Annnd they're off!
Almost got him!
Almost got him!
Sneaky sneaky...time for turkey dinner!
The 11th graders...they love each other so much, it's just adorable.
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Thanksgiving Vids
Here are the Thanksgiving videos that I finally snatched from Carlos Eduardo (aka el polvo aka the turkey) from the 11th grade skit. Brief rundown: Every two or three class acts, the cartoon chase music would turn on, and out would come the 11th graders in all their glory. They are SUCH a funny class...namely a few of the boys that are just over the top. Jossue, Francisco, Franklin, Luis...SON LOCOS! They can make class a little difficult to teach, but when it comes to this stuff- there isn't anyone better for the job. Enjoy!
The 11th graders...they love each other so much, it's just adorable.
The 11th graders...they love each other so much, it's just adorable.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Turkey, Apple Bottom Jeans, and 4 Day Weekends
An unexpected 4 day weekend, 2 Thanksgiving dinners, one of the funnest nights out in Honduras to date, and a successful Thanksgiving school wide presentation. A good Thanksgiving holiday indeed.
Starting from the bottom up. As I wrote before, Abby, Mr. Bob, and I were in charge of creating a presentation for the whole school about Thanksgiving. Our creativity was at work and out came a great show, one like Honduras has never SEEN! Probably not that cool, but we were applauded for our efforts, and between you and me, I'm sure it had everything to do with my sweet emcee-ing skills. Not. But we can pretend. The celebration was very Honduran for several reasons. It was supposed to start at 11:00am, it started at 12:00pm. There was supposed to be food for all the students and teachers, they ran out when it was the teachers turn, and looked so surprised that there weren't enough mashed potatoes. Abby and I were quite upset with the lack of mashed potatoes and then made a bit of a spectacle of ourselves when we went over to all of the 1st and 2nd graders left over plates and began to scavenge for food. I'll give the credit to Abby though, she definitely had less shame than I did. But we both had less shame than Mr. Bob and Cid who were looking at the plates with drooling mouths but weren't doing anything about it. We're Americans, we need our mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving damnit!
For the celebration each class did some sort of presentation. I was in charge of working with the 9-11th graders on their acts, all of which turned out very well I thought. The 1st-3rd graders were adorable of course. They wrote what they were thankful for on a construction paper leaf and came up to the stage and placed the one the construction paper branches of our construction paper tree. The 4th-6th grades wrote poems and performed them for the school. The class who got the biggest cheer won a certificate of great poemness. Cid's 4th graders got robbed simply because they did not know the mechanics of cheering loud for your group. 6th grade came out the winner. The stealers of the show however were no doubt, 11th grade. I helped them come up with this genius idea that will go down in history at HEM school. To make a long story short, they had one of their classmates dress up like a turkey and every so often, in between the different class' acts, he would come out to this cartoon chasing music and be chased all around the auditorium by the rest of the class. It. Was. Classic. I am trying to upload a video right now, but it's not working. It will though, and then you will watch, and subsequently, love. What gave me the idea was actually some happenings that occurred at my beloved UofM. Not sure if this ever happened to any of you, but one day while in my Social Psych lecture, sophomore year, my classroom was invaded by the monkey and banana. Common figures seen in the stands at football games, these two guys, one dressed as a banana, one as a gorilla, would just randomly come into classrooms, public buildings, with the gorilla chasing the banana, with no explanation at all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rF-n0LAu_SY&feature=PlayList&p=2F01212A2B1D81F0&playnext=1&index=78Genius
Also the famous pacman being chased by the chomper in the fishbowl.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyAUbtHD8SQ&feature=related
Oh college.
That night, had our first Thanksgiving dinner at Triny and Phil's house. Our turkey was fresh from the farm, as in Phil knew it´s name. Gotta love it. Not only did we have our first Honduran Turkey Day, but we also received the pleasant surprise of finding out that we had no school the next day. Or Monday. HOLLA! I was expecting no days off, and then we got two! Best Thanksgiving present ever. It was SO needed. I've had a Thanksgiving break ever since I was a wee thing, and not having one was going to be quite rough, so thankfully, the Thanksgiving gods were on my side. Woo!
Friday was our first day off since September and let me tell you, this was one of the best days I have had in Honduras. I really really needed this weekend. I have been kind of down and just really stressed out and these couple of free days really re-energized me and helped me be happy again about being here. Friday was a gorgeous day and I went to the park and wrote postcards for almost 2 hours. It was just lovely. I was able to take my time and just sit back and enjoy the happenings around me. Instead of being concerned about what papers I needed to grade and what I needed to plan for class, I got the chance to observe my surroundings and soak up my experience. I am living in Honduras for goodness sake! It is amazing how quick a new place becomes "home." You forget that where you are is completely foreign to what you are used to and know of as home. The rest of the day I just spent leisurely in a coffee shop catching up on this and that. That night was Dani´s birthday and one of the funnest nights I have had in Honduras. First we began low key at our favorite little chill hole in the wall, Cherros. Chris, Abby, Dani, and I all had a beer or two and then went on to our next hot spot, Cuates with live music and friends. We met a few of Chris´work friends, not to mention ran into one of my underage students. Oh Franklin, what a rebel. He was embarrased. Wah Wah. Being done with the live music, we traveled a couple blocks over to a venue of much more quality music, you guessed it, Manzanitas Karaoke. Hollaaa. Abby y yo attempted to sing our favorite Ranchero song, Estos Celos which we hear EVERYWHERE.
I would say every other time I am in a car this freakin song comes on the radio. It´s very catchy so its okay. That attempt went horribly wrong, but what would karaoke be without horrible happening occasionaly? We redemed ourselves with I Will Survive. Good times. See pictures. The night ended with us at Zots dancing the night away. It was so fun.
We were with about 12 people all from different countries- Germany, ChileEngland, U.S., Colombia, Bolivia, Guatemala, and more. It was so cool because we all were just speaking Spanish because it was the common language among all of us. We were all just in this giant circle gettin our groove on. The music was kickin, and when Apple Bottom Jeans came on, Abby and I GOT DOWN. Or should I say Low? We all know it isn´t the greatest song on earth, but it reminded me of summer dance parties in Ann Arbor, and just home in general. Who knew boots with the fur and reeboks with the strap could make a girl so happy. But really, the night was just perfect. Good people and good times. I honestly was having so much fun just dancing dancing dancing, I physically could not get the smile off my face. Like I said, this weekend really helped me remember how cool it was that I am living down here and experiencing something so different and important.
Saturday was our second Thanksgiving dinner where we went over to Mr. Bob´s house and had an absolutely delicious meal. Not to mention, I rode a horse, swung on a rope swing, held a baby goat, and saw 3 day old kittens. A productive day indeed.
They live on such a beautiful piece of land, must be nice. Oh, and we also played spoons! I insisted on bringing in the Kenney family tradish. When there´s family, there´s gotta be spoons. Interesting factoid: Mr. Bob´s girls have been homeschooled all of their lives, and their oldest daughter, Ashley is totally going all Mean Girls next year. She is going to the states to finish up high school as a senior. She has never been to regular school before and has grown up in this crazy random place...helloooo Lindsay Lohan anyone? Unfortunately it´ll be less funny and probably a lot harder. But, what doesn´t kill you will make you stronger. Hm.
The final two days of break were just spent relaxing, maxing all cool, shootin some bball outside of the school. When a couple of guys- they were up to no good! started makin trouble in my neighborhood. I got in one little fit and my mom got scared! She said your moving with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air. Boom boom ba dum dum dum Boom boom ba dum dum dummm.
One important thing did happen on Monday however, Election Day. But that didn´t really affect us. Our important thing was we made appointments to get massages. Holllaaaa. The excitment was overwhelming. The glorious massage will be discussed in a later post. Until then, I´m saying adios!
Starting from the bottom up. As I wrote before, Abby, Mr. Bob, and I were in charge of creating a presentation for the whole school about Thanksgiving. Our creativity was at work and out came a great show, one like Honduras has never SEEN! Probably not that cool, but we were applauded for our efforts, and between you and me, I'm sure it had everything to do with my sweet emcee-ing skills. Not. But we can pretend. The celebration was very Honduran for several reasons. It was supposed to start at 11:00am, it started at 12:00pm. There was supposed to be food for all the students and teachers, they ran out when it was the teachers turn, and looked so surprised that there weren't enough mashed potatoes. Abby and I were quite upset with the lack of mashed potatoes and then made a bit of a spectacle of ourselves when we went over to all of the 1st and 2nd graders left over plates and began to scavenge for food. I'll give the credit to Abby though, she definitely had less shame than I did. But we both had less shame than Mr. Bob and Cid who were looking at the plates with drooling mouths but weren't doing anything about it. We're Americans, we need our mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving damnit!
For the celebration each class did some sort of presentation. I was in charge of working with the 9-11th graders on their acts, all of which turned out very well I thought. The 1st-3rd graders were adorable of course. They wrote what they were thankful for on a construction paper leaf and came up to the stage and placed the one the construction paper branches of our construction paper tree. The 4th-6th grades wrote poems and performed them for the school. The class who got the biggest cheer won a certificate of great poemness. Cid's 4th graders got robbed simply because they did not know the mechanics of cheering loud for your group. 6th grade came out the winner. The stealers of the show however were no doubt, 11th grade. I helped them come up with this genius idea that will go down in history at HEM school. To make a long story short, they had one of their classmates dress up like a turkey and every so often, in between the different class' acts, he would come out to this cartoon chasing music and be chased all around the auditorium by the rest of the class. It. Was. Classic. I am trying to upload a video right now, but it's not working. It will though, and then you will watch, and subsequently, love. What gave me the idea was actually some happenings that occurred at my beloved UofM. Not sure if this ever happened to any of you, but one day while in my Social Psych lecture, sophomore year, my classroom was invaded by the monkey and banana. Common figures seen in the stands at football games, these two guys, one dressed as a banana, one as a gorilla, would just randomly come into classrooms, public buildings, with the gorilla chasing the banana, with no explanation at all.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Also the famous pacman being chased by the chomper in the fishbowl.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
Oh college.
That night, had our first Thanksgiving dinner at Triny and Phil's house. Our turkey was fresh from the farm, as in Phil knew it´s name. Gotta love it. Not only did we have our first Honduran Turkey Day, but we also received the pleasant surprise of finding out that we had no school the next day. Or Monday. HOLLA! I was expecting no days off, and then we got two! Best Thanksgiving present ever. It was SO needed. I've had a Thanksgiving break ever since I was a wee thing, and not having one was going to be quite rough, so thankfully, the Thanksgiving gods were on my side. Woo!
Abby with Phil and Triny's son, Pablo. Blond curls full of energy.
Friday was our first day off since September and let me tell you, this was one of the best days I have had in Honduras. I really really needed this weekend. I have been kind of down and just really stressed out and these couple of free days really re-energized me and helped me be happy again about being here. Friday was a gorgeous day and I went to the park and wrote postcards for almost 2 hours. It was just lovely. I was able to take my time and just sit back and enjoy the happenings around me. Instead of being concerned about what papers I needed to grade and what I needed to plan for class, I got the chance to observe my surroundings and soak up my experience. I am living in Honduras for goodness sake! It is amazing how quick a new place becomes "home." You forget that where you are is completely foreign to what you are used to and know of as home. The rest of the day I just spent leisurely in a coffee shop catching up on this and that. That night was Dani´s birthday and one of the funnest nights I have had in Honduras. First we began low key at our favorite little chill hole in the wall, Cherros. Chris, Abby, Dani, and I all had a beer or two and then went on to our next hot spot, Cuates with live music and friends. We met a few of Chris´work friends, not to mention ran into one of my underage students. Oh Franklin, what a rebel. He was embarrased. Wah Wah. Being done with the live music, we traveled a couple blocks over to a venue of much more quality music, you guessed it, Manzanitas Karaoke. Hollaaa. Abby y yo attempted to sing our favorite Ranchero song, Estos Celos which we hear EVERYWHERE.
