My Sister G's Swearing-In Speech

I recently stumbled upon the speech Paulette gave at their swearing-in exactly one year before our swearing-in. Paulette is from G27, our sister G in that they arrived one year before us and are of the same sector as my group.

I thought I’d share this speech with you.


Training Graduation Speech:

(References - *Jason is a mystery guy who was supposed to come but just never showed up. *Also, our director gave us this speech where he said we should think about the movies we had in our head about our service and be our own protagonist.)

To my fellow G-27ers,

Do you ever wonder where Jason is, our mystery 19th volunteer. I wonder if he's working some 9 to 5 somewhere, thinking about that time he almost joined the Peace Corps. We'll never know what actually happened to him, but I wonder if he just wussed out? I wonder if he packed his bags, said his goodbyes. I wonder if he went to the airport. I wonder -- At what point did he turn back?

I almost backed out a million times. I laid in bed, obsessing, needing to know exactly what my life would be like. I made lists of pros and cons, thinking I could quantify the decision. I sought advice from everyone. I even asked my four-year-old nephew if I should join the Peace Corps, and he said, "Sure."

But I still couldn't decide. Then one day I realized, I was afraid to fail. That's when I decided I at least had to try.

There were still plenty of moments of doubt. But, like you, and unlike so many other people, I got through every one of them. I think that's the biggest thing we should really be celebrating today.

Yay for us, that we'll never have to be the people who say, "Peace Corps, huh? I always wanted to do that."

Let's celebrate that we are not of the people who maybe sent out for the packet, but never filled it out. Maybe they filled it out but never found the guts to mail it.

Let's celebrate that we are not of the class of people who have been duped by advertisers into thinking that they should be spending their youths trying to look more youthful, spending their money to be thinner, using their time to get more things.

Yay for us that we didn't listen to those who said you're going to work your job and go home to your couch and watch your tv and eat your fast food. This is how things are done around here.

We heard another voice, just a whisper, that brought us here. And we did all that paperwork and dismantled our lives and got on the plane.

And we had that movie in our head, the one that Michael Eschleman told us about.

But then we got to our sites, and, for some of us, it felt like we walked into the wrong theater. The set was all wrong. The cast was not following our script. We brought all the wrong props. And we're back to being scared.

This is because we mistook ourselves for the screenwriters. We are just the characters. And the characters never get to choose their challenges, only how they will act in the face of those challenges.

Maybe you saw yourself being Campo Cowboy, with bragging rights that you walk 10 miles to your latrine, uphill both ways, but you ended up chuchi.

Or you were hoping for chuchi, and now will find yourself with a lot of time to think, while squatting, about just how long two years is going to be. And you're wondering again - Can I do this?

When that fear starts to creep in, try to find that voice, that whisper, that you listened to in the months before you stepped on the plane. It's a humble voice, that didn't bring you here for the sweet Facebook photos or the captivating blog material. It's something that tells us that there's more to life than what we've found in our own little fishbowl.

And if we stay to find out how our movie turns out, we'll leave with benefits too numerable to list, the least of which is being able to say, "Peace Corps, huh? I did that once."

-Paulette G27

Paulette is a great writer. I highly recommend checking out her blog, Real World Paraguay.

Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened. ~Theodor Seuss Geisel

Monday, August 17th, 2009

The next day was really relaxing. I spent most of the day just hanging out around the house. Most of the family was gone for most of the day. I hung with my Sister while she washed clothes and rearranged her house. Then around 4:00, I went with her to pick the kids up from school.
I’ve had been to their school once before, and Mary has been asking me when I was going to come back to take pictures for a while now. This was my first real chance to do so, and it was a good feeling to pick them up for their school on my last full day in Paso de Oro.

I’ve already mentioned the education system in Paraguay in one of my earlier blogs so I’ll just make one comment about it now. You know that feeling in the atmosphere after a summer afternoon shower? The air is kind of moist and the ground is just a bit damp, but everything is starting to dry up? That is what the weather was like that day. Only 5 kids showed up out of Fabiola’s class of 14. The situation was even worse in Mary’s class. It wasn’t even raining, but because it wasn’t 100% ideal conditions outside, kids just didn’t come to school that day. That just shows the overall commitment to education in Paraguay. Not only do they only attend school for about 4 hours a day, but they also don’t show up at the slightest indication of bad weather. So even if the teachers were on point and the facilities sufficient, which they’re not, they would still be at a huge disadvantage.





