I took the one less traveled by

Adios, Hasta Luego

2011-08-13T16:32:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I'm back home. I'm ashamed that I haven't posted in the last month, but my internet plan expired about a month ago and there hasn't been much to report. In the last month I have been busy spending time finishing up last minute projects, packing up/throwing out, saying goodbyes, and searching for jobs. This last week has been overwhelming (I flew in last night), with planned going away parties and lots of surprises. While I am happy to be home with, saying goodbye was extremely difficult. I really have grown close to a lot of people in my community and I appreciate how much they have taught me and taken care of me in the last two years, becoming friends and family throughout the experience. Touchingly, the goodbyes were difficult on both parts for I seem to really have become a part of my community. People thanked me immensely for my time, support, friendship, and willingness to try new things and have fun. I received gifts and hugs and many memories. I will greatly miss the generosity and kindness of the people in my community.

Already I am finding it a little hard to be in the United States. I have noticed that no one looks up anymore - everyone is looking down at their phone/iPad/latest gadget. And there is really a lack of friendliness among strangers. I went for a run this morning and lots of people were out (a nice change from being the only runner in my area), but not one single person responded to my "Good Morning." Not one. What a shame. And life seems so much more complicated here with so many more things to worry/think about instead of relaxing in the hammock in the afternoon. Everyone is concerned about being connected with everyone else, though at home people are really isolated. I've seen one neighbor since I've been home and all we exchanged were "hello's." For being so electronically connected, people aren't genuinely connected. However, countless food options, couches, and hot water are welcomed benefits of being back. And of course being with my family and dogs is nice.

On to the next adventure.

Maintaining Poverty

2011-07-17T11:57:00.000-07:00

All of us are born into a specific social class that depends on luck, virtuousness, destiny, or whatever reason you choose to believe. As plenty of people have demonstrated one can move up or down the social class ladder throughout their lifetime or even up and down a couple of times. However, lots of people stay in the class they were born in whether that is because of low self-esteem/confidence, lack of opportunities, vices, bad judgment...again, the list of "whys" can go on and on and is usually case specific or perspective dependent. Moving up the ladder is definitely possible, but it requires a lot of hard work and good timing and opportunities.

I live in a community that lives below the poverty line. Everyone here was born into one of the lowest classes possible, though I'm positive not the lowest due to the number of opportunities there are. Lots of people from my community and throughout the country go to the United States in order to look for opportunities to get them a little higher up on the ladder. Some are successful for a period of time and then come back, use up the money they saved from the States, and return to the same class from which they came. Some stay in the U.S. and might live in low conditions for a resident of the U.S., but they are higher up than where they came from. They send money back home and raise their family members a little too. While I'm happy for them in their climb on the ladder, it saddens me that they seem to only be able to do so with help from the States.

There are some exceptions, for example my health promoter. She is probably one of the most motivated people in my community and I see big things for her in her life. She's got brains and demonstrated to her parents how crucial it was for her to be allowed to study. She started school at a time when most people here weren't sending their kids to school because it meant fewer hands around the house, but she wanted to take advantage. And she studied hard and was able to get a scholarship to go to high school, which eventually landed her a job as a health promoter. She has a steady job, which is something nearly unheard of in my village. From her income, she has been able to pay to go to college on the weekends and will graduate with a Bachelor's degree in business administration in December. Her income has also helped her pay for the internet, allowing her to study other languages on top of English at her university. To say the least she is gung-ho and she's got dreams and I'm sure will follow them.

Then, on the other side of the spectrum, is the majority of my community. The reason this came up as a blog topic was because I received a shipment of donated electric toothbrushes from my future brother-in-law who is an engineer at a product design company. Lots of people have toothbrushes here, but they are probably years old and not used with frequency or properly. Sure times are changing and tooth care is improving, but there's still a lot of improvement. Now, I didn't have enough brushes for every kid in my village, so I decided to give them to the poorest of the kids since it is a luxury item and often the poorest are the ones that can't afford toothbrushes. I held a meeting to do a brushing demo (with the health promoter) and to give out the brushes. And to my shock, some of the poorest kids didn't come. Maybe their parents were busy or forgot, but it just reminded me that sometimes people like their own pity party. A lot of people here complain about being poor, but do nothing about it. They don't take advantage of opportunities presented to them, no matter how small or big. They don't have the self-confidence to go out on a limb in order to live a better life.

While this concept is a little mind-boggling to me, someone who tries to take advantage of good opportunities and isn't greedy, but works towards a better education and more wealth, I can't do anything about it. I can invite, teach, demonstrate, provide, donate, and whatever other verbs apply, but if they don't have enough desire, there is no way that I can help. So I'll just sit by watching them scrape enough nickels to buy bread and listen to them complaining about being poor until they get it in their heart's desire to change their own situation.

Every Volunteer's Dream

2011-06-28T16:45:00.000-07:00

There are plenty of little things that can happen in a community that make a volunteer happy and satisfied that they have done something good in their service. I have had plenty of those moments mainly in the last year and more in the last couple of months. Every time I see a woman from my shampoo group get excited about trying to sell their product to a new client, I'm like a proud mother. When I see the youth in my youth group get excited about a project idea and follow through with leadership, I jump with joy. When I see kids wanting to practice reading, wanting to plant a tree, or wanting to be involved, I am thrilled. Even people showing up on time gets me a little giddy.

Today I participated in something that I wish had happened at the beginning of my service, but was still great to see towards the end of my service. My (newly elected) town council had a meeting that included leaders from all groups/organizations in my community. There were male farmers, youth from my youth group, women from the health advisory group, teachers, representatives from the Catholic church and Evangelical church, just to name a few. It was the first time that I saw the community gather the leaders (representing quite nearly everyone), under their own volition to talk about needs of the community from everyone's perspective. The meeting wasn't perfect and wasn't completely time efficient, but it got lots of things on the table and really animated everyone to get working on projects.

I wasn't involved in the planning or execution in any way, I just went to put in my two cents and see what evolved. However, I had some proud moments in realizing that I had worked with a lot of the people in the room and that I had in fact created several of the groups represented in the meeting. Plus, I like to think that my own assertiveness has rubbed off a little bit on a few of the parties and allowed them to speak up indicating true needs of their group and the community. And it was just so nice to see people working together to prioritize projects and take the development of their community into their own hands. Good moment.

On another note, I am working diligently on a coloring book that I started a few months ago. I have all of the drawings done, scanned in, and touched up digitally. Now I am about halfway through adding text and details. Soon I will be sending out the book to get corrections from peers and some native Spanish speakers to make sure everything makes sense and it correct. Then I'll be working with a publisher to get them printed. So exciting! (Below are a few samples.)

Flying By

2011-06-15T11:04:00.000-07:00

Well, my time is nearly down to 50 days and I recently went to my Close Of Service (COS) conference. In other words, yikes! I've got less than two months left to wrap up projects, see anywhere else in the country I want to see, finish up Peace Corps paperwork, and say my goodbyes. It is slightly overwhelming, but it is also exciting and sad at the same time. I look forward to going home and being with my parents and helping with my sister's wedding, but I also feel sad about leaving a place that I have come to know as home for the last two years. I have to say goodbye to a boyfriend (no, I'm not bringing him with me), to friends, to the wonderful community that has really taken care of me for the last two years, and to a beautiful and humble place in the world. In a letter I wrote to myself to be delivered to me in 8 months at home (a COS tradition), I made a list of all of the things I'm going to miss. Well, as many as I could come up with in 15 minutes. Closer to the time I leave El Salvador, I think I'll make that list a blog post. For right now, I've got to stay on the now.

Carol and I are going on a vacation to Guatemala leaving tomorrow. It is kind of inconvenient timing since I'm in the middle of some stuff right now in my village, but I'm looking forward to seeing a different part of Central America and getting to spend some time with a good friend who is going to stick around in this country for another year. When I get back, I'm going to keep going on the projects I've got going on in my school right now. Some good-hearted guys in my community just helped cement two walls so that the 5th, 6th and 7th graders and I can paint a world map and El Salvador map, funded by my mayor. And we'll hopefully be planting the 80+ trees hanging out in the school right now waiting for a home in town. I've also got a few women still in the middle of learning how to quilt pillowcases, and I hope to do a mini workshop on basic jewelry making. My women's shampoo group has been maintaining success and I'm hoping to teach them a few more products before I leave, and my youth group has a whole list of projects they'd like to start working on. And lastly, thank God, I've got to finish up a coloring book that I've been drawing and get it printed and distributed before I leave. Whew. I've got my hands full.

On the "saying goodbye" side, I'm also busy. Aside from the required Peace Corps paperwork, I want to make sure I show my thanks to my community. I am working on a few little gifts to give to the people that I have worked most closely with as well as people who have helped fund my projects. I am trying to do a little craft to give to everyone in my community (something really small and simple, don't worry!), so they have a little memento from me. And although I'm not thrilled of the idea I am planning a goodbye party for myself. Peace Corps really recommends doing it and so in order to take control and make it good and not totally awkward, I'm going to organize it. Plus, I think it will be a nice way for me to say thanks to the community and say goodbye without having to go house to house, which can be time consuming and awkward. Part of the saying goodbye process for me will be easy because there are aspects of living here that I don't love, but other parts will definitely take a toll.

Right now I am staying in the moment in order to get everything that I need to get done, done and to enjoy my time while it lasts. Plus, I want to give my community what they deserve: my attention and work.

(I've just recently started playing soccer with the newly formed girls soccer team. This was a glorious fall my first game ever...ha, ha.)

