He that by the plough would thrive, himself must either hold or drive. -Benjamin Franklin

 

It has been a good few weeks here in site, the elementary school had a week long vacation, during which we built a total of 25 smokeless Eco stoves for outdoor cooking and spent the rainy afternoons waiting for them to dry, which proved to be amusing.  These stoves are really cool, they only produce 5% of smoke and use a lot less wood making them more economical and better for the health of the people and the environment.   The people in my community really came together to help their neighbors build the stoves and by day two I no longer was leading, but instead working hand and hand with women, men, and children.  It is amazing how quickly one can learn with experimental education, and how much fun you can have!

 In other exciting news I moved into my new house this weekend.  If the bonchinche (gossip) hasn't reached you all out there, I have been living with a second host family due to an obsessive creepy neighbor and a few other "security" issues.  It proved to be difficult, but I was happy to do what I could in order to stay in my site and continue here rather than start all over again somewhere else.  So at month 9 in Panama finally (and again) I am in my own place.  I live in a basement of a family's house, but it has a lot of air, and I have my own private entrance and everything.  A beautiful black horse also lives on my  terrace!

 

                                                                                  
Here you can see my lovely abode.  Plenty of space for one and also for when visitors come.  It is however, temporary, as some friends of mine are actually building a house with more privacy and a big garden that they say will be ready in a month or two.  In Panama that means 3 or 4 months, so I will plan to move when I return from the states in January, and until then this is just fine. 
They tell you when you sign up for Peace Corps that you live in a fish bowl, that although you are constantly surrounded by people who find you interesting and want to know every small detail about your life but feel alone, solitary.  I find that to be true and that I lack deep connections with people, but I do have a few people here like my host family, Bercelio my best friend and then some, and my community guide Nairobis.  When I do feel lonely however (and this is for my fellow PCV's reading this blog) I think of this quote which I find beautiful and helpful. 
"Solitude is a silent storm that breaks down all of our dead branches.  Yet it sends our living roots deeper into the living heart of the living earth.  Man struggles to find life outside himself, unaware that the life he is seeking is within him.  Nature reachers out to us with welcome arms, and bids us enjoy her beauty; but we dread her silence and rush into the crowded cities, there to huddle like sheep fleeing from a ferocious wolf" 
-Kahlil Gibran

So when I feel alone, I look outside and see a sea of tropical forest, clouds that linger in the branches of the mango, avocado and lychee trees.  And its beautiful, and I appreciate the feeling of being alone with such beauty.  And soon, before I know it I will be back in the city like a sheep but with new memories, new culture and a life inspired.

Hasta luego, los quiero mucho!
Sina

Beauty pagents, heavy rains, and smiling faces

Today has been a great day.  After getting over a vile stomach illness that started late Sunday night,
I feel 10 lbs lighter and ready for a good week.

I cannot say that I have had a bad week here, only moments of sadness, or a little fear, but not bad.  In moments where I feel less than stupendous all I have to do is join a soccer game, pet an unwanted cat or dog, pick a mangosteen from a tree and eat the most delicious fruit in the world, or just talk to someone. Its a nice feeling.  It is simple.  And although I am very very busy, I still feel relaxed, and void of stress. 

Last week I taught at the school for 4 days, all 8 classrooms, after school for all 5 days I held my English courses which keep growing in popularity, hence the increase in numbers of classes.  I attended 2 beauty pageants, one for younger girls each representing a "valor" and the other for high school girls who competed to be Miss Recycle Queen!  Awesome, right?

I was invited to a birthday party for a 12 year old, and invited to make the cake, which I happily did with the Giradelli chocolate chips I found at Panama's version of Costco.  I am not sure if the family only invited me because they couldn't afford a cake and heard I could bake or if they truly wanted me there (just kidding, I felt very wanted).  After hours of dance lessons, I led the famous game of hide and go seek which lasted till 9pm, when finally, devastated and ready to dream, we all retired to our beds and slept like rocks.

Sunday, the Eco Club (a group of 15 kids ages 7-13) asked to go pick up cans en route to a beautiful river spot, where we swam and jumped off rocks before the thunder and lighting started in the afternoon like it always does.  We filled 2 black trash bags with cans that we will cash in to add to our fund for our next eco-field trip.  I do love the afternoon rains, the lighting that lights up the sky in reds, purples, oranges and greens, lightning like I have never seen.  Its beautiful and yet a little scary, and then the thunder rolls and the waterfall of rain falls for 1-3 hours refreshing the air and filling the water tanks. 

