The EQUATOR

Before we left Quito, we made our way to the museum at the middle of the earth. I felt like a kid again as we witnessed some things that were truly amazing at the museum. First off, we were introduced to an indigenous tribe and their customs and the structures they lived in. Tracey informed us that the homes our families live in consist of much the same. Further, we saw an actual shrunken head from the days when this tribe decapitated important people after they were dead or the heads of their enemies. The members of the tribe would wear the heads around their necks as mementos! No thanks! Further, we saw some guinea pigs in the hut and we were told that if they made a lot of noise this was an indicator of a bad omen or spirit among the group. Fortunately, they made no obscene noises and it made me feel good that our group does not consist of any serial killers or madmen! Last, our tour guide had us walk to a red line that is literally the line that separates the Northern Hemisphere from the Southern Hemisphere. She poured water down a sink in the middle and the water rushed straight down into a bucket. Then, she took the sink to the Northern Hemisphere side and the water ran down the sink counterclockwise! And, as expected, the water ran clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere. Last, we each had a chance to balance an actual egg on a small nail in the middle of the world. The egg should be able to balance as the gravitational pull of the earth is much less at this special place. Some people were unsuccessful in balancing the egg but I luckily got the egg to balance. I must mention that it did not take me much time either! Those of us who successfully balanced the egg were awarded with stamped diplomas recognizing this great feat. My friend Kathryn and I joked that we should have received honors given the length of time it took us as well as accounting for the fact that our nail was the hardest to balance the egg on. Overall, a great little side trip and it was amazing to see how another example of our mysterious world. After the museum we made our way to Otavalo to meet our host families and start our six week tour of duty!

I'm in South America

We arrived in Quito, Ecuador on Friday the 13th! No bad luck with the planes, in fact TACA, the airlines we flew in on, was more than impressive in getting our bags to arrive with us and work out some other minor issues! Back home I feel that our bags would have been left behind and the airlines would have made it our problem to worry about. Flying into Quito was amazing! To see a large city nestled between the sierras of the Andes Mountains was incredible. It rained the entire weekend we were in Quito but our hostel was very nice and it was nice to relax, read, and get caught up on emails and to use the internet again. We met some new volunteers whom we will spend the next four to five weeks with in Octavalo. They all seem very interesting and nice and it seems we will have a great group. Food was a highlight of Quito and we spend most of our time in what the locals call “Gringo Land.” I ate Pad Thai and sushi and steak, etc! It was wonderful. Also, Tracey, our program director, briefed us on our assignments and what we could expect for the next six weeks. I will be teaching in a new school and helping to integrate the new students into the school experience. Also, we will be teaching English to the older children as well. It will definitely be a challenge but I think my group is up for it. Susan, Aviv, and Maya will all be teaching at different schools so we will have drastically different experiences to share. On Sunday, we made our way form Quito to Octavalo. The drive was amazing and the views through the Andes were brilliant. The views reminded me of Colorado with a lot more green! To begin this week, I will have Spanish classes on Monday and Tuesday and then we will begin school on Wednesday…can’t wait!

Esteli, Nicarauga and Stove building!

Esteli, Nicaragua is situated north of Managua and is larger than the previous two base towns we have been situated in. Esteli seems to be a major thoroughfare between Honduras, Managua, and Costa Rica. In fact we cross the Pan American Highway everyday .The actual town does not have the character that Antigua and Copan posses but the community we are building stoves in, Thompson, is a stark reminder of the poverty that can exist in Central America. Thompson is basically a shanty town and the homes consist of scrap wood, corrugated metal roofs, plastic and any other item one can find to help close out weather elements. Other volunteers and GVI staff have started a small school here and the kids are just as cute and bright faced as any of the kids we have seen in the past. Right now, the school consists of two walls with the other three sides left exposed to the elements. But, it seems that the volunteers and staff are doing a wonderful job and it’s very exciting that the community is embracing the new school. Yesterday, we split into teams to build the first two stoves. Rufus, Susan, and Maya formed one team and Aviv, Don Juan, Domingo and me made up the second team. Don Juan and Domingo are locals and the stove we are building will be used by Domingo and his family. I guess he is around 15 or 16 and Don Juan is in his forties or fifties. Immediately, Aviv and I noticed the kind face of Don Juan and he and Domingo have been a thrill to work with. They are very lighthearted and patient. I had trouble understanding them the first day as the Nicaraguan accent is very different, especially given our rural location. But, today was easier and I joked a little with Domingo and understood Don Juan’s directions for the most part. It was fun to listen to the radio and hear Domingo sing and hear Don Juan’s laughter. Aviv did a great job today and we have nearly constructed our first stove. The stoves are made of cinder block, cement, ribarb, soil, tiles, etc. The stoves are much more energy efficient thereby allowing the family to use less wood; less work for the family and obviously better for the outlying environment. Also, the stoves are equipped with chimneys and this will allow for zero smoke inhalation by the family as well as a safer cooking area for the mother. She will not be faced with the prospect of burning herself anymore and there will be no risk of an open fire spreading throughout the house. Overall, just a wonderful project that GVI has started and each of us donated a stove through the money we paid to join this program (we each bought the materials for one stove). Domingo and his family are very happy with the stove thus far and his mother offers us coke, coffee, popcorn she makes, or crackers each day. The weather is very, very warm and it will be a huge change to go to Ecuador this weekend. All of us wish we could stay longer as we feel a connection to this desolate and poverty stricken pueblo with wonderful inhabitants who are all happy and supportive of our presence here. Rufus, our project leader with the stoves, has built hundreds of them and is a real pro. Fortunately for us, Rufus will be travelling with us to Ecuador as well! Here are some pictures of the stove and the community!

