fixed my room! I just really hope it stays clean, at least for a while. The whole housing thing has just been really exhausting to me, but it's a big relief to know that I have a dry room to sleep in tonight.
Anyway, this week was good. I feel like as long as the weeks follow the routine, they always go pretty smoothly. The only thing I really had to struggle with was my house. The lady I rent it from told me that it was ready, so I went in there to try to clean it a little before moving my stuff. I pulled all the furniture and stuff out of the room (and by furniture I mean the tiny shelf I keep my things on and the mattress), and my room was totally empty except for the bed frame. I decided to try to mop the floor, but the floor is made of stone…the type of stone that you might normally see on a patio or something. As you can imagine, the mop didn’t really do much. Then I realized that there were huge clumps of mud caked to the floor, and I couldn’t get them off. I finally had to get a kitchen knife and scrape the mud off the floor. It was really hard and tedious though, and I finally just plopped on the floor, feeling really defeated. I had no idea how I was going to live there. I couldn’t believe someone would rent a house that dirty to me. I still can’t believe I slept there for several weeks. It's really no wonder that I got sick. I had to stop working on it because my whole body was aching and I felt like I wasn’t making any progress at all. I just had a bunch of muddy water on the floor. I tried to wash the mold off of the wall, and ended up taking off a layer of paint. Just to emphasize how poorly painted this wall was…I used the soft, yellow side of a regular house sponge to wash the walls. It was outrageous that the paint came off like that.
So anyway, I felt really overwhelmed. Yesterday morning, though, I walked to school with one of our neighbors and she told me that she would come over on Saturday and look at the house with me. So this morning, she and another neighbor came over, armed with soap and brooms. I wasn't really sure what to expect, but they opened my door and one of them exclaimed, "Que barbaro!" Which, directly translated, means "how barbaric!" She said that there is no way I should have been living there and that if they don't fix it, I'll keep getting sick. So I watched, fairly overwhelmed, as they sprinkled this soap on the floor, put water on it, and then started going crazy with their brooms. They were literally sweeping the dirty, soapy mud around the floor, and then they swept it right out the door. Then they proceeded to bring all my stuff back in the room and organize it for me. I felt really overwhelmed by how kind and willing to help they were. They totally fixed my room! I just really hope it stays clean, at least for a while. The whole housing thing has just been really exhausting to me, but it's a big relief to know that I have a dry room to sleep in tonight.
Where am I?
Yesterday, I asked my students what they were doing this weekend. Many times when I ask students questions like this, they respond with, “How you say in English….” And then they answer in Spanish. So it’s always questionable as to whether or not I understand what they’re saying. When I asked my students yesterday about their upcoming weekend, one of my littlest students said in a very sweet voice, “How you say in English…vamos a matar las vacas?” So I looked at him, thinking I must have heard him incorrectly, and I asked, “You’re going to kill cows?” And he looked very proud and nodded his head. So I asked why, and he said, “Para comer." (To eat) "Vamos a matar todas!!" (We are going to kill them all!) I asked him, “How are you going to kill them?” -- I couldn’t resist asking. I just couldn’t imagine this teeny little boy killing cows. He responded, “Con cuchillo.” With a knife. My seven year old student is spending his weekend stabbing cows. Where am I?
I had another “where am I?” moment this week when one of my students was allowed to pick from my “treasure chest” because of good behavior. He immediately picked out a tiny box of eight crayons, and looked at me absolutely gleaming. “I never…how you say vida? Yes, life. I never in my life had crayons.” Then he hugged me and walked away. They get so happy over the smallest things. My mom sent me a package this week with stencils in it…they were so, so excited about the stencils. I am stocking up on classroom stuff over Christmas!! Let me know if you want to make any classroom donations. :)
I had another “where am I?” moment this week when one of my students was allowed to pick from my “treasure chest” because of good behavior. He immediately picked out a tiny box of eight crayons, and looked at me absolutely gleaming. “I never…how you say vida? Yes, life. I never in my life had crayons.” Then he hugged me and walked away. They get so happy over the smallest things. My mom sent me a package this week with stencils in it…they were so, so excited about the stencils. I am stocking up on classroom stuff over Christmas!! Let me know if you want to make any classroom donations. :)
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Fiesta Tipica, moldy houses, and other stuff
Every time I get to the internet these days, it feels like a month since I was last here! In reality, it hasn't been that long. But if someone had told me a few months ago that I would learn to exist with internet only once or twice a week, I would not have believed them! There are a lot of things that I live without these days. I can't remember the last time I watched the television. I can't remember the last time I was in a car or a van. I don't frequent anywhere that has windows or central heating. I have completely cut all of the excess noise out of my life, and I can't help but think I'm going to face some serious culture shock when I come home for Christmas.
Anyway, since I last wrote, all sorts of things have gone down. Our school had its annual fundraiser, Fiesta Tipica. I had really mixed feelings about Fiesta Tipica. On one hand, it was a great idea. The school rented out the park for a morning, and everyone dressed up in traditional Honduran clothes and sold typical food and the children performed Honduran dances. Sounds really nice, right?
Well, yeah. But as usual, we (the American teachers) weren't informed whatsoever about what would be going on. First of all, my class was one of two classes excluded from the program. I have no idea why only my students weren't allowed to dance (believe me, the principal will be explaining it to me at the next staff meeting), but they weren't. Furthermore, the Spanish-speaking teachers stopped teaching their classes in the middle of the week in order to choreograph the dances. Okay, I would have been alright with covering their classes if someone had told me that I would have to do it. But what happened was the bell rang, and I thought I would have a planning period. But the teachers never showed up, and when I went to find them, they told me that I was in charge of their classes because they had to teach dancing. So on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of last week, I had to watch my seven-year-olds from 7:40am-3pm, without a free period. I didn't know what to do with them! Furthermore, there was super loud music playing right outside of my classroom, and I couldn't hear myself over it. I tried to take my students outside to watch the other kids practice dancing, and the principal told me that they weren't allowed to be there. aaagh.
