so i'm back home. hiding out at my parents house. i've been out once in 3 days. partly fatigue, partly not really knowing what to do with myself.
i was so exhausted and ready to leave when i left, that i didn't think i'd miss the kids so soon. but i do. i really miss them. i wish i had the ability to pop in and see them over a weekend - but that's not going to happen.
the luxury that i'm surrounded with now that i'm home just emphasizes how little the kids i was working with have. it's unsettling.
that being said, i'm glad to see my family again - i'm lucky to have all this to come home to. i feel like i've won the lottery.
i was going to write a blog summarizing my trip. the pros and cons, the good and bad. right now that doesn't feel necessary. there were a lot of frustrations, and the work could be overwhelming - but i have no regrets. advice for those who might want to volunteer or donate to an organization is to thouroughly research the organization, talk to present and past volunteers before jumping into anything major. that being said, all the description and advice will not prepare you - it's definitely about going with the flow.
on a final note - if you're looking to help, and wish you could take a bite out of poverty - start by looking at the companies you support on a daily basis. try to shop locally - avoid where you can companies that exploit third world countries. do a little research.
and remember, when you're watching t.v. or reading magazines and comparing yourself to the rich and famous - wondering why you don't get to be so lucky - you are lucky. no need to feel guilty about it - just be aware.
thank you so much to everyone who has supported me on my journey - it's wonderful to have so many people out there who have my back.
happy holidays to everyone - i hope you and your friends and families are happy and healthy.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Friday, December 5, 2008
alison has left the building
i´m on my way home. i know i haven´t blogged in a while, but the final few weeks at the hogar were super busy - and to be honest, i really don´t feel like blogging right now. way too much to try to convey on a blog.
that being said, i will be sure to write on my experience in general once i get home and have time to process it all.
that being said, i will be sure to write on my experience in general once i get home and have time to process it all.
Monday, November 17, 2008
a busy week and some good news
it´s been a crazy week and a half at the hogar. the head couple (full time honduran couple) had to leave for a family emergency which left the volunteers working double time without breaks. everything has gone pretty well, and the kids have been cooperative - so although we´re tired, it´s worked out just fine (slash: i need a vacation)
to update you on santos - his operation went well, and he´s now up and about as normal. he definitely milked the situation for all it was worth for as long as he could - sleeping in the volunteer room and getting as much extra attention as possible. the night before we went to the hospital he was knocking on our door at 2am crying and saying he was afraid. so we dragged a little mattress into our room and had him sleep with us. this wasn´t enough, however, as he kept us up saying ´tia alison, i want to sleep in your bed, i´m scared´. i finally conceded to lay on the floor with him til 5am, when we had to get up. he then repeated the same routine with the other volunteers the two following nights. (but i figure that every kid should have the chance to sleep with a parent figure when they are scared, and for the most part the children here don´t have that opportunity.) it was cute when we returned from the hospital - all the children crowded around the car then ran through the halls saying ´they cured santos!´.
other great news - my childhood (and my parent´s) church in kelowna recently raised a very generous sum of $ to completely correct the plumbing at the orphanage. this is going to make a huge difference to cleanliness and hygeine at the hogar. it´s something that has been needed for a long time - but was much to costly to fix with the lack of funds the organization currently has.
so to the donors at st. david´s church in kelowna -
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!
to update you on santos - his operation went well, and he´s now up and about as normal. he definitely milked the situation for all it was worth for as long as he could - sleeping in the volunteer room and getting as much extra attention as possible. the night before we went to the hospital he was knocking on our door at 2am crying and saying he was afraid. so we dragged a little mattress into our room and had him sleep with us. this wasn´t enough, however, as he kept us up saying ´tia alison, i want to sleep in your bed, i´m scared´. i finally conceded to lay on the floor with him til 5am, when we had to get up. he then repeated the same routine with the other volunteers the two following nights. (but i figure that every kid should have the chance to sleep with a parent figure when they are scared, and for the most part the children here don´t have that opportunity.) it was cute when we returned from the hospital - all the children crowded around the car then ran through the halls saying ´they cured santos!´.
other great news - my childhood (and my parent´s) church in kelowna recently raised a very generous sum of $ to completely correct the plumbing at the orphanage. this is going to make a huge difference to cleanliness and hygeine at the hogar. it´s something that has been needed for a long time - but was much to costly to fix with the lack of funds the organization currently has.
so to the donors at st. david´s church in kelowna -
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
photos
i've uploaded a few more photos onto flickr (the link is in the right column on this page). there's more pics of the kids from the hogar and from the campesino project - solares nuevos - that i work at.
all about santos
this is santos. santos is my sponsor child. he has 2 older brothers and 2 older sisters here at the orphanage. as you can see he marches to the beat of a different drummer... as do many of the kids at the hogar de amor.
sometimes when i look at him, all gangly in his flood pants and his short cropped hair, i think he could be in an 80's pop band.
the two of us have taken some time to develop a relationship, as he's kind of a solitary guy. he's also a little delayed for his age (he just turned 6) and isn't as out going as some of the other kids here.
that being said - we have had some opportunities to figure eachother out. his birthday was in october, so i brought him into town to go to pizza hut and then pick out a gift. he chose bright blue imitation crocs (shoes) and a beach set (plastic shovels, bucket etc.) unfortunately it's the rainy season, so he'll have to wait a while before he can make use of it. [the picture here is him trying on soccer socks and shoes that mary(volunteer) and her mom donated for the kids.]
on friday santos has an appointment to get minor surgery done. we went in on monday to the swiss hospital in la cieba to make the appointment, and in 2 days he'll have an embillical (sp?) hernia removed. this hospital does these procedures for free for people in need, and right now there is a team of surgeons here for a short time volunteering. i've been hoping this could get done since i first arrived here, so this is pretty exciting. i can't tell if he's nervous or not, he's been pretty mellow about the whole thing. the other kids are quite interested and excited about it - but that's the way it always is with santos... the most exciting thing could be happening to him, and he just floats around as cool as a cucumber as the other kids around him freak out and ask a million different questions.
as tyler (one of the other volunteers) always says: "santos, you're so cool..."
Thursday, October 16, 2008
i´m baaaack
i´m back at the hogar - have been for a week now.
i got home to find that i had been breeding lice for the three weeks i was away... totally disgusting. i have to do treatment #2 tonight and hope that´ll cure me. i will spare you the details of the lice... lets just say my discovery of them made me want to throw up - just a little.
the saturday after i got back a group of us went to watch the second canada vs honduras football game - where canada got trampled by honduras much to my dismay. but again, probably better for my safety being a canadian in a room full of crazy honduran football fans. me and the one other canadian with me had our little flag and cheered when canada got their one goal - woohoo!! go canada!!- we got some interesting looks.... stared down is maybe a better description. we were definitely alone on that one... awkward moment in a crowded room....
celebrating a honduran win is much more fun while in honduras than celebrating a canadian win would be. cheering and hanging out of car windows as people throw water at eachother in comradarie vs hiding from angry fans weilding machetes (this is how it is in my imagination). pick one.
anyhoo...
it´s nice to be back to a full staff of volunteers. finally!! we have 4 living at the hogar now, and 4 working at the campesino project i go to every day. teaching and being at the hogar have been reletively pleasant with actual help. i´ll be teaching english classes soon to the hogar kids in the afternoons twice a week, along with a few of the other volunteers. we´re also starting computer classes. none of us really know what we´re doing - but, as with most things here, we´ll learn as we go!
so i´m still busy - but i´m sure it will fly by as i only have less than two months left here!
it´s crazy to think i´ve been gone from canada for 4 1/2 months....
i got home to find that i had been breeding lice for the three weeks i was away... totally disgusting. i have to do treatment #2 tonight and hope that´ll cure me. i will spare you the details of the lice... lets just say my discovery of them made me want to throw up - just a little.
the saturday after i got back a group of us went to watch the second canada vs honduras football game - where canada got trampled by honduras much to my dismay. but again, probably better for my safety being a canadian in a room full of crazy honduran football fans. me and the one other canadian with me had our little flag and cheered when canada got their one goal - woohoo!! go canada!!- we got some interesting looks.... stared down is maybe a better description. we were definitely alone on that one... awkward moment in a crowded room....
celebrating a honduran win is much more fun while in honduras than celebrating a canadian win would be. cheering and hanging out of car windows as people throw water at eachother in comradarie vs hiding from angry fans weilding machetes (this is how it is in my imagination). pick one.
anyhoo...
it´s nice to be back to a full staff of volunteers. finally!! we have 4 living at the hogar now, and 4 working at the campesino project i go to every day. teaching and being at the hogar have been reletively pleasant with actual help. i´ll be teaching english classes soon to the hogar kids in the afternoons twice a week, along with a few of the other volunteers. we´re also starting computer classes. none of us really know what we´re doing - but, as with most things here, we´ll learn as we go!
so i´m still busy - but i´m sure it will fly by as i only have less than two months left here!
it´s crazy to think i´ve been gone from canada for 4 1/2 months....
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
thoughts on the road.
i´m near the end of my little ´vacation´away from the orphanage and have come down with something - possibly a flu, possibly some sort of parasite - in the last couple days.
on a bright note, i´m in a great hostel, in a great town (granada, nicaragua) with a nice little family of travelers that i´ve been lucky enough to collect along the way.
i´ve learned that when travelling through central america, one must allow for delays and obstacles of many kinds.
i had the no-money obstacle in san juan del sur, the natural disaster-weather obstacle on isla ometepe (mudslide blocking bus route 14 km out of town- had to get out and walk til some sort of transportation made it´s way to us). now i have the sick obstacle, which keeps me close to bed, hammock or bathroom.
all that being said, i´ve very much enjoyed my little adventure. i´ve met great people to travel with along the way and had the chance to surf, swim, hike to a waterfall on a volcano and do lots and lots and lots of thinking.
trying to rev myself up for another 2 months of the orphanage. i´m looking forward to seeing the kids, but i´m not looking forward to being isolated out there - or to the constant-ness of it (if that´s even a word).
i´m sure it will only take me a few days to jump right back into the swing of things. and it´s important to me to complete my time there.
i´ve also done a lot of thinking of where i´ll go when i´m done in honduras. after spending the holidays with my family. i´ve thought about so many different options, but for now i´m leaning towards heading back to toronto. my plan a. plans can change, but at least i feel like i have a plan. i also have a plan b, c and d.... there was a moment about a week ago when i was convinced i wanted to adopt a 3 yr old - even though it´s not actually allowed out of honduras - but then i remembered that i´m an actor and have no money. not a good plan. however, it may be something i would do if and when i ever have money.
anyhoo. that´s enough for now.
i think i need to lay down.
on a bright note, i´m in a great hostel, in a great town (granada, nicaragua) with a nice little family of travelers that i´ve been lucky enough to collect along the way.
i´ve learned that when travelling through central america, one must allow for delays and obstacles of many kinds.
i had the no-money obstacle in san juan del sur, the natural disaster-weather obstacle on isla ometepe (mudslide blocking bus route 14 km out of town- had to get out and walk til some sort of transportation made it´s way to us). now i have the sick obstacle, which keeps me close to bed, hammock or bathroom.
all that being said, i´ve very much enjoyed my little adventure. i´ve met great people to travel with along the way and had the chance to surf, swim, hike to a waterfall on a volcano and do lots and lots and lots of thinking.
trying to rev myself up for another 2 months of the orphanage. i´m looking forward to seeing the kids, but i´m not looking forward to being isolated out there - or to the constant-ness of it (if that´s even a word).
i´m sure it will only take me a few days to jump right back into the swing of things. and it´s important to me to complete my time there.
i´ve also done a lot of thinking of where i´ll go when i´m done in honduras. after spending the holidays with my family. i´ve thought about so many different options, but for now i´m leaning towards heading back to toronto. my plan a. plans can change, but at least i feel like i have a plan. i also have a plan b, c and d.... there was a moment about a week ago when i was convinced i wanted to adopt a 3 yr old - even though it´s not actually allowed out of honduras - but then i remembered that i´m an actor and have no money. not a good plan. however, it may be something i would do if and when i ever have money.
anyhoo. that´s enough for now.
i think i need to lay down.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
haitus
i´m in nicaragua on the way back from renewing my visa in costa rica.
it´s nice to have a break.
however, i´ve run into problems with my bank card.
it´s frozen.
and i´ve just been on the phone to royal bank, talked to about 5 different agents, and have been told that i wont be able to use my bank card til i get back to canada.
i think i need to call them again.
i hate dealing with the bank anytime... but especially overseas.
some days i meet people who are so helpful i can´t believe my good fortune.
then other times i call my own country and have to deal with people who are just counting the hours til they get off work.
grr.
on a bright note, i attempted surfing again, and actually did very well! go me!
it´s nice to have a break.
however, i´ve run into problems with my bank card.
it´s frozen.
and i´ve just been on the phone to royal bank, talked to about 5 different agents, and have been told that i wont be able to use my bank card til i get back to canada.
i think i need to call them again.
i hate dealing with the bank anytime... but especially overseas.
some days i meet people who are so helpful i can´t believe my good fortune.
then other times i call my own country and have to deal with people who are just counting the hours til they get off work.
grr.
on a bright note, i attempted surfing again, and actually did very well! go me!