My favorite English speakers in Honduras. Chris and Abby, rockin out to Karaoke, only as they can.
I would say every other time I am in a car this freakin song comes on the radio. It´s very catchy so its okay. That attempt went horribly wrong, but what would karaoke be without horrible happening occasionaly? We redemed ourselves with I Will Survive. Good times. See pictures. The night ended with us at Zots dancing the night away. It was so fun.
Chris doing the limbo at Zots. Fabulous.
We were with about 12 people all from different countries- Germany, ChileEngland, U.S., Colombia, Bolivia, Guatemala, and more. It was so cool because we all were just speaking Spanish because it was the common language among all of us. We were all just in this giant circle gettin our groove on. The music was kickin, and when Apple Bottom Jeans came on, Abby and I GOT DOWN. Or should I say Low? We all know it isn´t the greatest song on earth, but it reminded me of summer dance parties in Ann Arbor, and just home in general. Who knew boots with the fur and reeboks with the strap could make a girl so happy. But really, the night was just perfect. Good people and good times. I honestly was having so much fun just dancing dancing dancing, I physically could not get the smile off my face. Like I said, this weekend really helped me remember how cool it was that I am living down here and experiencing something so different and important.
See what I mean about the smile? This was me all night.
Saturday was our second Thanksgiving dinner where we went over to Mr. Bob´s house and had an absolutely delicious meal. Not to mention, I rode a horse, swung on a rope swing, held a baby goat, and saw 3 day old kittens. A productive day indeed.
Riding a horse for the first time in my life...I think?
Abby holding a baby goat...baaaaaah
Outside at Bob's house. Not sure if this picture does it justice, but it is so peaceful and gorgeous here.
They live on such a beautiful piece of land, must be nice. Oh, and we also played spoons! I insisted on bringing in the Kenney family tradish. When there´s family, there´s gotta be spoons. Interesting factoid: Mr. Bob´s girls have been homeschooled all of their lives, and their oldest daughter, Ashley is totally going all Mean Girls next year. She is going to the states to finish up high school as a senior. She has never been to regular school before and has grown up in this crazy random place...helloooo Lindsay Lohan anyone? Unfortunately it´ll be less funny and probably a lot harder. But, what doesn´t kill you will make you stronger. Hm.
The final two days of break were just spent relaxing, maxing all cool, shootin some bball outside of the school. When a couple of guys- they were up to no good! started makin trouble in my neighborhood. I got in one little fit and my mom got scared! She said your moving with your auntie and uncle in Bel Air. Boom boom ba dum dum dum Boom boom ba dum dum dummm.
One important thing did happen on Monday however, Election Day. But that didn´t really affect us. Our important thing was we made appointments to get massages. Holllaaaa. The excitment was overwhelming. The glorious massage will be discussed in a later post. Until then, I´m saying adios!
I'm Sorry.
Dear Friends, Family, Fans (the three F's if you will),
I am so sorry I have been a slacker and a half on writing my blog. There is a lot to tell and that is precisely the reason that I haven't updated because I have been so busy! Now school is over for Christmas break and I have three weeks of wonderfulness...aka (that's for you, Brent) no school. Unfortunately for all of you, I am leaving tomorrow on a two and a half week trek around Central America. Countries include Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. It's okay to be jealous, I understand.
I want to write a couple of posts before I leave to catch up a bit on the last few weeks, so we'll see what I can get done. Please forgive me for the lack of updates. It will all be covered at some point or another. Just remember, patience is a virtue.
I am so sorry I have been a slacker and a half on writing my blog. There is a lot to tell and that is precisely the reason that I haven't updated because I have been so busy! Now school is over for Christmas break and I have three weeks of wonderfulness...aka (that's for you, Brent) no school. Unfortunately for all of you, I am leaving tomorrow on a two and a half week trek around Central America. Countries include Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. It's okay to be jealous, I understand.
I want to write a couple of posts before I leave to catch up a bit on the last few weeks, so we'll see what I can get done. Please forgive me for the lack of updates. It will all be covered at some point or another. Just remember, patience is a virtue.
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
Hi, I'm Illegal
Blog Post dedicated to Miss Hailey Apter.
I have officially been in Honduras for three months. Actually, three months and one day. Not only is this my three-month anniversary with this crazy place, but also it is the date that my visa is expired. Today I am officially living illegally in this country.
In my blog I haven’t touched a ton on the frustration and inefficiency of this place where I am now living and teaching, however I know I have spoken to several of you about these minor and major problems. It’s really just one thing after another and isolated, these issues seem minor, but put ‘em all together and it they are a royal pain in my you know what.
Most recently, as you can guess, my passport visa has not been renewed. The school takes in foreign teachers every single year. You would think by now that they have got the whole “let’s not make our teachers be illegal aliens” thing down. Guess not. They had three months to extend our visas and we started reminded them a month ago. We realized our illegal status on Sunday night and gave Miss Triny a call. She said “Oh yeah. Bring your passports on Monday.” Oh okay. Were you EVER going to call us/tell us/get your act together? So now it looks like we are going to have to go to San Pedro Sula on Friday and miss school. Bummer.
The communication issues are probably the biggest problem I have. I have said it before and I will say it again, this is QUITE the test for an Organizational Studies major. Said simply, their communication sucks. Here are some recent examples…
A few weeks ago there was a teachers meeting after school of which we knew about a week beforehand. The day of, the last period, Miss Julie came to my classroom and said that Abby and I didn’t have to attend the meeting. Being told last minute- typical, but I can handle it. Why didn’t we have to attend the meeting? Apparently because the meeting was going to be about telling the other teachers what they are doing wrong, and we’re doing everything right. Oohhh okay. There are a few things wrong with this equation. Firstly, the idea that we do everything right is absolutely false. However, they will never tell us this because they a) do not like confrontation and b) do not want to “upset” the American teachers. We are treated much different than the other teachers, and it is totally and completely accepted. The idea that everyone should be treated equally is just not there. We’re American, so we deserve to be above the rules a bit. Miss Diana has her master’s degree so she can do whatever she wants. Just how it is- blatant and accepted. The second thing wrong with this is- wait a minute- what if we had a problem that we wanted to bring up at the meeting? What if we had something to say? This would never occur to the administration because they don’t understand the term “collaboration.” The school is an extremely disorganized dictatorship. Naturally Abby and I are the American revolutionaries, making it a point to not really care what the administration says, especially when things are completely unjustified. The Honduran teachers on the other hand; it is ridiculous how focused they are on the rules and bending these rules totally does not cross their mind. They may not teach, they may just have their students read out of the book day in and day out, not make lessons creative, require ridiculous homework from their students, but by God they will give tests exactly every two weeks, report every failing grade, and never drink coffee in the classroom.
Because Mr. Bob’s daughter, Anna, is at HEM School, we have a bit of spy from whom we can get the teacher chisma (gossip). One teacher, not coincidentally Miss Julie’s (in charge of all the teachers) brother, literally does not teach. He is a social studies teacher who probably couldn’t tell you anything about social or studies, not to mention past wars, geography, world leaders…you catch my drift. Apparently he assigns work in the book half of the time and the rest of the time he gives the kids free period and tells them to “keep it down so no one finds out.” Teaching at its finest! So he doesn’t teach, but has ridiculous expectations. Anna turned in homework on a lined piece of paper. Seems fine, right? Not so fast! He made her redo the homework, on a blank piece of white paper, making her draw an exactly one-inch border around the edge. WHY? WHAT IS THE POINT??? It is so clear that with some of these teachers, the focus is NOT on learning, rather presentation and memorization. No wonder they like the American teachers the most. It’s not that we’re amazing teachers…we actually give a care that they enjoy class, learn, have variation, and have fun. What a concept.
So I just went off on a major tangent there. Back to that meeting from which we were dis-invited. The next day we asked Claudia what we missed. A few things here and there and then she mentioned that we had to plan something for Thanksgiving. We, being the American teachers, aka me, Abby, and Bob. Additionally, my students were telling me something about something called Kermés that we had to plan. Huh? What is Kermés? When is Kermés? I’m confused. Well, we figured that they would tell us at some point what this might include. One week passes. Nothing. Another week passes. Nothing. Apparently there is something called Kermés happening on Saturday and there is a two-hour block put aside for something on Thanksgiving Day. And, in true H.E.M School fashion, we have absolutely no direction from anyone on what we are supposed to do. If it weren’t for Claudia casually saying something, we would have been completely in the dark about these festivities and our apparent role in planning them. (You may also be wondering- why the heck are they celebrating Thanksgiving in Honduras? My answer? I have no clue. Pilgrims? Native Americans? Plymouth Rock? May Flower? Turkey, Pumpkin Pie, Cranberry Sauce? It all just screams Honduras!)
After our next teacher meeting we brought this up with Miss Triny, Miss Gloria, and Miss Julie. It was a little nerve racking, but we’re a pair of mavericks, so it’s fine. What are they going to do? Fire us? No. Anytime I am thinking about bending the rules or doing something out of the ordinary (like using the library with my class- GASP! Going into the computer lab with my class! The Horror!) I always think- well, they aren’t going to fire me, and they can’t stand confrontation, so- might as well! This confrontation went fairly as expected. Miss Gloria, being the tyrant that she is…well…let me just give you a play by play of the conversation…
Us: We just wanted to bring up the communication issue to you all. We haven’t been told about very much at all from the administration. We only heard about Kermés from our students, had no idea what really was going on, and if it weren’t for Claudia, we would still be in the dark about Thanksgiving. We just wanted to bring this to your attention…
Miss Gloria: Yes. Yes. Certainly. You should know these things.
Miss Julie: (nods her head, says nothing)
Miss Triny: Yes. Well. What about the last meeting?
Us: We were told not to go.
Miss Gloria: Yes. Yes. They were not here.
Us: Yeah, Miss Julie told us not to go.
Miss Triny: oh. Yes. Yes.
Miss Gloria: You know, this is ALL Julie’s responsibility. She is in charge of the teachers and she should be doing her job better. As far as I know, you are being told these things. This is Julie’s responsibility.
Miss Julie: (stands there. Silent. Aawwwkkkwwarrrd)
Miss Gloria: I mean, I don’t want to wash my hands of this, but I mean, this is her responsibility. She should have told you.
It basically went on like this. We finally did get a “We’re sorry” from them and expressed our need to be informed. We'll see if anything ACTUALLY changes. 100 Lempira says no. Our friend, Chris, did a great impression of Miss Gloria after we shared this story with him. “I don’t want to wash my hands of this…but you better believe I’m going to…! And look at Julie’s hands…they are just filthy! Dirty dirty hands Miss Julie! Dirt, all over her hands- filthy!” It was funnier in person with his facial expressions and English accent, but you get the point.
