and im pretty sad about it! i wish i had not been an idiot and added two weeks to my trip to travel but i guess ill just have to come back. im toying with the idea of taking off thursday and friday and saturday to travel to an island, ometepe, which is about 4 hours from here. we'll have to see..
movie woman is being a flake so that will probably not happen. things never happen on schedule here.
it has been a busy few weeks..went to masaya again for shopping and bought a hammock, wtf? i am too tired to blog, this is hard work. i might have a job though next semester! thats exciting..
i cant wait to get home, although i am going to miss nicaragua. but still, im looking forward to seeing everyone again and having partytimes.
okay recaps...last night, we all went out to say goodbye to the many people who left this morning. all alone again, but i like it this way sometimes. the night before was ridiculous! on friday we went to mi tierra, a club around here and went dancing. a FABULOUS gay man, juan, was tearing up the dance floor with his crazy ass salsa moves then grabbed me to dance with him and i was horrified because i cannot dance like that. i told him that right off the bat. but the man is a dance teacher apparently and i think i am going to take classes from him because he was throwing me around all about on the dance floor, finishing off our dance by lifting me up on his shoulder and spinning around. it was amazing. i wish i had pictures.
otherwise, things have been relatively calm. havent travelled much, just going to visit the courts with ixchen. we went in to sit in the audience on two rape trials. the first one on wednesday never happened because the defendent didnt show because he didnt have enough gas in his car...? so typical in this country. the one on friday was pretty a really interesting case, though it lasted forever and i had to leave early so im not sure how it turned out. ill find out tomorrow. the case was against the brother-in-law of a 19-year-old girl, and get this, her sister (his wife) was siding with him, the rapist! the defense was so shaky and their witnesses all seemed like crap so i will be surprised if they win. it was a great opportunity to go see the trial and i appreciate my organization for that.
see you all soon.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Friday, July 25, 2008
No More Rum
i am currently suffering from the worst hangover of my life right now. i went out last night with dan--it was originally supposed to just be the two of us, but i invited along some friends: laura, alicia (who i had just met), lidia (a nicaraguan friend), and andrea (also new). we got to cafe nuit, the club/bar nearby and after an hour and 1/3 a liter of rum, laura, lidia, and andrea all had to leave because they had either work or class early the next morning. so me, dan, and alicia were left--dan and i ordered another 1/3 liter of rum and went through that. alicia, who said she doesnt drink much, had already at this point poured herself two of the strongest drinks ive ever seen and was sitting in a corner spacing out. once dan and i were on the third 1/3 liter of rum, alicia was so fucking wasted that we had cut her off and she was dancing wildly on the dance floor with strange men. anywho, i walked her home and then dan and i stayed around a bit longer, smuggled the rum out of the club, and wandered around a ways at 3 am. then i walked home and passed out around 3:30/4. then i woke up this morning at fucking NOON which is like 5 pm here. oh god, my stomach hates me so much right now. i feel so disgusting. i want to hook myself up to an IV. i want to destroy all the alcohol and cigarettes in the world. anyway, thus the title of this post.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Everything In Its Right Place
who doesn't love a good radiohead tribute title.
friday was the jersil's 9th birthday (the older boy in my house) and it was great. i bought him a spiderman piñata, which he proceeded to dress up in his shirt afterwards and carry around the house like a doll. the kids love dancing to the pop music here and the dances seem to be universal..? like choreographed bollywood style everyone breaking into the same moves at once. granted, these were children so it was more choreographed flailing than moves. anywho, as they are dancing, i go over to jersil and ask if one of the girls there is his girlfriend. "no," he says, "that one is." and points to the other girl! turns out the one i had asked about is ton's girlfriend! the 7 year old! wtf!! omg i am so behind in my life. these kids are just passing me by in romance.
also at the party, among the bad dancers, was one boy--diego--who is quite possibly the gayest 8 year old i have ever seen in my life. homeslice has moves and i want to pack him up and take him to broadway. i took multiple videos of him dancing and shaking his little booty (like a creeper, i am aware). if i can post shit, i am posting a video because it is hilarious. how great is it that his name is diego btw? fresas y chocolate? meant to be a flamer. i love him.