Friday, September 19, 2008
not so bad
the last two days have been pretty good.
no major poo incidents.
the kid that said i was a gringo, not her teacher, drew me a picture today.
she can be my friend again.
and the showers work, and the toilets seem to be flushing, and we got a hitch all the way back from our project today (cutting out the 40 min walk), and i'm going to buy the best smoothie ever, and i get two weeks off starting now.... well, technically monday, and i got a couple much needed donations.
one of the girls at the hogar has taken to calling me gorgita and poking my tummy. this roughly translates to 'little fatty'. although another one called me flacita today which is the opposite... i think she figured i was offended.
i'll just take both as terms of endearment.
no major poo incidents.
the kid that said i was a gringo, not her teacher, drew me a picture today.
she can be my friend again.
and the showers work, and the toilets seem to be flushing, and we got a hitch all the way back from our project today (cutting out the 40 min walk), and i'm going to buy the best smoothie ever, and i get two weeks off starting now.... well, technically monday, and i got a couple much needed donations.
one of the girls at the hogar has taken to calling me gorgita and poking my tummy. this roughly translates to 'little fatty'. although another one called me flacita today which is the opposite... i think she figured i was offended.
i'll just take both as terms of endearment.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
crazy
i am starting to go a wee bit mad here living at the orphanage.
the only volunteer living here for 10 days.
but i'm leaving next week to renew my visa in costa rica.
some super budget style traveling.
escape at last...
until then, the poo incidents will continue... i lost a shirt to poo today....
and along with 20 children banging down my door 24/7 b/c they want a book or a puzzle or a colouring book.... will i stay sane?
i think i can i think i can i think i can i think i can........
the only volunteer living here for 10 days.
but i'm leaving next week to renew my visa in costa rica.
some super budget style traveling.
escape at last...
until then, the poo incidents will continue... i lost a shirt to poo today....
and along with 20 children banging down my door 24/7 b/c they want a book or a puzzle or a colouring book.... will i stay sane?
i think i can i think i can i think i can i think i can........
Friday, September 12, 2008
from good to stress fest
so this week was not so great as last.
there was a rather large incident with poo which inspired mary to head up a cleaning and painting project of the youngest kids´room.
poo is actually an ongoing issue with dogs who really need to not be at the orphanage, and kids who aren´t grossed out by it.
wednesday was kids day, which seemed to be somewhat disorganized - especially at the campesino project i work at (the hogar kids seemed to have a good day). it didn´t even really happen there until 2 days late. someone who was supposed to be in charge of bringing and organizing gifts and cake really wasn´t on the ball. i wish we had been given some notice as to what was going on with this holiday, and we could have made it something a little more special for the kids. at least we managed to get some games and skip rope in with the kids once we realized that class wasn´t going to be as usual today. i got to teach them a politically incorrect skip rope song-game... the one that goes¨"not last night but the night before.... etc." they loved it, and have no idea what the words are, but it kept going on and on as each kid wanted a turn.
oh... and then, the abuela of the village (like the leader) made me feel guilty for not bringing gifts earlier (even though it wasnt my job) and also said i had to bring more on monday... while the other lady (who´s job it was to bring the gifts) told me not to b-c she had brought enough and the abuela was basically conning me.... (is that a word?) plus both of them were speaking to me in spanish super fast, thinking i understood them, when really i only caught the drift... or at least i think i did.
who knows.
all locals here seem to think foreigners are all super rich (ha ha) and should just be handing out random presents like some sort of santa clause person. it´s pretty warped. it´s so backwards.
i could go on and on in a big anti-capitalism rant, but i´ll spare you.
on the bright side, the showers are functioning now - so hopefully they won´t break again!
the toilets, however are not yet operational in the kids bathrooms - so it´s difficult to teach the kids propper hygeine.
i have so much going on in my head and i can´t write fast enough! i appologize if you are reading this and wondering what the heck i am talking about...
the height of it this week was me, the only volunteer at the hogar for now, doing laps around the halls last night, bar of soap in one hand, towel in the other, bypassing kids as they bathed making sure they used soap, and returned the soap- stopping along the way to clean up dog poop or get a kid a toy or book or helping a kid bathe or look for underwear etc for kids getting ready for bed, or yelling at someone for chasing someone or accidentally giving another kid a semi black eye.... i felt like miss hanagan from the movie annie... i think she was just misunderstood...
i need to watch that movie again.
oh, and the puppet project is on hold. we´ve made the puppets and will try to put together a little show once i get back from renewing my visa. but the kids can be such brats. one ripped the nose off my puppet, and others have let me know that they dont want to take the class anymore.
they have the attention span of gnats.
all that said and done, i´m still glad i moved in - and hopefully can afford to continue living there- as i´ve really gotten to get to know the kids much better being there at night. it´s actually pretty cute helping the little guys brush there teeth.
it is the weekend now, and i get to escape for a day... go to the beach or something and try not to think of dog poop, money and non functioning toilets. horray!
there was a rather large incident with poo which inspired mary to head up a cleaning and painting project of the youngest kids´room.
poo is actually an ongoing issue with dogs who really need to not be at the orphanage, and kids who aren´t grossed out by it.
wednesday was kids day, which seemed to be somewhat disorganized - especially at the campesino project i work at (the hogar kids seemed to have a good day). it didn´t even really happen there until 2 days late. someone who was supposed to be in charge of bringing and organizing gifts and cake really wasn´t on the ball. i wish we had been given some notice as to what was going on with this holiday, and we could have made it something a little more special for the kids. at least we managed to get some games and skip rope in with the kids once we realized that class wasn´t going to be as usual today. i got to teach them a politically incorrect skip rope song-game... the one that goes¨"not last night but the night before.... etc." they loved it, and have no idea what the words are, but it kept going on and on as each kid wanted a turn.
oh... and then, the abuela of the village (like the leader) made me feel guilty for not bringing gifts earlier (even though it wasnt my job) and also said i had to bring more on monday... while the other lady (who´s job it was to bring the gifts) told me not to b-c she had brought enough and the abuela was basically conning me.... (is that a word?) plus both of them were speaking to me in spanish super fast, thinking i understood them, when really i only caught the drift... or at least i think i did.
who knows.
all locals here seem to think foreigners are all super rich (ha ha) and should just be handing out random presents like some sort of santa clause person. it´s pretty warped. it´s so backwards.
i could go on and on in a big anti-capitalism rant, but i´ll spare you.
on the bright side, the showers are functioning now - so hopefully they won´t break again!
the toilets, however are not yet operational in the kids bathrooms - so it´s difficult to teach the kids propper hygeine.
i have so much going on in my head and i can´t write fast enough! i appologize if you are reading this and wondering what the heck i am talking about...
the height of it this week was me, the only volunteer at the hogar for now, doing laps around the halls last night, bar of soap in one hand, towel in the other, bypassing kids as they bathed making sure they used soap, and returned the soap- stopping along the way to clean up dog poop or get a kid a toy or book or helping a kid bathe or look for underwear etc for kids getting ready for bed, or yelling at someone for chasing someone or accidentally giving another kid a semi black eye.... i felt like miss hanagan from the movie annie... i think she was just misunderstood...
i need to watch that movie again.
oh, and the puppet project is on hold. we´ve made the puppets and will try to put together a little show once i get back from renewing my visa. but the kids can be such brats. one ripped the nose off my puppet, and others have let me know that they dont want to take the class anymore.
they have the attention span of gnats.
all that said and done, i´m still glad i moved in - and hopefully can afford to continue living there- as i´ve really gotten to get to know the kids much better being there at night. it´s actually pretty cute helping the little guys brush there teeth.
it is the weekend now, and i get to escape for a day... go to the beach or something and try not to think of dog poop, money and non functioning toilets. horray!
Sunday, September 7, 2008
at the hogar
my first week living at the hogar was actually great!
i love being around the kids when i´m not their teacher.
and going to work at the other project for the morning to afternoon gives me a good long break from being there.
so far so good.
and my roommate at the hogar is great. we´re getting along extremely well. i can be my regular, somewhat inappropriate self with her.
and she´s big on the working out. so we work out together at the hogar in the afternoons (and some of the kids join in, which is pretty cute... or just dance around to our workout music).
so it was a positive week, although i was pretty much completely dead by friday. kind of like a zombie. i think that´s just an every week thing now. end of week is zombie exhaustion time. (sp?)
last night a small group of us went to watch the honduras vs canada football(soccer) game. canada lost. lots of happy hondurans driving around honking with flags hanging out the window. i brought my canadian flag just for kicks. it´s probably a good thing we lost or i may have gotten shot.
maybe.
this wednesday is national kids day so it´ll be busy and interesting. all the kids in the program get a gift, and i think there will be a bar-b-que and a piñata, fun!
next week mary (my roommate) will be gone renewing her visa, so i´ll be the only volunteer at the hogar. that´ll be interesting. i´ll be sure to write about that... and after that i´m going to renew my visa and take a couple weeks for travel.
always something new.
i hope everyone is healthy and happy at home or wherever you are.
i love being around the kids when i´m not their teacher.
and going to work at the other project for the morning to afternoon gives me a good long break from being there.
so far so good.
and my roommate at the hogar is great. we´re getting along extremely well. i can be my regular, somewhat inappropriate self with her.
and she´s big on the working out. so we work out together at the hogar in the afternoons (and some of the kids join in, which is pretty cute... or just dance around to our workout music).
so it was a positive week, although i was pretty much completely dead by friday. kind of like a zombie. i think that´s just an every week thing now. end of week is zombie exhaustion time. (sp?)
last night a small group of us went to watch the honduras vs canada football(soccer) game. canada lost. lots of happy hondurans driving around honking with flags hanging out the window. i brought my canadian flag just for kicks. it´s probably a good thing we lost or i may have gotten shot.
maybe.
this wednesday is national kids day so it´ll be busy and interesting. all the kids in the program get a gift, and i think there will be a bar-b-que and a piñata, fun!
next week mary (my roommate) will be gone renewing her visa, so i´ll be the only volunteer at the hogar. that´ll be interesting. i´ll be sure to write about that... and after that i´m going to renew my visa and take a couple weeks for travel.
always something new.
i hope everyone is healthy and happy at home or wherever you are.
Wednesday, September 3, 2008
new home
so i moved into the orphanage for the next 3 ish weeks b-c they are short on volunteers there for now.
so i´m living with all the kids.
i told the other volunteers that if i start talking about hating the kids that they have to make me move back to the volunteer house!
all the supplies for the kids are kept in the volunteer room, so most of the ´free time´is spent answering the door as every kid asks for a book or a toy or crayons etc etc etc.
they are quite demanding.
cute though, but demanding.
i´m hoping to get a quote for the price of a propper plumber and for someone to repair the showers. these are huge issues at the hogar, and i´m hoping i can raise some funds back home to cover these costs. for sanitation reasons alone.
today at the campesino project i was telling the kinder to stop talking while ´their teacher´ was talking.
i was told that i´m not their teacher, i´m a gringo.
fantastic.
thanks kid.
glad i came all this way.
i can laugh about it now.
so i´m living with all the kids.
i told the other volunteers that if i start talking about hating the kids that they have to make me move back to the volunteer house!
all the supplies for the kids are kept in the volunteer room, so most of the ´free time´is spent answering the door as every kid asks for a book or a toy or crayons etc etc etc.
they are quite demanding.
cute though, but demanding.
i´m hoping to get a quote for the price of a propper plumber and for someone to repair the showers. these are huge issues at the hogar, and i´m hoping i can raise some funds back home to cover these costs. for sanitation reasons alone.
today at the campesino project i was telling the kinder to stop talking while ´their teacher´ was talking.
i was told that i´m not their teacher, i´m a gringo.
fantastic.
thanks kid.
glad i came all this way.
i can laugh about it now.
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
more changes
so i started the week with some more engergy.
after a weekend at the jungle river lodge for some food drink, rest, hiking and swimming... i also sort of got offered a job there if i decide to stay in honduras for longer... very tempting. very very tempting.
we'll see.
we have 4 new volunteers this week. since i'm the old volunteer, i've been semi 'training' the newcomers at the 2 locations i'm working at. it's not been as draining as i thought it would be though as they are all quite pleasant to work with. i've learned that the people you work with make all the difference when dealing with the kids. when everyone is working together, even if the kids are horribly bad, at least you feel like a team. so, that being said, i'm rather happy with my new coworkers so far. unfortunately my one roommate and co-volunteer is leaving, but that's how it goes here. people come and go.
i've resumed the after school classes this week, and the monster puppets are starting to look very cute. i'm thinking of putting together a october halloween type performance with the kids if they are interested in participating.
today was pretty exhausting, as the kids at the campesino project decided to revolt - but overall things are getting a little easier as far as knowing what to do and knowing what to say... i think my spanish is getting better - although i don't want to speak too soon because tomorrow is a new day...
and as usual, i have no idea what it will bring.
after a weekend at the jungle river lodge for some food drink, rest, hiking and swimming... i also sort of got offered a job there if i decide to stay in honduras for longer... very tempting. very very tempting.
we'll see.
we have 4 new volunteers this week. since i'm the old volunteer, i've been semi 'training' the newcomers at the 2 locations i'm working at. it's not been as draining as i thought it would be though as they are all quite pleasant to work with. i've learned that the people you work with make all the difference when dealing with the kids. when everyone is working together, even if the kids are horribly bad, at least you feel like a team. so, that being said, i'm rather happy with my new coworkers so far. unfortunately my one roommate and co-volunteer is leaving, but that's how it goes here. people come and go.
i've resumed the after school classes this week, and the monster puppets are starting to look very cute. i'm thinking of putting together a october halloween type performance with the kids if they are interested in participating.
today was pretty exhausting, as the kids at the campesino project decided to revolt - but overall things are getting a little easier as far as knowing what to do and knowing what to say... i think my spanish is getting better - although i don't want to speak too soon because tomorrow is a new day...
and as usual, i have no idea what it will bring.
