Bad to Bathe

So we all know that strange rumors fly around medical issues. I heard two this week… The first was from my host sister. I help her study English a few times a week, whenever I have time in the afternoon/evening. She could not come to my house to study one day. No big deal. The next day, I went to her house. She informed me that she could not come over because she had cramps. (About once a month she doesn’t come because she is sick due to menstruation. Side note: menstruation is a fairly regular excuse for women to not show up to various things like studying or soccer games.) This time, she had gone to the doctor and was told that since her stomach cramps feel worse after she drinks hot or cold beverages, she should therefore not bathe for 2 days. What?! What the hell does bathing have to do with it? I have enough confianza with her to tell her that I think it is ridiculous and that I don’t see the connection between her menstrual pain and bathing. She couldn’t explain the connection.
Numero dos: I heard about soap cancer from the Passionists but yesterday, in the back of a pick-up on our way home from a soccer tournament, I heard a local guy talking to one of the players about it being “malo” to bathe with soap after exercise. Another guy chimed in and asked if it was due to chemicals because your pores are open from sweating (the closest thing to a pliable explanation I have heard) but everyone just said “no” or “I don’t know why, it’s just bad”. Apparently, it is ok to bathe with water after you exercise but don’t use soap! It will give you soap cancer and is bad! I have been doing that my life so if I suddenly get sick with soap cancer you will know why. When you hear things like this, what do you say? If it is someone I know well, I will tell them that I don’t believe it and try to explain why some claims are unrealistic. But when I am surrounded by people I don’t know that well, how do you tell them something they believe seems ridiculous to me and that I don’t believe it? The best I have found is to show subtly that I don’t believe it but try not to negate them. Some outlandish beliefs very well may be true but some, I just don’t see the logic. I have also been told not to bathe when you have a fever. I did it anyway. When I talked to the doctor, the first thing she told me to do was shower. When is it bad to bathe? I can’t think of a situation where you shouldn’t bathe for health reasons but if you can, let me know. I guess taking a freezing cold shower if the weather were cold and you are sick may not be the most comfortable thing but you can always heat a bucket of water.

Oh, yes, I found a women’s soccer team to play with on Sundays. The “team” has an interesting dynamic. I am appreciative of the chance to play and the experience is great for my self-esteem. It can be a little frustrating seeing 5 people from the same team within 5 feet of the ball but I see it as a great opportunity for a little exercise and a way to get to know some women (even though the majority of them are under 18).

Photos: I took another trip to La Tigra with Lauren, one of the new Passionists.  It is always nice to get out in unspoiled nature.