So I was entirely frustrated. On the actual day of Fiesta Tipica, I had three different bosses giving me three different sets of instructions about what to do. Selling food was stressful, because people would just yell what they wanted until they were served. There was no order or manners. It actually made me really miss the USA and how good our country is at standing in line.
But even after all of that, I still really enjoyed the festival. It was so fun to see the students all dressed up in little dresses and shirts. I had a Honduran dress that I wore, which was fun. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was jovial. I just like things to be more organized than they were.
I am still loving teaching, and where I live. I had a little mold infestation in my house, so I have actually been sleeping up in the other house this past week. I got really, really sick from the mold, which was growing on my floors and on the walls. The lady who owns the house put another window in my room, so maybe that will help it air out. I have no idea. Today one of my students brought me the most delicious chunk of cake. I forgot that teachers get presents sometimes! But for anyone who reads this...sucking up to teachers by buying them gifts totally works.
In any case, my complaints about the school and communication and stuff all really pale in comparison to how much I love it here. A couple days ago I actually had to stop on my way to school because the clouds and the mountains were so, so beautiful that I just didn't know how to look at them. I had to just stop and stare. I love everything that I'm doing and I feel so lucky that I finally found something that makes me feel...fulfilled. I can't believe that it's November already...where is the time going??
Anyway, since I last wrote, all sorts of things have gone down. Our school had its annual fundraiser, Fiesta Tipica. I had really mixed feelings about Fiesta Tipica. On one hand, it was a great idea. The school rented out the park for a morning, and everyone dressed up in traditional Honduran clothes and sold typical food and the children performed Honduran dances. Sounds really nice, right?
Well, yeah. But as usual, we (the American teachers) weren't informed whatsoever about what would be going on. First of all, my class was one of two classes excluded from the program. I have no idea why only my students weren't allowed to dance (believe me, the principal will be explaining it to me at the next staff meeting), but they weren't. Furthermore, the Spanish-speaking teachers stopped teaching their classes in the middle of the week in order to choreograph the dances. Okay, I would have been alright with covering their classes if someone had told me that I would have to do it. But what happened was the bell rang, and I thought I would have a planning period. But the teachers never showed up, and when I went to find them, they told me that I was in charge of their classes because they had to teach dancing. So on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of last week, I had to watch my seven-year-olds from 7:40am-3pm, without a free period. I didn't know what to do with them! Furthermore, there was super loud music playing right outside of my classroom, and I couldn't hear myself over it. I tried to take my students outside to watch the other kids practice dancing, and the principal told me that they weren't allowed to be there. aaagh.
So I was entirely frustrated. On the actual day of Fiesta Tipica, I had three different bosses giving me three different sets of instructions about what to do. Selling food was stressful, because people would just yell what they wanted until they were served. There was no order or manners. It actually made me really miss the USA and how good our country is at standing in line.
But even after all of that, I still really enjoyed the festival. It was so fun to see the students all dressed up in little dresses and shirts. I had a Honduran dress that I wore, which was fun. The food was delicious and the atmosphere was jovial. I just like things to be more organized than they were.
I am still loving teaching, and where I live. I had a little mold infestation in my house, so I have actually been sleeping up in the other house this past week. I got really, really sick from the mold, which was growing on my floors and on the walls. The lady who owns the house put another window in my room, so maybe that will help it air out. I have no idea. Today one of my students brought me the most delicious chunk of cake. I forgot that teachers get presents sometimes! But for anyone who reads this...sucking up to teachers by buying them gifts totally works.
In any case, my complaints about the school and communication and stuff all really pale in comparison to how much I love it here. A couple days ago I actually had to stop on my way to school because the clouds and the mountains were so, so beautiful that I just didn't know how to look at them. I had to just stop and stare. I love everything that I'm doing and I feel so lucky that I finally found something that makes me feel...fulfilled. I can't believe that it's November already...where is the time going??
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
We'll call it...cultural differences?
I face a real dilemma here in Honduras that I never thought I would have to deal with. I teach seven year olds. They are rambunctious and funny and silly, and many times I cannot get them to listen to me. I have all sorts of discipline systems in the classroom, but sometimes they just don’t work. Today, for example, a little girl was crying because two of the boys had hidden her things and wouldn’t tell her where they were. I have lectured my class over and over again about respecting other people’s things, and these boys are troublemakers, so I sent them to the office. I figured they would get a lecture from the principal (who is both scarier than I am and more effective since he can talk to them in Spanish.)
They came back sobbing. When I asked them why, they each individually told me that the principal said he would call their homes, and their parents would beat them. This isn’t the first time my students have told me that their parents hit them. I know that hitting children is a fairly common practice here in Honduras, but it makes me so sad that my actions of reporting them to the office could cause them to get beaten at home. So I am faced with either not asking the office for support in disciplining the children, or causing them to get hit when they go home. I know that it is fairly common practice to strike children with belts here, and the thought of that just makes me absolutely sickened. I understand that this is a different culture, but I don’t think I will ever, ever feel remotely comfortable with the idea of striking a child. I think I will have to just stop sending children to the office now that I know the ramifications of what they’ll face when they get home. It makes me really sad and a little frustrated to be living somewhere where that kind of parenting is considered acceptable.