Friday, August 22, 2008
tired.
i was able to upload new pics onto flickr - just check the link in the right hand column for 'photos'.
this week and last have been exhausting. doubling up on jobs has taken it's toll. i didn't do my afternoon classes this week b/c i've been a bit under the weather - hopefully a restful weekend will get me back on track.
good things though - i had different spanish teachers this week who actually have communication skills - yay! also, justin and i found this roadside lunch spot in jutiapa that is amazing.... basically a picnic table and they serve rice, beans, platanos and fried chicken. after walking the hot dusty road one hour in and one hour out from la bomba - it is much welcomed!
this monday there will be four new volunteers moving into the house - another big change. by the end of next week i should be only going out to the campiseno project and doing my afternoon classes. i may actually have enough energy to do pilates some mornings - we'll see.
i still wish i could do more while i'm here. there are all these little loose ends that i'd love to help tie up if i weren't so tired at the end of the day and at the end of the week.
one thing at a time.
i know i had more to blog about, but i'm starting to do the glassy stare that i do around this time of day.
i think i may need to stop writing and go get icecream.
good idea.
this week and last have been exhausting. doubling up on jobs has taken it's toll. i didn't do my afternoon classes this week b/c i've been a bit under the weather - hopefully a restful weekend will get me back on track.
good things though - i had different spanish teachers this week who actually have communication skills - yay! also, justin and i found this roadside lunch spot in jutiapa that is amazing.... basically a picnic table and they serve rice, beans, platanos and fried chicken. after walking the hot dusty road one hour in and one hour out from la bomba - it is much welcomed!
this monday there will be four new volunteers moving into the house - another big change. by the end of next week i should be only going out to the campiseno project and doing my afternoon classes. i may actually have enough energy to do pilates some mornings - we'll see.
i still wish i could do more while i'm here. there are all these little loose ends that i'd love to help tie up if i weren't so tired at the end of the day and at the end of the week.
one thing at a time.
i know i had more to blog about, but i'm starting to do the glassy stare that i do around this time of day.
i think i may need to stop writing and go get icecream.
good idea.
Saturday, August 16, 2008
the longest week ever.
the kinder has been good and bad as usual.
the solares nuevos is a big challenge with only two people - but i love the kids there.
the spanish classes i'm taking are disappointing as the teacher has poor communication and teaching skills. i've told myself i have to stick it out though.
the last class we had she spent an hour having us read about poverty in honduras - pointing all the starving children without parents over and over again. 'mira' she'd say (look) 'mira a los ninos'.
it was so ridiculous.
she knows why we're here.
we don't need to look at the photos. we're face to face with them.
it hit a point where i thought i was going to cry but then it struck me as ridiculously and inappropriately funny.
i avoided eye contact with justin b/c i figured i'd crack up.
like laughing at a funeral.
laughter is really what keeps me sane here.
the first couple weeks i was crying.
now i'm crying only sometimes. but mostly laughing. probably at things that would offend most - but when you're faced with way too much reality every day, day after day - it's just how you cope.
there's a dog at the solares nuevos community that is the ugliest, most pained, starving ratty looking skinny dog that i have ever seen. all the animals around here are in pretty bad shape - but this one takes the cake. if death had a dog, this would be it. normally i would want to cry over starving animals. but the animals are only a fraction of the poverty here. if i start crying over the dogs i wont get anything done. so instead i've named the dog death, and we talk about episodes of the family guy, and bill and ted's bogus journey.
the two of us got a hitch from cieba the other day with the craziest woman. the car was falling apart. we had to drive 25km per hour b/c her clutch wasnt working. the windows were covered with patchy tinting. there was punta music playing the whole way. in the first 10 minutes of picking us up she stopped at a house, got out and came back to hand me a coat hanger with a parakeet on it through the window. "can you take this?" "um... sure. is he dangerous?" "oh yes, a little.. .hahahahahahaha". the birds name was ito. ito sat on the seat next to me and gave me the hairy eyeball as we drove away. the drive just got weirder after that - if you can imagine. we did get home alive... and killed ourselves laughing over every little detail for about a half an hour.
most bizarre hitch ever.
second puppet class was like the first - good, but like a tornado. the kids are enthusiastic but demanding. the second dance class didnt happen b/c the director of the program came and took the kids to a pool. this was disappointing as i really wanted to keep the classes consistant. but there is always next week.
disorganization and lack of communication still seems to be the number one frustrating thing here for the volunteers. everyone just has so much on their plate. i've been up a few nights with my mind racing - trying not to think too much, but at the same time hoping that i don't wake up one day and stop thinking.
it's been a long week.
i'm going out to la cieba tonight for some unwinding, then back at it on monday.
the solares nuevos is a big challenge with only two people - but i love the kids there.
the spanish classes i'm taking are disappointing as the teacher has poor communication and teaching skills. i've told myself i have to stick it out though.
the last class we had she spent an hour having us read about poverty in honduras - pointing all the starving children without parents over and over again. 'mira' she'd say (look) 'mira a los ninos'.
it was so ridiculous.
she knows why we're here.
we don't need to look at the photos. we're face to face with them.
it hit a point where i thought i was going to cry but then it struck me as ridiculously and inappropriately funny.
i avoided eye contact with justin b/c i figured i'd crack up.
like laughing at a funeral.
laughter is really what keeps me sane here.
the first couple weeks i was crying.
now i'm crying only sometimes. but mostly laughing. probably at things that would offend most - but when you're faced with way too much reality every day, day after day - it's just how you cope.
there's a dog at the solares nuevos community that is the ugliest, most pained, starving ratty looking skinny dog that i have ever seen. all the animals around here are in pretty bad shape - but this one takes the cake. if death had a dog, this would be it. normally i would want to cry over starving animals. but the animals are only a fraction of the poverty here. if i start crying over the dogs i wont get anything done. so instead i've named the dog death, and we talk about episodes of the family guy, and bill and ted's bogus journey.
the two of us got a hitch from cieba the other day with the craziest woman. the car was falling apart. we had to drive 25km per hour b/c her clutch wasnt working. the windows were covered with patchy tinting. there was punta music playing the whole way. in the first 10 minutes of picking us up she stopped at a house, got out and came back to hand me a coat hanger with a parakeet on it through the window. "can you take this?" "um... sure. is he dangerous?" "oh yes, a little.. .hahahahahahaha". the birds name was ito. ito sat on the seat next to me and gave me the hairy eyeball as we drove away. the drive just got weirder after that - if you can imagine. we did get home alive... and killed ourselves laughing over every little detail for about a half an hour.
most bizarre hitch ever.
second puppet class was like the first - good, but like a tornado. the kids are enthusiastic but demanding. the second dance class didnt happen b/c the director of the program came and took the kids to a pool. this was disappointing as i really wanted to keep the classes consistant. but there is always next week.
disorganization and lack of communication still seems to be the number one frustrating thing here for the volunteers. everyone just has so much on their plate. i've been up a few nights with my mind racing - trying not to think too much, but at the same time hoping that i don't wake up one day and stop thinking.
it's been a long week.
i'm going out to la cieba tonight for some unwinding, then back at it on monday.
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
really quick update
i've more than doubled my work load in the past week, so i don't seem to have so much time for the internet. but i'll try to do a quick update:
last weeks puppet and dance classes went really well! i was very suprised. especially the dance class. the kids loved it. best part was a 'too cool for school' girl about 12 years old, watching with a bit of attitude, and within 5 minutes of the class, kicking off her shoes, sliding to the edge of her chair and jumping right into the class when i told her she could join in. she didn't even sign up.
so some success!
although i think i got too cocky b/c the kinder were rather terrible both friday and monday. sometimes you just have to zone out and go to your happy place when one child spits on the floor and the other drags his hands through it in an obvious attempt to be disgusting.
i've also started teaching at 'solares nuevos', a campesino community with a school house that was built by hhk. so i teach kinder at the hogar in the morning, then to solares nuevos, and i teach puppet and dance class on tues and thurs, and have started spanish classes for myself on monday and wednesday.
oh oh oh..... and.... i visited c.r.i.l.a. - a rehabilitation centre in la cieba and was completely enthralled by it. if i'm able to free up some time when other volunteers arrive, i'll try to do some rehabilitation volunteering possibly once a week... maybe put my pilates skills to use.
i'm starting to love it here. it's not getting any easier at all, and it's still very up and down - but i feel like i actually have some use. and i'm getting along well with my roommate - the two of us seem to be very like minded - so that helps... having someone to talk to about everything that goes on here without feeling like they don't want to hear it.
so that's my super fast update. and now i have to go eat then teach puppet class #2. last week we made the bodies, today we are paper mache-ing heads.
hope that works.
last weeks puppet and dance classes went really well! i was very suprised. especially the dance class. the kids loved it. best part was a 'too cool for school' girl about 12 years old, watching with a bit of attitude, and within 5 minutes of the class, kicking off her shoes, sliding to the edge of her chair and jumping right into the class when i told her she could join in. she didn't even sign up.
so some success!
although i think i got too cocky b/c the kinder were rather terrible both friday and monday. sometimes you just have to zone out and go to your happy place when one child spits on the floor and the other drags his hands through it in an obvious attempt to be disgusting.
i've also started teaching at 'solares nuevos', a campesino community with a school house that was built by hhk. so i teach kinder at the hogar in the morning, then to solares nuevos, and i teach puppet and dance class on tues and thurs, and have started spanish classes for myself on monday and wednesday.
oh oh oh..... and.... i visited c.r.i.l.a. - a rehabilitation centre in la cieba and was completely enthralled by it. if i'm able to free up some time when other volunteers arrive, i'll try to do some rehabilitation volunteering possibly once a week... maybe put my pilates skills to use.
i'm starting to love it here. it's not getting any easier at all, and it's still very up and down - but i feel like i actually have some use. and i'm getting along well with my roommate - the two of us seem to be very like minded - so that helps... having someone to talk to about everything that goes on here without feeling like they don't want to hear it.
so that's my super fast update. and now i have to go eat then teach puppet class #2. last week we made the bodies, today we are paper mache-ing heads.
hope that works.
Monday, August 4, 2008
breathing helps.
i think i may finally be settling in.
i´ve gotten past being angry at the kids when they´re soooo bad. i´m actually rather calm.
now i´m trying to just go day by day, hour by hour. when i think of the big picture it´s just way too overwhelming.
and actually, considering the lives that these children have come from, they are suprisingly "normal" ... whatever that means.
we played with play dough for the last hour of kinder today. joel, the youngest, took much joy in squashing everthing i made... so i started to squash his stuff too. if you can´t beat em´, join em´.
i had a dream that i was in canada and was able to take santos, my sponsor child, out for a day. in the dream he could tap dance and speak english perfectly. i told him this this morning in class, and he and all the kids started to laugh as if this was extremely funny.
this week i´m going to start working with a second group outside of the orphanage. a campesino (peasant) community a little farther away from where i´m living. i´ll be teaching there after i teach kinder in the mornings at the hogar because all of the volunteers aside from one are leaving that project to go back home. i´m looking forward to filling more of my day.
i´m also starting puppets tomorrow. the kids will make monster puppets and we will hopefully present "where the wild things are" at the end of 5 weeks. or i may just end up with a pile of paper mache and a hernia.
we´ll see!!
a new volunteer moved into the volunteer house a few days ago. he has a connection with a rehab center in la cieba where he volunteered for a couple days. i´m going to go check that out sometime this week as well - who knows, my pilates experience might come in handy!
adios for now.
oh, and ps. i have lice.
gross.
i´ve gotten past being angry at the kids when they´re soooo bad. i´m actually rather calm.
now i´m trying to just go day by day, hour by hour. when i think of the big picture it´s just way too overwhelming.
and actually, considering the lives that these children have come from, they are suprisingly "normal" ... whatever that means.
we played with play dough for the last hour of kinder today. joel, the youngest, took much joy in squashing everthing i made... so i started to squash his stuff too. if you can´t beat em´, join em´.
i had a dream that i was in canada and was able to take santos, my sponsor child, out for a day. in the dream he could tap dance and speak english perfectly. i told him this this morning in class, and he and all the kids started to laugh as if this was extremely funny.
this week i´m going to start working with a second group outside of the orphanage. a campesino (peasant) community a little farther away from where i´m living. i´ll be teaching there after i teach kinder in the mornings at the hogar because all of the volunteers aside from one are leaving that project to go back home. i´m looking forward to filling more of my day.
i´m also starting puppets tomorrow. the kids will make monster puppets and we will hopefully present "where the wild things are" at the end of 5 weeks. or i may just end up with a pile of paper mache and a hernia.
we´ll see!!
a new volunteer moved into the volunteer house a few days ago. he has a connection with a rehab center in la cieba where he volunteered for a couple days. i´m going to go check that out sometime this week as well - who knows, my pilates experience might come in handy!
adios for now.
oh, and ps. i have lice.
gross.
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
a weekend away
i went to utila, one of the bay islands, this weekend for some much needed r&r with a couple other volunteers.
it´s hard to believe that it´s the same country as honduras.
we all felt as if we´d stumbled onto some lost world. beautiful calm water, amazing scenery, and a culture of people that don´t remind me of any culture i´ve seen or learned about.
