Saturday, September 5, 2009

Kuin deko!

Like I suspected, I am horrible at keeping this thing updated. But I've got a little bit of time to kill right now so lets see how I do!

I am a little more than 2 months into living in my site and things are looking promising for the most part. Here's what my days consist of:
hanging out in the school, sometimes doing activities with the kids
walking around visiting and attempting usually awkward conversations with people
going to local meetings
making bracelets on weekends with the artesania women
visiting peoples farms


My future potential projects are:
composting latrines
getting the former environmental youth group organized and active again
continued work in the school with conservation-themed activities
"huertos familiares" organic home gardens (already got one taker who I'm gonna start making compost with over the next couple weeks hopefully)
possibly some kind of trash/recycling system

There's a lot of possibilities but it's rough always having to take the initiative and not having a comfortable 9-5 schedule. But that's why I signed up for this!

One of the things I do when I feel awkward and like I'm not accomplishing anything is share my love of cuisine with the locals. My accomplishments include pancakes, french toast, cookies (*note that chocolate chips were unavailable so I substituted crushed up peanut m &ms and cut up snickers bars. oh yeah baby.), spaghetti, and by far my most memorable cooking triumph: 14 pizzas cooked on an outside fire, an 8hr project that fed about 25 people. They still bring it up a month later.

When I feel the cabin fever setting in after every couple weeks I try to get out for a night or two and see my other peace corps pals. All in all life is slowly getting easier. There are definately many rollercoaster weeks, days, hours where I'll experience every possible mood in the same day. Just imagine having PMS every day of your life, and thats kinda what Peace Corps is like! haha! But I may never be in this neck of the world again, so what else can I say. Bring on the rollercoaster!
Jatwaida!
Cat
PS: thanks to those who have sent me stuff! it always brightens my day! My phones sadly to not receive international text messages (lame). If you call me I only get cell service on one hill with either phone so it may take me a while to call you back. Photos take me forever to load on here. Go to my facebook to few documentation of my misadventures!

LOVE LOVE LOVE to all!

coastal Peru

Machu Picchu

Santa Barbara, Arajuno River, Ecuador