Anyway, all of the kids in my family went, so I was super proud of that.

Fabiola was so excited to see me, and she got out of class a little early. She showed me around her school a bit and we played chase. She showed me where Mary’s class was, and when we walked up Mary was looking out the window at us. Shortly, Mary got out of class, and we headed for home.





On the way back from their school we stopped by a little store that is half internet café, half small clothes store to buy a few things for Mary and Fabiola, who are in desperate need of clothes. You should see how excited and grateful they were to receive a pair of jeans and some sandals. The sad thing is that my Sister didn’t even pay outright for those. She has a credit account with the owner of the store. She pays in small payments over a long period of time. That’s why she shops there instead of lots of other places. If that lady wouldn’t extend her credit, the kids would simply go without decent clothes. If Mary gets straight A’s on her report card, she’s going to get some boots. She’s working really hard to earn those boots. She’s waited a while for these jeans and she says once she has the boots, she’ll have a complete outfit. When she got home, she did exactly what most kids, around the world, do after buying new clothes...tried them on and showed them off. She was so proud of her new jeans and it made her day. It made me think of when Churches, non-profits, and other groups send packages filled with basic items and maybe a few toys overseas to those who won’t receive anything else for Christmas. When we were filling the boxes, I used to think how the kids were probably upset to find toiletries, underwear, etc... in their boxes. Now, I don’t think that at all. I bet those kids light up.

How spoiled we are in the States right? I used to get money and clothes were a given...a necessity. In my opinion something that I needed anyway didn’t count as a special prize for making good grades...the ways my perspective is changing... Here parents have to use things that they know they have to buy anyway as incentives, because there isn’t enough money for luxuries.

That night we had my despidida (going away party). Before eating, Fabiola and Mary danced traditional Paraguayan dances for me.






My family went all out for me. My brother bought a chicken, my Mom killed one, and I threw in to buy another chicken, and added in the meat I had purchased from Mary. We also had rice, salad, and of course there was mandioca. Papá even drank wine, and he hardly ever drinks.



I was kind of out of it during the dinner because I knew this was the last time we would all be together for a while. It was a lovely dinner, and afterwards people made a few toasts/chants for me.

I sat back and looked at the family, and in my mind it was like a scene from a movie or TV show. You know...the drama has built up for a while and the conflict finally solved. Everyone gets together at a Christmas or a Thanksgiving meal. Some witty comments are thrown around between family members, and then the camera starts panning out. You can hear all sorts of conversations going on, and the clanking of dishes. People are reaching across the table, and it’s such a nice, warm family scene. Music starts playing and the picture pauses in that moment and then fades away into the black screen with the rolling white credits. Happily Ever After...



Well my story didn’t exactly end that way, because I’m one of the characters. It’s the camera that stops filming, but the characters go on living.

The kids finished eating and went to the front of the hosue to play. I stayed at the table chatting with the adults a bit, and then went to join the kids. I saw Fabiola sitting along with the saddest look on her face. It broke my heart. I sat down next to her and gave her a big hug and consoled her. Later, I came back into the living room, and she had fallen asleep there. I sat down beside her, and just watched her sleep for a bit. I started having memories of us together, and thought about how much she likes me and how much I like her. It broke my heart, and I began to cry. In fact as I type this I’m overwhelmed with emotion and tears are welling up in my eyes. I love that little girl.



I walked outside to get myself together, where I was met by my good brother, Agusto. This made me break down even more. He tried to tell me that we would talk on the phone, I could come back to visit, and that I would meet new people in San Juan, and that everything was going to work out. I told him it would never be the same, which is true. It never will be the same as it was. We had a good conversation about how crazy it is that complete strangers from two different parts of the world can become so close so quickly, how happy and comfortable I was there, and how I could have not found a better family with which to live for my first 3 months in Paraguay.

After our conversation he went to bed because he had a long day of work and another long one ahead of him the next day. We were going to say our goodbyes then but I told him to wake me up in the morning before he left for work.

I talked to my niece for a while and then went inside and played Go Fish with the kids.





Before too long, people started heading to bed, and I did the same.

