Tomorrow, the 24th, is the birthday of Santa Cruz! so tomorrow is a holiday and i have the day off. i've been working at Centro Menno for a little over a work and love it! Centro Menno is a drop/in welcome center for colony mennonites when they come into the city for business. we have mailboxes for them, a little book store, and a library. i am working mostly with the library, so i've learned the checking in/out of books, how to wrap books with seran wrap like stuff, and other library stuff. i love to read and always wondered what it would be like to work in a library, and i think i'm really going to like it. every monday we package some type of periodical that either get sent out to colonies or put in mailboxes. so far i've packaged a children's newspaper and a mennonite newspaper from canada. i'm hoping that it will help me become a better giftwrapper :)
there are 2 couples who run centro menno and write the "menno bote," another periodical. 3 have roots in paraguay, so in the morning and afternoon we break and drink tarere (sp?) a typical south american drink that is made fun crushed leaves and cold water and is drunk through a metal straw. there are all these rules for drinking it, like always pass it in a circle without skipping any one and you say "thank you" only when you are finished drinking and don't want anymore. i definitely love the laidback attitude. and then throughout the day people are always dropping by. i love to just listen and watch. low german is different from the high german i studied...4 years ago? but i can pick up on some things. i have confused some people already because i'll say one short german phrase and they assume i'm fluent and they're off! once they see the blank look on my face they apologize and some speak english!
i'm getting the hang of the micro system here. for the most part i really like it. but sometimes i'm about 6 inches too tall for the ceiling. and sometimes traffic is so bad that the micro i waved down can't get to me and just keep driving by. but it is really cheap (1.5 bs (1 US$=7 bolivianos) and a fun place to people watch.
also had my first experience with sickness. last week tuesday after volleyball practice i ended up being sick through the whole night. only stomach flu action thank goodness, but it was paired with no sleep and a constant loop of michael jackson songs running through my head. (i have never listend to mj more in my life then during my SALT expereince. probably will never again.)
i have my first vball game on friday night! go catolica!
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Friday, September 11, 2009
Be Prepared
Back at Calvin, Wyatt's house always quoted the sage advice from a mountain goat in "Hoodwinked" - "be prepaaarred." True that. When I look back at this past week, I think what?! that happened?
On Sunday... I moved in with my host family, wonderful people. My host parents are older, the host dad is the pastor of a baptist church and my host mom is always busy in the church and other organizations. There are 2 grown children living at home (i think?) and they also have 2 daughters and 4 grandchildren. About 20 minutes after I arrived at their casa, we were picked up by my "sister" and "niece" paula (she's 24) and headed out to a birthday party. we couldn't find the house, but when we finally did it turns out they were moving so no party. then it was off to church! once again i stood up and waved to everyone :) i met some people who are part of the youth group i will join.
and on tuesday... i joined a volleyball team. turns out paula used to be the setter for the bolivian national team and plays in a league. so on tuesday i went to practice! the court is outside, but with a roof. the coach's name is chino and there are girls on the team from brazil and chile. throw in a 5'11" gringa and we got us an international team! i had a blast playing right hitter and trying to learn their serve recieve with dramatic gestures and limited spanglish. we have a game next week friday! they tell me i have to learn portuguese on top of spanish and low german. huh.
and on wednesday...i went with paula to watch womens' 19 league santa cruz v. la paz. volleyball fans are just as crazy as futbol fans. the game went as long as possible with santa cruz winning 15-13 in the 5th game and the fans rushed the court. bueno.
and on thursday...i went to a michael jackson concert. say what? that's right. bolivians love michael jackson so paula took me to this "michael jackson history" concert. forgot my camera which is a huge bummer, i could have taken a pic with one of the impersonators walking around. there was a dance group that performed a few songs and a few local singers sang some songs. and then the man of the hour...a bolivian impersonator who won a competition with his mad skills. he wore a mic and would randomly yell "woooooo" or "i luve you!" in a michael jackson voice. crazy. fun. i was even interviewed by a tv camera man at one point. i guess i did stick out, being 6 inches taller then all those around me.
on a serious note, they juxtaposed the song "heal the world" with a video montage of kids living on the street in santa cruz. it is such a heartbreaking moment when i see kids sitting on street corners with these blank stares on their faces and glue bottles in hand. dropping out of school and addiction to sniffing glue or other drugs is a huge problem here. i just think - have they been on their own for so long and the only way to escape their harsh realities is drugs? the childrens homes that some of my fellow SALTers will be working at try to combat this, but resources are few and their is so much need. i pray that they will be able to make a positive impact on a child's life while they are working in their positions!
i start work on monday! we toured centro menno on tuesday and i am so excited! can't wait to find out more about this job i will be doing for the next year!
