3 Month In-Service Training

November 26th, 2009

In my last post I focused on the best part of my trip back to Paso de Oro...the family.

In this post I would like to share a little bit about what In-Service training (IST) was like as part of my continuing effort to give you a glimpse of what development work in general and Peace Corps development work in particular is all about.

IST, this time called “Reconnect” since it was the first formal occasion in which my training group got together, was a 3-day event held in Guarambaré. Remember this place?



It started around 8:00 AM on Tuesday, November 24th and ended around 12:00 PM on Thursday, November 26th.

Before we arrived we responded to a questionnaire about what we would like to learn about in the following sessions:

• Language
• Country Director Brief
• Lunch with Programming and Training Officer
• Programming Session with Associate Peace Corps Director
• Medical
• Round Robin of other topics/sectors

LANGUAGE

During the course of the 3 days, we spent most of the time in breakout style language classes. We were grouped according to what we wanted to study (Spanish or Guaraní) and what level or common themes within each. I picked up and honed a few things but overall think language is not the best use of time for an IST mainly since it is such a short period of time, which implicates that the incremental gains in language at this point pale in comparison to the potential for large incremental gains in our technical area. Personally, I would have liked to see a lot more effort and time put into sector specific technical training especially now that we are coming in with a pretty good perspective on our sites and counterparts. If leveraged correctly, this newly gained in depth perspective could be used to give us some great technical training and guidance/advice, but that’s just one opinion among many.

COUNTRY DIRECTOR BRIEF

Country Director Donald Clark provided a brief in which he covered many topics. He started out by describing the Country Director conference in LA he went to in which he was able to see the new Peace Corps Director and hob-nob with other Country Directors from around the world. He then talked about some important changes to Peace Corps Paraguay Pre-Service Training (basically, Peace Corps Paraguay has not renewed its contract with CHP in the outsourcing of our training).

CHP Paraguay was the latest and last victim among a long, historical spree of severed ties between the training supplier and Peace Corps. They used to conduct training for many of the Peace Corps posts and systematically lost every single contract through the years. There is an important lesson to be gleaned from this experience. I’m not sure about the other Peace Corps posts that dropped CHP, but at least in Paraguay, the executive staff was satisfied with their work. It was a policy change and corresponding order, which came down from headquarters in Washington that delivered the final blow to CHP. Companies or organizations contracting with the government better make sure to diversify their offering and customer pool in order to hedge against risks associated with fickle government policy, which could end the company with a change of a just one law or even interpretation of a law. That goes for the private sector as well. A company should never rely to heavily on one customer or supplier because of the leverage afforded to the other organization in negotiations as well as the huge implications for survival prospects implied in a decision to end the relationship.

Our Country Director also talked about some ongoing IT issues concerning Internet at the office, and information/collaboration/knowledge sharing platform improvements, which are desperately needed. He also addressed volunteer behavior as a result of some recent incidents, which include broken glass in the pool of one of our preferred hotels and streaking naked in public during a Volunteer get-together. He discussed the importance of Peace Corps partnering with other government and non-government organizations engaged in similar work. Finally, he talked about the need of Peace Corps to create more unified, branded programs, leadership camps as an example, at the national level.

LUNCH WITH PROGRAMMING AND TRAINING OFFICER

Most of the Volunteers, myself included, went out for lunch so we missed the Lunch session with the PTO. I came in on the tail end of it and it seemed like a pity party in which Volunteers described difficult situations and frustrations experienced in site.

PROGRAMMING SESSION WITH ASSOCIATE PEACE CORPS DIRECTOR

The APCD session went really well. I had asked for examples of what other Volunteers in our sector were doing. Betsy, our sector’s Volunteer Coordinator, prepared a great one pager describing the main activities of many of the Volunteers in our sister G. I had also asked for an exhaustive listing of the most common organizations (Government, NGO, Nonprofits) with which to work as a RED Volunteer including brief explanations of each and contact info. Betsy delivered big time on that one as well.

Two former Volunteers from our sector also offered a session in which they broke their service down into 4-month segments revealing the nature of the two-year service and the activities they did within their communities.



I had also asked to get more information about how to most effectively implement the entrepreneurship course (class size, frequency, appropriate ages, how to market it, certificates?, ideal duration of class, ideas for practical application of what’s taught in the class, etc...). In order to address that, they brought in Eric, a Volunteer from our Sister G, who is teaching the course. He showed us an example of a class and then gave tips concerning most of the above.



MEDICAL

The medical session was basically structured as a free-flowing question and answer session, which was followed by distribution of much needed sun block and OFF. We discussed how to keep cool in the summer heat, which foods are and are not ok to eat if left unrefrigerated, and a handful of other topics. Medical Mary gave us a sheet with a few good recipes and common standard to metric conversions for cooking.

ROUND ROBIN

In the Round Robin style sessions current Volunteers offered us the following:

• AIDS charla
• Working with Youth Charla
• Gender and Development Charla
• Trash Management Charla
• Basic Computer Skills Training Charla

I chose to attend the first three charlas.

Aids Charla

In the AIDS charla, Lauren (the special third year extension AIDS volunteer in Asunción) quickly delivered the standard AIDS charla using a nicely designed flip chart so that we could see how it goes and how to deliver it in the event that we decided to conduct the presentation in our sites. I found it well designed, really entertaining, interactive, and informative. As an example, Lauren asked us what were some common reasons for not using a condom, one of which was reduced pleasure/sensitivity. She responded to that by asking for a volunteer participant (which of course was me) to come up for a demonstration. She told me to close my eyes and hold up the index and middle fingers from my right hand. She then proceeded to place a condom over those two fingers. She instructed me to guess what action she was doing to my fingers as she performed them. I correctly observed all of her actions, which included stroking with her fingers, blowing, and licking. She told me to open my eyes and then gave some statistic to the rest of the group and I, which states that the genital area has (huge number) more nerves than your fingers, so if I felt and discerned all the differences with my fingers, imagine the heightened sensitivity with the other area indicating lack of sensitivity is no excuse for not using a condom especially when weighed against the risks of contractions of STDs and unwanted pregnancy.

Working with Youth Charla

An Urban Youth Volunteer gave us examples of ways to work with youth, provided knowledge of some existing pre-prepared projects/activities, gave some helpful tips to keep in mind while working with youth, and then broke down her activities in site.

Some of the helpful tips:

• Don’t drink or smoke with your youth, despite if they’re of legal age
• Mix it up by changing the meeting place, buying food, playing games, etc...
• Keep it short and simple at first.
• Be patient, be more of a peer than a know it all Volunteer
• Make sure the youth know what they’ve accomplished, even if it’s small
• Listen to their ideas and do what they want at first...build the rapport, give them what they want, and then start pushing your agenda later
• Set regular meeting days and times, and don’t change them

She broke down her activities in site which include:

• Teaching basic computer skills
• Offering sessions on self esteem, decision making, communication, etc...as part of the community project class at a local high school
• Assisting a local youth group in doing whatever they want to do such as fundraising for a soccer tournament, making a garden, and writing up a request for funding for trash cans.
• Exercise Group- Offers a 45 minute exercise classes three times a week, and facilitated a weight loss contest in the school.