Anyway, I could continue on and on and on about their communication skills, or lack there of, but it’s pretty exhausting to write, recollect, and read, I’m sure. The moral of this story is that adapting to a new culture is not all fun and games, lollipops and gumdrops. It is EXTREMELY frustrating because it just DOES NOT MAKE SENSE! My friend Kate who is doing the Peace Corps in Tanzania put it perfectly, “Nothing is normal here. Everything has to be ridiculous.” It’s so true. It’s like they are purposefully not making sense and doing things inefficiently.
About a month ago we volunteered for the relief effort after some nearby towns were hit really badly with flooding. Our job was to create care packages of food and clothing. Cid, Abby, and I started an assembly line at our clothes corner. As we all learned in U.S. History, we got some much more done in half the time. The other Hondurans could not get it! They just continued to do everything themselves, even when we were like “Here, why don’t you get in our line and it’ll go quicker!” They just looked at us, smiled, and kept doing what they were doing. It all goes back to the “time is money” efficient attitude of Americans, an attitude that I really cannot seem to get rid of, and honestly, don’t really want to let go.
There is good news however. Today does not just mark my 3 month anniversary and my visa being expired…it is officially and exactly one month until Christmas!!!!!! A few days ago a friend sent me some very much needed Bing Crosby Christmas music. I must say, even though I am in Honduras, it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas here as well. Christmas trees in houses, ribbons on light posts, ornaments and garland being sold in the stores. Time may not be money here, but no matter where you are, Christmas is Christmas…and this, my dear readers, will never fail to make my spirits bright.
I have officially been in Honduras for three months. Actually, three months and one day. Not only is this my three-month anniversary with this crazy place, but also it is the date that my visa is expired. Today I am officially living illegally in this country.
In my blog I haven’t touched a ton on the frustration and inefficiency of this place where I am now living and teaching, however I know I have spoken to several of you about these minor and major problems. It’s really just one thing after another and isolated, these issues seem minor, but put ‘em all together and it they are a royal pain in my you know what.
Most recently, as you can guess, my passport visa has not been renewed. The school takes in foreign teachers every single year. You would think by now that they have got the whole “let’s not make our teachers be illegal aliens” thing down. Guess not. They had three months to extend our visas and we started reminded them a month ago. We realized our illegal status on Sunday night and gave Miss Triny a call. She said “Oh yeah. Bring your passports on Monday.” Oh okay. Were you EVER going to call us/tell us/get your act together? So now it looks like we are going to have to go to San Pedro Sula on Friday and miss school. Bummer.
The communication issues are probably the biggest problem I have. I have said it before and I will say it again, this is QUITE the test for an Organizational Studies major. Said simply, their communication sucks. Here are some recent examples…
A few weeks ago there was a teachers meeting after school of which we knew about a week beforehand. The day of, the last period, Miss Julie came to my classroom and said that Abby and I didn’t have to attend the meeting. Being told last minute- typical, but I can handle it. Why didn’t we have to attend the meeting? Apparently because the meeting was going to be about telling the other teachers what they are doing wrong, and we’re doing everything right. Oohhh okay. There are a few things wrong with this equation. Firstly, the idea that we do everything right is absolutely false. However, they will never tell us this because they a) do not like confrontation and b) do not want to “upset” the American teachers. We are treated much different than the other teachers, and it is totally and completely accepted. The idea that everyone should be treated equally is just not there. We’re American, so we deserve to be above the rules a bit. Miss Diana has her master’s degree so she can do whatever she wants. Just how it is- blatant and accepted. The second thing wrong with this is- wait a minute- what if we had a problem that we wanted to bring up at the meeting? What if we had something to say? This would never occur to the administration because they don’t understand the term “collaboration.” The school is an extremely disorganized dictatorship. Naturally Abby and I are the American revolutionaries, making it a point to not really care what the administration says, especially when things are completely unjustified. The Honduran teachers on the other hand; it is ridiculous how focused they are on the rules and bending these rules totally does not cross their mind. They may not teach, they may just have their students read out of the book day in and day out, not make lessons creative, require ridiculous homework from their students, but by God they will give tests exactly every two weeks, report every failing grade, and never drink coffee in the classroom.
Because Mr. Bob’s daughter, Anna, is at HEM School, we have a bit of spy from whom we can get the teacher chisma (gossip). One teacher, not coincidentally Miss Julie’s (in charge of all the teachers) brother, literally does not teach. He is a social studies teacher who probably couldn’t tell you anything about social or studies, not to mention past wars, geography, world leaders…you catch my drift. Apparently he assigns work in the book half of the time and the rest of the time he gives the kids free period and tells them to “keep it down so no one finds out.” Teaching at its finest! So he doesn’t teach, but has ridiculous expectations. Anna turned in homework on a lined piece of paper. Seems fine, right? Not so fast! He made her redo the homework, on a blank piece of white paper, making her draw an exactly one-inch border around the edge. WHY? WHAT IS THE POINT??? It is so clear that with some of these teachers, the focus is NOT on learning, rather presentation and memorization. No wonder they like the American teachers the most. It’s not that we’re amazing teachers…we actually give a care that they enjoy class, learn, have variation, and have fun. What a concept.
So I just went off on a major tangent there. Back to that meeting from which we were dis-invited. The next day we asked Claudia what we missed. A few things here and there and then she mentioned that we had to plan something for Thanksgiving. We, being the American teachers, aka me, Abby, and Bob. Additionally, my students were telling me something about something called Kermés that we had to plan. Huh? What is Kermés? When is Kermés? I’m confused. Well, we figured that they would tell us at some point what this might include. One week passes. Nothing. Another week passes. Nothing. Apparently there is something called Kermés happening on Saturday and there is a two-hour block put aside for something on Thanksgiving Day. And, in true H.E.M School fashion, we have absolutely no direction from anyone on what we are supposed to do. If it weren’t for Claudia casually saying something, we would have been completely in the dark about these festivities and our apparent role in planning them. (You may also be wondering- why the heck are they celebrating Thanksgiving in Honduras? My answer? I have no clue. Pilgrims? Native Americans? Plymouth Rock? May Flower? Turkey, Pumpkin Pie, Cranberry Sauce? It all just screams Honduras!)
After our next teacher meeting we brought this up with Miss Triny, Miss Gloria, and Miss Julie. It was a little nerve racking, but we’re a pair of mavericks, so it’s fine. What are they going to do? Fire us? No. Anytime I am thinking about bending the rules or doing something out of the ordinary (like using the library with my class- GASP! Going into the computer lab with my class! The Horror!) I always think- well, they aren’t going to fire me, and they can’t stand confrontation, so- might as well! This confrontation went fairly as expected. Miss Gloria, being the tyrant that she is…well…let me just give you a play by play of the conversation…
Us: We just wanted to bring up the communication issue to you all. We haven’t been told about very much at all from the administration. We only heard about Kermés from our students, had no idea what really was going on, and if it weren’t for Claudia, we would still be in the dark about Thanksgiving. We just wanted to bring this to your attention…
Miss Gloria: Yes. Yes. Certainly. You should know these things.
Miss Julie: (nods her head, says nothing)
Miss Triny: Yes. Well. What about the last meeting?
Us: We were told not to go.
Miss Gloria: Yes. Yes. They were not here.
Us: Yeah, Miss Julie told us not to go.
Miss Triny: oh. Yes. Yes.
Miss Gloria: You know, this is ALL Julie’s responsibility. She is in charge of the teachers and she should be doing her job better. As far as I know, you are being told these things. This is Julie’s responsibility.
Miss Julie: (stands there. Silent. Aawwwkkkwwarrrd)
Miss Gloria: I mean, I don’t want to wash my hands of this, but I mean, this is her responsibility. She should have told you.
It basically went on like this. We finally did get a “We’re sorry” from them and expressed our need to be informed. We'll see if anything ACTUALLY changes. 100 Lempira says no. Our friend, Chris, did a great impression of Miss Gloria after we shared this story with him. “I don’t want to wash my hands of this…but you better believe I’m going to…! And look at Julie’s hands…they are just filthy! Dirty dirty hands Miss Julie! Dirt, all over her hands- filthy!” It was funnier in person with his facial expressions and English accent, but you get the point.
Anyway, I could continue on and on and on about their communication skills, or lack there of, but it’s pretty exhausting to write, recollect, and read, I’m sure. The moral of this story is that adapting to a new culture is not all fun and games, lollipops and gumdrops. It is EXTREMELY frustrating because it just DOES NOT MAKE SENSE! My friend Kate who is doing the Peace Corps in Tanzania put it perfectly, “Nothing is normal here. Everything has to be ridiculous.” It’s so true. It’s like they are purposefully not making sense and doing things inefficiently.
About a month ago we volunteered for the relief effort after some nearby towns were hit really badly with flooding. Our job was to create care packages of food and clothing. Cid, Abby, and I started an assembly line at our clothes corner. As we all learned in U.S. History, we got some much more done in half the time. The other Hondurans could not get it! They just continued to do everything themselves, even when we were like “Here, why don’t you get in our line and it’ll go quicker!” They just looked at us, smiled, and kept doing what they were doing. It all goes back to the “time is money” efficient attitude of Americans, an attitude that I really cannot seem to get rid of, and honestly, don’t really want to let go.
There is good news however. Today does not just mark my 3 month anniversary and my visa being expired…it is officially and exactly one month until Christmas!!!!!! A few days ago a friend sent me some very much needed Bing Crosby Christmas music. I must say, even though I am in Honduras, it is beginning to look a lot like Christmas here as well. Christmas trees in houses, ribbons on light posts, ornaments and garland being sold in the stores. Time may not be money here, but no matter where you are, Christmas is Christmas…and this, my dear readers, will never fail to make my spirits bright.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
My Thoughts Exactly, Keith
Couldn't have said it any better myself.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnHyy8gkNEE
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnHyy8gkNEE
Friday, November 21, 2008
Couch Surfing
When we first got to Honduras we were given a letter from the former North American teachers with several pointers about working at the school, living in Santa Rosa, and over all enjoying our next ten months. One thing that the former teachers suggested was that we sign up for couchsurfing.com, a networking website among travelers, backpackers, and the like looking for cheap places to stay and to meet fellow world explorers. Abby and I have taken the idea of hosting couch surfers to a whole new level. We are basically our own hotel. Two weeks ago we had four couch surfers in one week! They all came one after another…in and out- Belgium, California, Alaska, and Africa!
Now, many people will say, “Wait- so…you just let strangers stay in your house?” Well, yes. It is so much more than that though. Anyone who has traveled can understand this. There is this bond that happens between travelers and backpackers that cannot really be explained. A love of exploration, meeting new people, having new experiences, trying new things, and taking risks are all qualities that travelers, especially those in a much less touristy place like Central America, usually posses in some form or another. Not to mention, finding, as Anne of Green Gables would say, a “kindred spirit,” in a foreign place can be essential to ones sanity. Everyone we have met have not only been extremely nice, but additionally they have all been fantastically fascinating. From traveling to Antartica to growing up in Africa we have really enjoyed hearing all of their stories and making our world, just a little bit smaller.
Abby and I have been living in Santa Rosa for almost three months now (can you believe it!? Three months!) and have already had twelve couch surfers. Pretty impressive, I’d say. Not a ton of tourists come through Santa Rosa but considering we are the only people who are on couch surfing in this part of Honduras, we are the go to peeps. Not to mention we’ve been getting awesome reviews, so clearly, we are becoming a tourist attraction of our own. Abby’s secret dream in life is to own a hostel in Central America so she’s all about it and loves playing host, as do I. It’s really the perfect situation- we have two extra beds and an extra bathroom. Not to mention, we usually get a really good meal out of it! So, without further ado, I give you, our couch surfers!