Tuesday, August 18th, 2009

The next day I woke up and played Crazy 8s with Mary and Fabiola. I played a while with the kids and then began to pack. Fabiola was my little helper. She wanted to put things in my suitcase, so I just let her as I was arranging everything else, and then redid it later. As I was packing I gave Fabiola the Crazy 8 cards, because she still needs to learn her colors and numbers, and this would make for a fun and educational gift for her. I gave Mary and Fabiola toothbrushes, and gave them each a spiral notebook I had bought and not used. I also gave them a few pencils. These gifts basically represent what I hope for them. I hope that they maintain their hygene and health (toothbrushes), study hard so that maybe one day they can go to University (pencils and notebooks), and also that they play and enjoy each other(crazy 8 cards).

Mary, Jessica, and Jacquelin all went to school so I had to wish them goodbye. I know I’m coming back so it wasn’t so bad. Once I finished packing everything, my Dad helped me take my stuff outside to the road. Then we took some pictures and waited on the bus, which came all of a sudden and kind of rushed my goodbyes.







This whole process has been full of goodbyes. First I told my friends goodbye in Columbia, then I told my family goodbye, then more friends in Spartanburg, my parents at the airport, my Peace Corps friends after the swearing in weekend, and now my training host family. I guess I’m getting training in goodbyes for a reason. I’ve gone away before, and moved around a little, but this is on a completely different level.

I hugged my Mom and sister and told them I would see them later. I gave Fabiola a big hug and told her how much I loved her, and that I would see her later.

My Dad and I loaded my stuff up on the bus and boarded. As the bus drove down the long dirt road, I stuck my head out the window and waved at the family I had grown to love in such a short time, and then I just watched Fabiola get farther and farther away from me until eventually I couldn’t see her any longer. Then I turned around in my seat and looked out towards my future while nostalgically remembering my past.

It was an hour and half to Asunción, and a few hours waiting at the bus station. My kind Dad didn’t have to but insisted on waiting with me until my bus departed. Within a few hours the bus arrived. We walked over and put my luggage on the bus. I told him how appreciative I was for having me in his house and how much I enjoyed my time there. I told him to tell me if Paso de Oro plays in the championship because I’ll come back for it. He wished me luck, we shook hands and said goodbye.

And with that I boarded the bus, which was empty, put my backpack in the overhead compartment, sat down, started a playlist on my ipod, and started the next phase of my Peace Corps Adventure.

Swearing In + Peace Corps Office Pics

August 17th, 2009

It’s Official; I’m finally a volunteer!

Wow it’s been a long journey to officially become a volunteer. I’ve been an aspirant, an applicant, a nominee, an invitee, a trainee, and now finally, a volunteer.

It all started back in October of 2007 when I was in my 1st semester of senior year. I began preparing my application, so that I could leave shortly after graduation, but couldn’t submit it due to unforeseen circumstances that took until March of 2008 to resolve. By that time I was so busy in classes, preparing my senior thesis, and making final preparations to graduate that I didn’t have time to complete my application. Immediately after graduating in May of 2008, a group of my friends and I headed off for a celebratory Eurotrip. I got back in June, and finally officially submitted my application on June 22, 2008.

I was nominated for service on July 8th, 2008, didn’t receive all my clearances until January 15th, 2009, and finally received my invitation to serve on January 17th, 2009, which I accepted on January 28th, 2009. I did more waiting and more paperwork between then and my staging date of May 26th, 2009.

On May 27th, 2009, I flew out of Miami and arrived in Paraguay around 10:00 AM the next day, May 28th, 2009.

At that point I began 3 months of language, cultural, health, safety, and technical training.
On August 14th, 2009 at around 10:45 AM, I said the same words the President of the United States says at Inauguration and swore in as a Peace Corps Volunteer!

The longest beginning of my life...

Swearing In Ceremony and Festivities:

We arrived at the embassy, and basically just stood around talking and taking photos. Sometimes you take photos and try to make the environment seem a lot better than it really is...but I want to give you the real deal perspective for once.











The ceremony began shortly after the Ambassador arrived. Our APCD (Assistant Peace Corps Director), Elisa Echague kicked it off with a short speech. She was followed by Country Director, Donald Clark, the Ambassador (I could look it up on Google and pretend I know her name but the reality is I don’t), and Ronnell Perry.









The moment they asked us to nominate people to make the speech, I immediately nominated Ronnell because I knew he was the man for the job. He delivered in a major way. His speech put the Director’s and the Ambassador’s respective speeches to shame. He used the physical and nonphysical things trainees pack in anticipation of their Peace Corps adventure to provide comic relief and draw insights about what has and will serve us well as volunteers. In the end, it’s the things we intrinsically bring with us that are most valuable in our service.