Gender and Development Charla

To be honest, I don’t really remember much from this charla. The first part took the form of an open-ended group conversation, which was followed up with Q & A. Rosana, the go to Volunteer on GAD issues, asked what gender roles and differences in gender relations we noticed in our communities. We went around sharing our observations and experiences. The typical things came out like how men and women separate into two different groups at gatherings, the chauvinist comments guys make, the dichotomy of traditional roles in the house and work, etc...

She also told us about the GAD committee, it’s annual camp, and I think she mentioned a few ways to conduct GAD related work in our communities and how to handle some touchy topics.

So there you have it...a Peace Corps Paraguay RED sector 3 month In Service Training. I enjoyed catching up with some of my fellow Volunteers and especially enjoyed hearing about their sites and activities in site.

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.

Paraguay vs. Colombia Game

October 15th, 2009

I decided the day of at about 1:00 PM (bus set to leave at 2:00 PM) to go to the Paraguay vs. Colombia game in Asunción. A lack of plata (money) and a looming presentation were complicating my decision to go, but in the end the thought of seeing Paraguay play in a World Cup qualifier in Asunción with a bunch of friends won out over work and money. What put me over the top was talking to Chris who said I should come and that I could crash at his place, which is really close to Asunción.

Yet another great decision. I had a great time.

I came home from the cooperative, hurriedly packed my bag and headed off to meet up with Analia to catch the bus to Asunción.

When we arrived, we had to drop Analia’s bag by Rosa’s house. On the way there, it started pouring rain. It took us walking under my raincoat for about 5 minutes before I realized I had my umbrella in the side pocket of my backpack. We dropped the bag off at Rosa’s, and then the three of us headed to the Palace, where I was going to leave my bag during the game.



Shortly after dropping my bag off and me changing into my Paraguayan jersey, we headed to a sports bar not 2 blocks from the Palace. When I walked up, the bar was filled with Volunteers in Paraguayan jerseys and everyone had big towers of beer at their tables. We hung out there for just a bit and then headed out for the game.

I bought 60-mil ticket off a guy on the street for 50 mil, and with that the fun began. As we were approaching the stadium, I had to take off my belt and conceal it underneath the band of my boxers since belts are not allowed in the stadium. What does that tell you?

I was worried they were going to find it and confiscate my only belt but we walked through without even being checked. No pat downs, no metal detector, nothing. We just cruised right through.

Upon entering the stadium, I was amazed by the atmosphere....a bouncing sea of red and white, flags flying, plastic bats being shaken in the air, huge Coca-Cola banners covering entire sections, and chants being belted in one, unified Paraguayan voice to the tune of loud drums. I can’t imagine what World Cup is going to be like!



Paraguay and Colombia went head to head for the last qualifying match for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.



Even though the Colombians handed it to us, we still had a great time jumping around and chanting, “Albi albi albi roja albi roja.” Not only did we lose but Argentina won, which meant they had qualified for an appearance in the World Cup. As the rivalry is so heated, everyone wanted to see the big, bad Argentina sit this one out. Either way, it was great to see a game in person. It will be a while before another game is played in that stadium so I’m glad I seized the opportunity. At the end of the day Paraguay is headed to South Africa and so am I!!!



After the game, we went back to Chopería to hang out. There was a live band, which provided for a really cool atmosphere. A Volunteer who has been here for 2 years, Analia, Rosa, Claire, and I all went down the street for some Lomito Arabe (beef gyro). It was great late-night food.

Later when we returned to the bar, I had some interesting conversations with a few Volunteers. One volunteer did her undergrad at Cornell and her MPA at Columbia. She then worked in a variety of organizations in microfinance and nonprofit before coming to the Peace Corps. She was really knowledgeable and interesting to talk to. She imparted some wisdom that will cause me to make some tough decisions. The good news is she says Peace Corps is great on a resume and will open a lot of doors, especially in the non-profit world. She said she used to love to hire Peace Corps Volunteers. She said if I were interested in pursing a MPA (Masters of Public Administration), Peace Corps would be enough from a work experience perspective to get me in. As I am looking to do a MBA with possibly a dual MPA degree, I’ll ultimately have to get a few more years of experience before matriculating. Nevertheless she dropped some good ideas on me and gave me a few fresh perspectives that I needed to hear but which has me in deep introspection about how to spend my time while here and what to do when I leave Peace Corps.

Around 2:00 AM, Chris, his Paraguayan friend, and myself headed out to find a bus back to his place. We walked to several corners where we waited briefly for a bus before heading to the next place there was “sure to be a bus.” After several attempts like this, we passed a bar and the bar-owner told us that a bus would pass by there at 3:00 AM. Since we had a while to wait, we went inside and played a few games of pool. Remember Hora Paraguaya? 3:00 AM...No Bus. 3:15 AM...No Bus. 3:30 AM...No Bus. 3:45 AM...No Bus. Around 4:00 AM I was ready to go and had in good faith that the bus was not coming, so I hailed a taxi and spent 60 mil getting us to Chris’ place. The whole reason I stayed with him was to avoid spending 66 mil on a hotel room for the night...HAHA.

It turned out well because the next day I had a great time hanging out with Chris.

He took me by his counterpart, which is a big community center where they train and develop youth and give technical skills courses to the community. Chris told me all about a leadership camp he is developing and how he got it funded. I’m going to go to the leadership camp, not only because it will be fun and I’ll likely facilitate a few sessions, but also because it will be a great learning opportunity in case I decide to do a leadership camp in San Juan.

We went for lunch at a humongous grocery store, and had interesting conversation about Che Guevara’s life and his part in the communist revolution in Cuba. Chris had read up a lot on Che, so he was well versed and he has a knack for story telling. It’s pretty incredible how the whole thing went down. If you’re interested in that kind of stuff, I would recommend checking out some books about Che and Fidel Castro. It’s actually a really interesting story.

After lunch we played a few games of pool at an indoor/outdoor style bar near Chris’ places and then went back to his place. We had a lot of great conversation about Peace Corps, development projects, our personal lives, etc...

Soon after, I bussed it back to the Peace Corps office where I dropped off my payment for the Thanksgiving bash, and then went to the terminal where I caught the long bus back home.

All in all, it was a great trip. I made a few new friends, saw Paraguay play, had a lot of fun, and had some really interesting and educational conversations.