Adam and David- Leeds, England. You already met these crazy Brits. But now, I have pictures from the infamous evening. Please see blog post of September 17 and then look at these pictures…a very VERY humorous night out.
Rebecca and Ryan- Toronto, Canada. Recently married couple, stayed with us for a couple of days. Traveling Central and South American for 10 months together. Rebecca is a jazz singer and sings with a big band! Aka…I want her job. They volunteered with us at the orphanage and even though they didn’t speak much Spanish, all of the kids fell in love with them. One of the sweetest images I have seen was from the moment we all walked into the orphanage, Rebecca and Ryan had little girls immediately all over them, holding their hands, wanting to be their friend. Later Rebecca entertained the kids with guitar and songs. They were great guests, really nice, genuine people.
Pasquale and Augustine- Naples, Italy & Mexico City, Mexico. These two best friends stayed with us for only about 8 hours, arriving around 7:00 PM and leaving at 4:00AM to catch their bus to El Salvador. Never the less, they entertained us with their stories and cooked us a fabulous, authentically made, Italian spaghetti dish. Their English was pretty good, but one cool thing about foreigners like them is that our conversations consist of at least three languages interspersed throughout. A fly on the wall may find it a little hard to follow- the SpanItalianish- but it works for us. Just another example of why couch surfing is so cool.
Laura- England. A friend of Chris, Laura stayed with us for a night. I didn’t get to talk to her a ton, but she was busy working in Costa Rica for a company that matches volunteers to different social projects throughout the country. She was really chill and gave us some great travel advice.
Danny- Buffalo, NY. We met Danny in Copan Ruinas during our Halloween extravaganza. He has been traveling in C.A. for about 3 months I think. He basically is staying down here until he runs out of money…which he hopes is never. Danny kept commenting on our very bare walls downstairs that are starving for some color and decoration. We came home the next day to a new accessory on the wall- a Honduran flag that Danny had signed. A great idea! Now we have two flags that all our couch surfers have to sign. A perfect momento!
Gregory- Belgium. What a loco! In a good way. He has been traveling for 2 years and 2 months throughout South and Central America on- wait for it- his BICYCLE. No joke. This fool is so cool. He is a little older, and I kind of deduced that this was maybe a really awesome mid life crisis adventure. He stayed with us for two days one of which he made us a DELICIOUS dinner…slaving in the kitchen for at least three hours. Ridiculous. Oh, and did I mention, along his trip he went to ANTARTICA?!? He showed us amazing photos from the trip. Anyone up for a vacation to the Artic? Cause I really want to go now. Check out his website. http://www.verdwaaldezwerver.be/ If you can figure out enough Dutch/German to understand that Fotos = Photos, take a look at his Antartica pics. They're pretty sweet. He is going to write a book when he gets back…I’d say there aren’t too many Belgian books about riding your bicycle through every country in South and Central America. I think he just might have a niche market there. Yeayyy Gregory!
Kevin- Oakland, CA. This kid gets the small world and best dinner-never to be topped- award. Firstly, he is from Nor Cal, grew up in Santa Rosa, CA and graduated from U.C. Santa Cruz two years before Abby. Not to mention, these two already had met each other on top of a volcano in Guatemala back in August. A funny guy, and a great chef, he will certainly be welcome back in our home any time. Get this- he made us chicken soup from scratch (which was muy rica) annnd an incredibly epic dessert.
Abby and I were doing work as he was cooking and all of a sudden I smelt chocolate, prompting me to say, “Is that CHOCOLATE?” to which he replied, “Yes, yes there may be some chocolate goin on in here…” The soup was very tasty and Chris happened to be over and was able to partake in the dining festivities as well. At one point, we were all remarking over the fact that this dinner was never going to be topped by any couch surfer. To which I, for some reason, very matter of factly, replied, “Well…it might be topped, it IS possible.” We all had a big laugh about that comment. Well, after our meal, Kevin brought out- wait for it- CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES. He made them, in our little kitchen. We were in awe. Definitely will NOT be topped. There’s just no way.
Brian- Alaska. Born and raised on a tiny fishing island in Alaska, Brian decided to go to Northern Arizona University for college. Despite the Alaska/Arizona reppin’ he was not in favor of McCain/Palin, but of course that was our first question. Brian was pretty chill, had some interesting stories about growing up on an island not to mention about the “interesting” couple he and his girlfriend met in La Ceiba who were on a raw food diet (this includes raw MEAT) and were planning to sail to Thailand. Apparently Brian and said girlfriend were planning on sailing with them until they found out the rules of the sailboat- Raw Food and Anything Goes…the latter referring to a 1960’s style of free love…if you catch my drift. To make a long story short, Brian is no longer sailing to Thailand and no longer has a girlfriend. Yeah. Wherever your mind is going right now, you are on the right track. He was nice but he didn’t sign our flag. LAME. He did however bring us two bottles of wine upon arrival…decent trade off I suppose.
Michael- Lempira, Honduras/Northern Indiana/Ghana, Africa. Mike is currently volunteering in La Campa and Gracias through some Menninite organization based in the States. He was a really nice guy who was basically just looking for a weekend away from his tiny little town. Mike also holds…or HELD the honor of having the first place position on CouchSurfing.com for Honduras as he had the most friends/references/vouches. However, he has since been knocked down to number three, while our association with him has brought us up to number ten! Holla…we’re like the Jeffersons…just movin on up! Mike had an interesting background- parents were Meninite missionaries and he grew up- Mean Girls style- in Africa. However, his family is originally from Elkhart, IN! Northern Indy…worrrrd.
We had some really deep convos with Mike about traveling, volunteering, and just life. Btw, I feel as though using the abbrev, “convos” demeans the idea that they were actually, in fact, “deep.” I have to admit though, during some of these “deep convos” I felt the three of us were being a little pretentious. Discussing our opinions on helping the third world, doing aid work, learning about a new culture…it seemed more of a platform to talk about all of the cool volunteer stuff you have done in your life and how this makes you a good person. After a while I just stopped talking about my volunteer experiences because I felt like they were being tarnished, as if I only did them so I could impress people who care about that sort of thing. Instead of leaving me more enlightened, the “deep convo” left me a little annoyed. Not a big deal, but I think it’s important for me to remember. Oh also, he is in the process of transferring colleges and wants to go to, gasp, Appalachian State. I wasn’t really listening to the conversation but all of a sudden I heard him say “…this college in North Carolina called Appalachian State…” and I let out a huge “Uahgahghhhhhahhahhh” Considering I was not at all in the conversation (it was an A and B conversation and I was C-ing my way out of it…4th grade jokes = la mejor), he and Abby were a little confused by my reaction. “What did App State do to you?” he said, and then soon remembered, “Oh. Yeah. They beat Michigan.” Gross. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVENWl8uBeg ...It's fine.) Anyway, we are definitely planning on visiting Mike as we really want to explore Gracias and the villages around. It’s about a 45 minute trip there, so not too bad and some really cool nature things to see like hot springs and the tallest mountain in Honduras.
This weekend we have no couch surfers…amazing! It’ll be nice to just be able to chill a little bit. This whole couch surfing idea is genius though. The best part is that we are forever connected with these people. Even if it is only in memory, they will have shared a little bit of themselves with us and vice versa. Even more cool is that I would feel completely comfortable contacting any of these people if I were ever in their neck of the woods. Abby and I may have to do our own world tour in a few years and visit all of our new friends. Who knows who else we might meet throughout this year...all I know is that they better sign the flag…it’s REALLY cool.
Now, many people will say, “Wait- so…you just let strangers stay in your house?” Well, yes. It is so much more than that though. Anyone who has traveled can understand this. There is this bond that happens between travelers and backpackers that cannot really be explained. A love of exploration, meeting new people, having new experiences, trying new things, and taking risks are all qualities that travelers, especially those in a much less touristy place like Central America, usually posses in some form or another. Not to mention, finding, as Anne of Green Gables would say, a “kindred spirit,” in a foreign place can be essential to ones sanity. Everyone we have met have not only been extremely nice, but additionally they have all been fantastically fascinating. From traveling to Antartica to growing up in Africa we have really enjoyed hearing all of their stories and making our world, just a little bit smaller.
Abby and I have been living in Santa Rosa for almost three months now (can you believe it!? Three months!) and have already had twelve couch surfers. Pretty impressive, I’d say. Not a ton of tourists come through Santa Rosa but considering we are the only people who are on couch surfing in this part of Honduras, we are the go to peeps. Not to mention we’ve been getting awesome reviews, so clearly, we are becoming a tourist attraction of our own. Abby’s secret dream in life is to own a hostel in Central America so she’s all about it and loves playing host, as do I. It’s really the perfect situation- we have two extra beds and an extra bathroom. Not to mention, we usually get a really good meal out of it! So, without further ado, I give you, our couch surfers!
Adam and David- Leeds, England. You already met these crazy Brits. But now, I have pictures from the infamous evening. Please see blog post of September 17 and then look at these pictures…a very VERY humorous night out.
Drunkette, in all her glory.
"You are very pretty for me"
"Far across the distance, and spaces, betweeeen us, you have come to show you...go OOnnnn"
Large and scary man who was unofficially (officially in his mind) our body guard for the night.
Rebecca and Ryan- Toronto, Canada. Recently married couple, stayed with us for a couple of days. Traveling Central and South American for 10 months together. Rebecca is a jazz singer and sings with a big band! Aka…I want her job. They volunteered with us at the orphanage and even though they didn’t speak much Spanish, all of the kids fell in love with them. One of the sweetest images I have seen was from the moment we all walked into the orphanage, Rebecca and Ryan had little girls immediately all over them, holding their hands, wanting to be their friend. Later Rebecca entertained the kids with guitar and songs. They were great guests, really nice, genuine people.
Pasquale and Augustine- Naples, Italy & Mexico City, Mexico. These two best friends stayed with us for only about 8 hours, arriving around 7:00 PM and leaving at 4:00AM to catch their bus to El Salvador. Never the less, they entertained us with their stories and cooked us a fabulous, authentically made, Italian spaghetti dish. Their English was pretty good, but one cool thing about foreigners like them is that our conversations consist of at least three languages interspersed throughout. A fly on the wall may find it a little hard to follow- the SpanItalianish- but it works for us. Just another example of why couch surfing is so cool.
Pasquale and Augustine...oh and my awesome roommate.
Laura- England. A friend of Chris, Laura stayed with us for a night. I didn’t get to talk to her a ton, but she was busy working in Costa Rica for a company that matches volunteers to different social projects throughout the country. She was really chill and gave us some great travel advice.
Danny- Buffalo, NY. We met Danny in Copan Ruinas during our Halloween extravaganza. He has been traveling in C.A. for about 3 months I think. He basically is staying down here until he runs out of money…which he hopes is never. Danny kept commenting on our very bare walls downstairs that are starving for some color and decoration. We came home the next day to a new accessory on the wall- a Honduran flag that Danny had signed. A great idea! Now we have two flags that all our couch surfers have to sign. A perfect momento!
Danny is on the left, Phil is on the right, another compañero we met in Copan. Discussing to which continent Central America really belongs. There are many arguments and it is QUITE a mystery.