today, i met up with todd, jenny, kashmira, dan, and some other people from their school and instead of going to san juan del sur like jenny and i had planned, we went to laguna de apoyo again. it was so fun! i met a bunch of new people--younger people in fact, which is a breath of new air. i got sunburned too (wtf?). i think it is because i publicly declared how happy i was that kashmira and i (another indian) didnt have to keep reapplying suntan lotion. god had the last laugh and now my chest is a strawberry. hopefully it will just fade into tan.
these tan lines wont make for a very good nude model, which i think im going to do btw.
today was also the 29th anniversary of the sandinista victory in the revolutionary war against somoza, so tonight is party times. we are going to a club near the lake where they hold booty-shaking contests. i dont know if i will partake in such contests, but i will definitely judge. too bad diego cant go to the bar. he'd totes win.
at the laguna, i met a kid named michael who has a fascination with indians like i have never seen before. i caught him shamelessly staring at me multiple times. i also heard him tell another girl, "She's INDIAN. how cool is that?!?!" great, im glad the most interesting thing about me is my race. i feel like if i were white (no offense my white friends), id be the most boring piece of shit ever. anywho, he will be there. i hope he stops his staring. he is very hairy.
i also met another 19 year old, the first i have encountered in my stay here. what a delight. i have given up on my stalkerish crush on oliver.
in other news, my movie screening i think is going to happen! i have a space i think and i now have films too! i contacted an organization here that gives young girls here the tools to make films, and they are willing to help me out and give me some movies to show. now i just need dates (i want it to last for 3 days) and start making promo flyers and get the man that drives around town announcing shit on his loudspeaker to announce this. i am so excited! i love seeing results! something i never see! what a novelty.
friday was the jersil's 9th birthday (the older boy in my house) and it was great. i bought him a spiderman piñata, which he proceeded to dress up in his shirt afterwards and carry around the house like a doll. the kids love dancing to the pop music here and the dances seem to be universal..? like choreographed bollywood style everyone breaking into the same moves at once. granted, these were children so it was more choreographed flailing than moves. anywho, as they are dancing, i go over to jersil and ask if one of the girls there is his girlfriend. "no," he says, "that one is." and points to the other girl! turns out the one i had asked about is ton's girlfriend! the 7 year old! wtf!! omg i am so behind in my life. these kids are just passing me by in romance.
also at the party, among the bad dancers, was one boy--diego--who is quite possibly the gayest 8 year old i have ever seen in my life. homeslice has moves and i want to pack him up and take him to broadway. i took multiple videos of him dancing and shaking his little booty (like a creeper, i am aware). if i can post shit, i am posting a video because it is hilarious. how great is it that his name is diego btw? fresas y chocolate? meant to be a flamer. i love him.
today, i met up with todd, jenny, kashmira, dan, and some other people from their school and instead of going to san juan del sur like jenny and i had planned, we went to laguna de apoyo again. it was so fun! i met a bunch of new people--younger people in fact, which is a breath of new air. i got sunburned too (wtf?). i think it is because i publicly declared how happy i was that kashmira and i (another indian) didnt have to keep reapplying suntan lotion. god had the last laugh and now my chest is a strawberry. hopefully it will just fade into tan.
these tan lines wont make for a very good nude model, which i think im going to do btw.
today was also the 29th anniversary of the sandinista victory in the revolutionary war against somoza, so tonight is party times. we are going to a club near the lake where they hold booty-shaking contests. i dont know if i will partake in such contests, but i will definitely judge. too bad diego cant go to the bar. he'd totes win.
at the laguna, i met a kid named michael who has a fascination with indians like i have never seen before. i caught him shamelessly staring at me multiple times. i also heard him tell another girl, "She's INDIAN. how cool is that?!?!" great, im glad the most interesting thing about me is my race. i feel like if i were white (no offense my white friends), id be the most boring piece of shit ever. anywho, he will be there. i hope he stops his staring. he is very hairy.