Mexican Night

September 8th, 2009

Having just received a means of transport, I rode my bicycle, along with Claire, about 5 miles out into the campo to Anne’s house in order to cook Mexican food. Anne lived in Mexico for some time, so she knew how to make amazing homemade tortillas. They were perfect. I literally have never had better tortillas, and they were made from scratch using ingredients available in rural Paraguay and cooked over a rusty, old gas oven/stove unit.

Anne and Claire are pretty much geniuses because these tacos were easily the best I’ve ever eaten in my life.

I am trying so many new things, and can now eat pretty much anything. I won’t be a picky eater at all when I get back to the States.

You saute onions, peppers and garlic to which you add the meat.

As the meat is browning, add in red paper flakes, chili powder (if you have it), cumin, pepper, and salt. Shortly before it’s finished, add in some precooked corn.

Then we made a guacamole sauce using avocados, tons of diced tomatoes, chili power, salt and pepper, chopped onions, chopped garlic, chopped cilantro, lemon, and cumin (optional).

We topped the meat mixture with fresh lettuce, a white cheese, and the guacamole sauce and then drizzled it with sour cream. It was simply amazing, and the best meal I’ve had in Paraguay up to this point by a long shot.

I can’t tell you how sore my bottom was after that bike ride. I think it was a combination of the thin, hard seat, the long distance, and the fact that I haven’t ridden a bicycle in a while. Apparently, I’m not the only one that experiences this. All the Volunteers said the same thing happened to them when they first received their bikes but that you get used to it.

Either way, it hurt to sit down let alone get back on my bike, and I was sore for days, but the spectacular Mexican meal made it all worth it.

It’s not all fun and games, or is it?

October 1st, 2009

VAC Meeting at Shawn’s

So we had another VAC meeting. This time it was at Shawn’s house in Santa Rosa. Shawn is now in his 3rd year here in Paraguay. He rents an amazing house for, get this, $34 per month! It’s a nice, big house with a patio and everything. He has a big living room, two bedrooms, an indoor/outdoor kind of room with a hammock, a big kitchen, a big storage area, and a decent sized yard. He also has a Paraguayan girlfriend he’s been with for quite a while now. I guess he figures he has it way too good to go back to the States now so he extended for a year.

VAC meetings, in theory, are supposed to be about receiving information from Asunción, discussing issues, brainstorming improvements or things we would like executive management to know, planning events, collaborating on projects, etc…

What did we end up doing? We grilled out and drank all day.



I haven’t eaten so much since I arrived here. First we had chorizo.



Then we had grilled fish and two kinds of salads (lettuce based and bean based). A little later we had grilled cow meat, and still later more chorizo. Finally at the end of the night we ordered, and were delivered, a homemade cake. It had a somewhat hard bottom crust, pound cake kind of inside, which was topped with whip cream and then slivers of peaches.

AMAZING!!!

Have I said lately how much I love my life right now? Cuz it’s true.

Let’s Get together and feel alright at Reggae Fest!

September 26th, 2009

The Wailers, Bob Marley’s band, came to Paraguay and put on a great show!

When I got a text saying there was going to be a Reggae Fest in Asunción and was asked if I wanted to come, I was like, “Yeah, why not? That sounds awesome!”

Add that to my list of great decisions. I’m sure this outdoor concert will go down as one of the coolest experiences I have as a Peace Corps Volunteer.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. First came the bus 3-hour bus ride on Friday afternoon to Asunción, which was really fun because....well I could be doing worse things than traveling through the Paraguayan countryside with two cool friends, while listening to my IPod. I just remember being so content in that moment. I remember thinking, “I have no worries, I’m a Peace Corps Volunteer, and I’m in the middle of Paraguay on a bus listening to Motion City Soundtrack headed for a weekend of fun and a Reggae concert.”



When we arrived in Asunción, we went to at this place called Quattro D. We treated ourselves to amazing chicken lasagna and some ice cream, and then Claire headed for the Peace Corps office, and Yaz tagged along with me to the mall. I wanted to buy bedding and possibly curtains, but ended up not buying them because they were really expensive and I couldn’t figure out how to pay in cash because the ATM has a small limit and was going to charge me 25,000 Gs for every transaction. If I paid in cash I was going to receive a 10% discount for being foreign. I was also trying to figure out how to meet the requirements in order to sign up for the store card, which would give me an additional 20% off. It added up to an $88 savings, which is a crap load for me at this point.

Regardless, we had a lot of fun just browsing around the mall gazing at the things we couldn’t afford.



That night I went out for dinner and drinks with several Volunteers who were in town for the concert. We went to the Brit Pub. For the first part of the night I was having a good time, but then I become tired, and that was all she wrote.

The night of the concert started outside the Alps Attic, a popular hotel for Peace Corps Volunteers in Asunción.



A fun and interesting American girl who decided to move here to write a guidebook to Paraguay picked us all up in her van. We packed in tight and headed out for the concert. Picture a minivan with about 13 people packed in. People are on each other’s laps and Will and I are crammed in the hatch. But we didn’t care. Igual no más.

I couldn’t help but think of foreshadowing as the song by The Black Eyed Peas that goes, “I’ve got a feelin’ that tonight’s gonna be a good night, that tonight’s gonna be a good night that tonight’s gonna be a good good night. I got a feelin’,” played over the radio in a van full of really cool, interesting Peace Corps Volunteers headed to a Reggae concert in Paraguay!

Many of the people in the car hate that song for it’s idiotic lyrics, but I secretly liked it, and thought it was a great kickoff for the night and foreshadowing of what was to come.

Shortly after arriving, we all scarfed down some hamburgers at a little stand outside the concert, and then jumped into the sea of people heading towards the entrance.



“Leche, Leche, Leche,” which means “milk, milk, milk,” screamed the hustlers selling beer outside the concert. Gypsies were sitting on the ground selling their hand crafted necklaces, wallets, bracelets, and other accessories. Nappy braids, Bob Marley tee shirts, psychedelic colors, and hippie chicks were everywhere. We don’t see a lot of diversity here, so it was a familiar and welcomed site.

Immediately upon entering the concert, I knew this was going to be a chill night. We stood in a circle towards the back of the crowd and talked, danced, and drank. Then we moved in closer.



As the night progressed sometimes we danced and other times we just sat in a big circle and had really interesting conversation. There was an atmosphere of friendliness and brotherhood in the air already, and the Wailers hadn’t even taken the stage yet.



People were freely sharing and interacting across their respective clicks.

Once the Wailers hit the stage, the night turned from chill to magical.

There is no way I can capture the feeling of goofily dancing around with friends to the sound of,

Singin': "don't worry 'bout a thing,
'Cause every little thing gonna be all right."
Singin': "don't worry (don't worry) 'bout a thing,
'Cause every little thing gonna be all right!"

Or to

We're jammin':
I wanna jam it wid you.
We're jammin', jammin',
And I hope you like jammin', too.



