So I have been back for about a month. Time flies... I got back to site and basically hit the ground running with trying to get back into work. My community could tell I was happy to be back and finding work was not hard. In the USA we have jobs and are given work. Here in Peace Corps Paraguay it is the volunteer who goes out and finds work. It is the best job since I can turn an ordinary day into a "guapa dia" ( hardworking day).
I have been going to the school twice a day for three classes. While I was gone the school got 9 netbooks (laptops) and have no idea how to use them. When i went to go visit the school the teachers were so happy because finally the laptops could be taken out of their boxes. I set them all up and have started classes. I never thought of all the components needed to teach the basics. Just to turn on a computer to me is something i don't think of. But i have had to go back to the basics and the kids are loving it. First rule is to wash their hands. It is a new challenge to teach computer terms in Spanish. So everyday I have to plan for the next day and make sure I have the right vocabulary ready to teach. The kids seem to be learning, since now they know how to turn on and off the computer. How to open the version of Microsoft Word and type. We are now starting typing class. And I keep telling them "I am teaching you how to type now the right way so you do not end up my dad who types really slow and has to ask me to type things for him" ( Sorry dad but they laugh and really want to learn so they do not end up like that HAHA).
Some funny realities to living in PY.....
I now understand the terminology....
Sunburns- literally the SUN does BURN! I will be riding my bike or walking and i can feel the sun on my skin even if I am wearing long sleeves and sunscreen.
Its been really hot, but two nights ago we had a huge storm. My neighbor (12yr old best friend of mine) came over to make sure I had candles and matches. Her dad had asked her to come check on me before it got dark. Really nice, but I thought it was a bit weird to be so dramatic. I was expecting a little rain and some wind. Not what happened. So it was about 105 degrees during the day. I had been sweating all day. The power in my site has been questionable and when it goes out it is really annoying since I can not cook or use my fan. Also my battery on my computer, ipod and phone only last sooo long... So around 7pm the power went out. My fan turned off, my computer battery said it would last 3 hours and I began to sweat even more. For the next hour i laid in my bed dripping sweat. Then i started to hear rain on my roof. Then wind... A LOT OF WIND.. then HAIL... then before i knew it i was getting pelted with pieces of tile, leaves, rain and hail. I grabbed my cellphone and hid under my table. The candles I had lit went out and I could hear my dog outside wanting to come in. So i opened the door, grabbed his potato sack and let him lay under the table with me. For only 10mins but what felt like a lifetime i watched my ceiling disapear. Only 4 tiles, but those 4 tiles are needed to keep animnals, water, leaves and random stuff from coming in my house. I moved my bed under the table just incase more wind and hail was going to start in the middle of night. So there I was laying with my dog and sleepin under the table. Still sweating. Around 2am there was more rain and wind, and I heard something hit the back of my house. But it had finally cooled down and i was able to move my bed back and fall asleep with a sheet on top of me.
In the morning, I went outside to see the damage. Still with no electricity, I ventured out to find that "that noise of something hitting the back of my house" was the roof to my latrine falling off... I also found a lot of branches, leaves, mud and tiles all over the place.
My neighbor came over and some other kids. We laughed about the storm the night before and how i slept under my table. But then after talking I found out it was a smart thing to do. One of the boys who was talking with us said his house fell down, and his brother was in the hospital. His brother would be fine but the storm was not a joke and did damage to my community. My other neighbors outside kitchen roof had fallen too. Also a tree by the school had fallen and taken all out cable lines aswell. So I had no power for the whole day... Peace Corps (my bosses) called the volunteers in my department since we had gotten the worse of the storm.
And then my friend who lives 2 hours away called and said she wanted to go to the capital a day early. Every three months we have meetings with our bosses. And my original meeting was for Friday. But since i had no electricity and was really hungry I decided to move it to today (thursday) and leave site. So i packed my backpack and left.
So there it is... my update on life in Peace Corps Paraguay. Loving it, even with the downs, I just consider them good stories... and my kids in my community.. the people make it work it! I came back and wouldnt change it... I love what I am doing and I am happy!
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