ít´s like a bunch of crazy pirates landed there years ago and never left.... actually, i think that´s exactly what happened...
mostly british descendants, i think.... they speak a type of "english" that was more difficult for me to understand than spanish. we stopped into a store for water where they spoke spanish, and i was pleasantly suprised to understand what was going on.
it was carnival, for some reason, so there was a homemade style parade and partying into the night. i swam, kayaked, layed on the beach and did a whole lot of nothing... once i stopped feeling bad about it!
i´m back on the mainland now and back into being completely absorbed with thoughts on the kids and the organization and what i can do to be helpful, efficient, productive etc. three volunteers from the volunteer house are moving back home this week, and the remainder will be gone in about 2 weeks. one person will be moving in, so i wont be all by myself as i originally thought... and there will be 3 more moving in at the end of august.
lots of change!
this weekend will be spent planning my first week of dance class and puppetry class. i could use some energy vibes if anyone has any to spare. i was playing "what time is it mr. wolf" with the kinder this afternoon and could barely keep up with them. it´s probably my fault for suggesting we play outside where they have way more space to run away from me when i try to catch them.... i think i may have some sort of leftover parasite from guatemala that may be slowing me down... that´s it.... blame it on the parasites.... i´m going to need a full medical check up when i return to canada! ringworm, lice, parasites, bacteria.... lots of fun.
well, i´m signing out for now. i want to look up some guitar chords on line before i head back to the volunteer house.
thanks for everyone who has been reading and sending me emails and facebook notes. it really helps to know that i have people back home supporting me!
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
a better mood
sorry if i depressed anyone with my last blog. it´s been a frustrating experience here so far, but i woke up in a better mood today.
it´s difficult to find time to separate oneself from everything that is going on here, but last night i had my first tub of chocolate icecream since i left home. horray for icecream and emotional eating!
the kinder is still as misbehaved as ever - yesterday was good, today they were bad - but that´s the way it goes.
i had a great moment today with some of the older girls during a break from class - i was trying to translate "lean on me" into spanish, and they came up to me and helped me out. after we figured out the first verse and the chorus i got my guitar and sang it for them. i´m so glad i got that guitar. it gives me a way to communicate with the kids at the hogar when my spanish falls short.
and.... i´ve come up with an initial plan for some creative classes. i hope it works out.
i´m still waiting on taking more spanish lessons. it may have to wait until some more volunteers arrive to free up some of my time in the mornings.
we´ll see.
if anything this experience will hopefully teach me patience.
patience patience patience.
i´m on honduran time now.
it´s difficult to find time to separate oneself from everything that is going on here, but last night i had my first tub of chocolate icecream since i left home. horray for icecream and emotional eating!
the kinder is still as misbehaved as ever - yesterday was good, today they were bad - but that´s the way it goes.
i had a great moment today with some of the older girls during a break from class - i was trying to translate "lean on me" into spanish, and they came up to me and helped me out. after we figured out the first verse and the chorus i got my guitar and sang it for them. i´m so glad i got that guitar. it gives me a way to communicate with the kids at the hogar when my spanish falls short.
and.... i´ve come up with an initial plan for some creative classes. i hope it works out.
i´m still waiting on taking more spanish lessons. it may have to wait until some more volunteers arrive to free up some of my time in the mornings.
we´ll see.
if anything this experience will hopefully teach me patience.
patience patience patience.
i´m on honduran time now.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
a long week
it´s been a difficult week.
working with the kinder is more difficult than it sounds.
these kids need more than someone to play with. they have people to play with and to read to them etc.
i spent half the week giving kids "time out" or "tiempo solo". i´ve started to learn how to give soft lectures in spanish. i´m more a disciplinarian than a teacher. i don´t like that. there has been a lot of change in these kids lives, and they are resistant to so much.
what these kids need are full time social workers, a doctor and dentist who give the kids full medical attention, a kitchen and cleaning staff who know what it means to clean and disinfect, a full time person to oversee everything, and money so the place can continue to run.
on the surface, these kids seem fine, content, they have clothes, they get to go out to pizza hut, or to pools or to the beach a few times a week. they get attention.
looking closer you see that all of the kids have stomach issues, likely from the lack of cleanliness in the kitchen, there´s a six year old (my sponsor child) with a hernia, there is a family of girls from 5-10 years old who don´t understand how to kiss an adult with a closed mouth, and all the kids have lice to a certain extent, some have ringworm.
it seems like theatre and dance class is the last thing that they need.
the organization is made up of amazing, well meaning and hard working volunteers - but it´s a new organization and they seem to need so much that i don´t have to give them.
if the orphanage is forced to close, these kids will be sent to foster care (where they came from) which will be worse. at least they are in a place where they are loved and have some sort of structure...
i don´t know.
i hope i can contribute something.
the other thing that is so disheartening is the general apathy of hondurans towards the welfare of the children in their country. there are some who are amazing and care so much, but in general there is both a lack of knowledge and a lack of concern. i wonder how one can help a country that is not ready to help itself.
so here i am. in a place where it it isn´t 100% safe to walk alone in the day, and not safe to walk alone at night. where any sort of running water or electricity is a luxury. where walls are a luxury. where children have been neglected, abandoned, abused and orphaned....
yet, on the other side, seeing the kids sing "you are my sunshine" for a volunteer who left after a year, and having them give you hugs and say they wish you were their "madrina" (godmother) gets you through the day and makes you really want to give them something more.
where does one even begin??
working with the kinder is more difficult than it sounds.
these kids need more than someone to play with. they have people to play with and to read to them etc.
i spent half the week giving kids "time out" or "tiempo solo". i´ve started to learn how to give soft lectures in spanish. i´m more a disciplinarian than a teacher. i don´t like that. there has been a lot of change in these kids lives, and they are resistant to so much.
what these kids need are full time social workers, a doctor and dentist who give the kids full medical attention, a kitchen and cleaning staff who know what it means to clean and disinfect, a full time person to oversee everything, and money so the place can continue to run.
on the surface, these kids seem fine, content, they have clothes, they get to go out to pizza hut, or to pools or to the beach a few times a week. they get attention.
looking closer you see that all of the kids have stomach issues, likely from the lack of cleanliness in the kitchen, there´s a six year old (my sponsor child) with a hernia, there is a family of girls from 5-10 years old who don´t understand how to kiss an adult with a closed mouth, and all the kids have lice to a certain extent, some have ringworm.
it seems like theatre and dance class is the last thing that they need.
the organization is made up of amazing, well meaning and hard working volunteers - but it´s a new organization and they seem to need so much that i don´t have to give them.
if the orphanage is forced to close, these kids will be sent to foster care (where they came from) which will be worse. at least they are in a place where they are loved and have some sort of structure...
i don´t know.
i hope i can contribute something.
the other thing that is so disheartening is the general apathy of hondurans towards the welfare of the children in their country. there are some who are amazing and care so much, but in general there is both a lack of knowledge and a lack of concern. i wonder how one can help a country that is not ready to help itself.
so here i am. in a place where it it isn´t 100% safe to walk alone in the day, and not safe to walk alone at night. where any sort of running water or electricity is a luxury. where walls are a luxury. where children have been neglected, abandoned, abused and orphaned....
yet, on the other side, seeing the kids sing "you are my sunshine" for a volunteer who left after a year, and having them give you hugs and say they wish you were their "madrina" (godmother) gets you through the day and makes you really want to give them something more.
where does one even begin??
Monday, July 14, 2008
sinking in
it´s the beginning of week two.
myself and some of the other volunteers went to an ecological reserve overnight on saturday. i got to paddle in a canoe and see brightly coloured birds, crocodiles (cocodrilos) and monkeys!! that was pretty cool. what wasn´t so cool was not having water (pepsi was readily available) and being told that there were bugs in our cabin that could kill you.... we realized after a few minutes that this is an expression.
i really need to work on my spanish.
the language barrier is a constant frustration for me, and i find it somewhat difficult to innitiate activities when i´m not able to think of the right words.
so - i´ve signed up for spanish classes. my first class was supposed to be today at 3pm, however, there was a fire at the spanish school on friday, so no class today... tomorrow? maybe.
i´m still trying to let everything around me sink in. i´m trying to let the fact that i´ll be here for 5 months sink in. i know they need me here, they need long term volunteers, but i´m not sure what my role will be here exactly. i´m trying not to get frustrated with the unknown.
as of right now i´m working with the kinder in the mornings. eventually i will be teaching creative classes in the afternoon. but these things require some organization and will probably not come into consistant play until things settle down around here (there are many volunteers leaving and arriving right now, so things are a bit chaotic).
i´m glad i brought my guitar. the kids seem to like it. they want to smack it and pull on the strings and turn the tuning knobs... but i figure that´s what i´d want to do with it too if i wasnt used to seeing a guitar...
i know we´re supposed to keep a level of discipline with the kids, but it´s hard when i know i´d be doing the exact same bad things if i was their age.... when they´re using elastic bands as sling shots i´m tempted to teach them how to make a more effective ¨gun¨with their hands - this, however, would be inappropriate.
today was a bit of a write off, as we had two new volunteers visiting the kinder in the morning, so of course it turned into a mad house once they had to leave....
ok. this is becoming a bit of a ramble!
i´ll just end with a quick note about donations:
the organization is run 100% on volunteers. they keep a few employees for maintanance, security and two live in caretakers of the children. they are very short on sponsors and have had to put a few things on hold because of it. also, just the basic food costs are not being met as the prices of food have gone up 30% in the past few months. so if you have anything to spare financially, go to the link on this blog for helping honduras kids and send something out. i ensure you it´s being put to great use!!
myself and some of the other volunteers went to an ecological reserve overnight on saturday. i got to paddle in a canoe and see brightly coloured birds, crocodiles (cocodrilos) and monkeys!! that was pretty cool. what wasn´t so cool was not having water (pepsi was readily available) and being told that there were bugs in our cabin that could kill you.... we realized after a few minutes that this is an expression.
i really need to work on my spanish.
the language barrier is a constant frustration for me, and i find it somewhat difficult to innitiate activities when i´m not able to think of the right words.
so - i´ve signed up for spanish classes. my first class was supposed to be today at 3pm, however, there was a fire at the spanish school on friday, so no class today... tomorrow? maybe.
i´m still trying to let everything around me sink in. i´m trying to let the fact that i´ll be here for 5 months sink in. i know they need me here, they need long term volunteers, but i´m not sure what my role will be here exactly. i´m trying not to get frustrated with the unknown.
as of right now i´m working with the kinder in the mornings. eventually i will be teaching creative classes in the afternoon. but these things require some organization and will probably not come into consistant play until things settle down around here (there are many volunteers leaving and arriving right now, so things are a bit chaotic).
i´m glad i brought my guitar. the kids seem to like it. they want to smack it and pull on the strings and turn the tuning knobs... but i figure that´s what i´d want to do with it too if i wasnt used to seeing a guitar...
i know we´re supposed to keep a level of discipline with the kids, but it´s hard when i know i´d be doing the exact same bad things if i was their age.... when they´re using elastic bands as sling shots i´m tempted to teach them how to make a more effective ¨gun¨with their hands - this, however, would be inappropriate.
today was a bit of a write off, as we had two new volunteers visiting the kinder in the morning, so of course it turned into a mad house once they had to leave....
ok. this is becoming a bit of a ramble!
i´ll just end with a quick note about donations:
the organization is run 100% on volunteers. they keep a few employees for maintanance, security and two live in caretakers of the children. they are very short on sponsors and have had to put a few things on hold because of it. also, just the basic food costs are not being met as the prices of food have gone up 30% in the past few months. so if you have anything to spare financially, go to the link on this blog for helping honduras kids and send something out. i ensure you it´s being put to great use!!
Friday, July 11, 2008
a quick blog
so. end of week one.
things to get used to:
a different level of cleanliness.
the possiblility of getting lice.
not being able to go anywhere alone.
speaking spanish to children.
washing my clothes on one of those old school scrubby things.
ants and flies.
children.
the children are amazing when you think of the places they´ve come from.
being a human jungle gym.
the mind is still racing. the photo´s are still taking a long time to upload.
i´ll try to post more, but i have a feeling the internet is going to become less and less of a priority.
there is so much to do and i´m not yet sure how.
i´ll figure it out.
things to get used to:
a different level of cleanliness.
the possiblility of getting lice.
not being able to go anywhere alone.
speaking spanish to children.
washing my clothes on one of those old school scrubby things.
ants and flies.
children.
the children are amazing when you think of the places they´ve come from.
being a human jungle gym.
the mind is still racing. the photo´s are still taking a long time to upload.
i´ll try to post more, but i have a feeling the internet is going to become less and less of a priority.
there is so much to do and i´m not yet sure how.
i´ll figure it out.
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
i'm heeerrreeee!!!
i've finally arrived.
slept last night at the orphanage. met my sponsor child, santos. i've never gotten such a long hug from a child that didn't know me. he's told everyone i'm his madrina (godmother aka sponsor) and when he sees me i get random hugs/semi tackled (sp?).
i could barely sleep last night my mind was buzzing with so much. like being 7 years old on christmas eve after getting a glimpse of what's under the tree and being sent to bed.
today i went to the volunteer house, where i'll be living. just about had a heart attack with the way the volunteers there are living.... calmed down, went back to the hogar (orphanage) with the volunteer coordinator, brought back curtains and sheets, pulled a mary poppins-thirdworld style makeover to the house and now i feel a little better.
i still have a line of termites crawling up my wall... or i should say lines.... and cold water showers that sometimes don't work, and a stray dog sleeping at my doorstep...and my bed is a warped cot with two skinny mattresses... i'll survive though.
things to do: buy lysol and a sponge
that aside ... it's good to finally be here. i have lots to do. and my health seems to be back. and today i hitched a ride into town with 2 other volunteers in the back of a pickup.
this is my life for the next 5 months.
i'm here.
slept last night at the orphanage. met my sponsor child, santos. i've never gotten such a long hug from a child that didn't know me. he's told everyone i'm his madrina (godmother aka sponsor) and when he sees me i get random hugs/semi tackled (sp?).
i could barely sleep last night my mind was buzzing with so much. like being 7 years old on christmas eve after getting a glimpse of what's under the tree and being sent to bed.
today i went to the volunteer house, where i'll be living. just about had a heart attack with the way the volunteers there are living.... calmed down, went back to the hogar (orphanage) with the volunteer coordinator, brought back curtains and sheets, pulled a mary poppins-thirdworld style makeover to the house and now i feel a little better.
i still have a line of termites crawling up my wall... or i should say lines.... and cold water showers that sometimes don't work, and a stray dog sleeping at my doorstep...and my bed is a warped cot with two skinny mattresses... i'll survive though.
things to do: buy lysol and a sponge
that aside ... it's good to finally be here. i have lots to do. and my health seems to be back. and today i hitched a ride into town with 2 other volunteers in the back of a pickup.
this is my life for the next 5 months.
i'm here.