They came back sobbing. When I asked them why, they each individually told me that the principal said he would call their homes, and their parents would beat them. This isn’t the first time my students have told me that their parents hit them. I know that hitting children is a fairly common practice here in Honduras, but it makes me so sad that my actions of reporting them to the office could cause them to get beaten at home. So I am faced with either not asking the office for support in disciplining the children, or causing them to get hit when they go home. I know that it is fairly common practice to strike children with belts here, and the thought of that just makes me absolutely sickened. I understand that this is a different culture, but I don’t think I will ever, ever feel remotely comfortable with the idea of striking a child. I think I will have to just stop sending children to the office now that I know the ramifications of what they’ll face when they get home. It makes me really sad and a little frustrated to be living somewhere where that kind of parenting is considered acceptable.
Copan Ruinas
Well! It has been quite the week of exciting events. It feels like such a blur to me! On Tuesday, I woke up and found that my pajamas were stuck to my leg wound. I unstuck my pants and saw that my scrape had turned into a full-blown infection. It was seriously the most severe infection I have ever seen in real life…my scrape was just white pus that had hardened to my leg. To make matters worse, every neighbor who saw it that morning gasped and asked me what had happened, and made sure to tell me that it was infected.
When I arrived at school, I asked the principals what I should do about it. The secretary, who is such a sweet lady, offered to clean it for me. It really touched my heart and made me feel bad, but she seriously sat on her knees and cleaned my leg as best as she could. Then she did it again that afternoon, and then again the next day and the next day. It has been incredibly painful, and I’m pretty sure that I’m going to have a fairly nasty scar on my leg. It’s still a little infected, but I bought my own medicine and have been cleaning it out as much as I can. It’s pretty nasty. This photo is about ten days after I fell, so as you can see, it's still pretty bad!
In spite of my oozing leg, we packed up our stuff and headed to Copan, which is a little tourist city that is built around some Mayan ruins, not too far from Gracias. The ruins were so incredible. I kept imagining human sacrifices and the fall of such a massive empire. The ruins were also really fun because we could climb on them! The town of Copan was really cute too, although I started to get a little annoyed at how much it was built for tourists. The expensive souvenirs were all in dollar amounts, and to me, the city felt a bit contrived. It was just too cute to be real! I still really liked it though. :)
We also went up to a bird sanctuary in Copan, which was so much fun! We saw all sorts of birds, some native to Honduras. There were all sorts of colorful parrots, as well as hawks and other birds. To be honest, I'm actually not all that into birds but these ones were really beautiful. I was also really excited when our tour guide stuck three of the parrots on my arms and shoulder! I couldn't stop giggling, and also being a little scared because he told us that those parrots have 700 lbs of pressure in their beaks. Crazy!
So anyway, Copan was pretty amazing. It was fun to have a weekend away and to get out of Gracias for a little bit. It's cool that I live by Mayan ruins! My life is cool.
When I arrived at school, I asked the principals what I should do about it. The secretary, who is such a sweet lady, offered to clean it for me. It really touched my heart and made me feel bad, but she seriously sat on her knees and cleaned my leg as best as she could. Then she did it again that afternoon, and then again the next day and the next day. It has been incredibly painful, and I’m pretty sure that I’m going to have a fairly nasty scar on my leg. It’s still a little infected, but I bought my own medicine and have been cleaning it out as much as I can. It’s pretty nasty. This photo is about ten days after I fell, so as you can see, it's still pretty bad!
In spite of my oozing leg, we packed up our stuff and headed to Copan, which is a little tourist city that is built around some Mayan ruins, not too far from Gracias. The ruins were so incredible. I kept imagining human sacrifices and the fall of such a massive empire. The ruins were also really fun because we could climb on them! The town of Copan was really cute too, although I started to get a little annoyed at how much it was built for tourists. The expensive souvenirs were all in dollar amounts, and to me, the city felt a bit contrived. It was just too cute to be real! I still really liked it though. :)
We also went up to a bird sanctuary in Copan, which was so much fun! We saw all sorts of birds, some native to Honduras. There were all sorts of colorful parrots, as well as hawks and other birds. To be honest, I'm actually not all that into birds but these ones were really beautiful. I was also really excited when our tour guide stuck three of the parrots on my arms and shoulder! I couldn't stop giggling, and also being a little scared because he told us that those parrots have 700 lbs of pressure in their beaks. Crazy!
So anyway, Copan was pretty amazing. It was fun to have a weekend away and to get out of Gracias for a little bit. It's cool that I live by Mayan ruins! My life is cool.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Weather woes, mountains, and cameras
Wow...it feels like forever since I've been online. Living in the mountains is very strange...it's like a time warp. Time goes very, very quickly and I forget that I haven't been online in a week, that I have no idea what's going on in the news, and that it's almost November. Almost November! I can't believe it.
Well, a couple interesting things have happened in the past week. The first is that, overnight, it got cold. The temperature literally dropped from around 85 to 60. On Saturday, I walked around wearing shorts and a tank top, and then on Sunday, I had to bundle up in sweatpants and a hoodie! I know that 60 isn't that cold...it's like jeans and sweatshirt weather. But we have no relief from it here. None of the houses have central heating, and most houses have open-air windows that don't close. We have open-air classrooms too. So I know that 60 isn't bad, but it's nice to be able to go inside, and we just don't have that option. "Inside" is still extremely breezy! So on Monday and Tuesday, all my little students were bundled up in hats, scarves, and gloves, and they never took them off all day! I slept in two hoodies and two pairs of sweatpants. Today, however, the temperature jumped back up. So, it's a weather roller coaster, which is fine...I just hope that I don't get sick.