Gregory- Belgium. What a loco! In a good way. He has been traveling for 2 years and 2 months throughout South and Central America on- wait for it- his BICYCLE. No joke. This fool is so cool. He is a little older, and I kind of deduced that this was maybe a really awesome mid life crisis adventure. He stayed with us for two days one of which he made us a DELICIOUS dinner…slaving in the kitchen for at least three hours. Ridiculous. Oh, and did I mention, along his trip he went to ANTARTICA?!? He showed us amazing photos from the trip. Anyone up for a vacation to the Artic? Cause I really want to go now. Check out his website. http://www.verdwaaldezwerver.be/ If you can figure out enough Dutch/German to understand that Fotos = Photos, take a look at his Antartica pics. They're pretty sweet. He is going to write a book when he gets back…I’d say there aren’t too many Belgian books about riding your bicycle through every country in South and Central America. I think he just might have a niche market there. Yeayyy Gregory!
Kevin- Oakland, CA. This kid gets the small world and best dinner-never to be topped- award. Firstly, he is from Nor Cal, grew up in Santa Rosa, CA and graduated from U.C. Santa Cruz two years before Abby. Not to mention, these two already had met each other on top of a volcano in Guatemala back in August. A funny guy, and a great chef, he will certainly be welcome back in our home any time. Get this- he made us chicken soup from scratch (which was muy rica) annnd an incredibly epic dessert.
Kevin and part of his master piece.
Abby and I were doing work as he was cooking and all of a sudden I smelt chocolate, prompting me to say, “Is that CHOCOLATE?” to which he replied, “Yes, yes there may be some chocolate goin on in here…” The soup was very tasty and Chris happened to be over and was able to partake in the dining festivities as well. At one point, we were all remarking over the fact that this dinner was never going to be topped by any couch surfer. To which I, for some reason, very matter of factly, replied, “Well…it might be topped, it IS possible.” We all had a big laugh about that comment. Well, after our meal, Kevin brought out- wait for it- CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRIES. He made them, in our little kitchen. We were in awe. Definitely will NOT be topped. There’s just no way.
Brian- Alaska. Born and raised on a tiny fishing island in Alaska, Brian decided to go to Northern Arizona University for college. Despite the Alaska/Arizona reppin’ he was not in favor of McCain/Palin, but of course that was our first question. Brian was pretty chill, had some interesting stories about growing up on an island not to mention about the “interesting” couple he and his girlfriend met in La Ceiba who were on a raw food diet (this includes raw MEAT) and were planning to sail to Thailand. Apparently Brian and said girlfriend were planning on sailing with them until they found out the rules of the sailboat- Raw Food and Anything Goes…the latter referring to a 1960’s style of free love…if you catch my drift. To make a long story short, Brian is no longer sailing to Thailand and no longer has a girlfriend. Yeah. Wherever your mind is going right now, you are on the right track. He was nice but he didn’t sign our flag. LAME. He did however bring us two bottles of wine upon arrival…decent trade off I suppose.
Michael- Lempira, Honduras/Northern Indiana/Ghana, Africa. Mike is currently volunteering in La Campa and Gracias through some Menninite organization based in the States. He was a really nice guy who was basically just looking for a weekend away from his tiny little town. Mike also holds…or HELD the honor of having the first place position on CouchSurfing.com for Honduras as he had the most friends/references/vouches. However, he has since been knocked down to number three, while our association with him has brought us up to number ten! Holla…we’re like the Jeffersons…just movin on up! Mike had an interesting background- parents were Meninite missionaries and he grew up- Mean Girls style- in Africa. However, his family is originally from Elkhart, IN! Northern Indy…worrrrd.
Michael, legit couch-surfing
We had some really deep convos with Mike about traveling, volunteering, and just life. Btw, I feel as though using the abbrev, “convos” demeans the idea that they were actually, in fact, “deep.” I have to admit though, during some of these “deep convos” I felt the three of us were being a little pretentious. Discussing our opinions on helping the third world, doing aid work, learning about a new culture…it seemed more of a platform to talk about all of the cool volunteer stuff you have done in your life and how this makes you a good person. After a while I just stopped talking about my volunteer experiences because I felt like they were being tarnished, as if I only did them so I could impress people who care about that sort of thing. Instead of leaving me more enlightened, the “deep convo” left me a little annoyed. Not a big deal, but I think it’s important for me to remember. Oh also, he is in the process of transferring colleges and wants to go to, gasp, Appalachian State. I wasn’t really listening to the conversation but all of a sudden I heard him say “…this college in North Carolina called Appalachian State…” and I let out a huge “Uahgahghhhhhahhahhh” Considering I was not at all in the conversation (it was an A and B conversation and I was C-ing my way out of it…4th grade jokes = la mejor), he and Abby were a little confused by my reaction. “What did App State do to you?” he said, and then soon remembered, “Oh. Yeah. They beat Michigan.” Gross. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVENWl8uBeg ...It's fine.) Anyway, we are definitely planning on visiting Mike as we really want to explore Gracias and the villages around. It’s about a 45 minute trip there, so not too bad and some really cool nature things to see like hot springs and the tallest mountain in Honduras.
This weekend we have no couch surfers…amazing! It’ll be nice to just be able to chill a little bit. This whole couch surfing idea is genius though. The best part is that we are forever connected with these people. Even if it is only in memory, they will have shared a little bit of themselves with us and vice versa. Even more cool is that I would feel completely comfortable contacting any of these people if I were ever in their neck of the woods. Abby and I may have to do our own world tour in a few years and visit all of our new friends. Who knows who else we might meet throughout this year...all I know is that they better sign the flag…it’s REALLY cool.
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Down By the Bay...Where the Watermelons Grow...
Back to my hoooome...
I dare not goooo...
For if I doooo...
My mother will saayaay...
Have you ever seen a dead horse's carcass being eaten to the bone by vultures?
Down by the bay!
A few weeks ago, Abby informed me that on our usual route to school, there was a dead horse, just chillin there, that someone, I guess, had dumped, or even sadder, just left to die. In conjunction with this new addition to our morning school trip, was the overwhelming presence of black vultures spread out along our road to school. Finally, I put the two together. When I at last saw the dead horse's carcass it was, yes, in fact, dead and completely covered with vultures eating it to the very bone. This would have been a fantastic time lapse episode of Planet Earth. Every day we go by the body and every day there is less and less of it. First the skin was all gone. Then, the meat, and now it is just a skeleton. I've never seen anything like it.
Nature at it's finest.
I dare not goooo...
For if I doooo...
My mother will saayaay...
Have you ever seen a dead horse's carcass being eaten to the bone by vultures?
Down by the bay!
A few weeks ago, Abby informed me that on our usual route to school, there was a dead horse, just chillin there, that someone, I guess, had dumped, or even sadder, just left to die. In conjunction with this new addition to our morning school trip, was the overwhelming presence of black vultures spread out along our road to school. Finally, I put the two together. When I at last saw the dead horse's carcass it was, yes, in fact, dead and completely covered with vultures eating it to the very bone. This would have been a fantastic time lapse episode of Planet Earth. Every day we go by the body and every day there is less and less of it. First the skin was all gone. Then, the meat, and now it is just a skeleton. I've never seen anything like it.
Nature at it's finest.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Proud to Be an American
It’s been about two weeks and so much has happened in this great nation of ours. I am so proud to be an American right now. Though I wish I could have been celebrating with my friends in Grant Park or on the Diag in Ann Arbor, being abroad has given me even more pride in our great country. In the past two months I have been completely uprooted from my comfortable American society and dropped smack dab in the middle of a much different America. A Central America, where though they share our name, many of their values are a bit behind the times. Often Americans, especially liberal American college students, remark on the superficiality of the United States, the need to win win win, the obsession with money, and that we have no idea how much better off we are than our third world neighbors. I agree that the States can be prone to this way-over-the-top -capitalistic, time-is-money mentality, forgetting sometimes about the other, important things in life. At the same time, however, I believe that the United States is an amazing nation of which I did not fully appreciate until being away from it.
A black president was elected, a woman ran for vice president, a record amount of people voted, the political map was redrawn, the FACT that gay marriage is even an issue, the idea that our vote DOES make a difference, and that we have the opportunity to do so, this is America and there are very few other places that can claim this progressiveness. I watched Barack Obama’s speech on youtube this morning and had chills the entire time, not to mention a few tears. He was not a likely candidate, but with the work of thousands of supporters, he BECAME not just a likely candidate, but a likely president. Yes, this progress took a long time, but look how far we have come! My grandparent’s lifetime…when they were twenty years old even, do you think they thought that they would live to see this day? My parents even! I think it is incredible.
There are those out there who will say that this shouldn’t be incredible. When I was interviewing the first female, black University of Michigan Executive Vice President for a work project I did last year, I asked her how she felt about being the first in this role. She said it made her sad. It should not be an amazing feet to be in this position, it should have already happened. She stated, “there is so much more to be done.” I’m not going to say I understand her pain, because I could never understand. However, always being a looking-on-the-bright-side kind of person, I think we need to value this moment in history and these changing times for what they are. Perhaps this should have happened sooner, and in a perfect world, it may have. But our world is not perfect, and I think we can stop a moment, and be proud of what we HAVE achieved. Goodness knows the fight is not over. Gay marriage was voted against in California, not to mention isn’t even being considered in the rest of the states. While this, for a lack of a better word, pisses me off, I am going to choose to be happy for the fact that we have indeed seen some change today, and I have no doubt that more will soon come.
I feel truly blessed to call the United States my home and while many Hondurans have a false stereotype about Americans- that we are all rich and don’t really care about the rest of the world, I now know, this is not true. The people have spoken, and as John McCain said in his concession speech, “they have spoken clearly.” America is ready for a new way of thinking and I am so thrilled that we have elected a true leader to bring on this change.
A black president was elected, a woman ran for vice president, a record amount of people voted, the political map was redrawn, the FACT that gay marriage is even an issue, the idea that our vote DOES make a difference, and that we have the opportunity to do so, this is America and there are very few other places that can claim this progressiveness. I watched Barack Obama’s speech on youtube this morning and had chills the entire time, not to mention a few tears. He was not a likely candidate, but with the work of thousands of supporters, he BECAME not just a likely candidate, but a likely president. Yes, this progress took a long time, but look how far we have come! My grandparent’s lifetime…when they were twenty years old even, do you think they thought that they would live to see this day? My parents even! I think it is incredible.
There are those out there who will say that this shouldn’t be incredible. When I was interviewing the first female, black University of Michigan Executive Vice President for a work project I did last year, I asked her how she felt about being the first in this role. She said it made her sad. It should not be an amazing feet to be in this position, it should have already happened. She stated, “there is so much more to be done.” I’m not going to say I understand her pain, because I could never understand. However, always being a looking-on-the-bright-side kind of person, I think we need to value this moment in history and these changing times for what they are. Perhaps this should have happened sooner, and in a perfect world, it may have. But our world is not perfect, and I think we can stop a moment, and be proud of what we HAVE achieved. Goodness knows the fight is not over. Gay marriage was voted against in California, not to mention isn’t even being considered in the rest of the states. While this, for a lack of a better word, pisses me off, I am going to choose to be happy for the fact that we have indeed seen some change today, and I have no doubt that more will soon come.
