Perks of Living in Colombia

Last summer I had already accepted a position at a school in Seoul when we arrived in Colombia for a 6 week volunteering experience at LPV. I was very nervous about the position in Korea and frequently worried that I had made the wrong decision. At the time, our supervisor at LPV continuously hinted that perhaps we should consider getting jobs in Colombia instead. At some point, Warren and I both began listening to her and started considering it an actual possibility.

It didn't take us long to decide that we would rather spend a year in Colombia than a year in South Korea. Although I'm sure Seoul is a fabulous place and I think I would have enjoyed it, it was comforting to accept a job at a school where I already knew my boss. I had seen the school and lived in the city where I would be moving. As much as was possible, I knew what to expect. We agreed to return to the school in January as full time teachers. It meant moving back to the States for 1/2 a year, during which time I taught and worked at my old job.

Now that I've been here for exactly 5 months, I'm positive we made the right decision. Things can be tough here, but there are many perks to living in this country and working at LPV. While I know I would make more money if I could find a full-time job in the USA, I make a lot of money by Colombian standards and live very well here. We have a lovely apartment with nice furniture, and our building is fantastic. I have full-coverage health insurance, so when the doctor made a house call at 2 a.m. Saturday night, I didn't pay a cent. I get random holidays (like today) off while my fellow Americans are hard at work. (Next week is a 3 day weekend, too. HA!) Also, I get to experience another country and culture, which is priceless.

Even so, it's easy to forget those things when you work 47+ hours a week and then spend your evenings grading and writing finals, and I'll forget how lucky I am until I talk to a friend on Skype and they mention how pretty our flowers are.

They are pretty. The flowers at the top of the page are from La 14, and they cost $2.50. That's definitely a perk. Another perk is that I get regular pedicures here and never pay more than $6, including a good tip. We can go swimming almost any week of the year here, and we actually have a pool so that's possible. I've been growing fresh basil since February, when most Americans were shivering, not gardening. We live in possibly the best climate zone in the world--always in the 65 to 92 degree F range and no humidity because of the mountains. It's hard to beat this weather. The country is also beautiful--mountains, hillsides of coffee, tropical flowers, and palm trees are all just part of the view from our apartment or from my classroom. OH--and I suppose that working in a place like LPV has plenty of perks, too. For example, on Saturday someone had a wedding at the school. While we were there for our teachers' meeting people were running around and setting up chairs and things. Please think about your grade school. Would you have planned a wedding there? I certainly wouldn't at mine. LPV is a gorgeous place to work, and because I'm basically outside in the forest all day, I know I'm getting plenty of fresh air.


Another great perk that I often forget about is the year-long abundance of fresh produce. I made this pasta for lunch today. I threw it together quickly, with leftover bruschetta topping from Saturday night, random veggies, beans I had pre-cooked for minestrone, and a few handfuls of pasta. It was super healthy, super quick, and super easy. As I was eating it, I realized that the only "packaged" foods in the entire thing were pasta and olive oil. I made the tomato sauce from scratch using a mountain of tomatoes. The spinach was organic spinach I forgot to put in the minestrone. The basil was grown on my porch. The whole dish probably cost less than $5 to make, and as you can see there is a lot left. In the United States, this would be an expensive dish. I would probably have used canned diced tomatoes, packaged basil, and canned beans. It would have been full of preservatives and unnecessary sodium. More importantly, it wouldn't have been as healthy or as tasty.

There are a lot of perks to living in Colombia, but perhaps the best one is that it's good for my health. I get lots of fresh air, sunshine, and tons of healthy fruits and veggies.

I'm just going to guess that wouldn't be the case if I lived in downtown Seoul, although I have heard kimchi is extremely healthy. Oh well!

Translating the Colombian Constitution

As my students' primary social studies teacher, I have to teach the topics that the Colombian government requires 5th graders to know. The topics are fairly varied, and I incorporate a heavy dose of "global" issues and ideas, but I also get/have to increasingly add more specific information about Colombia.

At the beginning of the year, we were learning about elections and government, so I learned a great deal about both in Colombia. It was fun to research and to teach. Not many people spend a great deal of time (Warren not included) researching the voting systems of other countries, but I now understand the Colombian system really well because I was able to teach it. Having a background in Colombian elections has helped me to appreciate the current presidential campaigns.

