Saturday, April 17, 2010

Oh Belize!!

So just when I thought I had the buses I was wrong!!!!
Now let me start at the begging, this weekend all us trainees were sent to visit current peace corps volunteers at their site to get a better idea of whats in store for us. I'm down with a current volunteer Emily! Its been great and it's nice to get away for the weekend! But as you all know this bus system is my kryptonite, I was the only one (openly) freaking out about the buses. Kaitlyn and I both had to get off in villages right before PG. Which meant we couldn't go on the express bus with volunteers going to PG. There was slight confusion and we ended up on a Dangria bus, which does not go all the way to PG... Wah Wah. But there was a current volunteer on our bus and once we got near Dangria we were going to stop the bus going to Pg and Kaitlyn and I would jump on. This part of the plan worked perfectly! We were on our way!!! 2 1/2 hours later when we were nearing our villages (she was getting off the bus about 20 min before me) it started storming pretty bad and was pitch black. The conductor on the bus got Kaitlyn there I was all alone. The conductor came and asked me about 5 times where I was stopping (we had explained we had never been there and didn't know where to get off) and I had a feeling he didn't know where i was going. At last he stopped and I got off the bus, in the dark, in the middle of I have no idea where, and Emily wasn't there.... I called her (thank goodness she got cell service the week before!!) and I definitely wasn't in front of the school I was supposed to be. I'm not going to lie I had a moment of panic.. but All was well, I was simple 5 Mins down the street and she walked and met me!
Long story short.. my worst nightmare came true and I'm all good! What an adventure, the way home should be much more simple since I know where I'm going, but I'm sure this won't be the last time I get off on the wrong stop..

I have no happy thoughts to leave you with today. Altough I have two quotes courtesy of my mom and my Aunt Pam:

~Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain

~BLOOM WHERE YOU ARE PLANTED

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

What a perfect night!

Ok, I don't have much to update you on, but here it is.
My week did have a semi exciting start to it. My wrist was acting up so our medical officer called me in to Belmopan to get X-rays on it. So I had language class in the morning and caught the 11:30 bus up to Belmopan. I almost got on the wrong bus but Managed to find the one I needed. As I got on and sat down I realized there were a few current volunteers on the bus. I didn't talk to them much but I felt better knowing that if I did anything too stupid I'm sure they would have called me out/helped me. Once I was in Belmopan PC took me to the Docs and good news! My wrist isn't Broke!! The bus home was a little more stressful only because I wasn't paying attention the first time I took a bus to dangriga, and was pretty sure but not completely sure that I was supposed to take the PG bus that stopped in dangriga. I asked like 14 people and finally got on the right bus. Now that I have rode the bus by myself I realize that it's totally not a big deal and I'm ready to go!!

Yesterday we had a first day at the school that we are at for training, Holy Ghost. We met with the Principal and learned all about the school. We than got assigned to a teacher that we will be working with over the next few weeks. I'm assigned to a infant I class which is like our Kindergarten! AWESOME! and oh man if my kids back in Livonia are anywhere near where this kids are this far in the year (which Mrs. Ryan I'm sure they are at least if not beyond!!!) I'm amazed at how much a 5 year old can learn in one year! This morning we went back and I sat back and observed and it was so great to be back near kids and in a school! I have missed it! Next week I'll start helping her more and getting more involved.

Over all I have had a pretty relaxing week and I'm loving Belize more and more each day!

That being said I leave you with some “Happy Thoughts”

~ We are all prisoners but some of us are in cells with windows and some with out. - Kahlil Gibran
~ Propriety is the least of all laws, and the most observed -Francis de la Rochefoucauld
-Propriety definition (provided by Sarah): the state or quality of conforming to conventionally accepted standards of behavior or morals.


Ok also, even tough I'm really bad at responding to emails I LOVE reading them.. so keep 'em coming and I promise to respond sooner or later!!!

Saturday, April 10, 2010

Training, training, training!!!!

Well, I dont have too much to say. Training is still going well. Living on the beach is just as amazing as you would think, and Training is much more busy than you would think. I can hold a small conversation and I'm think I'm starting to understand how to say things. However, I'm not going to lie, my classmates, Laura and Taylor get a good laugh when I talk, but we have fun and laugh all day.
We have started a tradation of picking up a freash pineapple for $1.50 ($.75US) and durring the day we cut it apart and chow all day. AMAZING!!!!
Everything is good here and my host "family" situation is improving so thats awesome!! :)

Sorry I'm slow with emails, and letter writing! I'm trying really hard this week to get better at it! I did get my first two cards this week!! How exciting!!!