I feel truly blessed to call the United States my home and while many Hondurans have a false stereotype about Americans- that we are all rich and don’t really care about the rest of the world, I now know, this is not true. The people have spoken, and as John McCain said in his concession speech, “they have spoken clearly.” America is ready for a new way of thinking and I am so thrilled that we have elected a true leader to bring on this change.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Americans Gone Wild
I am not exaggerating with the title of this blog post. This past weekend was a ridiculous amount of fun with more English speaking people than I have seen in what seems like a long time….aka two months.
Every year the Peace Corps volunteers flock to Copan Ruinas for a huge Halloween blowout party. There are about 180 PCVs in Honduras, not to mention some from Guatemala and El Salvador that make the journey as well. Apparently word gets around about this little shindig and Abby and I were all over it. Our friend, Cid, used to work and live in Copan so he was fully aware of the happenings and told us, probably three days after we arrived in Honduras that he was going to take us to Copan for Halloween. Thank you Cid!
Copan Ruinas (the name of the town, as well as the Mayan ruins there) is about a two and a half hour drive from Santa Rosa de Copan. However, when you take into account our modes of transportation, it actually equals out to about four hours. Now this is not four hours in a cushy SUV. This is four hours with half a butt cheek falling off your seat in a chicken bus crammed with way too many people for a ride like this to ever be safe. Twisty mountain roads with smelly passengers on an old school bus. Now that is my idea of a good time!
The trips there and back were certainly long, but oh so worth it. Because all of the PC was in town, all of the hostels were completely booked. Abby and I opted instead for a little B&B that Cid’s uncle owns. It was quite possibly the most peaceful place I have ever stayed. A beautiful view of the plush green mountainside, hammocks lining the walkway which lead down to their little garden where I ate my free, delicious breakfast.
Friday night we went out to los bares and found some fun Americans to hang with. Our first bar, the Red Frog was bought on the Internet by this guy, Dan, from Chico, CA. He bought it online, sight unseen, and now lives in Honduras with his baby and his baby’s momma. What a story, right? It’s a major hot spot for tourists, something that may or may not be attributed to the fact that the bar has beer pong tables readily available to any guest. American (not to mention Chico State) hospitality at it’s finest.
Saturday consisted of Abby sleeping off the previous night and me relaxing in a hammock as I finished Animal Farm, which I thought might be a good goal considering I AM currently teaching it to the 10th graders. Good book though- definitely recommend it! Later I headed into town to walk around and explore. A very cute town, Copan Ruinas is a lot like Santa Rosa but cleaner and with more white people. Interesting how the two things often go hand in hand. I ended up talking to this street vendor for a while about life in Copan. He was a good salesman; he told me I understood Spanish very well. The key to my heart. With those magic words, I bought a pair of earrings and a bracelet.
On my little outing I stumbled upon a little café, which enticed me by the presence of two cute PC guys. While there I had a, wait for it, BAGEL AND CREAM CHEESE. It. Was. Glorious. I had forgotten just how amazing those little circular pieces of bread truly are. Thanks to my long eyelashes and girlish charm, I ended up having coffee with the two cute PC guys. That’s a lie, really, I had tea, because I still don’t drink coffee…I’m actually the ONLY person in Honduras who doesn’t. The guys, Kyler and Dan, were really cool and both are stationed pretty close to Santa Rosa. While in Copan, Abby and I were both overwhelmed with the amount of attractive, English speaking men with whom we could actually converse and reveled in the fact that we did not have to continually explain the concept of personal space.
Next came the night of the huge Halloween party. Beginning at this hostel/bar called Via Via, there were Americans out the wazoo. Let me tell you, those kids can partaaay. Whether they were drinking or not, everyone was definitely having a good time. Because some of these people are in butt-fing nowhere, they had to be pretty creative with their costumes. We saw pinatas, agua azul bottles, coffee bags, and soccer balls all being used as raw materials. The Peace Corps: saving the world one Halloween costume at a time! Also working in my favor was the fact that Saturday nights at Via Via, in addition to more recent popular music, are 80’s music nights. Seriously, ya’ll, need I say more?
While at Via Via we coincidentally and oh so perfectly ran into our friend Dani who is also living in SRC and lives at the Orphanage where we volunteer. She was in Copan with two friends from college who are currently volunteering in Guatemala. She is such a fun girl; I’m so excited to hang out with her more in SRC. As Via Via closed we all got our special permission bracelets and traveled down the road to the all night bar called Papa Changos. Half outside, half inside, live music, swings as bar stools, and a Halloween costume competition. As Borat would say, VERY NICE! I was never planning on competing in the competition, but everyone I was with said, “Sarah! Go! The costume competition!” to which I replied, “Oh! okay!” FOURTH PLACE, ANYONE??! Caperucita Roja baby. I won a hat and a key chain! Alllriiiight. First place went to Kyler who was dressed as an authentic Honduran dancer woman. Hard to beat. The night went on until the wee hours of the morning giving Copan Ruinas one more Halloween to remember.
On Sunday morning Abby and I decided that maybe, just maybe, we should take a look at these ruins everyone seems to be so psyched on. Not going to lie, they are pretty much da bomb. (And I am not one to throw around “da bomb.”) I am such a history nerd, but I think non-history nerds would enjoy it just the same. We had a precious little tour guide, Jorge. He was an older man who just loved his job, loved his country, and loved history! I got his business card so I can hit him up when all my visitors come. The ruins are like the Internet…they both will forever boggle my mind. Pictures make it hard to do it justice, but they help a little bit…take a look.
Now I am home from a crazy weekend with a cold and a bit of a fever. Unfortunately this is the last week of classes before grades are due so I have a bunch of presentations and tests for which I need to be present. I would much rather stay home this entire week. But, Abby got me some meds and I’m feeling a little better. Just need to wait it out I suppose. Once again, I can’t wait for the weekend. What’s new?
Every year the Peace Corps volunteers flock to Copan Ruinas for a huge Halloween blowout party. There are about 180 PCVs in Honduras, not to mention some from Guatemala and El Salvador that make the journey as well. Apparently word gets around about this little shindig and Abby and I were all over it. Our friend, Cid, used to work and live in Copan so he was fully aware of the happenings and told us, probably three days after we arrived in Honduras that he was going to take us to Copan for Halloween. Thank you Cid!
Copan Ruinas (the name of the town, as well as the Mayan ruins there) is about a two and a half hour drive from Santa Rosa de Copan. However, when you take into account our modes of transportation, it actually equals out to about four hours. Now this is not four hours in a cushy SUV. This is four hours with half a butt cheek falling off your seat in a chicken bus crammed with way too many people for a ride like this to ever be safe. Twisty mountain roads with smelly passengers on an old school bus. Now that is my idea of a good time!
The trips there and back were certainly long, but oh so worth it. Because all of the PC was in town, all of the hostels were completely booked. Abby and I opted instead for a little B&B that Cid’s uncle owns. It was quite possibly the most peaceful place I have ever stayed. A beautiful view of the plush green mountainside, hammocks lining the walkway which lead down to their little garden where I ate my free, delicious breakfast.
The view from a hammock at our extremely peaceful and relaxing B&B. And you thought all Honduras had was mud huts.
Friday night we went out to los bares and found some fun Americans to hang with. Our first bar, the Red Frog was bought on the Internet by this guy, Dan, from Chico, CA. He bought it online, sight unseen, and now lives in Honduras with his baby and his baby’s momma. What a story, right? It’s a major hot spot for tourists, something that may or may not be attributed to the fact that the bar has beer pong tables readily available to any guest. American (not to mention Chico State) hospitality at it’s finest.
There was a guy at the Red Frog with an OSU hat. All over the walls of the Frog there are one lempiras with little messages to Dan, the owner. I knew I was going to leave one and of course, the absolute first thing that came to mind was GO BLUE. When I saw this OSU hooligan, I made him pose with my lempira. He didn't really put up a fight. O'DOYAL RULES!
Saturday consisted of Abby sleeping off the previous night and me relaxing in a hammock as I finished Animal Farm, which I thought might be a good goal considering I AM currently teaching it to the 10th graders. Good book though- definitely recommend it! Later I headed into town to walk around and explore. A very cute town, Copan Ruinas is a lot like Santa Rosa but cleaner and with more white people. Interesting how the two things often go hand in hand. I ended up talking to this street vendor for a while about life in Copan. He was a good salesman; he told me I understood Spanish very well. The key to my heart. With those magic words, I bought a pair of earrings and a bracelet.
This is what all of the streets look like in Copan. That's Via Via on the left.
On my little outing I stumbled upon a little café, which enticed me by the presence of two cute PC guys. While there I had a, wait for it, BAGEL AND CREAM CHEESE. It. Was. Glorious. I had forgotten just how amazing those little circular pieces of bread truly are. Thanks to my long eyelashes and girlish charm, I ended up having coffee with the two cute PC guys. That’s a lie, really, I had tea, because I still don’t drink coffee…I’m actually the ONLY person in Honduras who doesn’t. The guys, Kyler and Dan, were really cool and both are stationed pretty close to Santa Rosa. While in Copan, Abby and I were both overwhelmed with the amount of attractive, English speaking men with whom we could actually converse and reveled in the fact that we did not have to continually explain the concept of personal space.
Next came the night of the huge Halloween party. Beginning at this hostel/bar called Via Via, there were Americans out the wazoo. Let me tell you, those kids can partaaay. Whether they were drinking or not, everyone was definitely having a good time. Because some of these people are in butt-fing nowhere, they had to be pretty creative with their costumes. We saw pinatas, agua azul bottles, coffee bags, and soccer balls all being used as raw materials. The Peace Corps: saving the world one Halloween costume at a time! Also working in my favor was the fact that Saturday nights at Via Via, in addition to more recent popular music, are 80’s music nights. Seriously, ya’ll, need I say more?
Me as Little Red Riding Hood aka Caperucita Roja
Dani's friend, Theo was not dressed up. Therefore he took my basket and became a "Guatemalan" for Halloween. Perfect!
While at Via Via we coincidentally and oh so perfectly ran into our friend Dani who is also living in SRC and lives at the Orphanage where we volunteer. She was in Copan with two friends from college who are currently volunteering in Guatemala. She is such a fun girl; I’m so excited to hang out with her more in SRC. As Via Via closed we all got our special permission bracelets and traveled down the road to the all night bar called Papa Changos. Half outside, half inside, live music, swings as bar stools, and a Halloween costume competition. As Borat would say, VERY NICE! I was never planning on competing in the competition, but everyone I was with said, “Sarah! Go! The costume competition!” to which I replied, “Oh! okay!” FOURTH PLACE, ANYONE??! Caperucita Roja baby. I won a hat and a key chain! Alllriiiight. First place went to Kyler who was dressed as an authentic Honduran dancer woman. Hard to beat. The night went on until the wee hours of the morning giving Copan Ruinas one more Halloween to remember.
Posing with Govenor Sarah Palin!
Kyler dancing in his gettup. Definitely some stiff competition.
On Sunday morning Abby and I decided that maybe, just maybe, we should take a look at these ruins everyone seems to be so psyched on. Not going to lie, they are pretty much da bomb. (And I am not one to throw around “da bomb.”) I am such a history nerd, but I think non-history nerds would enjoy it just the same. We had a precious little tour guide, Jorge. He was an older man who just loved his job, loved his country, and loved history! I got his business card so I can hit him up when all my visitors come. The ruins are like the Internet…they both will forever boggle my mind. Pictures make it hard to do it justice, but they help a little bit…take a look.