Last week we started discussing human rights. Human rights in Colombia and the world are a serious issue right now, so I'm trying desperately to treat the subject with the seriousness it deserves. As part of my curriculum, the government issued text book includes a long chapter about the human rights the Colombian constitution guarantees. My Spanish is definitely better than it was at the beginning, but I still needed SpanishDict.com to translate a lot of the words! (For example, today I learned the word difundir, which means disseminate.)

I really love the human rights Colombia chose to include in their constitution. The American Bill of Rights, in comparison, is vague, short, and slightly out-dated. (I had to translate around 40 specific rights listed in the constitution of Colombia, but the American Bill of Rights only has 10 amendments!) While our Bill of Rights causes a great deal of controversy because it can be interpreted in many ways, the Colombian constitution keeps it simple and straight-forward. It guarantees things like protection from torture, a right to education, fair treatment of the elderly, a right to a family, the protection of intellectual property, privacy of correspondence, the right to work and have a career, protection from kidnapping, freedom of religion, respect for individuals, their personality, and their development, and protection from human trafficking. Yes, it gets specific, but it also serves as a very real guide for Colombians.

My students had to write journals last week describing what they thought every person in the world should and what the government was responsible for. Because the Colombian constitution is so specific, we are now able to compare their journals to the law of their own country. Many of them wrote that the government should provide housing, which surprised me, but the Colombian constitution does actually state that a fundamental human right is to have a home in good condition.

Perhaps my favorite part of this unit, though, is not the constitution itself, but what it represents to my students. Although I know human rights in Colombia improve every hour of every day, the American government still refuses to a trade agreement with Colombia because of human rights violations. I have my disagreements with the USA, but I understand that human rights are a critical issue in this country. The reason I like teaching my students about the human rights their constitution guarantees is because the Colombian government has outlined such a clear goal. The human rights they have guaranteed are concrete and noble, and the government and the country can look to their own constitution as an example of the perfect society. No offense to the founding fathers, because I really do have great respect for them, but wouldn't it be nice if the American constitution was so specific that we could look to it for a model of what our country should be instead of arguing about what "Freedom of the Press" really means?

Just a thought. Good night.

p.s. In fairness, the current Constitution of Colombia was written in 1991, but the current American Bill of Rights was written in 1789. The founding fathers couldn't predict everything their constitution and Bill of Rights would face, so they made it vague on purpose so it would be open to interpretation. I just like how clear the Colombians made everything. Much easier to teach!

Dia del Maestro: Teacher's Day!

Above: A presentation at school to thank the teachers.

Today is Dia del Maestro, or Teacher's day, and because LPV is the best place to be a teacher, they gave the entire teaching staff the day off. We also have Monday off because it is some saint's day, which means that we have a four day weekend!

I'm not sure if every school in Colombia is off today, but I know that schools in the USA don't cancel class for Teacher's Appreciation Day, so I feel quite blessed. Also, I really do feel appreciated.

The school also gave us presents--Warren and I both got an awesome canvas bag filled with an LPV coffee cup, a nice notebook, a pen, and a t-shirt! Even better, our students gave us presents, too! Warren's students got him a new water bottle, because his broke in class. One of my girls got me jewelry and gave me a card she made that showed me teaching division! SO CUTE!

Some of our loot:



To celebrate, I made a pineapple-orange vegan cake, which is yummy. We also slept until 10 a.m. today! On a normal Friday, by 10 a.m. I've been on a bus for an hour, had a meeting with my supervisors, taught 2 classes, and I've watched kids run around during morning snack.

Sadly, we can't afford a trip right now, so we're staying in PEI for the long weekend, but I'm excited to just relax and get caught up on errands and such.

I hope everyone has a great weekend, and congratulations to all of my friends graduating today!!

2010 Elections: The race is on!

Above: My hero, Antanas Mockus

With less than 4 weeks until the first round of the presidential election, things in Colombia are getting much more interesting. Mockus's popularity has been skyrocketing lately, and, much to his surprise and despair, Santos's popularity just keeps falling in the polls. It's almost inevitable that Mockus and Santos will face off in the 2nd election, but politics in Colombia tend to be dirty, and elections are not always won fairly, so I'm not ready to guarantee a win for Mockus. (Even if I desperately want to!)