The second interesting thing that happened, was that I fell down a mountain. The gym teacher at our school goes running most days in the mountains, so this week I decided that it might be fun to join him. Well, first of all... I learned during that experience that if you run a half marathon and then you don't run for a year, your body doesn't maintain that level of fitness you once had. I was dying! But oh well. So we ran up part of the mountain (and when I say ran up a mountain, I mean it...be impressed, because it's a mile and a half of just...up) and then we ran back down. And on the way down, of course, leave it to me...I tripped and fell. I really, really banged up my left leg. I was bleeding pretty profusely and had to pick quite a bit of gravel out of my skin. I'm lucky I didn't get hurt worse, but I fell on Sunday and today, Wednesday, it still hurts pretty badly when I stand up. My leg was super swollen on Sunday, but it's going down now.
My camera broke, too, so pictures on here might be limited. I don't really know what happened, but I'm really upset about it. A camera is a really important thing to have, I feel, during an experience like this. This weekend I'm going to the Mayan Ruins that are close to where we live, and we have our fiesta tipica coming up for our school, and I want to be able to take photos. I'm so sad about my camera.
So that's it! I guess I wrote about three negative things in this blog post, but I am having a blast, I love living in the mountains, and...my life is amazing. :)
Well, a couple interesting things have happened in the past week. The first is that, overnight, it got cold. The temperature literally dropped from around 85 to 60. On Saturday, I walked around wearing shorts and a tank top, and then on Sunday, I had to bundle up in sweatpants and a hoodie! I know that 60 isn't that cold...it's like jeans and sweatshirt weather. But we have no relief from it here. None of the houses have central heating, and most houses have open-air windows that don't close. We have open-air classrooms too. So I know that 60 isn't bad, but it's nice to be able to go inside, and we just don't have that option. "Inside" is still extremely breezy! So on Monday and Tuesday, all my little students were bundled up in hats, scarves, and gloves, and they never took them off all day! I slept in two hoodies and two pairs of sweatpants. Today, however, the temperature jumped back up. So, it's a weather roller coaster, which is fine...I just hope that I don't get sick.
The second interesting thing that happened, was that I fell down a mountain. The gym teacher at our school goes running most days in the mountains, so this week I decided that it might be fun to join him. Well, first of all... I learned during that experience that if you run a half marathon and then you don't run for a year, your body doesn't maintain that level of fitness you once had. I was dying! But oh well. So we ran up part of the mountain (and when I say ran up a mountain, I mean it...be impressed, because it's a mile and a half of just...up) and then we ran back down. And on the way down, of course, leave it to me...I tripped and fell. I really, really banged up my left leg. I was bleeding pretty profusely and had to pick quite a bit of gravel out of my skin. I'm lucky I didn't get hurt worse, but I fell on Sunday and today, Wednesday, it still hurts pretty badly when I stand up. My leg was super swollen on Sunday, but it's going down now.
My camera broke, too, so pictures on here might be limited. I don't really know what happened, but I'm really upset about it. A camera is a really important thing to have, I feel, during an experience like this. This weekend I'm going to the Mayan Ruins that are close to where we live, and we have our fiesta tipica coming up for our school, and I want to be able to take photos. I'm so sad about my camera.
So that's it! I guess I wrote about three negative things in this blog post, but I am having a blast, I love living in the mountains, and...my life is amazing. :)
Thursday, October 15, 2009
2010 World Cup Qualifier!
Well, last night the Honduras soccer team secured a place in the 2010 World Cup. As a result of their win, school was canceled today! We received a call last night to let us know that the president went on the television and said that no one in the country has to go to work today, because today is a day for celebrations. I absolutely cannot imagine something like that happening in the United States. It's so awesome! So today we slept in (until 7:30) and then walked to town. I think I will go to the school for a couple hours to decorate my classroom. We have been required to put up Thanksgiving decorations by the end of this week.
Now just as a side note... I don't mind putting up some pictures of food or maybe a turkey, but I am not doing anything with pilgrims. Give me a break. It's bad enough that we're teaching these children from an American curriculum (which is, by the way, full of super patriotic American stuff, which always includes a Christian twist), but to talk about the "Pilgrims and Indians" story as if we were in the United States just seems like too much for me. I don't even think we should tell that story that way to American children! The patriotic American curriculum deserves a blog entry in and of itself. Maybe I'll type an excerpt from one of the books into this blog one of these days, just to prove my point.
Anyway, after decorating my classroom, I don't know what I'll do for the rest of the day! Maybe venture up into Celaque, the national park in my backyard. There is a really beautiful river that's probably around two miles from my house. It sounds really great to spend the afternoon up there, reading and writing. We'll see. But in any case, it feels so good to not be in school right now. One thing is for sure...I'll be singing Honduras fight songs all day! Vamos vamos todos!
Now just as a side note... I don't mind putting up some pictures of food or maybe a turkey, but I am not doing anything with pilgrims. Give me a break. It's bad enough that we're teaching these children from an American curriculum (which is, by the way, full of super patriotic American stuff, which always includes a Christian twist), but to talk about the "Pilgrims and Indians" story as if we were in the United States just seems like too much for me. I don't even think we should tell that story that way to American children! The patriotic American curriculum deserves a blog entry in and of itself. Maybe I'll type an excerpt from one of the books into this blog one of these days, just to prove my point.