On Sunday... I moved in with my host family, wonderful people. My host parents are older, the host dad is the pastor of a baptist church and my host mom is always busy in the church and other organizations. There are 2 grown children living at home (i think?) and they also have 2 daughters and 4 grandchildren. About 20 minutes after I arrived at their casa, we were picked up by my "sister" and "niece" paula (she's 24) and headed out to a birthday party. we couldn't find the house, but when we finally did it turns out they were moving so no party. then it was off to church! once again i stood up and waved to everyone :) i met some people who are part of the youth group i will join.
and on tuesday... i joined a volleyball team. turns out paula used to be the setter for the bolivian national team and plays in a league. so on tuesday i went to practice! the court is outside, but with a roof. the coach's name is chino and there are girls on the team from brazil and chile. throw in a 5'11" gringa and we got us an international team! i had a blast playing right hitter and trying to learn their serve recieve with dramatic gestures and limited spanglish. we have a game next week friday! they tell me i have to learn portuguese on top of spanish and low german. huh.
and on wednesday...i went with paula to watch womens' 19 league santa cruz v. la paz. volleyball fans are just as crazy as futbol fans. the game went as long as possible with santa cruz winning 15-13 in the 5th game and the fans rushed the court. bueno.
and on thursday...i went to a michael jackson concert. say what? that's right. bolivians love michael jackson so paula took me to this "michael jackson history" concert. forgot my camera which is a huge bummer, i could have taken a pic with one of the impersonators walking around. there was a dance group that performed a few songs and a few local singers sang some songs. and then the man of the hour...a bolivian impersonator who won a competition with his mad skills. he wore a mic and would randomly yell "woooooo" or "i luve you!" in a michael jackson voice. crazy. fun. i was even interviewed by a tv camera man at one point. i guess i did stick out, being 6 inches taller then all those around me.
on a serious note, they juxtaposed the song "heal the world" with a video montage of kids living on the street in santa cruz. it is such a heartbreaking moment when i see kids sitting on street corners with these blank stares on their faces and glue bottles in hand. dropping out of school and addiction to sniffing glue or other drugs is a huge problem here. i just think - have they been on their own for so long and the only way to escape their harsh realities is drugs? the childrens homes that some of my fellow SALTers will be working at try to combat this, but resources are few and their is so much need. i pray that they will be able to make a positive impact on a child's life while they are working in their positions!
i start work on monday! we toured centro menno on tuesday and i am so excited! can't wait to find out more about this job i will be doing for the next year!
Saturday, September 5, 2009
Back in Santa Cruz
We arrived back in Santa Cruz this morning after an 11 hour overnight bus ride from Cochabamba. I had a great time in language school and exploring the city. Tomorrow is a big day, I will meet my host parents and move in! Then this next week is orientation to the city and visiting everyone's work places. I'm excited to move in with my host family, but a little sad because now us group of 6 girls will be seperated and spread throughout the city.So here's some pics from the past 2.5 weeks! I will try to put some on facebook, too!
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Learning
This weekend our connecting peoples directors came with their family to Cochabamba. They are such wonderful people and have 3 cute, friendly kids so we have a great time. They took us to a few NGOs to learn more about the politics and culture in Bolivia so we can better understand the context we will be living in. The first place we visited on Thursday was Fundacion Ghandi, which is a foundation that works to educate the people of Cochabamba on issues of peace and justice. The director and workers were all under 30 and clearly passionate about improving the lives of Bolivians. They told us about the political transitions in Bolivia - from dictatorships in the 60s & 70s, to neoliberalism in the 80s & 90s (a more subtle form of dicatatorial rule and privitization) and the movement to the left in 200s and the election of an indigenous president.