Cell phones were hoisted and waving in the air (reminiscent of Woodstock) and a Jamaican and Paraguayan flag swaying, crossing in the wind, forming a symbol of international peace as the Wailers sang:

Emancipate yourself from the mental slavery;
None but ourselves can free our minds.
Have no fear for atomic energy,
cuz none of them can stop the time.
How long shall they kill our profits?
While we stand aside and look? Ooh!
Some say it’s just a part of it:
We’ve got to fulfill de Book.

Won’t you help to sing?
These songs of freedom? -
Cause all I ever have:
Redemption songs,
Redemption songs,
Redemption songs.

WATCH THIS VIDEO



I thought the following were especially relevant lyrics for Paraguay:

Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights
Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights
Get up, stand up, stand up for your rights
Get up, stand up, don't give up the fight “



And of course, the highlight of the night:

“One love, one heart,
Let’s get together and feel alright.
Hear the children cryin’, (one love)
Hear the children cryin’ (one heart)
Sayin,’ “give thanks and praise to the Lord and I will feel alright,”
Sayin,’ “let’s get together and feel alright.”

And that’s exactly what we did. We all got together and we felt all right.



Highlights from the following day include an amazing breakfast at the hotel and relaxing by the pool. Again...Livin' the Dream!

Asado at Millionaire’s House

August 22nd, 2009

My host sister, who had been living in Washington D.C. as part of a live-in Nanny and English study program, was rather enthusiastically welcomed back home the moment she stepped off the bus. The family wasn’t expecting her for a few more days so they were surprised to see her. She came early in an attempt to avoid them picking her up at the airport and a big, extravagant welcome (which she didn’t avoid anyway). A few people found out she was back and within a matter of minutes, family and friends starting pouring into the house, where they all sat in a circle yelling over each other.



It was pretty hectic so I couldn’t make out much of the conversations. Before too much longer, my host mom decided an asado (barbeque) was in order, and a rather benevolent lady offered to have it at her house, which is just a few houses down from mine.

Within minutes, I found myself in an environment that had me questioning whether or not I was really in the Peace Corps. The benevolent woman who offered to have the asado at her house is the owner of Kurupí and Te Guarani, probably the two biggest national brands in Paraguay. Kurupí is my favorite brand of yerba for t-ray and mate, the traditional drinks in Paraguay, and Te Guarani is a family of tea brands. Needless to say, I was amazed to find myself in a mansion (by Paraguayan standards at least). They have a glass building in the middle of their patio, which is complete with luxurious couches, a big flat screen TV, a nice dining table, a bar, a massive grill, bathroom, and kitchen. It’s like a mini house apart from the larger house. They have a full time staff consisting of a cocinero (grill man), maid/chef, and security guard.

Within an hour of so of arrival, I was chowing down on the best asado I had eaten up to this point as well as salads and sausages. Oh and did I forget to mention, they had an open bar where you could have your choice of beer, liquor, or wine. I took a stroll around the place and found a really nice truck, a 7 series BMW, a four-wheeler, 2 jet-skis, and a belowground pool.

I felt really good and REALLY GUILTY at the same time. Here I am a Peace Corps Volunteer, and while some of my colleagues are out in the campo squatting in outhouses and bringing in water from their well, I’m chatting it up with Paraguayan Millionaires, eating great food that was prepared and served to me by a professional staff, and generally just living lavishly.

After everyone had finished eating, we sat around drinking, joking, and having a good time. I received a text from a fellow Volunteer, Claire, asking what I was up to. I replied that I was chillin’ at a Millionaire’s house to which she replied that she was doing the same thing, also at a Millionaire’s house, to which I replied, “We are awful Peace Corps Volunteers.”

After a string of texts and a few more calls, she and her Paraguayan friends picked me up in front of the house, and I went back to another very nice house, where we proceeded to sing songs in Spanish Karaoke style. After a few hours of this I was tired and ready to call it a night, but Claire dragged me to the club despite my efforts to convince her otherwise. I danced a bit but then escaped unnoticed and headed home to pass out.

I wanna be a cowboy baby

I arrived to my site, San Juan Bautista, around 9:00 PM on August 18th, 2009.

As of today, October 18, 2009, I have been here for exactly 2 months now. Although I made a few general posts during that time, I have been really slack on describing what’s been going on in my life since Swearing-In.

I’ve had a lot of fun in the last two months and can honestly say that being a Volunteer is a lot better than being a Trainee, although I do miss my host family and friends from training from time to time.

In this series of posts, I’m going to hit the highlights of the last two months and describe what my typical day is like now that I’m in site.

August 20th, 2009-

VAC Meeting at Ranch

VAC, which stands for Volunteer Advisory Council, is the mechanism for formal communication between Volunteers and the Peace Corps Paraguay executive management. All volunteers belong to a VAC group, which is organized regionally, and then representatives from each regional VAC get together once a month in Asunción for an NVAC, National Volunteer Advisory Council, meeting.

My VAC group did it up big and welcomed the new G30 VAC members (Arthur, Dina, and myself) in style by having a get-together at a nice ranch in San Miguel called San Francisco. It was sort of cold and early morning when we arrived, so we just sat around a fire and chatted it up a bit. Claire, John and his friend visiting from Ecuador, a married couple whose names are Matt and Angie, Arthur and Dina, Michael, Jesus, and myself were in attendance.



John’s friend from Ecuador was really cool. He moved to Ecuador about a year ago to teach English. He didn’t go as part of a program and he didn’t speak a lick of Spanish. He just packed up, flew to Ecuador, and looked for a job. If that isn’t cool enough, consider the fact that he bused from Ecuador to Bueños Aires and then on to Paraguay to meet up with John, crossing the Atacama Desert and racking up a whole host of interesting, adventurous experiences and stories in the process.

After a bit of chatting, we went outside, mounted some horses, and went on a very tranquil ride around the ranch, which is a beautiful, vast track of land.

I forgot how much I love riding horses. On the way back, I rode faster than I ever have before, including racing horseback on a beach in Greece. There is something freeing and adventurous about being mounted atop a horse in full gallop. I think there’s a good chance I’ll own a horse one day.



After riding horses, we satisfied the appetite we had built up by eating a delicious meal, and shortly after headed back to our respective sites.

Great Swearing-In Speech

The Much Anticipated Swearing-In Speech by Ronnell Perry

This post is a little delayed, being that we swore in on August 14th, 2009, but I had to wait for Ronnell to get some free time and access to the Internet, of which one he has a lot of and the other hardly any of out in the campo where he lives.

When CHP asked for nominations for someone to make the Swearing-In speech, I instantly nominated Ronnell, because I knew without a doubt that he, more than anyone else in our group, was the man for the job. He came through as expected and delivered a fantastic speech that put both the Country Director's and Ambassador's speeches to shame. I've included the transcript for his speech for your enjoyment. So without further ado...I give you the fresh, the fantastic, Ronnell Perry.



