March 7, 2011

How are we in March? On that note, how is it 2011? I can’t believe I only have until September in this country. I’ve thought about staying until November, but really, that’s still only several months more. I can’t say that I necessarily want to stay for longer, but it is weird to think that my entire life will be different at the end of this year. I know that people say that these years are transition years; I feel like all I’ve ever known is transition! When is the last time I’ve lived in one apartment or house for more than 2 years? Although sometimes it feels like time passes so slowly here, I know that in the big picture, 2 years is not much time and one day I’ll wish I could return to the slow pace of life and small town feel of Camasca (but leave behind the ridiculously large bugs and banda music).

So the last week and a half or so I’ve been in San Juan de Dios, supervising the construction of cement floors in 22 houses, funds that I was able to get thanks to USAID and Peace Corps. Luckily I have a carpenter who takes me around to all the houses and does the leveling and makes sure they are constructing correctly. I mainly push people to get their floor constructed and help with the project committee (local members and municipality representatives) as needed.

This project has been unlike any other Peace Corps experience for me. I was kind of hesitant when we first did the project profile and started talking about the project back in October of last year, but it’s really come together. Each family receives 28 bags of cement, which is enough for 40 square meters of floor. For most families, that allows them to cover their kitchen, and one to two small rooms, which is usually the entire house. Each family must provide sand, gravel, and rock, plus the labor (skilled and unskilled). And there is no cement mixer, just mixing it by hand. It’s hard work, too. If you have several workers and you work from 6am until 6pm, you can finish in one day. If you are lucky enough to be one of the unskilled laborers hired for the day, you can expect 3 meals and a hefty paycheck of 100 lempiras, or 5 dollars.

Since the community is a good 10-15 minutes from Camasca in bus, I have been staying with a family in the community. It just makes it easier to be present for last minute meetings or cement bag deliveries at 9pm. I also really enjoy spending time with the family, and the wife makes excellent food. (and for all those who are worried, I haven’t been sick yet!). I think it means something to the community members that I stay here as well. Every house we visit that has the means to do so, will offer us coffee and bread, or tamales, or fresh fruit juice (for which I always say a prayer before I drink, as many people there don’t treat their water). Yesterday was a town celebration for one of the saints, so there was little work and lots of tamales (even the poorest of the poor made them) and bread. There was also a church service at the Catholic church that lasted all night long. I went to see what it was like, and like so many cultural events, I immediately regretted it as soon as I stepped inside the overcrowded church with crying babies and unfathomable heat. I stayed for an hour before I went outside for fresh air and ended up talking to some people in the community until my ride was ready to return to Bexa and Jorge’s house.

But yeah, I really am enjoying my time in this community. I feel like it is so different from my daily routine in Camasca. And its nice to have a project where there is a visible difference before and after. I get along really well with Martin, the carpenter that is working on the project with me. We have a lot of time together, at least several hours a day, so it’s good that we can have conversations fairly easily. He is really smart and has a lot of work experience and I feel like he is really good at what he does. He is good at teaching people how to do things, but has a way of explaining it that doesn’t make the person feel dumb. He is also really good at resolving community issues that come up, and he is very responsible. If he says we are going to meet at 7am, he is there before 7am ready! That is something you don’t find too much here! Oh and he knows several phrases in English so I’ve been teaching him new ones as we are trotting along, and he actually remembers them.

Going with Bexa and Martin to look for mangos in the municipality near ours tomorrow. I’ve been looking for easy mango salsa recipes online… (jealous??)

Ok, will write more later.