After his speech, the Ambassador administered the oath, and with that we were official!



Then we went to a beautiful gazebo structure out back for a celebratory reception. I had heard about how delicious the cake is, and how I should eat as many pieces as humanly possible, because it would be a very long time before I had anything that good again. It did turn out to be really good and I had several pieces.





We stood around talking. The things that stand out in my mind are the following:

• Mike placing two small, round empanadas up against his nipples not three feet from the Ambassador and in view of our bosses, the Country Director and the APCD. Haha. It was hilarious. I told him the Ambassador saw him do it, and he had no way of knowing because I was facing her and he wasn’t. He turned blood red, and couldn’t stop nervously laughing. It was hilarious.

• Mary having a long conversation with the Ambassador, and then telling me that she hates bureaucratic officials, and told me how the Ambassador was an idiot and didn’t even know that the department she would be living in existed in Paraguay or where it was. The ambassador just threw around buzzwords of the moment. Mary has a Masters in International Development, Public Policy, International Relations, or something like that from Columbia, and some really good experience. She’s really smart, super sarcastic, and critical. It was really funny. It is bad that the US AMBASSADOR doesn’t even have a basic understanding of the departments and fairly big cities in Paraguay...
  
  

• Mike, in dressed in his traditional A poi shirt, which reveals his very hair chest, getting interviewed by a Paraguayan news channel. He immediately agreed to it because the reporter was hot.
  
  
  

• Me talking to the Ambassador about her rise to the Ambassador position, the role of public-private partnerships in development and telling her to invite me to her next pool party, and her subsequently offering me an open invitation to come hang out whenever I would like. She even said she might come to San Juan for the famous Dia de San Juan.

• Me talking to Country Director Donald Clark about my senior thesis, which concerned creating a consulting service for Peace Corps volunteers in the field, and him telling me to write a proposal for it, because they were looking for new ways to partner with institutions in the States

We snapped a few group pics and that was that...short and sweet.



Oh, interesting side note! Our swearing in was on President Lugo’s agenda, and he was really excited to come. We made preparations by learning the Paraguayan National Anthem and Ronnell translated his speech to Spanish, which must have been difficult because they were some lofty ideas, abstract thoughts, and English slang weaved throughout it. In the end, someone erased it off his agenda in favor of something else, and when he found this out, after it was too late to change, we are told he was upset (whether or not that is true or just political BS we’ll never know).

Peace Corps Office

Next on the agenda was a trip to the Peace Corps office to handle some administrative tasks such as getting our debit cards, money, cell phones, submitting forms to solicit bicycles, getting mail and packages, visiting the doctor to get medicines to take to site with us, signing a few forms, etc...

I'm going to give you a tour of part of the Peace Corps office complex for your enjoyment and for future Peace Corps trainees curiosity (I know how it is to scour through Peace Corps blogs looking for insight into what my future life would be like...look out for a future blog post on training and recommendations to future trainees).

The whole complex is surrounded by a big brick wall. 1st you have to go through a little security building at the entrance from the street, but once you're on the other side of that this is what you see...the main office.



This is the view from the inside of that building.



I love seeing the Peace Corps logo and President Obama's picture front and center in the office. I know a lot of people reading this blog may be of different political persuasion but personally I'm very proud to call Barack Obama my President, and am proud to be serving under his term. I think he is sincerely passionate about changing the direction America is headed in and the way politics work in Washington. He has good ideas for how to invest in America's future, and is a dynamic and intelligent leader and speaker who represents America well in international affairs. It puts a smile on my face, renews my motivation to be effective in making a positive impact during my service, and overwhelms me with a sense of pride and patriotism every time I walk into the office and see his photo next to the Peace Corps logo. That's all I'll say about that so lets continue with the tour.



Next up is the office of the assistant to the APCD of the RED sector.



This is the office of the Peace Corps coordinator. If you are a particularly motivated volunteer interested in extending your service as a coordinator in Paraguay, this could be your future office. Fancy right?



Once you get on the other side of that building, this is what you see. Directly ahead and to the left a little is the entrance to the library.