Asuncion, Paraguay
Aug. 14, 2009
US Embasador's Residence

This speech is going to go fairly quickly. I am kinda in a rush. I have an appoinment with a banking official becuase I am just hours away from becoming millionaire!...well a Paraguayan millionaire and I dont know about you guys, but this is my first time, so I am kinda anxious to get out of here and reap my fortune? Now, if I get my phone aftewards, I wil call you and tell you where I spent my guaranies.

Mba’echaepa Madame Ambasdasor. On behalf of G-30, I’d like to thanks for your hospitality and opening your home to us on this occassion. Also, Buen dia to Donald Clark, Director of Peace Corps Paraguay APCD Elisa Chague.

Buen dia guests.

And buen dia G-30!

Most of us who came to Paraguay on May 28 of this year quickly discovered that the Peace Corps Paraguay packing list was quite inadequate. My fellow group mates and I have come to the conclusion that the very things that we were advised not to pack were some of the items that we want and need most. As says the packing list, denim jeans, sunglasses, baseball caps and other items were some of the things that most Paraguayans don’t wear. That may have been true a few decades ago, but I would say that things have changed. but I’d like you to check out what the folks are wearing on the colectivo and in the campo. The ironic conclusion though, is that we could have left all luggage and bags behind in the US, and still made it to Paraguay equipped with what we truly need to be able to connect with this country and serve its people. Igual, podemos servir al pueblo Paraguayo sin nuestras cosas materiales.

Furthermore, there are some items that we came to find that we need but actually did not pack with us. But we still brought them. We were not able to actually pack them, but we still carried them with us. Thats because they are intrinsic to what makes us human. We were born with those items that we need most to live and serve in the world. We came into life with our brain, eyes, ears, hands, mouth, legs and most importantly, our heart. Lo mas esencial es el corazon. These items, though not on the Peace Corps Paraguay packing list, we have found them to be most practical, most useful and most effective at completing our mission of service and sharing. Unlike clothing, flashlights and laptop computers; our brains, eyes, hands, mouths, legs and hearts give us the tools not just to stay warm, navigate blackouts or type up pedidos. But they also give us the opportunity to absorb both tangible and intangible elements of our new environment, process new events and feel love. Amor para la gente, para el pais, amor para el mision de Cuerpo de Paz.

Yes, business apparel will give the appearance of a well-spoken man, but the contents of his brain and the eloquence of the words from his mouth, and mastery of the language will be the manner in which he can prove it. Expensive water-proof hiking boots will help us to maneuver rugged terrain, but our eyes and ears will be the tools we use to help lead us back to town if we get lost. We will follow the smell of carbon burning, sopa paraguaya cooking and the sound of kids playing. If the very laptops that we were told not to bring, but are thankful that we did bring, decide to crash, it will be our hands and need for human interaction which brings us back to reality. We will meet people, and shake their hands. We will be pulled along dusty roads by mita’i who will attempt to show us the way to get away from what we brought in our luggage and to reconnect to la vida pura.

Our legs will carry us. So far, they have led us down empedrada roads, caminos feos and into the homes and patios of people that we now call neighbors and families. And once more they will carry us to new homes. These legs will propel our bike petals. Apparently we are the only folks in the entire country that cannot ride motos.

Our hands, mouths, eyes and ears allow us to absorb our new surroundings. When we touch hands with a Paraguayan in the campo, we touch his life-source, the tools that don’t require sharpening or lubrication, the hands that carpir, sembrar, and cosechar cada epoca.

Actually, Peace Corps tested this “built-in luggage” before we were even accepted into the program. Remember those physical exams? and for some of us, rigorous tests to show that our human suitcases were still in working order: legs still ready to walk and or run, eyes still ready to soak up oceans of images, ears able to comprehend a new language or two, mouths ready to smile warmly and make cultural chasms fade away, hands ready to greet others and work in side-by-side Paraguayans, and brains ready to process all of it, learning from the people, allowing us to pack and live lightly. This human luggage as we can call it, allows us, as Peace Corps volunteers and citizens of the world to seamlessly move in and out of contrasting environments. From talking to the president of a comite vecinal, to (in the case of today) potentially giving a speech in front of the President of the Republic of Paraguay. We can seamlessly, go from speaking English, to Spanish to Guarani. Well, this is our goal anyway.

How many of us had an airline loose their luggage? Yes I have too. And just think, we all made it through those next couple of hours or overnight without the seemingly essencial things that we had packed for our trip. And why? Because we are human, we are a part of the animal kingdom. Animals don’t carry sacks of stuff on their backs wherever they go. They already have exactly what they need to survive. And we do too.

So yes, the PCP’y packing list should be revised. Yet, at this point that list would never be able to adequately cover the most essential items that a future volunteer would need. Those items are made up of the things that make us human.

At different points during this training season, I created several Top Ten lists in an attempt to process and annotate all of the things that I was experiencing. And today, I would like to share a new Top Ten list with you all. This list focuses on how I have changed and become a little more tranquilo, a lil’ more Paraguayo, or Brasilero, or whatever. This list includes some things there were difficult to get over for me. And I am sure that you have your own ideas and that you have jumped some of the same hurdles. I hope they have resulted in true changes and adaptation that does not compromise who you are.

Top Ten Things That I am Now OK With:

TEN- I am ok with not having constant internet access. But I think Bambi has found the remedy for that problem.

NINE- I am ok with being the only black male in the group.

EIGHT- I am ok with being asked whether I am Brasilero and explaining that my parents are actually American.

SEVEN- I am ok with letting the women serve me. But on a serious note--I mean to say that I am ok with being a guest in someone’s home and being a guest in someone’s country.

SIX- I am ok with peeing in public. Phew... Sorry girls.

FIVE- I am ok with being the tallest person in almost every setting. And I am ok with people pointing at me and asking me why I am so tall.

FOUR- I am ok with being called el Michael Jackson original, Michael Jordan, and I am definitely ok with being called Obama! And now, I wouldn’t mind being called Aarron Williams...if folks besides Don Clark knew who that is. If you didn’t know, he’s the new PC Director.

THREE- I am ok with my proficiency level in Spanish. And that only means that I understand how much more I need to learn. And that goes for Guarani too.

TWO- I am ok with missing some things that are going on back home. On Fridays, I miss going out to the clubs or out to eat with friends. And on Sundays, I do miss spending time at my grandmothers house. It may just mean that I will have lots of appointments with friends and family to make up when I get back.

ONE- I am ok with Ronnell Perry or Ron as he is now known in the campo. I was ok with him back home, but its totally different in a new culture while still connected to a bunch of Americans. I am ok with who he is as an individual, and who he is in a group setting amongst all of the other personalities and opinions. It doesn't mean that I wont continue to evolve him, but it does mean that comparing him to someone else, or changing him because of negative outside forces wont make him any happier.