God Driven

2011-05-27T14:42:00.001-07:00

I am finally recovering from a two-week miserable cold with double middle ear infections, two trips for treatment to the capitol, and a plethora of medications. But, my spirits are mostly high and I'm trying to stay busy here in my site.

Every week there's a savings group that gets together in my community. I don't take any credit for the creation of the group (it was established by OxFam before I got here), but I am a member and participate. Towards the beginning of this year I had been participating for over six months and felt like something was lacking to the group. People showed up, saved money if they could, took out loans if they wanted, paid loans, and left. I felt like it was a group but with very little group interaction. Sure, there were side conversations and at least it allowed people to get out of the house, but it still didn't feel totally worthwhile if you didn't save or deal with loans. So I made a suggestion that each meeting should start with a little discussion, activity, or mini-training.

Having suggested the idea, I was the one that started doing some of the activities, or charlas. Seeing as I'm an environmental education volunteer I have done some related to the environment, like reducing/reusing/recycling our trash. This past week I was feeling kind of down and decided to watch The Secret again and was inspired to do a mini-charla related to the concept. If you don't know anything about The Secret, I highly recommend it (the book more than the movie), and I'll give you a briefing. Essentially, the secret is the law of attraction: that each thought one has weighs something, positive or negative. Thus if you think positive thoughts, you will attract positive actions and the contrary holds true. For example, if you have a lot of debt and keep thinking about the debt, you will continue to have debt. But, if you have debt and just think about and visualize yourself with lots of money, the debt will subside and you will attract money.

Using this concept, and trying to just scratch the surface in order to get understanding, I did a basic activity with my savings group. I gave each member a piece of paper and had them put down one thing they appreciated in their lives at the moment. I collected them, redistributed them and read them out loud. (The idea being that if you focus on good things you already have, you will continue to have them.) Then I gave them a second paper and had them write something negative they think about themselves or their situation. Examples being, "Man am I poor," or, "I am so stupid." I collected them and we burned them. (The idea being that they shouldn't be thinking the negative thoughts, but focusing on the good and their desires.) In the last step they wrote down on a third piece of paper something they desired that was attainable, written in a very positive light. Then they read their own out loud, hopefully giving them encouragement from the rest of the group to really go after it. With The Secret, you have to be specific too and really believe it, so I gave them examples accordingly.

The idea from my perspective was to encourage positive thoughts and a sense of being able to accomplish whatever it is that they want to accomplish. What I forgot about, was the huge religious hold the Catholic and Evangelical churches have on these people. They put all of their faith in the hands of the Lord instead of their own hands. During the first round of papers, a lot of people wrote things like, "I appreciate that the Lord has blessed me and my family with happy lives." I had given examples like, "I appreciate when my kids help me with the dishes." That's nice that you appreciate that God has given you a happy life, but I was hoping for something more specific that you can manifest more of. We burned the negative thoughts without reading them, so I don't know if at least that step went wrong. For the third step I wanted, again, something specific. There were a couple of people that got it and put down things like, "I want another child." Or, "I want $5,000 by the end of the year." Everyone else put, "I want God to take care of me." Oh, man. What does that look like? How can you visualize God taking care of you? So, it didn't quite go the way I had hoped.

Hopefully, the activity at least inspired a little positive thinking. Because whether or not it is God you are putting your faith in, you can still attract positive things if you have positive thoughts. I'd like to encourage them to put their own future in their own hands, but that would take profound change of belief. So I guess for right now I have to hope that they'll take the first step of appreciating what they have, knocking out some of the negative personal thoughts, and thinking about good things they do want.

Street Cred

2011-05-12T10:57:00.000-07:00

I can't speak for all Peace Corps volunteers in the world, but from my own personal experience and from talking with other volunteers, I think one of the reasons people join Peace Corps is to be bad ass. Sure, this might not be the primary objective for most volunteers (I hope not also), but I think it is a factor for joining the Corps. I know that one of my many reasons for applying was that I could rough it for two years and come back and have some bragging rights.

Once you are in country you start racking up bad-ass points. (This is all from my own perspective of course.) One might gain points for having no water or no electricity or might lose points for living an hour from the capital. In my tally, I gain points living in a place with no direct transportation (i.e. I always have to walk to go anywhere), but I lose points for having internet access in my home. I gain points for having gotten dengue fever, but I lose points for my somewhat ritzy living situation. I gain points for having a Salvadoran boyfriend, but I lose points for living in the cheapest department. I don't actually count points or compare to other volunteers' values, it just theoretical.

I mention this because yesterday I just gained some bad-ass points. I was going down to the cornfield (that along might gain me some points), to help prep the land for planting and to haul some firewood, when I noticed there was something in my pants. I figured it was just toilet paper balled up from being washed or something, so I knocked at it to see if I could slip it out of my pants. As soon as I touched my leg I knew that was a stupid move - it wasn't wadded up paper, but the hard shell of a scorpion. As soon as I felt the sting I took off my pants, not caring if other farmers were in the vicinity, and with my cuma (a machete-like tool) I pushed the scorpion out of my pants and killed it. Not feeling terribly up for work I went down to the field and told my boyfriend that I was going home because I got stung. On my way back home I felt some more mild stinging, but I figured it was just the initial sting bothering me. At home I took off my pants and realized that no it wasn't the initial sting, it was in fact a baby scorpion (I assume born in my pants), that stung me two more times. Lovely.

The pain, swelling, heat, and tingling in my leg was gone around the time I went to bed though it was never that severe. I did rest for a few hours but then I went for a run and did laundry by hand and went about my usual schedule. There is often numbness in the tongue and lips associate with scorpion stings, which was bizarre though not too much of a bother. So it was that thrilling of an experience. The whole thing probably shocked me more than anything. However, it did give me some street cred. I can now say that I've been stung by a scorpion while living in El Salvador. Point: scorpion. Two points: baby scorpion. Bad-ass points: Alicea.

This is not the actual scorpion that stung me...I didn't feel like running home to grab my camera. This is one that I've had visit me at home though.

Creatures

2011-04-25T07:12:00.000-07:00

I don't consider myself to be living in a terribly rustic setting. I have water, electricity, a refrigerator, and notably, the internet. However, my recent interactions with creatures has made it dawn on me that I am still living kind of rustic. My cement block house with an opening all along the roof and below my door allows for all sorts of creatures to appear in my daily life. Here are a few that I've been involved with in just the last week.

The Wasp
I don't really know much about a typical wasp, but there is this one type of wasp in this area that has really made an impression on me. They are busy! They're pesky also because they are always around and make a considerably loud noise considering their size. Anyhow, I'm featuring them because these little workers have built their homes in my home. With perseverance. They build long hollow tubes on the wall out of a mud they transport from somewhere...I am curious where it comes from. Often one will start construction in my house right above where I'm working, so I'll quickly use the end of my broom to knock down the fresh mud because I literally can't hear myself think when they are building. Plus, if it is in a pretty location that will make it ugly I'd rather not look at it. One day, however, I spent the entire day out of the house. In the seven hours I was gone one little wasp built a tube over three inches. I was impressed. Then I sadly knocked it down. I swear I don't have anything against wasps I just don't want them raising their babies above my bed.

The Scorpion
I used to see scorpions a lot more when I first moved in - maybe I've scared them all away. In the last week though I've seen two little guys. I don't know if they were babies or just a small species, but literally they were as long as my pinky fingernail. (I didn't measure with my pinky, I'm just estimating. Small or not their sting probably hurts.) One of them I saw because I was up late one night and in the calm of the night I heard a rustling coming from a box in the corner. I assumed it was a mouse or a rat (there's enough material on those guys for a whole post), but I wasn't feeling adventurous so I left it alone. The next day, with my boyfriend at my side, we went through the box and the only thing that was there was this little scorpion. Here it is apparently bad luck to kill a scorpion, so my boyfriend just cut off its stinger and threw it out the window...I'm not sure which is more humane.

The Toad
I don't know if the toads here are just kind of dumb, but they are always wandering everywhere and getting killed. If I'm walking around after a storm I always see a few plastered to the road. The other night I had a little dark-yellow visitor. The space under my door is enough for some creatures to get in and somehow this toad found its way under my door. He hopped a bit, but didn't get too far into the house. Thankfully all it took was a little sweeping and he was on his way. Goodbye Mr. Toad!

The Cockroach
The same night that I thought I had a mouse and it just turned out to be a scorpion, I was convinced that I really need to wash everything well all of the time. Or just deal with a myriad of sicknesses I could acquire. It was late and I was up finishing Dan Brown's newest book and I think the creatures of the night know my schedule. So around 10:00 (way past my normal bedtime), all of the creatures started to come out, not realizing my unusual presence. And what disgusted me the most was witnessing a pair of cockroaches scuttling over everything. Namely my dining room table and entire kitchen area. Ewwww. I reorganized the room the next day hoping to throw off the cockroaches for a few nights, but I'm still grossed out.

The Tick
I get ticks here with some frequency. I guess just walking around in the monte (brush) does it to me every time. The thing with ticks here is that they are tiny. And they don't even enlarge much when they've filled up on your blood. So discovering them sometimes takes days. I think I'm done with this one - I don't like ticks or pulling them off of me. And I even dreamt about one last night. Yuck.