The Copan Ruins!
Pretty macaws totally just chillin there.
Now I am home from a crazy weekend with a cold and a bit of a fever. Unfortunately this is the last week of classes before grades are due so I have a bunch of presentations and tests for which I need to be present. I would much rather stay home this entire week. But, Abby got me some meds and I’m feeling a little better. Just need to wait it out I suppose. Once again, I can’t wait for the weekend. What’s new?
Friday, October 24, 2008
Look But Don't Touch
I’m still trying to figure out what kind of teacher I am. I constantly am looking back to high school to see if I’m the easy and nice teacher – the really moody teacher – the hard but compassionate teacher – the teacher who always seems unprepared (ha!) – and many more. I definitely don’t think I’m a mean teacher but I really don’t want to be TOO nice and have the kids take advantage of me. It’s hard to find your grove. Should the class be silent always, only ever hearing the pens of the students writing? Is it okay to joke around with the kids? End class 5 minutes early? Accept late homework? I don’t want to be a pushover, but I also don’t want to give homework every night or not be understanding when they have an issue or problem.
Abby, unknowingly, was my spy the other day. Wednesday after school she informed me of the 10th grader’s opinion of me. It went like this:
Abby had a mosquito bite on her eye that made her eyelid swell up. Naturally, her students (and my students) asked what had happened. She replied, “Oh yeah, Miss Sarah punched me in the face last night.” The students said, “Noo noo…she’s too nice…she didn’t do that.” They then went on to say that “Miss Sarah is like, ‘look but don’t touch.’” Que? “Like, she’s cooool, but you know not to mess with her.” Niiiice.
I’m definitely feeling this reputation. They know that I am not going to take any crap but that if they are well behaved, I can be fun. I just hope this reputation goes through to all the grades. With the 10th grade class I definitely have a good flow going, mainly because they are just such great learners. They are interested and intrigued, and while they try to convince me everyday to play games, sleep, and teach me Spanish, they are pretty responsive when I say that we actually need to learn. I think they were probably like the 5th graders, five years ago. Something about multiples of five.
This was my second week teaching the 11th graders. They are going to be difficult to keep interested certainly. They are lovable, but I just wish I could talk to them all period and not teach them. I basically want to crack up every second, but refrain from doing so. Usually I laugh pretty hard at least one time during each class.
My first day of teaching these young hooligans, I talked to them about Mr. John leaving, told them about the rules of my classroom, and a couple of topics we would be covering throughout the year. I have to preface this next statement with saying something about my former housemate, John. He f-ing LOVES poetry. He is a poet himself and pretty much would talk about poetry all day if you let him. Naturally, when he found out he would be teaching English and Literature classes, what did he decide to cover? Poetry. POETRY. POETRY. POETRY. Now, poetry is nice and all, but I think it is safe to say that it is not everyone’s favorite topic and maybe it’s not the best genre to use to start off the year? Just my opinion. Anyway, back to my first day with the 11th graders. I said,
“Now, I know with Mr. John you guys did a lot of poetry…”
Cue their groans and faces of despair.
“And I just want to say…”
Cue their looks of anticipation, hope, and excitement.
“...I don’t really like poetry.”
Cue the BIGGEST eruption of applause, noise, laughter, cheering, hugs, high fives, thanking God, standing up, and genuinely pure joy. Equal to what might happen if Honduras won the World Cup. Seriously, ya’ll. Well…maybe not THAT huge. But it was close. Abby later told me that she heard this huge cacophony in her classroom next door. It was hilarious. Especially because we knew these kids didn’t like poetry and John was so in his own poetry world he was blind to the fact that his kids were suffering. Ahh too funny.
As I predicted, the boys in this class are quite entertaining. More than anything it is when they are asking me questions. First, they usually say “HUUHHH?” Not just “Huh?” But a very enthusiastic and vocal “HUUUHH??” Then they’ll be asking me how to say something. For example, the other day we were outside, writing and describing an observation of the rainy day…
Francisco & Franklin: (be sure to do a Honduran accent) “Em Miiiss…how do you call da word, like da water…right here, in da ground…”
Me: “The water…like on the floor here…spilled? Like, you spill water? (as I make hand gestures.)
Francisco & Franklin: “Yeahhhh…yeahhhh….” (as they nod their head and smile)
Me: “Or…there are the little pools of water—“
Francisco & Franklin: “YEAAAHHHH YEAHHHH!! That’s ITT! THAT’S IT!”
Cue my laughter…which ignites their laughter, making it hard for me to spit out P-U-D-D-L-E.
I suppose it is difficult to express through writing. You really need to see these kids in person. The first day of class, I told them that I have one main rule- Respect. I expect you to respect your fellow classmates, respect me, and I will respect you as well. Expect Respect. (Yeah Michigan!) So, now whenever the class is talking and I say, “Okay, quiet down…excuse me…please be quiet…” there is one kid, Ricardo, who, every time, speaks up and says, “Hey! Respect.” He gets the kids attention and says- “HEY. Respect.” “Respect,” “Respect, Miss, Respect.” It cracks me up. EVERY SINGLE TIME. “Hey. Respect.” It’s so great. I told him to keep it going throughout the whole year. “Respect.”
They definitely have personality, that’s for sure. Not lacking in this area AT ALL. I wish I could just video tape an entire class. Bill Cosby was not lying when he said that kids say the darndest things. They really do, especially when they are Honduran bilingual 5th, 9th, 10th, and 11th graders talking to their gringa teacher.
“Respect.”
Abby, unknowingly, was my spy the other day. Wednesday after school she informed me of the 10th grader’s opinion of me. It went like this:
Abby had a mosquito bite on her eye that made her eyelid swell up. Naturally, her students (and my students) asked what had happened. She replied, “Oh yeah, Miss Sarah punched me in the face last night.” The students said, “Noo noo…she’s too nice…she didn’t do that.” They then went on to say that “Miss Sarah is like, ‘look but don’t touch.’” Que? “Like, she’s cooool, but you know not to mess with her.” Niiiice.
I’m definitely feeling this reputation. They know that I am not going to take any crap but that if they are well behaved, I can be fun. I just hope this reputation goes through to all the grades. With the 10th grade class I definitely have a good flow going, mainly because they are just such great learners. They are interested and intrigued, and while they try to convince me everyday to play games, sleep, and teach me Spanish, they are pretty responsive when I say that we actually need to learn. I think they were probably like the 5th graders, five years ago. Something about multiples of five.
This was my second week teaching the 11th graders. They are going to be difficult to keep interested certainly. They are lovable, but I just wish I could talk to them all period and not teach them. I basically want to crack up every second, but refrain from doing so. Usually I laugh pretty hard at least one time during each class.
My first day of teaching these young hooligans, I talked to them about Mr. John leaving, told them about the rules of my classroom, and a couple of topics we would be covering throughout the year. I have to preface this next statement with saying something about my former housemate, John. He f-ing LOVES poetry. He is a poet himself and pretty much would talk about poetry all day if you let him. Naturally, when he found out he would be teaching English and Literature classes, what did he decide to cover? Poetry. POETRY. POETRY. POETRY. Now, poetry is nice and all, but I think it is safe to say that it is not everyone’s favorite topic and maybe it’s not the best genre to use to start off the year? Just my opinion. Anyway, back to my first day with the 11th graders. I said,
“Now, I know with Mr. John you guys did a lot of poetry…”
Cue their groans and faces of despair.
“And I just want to say…”
Cue their looks of anticipation, hope, and excitement.
“...I don’t really like poetry.”
Cue the BIGGEST eruption of applause, noise, laughter, cheering, hugs, high fives, thanking God, standing up, and genuinely pure joy. Equal to what might happen if Honduras won the World Cup. Seriously, ya’ll. Well…maybe not THAT huge. But it was close. Abby later told me that she heard this huge cacophony in her classroom next door. It was hilarious. Especially because we knew these kids didn’t like poetry and John was so in his own poetry world he was blind to the fact that his kids were suffering. Ahh too funny.
As I predicted, the boys in this class are quite entertaining. More than anything it is when they are asking me questions. First, they usually say “HUUHHH?” Not just “Huh?” But a very enthusiastic and vocal “HUUUHH??” Then they’ll be asking me how to say something. For example, the other day we were outside, writing and describing an observation of the rainy day…
Francisco & Franklin: (be sure to do a Honduran accent) “Em Miiiss…how do you call da word, like da water…right here, in da ground…”
Me: “The water…like on the floor here…spilled? Like, you spill water? (as I make hand gestures.)
Francisco & Franklin: “Yeahhhh…yeahhhh….” (as they nod their head and smile)
Me: “Or…there are the little pools of water—“
Francisco & Franklin: “YEAAAHHHH YEAHHHH!! That’s ITT! THAT’S IT!”
Cue my laughter…which ignites their laughter, making it hard for me to spit out P-U-D-D-L-E.
Francisco, Jossue, and Franklin...lovable trouble makers. Don't they just look like they are up to no good??
I suppose it is difficult to express through writing. You really need to see these kids in person. The first day of class, I told them that I have one main rule- Respect. I expect you to respect your fellow classmates, respect me, and I will respect you as well. Expect Respect. (Yeah Michigan!) So, now whenever the class is talking and I say, “Okay, quiet down…excuse me…please be quiet…” there is one kid, Ricardo, who, every time, speaks up and says, “Hey! Respect.” He gets the kids attention and says- “HEY. Respect.” “Respect,” “Respect, Miss, Respect.” It cracks me up. EVERY SINGLE TIME. “Hey. Respect.” It’s so great. I told him to keep it going throughout the whole year. “Respect.”
They definitely have personality, that’s for sure. Not lacking in this area AT ALL. I wish I could just video tape an entire class. Bill Cosby was not lying when he said that kids say the darndest things. They really do, especially when they are Honduran bilingual 5th, 9th, 10th, and 11th graders talking to their gringa teacher.
“Respect.”
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Ven a America!
Another ad for your viewing pleasure.
COME TO AMERICA AND STAY FOREVER
WE ARE WAITING FOR YOU!
Sorry kids, hate to break it to you, but NO ONE is waiting for you. It's as if there is someone at the Miami airport waiting with a sign, "WELCOME TO AMERICA!" who immediately takes your luggage pops it into a limo, takes you to your cookie cutter suburban home, and off you go on your new life.
Oh the allure of the American Dream...
Saturday, October 18, 2008
The Other Mother Teresa
The first time we went to La Madre Teresa we were taken there by our Honduran friend, Cid, and our English friend, Chris. I’m not sure if I have introduced Chris yet, so please allow me to do so. Chris is a former teacher at HEM school who has lived in Honduras for about 2 years. Originally from Britain, Chris is loads of fun and a great person to know as we are figuring out our place here in Santa Rosa. He often just stops by, entertains us for an hour or two, and then goes on his merry way. A fabulous partner in crime for the night scene of Santa Rosa, he’s always up for a good time.
When Cid and Chris first told us about La Madre, we were quite intrigued, especially when they told Abby and me that there was no way in hell that we should ever go there alone. Well, after being there, I’m sure we’d be okay. We’d be attacked by Honduran men, nothing new, and wouldn’t have anywhere to go to the bathroom…but other than that, La Madre Teresa would have our back. That said, I really would never go there by myself, just with Abby, or without a guy—or three. La Madre is this shady little out of the way bar that you can only get to by taxi and after passing old wear houses and factories, down this completely deserted dirt road. Come to think of it, I have only gone there at night so I really do not even know what surrounds this tiny little shack. I think that is probably a good thing.