i also met another 19 year old, the first i have encountered in my stay here. what a delight. i have given up on my stalkerish crush on oliver.
in other news, my movie screening i think is going to happen! i have a space i think and i now have films too! i contacted an organization here that gives young girls here the tools to make films, and they are willing to help me out and give me some movies to show. now i just need dates (i want it to last for 3 days) and start making promo flyers and get the man that drives around town announcing shit on his loudspeaker to announce this. i am so excited! i love seeing results! something i never see! what a novelty.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Too Many Eggs in Dis Basket
i have to admit, thinking of lame blog entry titles really has become a highlight in my life.
as far as the eggs go, i have applied for too many internships and have no idea what to do now if i am offered a position by two (or more, if we can let our imaginations stretch even that far). now, i dont expect to hear back from any, though i got a speedy response from one organization and i feel like i cant commit. thankfully, the fact that i am in nicaragua sort of prevents me from having to go through with the face-to-face interview rick wants, which would definitely make me feel obligated to stick with said organization.
work is ass. i hate going, i hate that i feel like an outsider, i hate that people dont see me as anything except "the-other-girl-that-works-here-where-is-she-from-oh-is-she-hindu-yes-she-is-hindu-well-lets-not-tell-her-important-busines-until-last-minute." or something to that effect. everything else in my life here seems to be going swimmingly except for the one thing i i came here to do. anywho, i have yet to tell anyone at work that i am trying to organizing a film showing of a movie relating to women's rights.
now, as far as this movie goes, i have two options: 1) buy a movie i found online and got permission to screening rights, for the lovely price of $70 or 2) find the elusive director of the cultural center here and see if they have any films in their personal archives to let me use.
well, just my luck, solutions to both came along today! as i ate lunch in this very internet cafe, minding my own business, i am approached by a south african woman. well, i tell her what im doing here and what im trying to organize and it turns out she knows the director of the cultural center and before she and her husband leave the cafe, they drag the man in to talk to me! i get his card and i shall harass him shortly. OR, the more interesting conversation we had--the woman and i--was before all of this business with the director happened. the more interesting part happened when she approached me, told me she was an artist, and wanted to use me as a nude model. a job that pays enough for me to get that $70.
wtf? i have yet to give her my answer to this proposal.
in other news, i was harassed by a drunken drunken DRUNKY man at 1:30 pm the other day.
as far as the eggs go, i have applied for too many internships and have no idea what to do now if i am offered a position by two (or more, if we can let our imaginations stretch even that far). now, i dont expect to hear back from any, though i got a speedy response from one organization and i feel like i cant commit. thankfully, the fact that i am in nicaragua sort of prevents me from having to go through with the face-to-face interview rick wants, which would definitely make me feel obligated to stick with said organization.
work is ass. i hate going, i hate that i feel like an outsider, i hate that people dont see me as anything except "the-other-girl-that-works-here-where-is-she-from-oh-is-she-hindu-yes-she-is-hindu-well-lets-not-tell-her-important-busines-until-last-minute." or something to that effect. everything else in my life here seems to be going swimmingly except for the one thing i i came here to do. anywho, i have yet to tell anyone at work that i am trying to organizing a film showing of a movie relating to women's rights.
now, as far as this movie goes, i have two options: 1) buy a movie i found online and got permission to screening rights, for the lovely price of $70 or 2) find the elusive director of the cultural center here and see if they have any films in their personal archives to let me use.
well, just my luck, solutions to both came along today! as i ate lunch in this very internet cafe, minding my own business, i am approached by a south african woman. well, i tell her what im doing here and what im trying to organize and it turns out she knows the director of the cultural center and before she and her husband leave the cafe, they drag the man in to talk to me! i get his card and i shall harass him shortly. OR, the more interesting conversation we had--the woman and i--was before all of this business with the director happened. the more interesting part happened when she approached me, told me she was an artist, and wanted to use me as a nude model. a job that pays enough for me to get that $70.
wtf? i have yet to give her my answer to this proposal.
in other news, i was harassed by a drunken drunken DRUNKY man at 1:30 pm the other day.