Friday, July 4, 2008
guatemala? i think i slept through it.
so. san pedro. beautiful san pedro on even more beautiful lago de atitlan.
breathtaking views of volcanos. opportunities to hike the volcano, go horseback riding, kayak, swim, take coffee tours... etc. etc.
a place where the women all wear the traditional mayan wear and people still wash their clothes and bathe in the lake, and women are able to carry just about anything on their head... well, that may be an exaggeration... not automobiles or large animals... but you get what i mean.
unfortunately the place is crawling with wannabe hippies and travel slacker stoner types, but that´s just a minor annoyance.
so do i get to enjoy my 8 nights here? the longest stretch in one place so far?
no. not so much.
day one was a bit of a shock to the system. went for dinner, met a 2 day friend, went out for a ´bit of a party´. felt like i was in the movie ¨the beach¨with leonardo dicaprio. unfortunately leo was not there.
day two was spanish lessons. starting to feel a little ill. begin to experience a common traveller problem in central america.
night of day two continuing into day three is in bed, major stomach cramps, high fever.... feeling like a 24hr flu. the bad kind.
day 4 i start to feel a bit human, muster enough energy to realize that my visa nor my bank card are able to withdraw cash. take a trip across the lake in a scarily over crowded boat (side note: this is a place where you fear for your safety on a semi regular basis... between chicken busses, ferry boats and bacteria in the food....) to try to find an alternate atm. email the family and transfer funds via email, so they can send it via western union.
day 5 feeling a bit better, still listless, go back to major (well, major ish) town to - yay!!- recieve money!! whoo hooo!! feeling elated as i take the death boat back across the stunningly beautiful lake. go to my spanish class for 4 hours. learn past tense. good day. still some stomach issues, will deal with it tomorrow.
day 6 wake up feeling like crap. fever the night before... again! grr. miss spanish b-c i´m not well, but go to the school at 6 pm to be escorted to see the dr. . as it turns out, i have a bacterial infection in my intestines. nice. and some sort of overall virus. (did i mention that at this point i have a nasty cold on top of it all?) the dr. gives me medicine for the virus, some ibuprofen, and 4 pills to kill the "amibas". "what are amibas?" ameobas. oh. fantastic. flashbacks to grade school science class and farside cartoons.
on the bright side, i was able to communicate with the dr. en español. points for me.
day 7 stomach is somewhat settled, the cold is still bad, and i have an overall feeling of slight nasuea and fatique. i only get through 2 hours of spanish. i´m taking my medicine. i learn a lesson to never take harsh medicine on an empty stomach. i throw up while waiting for my food at a bar (fortunately i made it to the bathroom). they give me my food to go. i learn from some barflys that the medicine i´m taking basically kills everything. everything. even my zest for life? my will to live? (kidding. i still have my will to live).
day 8 the cold is still in full swing, but the throat infection seems to have been avoided, just sinus now. and very tired. and slight nausea. but i put the medicine to blame for this. i manage almost 2 hours of spanish. i remember to eat 3 meals. what an effort.... i´m on the violently ill diet plan. ha.
i´m looking forward to leaving this place tomorrow. even though i didnt get to kayak, or climb the volcano, or really meet anyone, or... or... or...
but my past tense is getting better. and i´ve met some helpful locals.
in a few days i meet up with the volunteer coordinator in honduras and we get to drive... drive! to la cieba together and i will have a home at last.
breathtaking views of volcanos. opportunities to hike the volcano, go horseback riding, kayak, swim, take coffee tours... etc. etc.
a place where the women all wear the traditional mayan wear and people still wash their clothes and bathe in the lake, and women are able to carry just about anything on their head... well, that may be an exaggeration... not automobiles or large animals... but you get what i mean.
unfortunately the place is crawling with wannabe hippies and travel slacker stoner types, but that´s just a minor annoyance.
so do i get to enjoy my 8 nights here? the longest stretch in one place so far?
no. not so much.
day one was a bit of a shock to the system. went for dinner, met a 2 day friend, went out for a ´bit of a party´. felt like i was in the movie ¨the beach¨with leonardo dicaprio. unfortunately leo was not there.
day two was spanish lessons. starting to feel a little ill. begin to experience a common traveller problem in central america.
night of day two continuing into day three is in bed, major stomach cramps, high fever.... feeling like a 24hr flu. the bad kind.
day 4 i start to feel a bit human, muster enough energy to realize that my visa nor my bank card are able to withdraw cash. take a trip across the lake in a scarily over crowded boat (side note: this is a place where you fear for your safety on a semi regular basis... between chicken busses, ferry boats and bacteria in the food....) to try to find an alternate atm. email the family and transfer funds via email, so they can send it via western union.
day 5 feeling a bit better, still listless, go back to major (well, major ish) town to - yay!!- recieve money!! whoo hooo!! feeling elated as i take the death boat back across the stunningly beautiful lake. go to my spanish class for 4 hours. learn past tense. good day. still some stomach issues, will deal with it tomorrow.
day 6 wake up feeling like crap. fever the night before... again! grr. miss spanish b-c i´m not well, but go to the school at 6 pm to be escorted to see the dr. . as it turns out, i have a bacterial infection in my intestines. nice. and some sort of overall virus. (did i mention that at this point i have a nasty cold on top of it all?) the dr. gives me medicine for the virus, some ibuprofen, and 4 pills to kill the "amibas". "what are amibas?" ameobas. oh. fantastic. flashbacks to grade school science class and farside cartoons.
on the bright side, i was able to communicate with the dr. en español. points for me.
day 7 stomach is somewhat settled, the cold is still bad, and i have an overall feeling of slight nasuea and fatique. i only get through 2 hours of spanish. i´m taking my medicine. i learn a lesson to never take harsh medicine on an empty stomach. i throw up while waiting for my food at a bar (fortunately i made it to the bathroom). they give me my food to go. i learn from some barflys that the medicine i´m taking basically kills everything. everything. even my zest for life? my will to live? (kidding. i still have my will to live).
day 8 the cold is still in full swing, but the throat infection seems to have been avoided, just sinus now. and very tired. and slight nausea. but i put the medicine to blame for this. i manage almost 2 hours of spanish. i remember to eat 3 meals. what an effort.... i´m on the violently ill diet plan. ha.
i´m looking forward to leaving this place tomorrow. even though i didnt get to kayak, or climb the volcano, or really meet anyone, or... or... or...
but my past tense is getting better. and i´ve met some helpful locals.
in a few days i meet up with the volunteer coordinator in honduras and we get to drive... drive! to la cieba together and i will have a home at last.
Monday, June 30, 2008
guatemala
so i decided to go straight to guatemala, and it's a good thing. the trip took about 9 hours. i had a feeling that the border crossing might be a bit of a gong show, but i had no idea. i was expecting a pristine border crossing like from canada to the us, with everything clearly marked. not the case. after my 1 and a half hour bus ride to the border, in a nice bus with a slightly maniacal driver, i was dropped off. the bus driver nearly drove off with my bag still in the bus. i think he was in a hurry.
so the mexican side of the border was a few official storefront type buildings, a bus station, restaurant and a jumble of taxis. i made a good guess as to where i was supposed to go, walked into one building, did the passport stamp thing, then went to get a taxi to the other border.
the taxi driver jammed me in with 3 other locals and dropped us all of half way between borders.
great.
so i{m there in this muddy market (b-c the space between the two borders is jammed full of people selling things) with no directions or signs of anything and no other foreiners to be seen. i put on my pack, grabbed my guitar, asked someone where the immigration was, and walked the extra 2k.
once there, it was even less clear as to where i was to go, but i found the guatemalan immigration, paid the illegal "fee" to the shifty migration dude, and wandered into la mesilla, guatemala.
this is definitely a different country than mexico.
in mexico you can mostly avoid poverty and take the first class way around. in guatemala there aren't so many options. i managed to get a tuktuk (mini motorcar thing) to the "bus station" which is virtually a muddy yard full of brightly painted school busses. chicken busses.
is this really my option? yes... it seems to be.
luckily 3 other foreiners ended up on the same bus, so i didnt feel so alone.
what followed was three more chicken busses, being chased on and off each one like a pack of sheep, nearly forgetting my guitar on one of them, one bus broke down on the side of the road, me running to a random house to use the banos (they were very hospitable), driving faster than necessary in the rain through muddy avalanche sites, and finally reaching the beautiful lago de atitlan... where i am now.
and my computer time has run out.
adios
hasta luego....
so the mexican side of the border was a few official storefront type buildings, a bus station, restaurant and a jumble of taxis. i made a good guess as to where i was supposed to go, walked into one building, did the passport stamp thing, then went to get a taxi to the other border.
the taxi driver jammed me in with 3 other locals and dropped us all of half way between borders.
great.
so i{m there in this muddy market (b-c the space between the two borders is jammed full of people selling things) with no directions or signs of anything and no other foreiners to be seen. i put on my pack, grabbed my guitar, asked someone where the immigration was, and walked the extra 2k.
once there, it was even less clear as to where i was to go, but i found the guatemalan immigration, paid the illegal "fee" to the shifty migration dude, and wandered into la mesilla, guatemala.
this is definitely a different country than mexico.
in mexico you can mostly avoid poverty and take the first class way around. in guatemala there aren't so many options. i managed to get a tuktuk (mini motorcar thing) to the "bus station" which is virtually a muddy yard full of brightly painted school busses. chicken busses.
is this really my option? yes... it seems to be.
luckily 3 other foreiners ended up on the same bus, so i didnt feel so alone.
what followed was three more chicken busses, being chased on and off each one like a pack of sheep, nearly forgetting my guitar on one of them, one bus broke down on the side of the road, me running to a random house to use the banos (they were very hospitable), driving faster than necessary in the rain through muddy avalanche sites, and finally reaching the beautiful lago de atitlan... where i am now.
and my computer time has run out.
adios
hasta luego....
Thursday, June 26, 2008
heading for the border
so, a quick side note - i can't find a computer with a usb that will work with my camera, so the photos are in waiting. aslo, punctuation is different on these computers... and there is a lack of spell check. so i apologize for any errors.
ok.
anyhoo...
i spent 3 days in san cristobal de las casas. amazing mountain town "nestled in the mountains" as the guide books like to say... but it's true!
finally some amazing coffee! i was thinking of ways to stay.... teach pilates at the yoga studio.... make theatre in the mountains... take spanish lessons....
but after a couple of days i felt the need to move on. i managed to get in some yoga and some coffee and some pilates (by sneaking into the yoga studio when empty) and some churches... lots of churches... and a couple very inspiring documentaries on the zapatistas and the region and a visit with a friend from australia and some cold air. staying in my hostel was like camping in the fall - quite refreshing after living in a pool of sweat for 3 weeks.
i was planning to go see the ruins of palenque, but decided against it. it would have been 5 hrs there, 5 hrs back - and i really am feeling a pull towards guatemala.
i need to get back to the spanish.
so many of these places could be much more rewarding if i only spoke the language.
i'm starting to feel frustrated with my english and isolated. i guess i knew this would be something i'd have to work through....
i figure guatemala will be a change of pace, as i'm planning to spend minimum one week in one spot.
i enjoy traveling, but jumping from place to place becomes a bit unsettling after a while. especially when you're on your own, and don't know when you'll meet the next person you can really talk to.
so now i'm in a town about an hour from the border. i haven't decided if i'll take a day trip to a series of lakes tomorrow, or just get on with it and head to guatemala. i spent most of today trying to figure out how to get anywhere. i finally got a map from a waiter, but by that time i was feeling frustrated enough to just leave.
but i booked a hotel room.
so i'm here.
i think i'll see how i feel in the morning. but either way. i'll either sleep til 8 and just go to guatemala... or et up at 5, do a day trip to these lakes, come back, then go to guatemala.....
sometimes the freedom of traveling alone is incredibly liberating.
sometimes it would be nice to have someone else make a decision.
ok.
anyhoo...
i spent 3 days in san cristobal de las casas. amazing mountain town "nestled in the mountains" as the guide books like to say... but it's true!
finally some amazing coffee! i was thinking of ways to stay.... teach pilates at the yoga studio.... make theatre in the mountains... take spanish lessons....
but after a couple of days i felt the need to move on. i managed to get in some yoga and some coffee and some pilates (by sneaking into the yoga studio when empty) and some churches... lots of churches... and a couple very inspiring documentaries on the zapatistas and the region and a visit with a friend from australia and some cold air. staying in my hostel was like camping in the fall - quite refreshing after living in a pool of sweat for 3 weeks.
i was planning to go see the ruins of palenque, but decided against it. it would have been 5 hrs there, 5 hrs back - and i really am feeling a pull towards guatemala.
i need to get back to the spanish.
so many of these places could be much more rewarding if i only spoke the language.
i'm starting to feel frustrated with my english and isolated. i guess i knew this would be something i'd have to work through....
i figure guatemala will be a change of pace, as i'm planning to spend minimum one week in one spot.