Anyway, after decorating my classroom, I don't know what I'll do for the rest of the day! Maybe venture up into Celaque, the national park in my backyard. There is a really beautiful river that's probably around two miles from my house. It sounds really great to spend the afternoon up there, reading and writing. We'll see. But in any case, it feels so good to not be in school right now. One thing is for sure...I'll be singing Honduras fight songs all day! Vamos vamos todos!
Monday, October 12, 2009
2 months in Honduras
Well, my first weekend at my new house has come to an end, and I feel... like I don't deserve the life I seem to have stumbled upon. I live in Honduras, in these beautiful mountains, at a wonderful school, surrounded by amazing people. I am being challenged and I'm speaking Spanish. And I've been here for over two months now. Last night I was lying outside and looking at the stars- I swear, I have never seen a clearer night sky than I can see from the mountains in Villa Verde- and I was listening to music, and I just thought, 'Wow. I don't think things can get much better than this.' I feel so peaceful here. It's not just that it's quiet, or pretty, or tranquil. I actually feel at peace here in Honduras. Since my college graduation, I feel like I have just been floundering, and I finally feel calm. I am proud of the work that I'm doing and how I'm living. It's pretty exciting for me to feel free.
That being said, life in the mountains isn't a cakewalk! I've done what I can with my room, but it feels totally damp all the time. I don't mind living in the dampness, but I'm a little concerned that 1) my stuff is going to grow mold, and 2) I'm going to get sick. It's seriously at the point where the mats on my floor are just straight up damp, and my towels can't dry if I leave them in my room. I'm not really sure what to do about that. I have had some serious battles with creatures in my room. There was an enormous spider, a wasp with fangs and a stinger, and a toad that hopped in under the door. I didn't kill the frog (just urged him out), but the other two were goners. I don't have good cell phone reception up in the mountains, and my butt hurts from walking so much! But I still really love it.
We've walked to town twice in the past three days, and every time we come to town, the Post Office is closed. A couple people have sent me some pretty amazing packages (thank you!!) and I know I have another one waiting for me that I can't pick up. It's very frustrating. The post office is only open until 3pm during the week (right when school gets dismissed), and it's supposed to be open until noon on Saturday. But today and Saturday it was closed when we finally got there. agh.
I have learned, by living in Honduras, that I really don't need that much to be satisfied. Before moving here, I never would have imagined how little I actually need. On a daily basis, I sleep, read, write, eat and listen to music. If I have some music, a book, paper/pen, cereal, and somewhere to sleep, I'm pretty set. I only wear T-shirts and shorts. I hardly ever put on makeup. The other day I woke up, had breakfast, read for a while, and then walked into town...all without once looking in a mirror. It's just kind of weird, how simple my life has become. But I really love it. Like I said, I look around and I just can't figure out what I've done to deserve this kind of joy.
That being said, life in the mountains isn't a cakewalk! I've done what I can with my room, but it feels totally damp all the time. I don't mind living in the dampness, but I'm a little concerned that 1) my stuff is going to grow mold, and 2) I'm going to get sick. It's seriously at the point where the mats on my floor are just straight up damp, and my towels can't dry if I leave them in my room. I'm not really sure what to do about that. I have had some serious battles with creatures in my room. There was an enormous spider, a wasp with fangs and a stinger, and a toad that hopped in under the door. I didn't kill the frog (just urged him out), but the other two were goners. I don't have good cell phone reception up in the mountains, and my butt hurts from walking so much! But I still really love it.
We've walked to town twice in the past three days, and every time we come to town, the Post Office is closed. A couple people have sent me some pretty amazing packages (thank you!!) and I know I have another one waiting for me that I can't pick up. It's very frustrating. The post office is only open until 3pm during the week (right when school gets dismissed), and it's supposed to be open until noon on Saturday. But today and Saturday it was closed when we finally got there. agh.
I have learned, by living in Honduras, that I really don't need that much to be satisfied. Before moving here, I never would have imagined how little I actually need. On a daily basis, I sleep, read, write, eat and listen to music. If I have some music, a book, paper/pen, cereal, and somewhere to sleep, I'm pretty set. I only wear T-shirts and shorts. I hardly ever put on makeup. The other day I woke up, had breakfast, read for a while, and then walked into town...all without once looking in a mirror. It's just kind of weird, how simple my life has become. But I really love it. Like I said, I look around and I just can't figure out what I've done to deserve this kind of joy.
Saturday, October 10, 2009
New Home
In Europe, Alex and I always talked about how we wanted to just know Spanish without having to learn it. We also talked about how we wanted to know all sorts of facts about history, without having to study. We just wanted the information to be in our heads without having to do anything to get it there.
Well, I felt the same way about moving up the mountains. I really wanted to be living up in the mountains, but I didn't want to go through the hassle of moving all of my stuff. Yesterday, though, something awesome happened! The principal of my school took his truck to my house during the school day, piled all my stuff in it, and brought it up the mountain for me, so I didn't have to do anything at all! It was pretty awesome, and so last night, without any trouble, I spent my first night in my own house in the mountains.
My house is pretty hilarious, and anyone who knows me would laugh if they saw it. As you can see in the pictures, the house consists of three rooms which all lead onto the front porch. My room is very tiny, and the bathroom (more specifically, the toilet) is the first thing you see when you open the door. I'm going to have to buy some curtains. I don't have a mirror, and my shower is a pipe. I also can't get into the kitchen yet because it's not finished at all. I have a teeny shelf for my clothes, and that's about it. But I love it. It's all mine. I have never had a house before, and I am already loving how it feels to just have my own place. The neighbors are so sweet, a couple of them came over yesterday just to welcome me and ask me if I needed anything. The man who walked us up the mountain a couple weeks ago, Don Luis, saw me struggling with the gate for two seconds and he came running up to my house to show me how to work it. It's a really lovely community with amazing people, and I am so excited to be living there!
