It has again been a pretty full week, but I'll try to stick to interesting stuff here:
We recieved more vaccinations this week, and for some reason, I have needed ALL of them. In the past two weeks I've received vacs. for Hep A, Hep B, Rabies, more Rabies, Typhoid, Tetanus, Polio, HPV, Flu. I know there's more coming up next week, but I think my poor arms really need a rest. We have also started taking our malaria pills, which you have to take on a weekly basis throughout your Peace Corps service. They're supposed to give you some pretty crazy dreams, but I haven't had any yet.
On Sunday, a group of us went to the top of Cantogallo, a local mountain that has a radio tower on the top. It was a tough climb, but the view from the top is just amazing. I still haven't gotten over what a beautiful country this is, and that it is actually my home. Cantogallo is the mountain in the background - I took this photo on my way home the other day.
On Monday, we went to one of the markets (Mercado Jacaleapa) in Tegucigalpa as an assignment for our Spanish classes. We had to buy certain items for for our familias, note the types of items being sold, and the hygiene of the market. There have been many times since I have been here that I have been thankful that I'm a vegetarian, and the market visit day was definitely one of them. There were lots of meat/animal products out with no refrigeration, and lots of flies. Ick. We were supposed to negotiate to buy some grocery products, but apparently the market has some sort of monopoly on avocados, because no one would bargain with me. I felt a little bad when I was only able to bring Carmen two avocados instead of three, but she's pretty understanding. She also told me about a trainee that stayed with her a few years ago that wanted to get the best price for her for bananas, so ended up buying 30 and bringing them home. At least I didn't do that.
Tomorrow we leave for our volunteer site visits, and I am incredibly excited about this! Myself and another Health trainee will be traveling to El Negrito, which is in the department (state) of Yoro. We will be there for 3 days to observe, ask questions, and see how the volunteers live. Its also supposed to be hot there, which I'm super excited about, since its been a bit chilly here. (Actually, I guess chilly is a relative term, and I shouldn't be saying that to those of you in the midwest...)
Thats it for now, I hope everyone has a great week!
6 comments:
Love the pics miss muscles!!!
Kate-
I have enjoyed keeping up with your blogs. It looks and sounds amazing there! I am jealous that you can actually do something like this. I am definitely thinking about you, but know you are doing fantastic!
-Mel
Glad your having such a good experience!! The pics are beautiful and I am also thankful that u are a vegetarian - gross!!
TTYL - Mindy
Pete and I enjoy reading your blog adventures-keep em coming. (Also, the flies on the meat are just gross!)
Take care!
Great photos, Katie. Why yes, you do look 'tough.' I'm looking forward to the next chance you can post. Take care and stay healthy!
Dear Katie:
Word on the street says you want to bake an apple pie. OK Gurl...this is how you do it:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
First, the Crust- if possible, make sure all of the ingredients are ice cold...especially, the water, butter, and shortening:
1. In a Large bowl sift/wisk 2 Cups of Flour and 1/2 tsp. salt.
2. Take 1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter and cut them into 1 tbsp bits. With a pastry cutter or fork work the butter and 3 tbsp of Vegetable shortening into the flour mixture until it resembles coarse meal. Add 1/4 C of ice water in small amounts until the meal comes together in a ball. Depending on your altitude and humidity you made need to Add or subtract the amount of water.
3. Wrap the dough in plastic Wrap or place in a sealable plastic bag and chill for at least 1 hour.
Now..the filling...
4. Peel and core 6 apples (I usually use 2 or 3 types in one pie- Granny Smith, Fuji, and Gala are the best for baking). Slice the apples so that they are all roughly the same length/width.
5. Place apple slices in a bowl and mix in 1/2 C of sugar and 1 Tsp of cinnamon (I add a little more). (If you were home I would tell you to soak the apples in Apple Cider for an hour- but finding Apple Cider in Honduras might be tricky).
6. Lightly flour a pastry board, marble counter, or kitchen counter. Divide the pastry in half. Pat each piece of pastry into a flat round. Lightly flour the rolling pin. Roll the pastry in one direction only, turning the pastry continually to prevent it from sticking to the surface.
7. Using a pie plate as a guide, measure the rolled out pastry...it should be slightly larger than the pie plate and 1/8 inch thick. Fold the dough into a half circle so you can lift it more easily. Unfold the dough , fitting it into the pie plate.
8. Add filling. Dot the filling with 1 tbsp of butter, broken into tiny pieces. Repeat the directions for the top crust. Place top crust on top of filling. Press the top and bottom crust together. Trim overhang. Crimp the crust to make it look pretty. Take a knife and make small slits evenly around the pie.
9. Drop the oven temp to 375 and bake for 45 minutes, or until the crust is brown and the juices in the center of the pie are bubbling.
I would send you one, but I am not sure pie travels all that well. I could send Hostess Fruit Pies!
Love you muchly,
Auntie Tom
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