It seems that, in Pereira at least, Mockus is the only candidate anyone is supporting these days. A few billboards around town advertise other candidates, but the real indicators are the campaign signs hung in the windows of apartments across town. I have only seen posters for Mockus or Partido Verde--not a single one for Santos. The administration at LPV are wearing Mockus bracelets, the students are selling Partido Verde t-shirts, and the other teachers are proudly sporting Mockus logos on everything from laptops to backpacks. When I hung up a Mockus poster on my desk, my students cheered.

During lunch on Monday Warren and I talked to the school psychologist, and we asked her why she personally liked Mockus. She told us that it was because he isn't a politician, he is an academic and a teacher. She also explained that he demonstrated he can make a difference when he was mayor of Bogota, and that he can help make the future better for Colombians. I'ts a lovely summary of exactly why I support Mockus, too.

So far, my favorite sign of support was a car we saw over the weekend. It had 2 posters hung in the windows, a Mockus sticker on the bumper, another Partido Verde sticker on the windshield, and a fake sunflower (the symbol of the Colombian Green Party) bobbing up and down in the passenger window. Warren and I almost started cheering for it!

Of course, this election is not the only one in the world: today is the British election, which is outlined well on Warren's blog and I just got the first email regarding the gubernatorial race in Illinois. In case you can vote in Illinois and you are a Green Party supporter, make sure you check out Rich Whitney! It's time Illinois gets a decent governor instead of the crazies we've had to put up with in the past!

97th Percentile

Just want to brag a little about LPV...

So, the cover story in Dinero, a major Colombian magazine published this week (their version of U.S. News and World Report), focused on "colegios" which are private schools. It ranked them (much like college rankings), and published the list of the top 400 schools in the country.

Colombia has 10,000 public schools. LPV ranked 238. That sounds a bit low, but it is in the top 3% of the ENTIRE country! Also, out of the Eje Cafetera (the three states that make up the coffee region), LPV ranks 10th. Out of three states.

I'm not even going to pretend I'm not proud. I work at a fairly prestigious and highly progressive school in Colombia. My boss is Stellita, who has worked for the United Nations and other humanitarian organizations based in South America. Of course, she is also one of the kindest and most intelligent people in the entire world. My other bosses include Diana and Luz M, who may be some of the sweetest women I have ever met. (They are also very intelligent, of course.) The school looks like a resort and the weather is perfect.

I am happy. Life here is good. And my employer is in the 97th percentile. Chevere!

Day 1 at LPV

If you managed to read my last post, thank you. I know it was long. I just felt that I needed to write down our experience somewhere so I would never forget it. I want to be able to laugh about our visa process for a long time. Also, I need to mention that the only reason it was so difficult to get a visa is because the U.S. makes it incredibly difficult and degrading for Colombians to even get tourist visas for the United States.

Today was our first day of "work." School starts on January 28th, but teachers began today. Our day went something like this: we arrived at school at 8:30 this morning with Stellita. We then mingled (i.e. said hi to people who remembered us and then talked to each other while everyone else ignored us) with the other teachers until 9 a.m. At 9, we went into the computer lab and Stellita talked to everyone in Spanish for an hour about the last school year, how we can improve, and how we should treat our students (with love and respect). I didn't understand very much, and neither did Warren, but we tried.

Then we had morning snack. For an hour.

After the snack, we went to a meeting with the primary school teachers. It was led by Luz M, who is in charge of us. She only speaks Spanish, but she is one of the kindest souls in the world. We like her a lot, although communication is difficult. Anyway, we were in a meeting for about an hour (this time, the 3A teacher, Tatiana, translated for us). The outcome of this meeting was that I am definitely teaching 5th grade and Warren is teaching 3rd grade. He is lucky because Tati will be able to help him, and she has taught 3rd grade twice. I'm lucky because I can be creative and I don't have to coordinate with other teachers. I think we are both going to be happy this year. I'm excited to start planning.

After our first meeting, we had lunch. Then we had another meeting with the primary school where they debated a new grading scale for 2 hours. In Spanish. Basically, I just tuned out and wrote down what they told me.

I really need to work on my Spanish.

It was nice to be a little bit busy today. I've definitely enjoyed our little vacation time, but I'm ready to get started now. We spent Sunday at Stellita's finca, which was sooooooo pleasant (watching the sunset and soaking in the hot tub), where we were able to relax and mentally prepare for the next year.