On Friday we visited Compa Cochabamba, which is a theatre program for youth. They gave us a private performance in their courtyard and even though I could not understand the language, the nonverbal communication was powerful. They wore black face makeup and mix-matched costumes and acted out the arrival of the spanish, the oppression and resistance of the indigenous peoples, and the political and racial confrontations that have occured recently. Halfway through they played drums that they had made themselves. It seemed amazing to me that these teenagers could so powerfully portray these complex issues and emotions, but then this is their life and their history. this troupe has traveled around Bolivia, South America, Europe, and been to Chicago, and I think they are definitely making an impact.
On Saturday we went to a Catholic preseminary just outside the city. It´s for young men who are considering priesthood and also teaches classes on the bible. It was beautiful with shade trees, flower gardens, and freshly tilled fields awaiting the planting season. We met with Tonya, a theologian and professor of symbology. She explained to us Andean (indigenous, traditional) spirituality and a ritual. These traditions have been practiced for thousands of years and she wanted us to understand how important they still are today. Afterward we shared a traditional meal outside. It was probably the coolest picnic I´ve ever been on! We had something like sweet potatoes, purple potatoes, corn with kernels the size of marbles, hard boiled eggs, salad, and more. Then we went into the chapel and I was absolutely blown away. Since many of the people who come to learn about the Bible speack Quechua or Amaraya and can´t read spanish, the priest commissioned a local artist to paint stories of the Old Testament and the Gospel. The paintings were so bright and colorful and the artist incorporated Bolivian imagery, so the people in the stories looked Bolivian. A professor at the preseminary explained that in Bolivia catholics like to dwell on the pain and suffering of Christ, which is evident because the first thing in the chapel is a lifesize figurine of Jesus on the cross. But this chapel is special, because you are encouraged to look beyond the suffering and see a massive painting of the hope and happiness of the resurrection of Jesus! It was just so amazing. I will try to paste pics when I´m back in Santa Cruz.
On Monday we visited the Democracy Center, which was begun in 1992 in California and moved to Cochabamba in 1998. The workers are a mix of North Americans and Bolivians, and they work in investigory writing and teaching advocay workshops. They had a lot to do with the water war in 2000 of reporting to the world what was going on and supporting the publization of water. I´m reading this great book right now that they edited called "Dignity and Defiance" about Bolivia and globalization. The director Jim Schulz had great advice "Always think that you have no idea what is going on, and 99% of the time you´re spot on." So while in Bolivia I will try to be unassuming and listen as much as I can!
On Friday we visited Compa Cochabamba, which is a theatre program for youth. They gave us a private performance in their courtyard and even though I could not understand the language, the nonverbal communication was powerful. They wore black face makeup and mix-matched costumes and acted out the arrival of the spanish, the oppression and resistance of the indigenous peoples, and the political and racial confrontations that have occured recently. Halfway through they played drums that they had made themselves. It seemed amazing to me that these teenagers could so powerfully portray these complex issues and emotions, but then this is their life and their history. this troupe has traveled around Bolivia, South America, Europe, and been to Chicago, and I think they are definitely making an impact.
On Saturday we went to a Catholic preseminary just outside the city. It´s for young men who are considering priesthood and also teaches classes on the bible. It was beautiful with shade trees, flower gardens, and freshly tilled fields awaiting the planting season. We met with Tonya, a theologian and professor of symbology. She explained to us Andean (indigenous, traditional) spirituality and a ritual. These traditions have been practiced for thousands of years and she wanted us to understand how important they still are today. Afterward we shared a traditional meal outside. It was probably the coolest picnic I´ve ever been on! We had something like sweet potatoes, purple potatoes, corn with kernels the size of marbles, hard boiled eggs, salad, and more. Then we went into the chapel and I was absolutely blown away. Since many of the people who come to learn about the Bible speack Quechua or Amaraya and can´t read spanish, the priest commissioned a local artist to paint stories of the Old Testament and the Gospel. The paintings were so bright and colorful and the artist incorporated Bolivian imagery, so the people in the stories looked Bolivian. A professor at the preseminary explained that in Bolivia catholics like to dwell on the pain and suffering of Christ, which is evident because the first thing in the chapel is a lifesize figurine of Jesus on the cross. But this chapel is special, because you are encouraged to look beyond the suffering and see a massive painting of the hope and happiness of the resurrection of Jesus! It was just so amazing. I will try to paste pics when I´m back in Santa Cruz.