Suicidal Spider

The last group of Passionist volunteers are gone, leaving room for a new group to settle in to life in Talanga and the next group of PC youth development volunteers getting to know life in Talanga for the next few weeks as they continue the “Field Based Training” portion of their training. While it is great having new people around and the opportunity to drop in on training sessions whenever I have free time, all these gringos are proving to be a challenge to my Spanish. I have been speaking so much English; it is sometimes difficult to spit the words out in Spanish. I catch myself interjecting English words in the middle of sentences with Hondurans. I guess that is the price I pay for socialization with my fellow countrymen.
Aside from feeling tongue-tied, things are going really well. I am finally experiencing the busyness I anticipated for months. This isn’t even “PC Honduras busyness” but real, legitimate—I have something to do all day everyday—busyness. It’s great, I love it! I showed up at the colegio Wednesday, prepared for a self-esteem talk which I was invited to give on Tuesday. The administrators informed me that the students to whom I gave the HIV workshop to a month or two ago, were giving the talk to other students! I was so excited that the plan was being actualized but annoyed at the administrators for not telling me ahead of time. I requested 3 days to work with the students, prep time the first day and two days to give the charla. I also told them 6 people was the maximum number of people per group to give the talk. The kids didn’t get prep time at school, just one night to prepare, broken into 2 groups of about 16 (yes, 16 people GIVING one talk, a bit ridiculous but whatever). Wednesday they gave day two of the talk. I just wish I could have been there for both days. As I ran back and forth between the two classes, one group really impressed me. They were so prepared with visual charla papers and condom-balloons, each containing a question for an activity! They other group did alright as well but spent most of the time I observed reading off individual papers. They didn’t seem to have the other students’ full attention but they did include a few activities (activities are NOT in the normal teaching method here). After the talks, I met with the kids who gave the charlas. The purpose was to do a little self-evaluation, find out how they felt about giving the talks to other kids and see how we can improve the session. I don’t know why I expected this plan to be lucrative. We sat in a circle as the rain poured on the tin roof of a classroom. “Which part of your charla was most successful, what did you feel worked the best?” Response, “All of it. The activities went well but all of it was good.” Ok… “Which parts were difficult?.... Which were the worst parts or what challenges did you have?” Response, “None of it, it all went well.” “How can we improve this?” Response, “No, it’s all good.” SERIOUSLY?! I asked a few other questions and tried to re-word things but was unsuccessful at any constructive feedback. I even asked how many of them were truly interested in the information and how many did it because they had to. Not a single person admitted to doing it because it was required. Maybe they are just nice, maybe they are full of shit. I think they are so accustomed to giving the right answer and agreeing with everything that they no longer consider the possibility of disagreeing. Sad reality: creative thinking (including forming individual opinions) is not a widely encouraged or taught skill here. Despite my feedback challenges, I am ecstatic that the kids gave the HIV prevention info to their younger counterparts.
Also moving forward, my water filter project! We are still at early stages in the process but a filter sits in the Centro de Salud in La Ermita (one of the aldeas where I work in the schools and the colegio) as an example of the filter anyone in the community could have in their house. I no longer buy 5 gallon jugs of purified water but add pila water (the supposedly potable-bacteria-filled water that comes through the tap outside into a concrete holding tank: a pila) to my clay and colloid silver filter. They first few batches tasted like clay but that issue is resolving itself. The plan is to leave the example filter in the health center for a few weeks then start taking orders… we’ll see.
Thursday, I spent almost the entire school day mixing soil and creating a raised bed with 2nd and 6th graders (two separate beds) at one of my schools. Friday we planted basil (that is what I had on hand) and flowers in each bed and talked about composting, replacing nutrients and not littering (an issue I think I raise everyday at the schools). Most of it they will probably forget or didn’t listen to but hopefully something will stay with a few of them. If nothing else, it was a good morning of manual labor side-by-side with young Honduran kids.

Changing gears… I have been getting up early to run with one of the new Passionist volunteers. I rose just after 5 one morning and as I stumbled to put my contacts in and clean the pila (water only comes twice a week). I moved my cleaning brush to find a huge tarantula hanging out on the back ledge of the pila. I don’t like spiders, especially big, hairy ones. I went to the bathroom as I considered my options. I am afraid to kill the big ones because it’s creepy and I don’t want to clean up the mess afterwards. When I returned a few minutes later, the spider was inside the pila, towards the top of the concrete side. I walked away again, still considering my options. When I looked again, the beast had moved to the waters’ edge. Still unsure of what to do with it, I decided to start the cleaning process as normal: I dumped detergent and bleach in the water. The next thing I know, the tarantula is IN the water. It was still, then swam… sort of. It did this dead-man float, sink, swim to the top routine a few times. It finally moved far enough from the drain that I was willing to brave it. I reached in and pulled the drain on the pila. My biggest fear was that the spider would stick in the drain and I would have to pull it out in order to re-plug the drain and fill the pila. Luckily, that didn’t happen. Since the tarantula was curled up in a ball, I assumed it was dead and cleaned around it. I went for my run. When I came back, the water was on and when I dumped clean water on it, it ran to the front corner of the pila (still on the bottom). How was this thing not dead? I watched it for a few minutes, it must have been a reflex, the thing looked pretty dead. Maybe this is gross, but I re-plugged the drain and let the pila fill enough for me to scoop the spider out in the bowl with some water. I then threw the seemingly dead spider in the street in front of my house for the neighborhood chickens. I didn’t know tarantulas could be suicidal but I am thankful to this spider from relieving me of the decision regarding whether to smash it and deal with the mess or find a way to get it out front for the chickens without touching it or letting it fall on the way, which by the way is through my house. Hopefully I the geckos will continue to fill that niche in the food-chain and I won’t have to deal with anymore giant arachnids. Just to note, I consider it my fault I found it because the day before, the new Passionists found a similar tarantula in their house and I mentioned that I had only seen one large spider in or near my house here. The first one, my landlady’s son picked it up on a stick and fed it to the chickens so I didn’t actually have to deal with it.