I plan to continue writing throughout the week, so expect a few more updates. I should have news about our apartment hunt tomorrow!

Quick Update!

I know there are supposed to be 2 more parts, but I decided I can't write reflectively while I'm here. Also, one of the three parts will be written by Warren, and he keeps refusing to be inspired.

In a 2 1/2 hours, Warren and I will board a plane and leave Pereira. We are going to Cartagena today, and then heading home on July 1st. Parents, if you haven't gotten a call from us by 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, our flight is either delayed or there is a problem.

It's sad to leave Pereira, it really is. I've cried, Stella's cried, and Ricky's mom of the Panella farm definitely cried. So did Diana... it's been a sad time.

But the sad times won't last for long... Warren and I have both accepted teaching positions at LPV that begin in January (when their school year begins) and end in November. So hooray! We're coming back! I hope it's okay with you that my posts will continue from Colombia next year, instead of South Korea.

As motivation for getting up at 4:15 a.m., I've decided to write a quick list of all the things I won't miss about Colombia, since the list of what I will miss is quite long and would take at least 3 hours.

1. I won't miss how the water changes from hot to cold in the shower without warning. Or the lack of hot water in the shower, for that matter.
2. I won't miss watching the Simpsons in Spanish.
3. I won't miss the inability to do my own laundry or the lack of a dryer.
4. I definitely won't miss the taxi drivers here. I'm sure their wonderful people, but my inability to speak Spanish frustrates them.
5. I won't miss the Colombians' meat-based diet. Warren will.
6. I won't miss the un-paved roads after it rains.
7. I won't miss the people that try to open the door to the taxis at Exito in return for payment.
8. I won't miss not having my own kitchen.
9. I won't miss the bugs.
10. I repeat, I definitely will not miss the bugs. That includes the moths that fly into my room and drive me crazy, and the mosquitos that insist on biting me frequently.

Basically, everything else and everyone else, I'll miss. At least until January!

Salento, at the end of a very long week.

Warning: This is a very long post, please do not feel obligated to read it in its entirety.

Hello everyone! It's been a very long week in Colombia. Today will end our first two weeks here, but it seems as if we have been here much longer than that. This past week was really busy, especially considering we had Monday off!

Last Monday Warren and I went downtown and really enjoyed wandering along Circunvalar. It's one of the main avenues in P---, and a lot of shops, night clubs, bakeries (pastry shops), and hotels line the street. At the bottom of the street in P--- Plaza, a mall. We had gone there before, but it was dark and it was also right after we arrived. Monday was much more pleasant because it was a holiday and it was daylight. Almost everything was closed, except for a few of the stores in the mall. It sounds strange, but we felt much safer and enjoyed ourselves a lot more since there were very few people on the street. I think we both feel confident enough to go downtown at night now. Last Monday we also wandered in to Exito, which is sort of like a Super Walmart on steroids. They sell everything from fresh baguettes to motorcycles to computers. We stocked up on the necessary snacks, etc. For $46 we got a ton of fruit and vegetables, sweets, bread, snack food, and 2 bottles of wine. Also, we gave in and bought Oreos.

On Tuesday we were back at Liceo Pino Verde. We started our first pronunciation class on Tuesday, and that generally went well. I am lucky to have great resources that the ELI let me borrow. Our schedule for the coming weeks is as follows: On Monday/Wednesday, we teach 9th-11th graders Speaking and Pronunciation from 3:15 to 4:30. On Tuesday/Thursday, we teach 6th-8th graders the same subject. We have about 28 people in the Tuesday/Thursday classes, and only 11 in the Monday/Wednesday classes. On Saturdays we have English play time, and we have two different sessions, 8:30 to 10 a.m. and 10:30 to noon. We have around 24 students in each group.

Anyway. On Wednesday we interviewed the 11th grade to help prepare them for upcoming standardized tests. It was really fun to interview them because we had to ask them questions about their goals and plans for the future. They are really interesting students. One of the students I interviewed wanted to major in literature (Spanish lit, of course) and had studied abroad in New Zealand. We had a great conversation! All of the students speak English well. It's really fun to realize that students in the USA and students in Colombia share so many similarities. We also attended the 11th grade's English class that afternoon, and they got to ask us questions. They asked a lot of questions I expected (Are you from the same Springfield as the Simpsons? Why do you watch so much reality TV?) and a lot of questions I didn't expect (Is Missouri empty? Do people really live there? Warren, what do you think of Colombian women?) It was quite enlightening.