The official Peace Corps collection of books are located on the second floor of the building (It's not impressive). What you see is a Volunteer initiated and maintained book sharing project. You are free to take from, return to, and add to the library as you wish. There are some interesting books there, and it's my goal to read some along with my professional reading and GMAT study. I've already read Ismael and have started Collapse by Jared Diamond (an analysis for the reasons of collapses of societies throughout history) and Open Veins of Latin America (the book Castro gave to Obama).



These are the computers available for volunteers to use free of charge and anytime during office hours. There aren't usually a lot of volunteers at the office at any given time, so the lack of a large number of computers isn't a big problem.



This is the view as you leave the library and look back towards the main office. Those chairs and tables serve as a hang out spot for volunteers, and just on the other side there is a big grill that we can use as well. There is also an entertainment room in the building to the right, which has really comfy couches and a television (no dvd yet, only vhs but maybe sometime soon). There are also bathrooms, and a couch, which can be used as a very short term place to sleep and relax in between trips in and out of Asunción.



I threw this pic in to show the Peace Corps cars used by staff. For Paraguay, these SUVs are super lindo, and a treat to ride in because of the AC, comfortable seats, and smooth ride. Don't expect to ride in them much though because most of the time we pack in one of two crappy vans for our transportation to and from places as groups.



My next post will describe the weekend after Swearing In.

Tranquilo en Paraguay

I want to start this blog by answering the most important question one could ask someone serving in the Peace Corps...Why?

Why did I want to leave my comfortable life in America to join the Peace Corps and go live in a third world country?

Reasons Why:

1. “...to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” I hope to capture the essence of this quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson during my two years of Peace Corps service. If even one person has a better standard of living because of my efforts, I will consider my service a success.


2. To develop international development skills and hone Spanish competency


3. To gain experience within sustainable development, nonprofit or NGO operations, business consulting, and conducting business in Latin America


4. To have an amazing adventure and many unique experiences


5. To truly understand another culture
   


6. To challenge myself like I’ve never been challenged


7. To know what it is like to live in the third world and gain a first-hand perspective of the challenges they face


8. To learn to enjoy life as other cultures do


9. To develop meaningful relationships with some great people, both locals and other Americans


10. To travel

Flight and Staging

It has only been a week since I left the States and yet I feel like so much has happened. I flew out from Greenville-Spartanburg on Tuesday morning, May 26^th, 2009. My flight from GSP to ATL was at first delayed and then cancelled due to mechanical failure, but by this time I had achieved this zen-like state of mind to the point that nothing could bother me. I had been preparing my mind to withstand discomfort, to remain positive in dismal, gross, and frustrating circumstances, and to do the best with what I had so a cancelled flight only seemed an appropriate way to start my journey.

I was eventually rerouted through Charlotte and after flying in circles above the airport for a few hours finally landed in Miami. I met this really cool lady on the flight from GSP to Charlotte, who was also going to Miami. We hung out and talked the whole time. She was a dentist who could easily have been a history professor. She reads historical non-fiction. She chooses different topics she wants to learn about every year and then devotes a lot of time to learning about those particular topics by reading books related to those topics, generally in history, but not always. Needless to say I had some amazing, interesting, and deep conversation with this woman before we parted ways. As a side note, I love plane relationships. Plane relationships are like real life relationships but at turbo speed. I love how you can meet someone, quickly handle the surface level conversation like name, profession, origin, etc... and then progress onto more meaningful conversation. Before you know it, the plane lands and you say your goodbyes. Even though you only spend a few hours together, they make a small impact on your life, but I digress. Back to the story...

Soon after landing in Miami I got on a shuttle to the hotel I would stay at for a night before leaving for Paraguay. As soon as I got on the shuttle I noticed this girl that I was sure was a fellow Peace Corps Volunteer. Sure enough I heard her mention Paraguay to someone so I turned around and said, “Did you say you were going to Paraguay?” I wanted to say something to the effect of, “I’m so glad to finally meet you. I’ve been waiting for a long time to meet you, and you’re one of the few people in the world who can understand exactly what I’m feeling right now, and because of that I feel a close bond to you even though I don’t know you at all.” Of course I didn’t say that, but we did introduce ourselves and shortly thereafter checked into the hotel together. I went up to my hotel room, where I met my roommate and fellow future rural economic development volunteer. I basically spent the rest of the night taking care of some administrative tasks that had to be done before Peace Corps registration and things that needed to be done before leaving the States.