Adios Copan!

Good Bye to Copan. As usual, it was extremely difficult to leave this wonderful and special place. I want to write some random things about this place that make it special and that make it a memory to last forever in my mind. The giant hill Maya and I have to walk up every day. We call it Puta Diabla, not a nice word in Spanish J The sickly and starving dogs that walk the streets of Copan. The pretty girls in the streets and Gabriela or Gaby. Watching Honduras football (the real football). Dona Elena, my Mama of Honduras. I will miss her dearly but will see her again one day soon. She is a woman of strength and endurance who continues to love those around her amidst 10 hours of work each day at her Bed and Breakfast/Restaurant. Nelly, the best Spanish teacher in Central America. My dear friend and a remarkable woman who has had a difficult life but has persevered and who spreads happiness and joy each day. Ellen or Gringita! My Gringa Honduras friend who I will always stay in touch with. I will miss her funny stories and motivating journey. Ixcel, Dona Elena’s dog and I must mention the healthiest dog in Honduras. Tuk Tuk rides, Isiayis, Alexander, Maria, and Mercy; I love them all. The ride in the back of Edgar’s truck each day to school, the smiles and positivity of the children in San Rafael. Holding the hand of a child full of optimism and strength who battles poverty each day and thinking, what does his/her future have in store? Football games with Mario and Pablo, two of the craziest kids in Honduras. Can’t help but love them though. Café VillaMil and the wonderful people that work there. Papa Changos and the crazy nights it brought, Sapo Rojo-drama and good drinks, Balleadas, stepping in a lot of dog crap, Hacienda San Lucas, Wes-a wonderful person and someone with a brilliant mind and future. Katia-a Quebec friend and a wonderful Spanish student and a future pharmacist, Britta-a new friend and someone I hope to hang out with many more times in the future! My local eating buddies who put up with my bad Spanish! A lot of honking in the streets, Tuk Tuk corner, the best Spanish school ever-Julia and the others there! Salva Vida, Uterus shots, and jellyfish shots, our song by Foreigner-this will not leave with Copan, Snickers bars, the food at Dona Elena’s, tamales, climbing the fence with help from Maya, Utila and life under the warm and clear water, Picante’s restaurant in Utila, Sophie and Traci, two new friends and great GVI Interns, Pamela and Erick, new friends and two people I want to stay in touch with. The Christmas Tree in the Park and the song that needs to end, fishing in the river, the amazing Copan Ruins, coffee and more coffee, hanging out at the Spanish school and parties at the Spanish school, bus rides, building the pila, my room at Dona Elena’s, my view at Dona Elena’s, Dona Elena’s family-all remarkable people, walking from school when Edgar was late, working on my Spanish, greeting people in the street, New Years, Skyping m family, hanging out with Dom and eating at Momo’s, long chats with Ellen, seeing the pain and suffering that is life for some humans, feeling guilty about eating so much, days that last forever, no stress, siestas, saying really stupid things in Spanish, watching the sunrise one morning, roosters and more roosters sounding off way before sunup, the kindness and friendliness in Copan, riding horses, pushing a Tuk Tuk in mud, meeting so many cool people, vowing to come back someday. And, of course my compatriots and my family during this journey: Susan, Aviv, and Maya! I’m sure there’s more, but this is a start.

Ellen Finn!