Photos: Last night with my first group of Passionists. The new group is fun but I still miss the others. They will always be my first. (If I finish out my service, the next group will arrive a few months before I leave.) Volcan San Cristobal; the Cathedral in Leon, Nicaragua; The cross above Talanga; and some Baseball pics.  They wouldn't move, I will try to fix that another day

Bello to the Rescue

My font porch can be a “dangerous” place. As I lay in my hammock on in my enclosed porch, the dog napping on and off, head resting at the gate, two evangelists approached. Both older Honduran men, not Bello’s favorite populations in general. People can and should have their own faith but I prefer not to be preached at in my own home. When the Mormon missionaries passed by several months ago, I also happened to be reading on my porch. The porch can be a dangerous place because I am exposed. I cannot pretend to be busy or not home as I lie with a book in a hammock in plain site. Bello to the rescue. As the men approached, one wearing a “Jesucristo vive” (Jesus Christ lives) shirt, zipper-cased Bible in hand, he gave them a few seconds as we both surveyed the men. They stopped within inches of the gate, obviously a little unsure of themselves. Whether this uncertainty was a result of the dog or due to their own convictions, I do not know. Bello gave a growl, then let out a full round of barking. The man in the Jesuscrito shirt tried to talk through the barking. I didn’t hear a thing other than “las palabras”, “the words”. Bello tends to get excited when dogs, pigs and some people pass the house. Although I don’t normally like when he jumps up, paws on the sill, to bark out the bar windows, in this case, I tried to hide my smile. He put his paws on the sill and barked, face-to-face with the other man. (Hondurans in general are not tall people and there is a single step up to the porch.) As the hair on the back of Bello’s back stood on end and he growled off anything but a welcome, I eased out the, “this isn’t a good time” excuse as I watched my baby.
Normally, I don’t really like his “bravo,” as it is called here. I don’t appreciate when he randomly lunges or barks at an innocent passerby as I walk him on his leash. Instances like this, I can’t help but appreciate it. Who Bello reacts negatively towards is sometimes unpredictable but a few traits tend to set him off: 1 Bolos (drunks). 2 People who are obviously afraid of him. 3 Frequently, people on bikes, I am not sure why, 4. The others are mostly men, though not always. I think he is a pretty good judge of character although once in awhile he reacts to people to whom he didn’t just a few minutes previously. I will never full understand it but sometimes I appreciate my personal “vigilante”. I love that he barks at bolos and “me cuide.”
Side note: the tick situation is improving though not completely resolved.

Completely unrelated...
One strange reality of living in another culture and living in another language is trying to express your personality. At least for me, it isn’t the same. Maybe it is the language, maybe it is the culture, maybe it is the rest of the situation and my role in my community. I don’t feel like I am the same person in Spanish as I am in English. Partially, it is difficult to pop off random comments in another language. Also, many things don’t translate. When around other Americans, you can translate things directly and often they pick up on the intention. For example, at one point I said “si solamente,” translated directly means “if only” but I am pretty sure that doesn’t work quite right in Spanish. I said it in the presence of other Peace Corps volunteers, at least one of whom caught my meaning immediately and laughed at the direct translation (which was the point). Months ago, I mentioned to one of my sisters that I don’t feel like I portray the same personality in my community. She told me that probably wasn’t the case but I think it might be true. My evidence, is that I was told by one of the younger colegio teachers that he initially thought me to be “enojada” which means serious. Maybe I don’t see myself as others do, but serious is probably one of the last words I would use to describe myself. Luckily, I think that impression has worn off and was mostly a result of my lack of ability to speak and not knowing what the hell I was doing the first few months in site.
Another incident occurred a few weeks after the encounter with the teacher. I was hanging out at my host family’s when come high school boys stopped by to help move chairs from their house (I’m not sure why but they have TONS of plastic chairs stacked in the backyard, why they have never offered to lend me a few, I don’t know.) My host sister commented that one of the boys was very outgoing. In learning a new word, I asked if I was outgoing. The response was a pretty definitive no. I either have a skewed perspective of myself, or I portray myself differently here. Who knows, maybe I am serious and not outgoing. Anyway, random rant but you aren’t a captive audience so I am not culpable.