Thursday was by far one of the worst days I have had in Colombia. I had to get up at 5 a.m. and I didn't go to bed until midnight on Wednesday because I was preparing for a pronunciation workshop that I had to present at 7 a.m. Thursday morning. I'm definitely not qualified to lead a pronunciation workshop, but Diana, our boss, asked me to, and I didn't want to disappoint her. I spent a lot of time re-reading my textbooks and planning what I wanted to present. The workshop actually went really well. I was surprised by how much I had actually learned about pronunciation (and how useful my textbooks really are), and the teachers all said they had learned a lot. Even so, I was exhausted the entire day, and it made me pick up on all the little things in Colombia that make me angry. (For example, the differences between the administration and the teachers and how each are treated.) Thursday afternoon we got home really late (almost 6!) and Stellita told us we had been invited to a dinner hosted by the Parent's Association. At first, I really didn't want to go, but Warren and I hadn't been invited any where yet, so we decided we probably needed to go. The dinner was held at a tapas restaurant in Pin., a really nice area near Circunvalar. I showered and got dressed up before we left, so I felt a lot better. The dinner was really nice. Everyone spoke Spanish, but they made an effort to include us. It was great to be out with adults again.

On Friday morning I gave the pronunciation workshop to the teachers who hadn't come on Friday. It went even better than Thursday, and I had gotten plenty of sleep. LPV doesn't really teach pronunciation. I think this is partially because the teachers are mostly native Spanish speakers and they aren't confident enough to teach it on their own. After the workshop Diana asked me if I could do another one, but for the next one she wants us to teach the teachers correct pronunciation! : ) We also started testing the 5th graders on Friday, but so far the students are struggling with the tests. It has math questions on it, but the questions are supposed to gage English skills, not math skills, and the math questions are hurting the students' scores. It's a bit of a problem.

Friday afternoon Warren went to UniCentro, the largest mall in the area, with a student and the student's mother. I stayed home, because I was sick. I blogged a bit about this on Friday, because I thought it was funny. I probably should have listened to all the worried people on Friday and gone to a doctor, but more about that later...

Saturday morning Warren and I had our English Play Time sessions. I was really sick, but forced myself to go. The students were terrible for both Warren and myself. Partially because I was sick, and partially because the 1st-3rd graders are wild little monkeys, Diana helped me with the second session. During this time, I discovered:

1. Colombian children do not learn how to play Duck, Duck, Goose.

2. When Colombian children learn Duck, Duck, Goose, they love it.

3. Colombian children will play Duck, Duck, Goose for 45 minutes if given the chance.

4. Diana is a genius. She suggested that we could use minimal pairs in Duck, Duck, Goose to help little kids learn the difference. (A minimal pair are 2 words that only have 1 sound that is different, like bit and beat. So in her version, it would be "Bit, Bit, Beat!")

On Saturday afternoon we slept and I tried to recover. It didn't really work, but Warren did his best to put up with my whining.

Sunday was fantastic, despite the fact that I was sick. Andrea and her sister took us to Salento, which is this sleepy little town high up in the mountains in the Quindio region. It's supposed to be a tourist town, but the only tourists are Colombians. The drive was great. It was the first time we had been out of P---, and we were able to see coffee fields and flower farms. The mountains here are beautiful, and the views are just amazing. We ate lunch (okay, Warren and our hostesses ate lunch) in the valley below Salento. Warren had smoked trout (a whole fish, head included) and patacon, which is a deep fried plantain chip that was larger than his plate. I had mora, or blackberry juice. Warren loved his food. I've never seen him enjoy anything as much as he enjoyed the trout. I, on the other hand, loved the conversation. We talked to Andrea and her sister, Juanita, for a long time. Andrea described what life was like only 8 years ago. People in Colombia could not leave the city, even if they owned a farm or a home in the country. It was too dangerous because of the FARC, the drug lords, and the paramilitary. They would stop cars driving past, and if the passengers were rich, they would kidnap them. Andrea's mom was even kidnapped for a little while! Andrea described how scary it was, and how limited they were. She explained that now that the current president, Uribe, has cleaned up the country, they feel free. They can go to the country on the weekends. They can drive to Salento. They are safe, and they don't have to worry about being kidnapped. Andrea really likes Presdient Uribe, and she also really respects the Colombian Army. We saw a lot of army men while we were in Salento. They were on the road, and every time we passed Andrea would say, "Hola chicos!" She was obviously proud of them. I know I'm not Colombian, but I'm proud of them, too. They make me feel a lot safer, of course, but I really admire what they do. Colombia isn't a safe place to be in the army, and I know that they don't have the same benefits American military people do. Without the Colombian army, Warren and I wouldn't be able to safely travel in Colombia. Also, it has made life in Colombia much better. Eight years ago, people lived in fear. Now they can be worried about fashion or about education, they can buy homes in the country or take trips to the Amazon. I think that a lot of the social problems here will probably also start to improve. I know that they are talking about environmental issues, and I'm sure that as the country becomes more stable, they will also address the rich-poor gap and other problems.