Friday, July 11, 2008
Illin´
At least in the mornings when I wake up. I don´t know why, I just get really nauseous...I´m sure it´ll go away. Yesterday I went with the psychologist at work and the other volunteer (BITCH) to a nearby village called Diriomo. There, Jessica (the psychologist) gave a seminar on self-esteem to a small group of women. When they first started doing these workshops in Diriomo, there were about 22 women...then it dwindled down to 8, then yesterday it was at 6. I´m sure it´s not the case for all of the absentees, but many of them have extremely machista husbands who do not want them a) leaving the house and b) leaving the house to get educated on their own rights. The bus ride there was not so great because I was stuck next to Marion the cold ice bitch; I am so disgustingly friendly to her. I would ask her all sorts of personal questions and she´d respond and then not ask anything back! WTF?! Learn some goddamn social skills woman! And THEN, Jessica said she wanted us to talk to the women about violence in the US. So, of course, one would think this would naturally be the time for two volunteers to chat about what they will talk about, especially since I had no idea and was mildly concerned. So after some silence, I turn to Marion and ask, "So, what do you think we should talk about?" And she just says, "Oh well, I already took a class on violence in the US last semester so I know exactly what to say." End conversation, if you could call it that. Nope, she didn´t offer to share the information. Nope nope. Stupid bitch.
Anyway, she was nicer on the way back. Also, I heard Celine Dion three times yesterday. Twice in this internet cafe (they put in the CD I believe; they also played the Beauty and the Beast theme song--ballad version.) and then once on the bus ride back to Granada (during which ice queen was a little nicer). During this third playback, a man sits in front of me on the bus and begins to talk and be annoying and creepy and then the song comes on and he says (in Spanish): "This song...is...my GIFT to YOU."
Wow.
Going to another workshop in another town called Capulin today. We will see how that goes. $20 says only 2 of you out there read this.
Anyway, she was nicer on the way back. Also, I heard Celine Dion three times yesterday. Twice in this internet cafe (they put in the CD I believe; they also played the Beauty and the Beast theme song--ballad version.) and then once on the bus ride back to Granada (during which ice queen was a little nicer). During this third playback, a man sits in front of me on the bus and begins to talk and be annoying and creepy and then the song comes on and he says (in Spanish): "This song...is...my GIFT to YOU."
Wow.
Going to another workshop in another town called Capulin today. We will see how that goes. $20 says only 2 of you out there read this.
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Maybe this can be the new FAILblog.
I realize that I absolutely suck at keeping up a consistent blog. You´d think with no friends, no life, I´d be all up in this blog´s face. So what happened, you might ask? ILLNESS. DEATHLY ILLNESS.
No no, that´s a lie. But I was sick for the past three days and being bedridden kind of thwarted my initial plan of blogging what I had done this past weekend. So, a brief recap:
Friday, July 4: After accidentally sleeping through class (my afternoon siesta ran late--oops), I ran to Casa Xalteva (not my school, but the other school nearby where most students seem to be taking Spanish classes) to catch the bus to see the volcanoes at Masaya. Casa Xalteva has some friggin awesome connections so they arrange these extremely cheap excursions to various places near Granada and all profits go towards helping the school. So I went with Brad to Masaya and we saw this volcano. I believe there were 3 craters, but one of them is really angry and exploded in 2001 and cast a fiery mess on a bunch of cars in the parking lot. Now, there are signs in the parking lot that says, "Please park facing exit," for a speedy getaway I presume. So this really angry crater spews out enormous clouds of toxic gas so we had to wear gas masks to go near it--I wish I could upload pictures!! I´m working on figuring that out. Also in the volcano park was this cave created by a flow of lava in which 4 different species of bats reside. Bats are way cuter than I thought. You know what´s not cute thought? Canadians. The most annoying Canadian man was on this tour and he somehow managed to get into one of my pictures, as in like, posing--taking the picture with me. Why Canadian?!? We are not friends!