Ellen Finn…one of the most remarkable people I will ever meet. She is a former social worker and is also a professional jazz musician. She feeds all the amazingly unhealthy and sad dogs that live in the streets of Copan and works tirelessly each day to help the adults, children, and animals and everything else she comes in contact with in and around Copan. To add, she is comical, witty, and a smart aleck! Sounds too good to be true, it is not. This lady is for real and I had the absolute privilege of getting to live next to her and spend some time with her. Ellen moved to Copan almost one year ago with a mission. She wanted to help the kids and families in the poverty stricken outlying communities near Copan. She has raised money through donations to improve schools, bring joy to families, improve upon structures, raise awareness and help to improve dental hygiene, health, etc, etc in these small pueblos. Most importantly, she has shared so much love with these people and they not only love her, but respect her and her work. She calls herself Gringita (little gringo women) but she is so much more than that to the people here. Her Spanish is wonderful and it has come through hard work and because Ellen talks to anyone and everyone in Copan and outside of Copan. I loved to see Ellen sitting with four of five local men during lunch. She would have those men laughing and would embarrass them and she was the center of attention in this macho laden culture. Ellen is not here for herself or because she is running away from problems back home. She is here to help and she has dedication like I have never seen. Also, she does not just provide handouts. She collaborates with the communities and it is understood that they need to work also to earn the things Ellen can help them with. We will all miss our Gringita. It warms my heart to think what a wonderful ambassador we have out there. She is a remarkable human being and I will miss her dearly and will need to return to Copan one day or wherever Ellen is to meet up again. She has connected us with a remarkable family in Llanatios and has helped me connect with locals whom I would not have known because of my poor Spanish. You can learn so much from people and Ellen Finn has been a blessing in my life. She has given me advice and wisdom that I hope I can understand more and more and follow each day. If you are interested in helping this amazing person in her mission please email her at: Ellenlfinn@hotmail.com. She is a woman full of passion, compassion, and purpose. She feels these people’s joys and sorrows every day and is probably working on improving someone’s life as you read this!

Copan, close to an end

It hit me today that today is my last Monday in Copan and that each c onsecutive day will be my last respective weekday in this wonderful place. Today was the last day of school for our kids in the first and second grades. They have a small break before they begin school again next Monday. I have included some pictures of these wonderful kids and once again, it was very hard to say goodbye to them. So many individuals among them and each so special with a special smile or word for me each day. For the rest of the week we will be cleaning the school and decorating with the other local teachers in prepration for regular school to begin next week. Then…off to Nicarauga to begin building stoves! I look forward to a new experience but I felt an immense sadness today when I realized I would be leaving my host Mama, Elena and my Spanish teacher, Nelly and all the other locals that I really love. Copan has been different than Antigua in that I have met so many locals and eaten dinner or lunch with them, shared laughs, taught a little English, and spoken to them in broken and sometimes incoprehensible Spanish. The people here are so open and beyond nice in the way they converse and include foreigners. Besides the school, I will miss so much my host mother, Elena. She runs a bed and breakfast and people come to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner at her home each day. She works around 10 hours per day and has truly been an angel to me. I LOVE her food and eat every last crumb off my plate. Soups, fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, oatmeal, pancakes, tortillas, chicken, rice, black beans (of course), wonderful drinks, tamales, eggs, baleadas, etc. etc. I don’t know what I will do without black beans and tortillas. I eat these staples at almost each meal and it’s funny how something becomes a part of you! Elena lost her husband around fifteen years ago but managed to raise four wonderful children. Daysi lives in the house and works on the border. She is a great person and we talk at night sometimes. She is trying to learn more English and I try to help her out sometimes. I have also met one of her sons and her other daughter who lives in San Pedro Sula. Her youngest son Neddy, who is my age, lives in the United States and I know this breaks Elena’s heart as she tears up when she talks about him. I have so much respect for this wonderful woman and each time I tell her that her food is the best in Hondruas or tell her thank you for everything I can see the pride she has! She spoils me rotten and even slips me extra food when there are other guests seated close to me! Also, Elena employs a young women who is from a poor village outside of Copan and teaches her how to cook and provides her a place to live. Further, Elena will give food to a ver y old women when she needs it. I didn’t think I could meet a better family than my family in Antigua, but it seems I have met two top notch sets of people. I am so lucky. Then…there’s my Spanish teacher, Nelly. She has helped me so much with my Spanish and I can’t express her kindness. I go to Nelly’s house at night sometimes for extra help and she is so motivated to help me improve my Spanish. She has four children and a husband and seems to have worked so hard to put her children in a position to go to college and have a good life. The atmosphere at my school is incredible and there is so much laughter and joking! I love to go to school each day and Nelly and Julia give me a lot of grief each day and try to embarrass me on a regular basis. I will miss these people so much as well as the people that stay at Dona Elena’s during the week . They work during the week and are away from their families. It is a great opportunity for me to practice my Spanish and every now and again I meet some very cool people from other countries as well. It’s nice to greet people on the streets and I feel a real sense of community. That is why it will be so hard to leave this wonderful place. I’ll try not to think about it and just enjoy the last few days. One day, I will need to come back here though. Once again, I don’t know how this trip can get any better. Thanks to all of you who have supported me and I am so fortunate. Hope all is well back home. Super Bowl was last night and I actually didn’t watch it. Was hanging out with a local girl I met here. She is very interesting and fun to hang out with. Nice to get a local perspective on things from someone my age. Anywhoo, I will post more blogs soon, so much to talk about!