Each of us is on that journey. So, when you find it hard, just put on your American hiking boots and your headlamp, and you’ll get there...even if you run into a couple of empedrada roads or a few arroyos y esteros. Remember what you packed and what you didnt have to pack---because those qualities and intangibles will always serve you, you’ll always carry the most effective tools inside.

Swearing In Weekend

August 17th, 2009

So everyone left the Peace Corps office at different times and in different groups. I left with my homies Mike (also known as Miguel) and Carlos, who I consider my best friends within the group, and Jenna. We took a bus and after Carlos told a complete stranger on the bus exactly where we were staying and who we were, we were pointed in the right direction and arrived at the hotel. The hotel was neither overly fancy nor really crappy.

This is the view from my balcony. As Mike said, "that's the essence of a South American city." (or something like that)



I’ll give you a fairly detailed look at the weekend in order to show you how Peace Corps volunteers get down. This was a special weekend I think because there was a swearing in, a swearing out, and an Ahendu concert. Unfortunately, I forgot to take my camera out the first night so I don’t have any pics from that to share, but I did manage to snap a few the next day.

Friday Night: Dinner at a Mexican restaurant, Art Bar, Discoteca (Club)

We (Carlos, Mike, Mary, Liz, Carrie, and I) started off the night by going way across town to a Mexican restaurant for dinner. We had heard from a fellow volunteer of Mexican nationality that it was really good. We have all been craving Mexican for some time so we decided to check it out. I was really impressed. Living in the periphery of small cities and visiting a lot of campo places in Paraguay really lowers your expectations, so I was thinking of a crappy, little Mexican joint with ok food.

This place was on par with nice restaurants in the states...think a nicer version of On the Border. The waiters were decked out and actually provided some dang good service. The food had the appearance of being delicious and the menu was certainly fancy and full of good options. When it came out, it was good, but I wasn’t exactly floored with it. Nevertheless we ate a good meal, and had a good time joking around at dinner.

Next we went to a bar nicknamed “Art Bar” by volunteers. The place really, really impressed me. It’s like volunteers have gone to and fro in the city, and found all the hidden gems because all weekend we went to really cool, unique places.

You walk upstairs and suddenly you’re in an art exhibit. It looks like a large, rustic city apartment and art is half-hazardly placed in rooms throughout the place, which adds to its modern, artsy vibe. I took a little while to explore some of the rooms, and did some deep introspection on some of the pieces and think I came up with some good insights into the artists’ intentions. For example, one piece was three photos of a working class man and his wife. At first glance it looks like 3 photos, which are exactly the same, but when you really study it, you start to notice slight variances, which distinguish the three different men from each other, and even slight differences in the scene itself. I think the artists was making a statement about the importance of truly paying attention to people as individuals instead of making assumptions about them based on shallow first impressions or groups they may be part of.

In the next room over from the last exhibit room is a bar, which leads to a sitting area. I talked to some people, ordered a drink and then headed up to the roof, where I heard people were beginning to gather. I always love rooftops in cities so my curiosity wouldn’t let me stay below any longer.

It was gorgeous up there and very breezy, which made for a really chill environment to hang out in. I stayed there talking to different people for a while. I had a really interesting conversation with Angelic about life choices, career paths, and how realistic it is to have a really high level career and still maintain a good relationship with your family (spouse and kids), and how to achieve work-life balance.

I had another conversation with Dina about meat in Paraguay and how if one knew how to prepare and cook the meat right, you could still make some delicious steaks here. It’s just the fact that they don’t marinate it, poorly choose cuts of meats, and overcook it.
I also met the former APCD for the RED sector who was with his gorgeous, young girlfriend. He’s Paraguayan, and now is a high up at Itaipú, which is the world’s largest hydroelectric plant. I’ll take this opportunity to talk a bit about Itaipú.

It was a joint effort between Paraguay and Brazil, but Brazil seems to be reaping most of the rewards. The revenues from Itaipú are a huge deal here in Paraguay. Issues surrounding it are among the most important political issues in the Presidential race, and the money it generates is a huge factor in the economic development of Paraguay. There are scholarships, financing for infrastructure projects, and money flows from Itaipú to poor communities around Paraguay through a chain on governments (National, Regional, State, City, and Towns). In the eyes of a development worker this would be the ideal situation since the money is coming from a nationally owned resource and is sustainable for the foreseeable future. However, Paraguay was ranked the 2nd most corrupt country in the world not too long ago, so that throws a curb ball at the system. I mentioned that the money flows through a chain of governments, so what do think happens in reality in the 2nd most corrupt country in the world? That’s right, most of the money ends up filling the pockets of corrupt politicians. In addition to that, Brazil somehow benefits from cheap energy, sells the energy to Paraguay at high prices, and gets a larger portion of the profits. Paraguay wants to renegotiate, and was successful in getting some concessions, but there is a contract in place until 2023. At that point, if Paraguay is smart, they will get a favorable renegotiation. It is a similar situation as the Panama Canal, but more complicated.

So back to the story...I met this guy, and he started showing me pictures of him and the President hanging out. I thought that was pretty cool. After kicking it with him a bit, I noticed that most of my friends were gone. I called Carlos, who told me the name of the place they were at. I passed the Itaipú guy on the way out, and asked him if he knew where it was. He was like, “Yeah, I know where it’s at. Come on I’ll give you a ride.” So I hopped in the car with him, and was dropped off at the front door.

The club was pretty nice, and filled almost exclusively with Peace Corps Volunteers. We ended up leaving around 4:30 in the morning. I had a great time dancing and getting to know some of the other volunteers. There’s no better way to form new relationships than to party with people.
So around 4:30 we begin making our way home. We get close to the hotel, and Carlos wants some Asado...typical Carlos. He loves asado, especially late night. So we walked over, ordered some asado, and chowed down before calling it a night.

Saturday: Dinner and Ahendu Concert

Saturday I ended up sleeping late, and hanging out in the hotel for a bit. I took a nap and a shower, and everyone was gone. So I went downstairs to see if anyone was down there. I saw Elmer and Sasha, who were going to eat in Mercado 4, which is pretty far away. They invited me, so I headed out with them. I didn’t get two blocks away before calling Mary, who told me of their plans to eat at Lido Bar for lunch, which is closer and I’ve heard really good, so I went with that. I met up with Mary, Liz, and Carrie, and we just walked around for a while, and then went looking for lunch options because Lido Bar was going to be a long wait.



We ended up asking the concierge in Hotel Guarani, the nicest and most expensive (at $100 per night) hotel in Asunción. They pointed us towards a mall that had a little place to eat in it, but it was all like empanadas and other normal, bland Paraguayan food, which we were not into at the moment, so we continued our quest for lunch.

On the way I saw some really cool city art.