The Palomilla (type of moth)
During the first couple of storms of the "winter" there is a massive outburst of these little bugs. I translated their name, but I really don't think they are moths. Anyhow, they are these little black guys with long skinny wings. The funny think about them is that their wings fall off really easily. I had one crawling on my arm while washing dishes yesterday and blew at it to get it to move (since my hands were all soapy), and all I did was blow off its wings. The little body of the guy was wriggling around on my arm still. Can it still live after that? So right now all of the spider webs in my house are full of these little black wings. It's really more funny than unnerving or disgusting. Though they can cause trouble when getting over excited. I had one fly in my ear last year and had to have a friend pull it out with tweezers. Yikes.

The Ants
There are ants here as there are everywhere, but there seem to just be a ton. I think I've got some holes in my house where they are regularly living and there's always some type of brown waste of theirs spilling out. The worst though are the ants that bite because man are they vicious. I hopped down to my "backyard" the other day to collect some kindling for my stove and was walking around when I stepped on a nest. My foot had a scrape on it and that's what they all went for. I had maybe twenty bites on my foot, but was able to shake off the rest of the ants before they bit me. I walked a different direction in order to try to get a little work done and conveniently stepped (with the same foot, mind you), into another freaking nest. Even with somewhat quick reflexes and jumping around a bit I still walked away with no fewer than 40 white painful bites on my one foot. Damn ants.

There are plenty of other creatures that I'm in contact with on a regular basis. I had a hairy horse spider visit just this morning. I've gotten pretty used to all of the creatures, though occasionally one will surprise me or scare me. There are little moments though when these creatures remind me that I'm living out in the countryside and yup, it's kind of rustic.

Texting While Riding

2011-04-18T14:10:00.000-07:00

I was recently talking about my experience in El Salvador in the Peace Corps with some family members and explaining how I feel like I am living back in time a little bit. It isn't considerable since they have electricity and running water (though those developments are recent), but they live off of farming nearby lands and have little transportation besides their own feet. Also they wash their clothes by hand and hope to have kids of both genders in order to fill both of the gender roles in the house (boys - work in the fields and girls - do chores in the home). The one thing that is odd is that it isn't quite like being back a few decades due to the technology that is here.

The majority of families have televisions, even though they only get three channels, and they sometimes don't have enough money to buy necessities. Cell phones are pretty common and just today I witnessed a new "texting while driving" situation. I was riding in the back of a pickup on my way to go grocery shopping and saw a young cowboy on a horse heading out to his cornfield...yup, texting. And a couple of teens in my community have internet via USB/phone access, including me. I have even gotten facebooked by several people in my community. So it is an interesting contrast. I'm living back a couple of decades with the exception of modern day technology. Essentially, they've just bypassed all of the experimenting and changing of technology that the United States and other developing countries went through.

People here didn't witness the size change of computers or cell phones from monstrous to pocket-sized. They didn't have the internet that didn't include YouTube and Facebook and that was principally used for finding and sharing information. They didn't get email addresses to communicate with people - they only have them to sign up for Facebook. They didn't have cell phones that just made phone calls; although, all of the modern gadgets on a phone aren't financially accessible to most people out here...yet.

One of the unfortunate side effects of this relatively instantaneous access to modern technology is that a lot of education regarding these technologies hasn't been passed along. They haven't learned that things like chain emails and inane quizzes aren't to be sent out to EVERYONE you know. A lot of people pick inappropriate or weird email addresses - something that all of us, at least in my generation, might be guilty of originally (mine was sciencegeek1187). But there are 20+ year olds making email addresses like sexygurl101@. Nobody has really educated the proper use of some of these technologies. Viruses are abound on cyber cafe computers due to opening inappropriate websites and I've received my fair share of PowerPoints with kittens and bible quotes that they all think are adorable/inspirational. Phone etiquette isn't too bad, but volume level of listening to music and proper backtone selection could be reviewed.

This introduction of a new technology without the education compliment is reminiscent of the introduction of plastic here. Nearly all of their trash here was biodegradable (for example: banana leaves and corn husks were used to wrap things), but then some developed country introduced plastic. I won't mention any names. I have my issues with plastic, but I'll agree that it is convenient and has had some amazing applications. The problem is that no one here was educated about what to do with plastic when it doesn't function in its designated manner anymore. So this country is covered with littered plastic. Consequences of lack of education. And I'm sure there are plenty of other examples. So as people in a developing nation, let's try to at least do the service of providing some education along with our new ideas/technology so as not to screw over some poor country trying to keep up to date.

Sigh of Relief

2011-03-20T18:47:00.000-07:00

There are moments when I think to myself, "This country sure is funny." This isn't going to be some in depth insight as to why this country has some funny quirks, I just wanted to mention what happened today. I woke up to "Boom, Boom, Boom" and "We're Going to Ibiza" by the Venga Boys this morning at full blast. What? The Venga Boys? And this was being played by a 25-year-old soldier...They listen to plenty of American music here, but that one really caught me by surprise. Life's daily occurrences really can be entertaining.

On an awesome note, the last of the stoves was constructed yesterday! Well, that's a lie. There are three stoves that are still going to be made, but the families have all of the materials and are waiting to make the stoves (they want to build a new house first or whatever the reason). But they are going to coordinate the construction. So as I write, my community has 62 fuel-efficient stoves with chimneys. Success. And lots and lots of thanks to everyone who managed to help me out with the project. All that is left are a few house visits to check on maintenance and one last meeting to hold about tree planting. Huge sigh of relief.

I probably won't be reporting in for a while. I've got a couple of busy days here at my site before I head off to meet a friend at the airport and do some traveling with her and Carol! (So excited!) Then I'll have a couple of days back in my site when the stove NGO will be coming up with American counterparts to see the stoves in action. Then I have a regional meeting and then I head to Washington, D.C. for a burial, a bridal shower, a White House tour, and a trip to Whole Foods! And of course to see family. Once I get back I have a day at my site then I'll go to a business training with a few community counterparts. Busy, busy, busy. And then I'll have four months left. Hang on 'cause time is flying now.

Walk in their shoes, then take them off and dance around in my own

2011-03-16T16:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I had a visit from my regional leader. There is a newish program (started just after I became a volunteer), where volunteers who have completed their two-year service can stick around for another 6 months or year and "lead" a region. They move to a central location in the region (anywhere from 1-3 departments), and are in contact with the volunteers they are of service to. They hold regional meetings to see what everyone is up to and to allow for collaboration and exchange of ideas among volunteers. They can be contacted for support, for help with an event, or with questions that maybe are better not to ask your boss...I think the program is a pretty good one and can serve a lot of volunteers. I'm a pretty independent volunteer though, and haven't really taken advantage of the program. In fact, I just recently met my regional leader even though he's been working in my department since November...oops.

Nevertheless, he's required to visit all of the volunteers in his region at least once so he came up and visited me yesterday. We didn't do anything eventful - he showed up later than I expected and a storm beat us home. In fact, the only thing he saw me "do" as a volunteer was hang out with women crocheting. (Yes, I've learned how to crochet. I swear I'm not an old woman yet.) And hopefully he didn't suffer through it too badly because the women were insisting he learned. But he did get to hang out and chat with a few neighbors and friends. I think it was fun for the boys to have a Spanish-speaking male gringo for a bit to talk about sports and other such topics that I'm not current with or interested in. We had dinner and then headed to Felipe's family's house where he'd be staying the night. I left him there watching a soccer game and I knew he was in good hands since that family is one of the most caring ever. He headed out this morning leaving with just a taste of what my service is like.

We don't know each other very well, but he said something to Nubia (my health promoter and Felipe's sister), that put a smile on my face. He told her that out of all of the volunteers he has visited I am the most integrated into my community. Awesome. I feel like a comment like that helps a volunteer feel like they're doing a good job. Maybe I haven't constructed a bridge (not that we need one...), or taught English classes. I haven't helped many make much money or made many super environmentally conscious. But what I'm confident that I have done is that I've lived with the people. I have a regular income here and a supremely different background and future, but I have lived with the people. I hang out chatting with the women, I eat dinner with families, make jokes with people in passing, and go out to the fields to see what farm life is like. I've made Salvadoran meals with women, I've gone to church with the Catholics, and I've joined in parties and dances with everyone.

My differences haven't gone unnoticed though either and maybe they've provoked a few thoughts. I go to meetings even if it's raining cats and dogs. I work in the garden with a cuma (machete-type tool), and cut and haul bamboo and wood. I'm not afraid of getting dirty. I don't go to church all of the time and yet still feel like I live a full life and live "sin-free." I like being alone and love to do individual things like read and draw. I don't throw out my trash, instead I hike 30 minutes to put it in a trash can. I like maps and can read them and refer to them with some frequency. I know how to bake and can cook things all-vegetarian, sugar-free, and with strange spices like curry and rosemary (two things I've never seen them use in food). I exercise and only feel good during the day if I've sweat a little bit. I fool around, dance, and act crazy in public and am not embarrassed by it. I get frustrated when people don't go to meetings, aren't on time, or don't pay attention. I don't blast my music ever and try to be respectful to everyone. I am generous and try to give what I am capable of giving. And I try to empower the women and men to go against their traditional role and do what the opposite sex goes through every day.

I still have time left at my site and I hope to take advantage of it, but at least I know I'll be able to say that I've done something that I intended to do. I've gained the trust of my community and tried to share a little bit of my wisdom and culture without trying to force it on them or tell them that it was the only right way to do things. So thank you to my regional leader - not for helping me out with my service or odd questions, I haven't needed that - but for showing me that I have been successful here. I have made an impression, however minor, on some 200 people in a tiny mountain village in a country the size of Massachusetts. After all, isn't that why I came?