A one room bar with about 6 tables and a few bar stools, painted a vibrant green color with baby cockroaches being a common sight, crawling the floors and some of the tables. As much as I hate cockroaches (and I HATE cockroaches) these just add to the atmosphere that is nowhere but La Madre. Serving your typical beers to your typical drunks, this little Honduran bar is not much different than an out of the way dive bar in the States. It has its regular customers who gawk at the out of place Americans, it’s seen-better-days-but-still-has-a-sense-of-humor owner and bartendress (la madre), and of course, a signature drink. La preparada.
A mix of gurro (Honduran’s version of moon shine), something, something, something else, lemonade, and sugar. I’m never one to pay much attention…I just know if it’s good or not. This my friends, is GOOD. And STRONG. There is certainly no way I need more than one of these babies in one night.
In Santa Rosa, you have your Americanized Applebee’s type bar, your working-class karaoke bar, your higher class Hotel bar, and then you have La Madre. I wouldn’t go there every day, but an adventure to La Madre has, thus far, never left me disappointed. I’ll be sure to learn how to make a preparada before I leave Honduras and then, of course, teach you all in the ways of La Madre.
Chris and Cid hijacking my camera.
When Cid and Chris first told us about La Madre, we were quite intrigued, especially when they told Abby and me that there was no way in hell that we should ever go there alone. Well, after being there, I’m sure we’d be okay. We’d be attacked by Honduran men, nothing new, and wouldn’t have anywhere to go to the bathroom…but other than that, La Madre Teresa would have our back. That said, I really would never go there by myself, just with Abby, or without a guy—or three. La Madre is this shady little out of the way bar that you can only get to by taxi and after passing old wear houses and factories, down this completely deserted dirt road. Come to think of it, I have only gone there at night so I really do not even know what surrounds this tiny little shack. I think that is probably a good thing.
Abby and me all smiles, out saying goodbye to John.
A one room bar with about 6 tables and a few bar stools, painted a vibrant green color with baby cockroaches being a common sight, crawling the floors and some of the tables. As much as I hate cockroaches (and I HATE cockroaches) these just add to the atmosphere that is nowhere but La Madre. Serving your typical beers to your typical drunks, this little Honduran bar is not much different than an out of the way dive bar in the States. It has its regular customers who gawk at the out of place Americans, it’s seen-better-days-but-still-has-a-sense-of-humor owner and bartendress (la madre), and of course, a signature drink. La preparada.
A mix of gurro (Honduran’s version of moon shine), something, something, something else, lemonade, and sugar. I’m never one to pay much attention…I just know if it’s good or not. This my friends, is GOOD. And STRONG. There is certainly no way I need more than one of these babies in one night.
This picture was taken to show the fabulous juxtaposition of Jesus and the borderline pornographic calendar girl.
A little shot of La Madre herself in her element.
In Santa Rosa, you have your Americanized Applebee’s type bar, your working-class karaoke bar, your higher class Hotel bar, and then you have La Madre. I wouldn’t go there every day, but an adventure to La Madre has, thus far, never left me disappointed. I’ll be sure to learn how to make a preparada before I leave Honduras and then, of course, teach you all in the ways of La Madre.
Here's to Disease and Colonialism!
Who doesn’t love to celebrate disease and pillaging native civilizations? The U.S. doesn’t celebrate Columbus Day as openly as they used to, I think it stopped being a school holiday for me in about 5th grade. Despite the U.S.’s failing to recognize the great achievements of Christopher Columbus and his men, the wondrous killing of native tribes, raping of women, bringing in white man diseases, and discovering that the world is not in fact flat, Honduras still commemorates it in full force. As Abby said, “If there is anyone who shouldn’t be celebrating it, it should be Central Americans. He pillaged and killed your people first!” Valid point my friend. However, we both agreed, “When in Rome…”
Dia de la Raza is a very big day on the campus of HEM School and its celebration was somewhat reminiscent of high school homecoming with the addition of lots and lots of really good food. Needless to say, completely up my alley. Each class competes in decorating either a “champa,” for the older students, or a little area outside their classrooms, for the primary grades. AKA Decorating a homecoming float. A champa is a little hut/food stand, which must be decorated using traditional materials.
The day before we began decorating, my 10th grade classroom had tons of banana leaves, sticks of bamboo, and palm leaves just chillin there, all collected from the students’ backyards. Banana trees in your backyard? No big. We began decorating on Thursday and as their guide teacher I was obligated to help the 10th graders. Wasn’t much of an obligation as I was continuing to decorate after all of them were pretty much done. Nerd alert. I must say, we made an absolutely STELLAR champa. David, one of my students said I should be an art teacher, it was that good. Flattery will get you everywhere.
Some further parallels to high school homecoming are the other events that happened throughout the day. First of all, the students dress up in ropa tradicional, traditional Honduran clothing. AKA Spirit dress up days. Now, it is not like “Pajama Day,” or “Red & Blue Day.” More like, the girls wear these pretty dresses and the boys wear cowboy jeans and plaid shirts, it’s quite precious. Not to mention, there is a prize for the best costume. In addition, a few of the primary grades have mini performances, AKA Skit! “Dad, I have skit today.” Ah the memories. Once again, however, instead of performing “funny” parodies of Charlie’s Angels, they present little skits, dances, and songs relating to Honduran culture…or so I think, I couldn’t really hear anything they were saying. Wah wah Miss Sarah.
My favorites- the fifth graders. Oh the are just too wonderful for words. I think I am going to video record them one day in class. The crack me up everday and make me feel oh so loved.
Now, the best part about Dia de la Raza is what actually happens inside those champas that I described above. FOOD. Food, food, and more food. The 7th-11th grades all sell different, traditional Honduran foods in their champas, all day long to students, teachers, and parents. Such a delicious learning experience, I highly recommend it.
I tried most everything,…tajadas con carne, fried plantains, tamales, ticucos, yuka, horchata, copan dry, limonada in a bag, pastelitos, pupusas… but there was so much, I still left some dishes untouched. My favorites where pastelitos and pupusas. Pastelitos are what many of us would think of as “empandas,” little fried pockets of yummy goodness. Pupusas are these small fried tortillas made with meat. I can’t really describe them but they are basically to die for. The best part is that one of our fellow teachers, Geovany, owns a pupuseria literally half a block from our house. Will I be frequenting there often? To quote Sarah Palin, “you betcha.”
We were really lucky with the weather. It was certainly a gorgeous day to just sit and eat, which is exactly what I did. Sat, ate, walked around, ate, talked to some students, ate, met some parents, ate, and ate and ate. Best day of school to date. (Hey that rhymed!) Oh, and in case you were wondering, 10th grade TOTALLY won the Champa competition. She’s still got it!
Dia de la Raza is a very big day on the campus of HEM School and its celebration was somewhat reminiscent of high school homecoming with the addition of lots and lots of really good food. Needless to say, completely up my alley. Each class competes in decorating either a “champa,” for the older students, or a little area outside their classrooms, for the primary grades. AKA Decorating a homecoming float. A champa is a little hut/food stand, which must be decorated using traditional materials.
The finished champas, unfortunately you can't really see 10th grade's in this picture. It's a beaut.
The day before we began decorating, my 10th grade classroom had tons of banana leaves, sticks of bamboo, and palm leaves just chillin there, all collected from the students’ backyards. Banana trees in your backyard? No big. We began decorating on Thursday and as their guide teacher I was obligated to help the 10th graders. Wasn’t much of an obligation as I was continuing to decorate after all of them were pretty much done. Nerd alert. I must say, we made an absolutely STELLAR champa. David, one of my students said I should be an art teacher, it was that good. Flattery will get you everywhere.
Me posing with the 10th grade girls. They are great girls...so glad I get to be their guide teacher...even if they are too cool to smile in this picture.
Some further parallels to high school homecoming are the other events that happened throughout the day. First of all, the students dress up in ropa tradicional, traditional Honduran clothing. AKA Spirit dress up days. Now, it is not like “Pajama Day,” or “Red & Blue Day.” More like, the girls wear these pretty dresses and the boys wear cowboy jeans and plaid shirts, it’s quite precious. Not to mention, there is a prize for the best costume. In addition, a few of the primary grades have mini performances, AKA Skit! “Dad, I have skit today.” Ah the memories. Once again, however, instead of performing “funny” parodies of Charlie’s Angels, they present little skits, dances, and songs relating to Honduran culture…or so I think, I couldn’t really hear anything they were saying. Wah wah Miss Sarah.
The 1st graders performing a traditional dance. Adorable. Or as we say in Spanish, Adorable.
My favorites- the fifth graders. Oh the are just too wonderful for words. I think I am going to video record them one day in class. The crack me up everday and make me feel oh so loved.
Now, the best part about Dia de la Raza is what actually happens inside those champas that I described above. FOOD. Food, food, and more food. The 7th-11th grades all sell different, traditional Honduran foods in their champas, all day long to students, teachers, and parents. Such a delicious learning experience, I highly recommend it.
The 10th graders selling tamales, tojadas de carne, and Copan Dry in their champa
I tried most everything,…tajadas con carne, fried plantains, tamales, ticucos, yuka, horchata, copan dry, limonada in a bag, pastelitos, pupusas… but there was so much, I still left some dishes untouched. My favorites where pastelitos and pupusas. Pastelitos are what many of us would think of as “empandas,” little fried pockets of yummy goodness. Pupusas are these small fried tortillas made with meat. I can’t really describe them but they are basically to die for. The best part is that one of our fellow teachers, Geovany, owns a pupuseria literally half a block from our house. Will I be frequenting there often? To quote Sarah Palin, “you betcha.”
Pastelitos...unfortunately I didn't take pictures of the food. Why? I don't know...but google images does a fine job.
Another google image- Pupusas. My favorite! And I love that there are places that ONLY sell these, and nothing else.
We were really lucky with the weather. It was certainly a gorgeous day to just sit and eat, which is exactly what I did. Sat, ate, walked around, ate, talked to some students, ate, met some parents, ate, and ate and ate. Best day of school to date. (Hey that rhymed!) Oh, and in case you were wondering, 10th grade TOTALLY won the Champa competition. She’s still got it!
Friday, October 10, 2008
And Let's Just Raffle Off Citizenship While We're At It
We all know those annoying advertisements on website side bars. They tell you how to lose weight, convince you that you need to look up your former high school classmate (class of 1982, yeaaah!), insist that you click here! click here! click here!, and let's not forget those damn cartoon monkeys clapping their stupid symbols.Now that I am out of the U.S., and my IP address es de Honduras, I am finding some different types of pop up and side bar scam ads. The other day, while browsing my good friend, the fbook, right next to my recently updated friends list, I noticed this little ad. Instead of promoting collegetees.com or encouraging me to become a secret shopper...click here! I am now being bombarded with ads offering me a chance to win a Green Card.
On the left here, you'll see what I'm talking about. Let me translate this for you...'cause I speak Spanish, and I can do that. (pssh...riiight.) It says: "Answer to get the chance to win a Green Card...Who is the president of the United States?" Apparently if you click on good 'ol George Dubyah there, you could win a U.S. Green Card! If I wasn't already a citizen, I'd be ALL over this. Holllerrrr!
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