Saturday, July 5: Me, Caroline (my next door neighbor who is living this weekend, =( boo), Brad, Jenny B., Jenny M., and Todd managed to get a hookup with Xalteva and got a cheap way to go to Laguna de Apoyo. It´s a beautiful mineral lake that has mysteriously formed in the crater of a dormant volcano. Since it´s a crater, after about 10 feet in, there is a sudden drop as you get closer to the mouth of the volcano. It is EXTREMELY deep. We stayed at this Bed and Breakfast owned by a young American couple, though their parents were running it since the couple was on vacation (the old man was such a hick). We didn´t stay the night, but for $5 we got access to tubes, a kayak, the dock, and cheap beers and sodas. The house is called La Orquidea and it is one of the most amazing things I´ve ever seen. It looks like a tropical wonderland or something. Again, I´m hoping I can get pictures up soon.
Sunday, July 6: Caroline and I planned, with a tourism company so this was more expensive than it would have been with Xalteva, to go do a canopy tour in Mombacho park. Mombacho is the biggest volcano here, and I still haven´t seen it. The canopy tour (which is just flying through the forest on ziplines) was awesomeeeeee. Purvi, I would say ziplines in Costa Rica were better because there was more wildlife and etc to see. However, pros of this canopy tour: Nami had contacts, so she could actually see. Also, the guides did crazy shit like holding on to you when you went sometimes so that you could fly like superman. Also, when we got back, I went to mass at the main cathedral downtown (making Mary proud).
Monday, July 7: PURVI´S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!! also, the plague befalls me.
I finally made it to work today. I get the feeling that my boss doesn´t like me. Maybe it´s because there is already the other volunteer (who, btw, I find is a bitch with a tree stuck up her ass) is already well situated here and so I just feel very much like an outsider. Whatever, the work honestly is not that fulfilling. I spend all day making posters on birth control or even more mundane shit, like the birthday poster (yes that´s right, a BIRTHDAY poster--a list of every employee´s birthday) I´m currently wasting my time on. Tomorrow and Friday I get to go and watch the women give a seminar about random things to women in other villages nearby, so hopefully that will be better. I get the feeling though, from just my experience thus far and speaking to other volunteers I´ve met around here, that more than the work you´re mostly just here to enjoy the novelty of living in a different environment. So that´s what I´ve been doing. That, and buying lots of cool jewelry. Okay, end of another epic post. Granted that I don´t contract the HIV or anything, I´ll try to blog more frequently.
P.S.
To those of you who are wondering what has happened to my stalking habits--have they been quelled? Oh, no no. For a bit they were. I was not thinking of boys. But then, THEN, I saw Oliver. Oh my god. He is so beautiful. And I am SO fucking creepy. Thank god I don´t see him, like, ever, since he is at Xalteva. Then again, that just means that on the few occasions I do see him, I make an ass out of myself and just stare at him from afar. Way to go.
No no, that´s a lie. But I was sick for the past three days and being bedridden kind of thwarted my initial plan of blogging what I had done this past weekend. So, a brief recap:
Friday, July 4: After accidentally sleeping through class (my afternoon siesta ran late--oops), I ran to Casa Xalteva (not my school, but the other school nearby where most students seem to be taking Spanish classes) to catch the bus to see the volcanoes at Masaya. Casa Xalteva has some friggin awesome connections so they arrange these extremely cheap excursions to various places near Granada and all profits go towards helping the school. So I went with Brad to Masaya and we saw this volcano. I believe there were 3 craters, but one of them is really angry and exploded in 2001 and cast a fiery mess on a bunch of cars in the parking lot. Now, there are signs in the parking lot that says, "Please park facing exit," for a speedy getaway I presume. So this really angry crater spews out enormous clouds of toxic gas so we had to wear gas masks to go near it--I wish I could upload pictures!! I´m working on figuring that out. Also in the volcano park was this cave created by a flow of lava in which 4 different species of bats reside. Bats are way cuter than I thought. You know what´s not cute thought? Canadians. The most annoying Canadian man was on this tour and he somehow managed to get into one of my pictures, as in like, posing--taking the picture with me. Why Canadian?!? We are not friends!