FYI

I just found a draft from the first of June that was never posted. I am sure I tried and the "freaking Central American internet" tweaked again and wouldn't post it. Take a look, it even has pictures!

Roatán

Yea! I had visitors! The trip started out on an interesting note as I was chased by a pig, a large momma pig, at 5am as I walked through Talanga to catch the early bus and start my trip. I don’t really know if my fear of the pig is justified or not, but it was a little unnerving. The pig followed me for a good 5 minutes, from the park all the way to the market until I ran into a bolo (a drunk) who distracted it so I could continue on my journey. Thank you bolo!!
That is actually my second weird animal encounter when trying to catch the 5am bus out of town. The other was a weird swarm of giant insects near each light post. It was straight out of a Stephen King book/movie. When I say giant, I mean LARGE, they were each about 3-4 inches long. If you have seen esperanza bugs, they were about that size, but flew and thousands of them. Creepy.

Even though my fear of running from the pig resulted in me missing the first bus (I saw it driving down the road), the next left at 5:30 so I still got an early start. By the time I reached Tegus, walked a few blocks to the other bus station, grabbed some baleadas from a street vendor on the way, a bus for La Ceiba was ready to go. Perfect timing! You can’t understand how wonderful good bus timing is unless you have done a significant amount of traveling in a 3rd world country. You never know when busses will arrive or depart, regardless of whether a schedule is posted on the wall (they are usually inaccurate). Despite my fears of the bus breaking down causing me to miss the afternoon ferry to Roatan, the trip was flawless and I made it to the pier with enough time to do a little reading before Melissa and Nerissa arrived.
We finally made it to Roatan and found a place to stay. I don’t really have much to say about Roatan except that the beach really is a beautiful as the pictures. Other than the prices (comparable to normal US prices), which were mind boggling for someone living on about $200 dollars a month and accustomed to paying 14 Lempiras for a couple baleadas when I eat outside my house (less than a dollar), the island was great. Of course there were tons of travelers and people from all over the world working in the various restaurants and dive shops. The food was excellent and variety fit for a world-renown destination.
While on the island, I had my first snorkeling experience. I know, weird, but I have never been to a tropical island and you can’t exactly see much in the frigid waters of the Washington Pacific. The first time, we went from the shore. I enjoyed seeing the bright-colored fish but the experience overall was mediocre. The reef was so shallow that you could only swim in certain paths and couldn’t come up for a break to look into the sky or along the top of the water because would be standing on the reef (causes damage and is prohibited). I am not generally claustrophobic but felt a little of that anxiety as I tried to avoid scraping my knees on the reef. The next day, we went from a boat. I full enjoyed this until my snorkel started filling with water (no idea what was going on). Melissa and Nerissa both had previous snorkeling experience but seemed impressed as they had never been so close to the reef in Hawaii or off the coast of Mexico (although they saw bigger fish in other places.) We had free range to swim where we liked but spent most of the time near the edge of the reef where it dropped off to the depths. Most of the fish congregated near the edge so we could watch them school and dart. I didn’t find Nemo, but Dory has several siblings. I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed my first Caribbean Island vacation.
After a short time in paradise, it was a full day’s journey back to the “real world”. I know, I don’t really live in the real world but I did have projects waiting for me. It was nice to return to Peace-Corps-budget-affordable prices and an excited puppy. It was not so nice to find him infested with ticks! Again! Even after a tick-icde bath and three hours of tweezing them off they still aren’t gone!! Fighting ticks is a battle I will continue to fight for the next year. At the moment, I think I am losing but the tides will turn.
Melissa and Nerissa saw my site for a brief morning before hopping a flight to Costa Rica. It was fun showing them my house and one of the schools, where I live, even though they didn’t see much and the visit was short. As for me, it was back to cancelled meetings and HIV charlas. The teachers have been striking about 2 days a week for the last several weeks. That is just one of those issues I have to deal with here. It is annoying but I can’t change it so I reschedule things at the last minute and sometimes have unexpected free mornings. That is just the way it goes.

