Settling In...

Here´s a quick post from a local internet cafe. In short, things are going really well. My spanish is improving, I´m learning a lot, and feeling good about the decision. Typical thoughts running through my mind include:

• I wish I knew the word for...
• They probably think I´m pretty dumb for not knowing the word for...
• Three weeks ago, I was in an office...

And most recently:

• I wish I knew where all the right keys were on this keyboard

Highlights of the last week include:

• My host mother buying live hens for soup the next day
• Having actual conversations in Spanish
• Learning I´ll be going to a volunteer site next week that involves two buses, a taxi, and a boat ride
• Buying a machete
• Showering with a bucket
• Becoming comfortable using a pit latrine

It´s definitely a change of lifestyle here, but I´m embracing in its entirety and loving the adventure. It also doesn't hurt that my host family is wonderful.

Vamos a comenzar...

Staging

Washington D.C. was a quick blur. Highlights include a taste of flash rainstorms, having dinner with Matt and Michelle (twice), finding out deer tongue salad consists of mostly lettuce, not actual deer tongues, and filling out a bunch of forms for the Peace Corps.

Training

We're already a week into the training. This past week was spent learning about what to expect over the next 10 weeks of training as well as the next 27 months (2 years + training).

Yesterday, we went to the major bus center for Panama. Tons of buses converge in Panama City as the bus depot serves as the hub for all bus transit throughout Panama. Folks also thought it was a good place to build a mall. They were right. PCV's spent the evening navigating through an extremely crowded, gigantic mall that could have been found anywhere in Middletown, America.

Tomorrow we'll meet with our host families where we'll be staying during our training. I have no idea what to expect, but I'm excited about getting more immersed in the language and culture.

Today was our site visit to a current Peace Corps Volunteer's (PCV) site to see what they do and what the life is like in the community. This was one of the best experiences thus far. The folks in my sector (Environmental Health) hopped into SUV's and spent over three hours bouncing up and down as we drove over potholes, onto dirt roads, through creeks, etc. Once we were at the site, we met the current PCV. We checked out his digs, which were pretty good considering he had a shower, sink, and latrine. The visit also included a trip to the storage tank for the aqueduct that supplies water for the community. We also ate a traditional soup (san cocho) made from chicken, rice, and a local root similar to yucca. The weather was hot and humid, but we had an amazing time. I'm keeping it short since pictures are worth a thousand words.

I Have Too Much Stuff

I'm wrapping up the last of it. Here's a friendly pie chart to notate the location of my stuff:

And while the pie chart is comforting, I still can't get over how much stuff I have. I will be subsisting on a small, purple piece of pie for the the next two years. Then I come back to the US and glut on red pie. Pie analogies aside, I'm wondering how I still ended up with so much in storage. I made the tough calls. I donated the clothes that sat lonely in the back of the closet. I did some soul searching on whether I needed this and that. And at the end of the day, it's an entire car worth of my stuff.


Author's Note: The author realizes a blog entry about his stuff is quite mundane even if it does include references to food. The author wishes to apologize to those reading.