Next week we have a 1 week vacation from school and I will be busy making eco stoves, some other peace corps volunteers will head up to my hood to help and learn how to make them for their communities.  I am excited. 

Also ahead, I will move again, into another house,  we have our regional meeting in the beautiful area of Cerra Punta, and I am volunteering in Panama City for the Special Olympics.

Ciao!  y besos,  Sina

My birthday cow, not for the weezy when it comes to the sight of blood...

As most of you all know, last month was my birthday....  as you may not know a typical Panamanian thing to do for someones birthday or other special occasions is to kill a cow.  My training family invited me to have a joint birthday party with my host mom and in celebration I was invited to ride out into the field with my host dad and brothers and pick out the cow that would be sacrificed for the party!
Below, 
You can see the pictures in order, I wished I didn't have to pick, but may she rest in peace.

 The process consists of first puncturing the top of the head and then slitting the throat, this gives a quick painless death and the cow bleeds out in a matter of minutes...

Those of you who know me well know that normally this would trigger lots of tears, but you'll all be proud to know my eyes barely watered.  My family did like it however that I said a little rest in peace prayer for the cow, and thanked it for giving us its life.

The butchering begins

Dogs enjoying the skin, yuck!

My lovely cake!

 So there you have it, I survived my first cow killing, just another experience in Panamanian culture!

A long way from home

Hello readers,

I apologize that I have been lacking good blogs to keep you all up to date on what I am doing here in Panama.  The truth is that its hard for me to blog at the local infoplaza, where internet is free in my town due to the fact that all the kids in town need to use the resources for their homework and very few people have home computers so facebook users (almost everyone) need it to keep the world updated on who they are dating and what they had for breakfast. 
However, all you loyal folks who care about what I am doing will be glad to know that Asella and Maggie came down here 10 days ago and brought with them my computer.  For $22 a month I can have internet, so I have made the decision to indulge and buy it in an effort to keep in better contact, work from home on Peace Corps stuff as well as use it as a tool to teach computer technology to certain people in my town who are interested and who I trust.  Thus, I will try and keep up to date with a weekly blog.

Well, what have I been doing for the last 5 weeks that you haven't heard of me?  My birthday came and went, I spent almost two weeks in a Peace Corps in-service training learning how to graft trees, for example mix an orange tree with a grapefruit, or combine a strong mango tree roots and trunk with one that has the best fruit, gaining the best of both worlds.  Of course more was to be learned on organic farming, and the most exciting part for me......   Naturally made tower stoves called bliss burners, or in Panama, fagones feliz!
This will be my first community project at a large scale.  Most families, especially the poor ones, cook on outdoor fires made in between 3 rocks.  These fires produce a huge amount of smoke and use a lot of wood.  Asthma and lung problems that the smoke cause to humans and the environmental problems alone are good cause enough, but the people really dig that less wood, more economical part as well.  I plan to build these with the families in an effort to improve the health of both the people and the outdoors.  All you need:  clay, horse poop, ash, molases, and a little hay! 


 Its easy its cheap and hopefully can be a sustainable project for the community members.

me and the cutest baby cow!

The kiddies wanted to help make the bricks for the eco stove

Other than that, life is good, I just spent the last 10 days hanging out with Maggie and Asella on a mini much needed vacation.  We spent a few days in the big city, then headed to the coffee farms of Boquete, they learned how to tipico dance, and last but by far not least we spend 5 days on the Bocas Del Torro Archipeligo chilling on the beach and exploring the different islands.  Before that got to spend a weekend with this handsome guy (pictured to the left) at the beach, so now its time to head back to site, face reality, and get back to work!  I am excited and ready though, its been too long living out of a backpack. 

Thanks for reading and hopefully all works out with my internet and the updates continue.  If you have skype and would like to chat, look me up I am the only Sina Szabados in the world.

xoxo!

Bailes, Cabalgatas and more

First off, my appologies for missing a whole month without a blog.  I have been super busy, and with slow internet in site its been difficult.  But I am back, my priorities in order and ready to tell all.

The month of June was incredible.  I survived my community analysis, a forty page paper for the US government, which they will probably never read all about San Andrès.  I moved into my new house.  Not the dream home I first had my heart set on but a modest, more Peace Corps like place in the center of town.  I adopted a cat and her 3 day old kitten. San Juan was celebrated in my pueblo with a cabalgata (a dangerously exciting run of horses where the men hold onto eachothers backs while galuping at full speed bien borracho)

My new tent, had to make sure it worked!  It cost me a whole $3!

 Boys hard at work at the schools chicken farm, and my new kitten Simba!