On Monday we visited the Democracy Center, which was begun in 1992 in California and moved to Cochabamba in 1998. The workers are a mix of North Americans and Bolivians, and they work in investigory writing and teaching advocay workshops. They had a lot to do with the water war in 2000 of reporting to the world what was going on and supporting the publization of water. I´m reading this great book right now that they edited called "Dignity and Defiance" about Bolivia and globalization. The director Jim Schulz had great advice "Always think that you have no idea what is going on, and 99% of the time you´re spot on." So while in Bolivia I will try to be unassuming and listen as much as I can!
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Homework
I have finished 7 days of language school and have 6 more to go. While I am grateful for the opportunity for this crash course in spanish, one on one with a professora for 4 hours is a little intense. i feel a little rebellious at times and think "i just graduated from college, i´m done with school!" or "english rocks!" but, everyday i have little victories like being able to carry on a partial conversation with my professora or understanding a whack irregular verb.
we have homework every night, and i love it! i´m not talking about the conjugating of verbs or essays, but our ¨"learning bolivian culture" homework! our directors told us to get to know and experience the city of cochabamba, and that is what we are doing. almost every day we ride a micro to the center of the city and explore. cochabamba is such a lively place, full of people, street vendors, plazas, coffee shops, ice cream.....! one thing i am not used to is the dogs! stray dogs or owned dogs freely roam the street and live it up! i took a picture of one dog that was so hardcore it had dredlocks haha.
last saturday we went on an excursion to incan ruins about a 3.5 hour bus ride away. we drove through gorgeous countryside filled with farms and random mansions. since the ruins are in the mountains, we did a fair amount of weaving in and out, up and down. many times i had to close my eyes and give a little yelp because we were so close to the edge and barreling along at a crazy fast speed. it was a gorgeous day saturday and it was a lot of fun exploring the ruins and getting some exercise at a high altitude! i´ve always loved reading about ancient civilizations so i was fascinated the whole time. we ate lunch on what used to be the astronomy tower and that was definitely the coolest place i´ve ever eaten lunch.
on sunday we attended an evangelical church with a profesora who used to work for MCC Bolivia. because we were guests they had us stand up and wave and the congregation all waved back :) after church we climbed up to el cristo, a huge white statue of jesus on top of a peak with his arms open wide. and by climb i mean trudge up one million stairs in church clothes in high altitude. we had a blast! once we made it to the top we were able to go inside el cristo. seemed a little strange but it had a great view of the city and mountains. this el cristo was built after the one in brazil, so the bolivians made it just a little bigger :)
sunday evening we went to a futbol game. it was a big one because both cochabamba teams, wilstermann and aurora, were playing. a profesor at school told us to wear blue, so we did, and when we arrived a the stadium everyone was wearing red! so we cheered for the underdogs, aurora. soccer here is more entertaining/dramatic then in the states. here if players ran into each other or had a ball stolen they drop to the ground a roll around until a foul is called. it usually is. a few times the stretcher brigade was called out because a player was so convincing in his fake injury. aurora won 2-1! so "our" team won!
yesterday we toured an old convent. i didn´t take any pictures because i would have had to pay more for pictures then for the tour. a few nuns still live in the convent and did not want to open part of it up to the public, but if they didn´t the government would have forced them out and taken over the land. these nuns, most over 80, joined the convent when it was still part of an old order where they took a vow of silence and how absolutely no contact from the outside world! i know it was so they could better commune with God, but didn´t Jesus commission us to not be of the world but to go out into the world sharing his love? we can also learn so much from others - i´ve only been in bolivia for 1.5 weeks (crazy) and i can tell i have so much to learn from my boliviano brothers and sisters!
