Cosas Buenas

A lot has happened this week, but I'll try to keep this as brief as possible. Some of the highlights in no particular order are:

- Learning how to wash my clothes in a pila.
- Finding a cafe in town with one of the most incredible views I have ever seen.
- Playing soccer with other trainees and locals.
- Getting to know more about my host family.
- Going to “cultural day” at our training center on Saturday.

- Sunday, I learned how to wash my clothes with a pila. A pila (prounounced pee-la) is sort of a large outdoor sink to hold water. Hondurans use pilas to keep their water, since they do not have the same type of pipe system that we have. Depending on where I live, a pila could be my only source of water. Most pilas come with a sort of counter that has a washboard attached to it. To wash your clothes, you just get them wet, rub them with soap, and then run them over the washboard as many times as it takes to get them clean. My nine-year-old neighbor, Stefanie (spelled different in Spanish, but I'm not even going to try) showed me how to do it. By the end, she had taken over and washed the rest of my clothes. I felt a little awkward about this, but she seemed to be having a blast. It's strange to have a kid teaching you to do things that are so basic. After, Steph wanted to help me clean my room, but we ended up just having a dance party instead, which was a lot more fun.
- Sunday, some of the other trainees and I went to a cafe called El Pueblo. It has beautiful views of the mountains surrounding Santa Lucia and a great view of Tegucigalpa, and when you're sitting outside of the cafe, you feel like you're at the top of the world. I've posted some pics of the view on Flickr. It is a very surreal feeling to just stop in a place like that for coffee whenever you would like, and it is just one more thing that I'm already growing to love about Honduras and Santa Lucia.
- Today, I played soccer with some of the other trainees and locals. This was my first game ever, so I never actually kicked the ball, though I did block one with my ribs, so I guess that counts as something. The locals who played with us were great, and put almost everyone to shame.
- I've also been able to spend more time with my host family, especially my host mom, Carmen. She's incredibly patient with me, and answers all my questions. We walk to the training center together every morning (she works there) so she has to field about 30 questions before 7:30 am everyday, and answers each one. The woman is a saint. My two host brothers are also really nice. Tonight, my 12 year-old host brother Carlos looked over my Spanish homework for me. He said it looked good, so I'll keep my fingers crossed. I found out yesterday that his favorite class is drawing/art, and that he really likes his new school (the new school year just started on Monday, and Carlos started his first cycle of colegio – basically he started middle school.)
- The other highlight of the past week has been the cultural day that we had on Saturday at the training center. Representatives from many of Honduras' indigenous groups came and gave presentations about their cultures. I never realized how many different cultural groups there were in Honduras. There were 7 represented during the day, and I am not sure if there are more. Hondurans have begun to realize how important these groups are, and have started implementing strategies to support these different communities and preserve their heritage and languages. We were able to dance with the Garifuna (Afro-Caribe group from the north coast of Honduras) and try food from different groups, like the Islenos and Lenca. Our host families were also invited, so it was a great day to get to know other Hondurans and trainees.
So much more has happened over the past week (technical training and language classes have begun, we have started to receive our vaccinations (fun!) and we have also been learning “life skills” like how to make sure you have clean drinking water, etc.) that it is difficult to put it all here at once. I hope this gives you a taste of life here – its been amazing so far.

Home Sweet Honduras!

Hola! I have made it to Honduras in one piece. We arrived a few hours late yesterday, so went directly home with our families so we could eat dinner and go to sleep. My host family is wonderful. The parents are Carmen and Francis. Last night was Francis' birthday, so we had cake and he opened presents. Their children (my host brothers) are Luis and Carlos. They are 18 and 12. Luis attends the University in Tegucigalpa, and is really friendly, so I think that will be a big help with my Spanish. The whole family is outgoing and fun. The house is also great. I have a large room in the back that you get to by going outside and walking through a patio area. I also have my own bathroom in my room (this is rare, I am a lucky girl!) And the bathroom has a warm shower. I was also really surprised when my host brother turned on the TV and Mythbusters was on! Many of the families here have cable, and mine is no exception. My family has a lot of pets, most of which stay outside. They have 3 dogs, Lucky, Rocky, and Scott, 3 birds, 2 rabbits, and one cat named Tonvil that is currently sitting next to me on my bed as I write this. He is no Sofia, but is still a sweet cat. My family also has chickens, which are conveniently located under my bedroom window. One would think this would be a great wakeup call, but as a I found out last night, chickens never sleep. The food has also been good – all my favorite things, and it is a good thing that my house is a 20 minute uphill walk to the training center. Last night we had fried beans, tortilla, avocado, cheese, fried plantains, and some scrambled eggs. Today for lunch my house mother made me rice with fried onions, and something that tasted a lot like green bean casserole (yay!).

The training so far has been long. We're still in the introductory/housekeeping stage, so it is a lot of introductions and paperwork. Tomorrow we will have interviews to determine our Spanish proficiency and what class we should be in, and formal Spanish classes will start on Monday. We have also had one of many medical orientations, and tomorrow we get to start taking our malaria pills. Next week we start the vaccinations, but I know I already have had several, so hopeful I won't need to get all 14 of them.

We briefly split into our project groups today as well (water sanitation, business, and health) and discussed our objectives. Formal training for our projects will start on Monday as well. We will spend the next 3 weeks in Santa Lucia (where I am now) then we will be doing Field Based Training (FBT) for 6 weeks, so I will be living with another host family at the Health FBT site, La Paz. We have a few more weeks after that, and then we will be sworn in.

This has been a great experience so far, and I could not have asked for a better group of people or a more beautiful country. I'm sure during the next two years I'll doubt that statement at times, but right now, everything is great.

And Here We Go!

First, I would like to get a little sentimental with everyone - I want to thank everyone who came to see me off on Saturday night - it was a great way to leave town, and made me realize how much I will miss Indiana. Thanks to all the people who have been so supportive over the course of this process, you have made it much easier. My family, especially my parents, have been so incredibly supportive of this decision that there is no way I could ever thank them. They never once questioned my decision, and have helped in every way imaginable to get me here. So, a big thanks to all, and I love you!
I arrived safely at staging on Monday, with much of my luggage in tow. One bag did find its way to Detroit (apparently it was a little nervous about going to Honduras too) but it was returned to me last night, and all is well.
The Staging experience has been much different than I expected. The orientation we have received over the past few days has been informative and pretty entertaining. We have discussed cultural adjustments, objectives, and safety quite a bit. The other volunteers have also been great. There is already a really positive group dynamic, and all of us are anxious to get on the plane tomorrow morning and start our adventure!

I hope everyone has a great Valentine's, and I'll keep you posted!