Here are some photos!
My room:
The magnificent view from my backyard:
A banana tree right next to my fence:
Well, I felt the same way about moving up the mountains. I really wanted to be living up in the mountains, but I didn't want to go through the hassle of moving all of my stuff. Yesterday, though, something awesome happened! The principal of my school took his truck to my house during the school day, piled all my stuff in it, and brought it up the mountain for me, so I didn't have to do anything at all! It was pretty awesome, and so last night, without any trouble, I spent my first night in my own house in the mountains.
My house is pretty hilarious, and anyone who knows me would laugh if they saw it. As you can see in the pictures, the house consists of three rooms which all lead onto the front porch. My room is very tiny, and the bathroom (more specifically, the toilet) is the first thing you see when you open the door. I'm going to have to buy some curtains. I don't have a mirror, and my shower is a pipe. I also can't get into the kitchen yet because it's not finished at all. I have a teeny shelf for my clothes, and that's about it. But I love it. It's all mine. I have never had a house before, and I am already loving how it feels to just have my own place. The neighbors are so sweet, a couple of them came over yesterday just to welcome me and ask me if I needed anything. The man who walked us up the mountain a couple weeks ago, Don Luis, saw me struggling with the gate for two seconds and he came running up to my house to show me how to work it. It's a really lovely community with amazing people, and I am so excited to be living there!
Here are some photos!
My room:
The magnificent view from my backyard:
A banana tree right next to my fence:
Monday, October 5, 2009
Teaching and community
I feel like I am finally in the swing of things here at school. I no longer feel overwhelmed at the prospect of planning or controlling the class. I really love my students and I feel like they are learning things. Every single day I look at the mountains, the butterflies, the flowers, and the clouds that provide the backdrop to my school, and I'm overwhelmed by their magnificence. It's funny... at the beginning of this experience, I really thought that teaching just wasn't for me. I thought that teaching was a profession that just would never fit with who I am. But now I feel like I actually really love teaching. It's really fun and rewarding. Every morning I feel...not necessarily excited, but content to go to work, and that's something I greatly appreciate. Every day is different, brings different challenges and different joys. One of my little students brought me a rose today. When I walk in in the mornings, they all yell at the top of their lungs, "GOOD MORNING, MISS MAC!" The little boys all hide behind the door in the afternoons after recess, and when I pretend to be surprised to find them back there, they squeal and giggle as if it was the cleverest and funniest trick ever. I just love being around them all day.
And on Friday, I'm moving up to the mountains! I can't wait. I spent this past weekend there again, and I just love it up there. It's so quiet and peaceful, and exactly where I want to be. We ate dinner at the comedor, this teeny little family-owned restaurant. There are literally maybe 12 people in the community, and they are all so generous and kind. I went to church with the other girls last night, and there were..I'm guessing 8 people at the service, besides us. It was really nice to see how convicted the people up there are by their faith, and they were so wonderful to us. They talked about us throughout the whole service! It was just really, really nice. When I told them that I would soon be their neighbor, they were giving me hugs and telling me that they would help me with anything I need (cualquier cosa!). I am so excited about my experience in Honduras so far. It's been incredible.
And on Friday, I'm moving up to the mountains! I can't wait. I spent this past weekend there again, and I just love it up there. It's so quiet and peaceful, and exactly where I want to be. We ate dinner at the comedor, this teeny little family-owned restaurant. There are literally maybe 12 people in the community, and they are all so generous and kind. I went to church with the other girls last night, and there were..I'm guessing 8 people at the service, besides us. It was really nice to see how convicted the people up there are by their faith, and they were so wonderful to us. They talked about us throughout the whole service! It was just really, really nice. When I told them that I would soon be their neighbor, they were giving me hugs and telling me that they would help me with anything I need (cualquier cosa!). I am so excited about my experience in Honduras so far. It's been incredible.
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Moo
A cow chased me down the road today.
I'm spending the weekend in Villa Verde again because Jacki and I think it would be really fun to go hiking every weekend. After all, she (and soon I) have a national park in the backyard! So we're going hiking tomorrow, but today we decided to come to town and buy some food and go to the bank. We headed out this morning to walk the five miles (we could have taken the faster way and called a mototaxi, but it's so beautiful here in Honduras!) and we started off. So Jacki and I were just walking along on the dirt road with two stone walls on either side, and all of a sudden we saw this brown cow poke its head out from around a corner.
We ignored it and kept walking, but then to our surprise and discomfort, the cow mooed really loudly and started following us! Then it picked up its speed to a jog. I didn't even know that cows could jog. But the stupid cow was chasing us down the road, and we were really scared! We were trying to not turn around too much and to just walk quickly and get away from it, but the cow was straight up chasing us down the road. Now, this wasn't a bull. It didn't have any horns- in fact, it had a huge udder and looked like it needed to be milked. We had no idea what to do, we weren't even sure what kind of damage a cow could do to us! I mean, could a cow attack me? Cows are big animals! We were holding hands and were genuinely scared because there was just nowhere for us to go...there were literally stone walls on either side of us. We were trying to come up with a plan for how to escape the cow. Finally, we saw some little old Honduran ladies with a child walking ahead of us, and we sped up to reach them and Jacki yelled out, "Ayudanos!!" (help us!!) We kind of jogged over to the ladies, leaving the cow behind, and they just looked at us, really puzzled. The cow turned around and trotted back up the mountain.