Getting Busy

2011-02-26T14:10:00.000-08:00

Well the countdown has begun. The last group before mine is already on their way out and we are now the oldest group. (There are a few stragglers from previous groups, but as far as groups go now we're the oldest.) I've got less than 6 months and while recently I've been bored and sick of being here, this milestone has gotten me in shape to make the most of my remaining time.

I've got a lot of stuff to look forward to logistically - I've got regional Peace Corps meetings, an annual training for everyone in my program, a few other optional trainings that I can go to with counterparts from my community, a short trip to Washington, D.C., a friend coming down to visit, a 50th Peace Corps anniversary celebration on the 4th of July, and my Close of Service conference. Whew. So that leaves me realizing that I want to get going finishing stuff and doing some other last minute fun stuff around home.

So what am I up to? Well, I'm still working with my youth group. We're getting a garden going in order to have some veggies to sell and we're hoping to start doing some HIV/AIDS training for classes since my health promoter and I received a good training. My stove project is finally coming to a close. Just a few of the 65 stoves are left and I'm hoping that in the next couple of weeks they'll be done (especially with rainy season looming ahead, I don't want the constructors getting poured on during the chimney-placing step). This project has been a little bit of a headache, but I feel successful and I know that people are really benefitting from it. I've also helped push my women's group to try new things. They just started experimenting with making laundry soap, which is a widely used product in homes with lots and lots of kids and dirty clothes. The first time was a little bit of a flop, but little by little they are learning and changing the recipe so that they have a solid product. This skill is uncommon here, so it is nice to see them developing and changing.

In terms of new stuff, I've got some little stuff going on. I've finally pushed the town council a little bit to get them filling out an application for an Engineers Without Borders grant for a rec. center/health office/meeting space. This community could really use one. So I'm going to help them out and see if we can get the process rolling. I have also started facilitating regular craft workshops. I'm pretty craftsy and can have a little fun with this; plus there are lots of people in this town who can do stuff and teach others. There has just been a lack of a facilitator. So I have people over to my house and we hang out learning a different craft. I hope to sneak in some environmental techniques also like reusing materials or turning something old into something new. Since being here I have refused to teach English classes, but I have started to review English with the English teacher in the school. I don't do this a lot, but I think even the little bit helps him out and if he continues to teach English, hopefully a few more kids will learn how to say "hello" properly.

A common thing for Peace Corps volunteers here in El Salvador is collaboration with other Peace Corps volunteers. Being a little isolated, a little lazy, happy in my site, and a little frugal, I haven't had the chance/desire/opportunity to work with anyone else. Lots of volunteers to camps (the thought of which terrifies me due to various cultural aspects), or will do plays, activities, info. sessions...you name it. Well, I have finally decided to collaborate with a couple other volunteers sticking to my "site rat" style. I am putting together a coloring/activity book for young kids with an environmental focus and El Salvador specific. There are lots of activities we can do with kids to teach them about the environment but a lot of them are just a little too sophisticated for the wee ones. So hopefully this book will be able to reach a younger audience. So what's the collaboration? Well, another volunteer (who is quite talented artistically) has been writing and drawing storybooks based on the environmental lessons we give in the school. And Carol is working on the grant side of things and good editing. The project is coming along and is quite exciting.

Otherwise, I'm trying to see other places in the country that I haven't gotten a chance to go out and see yet. And of course I'm hanging out here doing the things that I won't always be able to do...like spend all day reading at the river (on a weekday). Or going to the sugar mill to hang out with everyone from my community. Or eating pupusas or any of the other typical foods. Gotta take advantage while I can!

Running

2011-02-09T04:52:00.000-08:00

I think any somewhat active Peace Corps volunteer in many parts of the world have something to say about this topic at their post. Americans are runners. We aren't all necessarily good at it, enjoy it, and definitely not everyone runs, but it isn't strange to run. We consider it a healthy habit, maybe a good release of endorphins, and something that will keep one fit. El Salvadorans are not runners. There might be a handful of people in the capital who run (they have a few more Americanized customs than in the country), but generally running is uncommon. Quite uncommon.

I don't love to run - it hurts my knee, my ankle, and a problem toe I've been blessed with. But I know I feel better after I run; I feel more active when I am regularly running; and when I go on runs in nature I do find it pleasant to see beautiful landscapes. During college when I rowed I ran some and it went from a horrible duty freshman year to a mildly pleasant workout senior year. When I first got to El Salvador a couple of us from my training community would go running a couple times a week and I continued this habit when I got to my site. Everyone was impressed. "Wow, she's running." Then some problems with one of my toes got in the way too much and I stopped running all together here in El Salvador. With some recuperation of my toe and some daily methods of pain and inflammation control, I've started running again. And the reactions I get I find hysterical.

Carol and I and plenty of other Peace Corps volunteers are going to be running in a "marathon," which they call it here but it is really only 11 K. Like I said, they aren't runners here so they probably think an 11 K is actually a marathon. When I decided to participate I upped the training I was doing. Most people have seen me going to or from one of my three running locations, and either suspect I'm doing something crazy or I've confirmed their suspicions by telling them I'm going to run an 11 K. Sometimes I think I'm a little crazy after running some 60 laps around my tiny soccer field to get in some distance. Here are some of my favorite comments I've received:

"Man, you are so red in the face." Yup, I get red in the face.
"Man, you are soooo sweaty." Yup, I sweat when I work out. That's almost the point.
"You're running in a race? You are totally going to win." Ha, ha, ha, ha. I'm most definitely not going to win. In fact my goal is to jog the whole thing without stopping. They just think I'm going to win because I'm the only person they see working out.
"I'm so impressed because you go out and run a lot, but even though you're white you don't get really burned." It's called sunscreen and is available to anyone.
"You going to go play soccer?" No, the only option for exercise is not soccer. Other types of movement exist.
"You ran all the way to Camalote?" Camalote is a town about a half hour walk and twenty minute jog away from my site. I walk out of my site to the top of a hill and then start running because if I try to jog out of my site, I die due to extreme incline. But really, it isn't far.
"You are going to get tired!" This is probably my favorite and actually quite common. I'll run by people and they'll see me sweaty and breathing hard and they will pull the concerned card and tell me that I'm going to get tired. Yup, that's the idea. I hope I am tired by the time I get home because otherwise I won't consider it a good workout. Oh Salvadorans.

I've gotten used to most of the comments now, though sometimes a couple of them surprise me. If you have ever tried to run in a third world country (where I get a feeling it is often considered strange), I'm sure you've had a similar experience. Happy running! I hope you don't get too tired!

Responsibility

2011-01-25T04:49:00.000-08:00

Responsibility. It's something we all have and do our best to uphold. Sometimes it's not enjoyable and sometimes it is exhausting, but it still is there. Aside from maybe the two drunk homeless guys in my town, everyone's got some type of responsibility. Here, the kids are supposed to go to school and they often become the small-errand runners for the adults. Most of the kids also have work responsibilities either out in the fields (boys) or at home (girls). The teens that continue their education here have the responsibility to get decent grades so that the government keeps helping out with financial support. If they choose not to study, then there previous kid duties increase to full time - cooking, cleaning for the young women and field work for the young men. These roles are consistent throughout adulthood with the additional responsibility of child-bearing for the woman and hopefully some type of income for the man. Every case is a little different, but this is pretty much the gist of things.

I came into this town and started attempting to organize some of the people to give them some relief of their typical responsibilities. The women in the shampoo group have gotten more responsibilities with the management of making and selling a product, and the youth in my youth group have learned about the responsibility of working on community projects. I didn't start the savings group in my town, but the people in the group are learning about responsibility with their money. After numerous small successes, I was hoping to see some larger development in my groups - responsibility among the members in place of the responsibility I had with the groups. I want to see various youth in the group taking charge of smaller projects, leading. I want to see the women in the youth group changing roles so that they can all get a better sense of how things work and so that one woman isn't doing all of the work.

What I've noticed though is that people are afraid of extra responsibility. I think it is due to a lack of experience and being afraid they're going to mess everything up. They haven't had people pushing them their whole lives teaching them it is good to take responsibility and you learn from your mistakes. When I ask for volunteers to take charge of various tasks in my youth group not a single soul seems willing. I left a meeting a few weeks ago to show that someone needed to take charge because I'm not always going to be around and it is okay to try something new. After I left, one young man took charge and helped lead a project. Last minute (the morning of the event), he backed out, never showed up, and dumped the responsibility back on me and the other youth group coordinator. Man. We've had similar experiences in the shampoo group. There are three women who lead and are pretty good at it, but when we ask if there is anyone else willing to give one of their roles a try to relieve some of their duty, the room goes silent. They all tell the three leaders what a great job they are doing and that they couldn't do such a good job.

So I think one of the next steps is leadership training. People here need to learn it is okay to try and they can get help from others (being a leader doesn't mean doing everything, it means delegating), and that making mistakes is a part of the learning. I think with the Catholic idea of sin and blame, people are afraid of taking minor risks. Next goal: inspire some leaders in this community to strut their stuff.

Happy New Year

2011-01-06T15:08:00.000-08:00

We are into the new year already and I am left with just over 8 months left of service. I have been back in my community for a week now after a refreshing two weeks at home for the holidays. Though it was chilly at home in the Bay Area, it was great spending time with my family, playing with the dogs, going to a gym, bathing with hot water, and eating hummus (and other tasty foods that I can't get down here). The extent of materialism was a little overwhelming, though I hope the timing partly affected it. It was hard to come back to El Salvador, but I was looking forward to seeing my boyfriend again and keep going on old projects and start new projects.