i enjoy traveling, but jumping from place to place becomes a bit unsettling after a while. especially when you're on your own, and don't know when you'll meet the next person you can really talk to.
so now i'm in a town about an hour from the border. i haven't decided if i'll take a day trip to a series of lakes tomorrow, or just get on with it and head to guatemala. i spent most of today trying to figure out how to get anywhere. i finally got a map from a waiter, but by that time i was feeling frustrated enough to just leave.
but i booked a hotel room.
so i'm here.
i think i'll see how i feel in the morning. but either way. i'll either sleep til 8 and just go to guatemala... or et up at 5, do a day trip to these lakes, come back, then go to guatemala.....
sometimes the freedom of traveling alone is incredibly liberating.
sometimes it would be nice to have someone else make a decision.
a womans world
so the small town i ended up stopping in for a couple nights had some suprises up its sleave.
the town of tehuantapec. in my lonely planet guide book there was some information about the women of tehuantapec taking lead roles in government and business. this sparked my interest, and i figured it would be a good place for a woman to travel alone to.
i managed to meet a couple from australia (i'm losing track of all the aussies i've met) the evening of the second night i was there. the three of us went for a drink and began discussing our travels. the two of them were talking about a town in mexico that was a matriarch, but they weren't sure where it was. i thought that would be a great place to visit. as we were talking, we noticed a 'ladyboy', as the aussies put it, standing out on the corner, then later walking down the road. this suprised us as we were in the heart of machismo mexico. i mentioned that it must be a tough gig in this culture, especially in a small town!
after our drinks we took a motocarro (three wheeled mini cart that you stand on the back of) and zipped through the town, saying hola to everyone we passed and putting ourselves on extra display.... i figure this must be where the fun is at in this place... it was a blast..... and .... we came across a fiesta! on a sunday night! in the street! with women all dressed up in traditional wear - bright floral dresses and flowers in their hair... so cool.
we edged our way to the outskirts of the fiesta and were instantly drawn in by one very friendly local who promptly sold us a case of cerveza. peering in on the party we noticed that it was mostly women dancing, with eachother, and men on the sidelines, and.... ladyboys and dragqueens/trannies! some in full womens traditional dress, and some in casual mini skirts and tops. everyone was enjoying the festivities and there was absolutely no weirdness or tension among the different sexualities. it was somewhat surreal.
a man sitting next to us, who spoke english, explained to us that we were smack dab in the middle of a matriarch.
seriously??
this explained the men quietly on the sides dealing with children. this explained the women dancing in bright colours. this explained the men-turned-women who seemed to have a more prominant role than the plain old men. (one who went around handing out soap and shampoo later in the evening... what?)
as the party continued we were offered menudo (cows stomach in a nasty soup) that we would have been rude to refuse, dripping fresh flowers for our hair, coca cola, and more cerveza.... which was only available by the case...
our welcoming friend brought out his camera, and wanted us to take photos for him, but of us... i think he wasn't so sure how his camera worked... the photo session went well into the evening... i wish i'd brought my camera... and we danced with a few strange little men who made no attempt to get fresh.
the three of us left the party around midnight, with some protest by the locals (apparently we were going to miss the fireworks).
i don't think i've felt so safe walking home at night in a different country.
and that was the end of that. back to regular old machismo mexico.
i purposely avoided the tour to the polygamous community while in chiapas.
i didn't want to be brought back down.
the town of tehuantapec. in my lonely planet guide book there was some information about the women of tehuantapec taking lead roles in government and business. this sparked my interest, and i figured it would be a good place for a woman to travel alone to.
i managed to meet a couple from australia (i'm losing track of all the aussies i've met) the evening of the second night i was there. the three of us went for a drink and began discussing our travels. the two of them were talking about a town in mexico that was a matriarch, but they weren't sure where it was. i thought that would be a great place to visit. as we were talking, we noticed a 'ladyboy', as the aussies put it, standing out on the corner, then later walking down the road. this suprised us as we were in the heart of machismo mexico. i mentioned that it must be a tough gig in this culture, especially in a small town!
after our drinks we took a motocarro (three wheeled mini cart that you stand on the back of) and zipped through the town, saying hola to everyone we passed and putting ourselves on extra display.... i figure this must be where the fun is at in this place... it was a blast..... and .... we came across a fiesta! on a sunday night! in the street! with women all dressed up in traditional wear - bright floral dresses and flowers in their hair... so cool.
we edged our way to the outskirts of the fiesta and were instantly drawn in by one very friendly local who promptly sold us a case of cerveza. peering in on the party we noticed that it was mostly women dancing, with eachother, and men on the sidelines, and.... ladyboys and dragqueens/trannies! some in full womens traditional dress, and some in casual mini skirts and tops. everyone was enjoying the festivities and there was absolutely no weirdness or tension among the different sexualities. it was somewhat surreal.
a man sitting next to us, who spoke english, explained to us that we were smack dab in the middle of a matriarch.
seriously??
this explained the men quietly on the sides dealing with children. this explained the women dancing in bright colours. this explained the men-turned-women who seemed to have a more prominant role than the plain old men. (one who went around handing out soap and shampoo later in the evening... what?)
as the party continued we were offered menudo (cows stomach in a nasty soup) that we would have been rude to refuse, dripping fresh flowers for our hair, coca cola, and more cerveza.... which was only available by the case...
our welcoming friend brought out his camera, and wanted us to take photos for him, but of us... i think he wasn't so sure how his camera worked... the photo session went well into the evening... i wish i'd brought my camera... and we danced with a few strange little men who made no attempt to get fresh.
the three of us left the party around midnight, with some protest by the locals (apparently we were going to miss the fireworks).
i don't think i've felt so safe walking home at night in a different country.
and that was the end of that. back to regular old machismo mexico.
i purposely avoided the tour to the polygamous community while in chiapas.
i didn't want to be brought back down.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
imaginary husband
so i´m now wearing my fake wedding band.
it´s pretty annoying that a wedding band gives you a certain amount of respect when travelling alone here. the feminist in me would rather not bother, but my practicality wins over on this one.
there are times to make political statements. while staying alone in a small mexican town is not one of them. i´ve also had about enough of disaproving responses to traveling sola.
anyhoo.... i´m liking this weird little place. many women (mostly older) wear long bright coloured skirts, which apparently is traditional to this region.
this is definitely a shift from puerto escondido! i´m happy for it though. the party place was fun to experience, but it´s not the mexico i came here for. already, in the past 24 hrs, i´ve had to speak more spanish than the whole week i was in escondido.
my ´getting around´ language is much more effective than it used to be, but i still feel like an idiot trying to have conversations most of the time.
i stay in this town for one more night, then into chiapas.
i was warned against giant cockroaches in this place right before i came here... so you can guess how much sleep i got last night....
i eventually turned the light on and covered my face so that i could sleep. weird dreams ensued.
well, i´m off to the market to get stared at some more.... wheeee!
it´s pretty annoying that a wedding band gives you a certain amount of respect when travelling alone here. the feminist in me would rather not bother, but my practicality wins over on this one.
there are times to make political statements. while staying alone in a small mexican town is not one of them. i´ve also had about enough of disaproving responses to traveling sola.
anyhoo.... i´m liking this weird little place. many women (mostly older) wear long bright coloured skirts, which apparently is traditional to this region.
this is definitely a shift from puerto escondido! i´m happy for it though. the party place was fun to experience, but it´s not the mexico i came here for. already, in the past 24 hrs, i´ve had to speak more spanish than the whole week i was in escondido.
my ´getting around´ language is much more effective than it used to be, but i still feel like an idiot trying to have conversations most of the time.
i stay in this town for one more night, then into chiapas.
i was warned against giant cockroaches in this place right before i came here... so you can guess how much sleep i got last night....
i eventually turned the light on and covered my face so that i could sleep. weird dreams ensued.
well, i´m off to the market to get stared at some more.... wheeee!
Friday, June 20, 2008
basic update
so i'm taking off from the beach town.
it's definitely a party/surf/backpackers place.
each place i get to, i think i'll want to stay longer, but there is always a time to leave.
also, my attempts to surf have been not so great.
shark attacks in ixtapa had me avoiding it all together,
the lack of learning waves in escondido - as well as a board in the back of my skull has turned me off of it for the time being.
i suppose i'll have to wait. it's obviously not meant to be right now.
next is to the south of mexico to get in a bit more culture, ruins, jungles etc.
i won't be at the orphanage til the 9th of july.
i have heard news from them, and they are in great need of sponsors - so if anyone has any interest, check out the link on the right column of this page.
this blog is rather uninspired, but i figured i should at least throw in an update...
it's definitely a party/surf/backpackers place.
each place i get to, i think i'll want to stay longer, but there is always a time to leave.
also, my attempts to surf have been not so great.
shark attacks in ixtapa had me avoiding it all together,
the lack of learning waves in escondido - as well as a board in the back of my skull has turned me off of it for the time being.
i suppose i'll have to wait. it's obviously not meant to be right now.
next is to the south of mexico to get in a bit more culture, ruins, jungles etc.
i won't be at the orphanage til the 9th of july.
i have heard news from them, and they are in great need of sponsors - so if anyone has any interest, check out the link on the right column of this page.
this blog is rather uninspired, but i figured i should at least throw in an update...
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
i love mexico
the hot sun
the big waves
the language
the surfers
the backpackers
the gecko´s
the crabs scuttling across the beach
postcard views
someone who can sell you everything from fishing excursions to heroin (yikes)
the food
hamocks
forgetting what day it is
knowing that life can be like this
the big waves
the language
the surfers
the backpackers
the gecko´s
the crabs scuttling across the beach
postcard views
someone who can sell you everything from fishing excursions to heroin (yikes)
the food
hamocks
forgetting what day it is
knowing that life can be like this
Saturday, June 14, 2008
slow down the pace
after a few lazy days in zihua, i´ll be heading down the coast. hopefully there will be no news of shark attacks there!
i´ve made myself a traveling buddy from sweden, so the two of us will be hopping on an overnight bus for 12 hours.... i´m really hoping the kungfu movies won´t be on this one!!
for the rest of today, i think i´ll hit the beach one more time.... maybe do some pilates... i´m finally starting to master the art of relaxation.... almost...
i´ve made myself a traveling buddy from sweden, so the two of us will be hopping on an overnight bus for 12 hours.... i´m really hoping the kungfu movies won´t be on this one!!
for the rest of today, i think i´ll hit the beach one more time.... maybe do some pilates... i´m finally starting to master the art of relaxation.... almost...
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
quickie
so i´m uploading photos to flickr - there´s a link to the right.
due to 3 shark attacks in the last month, i won´t be doing any surfing in this location... probably will be heading down the coast soon.
i´m looking forward to hosteling my way through the south of mexico and central america... seems to be the way to meet people.
one year older as of yesterday, hopefully wiser!
that´s all for now.
due to 3 shark attacks in the last month, i won´t be doing any surfing in this location... probably will be heading down the coast soon.
i´m looking forward to hosteling my way through the south of mexico and central america... seems to be the way to meet people.
one year older as of yesterday, hopefully wiser!
that´s all for now.
Monday, June 9, 2008
bus headache, beach mishap and rain rain rain!
i´m finally, after a semi tedious two day trek, in zihautanejo. i love love love this place. was greeted by their first rainfall in six months, and it is pouring! none the less, i feel like i´ve finally arrived home.
guadalajara was nice, but we didn´t connect quite the way i had hoped. i did find a favorite spot, in front of the library (in the pic) and coffee shop (one of the few that doesnt serve instant!) so all was not lost, and perhaps it has potential for a second, cooler visit.
my sunday afternoon and night was spent at a little town about 20 mins from the beach. my hotel room resembled something of a cell, but it had a fan, cable, and i have to say was a step up from my ´harry potter-cinderella´stye digs in guadalajara (reference to cupboard under the stairs).
i jumped at my first chance to go to the beach. yay beach! and a surfer beach too. i envisioned buff surfer dudes strolling around in board shorts as i ever-so-cooly sipped a cervesa under a palm tree. of course this wasn´t so much the case.
instead, i arrived at a decent beach. definitely not swim-able with the monster waves - and the occasional surfer dude sitting under a shelter near one of two budget surf hotels on the beach.
after a little stroll up and down the beach, i decided to park myself in front of the one hotel and do some writing (of course secretly hoping a surf dude might wander by and ask me where i was from... i guess everything is secretly since i´m goin solo... unless i just wandered around making random announcements... anyhoo). so i´m feeling somewhat cool and indy-traveller like, when i feel something wet at my feet... then WOOSH.... the tide. in. with mud. all over me and my stuff. right in front of three surf dudes, about 6m away, watching from their shelter.
i´m so very cool. so i not-so-cooly hoist up all my things and run up the beach, put my stuff down, try to shake out my muddy wrap, only to have it happen AGAIN.
so cool. so extremely cool.
i ended up having to wander into the little hotel and ask a lady who worked there if i could use a shower, she nicely pointed out a giant bucket and a hose just a table over from the three surf dudes. awesome. now, in the after-school special version of this story, one of the surf dudes would have fallen for my clutzy charm, helped me clean off my stuff and spent the next week of my vacation teaching me how to surf.
but no.
instead, i had to hose myself off and dunk out my stuff like an old washerwoman while one surf dude asks me what the time difference is in california(presumably to call his girlfriend), the other says "got taken by suprise, eh?" and the other wandered off with a beer in hand to pass out in a nearby hamock.
i think i´m cured of any surf-guy fantasies i may have had....
so
today...the bus ride today could
only be described as unneccessarily uncomfortable and long. 9 hours. second class bus (only available). initially seemed ok. cushy seats that recline reeeaaally far, a/c... but my first and only visit to the toilet gave me a nice big clue as to what i was in for. beyond nasty. so i figure - no more toilet visits. okay. then i realize my seat is tilted toward the floor, so i have to prop my feet on the seat legs in front of me to avoid wedgy-ing myself as i slide towards the floor. then, half way through the trip (or what i had hoped was half way) we stopped for lunch.
lovely authentic mexican stop overlooking the ocean. however, me being the only non mexican, i have no idea what is going on, or how long we are stopping for. i go off to the bathroom and return to see all the bus passengers (about 10) seated at random tables. i sit, stand, walk up the road a bit to find a sloth (i think it was a sloth) in a cage, just randomly outside someone´s home... not cool...
i return to the "restaurant" to find people magically eating wonderful but strange looking mexican food. i´m not sure when or how they ordered (as there are no menus anywhere or servers taking orders), so i sit down in hopes that someone will come to my rescue and eventually a server came and asked me what i wanted. not having a menu, i used what spanish i knew to try to order food that i didn´t know the names of. as a response, the server grabbed me a well hidden menu and lunch happened. not without losing some dignity, i might add... i think this whole trip is going to be a big exersise in humility.
the remainder of the bus trip was seasoned with a lovely selection of kung-fu movies, dubbed in spanish and played at full blast. i fashioned earplugs out of napkins, which didn´t work, and arrived at my destination grumpy, annoyed and with a splitting headache.
lesson learned... research your bus company...