So we escaped, narrowly. I can honestly say I will never see or walk past a cow the same way again!
I'm loving my weekend in Villa Verde. The lady that is remodeling my house says that it will be done by the end of next week!!! I can't wait!
I'm spending the weekend in Villa Verde again because Jacki and I think it would be really fun to go hiking every weekend. After all, she (and soon I) have a national park in the backyard! So we're going hiking tomorrow, but today we decided to come to town and buy some food and go to the bank. We headed out this morning to walk the five miles (we could have taken the faster way and called a mototaxi, but it's so beautiful here in Honduras!) and we started off. So Jacki and I were just walking along on the dirt road with two stone walls on either side, and all of a sudden we saw this brown cow poke its head out from around a corner.
We ignored it and kept walking, but then to our surprise and discomfort, the cow mooed really loudly and started following us! Then it picked up its speed to a jog. I didn't even know that cows could jog. But the stupid cow was chasing us down the road, and we were really scared! We were trying to not turn around too much and to just walk quickly and get away from it, but the cow was straight up chasing us down the road. Now, this wasn't a bull. It didn't have any horns- in fact, it had a huge udder and looked like it needed to be milked. We had no idea what to do, we weren't even sure what kind of damage a cow could do to us! I mean, could a cow attack me? Cows are big animals! We were holding hands and were genuinely scared because there was just nowhere for us to go...there were literally stone walls on either side of us. We were trying to come up with a plan for how to escape the cow. Finally, we saw some little old Honduran ladies with a child walking ahead of us, and we sped up to reach them and Jacki yelled out, "Ayudanos!!" (help us!!) We kind of jogged over to the ladies, leaving the cow behind, and they just looked at us, really puzzled. The cow turned around and trotted back up the mountain.
So we escaped, narrowly. I can honestly say I will never see or walk past a cow the same way again!
I'm loving my weekend in Villa Verde. The lady that is remodeling my house says that it will be done by the end of next week!!! I can't wait!
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Update
I just read an AP article that says that after facing "condemnation abroad," Micheletti decided to backtrack on his repeal of civil liberties. It's pretty alarming that he tried, but at least dictatorship's not happening yet. Thanks international community!
It's pretty sad that Hondurans are faced with having to choose between a power-hungry communist and a power-hungry dictator. No wonder they're rioting.
It's pretty sad that Hondurans are faced with having to choose between a power-hungry communist and a power-hungry dictator. No wonder they're rioting.
Changes
Things are changing here in Honduras! Today I received the following email from the U.S. Embassy:
The Embassy advises citizens residing in and visiting Honduras that the de facto regime issued a decree suspending certain rights under the Honduran constitution on Sunday, September 27, 2009. This decree affects all people in Honduras, including non-Hondurans. Specifically, the following articles of the Honduran Constitution have been suspended for the next 45 days (until November 11, 2009):
Article 69: The right to personal freedom
Article 72: Freedom of Speech
Article 78: Freedom of Association
Article 81: Freedom of Movement
Article 84: The right to due process
So, okay. The right to personal freedom has been revoked? Free speech? Due process? Maybe I better start obeying the curfews. I have read about governments that do things like this, but living in a country that imposes those sorts of limitations is extremely, extremely scary. Freedom of Speech and the right to due process are two of the most fundamental tenants of any functioning democracy, and the fact that they've been revoked truly indicates the lengths that this government will go to in order to maintain control of its citizens.
Since I no longer have the freedom of speech, I'll leave it at that.
But those aren't the only changes taking place in Honduras. On a more personal note...I'm moving! Everyone who thought I was crazy before will really think I'm crazy now...but I'm moving out of the city of Gracias and into the mountains. Currently, I live in a small house in the city of Gracias. My house is very nice and as I think I've mentioned, I really love the family I live with. About five miles up a rocky road is our school, and about a mile above the school is Villa Verde. There are fewer amenities in Villa Verde (no internet, sketchy cell phone reception, no stores, certainly no television), but it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The mountains will be my backyard! I like Gracias, but it's very...dry, dusty, and busy. We have a TV in my house, which I'm not a huge fan of, and I hate walking anywhere because the men in Gracias are so nasty and vocal. In Villa Verde, I will walk to and from school every day breathing the crispest, cleanest air, surrounded only by the mountains and the trees. I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to live in a tiny, tight-knit community, and I'll finally get to spend time with the other American teachers!
I'm really excited about it. So, my blog posts will become fewer after I move, which should be sometime in October. But of course, that's the point. :)
The Embassy advises citizens residing in and visiting Honduras that the de facto regime issued a decree suspending certain rights under the Honduran constitution on Sunday, September 27, 2009. This decree affects all people in Honduras, including non-Hondurans. Specifically, the following articles of the Honduran Constitution have been suspended for the next 45 days (until November 11, 2009):
Article 69: The right to personal freedom
Article 72: Freedom of Speech
Article 78: Freedom of Association
Article 81: Freedom of Movement
Article 84: The right to due process
So, okay. The right to personal freedom has been revoked? Free speech? Due process? Maybe I better start obeying the curfews. I have read about governments that do things like this, but living in a country that imposes those sorts of limitations is extremely, extremely scary. Freedom of Speech and the right to due process are two of the most fundamental tenants of any functioning democracy, and the fact that they've been revoked truly indicates the lengths that this government will go to in order to maintain control of its citizens.
Since I no longer have the freedom of speech, I'll leave it at that.