I digress. After we had lunch we went to Salento. It's a very quaint town, and we were told it was very traditional. The houses are painted in bright colors, and many of them have cute little balconies. There is one main street, and it is lined with little souvenir shops. The shops primarily sell jewelry, coffee related foodstuffs, and things made out of the giant bamboo found here. We bought a lot of little things, and I got 3 new pairs of earrings. (Which, by the way, are crucial to Colombian fashion. Women always wear long, festive earrings.) Visiting Salento was a lot of fun. I was still feeling a bit sick, but the weather was warm and we really enjoyed our trip. I put up all the photos on Facebook, but for those of you who don't have access to Facebook, you can see the photos here: http://picasaweb.google.com/MelodyStratton.

Today I am going to the doctor. I was instructed to stay home from school, and I am going to see a doctor who has children that attend LPV. I really didn't want to go to the doctor, but I've been sick with no signs of improvement since Friday, and I think Stellita is ready to drag me there if I don't go willingly.

I'll blog about the trip to the doctor later. I also want to blog about Stellita, but I think it might have to wait a bit. I want to get a picture of her first!

I hope everyone is well! If you have time, I would really appreciate it if you left a comment or a little check next to interesting, cool, or funny. I'm not trying to get attention, but Warren and I want to know how many people are reading the blog. If there are a lot of you, I'll definitely try to write more often. (Especially since no one wants to read such a long entry after 3 days with no entries!)

Have a good day!

Yesterday

I apologize for not blogging last night. I'm safe, and so is Warren. Exhaustion prevented me from blogging, but I certainly slept well.

Yesterday was wonderful. When we arrived at LPV the kindergartners were getting ready to put on a play. Some of them ride the same bus as us, and they were in costume on the bus. One of them was sitting in front of us, and she had two friends sitting in the row across from her. They kept staring at us, whispering, and giggling. I don't know if you've ever had a 5 year old tell secrets about you and laugh, but I don't think I have. I started staring back at them. Eventually, they started speaking to me.

Invariably, all the students at LPV (especially the younger students) ask the same questions in the same order:
1. You speak English? (This is sometimes in Spanish.)
2. What is your name?
(We answer, ask their name, and ask how they are doing.)
4. I am fine, and you?
5. What is your favorite color?
6. How old are you?

I think these are questions that they've have been trained to say, but it's really cute when they ask.

We watched the play (I have pictures, but I'll have to post them later), which was completely adorable. (I'm in love with the entire kindergarten right now.) All of the parents came to watch, too. I've noticed that after we arrived we became our own advertisement. The kids would see us or talk to us, and the next day they would come and tell me they were going to take our class. When parents see us, they realize that we really are at LPV, and I think it must be good publicity for our classes. We've had so many students sign up for the Saturday program that they had to start turning students away! On Saturday morning, we have 48 students (at different times and in different classes) coming to play with us and talk in English! I hope I'm always this popular!!

Actually, it is really different to be on display all the time. I knew I would be a minority here, but except for a few adults and the people that know us, everyone openly stares at both of us. I've become a lot more aware of what I look like every day. Colombians dress similarly to Americans, except everything is tight. Even if it shouldn't be. Yesterday, I was tired of looking weird, and I wore an old pair of jeans that would fit much better if I lost a few pounds. I was complimented all day long!

I need to get ready now, so I'm going to go. I'll definitely try to blog tonight--I need to write about our trip to the supermercado with D-ita! It was fabulous, and I found quinoa, soy milk, and vegan chocolate!