We ended up going way across town to another mall, which had a big food court. Liz had a gyro, Mary and Carrie were craving vegetarian food, and I went with Burger King. Haha. Can you believe it? I never eat Burger King! I just didn’t want to wait on a pizza, and there weren’t many other options I was really interested in.



After lunch we strolled back to the hotel. On the way we stopped in stores looking for presents for the kids in some of the girls families. We found this one awesome store that had foosball tables, water guns, puzzles, etc... It was like a really really small Toys R Us. I felt like a Toys R Us kid again. I had flash backs to water gun fights and foosball at Cross Training, and suggested the water guns for the 2 little brothers since they are really fun and Paraguay is really hot in the summer. She almost bought them but decided not to for fear they would break them on the first day, not too mention how expensive they were. We ended up finding this other little boutique that had these cute little ugly stuffed monster looking things, which Carrie absolutely fell in love with. It was perfect...unique, cute, and was similar to something she loved as a child. Carrie bought that and Mary bought two girly duck pencils for her two little bros.

On the way back, we just walked around making comments on things we saw in windows, and Liz fell in love with this chicken decoration thing. It was hilarious.



When we got back we chilled in Mary’s room for a while before getting ready for night #2.

That night we had dinner at another really good restaurant. I went splitzies with Liz, which turned out to be a great option. It made for a good chicken-pasta combo, which I thought was much better than the previous night’s dinner.



After dinner we went to the Ahendu concert. The idea of Ahendu is to share culture through music, but really it was just a bunch of volunteers at the bar listening to various volunteers who could play the guitar and/or sing. The location was really cool. It was one of those inside/outside kind of bars, which always makes for a nice atmosphere when the weather is nice. I swear Peace Corps volunteers seriously have found every cool place in Asunción.



We didn’t stay long. For some reason we just weren’t feeling it. I did meet a JAICA, Japan’s richer version of the Peace Corps, who was really cool to talk to. He lives in the Chaco, and said in the summer it easily gets to 50 degrees Celcius, which is 122 degrees Fahrenheit!!! Though I won’t live in the Chaco, and won’t experience such extreme heat, I probably still am in for a very hot summer.

After the concert, we strolled home, and on the way saw a pizza joint. Carlos, Carrie, Mary and I were feeling some late night pizza, and Liz and Mike were feeling an early night. So they went back to the hotel to hit the sack, and we ordered a quite delicious pizza and some drinks. We chilled there for a while, and then headed back to the hotel, where we all passed out for the night.



Sunday: Back to Paso de Oro

The next morning we all woke up early because everyone in our little group except Carlos was headed back to Paso de Oro. I was headed back for good until I left for my site on Tuesday, and the others were only having lunch with their families and then headed back to Asunción. I’ve really grown close to my family and wanted to get some more time in with them for I left.

Luckily we ended up meeting a volunteer who had just sworn out and was ending her 2 year adventure. She was headed where we were because she was going back to her training host family for a final visit. She was able to get us back to San Lorenzo, where we went to the grocery store to get a few things for the lunches my fellow volunteers were having with their families. Mary ordered some meat from the meat department, and ended up getting like 30 lbs of meat for around $15, and that was really expensive to us, so you can imagine what our pay is like. It was comical the amount of meat she bought for her small family lunch. Mike and I ended up buying some of the meat off her so she wouldn’t look foolish in front of her family. I figured we could use it at my going away party on Monday night.

We headed back to the community and the goodbyes began. I said goodbye to Mary, to Liz, and to Mike.

I went to my house, received a warm welcome from Fabiola, and hung out with the fam for a bit before going to the cancha one more time. We went out to the cancha, and I made it a point to hang out with all the members of my family while there. It was pretty tranquilo all in all. That night, as usual, my Mom and Sister cooked empanadas and the men sat outside in groups drinking cervesa and caña. I hung out with them for a while, played with the kids some, and then called it a night.

Overall Swearing In weekend was really fun, and a good preview of what is to come in the future with respect to volunteers meeting up in Asunción.

Bday Party Remixed & Paso de Oro Game

July 20th, 2009 – Bday Party Remixed & Paso de Oro game

Bday Party Part 2:

Mike’s surprise birthday party started at 3:00 PM on Saturday afternoon. Paulo and I had planned on making it back by then, but with how long it took to get there and back, it didn’t quite work out like that. We got back around 7:00 PM, and the birthday party was well underway. In fact they had already been going strong for 4 hours.

It had been moved from Mike’s house since his parents are in mourning and aren’t aloud to play loud music. So the party was at Mary’s house, just 2 doors down from my house. We walked up and joined the party. This time, it was almost 100% Americans, yet interestingly enough, the Americans were partying like Paraguayans, which is to say they were sitting in a giant circle talking and sharing drinks. Before too much longer, Mary’s Dad cranked the American hip-hop, and with that the dancing was underway. I started it off by dancing hip-hop style with Mary’s super cool little brother. With us two on the dance floor, the girls weren’t far behind. The party lasted several more hours at Mary’s house, before we noticed that Mary’s Mom had become sick, and it was getting late, so we took the party to the house of what is seemingly Paso de Oro’s only 20 something with his own place.

By this time we had lost a decent portion of the Americans but picked up some Paraguayans. We danced in the living room deep into the night. This is cultural integration and intercultural exchange at its best.

We all had a ton of fun!

Paso de Oro Game:

The next day was Sunday. Of course, the sacred day of the national religion...soccer. So the whole family and half the community headed down the long, dirt road in my brother’s truck.

Nothing too eventful. Just another normal day at the cancha (soccer field). The referees just barely escaped death running by escort into a small wooden shack, which enraged supporters tried to tear down...but you know, nothing unusual, just another average Sunday in Paraguay. Papa told me later that unless they assault the refs and draw blood, the police aren’t allowed to do anything. Even more so since the principal agitator was the owner of the opposing club and therefore on his own turf. I asked, and to the best of my knowledge, a disturbing of the peace or disorderly conduct law doesn’t exist here. What’s more is that there has to be someone to denounce someone else. If no-one denounces a criminal within six hours, they are set free. Many times, people won’t denounce someone, because they know they are likely to go free anyway, especially if they throw a few Guaranis (local currency) in the direction of the cops. Then the criminal is free and knows the name of who denounced them, and revenge is a common problem in Paraguay. You can see who this is a troubled system I’m sure.

Long Field

July 17th, 2009 – Long Field

The idea behind Long Field is to spend a week at a volunteer’s site to get yet another idea of what the volunteer life might be like. The RED group was spilt in half and sent to two different sites. The group I was in went to visit Matt’s site, Arroyos y Esteros (Streams and Swamps), which is very Campo (meaning out in the boondocks).