This lasted for 3 days right outside my house.  The men line up with thier horses on both sides of the street and call eachother with a salomar (I can't even begin to explain, but sounds somewhere between a Xena Warrior Princess call and a high pitche pig squeal).  They then ride up, place their hands on each other backs and gallup extremely close together.  Dios mio es muy peligroso!

After each night is celebrated with a dance (baile).  Sometimes a discoteca, with a series of music, but mostly Tipico Bachata y Merengue.  I love these social events, they are going to make living in this pueblo so much better!

My adopted daughter, just kidding!  Everyone thinks shes mine because she is light in color.....

She calls me mama too, but really she is the niece of my friend Bercelio.

All in all, life is good.  I feel good, and am very happy here.  I have friends, a social life, am working extemely hard, but have a blast while doing it. I spend my days in the school, and my afternoons working with community groups and giving english classes.  My weekends are filled with sporting events and local parties, which celebrate religious themes through the excessive drinking of men, which I find ironic but entertaining. The people are amazing, the food is amazing and the fiestas are amazing.  These next two years are going to fly.  Next week I will take some photos of the new house so you guys can all prepare for where you'll stay when you come visit.

Hope you all are well, miss you and love you,

Sina

Boquete

 Last weekend was my first regional meeting and it was in Boquete, Panama.  Boquete is one of the most popular tourist destinations inPanama.  It sits in the cloud forest at the base of Volcan Baru and is home to exquisite, yet quirky gardens, a boat load of ex-pats, the best coffee in the country, a hippy transient community similar to Arcata, fancy hotels, and backpackers hostels.  Spending the weekend there, feeling like a tourist, I had my first experience with culture shock.  It was so strange to not be the famous person, the person everyone wanted to talk to...  It was strange to be commoner, and look like everyone else.  When I walked in to the backpackers hostel I was so excited to learn about all these people and tell them all about Peace Corps and what I am doing, only to find know one really cared.  Everyone just cared about tomorrows next adventure or where they were going to eat.  I felt like a tourist in a hostel, which is exactly what I was...

 As well as quite dissapointed to have lost my fame.  In fact
it took me so off guard I had trouble forming sentences
correctly in English and all I wanted to do was get back
to San Andrés. I will work on getting a hold of myself
before coming back to the states where I am normal once
again!

This week has also been very exciting because my host family's cat had kittens.  They are super cute, but haven't open thier eyes yet and I am afraid to touch them to check if they are male or female.  I get to take my pic for which one to keep, but I think I will have to take a pair to keep them together and then the mama can keep one with her too.  My host family is fine, I really enjoy my 30 year old host brothers company and am starting to feel like I have a social life, accompanying him to soccer games and hanging out with his friends.  3 weeks till I move into my own place!

Well, I am off to go kill my first chicken, we have kept it tied up in the back yard for 15 days fattening it up for dinners this week and I going to help and learn how to massacre then clean it.  Wish me luck!
Also in my near future... horse back riding, getting my own place, San Juan dancing horse festival and so much more.  The time is flying, and I am keeping busy and happy!

Adios!

A quick update and a cute video

Hi All,

To make up for the lack of pictures in last weeks blog I have added a video.
Every Friday night I teach English classes for 3 hours to 3 different groups.  The last one starts at 7, and although is only supposed to last an hour we hang out sometimes until after 10pm.  Last night we practiced English, taught and learned magic tricks and then they wanted to serenade me.  Here is a little taste of how amazing these kids are:

Then I woke up this morning, bright and early after a great nights sleep and was invited to watch a kids Tipico dance class, I am so glad I figured out that I can upload videos to this blog!

  This is me and my



My day continued with a hike through a chyote farm to find a Nobe Indian family who just moved to town.  They live in a one room dirt floor and plastic sheeting hut and take care of the Chyote.  They have 7 kids.  When the kids started school last week none of them had a notebook or paper, pencils, or any other materials to do their school work.  I am very lucky to have the friends that I do, because Haley and Jess sent me an awesome care package with a bunch of stuff for kids, including school supplies.  Y entonces I set forth on my hike this morning to bring them supplies and toys.  The pure joy on these childrens faces was very picture worthy, however in their culture it is a bad omen to have their picture taken and since I am still getting to know the family didn't want to push my luck.  They kids were so happy to have thier school supplies and each one promised me to study hard in English and all their other subjects.  Now if only I could figure out a way to build them a house and buy them shoes.  As you can probably tell my work here is more than fufilling, sometimes tough, but mostly just good.  As much as I really love the moments of instant satisfaction the true test will be if the projects stick around after I am gone.