we have homework every night, and i love it! i´m not talking about the conjugating of verbs or essays, but our ¨"learning bolivian culture" homework! our directors told us to get to know and experience the city of cochabamba, and that is what we are doing. almost every day we ride a micro to the center of the city and explore. cochabamba is such a lively place, full of people, street vendors, plazas, coffee shops, ice cream.....! one thing i am not used to is the dogs! stray dogs or owned dogs freely roam the street and live it up! i took a picture of one dog that was so hardcore it had dredlocks haha.
last saturday we went on an excursion to incan ruins about a 3.5 hour bus ride away. we drove through gorgeous countryside filled with farms and random mansions. since the ruins are in the mountains, we did a fair amount of weaving in and out, up and down. many times i had to close my eyes and give a little yelp because we were so close to the edge and barreling along at a crazy fast speed. it was a gorgeous day saturday and it was a lot of fun exploring the ruins and getting some exercise at a high altitude! i´ve always loved reading about ancient civilizations so i was fascinated the whole time. we ate lunch on what used to be the astronomy tower and that was definitely the coolest place i´ve ever eaten lunch.
on sunday we attended an evangelical church with a profesora who used to work for MCC Bolivia. because we were guests they had us stand up and wave and the congregation all waved back :) after church we climbed up to el cristo, a huge white statue of jesus on top of a peak with his arms open wide. and by climb i mean trudge up one million stairs in church clothes in high altitude. we had a blast! once we made it to the top we were able to go inside el cristo. seemed a little strange but it had a great view of the city and mountains. this el cristo was built after the one in brazil, so the bolivians made it just a little bigger :)
sunday evening we went to a futbol game. it was a big one because both cochabamba teams, wilstermann and aurora, were playing. a profesor at school told us to wear blue, so we did, and when we arrived a the stadium everyone was wearing red! so we cheered for the underdogs, aurora. soccer here is more entertaining/dramatic then in the states. here if players ran into each other or had a ball stolen they drop to the ground a roll around until a foul is called. it usually is. a few times the stretcher brigade was called out because a player was so convincing in his fake injury. aurora won 2-1! so "our" team won!
yesterday we toured an old convent. i didn´t take any pictures because i would have had to pay more for pictures then for the tour. a few nuns still live in the convent and did not want to open part of it up to the public, but if they didn´t the government would have forced them out and taken over the land. these nuns, most over 80, joined the convent when it was still part of an old order where they took a vow of silence and how absolutely no contact from the outside world! i know it was so they could better commune with God, but didn´t Jesus commission us to not be of the world but to go out into the world sharing his love? we can also learn so much from others - i´ve only been in bolivia for 1.5 weeks (crazy) and i can tell i have so much to learn from my boliviano brothers and sisters!
Friday, August 21, 2009
en Cochabamba!
hola!
we arrived in santa cruz, bolivia sunday morning, august 16. when i stepped out of the airport i thought, huh, kinda looks like florida. santa cruz is extremely flat with scrub grass and palm trees. we were picked up by a family of mccers and brought to the compound. we stayed there until tuesday, getting oriented with MCC Bolivia and life in santa cruz. i´ll write more about santa cruz when we move back there. then on tuesday night we packed our bags for 2.5 weeks and hopped on a night bus to cochabamba, a 10 hour bus ride. but surprisingly the ride was very comfortable because the seats were like lazy boy chairs.
we arrived in cochabamba around 7:30am and it was so cold! cochabamba is in the mountains and it is the end of winter here, so its cold when the sun is not out. the mountains here are beautiful! they are a light brown sandy color with a little bit of snow on the peaks. at night you can see all the lights from homes going up the mountians, almost like christmas lights. we are in cochabamba to attend a language school and cram as much spanish verbs, grammar, and vocabulary into 4 hours a day as possible. we attend class in the morning and then are free to explore the city. since i came to bolivia knowing absolutely nothing (besides bueno), after 3 days i can tell i´ve learned alot. they have us writing and speaking small simple sentences. one other girl and i from SALT are living with the same host family. they are very patient and generous, spending plenty of time helping us with spanish. there are 2 little girls and a loco chihuahua puppy, poncho.