LPV & The Mystery Fruit

Image 1: The view of P---- from our apartment.

Image 2: Warren eating huevos con tomate y arepas for breakfast. He's eating so well, I'm fairly sure he'll never eat my vegan food again. For lunch he had a traditional potato and chicken soup with fried arepas and avocado, and tonight he had slow-cooked barbecue pork with fried plantains and of course, una cerveza. I shouldn't complain, though. I had fruit and fresh-squeezed orange juice for breakfast, salad, avocados, rice, and fried arepas for lunch, and beans, rice, fried plantains, and salad for dinner. We've also both snacked on fresh mango, and we're about to indulge in a little pineapple as well. YUM!

The day started early. Too early. The culprit behind this much-too-early morning? A bird. Specifically, some kind of loud parrot that squawks and screams loudly right outside my window. I hate birds.

Despite being woken by a bird thirty minutes before the alarm was supposed to go off, it was a very good day. We ate a yummy breakfast prepared by D-ita and then Andrea picked us up and drove us to the school, LPV. This time, our drive was relatively uneventful, and it was fun to see all the different parts of P---.

Of course, most of our day was spent at LPV, and thank goodness. The place is practically a resort! Palm trees line the sidewalks, lilies and hibiscus color the grounds, and all the buildings are made of bamboo. The school has a pool and an ecological park (where the older students apparently like to make out). It also has cute little courtyards with incredible trees, two playgrounds, and a number of courts for soccer and volleyball. Only the office building and the library have windows; the classrooms are all open air. It's so beautiful, it is hard to describe. If American children went to school at LPV, they would think it was vacation. (To the right: a 1st grade classroom.)

LPV is a bilingual school, so the students learn both English and Spanish. Today Warren and I observed a lower level class. The teacher spoke entirely in English, but the students could ask questions in Spanish. Usually, answers had to be given in English. They study language arts, math, science, and some social studies in English. They also learn Spanish and study some history in Spanish. In addition, the students have swimming class and P.E. (To the left: a view of the "cafeteria" from the elementary school. It's open air, and I was told people rent it out for weddings. Can you even imagine someone renting out your elementary school cafeteria for a WEDDING?)

The students are very eager and absolutely adorable. At first, they were very shy around us. During their recess, a number of them would stare at us and then whisper to each other. Eventually, a few of them would ask a very simple question, like "Do you speak Spanish?" and then after receiving an answer, they would run away. This continued for awhile. We figured out that they would huddle together, come up with a new question, practice it, and then come back and ask questions. It was really cute, but both Warren and I started asking them questions to make the conversation a bit more... less rehearsed. It worked really well, and the kids got really excited about us. In the afternoon we began learning about the W-APT test which we will be administering. It's a proficiency screening test, and it looks interesting, but the information is rather tedious. While we were reading the material, a group of students gathered outside the windows and stared at us. We began talking to them, but they were mostly just interested in looking at us. We went outside and I told them I felt like I was in a fish bowl and they were all staring at me! They laughed, and after we talked for a few minutes they went back to their work. (Above right: one of the playgrounds.)

We rode home on the bus with the students. It was a lot of fun. One little boy, Justin, sat near us and talked to us for a very long time. He's really cute, and he has excellent English. Actually, most of the students have very good English, but they are all quite shy.

Tomorrow we begin our Spanish-English exchange. I'm really excited. The bio-chemistry teacher is going to teach us Spanish and we are going to help him with English. It's a great opportunity, and I hope I can learn enough to at least converse with D-ita! (I think I stress her out a bit because I don't speak Spanish.)

Today I noticed a much clearer division between the rich and the poor here. Few places look "middle-class" but lots of homes looked really expensive. Sadly, we also have seen a few slums. They are cramped together, and the roofs are made out of sheet metal and often look like they have been patched over at least a dozen times. I have to admit that I feel like the Pereira I am living in and working in is much different than the lower-class Pereira, and I hope my view of Colombia isn't too skewed because of it.

Mystery Fruit.... This is a very unusual fruit that I had as my "after school snack." D-ita had to show me how to eat it... basically, she cracked it open like an egg and then scooped all of the insides into a cup. It tasted sort of like a plum, but was very slimy and full of seeds. Does anyone know what it is?

BUENAS NOCHES!