I got back just in time for the New Year's celebration which involved a lot of dancing and noisemakers. I participated in the women's group amigo secreto (Secret Santa) that night and there was a community feast and a dance in our newly-paved street. It was quite a party, but my favorite moment was when midnight struck. It is tradition here to hug everyone you see and wish them a Happy New Year. I love this intimacy among the community.

Now I am spending time thinking about the coming year and what my goals are for my remaining time here. The women's shampoo group is now completely independent (though I show up on occasion), and it seems to be going strong. My stove project is coming along - about half of the 65 stoves are done and the rest are starting to get planned out. People seem to like the stoves and everyone keeps telling me that it will be a great way to remember me. I hope they remember me because of other things also, but at least they seem to be happy.

I've spent a good amount of my energy recently working with my youth group as well. In December we made bamboo benches for around the soccer field and painted them. We met just this week to talk about the group because it has transformed into more of a group interested in community projects, which makes me more than happy. So we are looking at forming a directive in order to better manage the group and we worked on a few ideas for community projects for the year. Our first one will be a mini fair day for the kids in the town. They are hoping to raise a little bit of money from the event in order to get the next project going. And to celebrate the success of the group we took a little trip to the nearby river and relaxed/played for the day.

Aside from the stove project and the youth group, I'm starting to think more about what my role will be in the school this coming year. I'd like to keep going with the eco-club, though I need to come up with some better ideas and would like to rework the various ages now that I know a little better. I would like to get another teacher and adult working with me since I won't be here the entire school year...but we'll see. People don't tend to be terribly interested in responsibility. I'm also thinking about doing a girl's arts and crafts club. Since art is one of my passions it wouldn't be too difficult. I'd like to put together worksheets for each of the activities in order to put together something people would be able to refer to. And I think I'd be able to get a young woman or adult woman in my site to help me lead it.

Otherwise, things are pretty low key as usual. I'm flying through books, working on my quilt, and attempting to teach my boyfriend English. I realized there's a pool close by to I was able to arrange a lower entrance price with the owner to go swimming for exercise on a regular basis - it is a nice change from just running. I'm working on constructing a grey water filter from my shower and sink to water my garden, which I'm in the midst of replanting. I brought some recipes from home and hoping to do some playing in the kitchen and keep the passing neighbors wondering what in the world I've got brewing in my house. The weather is getting warmer and the days longer. For all of you jealous of the warm weather we're getting down here you should check out airline tickets and pay me a visit.

Happy Belated Holidays, Christmas, Hanukkah, Solstice, and New Years! May the New Year bring you an abundance of opportunities and joy. Also, I'll be starting to look for a job in the environmental science research field for a start date of mid/late-September so echarme la mano (lend me a hand), and let me know if you know anyone or any job in the field...thanks! And thanks to everyone who has helped with funding for my projects. If you haven't been able to and would like to there are plenty of opportunities still - just let me know!

Disease and Death...Just Another Peace Corps Day

2010-11-22T14:12:00.000-08:00

I feel like a more official Peace Corps volunteer - I've survived a "third-world country" disease: a dengue-like fever. They couldn't pinpoint exactly what the name of it was (they would have to send it to the CDC in Atlanta...), but it had nearly all of the symptoms of dengue and was, I assume, just as unpleasant. As long as I recovered, I didn't really care about the name. I ended up spending about two days in the hospital and then two days at a hotel in the capital, reassuring that I was nearly back to normal after having my white blood cell count drop by half. Of course, the worst of it all was the day before I was taken to the hospital when I was hit with long-lasting waves of chills/fever and a splitting headache in the forehead. I think this is just one of those things that you just assume will come with being a Peace Corps volunteer.

On a much sadder and much more difficult note, just after one day of being back after the illness, I headed back to the hospitals of San Salvador. My boyfriend's (Felipe) oldest brother (Balta) had been in the hospital for a few days and his condition was getting worse. Two months ago Balta was diagnosed with stomach cancer and when they decided to go in to try to remove the cancer they realized it had already spread to his lungs. Unable to remove all of it they decided to start with a chemo treatment and from there see what else they could get rid of. Balta hadn't had noticeable changes in health so already being in the advance stages of cancer came as quite a surprise. The chemo seemed to be going all right, but he was hospitalized when an acute headache occurred. The cancer seemed to have spread to his brain.

Felipe, two of his other brothers, and I headed to the capital to join the rest of the family who had been with Balta for a few days. During the hours of visitation we were able to individually see him twice. We all tried to give him support and animate him letting him know we were there thinking about him and knowing that he would get better. After the hospital closed the visiting hours we headed back to his house, decently content because most recently he had more color to his face and his pulse was up from 18 to 47. Shortly after we got home we got a call to return to the hospital. Balta had passed. I've never experienced watching a family receive news of a death, but man was it tough. My grandparents have all passed, but I was either young, not around, or not close to them. Balta left behind eight siblings, two parents, a wife, three daughters, and a whole heck of a lot of aunts, uncles, cousins, and nieces/nephews, friends, and co-workers. There was a heavy spirit in the room of sadness from so many who had loved him so deeply.

One of the cultural activities most Peace Corps volunteers get/choose to witness is a funeral process. This was maybe a little too close for my own preference of witnessing the process - I was a part of it without knowing what I was going to see. Since it was already late when he died we went back to his house and tried to sleep...though I doubt anyone of us got more than a half hour of sleep. In the morning we headed to a funeral parlor (this would normally happen in the house of the deceased in the rural areas), and spent more than 24 hours with the body. People came in and out throughout the day and night including family members, neighbors, friends and co-workers. Balta was a supervisor in the finance division of the police department, so about half of the city's police squads paid a visit. There were several masses, plenty of orations, and lots of singing. There were sad moments (thinking about the wife and kids moving on) and happy moments (celebrating his life), and it was that much more emotional since we were all exhausted.

After the day and night of accompanying the body before burial we headed to a church for the final mass and then to the cemetery for the burial. Since he was a police officer there were special recognitions given and many spoke about how active in the community he was and how he affected their lives. After he was buried all of the people that had come down from my community (more than just the family), headed back up. After having not slept for two days I crashed and slept for 14 hours as soon as I got home. The nine days of rosary started the day after we got back and I have been helping the family serve the required coffee and bread refreshment to all who attend. This Friday will be the last mass in San Salvador (9 days after the death there is always a mass), and Saturday it will occur in my community. It is quite the process.

I knew Balta and I was sad about losing him, but more than anything I have become a part of his family and it was so hard to see his family hurting so much. His parents consider me one of their daughters and his siblings, one of their sisters. I was touched to be included in everything and did all I could to provide support for his family. He left behind three girls - 15, 10, and 3. The family is hoping to go and visit them and have them up as much as we can.

One of the worst things to witness as well was economic disparity. Less than a week before I saw Balta in the hospital I was in the hospital bored out of my mind and feeling relatively normal. I had my own room, with a TV, a sofa and a fridge, and on-call nurse service. It was like what I would consider a typical hospital in the United States. When I went in by myself to see Balta a week ago, I asked the man at the door where I could find his room. The guy directed me to a hallway and said to keep walking, looking to the left, and I'd find him. I found him eventually, but after a little bit of shock realizing that the patients were very nearly stacked on top of each other. Here was Balta, in the last stages of cancer, one foot away from someone else with god-knows-what-kind of disease, with only enough room at the end of the bed for one person to stand. And he was a highly-ranked police officer in San Salvador?! I like to think that the quality of treatment he received wasn't compromised and that it was just his time to go, but in those conditions it is hard to be sure. The good news is that he died quite quickly and with very little pain.

Back in the U.S. of A.

2010-11-09T08:06:00.000-08:00

I recently got back from a week-long stint in the United States. I went back to my Alma matter for a large crew race, the Head of the Fish. Many alumni return for the event and thus I was able to see friends who have graduated, current friends at Skidmore, and other faculty/staff at Skidmore. It was a little bit of a shock on the system seeing as it was my first time back in 16 months, but it was a nice break from minor cultural differences that were wearing on me and it was a great opportunity to reflect on my experience. And catching up with people who I have dearly missed was fantastic and gave me steam to keep going in this experience.

There were several things that caught me off guard from the moment I set foot in the United States. The first...talking to strangers in English. My thoughts, "English? Really? You speak English? Wow...I haven't talked to a stranger in English in a long time." And the first few hours especially I had a hard time recalling various English vocabulary and ended up saying the word in Spanish. After some confusion, I was able to come up with something close enough. The second...technology. I know technology changes fast and I haven't been gone that long, but I was still blown away with all of the new cell phones. I don't think I saw one phone without some huge flat touch screen and full keyboard on which you can watch movies, take photos, listen to your whole music library...all at once. That was weird. And third...where's the trash can for the toilet paper? After 16 months of a weak plumbing system I have gotten accustomed to the task of throwing away used toilet paper in a trash can. I forgot that in the States you don't have to do that and did it accidentally on a few occasions.

On a deeper level, one of the most profound differences of being in the United States was the sense of anonymity. I stick out in El Salvador. Yes, there are some paler-skinned people in El Salvador, but because of my hair, eyes, the way I dress, walk, and conduct myself, I stick out. It's inevitable. And because I stick out I am a constant source of attention - wherever I go I have people staring at me or coming up and talking to me. When I am exhausted on a bus just wanting a little bit of quiet time or busy trying to get stuff done it can be quite obnoxious, but sometimes it is nice because I can talk about what I'm doing and why I'm doing it. Plus, it can be a cool way to get to know about people here. In Saratoga Springs, New York I do not stick out. I look just like one of the upper-middle class college students and no one noticed when I walked by. I had no one coming up to me asking me what I was doing there and why I wasn't in El Salvador or what line of work I was doing. It was nice in some respect, but simultaneously a little bit of a slap in the face. "Why don't you care that I'm a Peace Corps volunteer in a third world country? Don't you want to know why I haven't been here in 16 months?"