Saturday, July 5: Me, Caroline (my next door neighbor who is living this weekend, =( boo), Brad, Jenny B., Jenny M., and Todd managed to get a hookup with Xalteva and got a cheap way to go to Laguna de Apoyo. It´s a beautiful mineral lake that has mysteriously formed in the crater of a dormant volcano. Since it´s a crater, after about 10 feet in, there is a sudden drop as you get closer to the mouth of the volcano. It is EXTREMELY deep. We stayed at this Bed and Breakfast owned by a young American couple, though their parents were running it since the couple was on vacation (the old man was such a hick). We didn´t stay the night, but for $5 we got access to tubes, a kayak, the dock, and cheap beers and sodas. The house is called La Orquidea and it is one of the most amazing things I´ve ever seen. It looks like a tropical wonderland or something. Again, I´m hoping I can get pictures up soon.
Sunday, July 6: Caroline and I planned, with a tourism company so this was more expensive than it would have been with Xalteva, to go do a canopy tour in Mombacho park. Mombacho is the biggest volcano here, and I still haven´t seen it. The canopy tour (which is just flying through the forest on ziplines) was awesomeeeeee. Purvi, I would say ziplines in Costa Rica were better because there was more wildlife and etc to see. However, pros of this canopy tour: Nami had contacts, so she could actually see. Also, the guides did crazy shit like holding on to you when you went sometimes so that you could fly like superman. Also, when we got back, I went to mass at the main cathedral downtown (making Mary proud).
Monday, July 7: PURVI´S BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!! also, the plague befalls me.
I finally made it to work today. I get the feeling that my boss doesn´t like me. Maybe it´s because there is already the other volunteer (who, btw, I find is a bitch with a tree stuck up her ass) is already well situated here and so I just feel very much like an outsider. Whatever, the work honestly is not that fulfilling. I spend all day making posters on birth control or even more mundane shit, like the birthday poster (yes that´s right, a BIRTHDAY poster--a list of every employee´s birthday) I´m currently wasting my time on. Tomorrow and Friday I get to go and watch the women give a seminar about random things to women in other villages nearby, so hopefully that will be better. I get the feeling though, from just my experience thus far and speaking to other volunteers I´ve met around here, that more than the work you´re mostly just here to enjoy the novelty of living in a different environment. So that´s what I´ve been doing. That, and buying lots of cool jewelry. Okay, end of another epic post. Granted that I don´t contract the HIV or anything, I´ll try to blog more frequently.
P.S.
To those of you who are wondering what has happened to my stalking habits--have they been quelled? Oh, no no. For a bit they were. I was not thinking of boys. But then, THEN, I saw Oliver. Oh my god. He is so beautiful. And I am SO fucking creepy. Thank god I don´t see him, like, ever, since he is at Xalteva. Then again, that just means that on the few occasions I do see him, I make an ass out of myself and just stare at him from afar. Way to go.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
¡Viva el machismo!
Today is my first full day in Granada, Nicaragua. I was woken up at 5 am by the stupid Spanish-speaking parrot that apparently lives outside my room. I went to bed early enough though so it was okay.
I arrived yesterday and it was pouring; thank god it rains though because otherwise it is stiflingly hot. Still, this city is very beautiful from what I´ve seen so far and my host family lives in a great part of town. Funny enough, they are NOT the people I was told I´d be living with here. I went through panic attacks trying to find presents for two girls, ages 3 and 9, and alas, I am living with two little boys. I don´t think they´re going to want that Birthday Barbie! I got for them...
The father, Winston, is a professional artists and the man is amazing. I swear to god, his paintings are phenomenal--very Dali. The house is really nice and not the shack on the outskirts of town I was anticipating; instead, it´s a spacious home with a courtyard (and a fucking parrot) about a 5 minute walk from downtown´s Central Park. Living also in the house is a 44-year-old gay from California named Brad. He is fabulous (and quite the looker). We hung out last night and he is here learning Spanish, but will sadly be leaving on Sunday. This town gets eerily silent after like, 9 PM. Because it is close to the equator, the sun rises early and sets early so it´s dark around 5:30. We were walking and I had a cigarette (I know, I am supposed to stop, believe me, I will. The stigma here might force me to), and let me tell you, I got some weird ass looks. It occurs to me then that we haven´t seen a single woman smoking except, oh wait, that prostitute on the street. Hmmm....