But those aren't the only changes taking place in Honduras. On a more personal note...I'm moving! Everyone who thought I was crazy before will really think I'm crazy now...but I'm moving out of the city of Gracias and into the mountains. Currently, I live in a small house in the city of Gracias. My house is very nice and as I think I've mentioned, I really love the family I live with. About five miles up a rocky road is our school, and about a mile above the school is Villa Verde. There are fewer amenities in Villa Verde (no internet, sketchy cell phone reception, no stores, certainly no television), but it is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. The mountains will be my backyard! I like Gracias, but it's very...dry, dusty, and busy. We have a TV in my house, which I'm not a huge fan of, and I hate walking anywhere because the men in Gracias are so nasty and vocal. In Villa Verde, I will walk to and from school every day breathing the crispest, cleanest air, surrounded only by the mountains and the trees. I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to live in a tiny, tight-knit community, and I'll finally get to spend time with the other American teachers!
I'm really excited about it. So, my blog posts will become fewer after I move, which should be sometime in October. But of course, that's the point. :)
Sunday, September 27, 2009
I climbed a mountain
Well, I spent the weekend in Villa Verde with four of the other teachers in Vida Abundante. I just love those girls and I had such a wonderful weekend with them. Anyway, as I said, they live in Villa Verde, which is this teeny little community that is literally nestled in the mountains. Fifty feet from their backyard is the entrance to the National Park, Celaque, and when you look out their windows, all you can see are mountains in every direction. The air up there felt cleaner and fresher and crisper than any air I've ever felt. I can't talk enough about the beauty in Villa Verde. It's overwhelming. 
We woke up on Saturday morning and headed up the mountain with the Phys. Ed teacher from our school, as well as one of the girls' neighbors, Don Louis. Don Louis is this little man who looks really old, but is actually fifty five. Also, he was in much, much better shape than we were! Anyway, he took us up the mountain. We wanted to get to the waterfall viewing point, which is probably 4-5 miles from the entrance to the park. We hope to actually hike to the waterfall sometime this year, but it's a two day hike and at this time of the year it rains pretty much every night, and we wanted to avoid getting wet-- haha.
Anyway, the trail started out pretty easily, with Don Louis stopping to point out different flowers and plants that can be used as medicines. He also picked really sweet fruit straight off the tree for us to try. It was awesome! We crossed the river in the photo (I fell in, of course), saw all sorts of enormous spider webs, and explored the Honduran mountains! The trail, however, did not remain easy for very long. When I say that we climbed the mountain...we literally climbed the mountain. Toward the end, it was so steep that we were on all fours, using tree trunks to pull ourselves up. I actually thought, towards the end, that I just could not take one more step. We all had to keep stopping, and I had to laugh because I think Don Louis could have sprinted up that mountain. (That's him in the photo, waiting patiently for us as we panted our way up to him). 
Anyway, when we finally made it to the top, it was so rewarding and incredibly breathtaking. The waterfall was exquisite and we were so excited that we made it all that way!On the walk back down, it started thundering...and then the rain came. The word "rain" is a bit of an understatement. It was torrential downpour. And all we could do was laugh, because we were so, so wet and there was just nothing we could do about it. It was really fun, I had such a blast.
I had such a wonderful time up in the mountains. I had so much fun playing with the children in the neighborhood and spending time with the girls here. The weekend was a really welcome break from all the politics and messiness that's happening in Honduras right now. It was the weekend I needed.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Still no school
Honduras isn't a great place to be living in right now. Our curfew was extended again last night, so classes were cancelled. However, they are allowing people to go outside between 10:30 and 4 today, so I came downtown. Unfortunately, downtown is insane. The hotel I usually get internet at is closed (I'm sitting outside of it right now, typing on the sidewalk), and I think everyone who lives here is trying to get errands done during those five and a half hours. There are guards with machine guns on every corner of our little city. It's ridiculous.
I'd like to make a retraction on a statement I made yesterday in my post. I said that people have died in the capital, but last night I found out that actually no one has reportedly been killed in Tegucigalpa yet (thank goodness, when things turn violent it will get really scary). I talked to several Hondurans yesterday, both on the phone and in person, and they all said that people were being killed. Those are the kinds of crazy rumors that get warped into facts when there's no official news and the government keeps everyone in the dark.
Needless to say, I'm pretty pissed off. I think this situation is being handled extremely poorly, I'm really annoyed that no one knows what the hell is going on, I hate that school is getting cancelled and I wish someone would step up and take a leadership position here! Come on!! Where's the media? Where is the order? Where is the president? Last night a spokesman for Micheletti came on the television. A spokesperson? They are calling this the biggest crisis Central America has faced in a decade, and a spokesperson comes on the television? Give me a break.
(Vote Kirsty McNamara, Honduras President '09)
I'd like to make a retraction on a statement I made yesterday in my post. I said that people have died in the capital, but last night I found out that actually no one has reportedly been killed in Tegucigalpa yet (thank goodness, when things turn violent it will get really scary). I talked to several Hondurans yesterday, both on the phone and in person, and they all said that people were being killed. Those are the kinds of crazy rumors that get warped into facts when there's no official news and the government keeps everyone in the dark.
Needless to say, I'm pretty pissed off. I think this situation is being handled extremely poorly, I'm really annoyed that no one knows what the hell is going on, I hate that school is getting cancelled and I wish someone would step up and take a leadership position here! Come on!! Where's the media? Where is the order? Where is the president? Last night a spokesman for Micheletti came on the television. A spokesperson? They are calling this the biggest crisis Central America has faced in a decade, and a spokesperson comes on the television? Give me a break.
(Vote Kirsty McNamara, Honduras President '09)
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