Saturday, June 7, 2008
politically correct en español
today´s my last full day in guadalajara... actually, i´m heading to tequila (yes, there´s a place called tequila where tequila is actually from - go figure) with some fellow classmates. this means no more home-stay.... which i have to say i´m looking forward to as the food i´m being fed could easily take ten years off my life if i ate like this on a regular basis.
i´ve never had so many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on wonderbread in my life.
however, bad cooking aside, the family i´ve been staying with has been very nice. at least i think they have been... from the spanish i can actually understand!
yesterday evening i was woken up from my siesta (the heat here really drains you) by my host mom - speaking to me through my door en español. we had a conversation of sorts - me responding yes or no as i saw fit, and eventually i concluded that i was going with the family somewhere... now.
i hop in the car, where the family has been waiting (for who knows how long) and i lean over to their oldest son and ask where we are going.
to grandma´s place. this is a friday night ritual.
excellent.
i don´t know why, but i found this extremely funny. good thing i trust these people.
the evening wasn´t so bad - we drank some tequila, ate some popcorn and talked (i mostly listened). my opinion was occassionally called upon when it came to the subjects of public education and abortion - these subjects weren´t covered in my classes this week. i want my money back!!. try making a decent argument for pro-choice with a bunch of catholics who don´t speak english. good times. sometimes one has to set one´s opinions aside....
oh, and i was also asked if i would marry the brother of my host mom (whom i met on sunday evening and concluded that he very likely isn´t so into the ladies...). i politely declined.
i should probably go meet up with the tequila tour.
i´ll try to upload some photos soon.
i´ve never had so many peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on wonderbread in my life.
however, bad cooking aside, the family i´ve been staying with has been very nice. at least i think they have been... from the spanish i can actually understand!
yesterday evening i was woken up from my siesta (the heat here really drains you) by my host mom - speaking to me through my door en español. we had a conversation of sorts - me responding yes or no as i saw fit, and eventually i concluded that i was going with the family somewhere... now.
i hop in the car, where the family has been waiting (for who knows how long) and i lean over to their oldest son and ask where we are going.
to grandma´s place. this is a friday night ritual.
excellent.
i don´t know why, but i found this extremely funny. good thing i trust these people.
the evening wasn´t so bad - we drank some tequila, ate some popcorn and talked (i mostly listened). my opinion was occassionally called upon when it came to the subjects of public education and abortion - these subjects weren´t covered in my classes this week. i want my money back!!. try making a decent argument for pro-choice with a bunch of catholics who don´t speak english. good times. sometimes one has to set one´s opinions aside....
oh, and i was also asked if i would marry the brother of my host mom (whom i met on sunday evening and concluded that he very likely isn´t so into the ladies...). i politely declined.
i should probably go meet up with the tequila tour.
i´ll try to upload some photos soon.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
reality
i've been receiving a number of group emails from workers at and associated to the orphanage where i'm headed. all the emails are discussing issues of sexual abuse. apparently sexual abuse of children is a huge problem in honduras, and is the norm rather than the exception. they are currently looking for ways to educate the children at the orphanage about appropriate sexual behaviour and boundaries, which i will likely be a large part of once i arrive because of my background in theatre and puppetry (both are methods to safely address difficult topics).
as i sit in the computer lab at the spanish school in guadalajara, and i read the letters upon letters discussing the problem and potential ways to help, i feel a heaviness that i didn't expect to be feeling my first week away. this task that i've chosen to take on now seems like a mountain that i don't know how to climb. i know once i'm there i will figure things out, and find out what my role is, but right now it seems like this daunting thing (that i'm hardly qualified to deal with) looming ahead of me.
and this organization is only working with a small, small percentage of the population... it's overwhelming to think of 50% of an entire population of children being subject to abuse that goes unnoticed and unpunished.
for now, i'll try not to preoccupy myself with all of this, and just try to learn the language.
one step at a time.
challenges ahead:
today - buy aaa batteries in spanish
july - get in over my head at an orphanage full of children who need far more help than i'll be able to give them.
no problem.
if any of you are pray-ers, i could probably use some - and so could those kids.
as i sit in the computer lab at the spanish school in guadalajara, and i read the letters upon letters discussing the problem and potential ways to help, i feel a heaviness that i didn't expect to be feeling my first week away. this task that i've chosen to take on now seems like a mountain that i don't know how to climb. i know once i'm there i will figure things out, and find out what my role is, but right now it seems like this daunting thing (that i'm hardly qualified to deal with) looming ahead of me.
and this organization is only working with a small, small percentage of the population... it's overwhelming to think of 50% of an entire population of children being subject to abuse that goes unnoticed and unpunished.
for now, i'll try not to preoccupy myself with all of this, and just try to learn the language.
one step at a time.
challenges ahead:
today - buy aaa batteries in spanish
july - get in over my head at an orphanage full of children who need far more help than i'll be able to give them.
no problem.
if any of you are pray-ers, i could probably use some - and so could those kids.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
first entry away
so i'm alive! i made it here with no problems... aside from being limited in my spanish, and 90% of the people i've encountered are limited in english, or have no english. i have a feeling that i'm embarking on my longest game of charades ever. maybe i should notify the guiness book of world records...
anyhoo.
i'm here. have completed 2 days of spanish classes where we are required to speak only in spanish. when i spend time with the other english speaking students i can't seem to talk enough - as if it's my last chance... all of us desperately babbling on about anything interesting or uninteresting as we know that when we return to class, or to our host families it will all be in spanish. ie: "i slept for six hours yesterday, then woke up, then brushed my teeth, then i went back to bed. i inhaled a bunch of times and exhaled, as per usual....it was really hot in my room... blah blah blah"
it's a bit of a shock to be woken up out of a dead sleep by a spanish speaker and have to figure out what they are saying and respond appropriately, let alone speak in a classroom situation. all i have to say is i had better be able to understand what's going on around me by the time i hit guatamala...
as for the rest, the weather is very hot, the people are friendly, the centre of the city is very historical and beautiful (i'll try to take and upload some photo's by the end of this week) and i feel quite safe here.
i'll stop writing now for attention-span reasons....
more to come
anyhoo.
i'm here. have completed 2 days of spanish classes where we are required to speak only in spanish. when i spend time with the other english speaking students i can't seem to talk enough - as if it's my last chance... all of us desperately babbling on about anything interesting or uninteresting as we know that when we return to class, or to our host families it will all be in spanish. ie: "i slept for six hours yesterday, then woke up, then brushed my teeth, then i went back to bed. i inhaled a bunch of times and exhaled, as per usual....it was really hot in my room... blah blah blah"
it's a bit of a shock to be woken up out of a dead sleep by a spanish speaker and have to figure out what they are saying and respond appropriately, let alone speak in a classroom situation. all i have to say is i had better be able to understand what's going on around me by the time i hit guatamala...
as for the rest, the weather is very hot, the people are friendly, the centre of the city is very historical and beautiful (i'll try to take and upload some photo's by the end of this week) and i feel quite safe here.
i'll stop writing now for attention-span reasons....
more to come
Friday, May 30, 2008
thank you!
thankyou to my friends and supporters who have already donated their money, time, emotional support and well wishes. i leave on sunday morning. i can't believe it's already here!!
thankyou thankyou thankyou to you all!
i hope you keep up with me while i'm away :)
thankyou thankyou thankyou to you all!
i hope you keep up with me while i'm away :)
Monday, May 26, 2008
things
i'm leaving everything in 5 days... or 6?
well, close enough.
i was going to sell my second guitar today to a stranger(the first was auctioned off at my fundraiser last night).
we made the meeting.
he offered cash.
i walked out of my apartment, guitar in hand.
the guitar that was my mom's.
the guitar my first boyfriend taught me to play on.
the guitar that is slightly out of tune.the guitar i never play anymore.
i couldn't do it.i walked half way to starbucks where we were going to meet.
stopped in the street, looked at the guitar, turned around and went home.
cried.
i've sold my furniture, my bike, my cd's, my tv, my dvd player.
i've given away my clothes, my dishes...
i just couldn't bear to part with one more thing.
at least not today.
i'm feeling like a bit of a spaz.
but i wouldn't have forgiven myself for selling that guitar to a stranger.
sometimes things are important.
well, close enough.
i was going to sell my second guitar today to a stranger(the first was auctioned off at my fundraiser last night).
we made the meeting.
he offered cash.
i walked out of my apartment, guitar in hand.
the guitar that was my mom's.
the guitar my first boyfriend taught me to play on.
the guitar that is slightly out of tune.the guitar i never play anymore.
i couldn't do it.i walked half way to starbucks where we were going to meet.
stopped in the street, looked at the guitar, turned around and went home.
cried.
i've sold my furniture, my bike, my cd's, my tv, my dvd player.
i've given away my clothes, my dishes...
i just couldn't bear to part with one more thing.
at least not today.
i'm feeling like a bit of a spaz.
but i wouldn't have forgiven myself for selling that guitar to a stranger.
sometimes things are important.
Friday, May 23, 2008
my big fat wet yard sale
luckily a friend lent me a tarp for my yard sale on the long weekend! didn't have much luck otherwise, but not all was lost. i was able to sell some things before the rain and after. it was just the 6 hours in between of pouring rain and wind that made it the most exhausting, cold, wet, non-fun yard sale ever!! let's just say i'm glad that's over with!
i leave in 9 days.
time is creeping up on me....
the cat is now in kelowna with my parents. i said goodbye to him and my mom and sister during my brief visit to vancouver this week. i have to admit i cried a little when i had to put him in his little crate and hand him over to my parents.... i hate to admit it! but he was being so dramatic about the whole thing - meowing and flipping upside down... i think that moment, along with the yard sale, has been a big reality check as to what i'm doing... it is starting to sink in.
i'm excited, but it's also a pretty scary and gigantic life change that i'm embarking on.
everyone says to me "be careful!"
i know! i know!
don't worry... i'll be careful :)
i leave in 9 days.
time is creeping up on me....
the cat is now in kelowna with my parents. i said goodbye to him and my mom and sister during my brief visit to vancouver this week. i have to admit i cried a little when i had to put him in his little crate and hand him over to my parents.... i hate to admit it! but he was being so dramatic about the whole thing - meowing and flipping upside down... i think that moment, along with the yard sale, has been a big reality check as to what i'm doing... it is starting to sink in.
i'm excited, but it's also a pretty scary and gigantic life change that i'm embarking on.
everyone says to me "be careful!"
i know! i know!
don't worry... i'll be careful :)
Friday, May 9, 2008
donations
okay, so i've had a few people ask me how they can help me out (if they can't make the fundraiser) - hence the 'donation' button in the right column.
i feel as though i should explain where the money will be going for people who are wanting to assist me. in the theme of my first blog, i've set up a little q&a (with myself - haha)
1. Q. how much money do you need to raise?
A. i'm estimating i'll need a minimum of $300/month july -december. most of my money will be gone once i arrive in La Cieba (due to travel costs), with some small income coming in from furniture i've sold in post dated payments, and the rest is the good old low interest visa.
2. Q. what is your breakdown of costs?
A. -one weeks accommodation at the volunteer house will be $25/wk for the first to weeks, and $15/wk (usd) thereafter - so roughly $65/month. this is my most economical choice. if i were to stay in a hostel or cheap hotel, it would be minimum $7/night
- food will be another $25/week roughly
- transportation on the bus (which i will be using a couple times/wk to get to and from the jungle school is about 50cents a trip
- i will also have other basic living costs, personal hygiene, some amenities for the house (as it is sparsely furnished) and phone cards/internet use.
- three months after i arrive, i have to go to belize or nicaragua (cross two borders) in order to get my volunteer visa renewed. that trip will likely cost about $100 min.
- i'm hoping to take some spanish lessons once there to keep up, and also would love to buy supplies for the kids - especially if we can put together a show of some sort.
3. Q. how can i donate?
A. if you go to the 'donate' link, there are options for credit card or bank transfers that will go directly to my paypal account. i will use this account for necessities once in honduras only. the only downfall with this method is paypal takes about a 3% commission off of donations. you can email me for bank account info if you'd prefer... it's up to you. paypal is very convenient, and i suppose one must pay for that!!