Nica and back

A few years ago, I may have ventured to Canada for a weekend outing. These days, I head to Nicaragua. It was a long trip but a few hours at a beautiful, almost unoccupied beach for some body surfing (at which I am inept, always swallow ridiculous amounts of the Pacific causing my throat and nose to burn from the salt) and a day hike up Cerro Negro was well worth the trip. Our timing maybe impeccable considering the volcano San Cristobal (near Chinandega) is predicted to erupt next week. We could see the smoke billowing from the top. The volcano was a pretty incredible sight, the smoke causing a clouded sky and a little protection from the strong sun.
I was amazed at how much the Nicaraguan terrain varies from the now familiar Honduran geography. Other parts of Nicaragua may be different, but the area near Leon consists of fairly flat lowlands, marked by dramatic volcanic peaks (both active and dormant). In Honduras you see mountain upon mountain, valley, mountain, more mountain. Like Honduras this time of year, Nicaragua was green and beautiful. In fact, the countryside was surprisingly green considering how low water level seemed to be in the rivers and streams. Nevertheless, a beautiful country and from the little bit I saw, I plan to return and highly recommend it.
Leon appears to have quite a bit to offer visitors. As I mentioned, there is a beautiful beach about 45 minutes from town, the largest cathedral in Central America and plenty of restaurants, hostels and tour agencies leading various expeditions to the surrounding volcanoes. The hike up Cerro Negro was the purpose of our visit, or rather, the trip down. The hike up Nicaragua’s youngest volcano (about 150 years old) took less than an hour, packing wood boards, beautiful orange jumpsuits and goggles. When we reached the top, we dropped our boards and ventured a little further to peer directly into the upper crater. You could smell the sulfur and see where it mixed with the graphite, calcium and basalt to form the mountain. Since this is an active volcano, if you scratch away the surface, the sediment is hot to the touch; an incredible reality after those geo-science classes in college. You know you are a nerd when you consider collecting sediment samples to bring back to geo professors back home. I probably would have done it had a container been available. That, and I suppose it may get lost in the next 14 months or so.
Suit up in orange and welcome to Volcanoboarding 101. I admit, I was slightly disappointed when I discovered we would sit on the board and sled down since I anticipated standing, as if snowboarding, but it still proved to be a good time. Yes, we packed wooden boards up the mountain so we could ride them down. In all, we were a group of about 20 and headed down the mountain on 2 tracks. The girls went first so we could watch the boys crash and burn from the bottom, a much better view since you cannot actually see the bottom of the volcano from where we were “pushed off” the mountain. That is not to say that the girls didn’t crash as well (I definitely did), but the boys tend to go faster and therefore, had some impressive wrecks towards the bottom. Faces covered in black dust and pebbles in places they shouldn’t be, we headed back to the hostel for free mojitos. Since we only had a few days, we hoped a bus to start the long trip back to Honduras. Nope, no shower first, we settles right in a busito with all the Nicaraguans, covered in dust and a little blood. Good times.
This week I am taking my first trip to the Bay Islands before diving head first into training and FBT with the next group of Youth Development volunteers. Hopefully I will come back with some good stories and even better pictures. Mel and Ner: Bienvenidos a Honduras!
photos: Beach near León; Cathedral in León; Cerro Negro, mid climb; Guys Volcanoboarding (yes that cloud of dust on the left is a person and the dots to the right in the of the hill are also people); Matt and I from the top of Cerro Negro, the smoking mountain in the upper left corner is San Cristobal.

Photos!

Baseball clinic in Talanga (new kids); National tournament with my Rio Dulce kids; Tegus side of La Tigra...
They are out of order because they won't move!  I will fix them later but for now, you should do fine assuming what is what.