Mi vida en Llano Largo...

Happiness is a state of mind and nothing more. I know how cliched this sounds trust me, but I find it to be true every day. I´ve been in my village for over a week now, and am loving the change of pace and different lifestyle. Even though I´m definitely out of my comfort zone I´m enjoying this experience, and yes I´m happy.

My host family is amazing! I am living with a 2nd grade teacher and her daughter. The school I teach at is only a five minute walk away. Llano Largo is very rural. There isn´t much beyond two stores, a church, the school, houses, and farms. Most people have chickens, and my neighbor´s roosters wake me up every day around 5. At least I´m never late to school haha. The food has been ok so far. My host family tries very hard to make sure I get enough to eat. However, the Panamanian diet doesnt usually contain much in the way of fruits and vegetables. When the neighbors found out I was a vegetarian they brought over a bag full of veggies and some mangoes too. My host families house is full of visitors every day. People come over just to chat, to ask about their children´s homework, or to play bingo every Sunday. Since there isnt any AC the doors are always open and people are apt to wander in for a brief English lesson. The sense of community in my village is one of my favorite things so far. I love that I can walk down the street, and I not only feel safe, but I know everyone too. My family and neighbors are protective of me in a sense. They always want to make sure that I know where I´m going and don´t get lost. Oh, and back to the food for a minute.... I love mangoes! There are so many mango trees here that people often dont even bother to pick the fruit. Its common to see a pile of them in the ditch being pecked at by chickens. Luckily when my host mother found out that I like them, she took my to her parents house and shook 6 mangoes off the tree for me!

Teaching has been going well so far. It´s harder than I thought it would be though. If any of my teachers from MCE are reading this, please know that I have more respect for you now than ever! I knew it was hard to keep the attention of elementary school aged kids, but dealing with it first hand and being on my feet all day is a new experience. I am teaching in my village´s school with another volunteer(Annie). We teach 5 or 6 classes a day, usually finishing by 1. Also, we are trying to start an adult class in the evenings but there is little interest. Our biggest problem with the kids is discipline. There is no concept of sending a student to the principal´s office. When a kid acts up in class most of the teachers just ignore it. The method of teaching is also pretty different. There aren´t books in my school (as far as I can tell) so the teachers write the lesson on the board and the children copy it in their notebooks. Also, teachers dont often work individually with the kids. If a student does not copy the lesson fast enought its ´clearly´because they are stupid or have a learning disability, so the teach has to eventually erase it and the child falls behind on his work. This means he could then fail the test, which leads to a downward spiral in self esteem and comprehension in my opinion. Overall, it´s really hard to keep the kids attention for more than 20 minutes at a time. I feel like I am constantly asking in a loud, but kind, voice for them to please be quiet. However, when kids are loud in class it doesn´t seem like they view it as a sign of disrespect.... its just kind of normal for them. The kids who are loud and cause problems in class are really nice to me outside of class and sometimes offer to carry my bag full of books. I´ve also noticed that they talk and giggle a lot in mass, even during prayers, and this doesnt seem to be viewed as a problem either.

Well, my internet time is almost up so I´m going to end here. The closest internet cafe is in Chitre, about 45 minutes away by bus. Oh, also I don´t have a way to upload my pictures sorry. I´ll take care of it in August when I have access to my laptop again. Hope everyone is doing well. I´ll be able to get the the internet again sometime next week. Hasta luego!

50 cent bananas

Yesterday we went to the fish market and a fruit market. It was a very new experience for me. I´m not used to seeing fish up close and personal, staring right back at me lol. The man we bought it from cleaned and deboned it right in front of us, and then a few of the guys grilled it for dinner along with some veggies. After dinner we talked with one of Lorena friends who teaches in the city (Lorena is the country coordinator for this program) and she gave us tips on how to approach teaching English as a second language. Today, we went to the Panama Canal and then to the causeway which is a series of three islands made from the dirt that was dug up to create the canal. We learned a lot about the history of Panama and its often strained relationship with the U.S. So far this has really been an amazing experience. I´ve only known the people in this program for a few days, but they really feel like family. Even though we come from all over the US we have a lot in common. Ok, a bunch of ppl are waiting to use the computer so I have to go. Also, once I get to my village I will prob. only have internet once a week so there will be fewer blogs. Hope everyone is doing well. I miss you all!

Jenn

Finally Here!

I am in Panama and it is sooooo humid. The program coordinator met us all at the airport this afternoon. She is great, and I´m very excited to finish orientation and go to my village on Sunday. Also, Panama does not really have a reliable postal service so I will not be able to get packages or letters. Well, I am very tired and will head off to bed soon. Tomorrow we will go to the fish market in the moring, tour the older portion of downtown, and work to improve our lesson plans together. I´ll write more when I have time!

nerves!

I will leave in the morning! Somehow it doesn't seem possible that I will actually be flying away so soon. I'm a bundle of nerves right now- excited/nervous/happy/sad/crazy. I'm at Sophia's place, and driving her a little nuts with my incessant rambling speculations on food and living conditions. I found out which village I will be in-Llano Largo (populaion 1,201). I really can't wait to arrive and meet my host family! Oh, I am leaving my phone in the states, but will get a cheap one in Panama City hopefully by Thursday. Thanks to all who have sent me farewell emails/calls. I really appreciate knowing I am in your thoughts and prayers. I'm off to try and get some sleep before I head out @ 4AM. The next blog will be from Panama!

<3
Jenn

1 week from today!

I can't believe I'll be leaving so soon! Next Wednesday I will fly from Miami to Panama City, and then a few days later I will be taking a bus to the Los Santos region (the peninsula on the Pacific side*see map below*) where I will be living with a host family and teaching 4-5 English classes a day. I will be in Panama until August 3rd! The group I'm going with is called Learning Enterprises. Check out their website http://learningenterprises.org .



Currently, I'm still perfecting lesson plans and trying to figure out how to fit all my gear into a backpack and a small carry on. If anyone has ideas for games or lesson plans please let me know! I will have limited internet access once I arrive, but will try to keep the blog updated at least once a week. I'll try to send postcards too! Also, I won't be taking my cell phone. I am going to try and buy a cheap one there- mostly for emergencies (which includes calling Dad to keep him sane lol). Anyways, yes I am getting excited but I'm also very nervous. I hope to spend as much time hanging out with friends and family before I leave because I am going to miss you all tons!