Yet again, I was dropped off at a random person’s house and told I would have a blast. I’m pretty used to this by now, but regardless, the first part is always so awkward. At first you go through some of the basics (such as what your name is, where you’re from, how long you’ve been in Paraguay, how you like it, etc...), then you move on to more advanced small talk such as the weather, fútbol, etc... It is a lot harder than it seems, especially in Spanish, and even more so when they mix in Guarani. After a while you get to talk about cool things like soap operas, the Simpsons, how sugar production works, politics, etc...

Top 10 Highlights from the week:

1. Performing a skit about offering samples and new products as a way to achieve differentiation from competition to a group of Women’s Committee Presidents and then again to one of the Women’s Committees.

*What tends to happen with respect to commercialization of products in Paraguay is a direct reflection of what happens in the schools. If you read earlier in the blog, I mentioned the education system in Paraguay, and the fact that copying straight from the board, from each other, and rote memorization is the form of teaching/learning. So when the kids grow up and become small business owners and employees, they basically do what they’ve always done...in fact, what they’ve been trained to do...copy what everyone else does, and they don’t do what they’ve not been trained to do...think creatively, critically, or for themselves. So everyone is selling the exact same things, in the exact same way, for the exact same prices. It may seem odd to you or maybe even unbelievable, but that’s because we’ve grown up in an economy where competition is fierce and if you’re not offering something different, in a different way or at a different price, you won’t survive long. Our businesses differentiate as a matter of survival. So we tried to teach a group of women who mostly sell produce in a street market how creating new products (like a juice, jam, or salad) and offering samples could differentiate them from all the other women selling the same produce at the same prices, and therefore equal more money at the end of the day, and overtime, a unique market attracting a larger group of potential customers. Hopefully we transmitted this message through our ridiculous skit performed in broken Spanish and Guarani.

2. Singing songs in the Park

* For about an hour before our appearance on the radio, we sat on benches in the park and sang songs that are usually sung around a college-aged campfire...Wonderwall by Oasis, Santeria by Sublime, I’m Yours by Jason Mraz, We will Rock you by Queen, etc...

3. Talking and Singing on the Radio

* Mike and I teamed up for a radio skit about the importance of washing your hands and when to do so. Mike would name an activity and then I would say, “Wash your hands!” For example, “Before cooking...Wash your hands!” “After using the restroom...Wash your hands!” It was really funny, especially since I said “Wash your hands” in my best Spanish radio commercial voice (think used car commercial). We all sang Wonderwall by Oasis, and Matt sang a few other songs he wrote in Guarani. I’d say our first radio appearance was pretty good, and definitely lots of fun.

4. Hoeing a field, chopping down sugar cane, and making a compost pile

* How many people can say they’ve chopped down organic, fair trade sugar cane, which is exported to countries around the world and used in products like Ben & Jerry’s Icecream or shoveled up a wheelbarrow full of cow crap in order to make a compost pile used to feed worms. I wouldn’t want to do it every day of my life, especially in humid, +100 degree weather, but for a few hours each in temperate weather, these activities were fun. My favorite was chopping down the sugar cane and least favorite was hoeing the field.

5. “Waking up too early, maybe we could sleep, making banana pancakes”

* We went to Matt’s house, where we were supposed to have Spanish/Guarani class. However, we abandoned that idea in favor of making and eating delicious banana pancakes.

6. Sitting around in a circle drinking boxed wine, eating pound cake and cookies, listening to good, American music, talking in English about how the realities of volunteer life and listening to Matt and Mike argue about the respective hockey teams of Chicago and St. Louis.

7. Visiting a highly functional cooperative

* We made a trip into the pueblo, and visited Matt’s original assignment...a production/ savings and loan cooperative. It was very nice. We sat around a long table and were served treats and juice during a PowerPoint presentation about the cooperative. They are a sugar production cooperative who also offers savings and loans to its members. They have a ton of certifications from different countries. They offer organic sugar cane, and sell a lot of it through Fair Trade. If you’re not familiar with Fair Trade, it’s an organization that basically connects producers with markets in which to sell their products at augmented, or “fair” prices. If you see the Fair Trade logo on a product, you know that the producer is receiving a decent price for his/her input into the product you’re buying, as opposed to being exploited and forced into selling at such low prices from which he can’t make a living wage. They work to raise awareness, increase demand for Fair Trade products, certify producers, locate buyers, and connect the producers with potential buyers. The cooperative says that receiving the Fair Trade price has really made a difference for their members.

On a different day, we also had a discussion with the former personal assistant to the Director and Deputy Director of Fair Trade, who is now serving as a consultant for the Cooperative we visited. It was very interesting to say the least.

8. Watching Matt run down the road screaming, “Piña! Yo quiero comprar! Piña! Yo quiero comprar Piña! (Pineapple! I want to buy! Pineapple! I want to buy pineapple!) He had been looking all day for pineapple we could include in our samples as part of the skit, and as luck would have it a truck full of it drove past us as we were walking to lunch.

9. Taking a bath in a tire cut in half

* What a lot of Paraguayans do in the absence of showers or hot water showers is the following: Warm up a big quantity of water over a fire. Then pour that water in something big enough for you to sit in. This could be a large bucket-like thing, a tire cut in half, etc... Then you splash yourself with your hands to wet/rinse yourself. You basically repeat the process of wash then splash until you feel clean, even though, by default you are sitting in dirty water by the end of the bath. I did a sort of hybrid between a Paraguayan bath and an American shower. At first I sort of squatted, and shampooed my hair, since naturally that’s first in the process. I didn’t want to sit down, naked in the same tire that the rest of the family sits naked in as they bathe. What’s more is that it was rusted in the bottom, and I saw them roll it in from outside. Call me a germophobe American if you want, but that’s the reality of the situation. I’m willing to compromise and adjust to a lot, but that’s past my comfort level. Anyway, that wasn’t working out that great, and after dunking my head to get the shampoo out, I quickly realized that I was about to wash my body with the dirty shampooed water, so I turned on the shower, which was freezing cold, and took the plunge. I just sucked it up, breathed hard and steady, and washed really fast.

10. Getting bit by a dog, and subsequently going to Asunción for Rabies shots, because apparently if you get bit by a rabid dog, a go untreated for 72 hours, it is 100% certain that you will die.

* It was one of the family dogs that bit me. I was just calmly walking from the room I was staying in to the kitchen when he bit me (you have to go outside to access the rest of the house). The dog, which was fairly large (think boxer), was also calmly walking, in the opposite direction from me. When we passed, he just reached up and latched on to my leg. I screamed at him, and he let go after a few seconds. It wasn’t terribly bad, but it did manage to break the skin and draw blood through a pair of jeans and shorts underneath. We had been briefed by our incredible medical staff on the seriousness of any dog bit here, so rather than leave it up to fate, I called it in and within 48 hours went to Asunción for a Rabies shot.

All in all, it was a very fun week. We learned a lot, had a lot of fun, and did a lot of unique activities.