Lots of kids sleeping on the steps of churches and other buildings downtown; more than anything, I have seen so many poor kids out late begging for money. We went out for a late snack and drinks last night and Brad gave his food to a kid--he is a sweetheart. I don´t know what I´m going to do all day. I stopped by work this morning at 8 and I am to start tomorrow; I have daily Spanish classes from 2-3 everyday. So today, I guess I´ll just wander and explore.
Machismo is alive and well here. There´s the smoking thing, for one. There´s also the fact that the men have way more freedom here than the women. Maria Jose never leaves the house and Winston leaves at night to come back late--where does he go?! Walking down the street, you inevitably get stares, calls, and noises directed at you. I suppose that´s true in most cities, but here they have no shame. The woman who I met at the school today told me that she gets harassed when she is walking with her husband and two small children. Yesterday, I thought I´d avert that attention since I was with Brad but no no.
I´m excited to start work here; the Spanish is getting easier but I still forget words and worse, don´t understand what people are saying to me sometimes. This is a longass first blog. Btw, this is to keep an online journal type thing so that I can still keep in touch with you all and be able to talk to you about my experiences here for the next 6 weeks. I´ll post as soon as possible!
I arrived yesterday and it was pouring; thank god it rains though because otherwise it is stiflingly hot. Still, this city is very beautiful from what I´ve seen so far and my host family lives in a great part of town. Funny enough, they are NOT the people I was told I´d be living with here. I went through panic attacks trying to find presents for two girls, ages 3 and 9, and alas, I am living with two little boys. I don´t think they´re going to want that Birthday Barbie! I got for them...
The father, Winston, is a professional artists and the man is amazing. I swear to god, his paintings are phenomenal--very Dali. The house is really nice and not the shack on the outskirts of town I was anticipating; instead, it´s a spacious home with a courtyard (and a fucking parrot) about a 5 minute walk from downtown´s Central Park. Living also in the house is a 44-year-old gay from California named Brad. He is fabulous (and quite the looker). We hung out last night and he is here learning Spanish, but will sadly be leaving on Sunday. This town gets eerily silent after like, 9 PM. Because it is close to the equator, the sun rises early and sets early so it´s dark around 5:30. We were walking and I had a cigarette (I know, I am supposed to stop, believe me, I will. The stigma here might force me to), and let me tell you, I got some weird ass looks. It occurs to me then that we haven´t seen a single woman smoking except, oh wait, that prostitute on the street. Hmmm....
Lots of kids sleeping on the steps of churches and other buildings downtown; more than anything, I have seen so many poor kids out late begging for money. We went out for a late snack and drinks last night and Brad gave his food to a kid--he is a sweetheart. I don´t know what I´m going to do all day. I stopped by work this morning at 8 and I am to start tomorrow; I have daily Spanish classes from 2-3 everyday. So today, I guess I´ll just wander and explore.
Machismo is alive and well here. There´s the smoking thing, for one. There´s also the fact that the men have way more freedom here than the women. Maria Jose never leaves the house and Winston leaves at night to come back late--where does he go?! Walking down the street, you inevitably get stares, calls, and noises directed at you. I suppose that´s true in most cities, but here they have no shame. The woman who I met at the school today told me that she gets harassed when she is walking with her husband and two small children. Yesterday, I thought I´d avert that attention since I was with Brad but no no.
I´m excited to start work here; the Spanish is getting easier but I still forget words and worse, don´t understand what people are saying to me sometimes. This is a longass first blog. Btw, this is to keep an online journal type thing so that I can still keep in touch with you all and be able to talk to you about my experiences here for the next 6 weeks. I´ll post as soon as possible!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)