I had the chance to talk to a few interested students in the Peace Corps and just in catching up with friends I reflected a lot on my experience. And I realized that I had a hard time coming up with negative aspects of my experience. Sometimes the language is hard, cultural issues can be frustrating, and boredom and inefficiency can be aggravating. But overall, I realized that while I might not love what I'm doing, I'm doing some good stuff and I feel appreciated and respected by my community. They are supportive as are people at home. It isn't an easy experience, but overall I think it has been positive. As I mentioned, this trip was a great break from cultural nuances getting to me, but I thought that when I reflected on the experience I would be more pessimistic and recount a lot of the difficulties that have been presented. I seemed to give a more positive review than I was expecting. It was a nice surprise.

There were plenty of other differences I noticed about being in the United States. It was COLD. And I rediscovered how incredible hot showers and baths are. It was nice to be able to walk many places without a half-hour hike first. I didn't go through two shirts in one day due to sweating. I had conversations with people about things other than the weather, gossip, or corn and beans. Exercising isn't bizarre...it is a part of a normal, healthy life. I didn't have to double guard all of my food from the hungry cockroaches, rats, or maggots. I was able to eat Indian, Italian, American, Organic, Raw, Vegan, Mexican, and Japanese food. What a blessing. I wasn't woken up by roosters. I could use a credit card. I was disappointed not to greet everyone when passing with a smile or "hello" or "have a good day." I used a dryer. I could drink tap water. And the list goes on...but it is very different and not necessarily better. El Salvador is much more tranquil and there are plenty of nice things about being here. But a break was nice.

Now I'm adjusted to being back for a few weeks before Christmas at home. It is cold here too (60 degrees F at night...with no insulation it gets pretty cold). I'm working on getting the stove project really rolling. My youth group finished their most recent community project and we will be starting to build benches for the soccer field starting today. The kids are off for the summer break as of now and so I'm hoping to come up with something productive to do with them for a few weeks so they don't die of boredom and can maybe learn something. Send me your ideas! Life's back to as normal as it can get in the Peace Corps. Happy November!

Change

2010-10-11T20:03:00.000-07:00

I wrote about flexibility in my last post and that theme is pertinent to my theme this week: change. While growing up I remember always hearing how the only thing that never changed was change. I have come to whole-heartedly believe that and in my day-to-day life here have learned to expect it. Although some things don't ever seem to change that you want to change (like people showing up on time for meetings), change in my life is pretty constant.

I've got some concrete examples. For instance, I've noticed a change in the size of the rat population in my roof - there is way more noise these days and I hear squeaks and fights of possibly younger creatures. And I'm hoping in the theme of change that the natural (bark extract and molasses) poison that I finished prepping today will bring some peace to my rooftop and my sleep. Though I'd rather not have this event change the rank coming from my roof due to decaying rats. Okay, this example is getting gruesome, I'll stop.

Another quite physical change that recently occurred was in the weather. Due to geologic systems that I faintly remember learning about in college, this country receives two seasons year-round: dry and wet. And if you've been following my posts you'll know that this rainy season (normally May to October), has been especially wet. The weather forecasters even predicted nonstop rain until November. But the God's seem to have decided otherwise - and this is actually what the people here believe. While we could still be in store for some more rain, about a week and a half ago the sun decided that it was ready for some change and came out...in full force. I literally haven't seen a cloud since the sun decided to shine. So all of my clothes went from moldy to dry. Sort of an ironic contrast, though quite depressing, the crops have seen some change too. Due to the heavy rains this year the first bean crop of the year was not very successful and had a low yield. Now the rain has stopped quite abruptly and a little bit early and the little bean plants for the second round of cultivation are drying up. This weather throws us through loops.

Lastly, I notice significant emotional change. According to one of the doctors that I've been to here as a young person my emotions should just be positive. Clearly, he hasn't been a Peace Corps volunteer. I regularly feel like I'm on an emotional roller coaster and I don't know if it's the meds I'm on, me going crazy, the experience I'm going through, or a combination of all three. While I didn't have any major lows today, it is fairly common, though I find frustration even more common (I guess that could be cause of some of the lows that I have). Here are some of my downs for today: the kiddies at school paid no attention when I was reading them a story, one of the girls I tutor in reading Spanish seemed to have forgotten the alphabet (after months and months of studying it), I found out that my health promoter is without a space to have consults and work and the community isn't doing anything about it, I realized the treasurer in my shampoo group still seems to be clueless on how to fill out the paperwork, and when it seemed as though no one was going to show up to my youth meeting. In conjunction, I had some ups when: my internet worked and I got out some important emails, I made a natural rat poison that was easier to make than I thought would be, I had a surprisingly good conversation with a neighbor, many kids turned in drawings for the monthly drawing contest, and my youth group meeting ended up going quite well and we were productive.

Those are a few of the changes going on in my life down here in El Salvador. Another nice change is that now that I've been here for over a year (11 months left!), not everything is new. Things change around here, but I can at least predict some things having lived here for quite a while.

(Fun photo of something that never seems to change… girls doing a tradition dance for the Independence Day celebration at the school.)

Flexibility

2010-09-25T06:18:00.000-07:00

Flexibility and patience are virtues and can be difficult ones to practice. My experience in the Peace Corps has definitely already tested my ability to demonstrate both when it comes to language and cultural differences. Right now though I am practicing them both in large quantities regarding this one project.

As I've written before I am working on a stove project - members of my community will be trained to construct more fuel efficient and healthier (human health) stoves. I am still in the initial stages of the project and have finally turned in a Peace Corps funding proposal. However, we were already getting rolling and have the training for the stove construction this Monday and Tuesday in my site. I was in San Salvador this last week for mid-service medical review and therefore contacted the engineer providing the stove tops and the chimney hats that I would be around. He told me it wouldn't be a problem to get three of each to the Peace Corps office while I was in town for me to take back to my site for the training. Well, I returned to my site empty-handed yesterday. I called the engineer some 20 times, emailed him, and even got in contact with his co-worker and I have no idea what happened. All I know is that I don't have the stove tops and chimney hats for our training on Monday.

But maybe this won't be a problem. "But Alicea, you need a stove top to build a stove, right?" Absolutely. Though circumstances have changed and yesterday I got a phone call that all Peace Corps volunteers are in standfast, a stage of the Emergency Action Plan requiring volunteers to stay in their site. This isn't a problem for me, I have what I need here and am fine hanging out for a few days. Hurricane Matthew has decided to go tearing through Honduras and living in the northern-most part of the country we are getting hit by heavy and constant rains. What's new? The only thing this changes is that the training was going to be done by a fellow volunteer. If no one is allowed to leave their site, that includes him. So right now, I am stuck with the idea that I have no stove tops, but I also have no trainer. So I am doing all I can to stay flexible and patient and not get frustrated. It is just another one of those Salvadoran situations.

The People

2010-09-16T12:20:00.000-07:00

I think I've mentioned this in previous posts, but sometimes I am amazed at how helpful, caring, and genuine the people are here. One would think that poorer people would be more stingy in terms of help both physical goods and time/support due to lack of both of those things, but I find it isn't the case. The people here have just been raised knowing that they should give what they've got. Maybe they subconsciously believe in the "what goes around comes around theory," in which case I'm surprised the people here aren't rich yet because they give all they've got. I've got plenty of basic examples like people giving me tamales that they've just made, or someone helping me carry my bags if their hands (or head in the case of women), aren't full. The kids come and help in the garden (this might just be boredom...but still), and my neighbor has helped me bring in my laundry if it starts to downpour and my clothes are out trying to get dry. I guess it could be part of living the small town life too...help a neighbor because shortly they'll lend you a hand. It is a nice change of pace from the more distant/cold neighbor relationship culture of the United States.

I decided to write about this topic because I had an experience today that showed so much Salvadoran generosity and really helped me out a lot. I am so close to getting a stove project off its feet and have the training dates set up and the women where they are going to make the models ready. Today was the final push of going to the hardware store to order all of the components for them to haul up to my site. They had a good number of the things I needed (as I already knew having called several times), but I have had the worst of luck with pumice. I am not in a volcanic area and thus don't have pumice on the hillsides or flowing down my creeks. I've got to go find it. I was told by lots of people that just search through the sand that people buy for construction and you'll get a bunch. This has its problems though: a) I'm not thrilled about the idea of making people go with me or going alone to search through big piles of sand to find enough pieces to fill a sack, b) I was recently told that the sand selling places had been getting a lot of complaints of these rocks and so they had started sorting the sand before delivering it, and c) these companies have just been chucking the rocks and not saving them. I thought I was SOL. Then at the hardware store we were going over everything to be delivered and I asked if they knew anyone I could contact regarding my pumice dilemma. So while I sat there the secretary made five phone calls finding out if there was someplace I could find pumice. She found a guy who knew a guy and called him and he solved my pumice nightmare. And not only did she find me pumice she told me they could stop by and pick it up and bring it with all of my other stuff to my town. Amazing. Do we have service like that in the States? Maybe, but I think it is rare. This woman totally made my day and reduced a lot of pumice stressing.

Addresses

2010-08-28T19:02:00.000-07:00

I have discovered something that might increase the distinction between developing and developed nations: addresses.