Ok, My "Happy thoughts" from this week:

-Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking. Kahlil Gibran

-Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing in the world to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart, that's true strength.

-I submit to you that if a man hasn't discovered somthing he will die for, he isn't fit to live. MLK Jr. (My favorite so far)

-Don't ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
Harold Whitman (Also one of my favs!!)

-Let us love, not in word or speech, but in truth and action.

-The deep and the high go to the depth or to the height in a straight line; only the spacious can move in circles. Kahlil Gibran

Well I think that all for now!! I'm looking forward to emails!! (wink wink!)

Monday, April 5, 2010

They say the first two weeks are the hardest...



Yes that is my window facing the ocean!


This is what a birthday cake looks like when you live in central america in a hotel!



A monkey, a little late but there you go!




Alright, where to begin. Now that I know so many of you are hooked on this I feel pressured to make it funny. I'll try? :)
Well I guess in a way a lot has happened since I posted last, and in a way, nothing has.
Lets start with Thursday, we had training in Belmopan in the PC office just like every other day except this time after lunch we loaded in to the PC land rovers and we were off. Dangergia was the first group to roll out, and I know it had only been a week but it was still kinda hard/weird leaving everyone! However I was so excited to meet my host family and see Dangergia. So we were off. The drive down here was AMAZING!!! The jungle and the mountains, they almost seem.. magical? Very cool. Once we got to Dangergia we dropped off people stuff one by one but everyone stayed with us so they could show us a bit of town. We pulled up to this house that is seriously 100ft from the sea, there was some confusion in the car about whose house it was. I thought it was mine and asked Miss Cass than informed me the “No, You are much closer to the Sea!!” At first I didn't think it was possible but yes, I am just a bit closer to the sea than Laura. My back yard is the sea. After everyone saw their house we all got dropped off and we were on our own. I am living with Ms. Grace for the next 5.5 weeks. She is a bit old but speaks Garifunia, which most do not. Thursday night we just hung out a bit. Friday was Good Friday and as ms. Grace puts it “all we do is eat and relax”. Now that is my kind of Friday! This might sound crazy but relaxing here was actually one of my biggest adjustments. It gives you too much time to think. So since Friday I have been keeping “busy”. We pretty much walk around and check things out. We haven't ventured too far yet, just trying to become familiar with what is right around us. There in a market about 5 mins away right across the river, its been closed most of the weekend but part was open on Saturday and it seem pretty awesome. We also have managed to find the chine (like small store) with the cheapest coke in a glass bottle! Score! Saturday night Cassidy's host family took us on a drive out to Hopkins, it is a smaller village just down the coast from us. It was really nice! On the way there we stopped at their orange farm and picked fresh oranges! So cool! Laura and I also had the privilege of getting to ride in the back of the pick up truck, something I would NEVER have done in the states! But it was a lot of fun! Today we also had a busy busy day! Ha. This morning Cassidy and Heather dragged me out of bed and we went on a power walk all over down. Than.. Dinner (which is like lunch time but as big as dinner) to day be had hadat? I don't know how to spell it. But its mushed up plantains. That was fabulous, however you eat it with fish.. guess who ate their first fish head today?? oh right me!! To be honest I didn't eat it all. I ate a lot of it but after getting closer to the eyes I just couldn't take it anymore. After a nice filling meal we (shocking!) went on a walk. I than proceed to eat 4 scoops of ice cream!!!! It's just so good here!!! After filling out again, we went down to a resort to swim. OK I might be living on the sea, but this water isn't what I thought it would be. Its.. well dirty. From my understanding its because its been so rough that it is all turned up. But we went down to a nicer beach and it was AMAZING!!
Tomorrow we start language training and man am I excited! I'm pumped to be actually doing something again!

Also, I was doing really good at wearing sunscreen, Dad, be proud! But today I wore it, but I guess not enough and I have my first central American sunburn.. wah wah..

Ok one more thing about mail.... Right now if you ship me something and its through the post office I don't pay taxes on it here! Only for the first 6 months!

So there you go, I'll try to post some more pictures tomorrow, I'm too beat tonight!!!
Miss you all!!!