4. Q. what if i want to donate directly to the kids or the organization?
A. you can go to the 'helping honduras kids' link and there are many sponsorship and donation options available on the website from sponsoring a child to sending supplies to volunteering!
5. Q. will my donation be tax deductible?
A. no. not if you are donating to just help me - unfortunately i'm not a non profit organization, i'm just an independent volunteer. if you are sending money directly to 'helping honduras kids' then your donation will be tax exempt - however, volunteers don't get any subsidies through their organization.
6. Q. what is the most helpful way for me to donate?
A. if you can only donate a small amount, it would be great to get a series of small monthly payments (like $10/month) - that is less than going out for lunch in many canadian restaurants, but it will pay for nearly a week of accommodation for me. if i could get 30 people to send $10/month - i won't have to worry about getting into excessive debt!
7. Q. how will you know if i donate?
A. paypal sends me notification of donations. you can also email me at dncr_gemini@hotmail.com.
i think that covers most questions - if you have anymore, ask! either in the comment section or via email. also, i will update my blog with info on how much money i raise, and how much i will still need.
thanks so much to those of you who have made it necessary for me to answer these questions!!
3 weeks to take off!!! yikes!
i feel as though i should explain where the money will be going for people who are wanting to assist me. in the theme of my first blog, i've set up a little q&a (with myself - haha)
1. Q. how much money do you need to raise?
A. i'm estimating i'll need a minimum of $300/month july -december. most of my money will be gone once i arrive in La Cieba (due to travel costs), with some small income coming in from furniture i've sold in post dated payments, and the rest is the good old low interest visa.
2. Q. what is your breakdown of costs?
A. -one weeks accommodation at the volunteer house will be $25/wk for the first to weeks, and $15/wk (usd) thereafter - so roughly $65/month. this is my most economical choice. if i were to stay in a hostel or cheap hotel, it would be minimum $7/night
- food will be another $25/week roughly
- transportation on the bus (which i will be using a couple times/wk to get to and from the jungle school is about 50cents a trip
- i will also have other basic living costs, personal hygiene, some amenities for the house (as it is sparsely furnished) and phone cards/internet use.
- three months after i arrive, i have to go to belize or nicaragua (cross two borders) in order to get my volunteer visa renewed. that trip will likely cost about $100 min.
- i'm hoping to take some spanish lessons once there to keep up, and also would love to buy supplies for the kids - especially if we can put together a show of some sort.
3. Q. how can i donate?
A. if you go to the 'donate' link, there are options for credit card or bank transfers that will go directly to my paypal account. i will use this account for necessities once in honduras only. the only downfall with this method is paypal takes about a 3% commission off of donations. you can email me for bank account info if you'd prefer... it's up to you. paypal is very convenient, and i suppose one must pay for that!!
4. Q. what if i want to donate directly to the kids or the organization?
A. you can go to the 'helping honduras kids' link and there are many sponsorship and donation options available on the website from sponsoring a child to sending supplies to volunteering!
5. Q. will my donation be tax deductible?
A. no. not if you are donating to just help me - unfortunately i'm not a non profit organization, i'm just an independent volunteer. if you are sending money directly to 'helping honduras kids' then your donation will be tax exempt - however, volunteers don't get any subsidies through their organization.
6. Q. what is the most helpful way for me to donate?
A. if you can only donate a small amount, it would be great to get a series of small monthly payments (like $10/month) - that is less than going out for lunch in many canadian restaurants, but it will pay for nearly a week of accommodation for me. if i could get 30 people to send $10/month - i won't have to worry about getting into excessive debt!
7. Q. how will you know if i donate?
A. paypal sends me notification of donations. you can also email me at dncr_gemini@hotmail.com.
i think that covers most questions - if you have anymore, ask! either in the comment section or via email. also, i will update my blog with info on how much money i raise, and how much i will still need.
thanks so much to those of you who have made it necessary for me to answer these questions!!
3 weeks to take off!!! yikes!
Friday, May 2, 2008
one month to go...
so it's one month til flight... well, minus a day.
i'm feeling slightly more prepared to leave.
i've gone through the freak outs about safety, health, what i'm going to do with 20 + kids once i get there, if i'm going to have any money and why i'm leaving my career for a half a year (in that order).
i'm sure i'll find something else to worry about soon enough - but as is, things are looking good.
my parents have agreed to take the cat (he's been laying on my suitcase since i dragged it out of the closet) - which is great b/c that means i can see him at christmas when i return to canada :).
the more people i tell the more support i'm getting - which makes me really feel like i'm doing the right thing.
major things to do before i go include the fundraiser on the 25th of may at the savannah room, a potential yard sale (this looks like it may be a necessity), packing up stuff to take to b.c. (including the cat) and getting sponsorship info together.
i've received an email for the inhabitants of the volunteer house, where i'll be staying when i get there. it looks like there will be 4 of us there july and august, and 5 from aug/sept onward - with probably a bit of overlap and potential extras here and there. apparently it's advised that we bring something to store our clothes in - such as mesh baggies - as there isn't really anything but beds in the bedrooms (i have images of shaking creepy crawlies out of my clothes each morning... eek) a small folding side table and lamp was a suggestion for what to bring, but i'm not so into lugging a side table through mexico and guatemala for 6 weeks before i get there - not only would it add extra weight, but i'd definitely not be in the hostel cool-group if i set up a little individual side table beside my hammock and inquire after an outlet for my lamp after trekking through the mexican jungle... unless i was mary poppins... i'm sure there will be places to get some very basic furnishings once there.
one thing at a time.
to start, maybe a little spanish review this afternoon...
Monday, April 28, 2008
email notice/blog
so as some of you may know... but many don't... i'm going to be leaving toronto and canada on june first to go on a pretty big adventure. my final destination is La Cieba, Honduras, where i'll be volunteering for up to 5 months. i'll be taking about 6 weeks to travel there from guadalajara, mexico. so total time away will be about 7 months.
i guess i should fill in some details for you... ok... so the questions i keep getting asked and my answers are as follows:
1. what will you be doing in honduras?
good question.. ha... ultimately i don't know what to expect, but i do know that i'll be volunteering for an organization called helping honduras kids. you can check out the website at http://www.helpinghonduraskids.org/
what has been discussed is that i will go there and create an arts/performance/music/movement program for kids in three different locations (within about a half hour of eachother). it is likely that i will initially go there and assist teachers and full time volunteers with their tasks, get a feel for the kids and the environment, then see how i can incorporate my skills to create an 'after-school' type of program. if you go to the website you'll see info on the 'hogar de amor' the 'jungle school' and the 'campesinos' - those will be the groups i expect to be working with.
2. why honduras? how did you get hooked up with this specific organization?
about 2 months ago, my friend maggie sent out some pics and info about the orphanage (the hogar) in La Cieba. her and her husband had recently gone down there and visited/volunteered for a few days with the kids. i was initially just int
erested in sponsoring a child there (that's him - Santos - in the pic), as it's something i'd been wanting to do for a couple years, but had never gotten around to it. i also thought it would be a great thing for me to do as i've always wanted to travel through central america - and figured i could visit the orphanage at some point in the next year or so during my travels (which i expected to be next feb). i've also been learning spanish - so it all seemed to tie in to an eventual plan.
3. so what made you decide to go now? isn't this kind of out of nowhere?
well - i'd thought of doing a mexico/central america trip next year for a couple of months - do the surfing thing, the learning spanish thing and the backpacking thing - and then charlene (sister) got engaged - planning the wedding for next early summer-ish. since i'm her maid of honour, i figured it probably wouldn't be such an amazing idea to skip town right before she gets married. then i was thinking of just going down to mexico in june for about a week b/c i was in desperate need to get out of the city for a bit. i can't really explain it... but within a day, my 'vacation' plans went from one week to one month to three months, with a 4 week stay in honduras to volunteer. a couple of days later my 4 week volunteering plan turned into a 5 month volunteering plan.
i figured if i was going to create some sort of creative program for kids down there, i was going to need more than 4 weeks to do it. i took some time to think this over and really felt it was what i am supposed to do right now. and in the grand scheme of things, when i'm 80 - i'm not going to regret leaving toronto and my work here for a half a year. what i will regret is not following my gut and going on a potentially life-changing adventure.
4. aren't you nervous? going there all by yourself?
i'm terrified.
5. how will you make money/how can you afford this?
i can't really. and volunteers down there pay their own way, food, accommodation etc. i'm selling as much as i can before i leave, i'll be having a fundraiser in may (cabaret!cabaret!), i'm going to apply for sponsorship through my parents church (my childhood church) and am basically working as much as i can, paying off my credit card and expecting to be in some debt once i return. my parents are generously giving me my flights as a birthday gift, and the rest of it i'm leaving up to fate/the universe/god/however you want to put it. i've also had some family/friends who want to toss a bit of funds my way once i get to honduras.
in the end, even if i come back home with a maxed out credit card, i still have so much more than the kids that i'll be going to work with... this is my rationalization. and i have faith in synchronicity... what can i say... i'm a crazy artist/hippie/actor type... sort of...
6. what's going to happen to your cat?(bono)
good question. anyone want to cat sit? last resort is sending him home with my parents - but this isn't ideal as they may be selling their house and moving into a condo. we'll see. but if you want to take him for a few months (and give him back after - no cat stealer's please!!) let me know.
7. what will you be doing/where will you be going before you get to honduras?
travel plans from guadalajara to ixtapa to puerto escondido to chiapas to guatemala to la cieba. learning spanish, surfing, hosteling, etc. i'll be writing a travel blog http://www.destinationhonduras.blogspot.com/ that you can check out for frequent updates - add it to your favorites :)
okay.
i think that's pretty much it for major questions... other than health and safety questions - to which i can only say i've prepared myself, and yes i know there are potential dangers - i will take all the necessary precautions...
i guess i should fill in some details for you... ok... so the questions i keep getting asked and my answers are as follows:
1. what will you be doing in honduras?
good question.. ha... ultimately i don't know what to expect, but i do know that i'll be volunteering for an organization called helping honduras kids. you can check out the website at http://www.helpinghonduraskids.org/
what has been discussed is that i will go there and create an arts/performance/music/movement program for kids in three different locations (within about a half hour of eachother). it is likely that i will initially go there and assist teachers and full time volunteers with their tasks, get a feel for the kids and the environment, then see how i can incorporate my skills to create an 'after-school' type of program. if you go to the website you'll see info on the 'hogar de amor' the 'jungle school' and the 'campesinos' - those will be the groups i expect to be working with.
2. why honduras? how did you get hooked up with this specific organization?
about 2 months ago, my friend maggie sent out some pics and info about the orphanage (the hogar) in La Cieba. her and her husband had recently gone down there and visited/volunteered for a few days with the kids. i was initially just int
erested in sponsoring a child there (that's him - Santos - in the pic), as it's something i'd been wanting to do for a couple years, but had never gotten around to it. i also thought it would be a great thing for me to do as i've always wanted to travel through central america - and figured i could visit the orphanage at some point in the next year or so during my travels (which i expected to be next feb). i've also been learning spanish - so it all seemed to tie in to an eventual plan.3. so what made you decide to go now? isn't this kind of out of nowhere?
well - i'd thought of doing a mexico/central america trip next year for a couple of months - do the surfing thing, the learning spanish thing and the backpacking thing - and then charlene (sister) got engaged - planning the wedding for next early summer-ish. since i'm her maid of honour, i figured it probably wouldn't be such an amazing idea to skip town right before she gets married. then i was thinking of just going down to mexico in june for about a week b/c i was in desperate need to get out of the city for a bit. i can't really explain it... but within a day, my 'vacation' plans went from one week to one month to three months, with a 4 week stay in honduras to volunteer. a couple of days later my 4 week volunteering plan turned into a 5 month volunteering plan.
i figured if i was going to create some sort of creative program for kids down there, i was going to need more than 4 weeks to do it. i took some time to think this over and really felt it was what i am supposed to do right now. and in the grand scheme of things, when i'm 80 - i'm not going to regret leaving toronto and my work here for a half a year. what i will regret is not following my gut and going on a potentially life-changing adventure.
4. aren't you nervous? going there all by yourself?
i'm terrified.
5. how will you make money/how can you afford this?
i can't really. and volunteers down there pay their own way, food, accommodation etc. i'm selling as much as i can before i leave, i'll be having a fundraiser in may (cabaret!cabaret!), i'm going to apply for sponsorship through my parents church (my childhood church) and am basically working as much as i can, paying off my credit card and expecting to be in some debt once i return. my parents are generously giving me my flights as a birthday gift, and the rest of it i'm leaving up to fate/the universe/god/however you want to put it. i've also had some family/friends who want to toss a bit of funds my way once i get to honduras.
in the end, even if i come back home with a maxed out credit card, i still have so much more than the kids that i'll be going to work with... this is my rationalization. and i have faith in synchronicity... what can i say... i'm a crazy artist/hippie/actor type... sort of...
6. what's going to happen to your cat?(bono)
good question. anyone want to cat sit? last resort is sending him home with my parents - but this isn't ideal as they may be selling their house and moving into a condo. we'll see. but if you want to take him for a few months (and give him back after - no cat stealer's please!!) let me know.
7. what will you be doing/where will you be going before you get to honduras?
travel plans from guadalajara to ixtapa to puerto escondido to chiapas to guatemala to la cieba. learning spanish, surfing, hosteling, etc. i'll be writing a travel blog http://www.destinationhonduras.blogspot.com/ that you can check out for frequent updates - add it to your favorites :)
okay.
i think that's pretty much it for major questions... other than health and safety questions - to which i can only say i've prepared myself, and yes i know there are potential dangers - i will take all the necessary precautions...
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