In the United States and from what I have noticed in Europe as well addresses follow some type of pattern that includes something like the following:

Name
Number, Street
City/Town, Providence/State
Identifiable Code (like Zip), Country

Well, here that isn't the case. I first noticed addresses during training when all of my fellow trainees and I were assigned to host families in host communities. The list looked a little bit like this:

Alicea Cock-Esteb, Vargas family, Molineros (the town), up from the church

The last bit (up from the church), is their address. When I looked at the rest of the people on the list I noticed that Carol and Axel both also lived, "up from the church." Turns out we didn't all live in the same house, but we did live close. Here streets don't have names and houses don't have numbers. There are few mailmen and few people get mail at home. I currently get my mail at home because a teen guy named Carlos gets paid by my mayor's office to walk all over my municipality delivering mail. Most of the mail is care packages sent from the States and Carlos gets to know everyone. When he delivered a piece of mail to me for the first time he just figured out where I lived from asking other people. Since everyone knows everyone in the town they just told him, "Oh, the gringa lives in the middle of town in the purple and orange house, right next to Pablo's house." I guess that is my address. My official address is the following:

Name
Town
Municipality (like County), Department (like State)
Country

So there is some organization, though I still find it pretty miraculous that I get postcards, letters, and packages delivered to my home out in the middle of nowhere.

In the midst of this address revelation I started looking at food packaging for contact addresses for various companies. I have read many fantastic "addresses" at which I could reach the manufacturer, though this is one of my favorites. I was enjoying a Mexican meal (my version of it anyway), and was reading the back of the tortilla chip bag for fun. I noticed that to get in touch with company I could go to the Francas Portezuelos zone complex, near the uneven bridge, on the highway, 850 meters north of the lake, Building #4. Oh and there's a phone number in case I get lost. Ha, ha. At least they gave me a building number, but it doesn't even tell me the name of the highway...

I'll keep reading the labels and maybe I'll post some of the most helpful. :-)

In other news in my personal life, I got home a week ago from a wonderful vacation with my sister and soon-to-be brother-in-law. We spent some time in my town eating corn, visiting the corn fields, learning how to cook corn variations, and hanging out with people in my town, talking about corn. I think they got their fair share of corn (they were here in the primary corn-on-the-cob harvesting week). Then we saw a few highlights of this very mildly touristy country. They helped with homesickness, though shortly after returning home I got the news that my grandmother had passed away. Though it didn't come as a surprise it is hard to be so far away from home to support my family.

Lastly, some basic updates. We're getting a stove project going soon to provide families with healthier (less smoke and chimneys), time-saver (less firewood to collect), and more environmentally-friendly (fewer trees to chop down) stoves. I will be soliciting Peace Corps funds through friends and family so you will be receiving an email soon. I am quickly approaching my year-in/year-left date (September 5th), which is exciting. Sometimes I can see how much progress I've made and am proud of being here and doing what I'm doing, and other times I can't believe I've only been here a year and I'm ready to get the heck out. Thankfully the people here keep my decently motivated. Last note - my mayor reported to me Thursday that this has been the worst winter (quantity of rain and damages to roads), in the last 50 years. They have to spend an unexpected $30,000 building retaining walls (and for El Salvador that is a lot!). They have to spend an unexpected $30,000 building retaining walls (and for El Salvador that is a lot!). I guess that's why I've felt damp for the last several months.

Materialism

2010-08-13T12:28:00.000-07:00

I've been in the capital for the last couple of days taking care of some routine medical stuff and have been hit with materialism. I definitely am a budgeter (is that a word??) and try to save money and use it well. I don't leave my site with frequency like many of my fellow volunteers to go to the capital or the beach to go drinking. I do occasional trips to other parts of the country, but keep it to a minimum. I am a vegetarian, eat pretty healthy, and have a veggie garden so my food expenses aren't super high (though nuts here cost me an arm and a leg!). And I'm in my town's local savings group and try to put away $60 a month. (Just for reference, my monthly budget is $320.) When I go to the capital I make food at home and eat off of leftovers so I don't pay the outrageous prices in the capital. But I have noticed that it is so easy to be materialistic when material is presented.

I like my computer and my camera and I have an .mp3 player and plenty of clothes, though I've never considered myself truly materialistic. However, being in the capital around new clothes, new gadgets, and extravagant items makes me want, want, want. I even almost went to the movies last night even though I can buy movies here for a dollar and the hotel where I am staying has cable and I ended up watching a movie anyway. It is interesting to notice that when it is accessible and available it is of interest. Out in the campo, where I don't have a lot of things around to buy, I don't have the craving or the necessity to buy. Thankfully, my lack of cash kept me strapped and didn't allow me to buy unnecessary items. Plus, I had to make sure to save enough money to get to the airport to pick up my sister and her boyfriend! (They are bringing me some of those missed materials from the States too...that helps cut my costs.)

In other news, I'm trying to stay busy. My youth group finished two murals a couple of weeks ago and they look great and the youth are proud of their work. We are now working on making flowers out of plastic bottles to sell to locals to put on graves of loved ones for the Day of the Dead. I'll be teaching them how to make them coming up this week.

Mural 1, Environmental: "Protecting the environment together is saving everyone's lives."

Mural 2, Non-Violence: "United for a country without violence." (More youth worked on the murals but they were all too shy to appear in the photo. We had about 20 total volunteers.)

Corn and Beans

2010-07-23T09:24:00.000-07:00

I'm sure there are plenty of cultures that rely primarily on two staple crops, but coming from the United States where sometimes the options are overwhelming I hadn't ever considered it before. El Salvador, just as most Central American countries, relies heavily on corn and beans for sustenance. With more importing things have changed a little bit and now people here have other options like pasta (wheat is not something they grow here). However, in rural areas it is still common for a family to rely almost completely on their own crops.

I have had the opportunity to check out the corn and bean cultivating cycle this year and will hopefully observe through the end of the growing season. My most recent visit to the cornfield found the corn taller than me with young ears and the beans with quite developed pods. This bean crop is the first bean crop and the second (and principal) crop will be planted when the corn reaches full size and they bend the stalk to allow the corn to dry. The bent stalks serve as supports for the beans (rather than the sticks that we manually staked next to each bean plant).

Seeing the fields from a distance makes the amount of corn they are growing seem pretty minimal since I am observing all of the land also not occupied by growing corn. However, when I am in the midst of the corn fields it is an amazing quantity of corn that each family is growing. And thinking about the fact that they are growing enough corn for their entire family for an entire year is overwhelming. Processing an issue like individual food security is quite interesting and this country provides plenty of opportunities to do so.

(a partial shot of the corn field of a different family)

(a developing ear)

(a green bean and bud - this is not the main red bean that they rely on, though many families grow a few vines as well)

(snack time after hard work in the corn field - Angel and Felipe with their mouths full)

On My Mind

2010-07-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

I am feeling the need to post, but have no coherent theme. Good news is that I waited a while to (my internet connection is nothing to write home about) get a few photos posted. And happy late 4th of July - I painted a mural, went for a run, and worked on trying to get some money for a project. I lit a match to boil my water and thought of fireworks.

It is "winter" and with regular rain sometimes it is hard to judge when one should wash laundry (if you get lucky, the sun comes out). Yesterday morning I had allotted some time to wash my laundry and at 4:30 am a HUGE storm woke me up. It was grey when I got out of bed two hours later and thought, "My clothes are never going to dry if it stays like this all day." So, I counted my remaining clean pairs of underwear and decided to wait until today. The sun shone brilliantly all afternoon yesterday and all of my neighbors had warm, dry, and clean clothes by the evening rain. I started washing last night and hung the clothes on the line outside (and got lucky with no storm, unlike most nights), and woke up to...grey skies. Damn. With my fingers crossed and remembering yesterday's beautiful fate, I waited. And I had no luck. It was grey all day and rained in the afternoon. I had to put up some makeshift clothes lines in my house in hopes that my clothes won't mold tonight (wouldn't be the first time), and the sun will shine tomorrow.

(Me with my makeshift clothes lines. And yes, my hair has gotten quite blond!)

On a different note, my work at the school has shifted slightly. I've become quite busy outside of my required school classes, and have noticed increasing tension among the three teachers at my school, and increasing interest in participation among the students. So I've neglected the school a little bit and tried to remedy it a little bit this week. My eco-club and I spent a few hours in the garden yesterday and today in order to aporcar (put dirt on top of the base of the plants where the storms have washed away the plants), and put up guides for the cucumbers and tomatoes. Even though I've been neglecting the school a little bit, the regular rains (they do have a lot good aspects!) have helped the garden flourish. The mothers on cooking duty this morning pulled up a few radishes to put in the kids' soup and we already have some cucumbers and green beans growing. The tomato plants are big and we have another planting day scheduled. Nature can handle life without nurture.

(A few of the kids putting up guides for the tomato plants so that the tomatoes don't weigh down the plants when they start growing.)

Speaking of gardens, mine is flourishing as well even though I've had no harvest. I haven't put any photos up of it yet so there is no comparison, but things are coming along nicely. I have planted tomatoes, onions (only one is still growing...I guess they don't like my soil), green peppers, romaine lettuce, green bean bushes, broccoli, carrots, and cucumber (that is in order looking at the garden from bottom to top). And while the rains are awesome because they relieve me of watering duty, they are problematic because my plants require lots of dirt reshuffling to keep the roots covered because the rains wash away the dirt so readily. I've also got some transplanted local basil growing and attempted to grow some aloe (see last shampoo post), but I think it got too wet and died. I'll post a photo in a month of my boyfriend (who has been quite the helpful farmer) and me eating some of the product.