We had our staging the next morning. It felt so great to be among like-minded people. It was so surreal to meet the people I would share a major life experience with. During staging we all got along so nicely, and we instantly connected and had tons of fun. We did a few fun icebreaker type activities. One that sticks out in my head was called Anxieties and Aspirations. We split into 4 groups and had to depict different anxieties we were experiencing and aspirations we had using only pictures. This was a really fun activity. This is a picture of my group’s poster.

Notice the person running to the outhouse. That was hilarious. At the end of staging they asked us to give an adjective describing how we were feeling at that moment. Quote of the day comes from Angelik, the same girl I met on the bus. She enthusiastically said, “I’m f’n stoked.” Exactly in those words. It was awesome.

Before long we checked out of the hotel, loaded our luggage on a bus and went to the airport, where we waited for about 4.5 hours before departing. As former Peace Corps volunteers, waiting is one thing we are really good at by now, so we had tons of fun doing this as well. We went to a sports bar in the airport, talked, drank, ate, and generally had a good time. Being my last meal in America, I had to make it count, so I ordered twice. The first time I got this chipotle chicken quesadilla and then the next time I ordered a burger. It was great, and it was all paid for by your taxes...so thank you!

Wheels in the sky. We’re headed to Paraguay! (If you say Paraguay the Spanish way, it rhymes).

First Week

The flight over was quick. I’ve been on a few overnight flights in my life, but this one definitely felt like it flew by. (Hahahaha. By now you should be slapping your knees and rolling on the floor laughing at my incredibly witty pun)

Shout out to Draper. I listened to the playlist you provided on the flights to Paraguay and it was awesome.

When we got to Sao Paulo Brazil I felt like I was in a James Bond video game or something. Here I was working for the US government arriving to Brazil in the early morning, and there was metal stairs and glass walls. Outside in the early morning light I could see transport trucks and men in uniforms standing in groups talking. Inside the people were wearing surgical masks and some wore white coats. It’s as if we were in a nuclear plant or some secret government operation where they were testing bio-weapons.

I was kind of worried because they said there were people at the airport checking for symptoms of the H1N1 virus, and I had a runny nose. Random people, especially Asians were wearing these surgical masks all over the place, and I thought to myself, “Is there an outbreak here or what?”

I met a really cool girl named Lyn, fellow PCT, while waiting for our flight to leave. She went to undergrad b-school at the McCombs School of Business at the University of Texas, Austin. I believe it’s a top 10 program. I think she is a fellow geek, which is why we had a lot to talk about. We got into some interesting discussion about MBAs MPAs Non Profit Management, here experiences, and development and non-profit work in general. The flight to Asuncion from Sao Paulo was short and sweet, and finally we had arrived. Again...the masks...everywhere. Even our Peace Corps staff was wearing them. At this point, Bambi and I were like, “Hold Up. Did we miss something? Where are our masks?”

We were herded outside and separated into two groups, one for the RED (Rural Economic Development) and one for the MSD (Municipal Services Development). The RED group, of which I’m part of, got into a crappy, blue van and headed into the unknown. Seconds after driving off from the airport we saw cows grazing on the side of a main road in Asuncion, which is the capital of Paraguay. I thought this was really cool. Seconds later, we slammed on brakes because two cars in front of us wrecked. We circumvented the wreck, I snapped a photo, and we were off again. Talk about adventure. I hadn’t been in the country 5 minutes, and had already seen swine flu masks, no sink or mirror in the bathroom at the airport, cows grazing on the side of and in the middle of the highway, and a wreck!

As we made our way to our central training site in Guarambare, I noticed the poverty around me. Try to picture this: Buildings are dilapidated and old. There’s junk all around the houses and buildings. Crappy soccer fields, kids with torn clothing, people hustling on the street, selling anything they can to make a living. Shells of cars and old rusty Junkers piled on top of each other. Half paved and uneven roads. It’s like a movie. For the first time in my life, I truly felt like I was in a third world country, and I was....but it was awesome and somehow in the midst of all that I felt tranquil even comfortable.

There is more to come later. I´m going to post about my job description, tell some funny stories, post some pictures, tell about my family and friends, share some cultural and language insights, etc...

Overall, right now I´m really really happy. I love my host family. My fellow volunteers are awesome. Tranquilopa. That´s guarani for everything´s good.

I love and miss you all!