we are getting to know the transportation here, which are micros (small buses), trufis (communal taxis), and taxis. we accidently rode one bus all the way to the end of the route way out of the city and had to pay again to get back on :) but hey it builds character and it was like a really cheap tour of the city! we have also explored a little this massive market called la concha, which has everything in huge amounts. since 1USD=7 bolivianos, buying presents for home is affordable! i plan to study some spanish this afternoon and then we are off to explore more of the city!
during my daily devos, i found this verse that i end up reading every night and get great encouragement from.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
we arrived in santa cruz, bolivia sunday morning, august 16. when i stepped out of the airport i thought, huh, kinda looks like florida. santa cruz is extremely flat with scrub grass and palm trees. we were picked up by a family of mccers and brought to the compound. we stayed there until tuesday, getting oriented with MCC Bolivia and life in santa cruz. i´ll write more about santa cruz when we move back there. then on tuesday night we packed our bags for 2.5 weeks and hopped on a night bus to cochabamba, a 10 hour bus ride. but surprisingly the ride was very comfortable because the seats were like lazy boy chairs.
we arrived in cochabamba around 7:30am and it was so cold! cochabamba is in the mountains and it is the end of winter here, so its cold when the sun is not out. the mountains here are beautiful! they are a light brown sandy color with a little bit of snow on the peaks. at night you can see all the lights from homes going up the mountians, almost like christmas lights. we are in cochabamba to attend a language school and cram as much spanish verbs, grammar, and vocabulary into 4 hours a day as possible. we attend class in the morning and then are free to explore the city. since i came to bolivia knowing absolutely nothing (besides bueno), after 3 days i can tell i´ve learned alot. they have us writing and speaking small simple sentences. one other girl and i from SALT are living with the same host family. they are very patient and generous, spending plenty of time helping us with spanish. there are 2 little girls and a loco chihuahua puppy, poncho.
we are getting to know the transportation here, which are micros (small buses), trufis (communal taxis), and taxis. we accidently rode one bus all the way to the end of the route way out of the city and had to pay again to get back on :) but hey it builds character and it was like a really cheap tour of the city! we have also explored a little this massive market called la concha, which has everything in huge amounts. since 1USD=7 bolivianos, buying presents for home is affordable! i plan to study some spanish this afternoon and then we are off to explore more of the city!
during my daily devos, i found this verse that i end up reading every night and get great encouragement from.
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Romans 15:13
Friday, August 14, 2009
Next Stop...Bolivia!
So tomorrow is the big day, I can't believe it's finally here! Orientation has been a blast. We've discussed some heavy stuff, like loneliness and the difficulties of cross-cultural communication, but it has been great meeting and talking with others from all around the world who are about to set off on a year of service as well. Today we had a commissioning ceremony and everyone was asked to dress in traditional clothes. We U.S. and Canadians wore church clothes, but there were beautiful clothes from Cambodia, Indonesia, Zambia, Ethiopia and more. At the service we were given a potholder that was crocheted by Mennonite volunteers, who prayed for us with every stitch they made. The house I live in hosts not only North Americans going to Latin America, but also people from Latin America who will be serving in the U.S., Canada, and other countries. Since tonight is the last night before everyone leaves...we're going to have a fiesta! Tomorrow my Bolivia
n group leaves at 1:15pm for Philadelphia. Our first flight is from 5:45-9:00pm to Miami, and then we takeoff at 11:05pm and arrive Sunday at 8am in Bolivia! There is no time change so hopefully I can sleep on the plane. After we arrive, we will have some time to rest and then our MCC connecting people (a family from PA) and others will show us around the city! I felt a little nervous when I was given my ticket this morning, but now that's gone and I am so excited! God has blessed me with this opportunity and I can't wait for this next step in the journey! Thank you all for your prayers!
n group leaves at 1:15pm for Philadelphia. Our first flight is from 5:45-9:00pm to Miami, and then we takeoff at 11:05pm and arrive Sunday at 8am in Bolivia! There is no time change so hopefully I can sleep on the plane. After we arrive, we will have some time to rest and then our MCC connecting people (a family from PA) and others will show us around the city! I felt a little nervous when I was given my ticket this morning, but now that's gone and I am so excited! God has blessed me with this opportunity and I can't wait for this next step in the journey! Thank you all for your prayers!
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