(My garden - weird angle, but it was hard to capture at any better angle.)

A huge project in the last two weeks has been painting two murals with the youth group, Vida y Suenos, Life and Dreams. Lots of them have come out to help, which has been fantastic since community participation is one of the main goals. We have one that focuses on protecting the environment by working together and the other which focuses on non-violence. It has been fun to watch the teens learn a little bit about mixing colors and drawing/painting since they all claim that they aren't talented whatsoever. And although it is frustrating sometimes to have little kids and parents hanging around, it is a treat to see them interested in something going on in their community. The murals are in the very center of town so we have had lots of onlookers. I will definitely post photos of the completed murals (hopefully they will be done in another week).

(A few of the youth from Vida y Suenos working on the environmental mural.)

In other news, Nubia (my health promoter if you still don't know), was unemployed this week. The new government has switched around the Health Department and those who were under NGO contracts (like Nubia), were out of work as of Monday with no word as to future intentions. They were all put through tests and their supervisors had to put in feedback and some of them will be rehired through the new government. Yesterday Nubia got a phone call telling her to be at a training today, and even though she is not employed she went because she got word that they were only inviting those promoters they were planning on hiring back. So we're keeping our fingers crossed that the invitation was a good sign.

I took advantage of Nubia's unemployment this week (and she is on her semester break from university for a month, so she really wasn't busy this week), and we tried to work on a few projects. First good news it that we have found a way to get our mayor to fund construction on the casa comunal, the meeting house/rec. center since it leaks, has no light or water or bathroom, and could fall off of the cliff at any moment. We had a general assembly yesterday with the entire town (well, a couple of people showed up), and had quorum and convinced people to sign an act saying they were in agreement with a re-priorization of projects, bumping the reconstruction to this year. So Nubia and I now just have to write a letter, attach the signatures, and get a stamp from the town council to get the project rolling. Success!

The other way in which I took advantage of her sudden free time was having her call a bunch of institutions about funding for our new bakery project. (My Spanish is definitely good enough to make those phone calls myself, but it is easier for her and she's great at selling things.) We got a few leads and I think we'll be able to get training for the 25-30 women who want in, but we are still trying to find some startup money. So I am going to conclude this post with a plea for leads on a way to find us some mula. If you are still reading this post and have any ideas of U.S. companies/NGOs/grants/anything, please send along the information. We already have a lot of the major equipment (like an oven, and table, and shelving units) since there was a prior bakery here, which means we're looking at about $3,000-5,000. Any help would be appreciated.

Shampoo on My Mind

2010-06-25T10:32:00.000-07:00

This month one of my main focuses has been solidifying a group of women interested in working together to have a source of income. There are ten very dedicated women now making shampoo weekly. In the last month they have made and sold over 250 bottles of shampoo! They have made aloe and chamomile shampoos and just this last week tried out basil/lemon. We are selling individual bottles as well as half-dozen and dozens to stores locally. The expenses are pretty minor so each woman takes home about 4 dollars a week for about 2 hours of work: a pretty good chunk of change around here. The best part is seeing them motivated and excited about the work. Plus, seeing as I'm an environmental education volunteer, we are using recycled bottles that we disinfect very well, which means that we are also helping clean up the area and creating some awareness - wherever the women go they are always on the lookout for bottles. On Wednesday some of the women and I visited another community to see a fish project they have going and between the few of us we collected some 30-odd bottles.

One of the neat things about Peace Corps is that yes, I am teaching people here new ideas and trying to animate them to do things, but I am also learning as well. I have been doing a lot of business planning in regards to this shampoo project and learning how to teach others about finances and keeping track of things. I was handling all of the money, the purchasing, the distribution, and what not, and slowly I am handing it over to the council of three in the group. The president will soon be running our weekly meetings, the treasurer is learning about costs and earnings, and the secretary is keeping track of how many bottles each woman is selling and local businesses that we have sold to and need to check in on in a few weeks. It is neat to see the transitions.

In other projects, I have not encountered such a fantastic attitude. Recently it has come to our attention that a need in the community is a meeting space. We currently have a casa comunal (communal house), but it has no electricity or running water, no chairs, and leaks when it rains (every day). In other words, it isn't functioning. And now that I have a regular youth group, two regular women's groups, and an eco-club, we really need a space aside from the church to hold meetings. Plus, I like to encourage neutrality and separation of church activities and other activities, and that is hard to encourage when we only have the church to use for meetings. And there are at least three other groups in the community that could take advantage of a space as well. In meeting with the town council to discuss this issue (I made us meet in the current communal house in the evening and told the members to bring a flashlight and an umbrella), I essentially got a "no" from the president. It seems that it is too much work for him to consider and that he's going to just end up spending a lot from his own pocket. Everyone keeps telling me that he was a bad choice for the president and that he's not going to get anything done, but no one else wanted to do it. So with some help from Nubia I think we're going to start talking with the mayor and see if there is any way to get started and then go back to the council president to tell him, "Hey look, we started it. Now can you help us?" I'll keep you updated.

There is plenty more going on around here - I am quite busy - there just isn't enough space to talk about it all. Plus, some of it is pretty boring. Also, I've posted a few pictures on Facebook. If you're on Facebook, check them out.

Random Thoughts of the Day

2010-06-05T13:50:00.000-07:00

Random thoughts:

1) My parents have nothing to worry about for a little while...I am definitely not interested in having kids for quite some time. In the four houses in front of mine there are seven children under the age of 4 and six more between 5 and 10. The older ones don't cry too much (unlike their younger siblings), but the repeated, "Mami, Mami, Mami," cries calling for attention or the opposite from the mother yelling at the kid to come here, "María, venga; María venga;" get quite old. As I type there are no fewer than three crying children in hearing distance. Due to the thin cement or adobe walls and the fact that the kids only go to school for a few hours if it is a good day and the teachers showed up (and this only goes for the older ones), the crying children is really an around-the-clock issue. A veces, no aguanto. (Sometimes, I just can't hold out.)

2) We are in the rainy season and at risk. I love rain, really, I do. And I'm glad to finally be in the winter again (winter = rainy season). However, it comes with some concerns. My clothing is one of them - it is hard to get it dry with all of the rain and thus regularly it gets moldy and stinks. But, this is definitely not my biggest concern. Last Saturday night we had a rainstorm that reminded me of the one that hit Verapaz in November (look at blog post from November). This should let you know that there were bad thoughts going on. I woke up Sunday morning to men in my community gathering to go up the road to clean up the landslides. I had issues of my own (water poured into my house and created a bit of a lake), but I got on clothes and spent most of the morning moving mud. My town has one road and there were about five landslides that night that covered the road and made it impossible to pass. Not that many cars come in and out anyhow (it is too steep and when it is raining the road gets VERY slippery), but it needed to be cleared for access. Here's my concern: it is June and the soil is already saturated and falling of hillsides and the rain lasts until October...I'll keep you posted.

3) I get lots of joy from watching my women doing something that makes them happy. Yesterday a small group of women that I've organized got together to make their very first batch of shampoo. It was so nice to see them all joking around, learning something new, and just hanging out in the afternoon. And I think it motivates them too. This morning we bottled up, labeled, and distributed the shampoo among the group and in the afternoon I already had a quarter of the sales in my hand. We were going to meet in a week with all of the bottles sold to talk about finances and the future and we've moved the meeting to Monday. What a reward.

4) Food can really change one's mood. Sometimes when I eat the same meals over and over again here it makes my whole life and work here feel monotonous. When I do something special it makes me feel productive, experimental, and encourages me to keep going. Last night I made a batch of lemon-vanilla-walnut cookies (stellar!), and right now I've got a three bean chili with tofu simmering on the stove. It makes me feel successful. Plus, the good food is always tasty and gets lots of inquiring faces in my windows (since they don't know that food doesn't have to be monotonous).

5) Not only is there are wealth disparity between the people in towns/cities and those in small communities, but there also seems to be one within the small communities. In my small town (285 total inhabitants), of the five people that own a vehicle two of them also own motorcycles. Those two motorcycles are the only two in my town. Sometimes I wonder, "How is it that there are maybe 10 families that are significantly better off than their neighbors who daily are scraping together enough food for their family to eat?" Work. Someone in those "wealthy" families has a job. But how were they lucky enough to get one and not a different person? They have been to the United States, which gave them a jump start. For example, my host dad is one of the ones with a car and a motorcycle. He buys and sells cows, pigs, and whatever else he can get his hands on, for work. The only reason he can do this is because of the truck he owns. How did he buy the truck? He saved up money from going to the States one time. It's one of those things that makes you think.

6) Last one, I swear (my beans are about ready for the tomatoes and). I never forget how hard learning a language is, but I often forget how cool it is to be able to even just a little bit. Every day I ask at least 10 times, "What's that word?," and it is generally preceded by a "Huh?" I think this is normal and will last my entire service. But I was on the phone with a friend today and she said, "I bet your Spanish totally rocks." And when I think about, she's right, my Spanish kicks butt. I know at least thousands of words and can conjugate hundreds of verbs in no fewer than nine tenses. So even though there is sometimes a daily struggle with language, I need to stop and appreciate how much I already do know. On the same topic, I am teaching my boyfriend English...very slowly. It is quite a process, but there are small little rewards. Yesterday we were watching a movie in English with Spanish subtitles and after a sentence one time he said (in Spanish), "Hey, I knew what she said without reading the subtitle." Proud little moment.