Tuesday, May 06, 2008

1 YEAR IN SITE

I'm in Tegus with my project right now for mid-term meds after celebrating our official 1 year anniversary. Nuts to think I arrived in site a year ago, a bright-eyed, idealistic nitwit who is gradually becoming more and more jaded about PC life. Though I guess I can mention several positives about Honduras. Here is a list of ups and downs... I'll start with the downs to end on a positive note:

DOWNS
-projects that fall apart
-lack of motivation on the part of nearly everyone in my site
-my designation as the English teacher, rather than the professional business/IT advisor Peace Corps volunteer superstar. I guess it's easier to say English teacher.
-kids that write on my walls and pee on my flowers and yell obscenities at me
-males that hoot and holler and butcher my language with comments like "i lub you foreber bebi"
-eating broccoli with worms in it
-days of no water/electricity
-Honduran inefficiency and the indirect manner of doing absolutely everything
-the moments where I want to tear my hair out in frustration and wonder what in the world I'm doing here and not at my house in the States with a paying job and my family and friends and kitty cat

UPS
-my next-door neighbor/only Honduran friend/my guardian angel and most incredible person on the planet
-little kids that draw me pictures and give me stickers and hugs and kisses
-eating the few Honduran food items that are actually tasty, including baleadas (beans on a flour tortilla), cuajada (soft cheese) and natural fruit shakes
-the few projects that sort of work
-the amazing San Jose weather that never gets colder than 50 and never hotter than 85
-getting around 10 hours of sleep a night, every night for 2 years
-the moments where I feel at home in my site and know that I belong here and wouldn't want to be anywhere else.

Feliz aniversario to me and Hondu10!!!