The Family

One of the most powerful experiences in Copan for our group was meeting a small family in an obscure community named Llanatios. Ellen introduced us to this family about three weeks into our stay in Copan. The two boys, Isiayis and Alexander, both orphans, worked each day carrying wood for miles to generate income for their family. Isiayis is 16 and Alexander is 12 years old. Maria, who is 18 years old, makes pottery and accepts donations through a small ceramic operation she runs. The pottery operation was funded in part by the World Bank. Mercy, age 9, lives with the family as well and is Maria’s niece. Maria’s mother had been very sick and she acts as the mother/grandmother to Isayis and Alexander who have no family they can turn to. To enter Llanatios we took a Tuk Tuk. Tuk Tuk’s are omnipresent in Guatemala and Honduras. They are taxis and consist of a small cab with three wheels, one in the front and two in the back. We packed three and four people respectively in each Tuk Tuk and made the way up the steep grade to Llanatios. Meeting the family for the first time was amazing. The family was so excited to meet us and we made pottery with Maria and played simple football and jump rope games with the children. They were so happy and Ellen told us that the laughter bursting from the kids that day was the first she had ever heard. We vowed to come back the next week and each group member was taken aback by the kindness and happiness of this family who has next to nothing but is full of joy and songs (Isiayis has a wonderful singing voice). Further, Isiayis has never gone to school and cannot read or write. Yet, his attitude about life and his love for others is unmatched in my eyes. We returned the next weekend and Wes, a friend we met in Copan, presented Isiayis with a guitar he bought in Copan. Isiayis was overjoyed and I have included a picture taken moments after Isiayis received his gift. The entire family took turns playing the guitar and Wes and Ellen played some tunes as well. It was a beautiful day and we all thought it would be the last time we saw this family before we left. For reasons not so fortunate, we were reunited with the family. Isiayis came to our house very early on the morning of his birthday and informed Ellen that their mother/grandmother had passed away at 1:00 AM that same morning. Ellen was obviously very distraught and came to me early in the morning with the news. She indicated to me that Isiayis had requested we come visit them that day. Some of the group decided to brave the steady rain and mud and we went to visit the family again. We pushed the Tuk Tuk up the hill several times and this consisted of slipping in the mud and holding on for dear life as the Tuk Tuk struggled along. But, we made it to the top and to Llanatios. We were greeted by Isiayis, still staying very strong but we could tell he was hurting. Maria saw Ellen and immediately broke down. Alexander had tears in his eyes. Many friends and neighbors were at the home and many of the children were shoeless and coatless in the steady and cold rain. We talked with the family and in opposition to what we had thought we were a comforting influence on the family. We hugged the family and they of course gave us a wonderful portion of rice and chicken and tortillas along with Maria’s fabulous coffee. We could see in the other room that there was a coffin with their mother lying inside. This was the room they all sleep in and there were no cots, blankets, etc. The poverty they live in the midst of every day is staggering. We all left with mixed emotions and all of us shed some tears that day. It was so very hard to leave them. I know I will be back one day to see these people and I told them this. They are strong and beautiful humans and experience so much pain and suffering on a regular basis, but continue to hold steadfastly to their spiritual beliefs and each other. I hope to God they can make it through this and I know Ellen continues to work on their behalf for donations, etc. She will continue to see them on a regular basis I know. It was a gift for me to get to know them and I will think about them a lot in the days to come. To think, they are only one family in the macrocosm of poverty and struggle in Central America and the world at large. God Bless them.