Heading Back to Site:

So after a lovely vacation, a lot of stress figuring out what i need to do to recover my losses and doctor appointments i think i am ready to go back to site.

Chile was very nice and i am happy i went, but i NEED to go back and see the south of the country. I felt like i just got a small taste for the country and would love to go back and see more! The people are so nice and i had a great time on the beach, eating and hanging out.

I made it out of Chile without a problem. After getting an emergency passport, and tourist visa to just make it back to Paraguay i did. I think i have lined up two new passports, talked to my insurance company about the stolen ipad and camera.

Now the FUN part.....

I get to go back to site. I really do miss my little house, my neighbors dog, my community and everything it has to offer me. So it will be nice to get back into the swing of things. I really hope my community accepts me back and doesn't ask too many questions about my vacation. It sounds a bit weird to say that but how does one explain a beach vacation to someone who has never seen a beach? or better yet really understand what a vacation is. Vacations are for rich people, to be able to take time off work and enjoy relaxing. No one in my site can TAKE TIME OFF and JUST spend money. I feel bad saying i even went on vacation since many would say Peace Corps alone is a vacation. Which i have found out NOT to be TRUE at ALL!

Peace Corps here in Paraguay has turned out to be the hardest but most enjoyable experience of my life. With every Up there is a DOWN and with every Down there is an UP! I am positive but still have a negative streak in me... I am trying to learn how to BREATH and take a MIN to just CHILL but it does not always work when i have to also battle with the language.

So as i head back into site without Internet and try and work for the next 2 months i can only cross my fingers that the heat wont get to me too much.

2012 is turning out to already be a year of change for me! and what we are only 12 days into the year! i look forward to what else i can learn this year!

Until next time!

From Chile

So as some of you know, for every month i serve here in Paraguay we are given two days vacation. Which means over the 27 mths we are given 48days of vacation paid. Not too bad i must say!

So when asked by two of my close friends asked if i wanted to join them on a vacation in CHILE of course i said YES! We left Paraguay on Dec 27th and are here in Chile until Sunday Jan 8th. Not a bad amount of vacation.

The night of the 27th we stayed in Santiago and on the 28th we left for the beach. A small beach town called (CON CON). So a week relaxing on the beach, meeting people and hanging out with volunteers has been a nice change from the volunteer life in the Campo!

Ran into a slight stressful situation... The day we were leaving for the beach we went to the bus terminal to catch our bus. I asked my friends to watch my bags while i went to the ATM. When i returned my bag had been stolen... everything from my journal (i had been keeping first 10mths), ipad, camera, $$$$, chargers, mediction and the worse of it all both my passports!!!! When things are stolen its never the amount of that they cost (even though the thought of how much they cost stings a bit) its the principle. The person who stole that bag has no idea that when stealing it he or she was messing up my vacation. That they caused me to stay an extra night in Santiago, and made me come back to Santiago a day earlier to figure out passports and visas JUST to get back to Paraguay. Or that this person has actually made me phyically sick with worrying about getting paper work and everything sorted out. Sooo i ask why steal? the Ipad has a lock on it, so it is useless... the camera is complicated, so i am sure it was just sold... what is one going to do with my journal? and my passports??? I honestly hope that whoever stole it is truly enjoying all of my stuff... and is healthy! Karma will come around i am sure...

Looks like ill be making it back to Paraguay though, thanks to the kind hearts of the USA embassy and Paraguayan. I was able to meet two wonderful ladies at the USA embassy one who use to be a PC volunteer.  At the Py embassy i was able to meet a paraguayn who was renewing her passport and down to earth. (Thanked me for helping her country) and another gentlemen who now lives in Chile and i was able to terere with him and talk about his culture and mine. i am guapa!

So with every downside in life there are always ups. ya i lost my "crap" and maybe for the best... who honestly needs an IPAD in the Peace Corps...haha and ive been grounded once again... ive met some amazing people and i am thankful that i have been able to see some sort of light with this whole situation..

Overall this vacation has been what i should have expected... always a silver lining for me now adays.. never what i expect and my life continues to be better then many even with everything that is thrown at me!

Peace Corps is changing my life everyday.... The day i landed in Miami until the Day i land in the USA again i consider my PC experience and i am thankful for being able to have this oppertunity.. its a ONCE in a LIFETIME and i wouldnt change one SINGLE part of it... beacuse i need to understand the BAD so i can truly appericiate the GOOD! and i DO!

So until next time...