Month 2: From Theory to Terrain

Hi everyone! I'm back with another life update for all of you. Month 2 in the country has been so fun and packed with events and experiences, so I decided to break this post up into four parts: training, family bonding, miscellaneous fun stuff, and finally...my future site!!

Training

    The last few weeks of training have flown by, but not without approximately a million things crammed into those weeks.

    First and foremost, we had Long Field Practice (LFP), when we had the opportunity to visit the site of a current volunteer. This trip was our first time sleeping overnight outside our training communities and our first chance to give a Charla (literally "chat" but used for short presentations) to a school about environmental topics. I, along with five other volunteers (Tessa, Jaden, Jack, Chad, and Carolina), had the opportunity to see how a current volunteer (shoutout to Chris from C.6 - we love you!) lives, how his community is and what his life is like day to day. His site is less urban than the area I'm living in now, so it was a great chance to see a different part of Paraguay and appreciate the country's natural beauty.

    Over only 3 days, the 6 of us explored beautiful natural sites, attended an art fair put on by one of the schools Chris works at, and gave our presentations. To the kids at the schools, we spoke about different types of trash, the difference between organic and inorganic materials, and ecoladrillos ("eco-bricks" - a trash management alternative involving filling empty bottles of soda with dry, clean plastic and using them in place of bricks to build things like benches). This charla was my first time giving a presentation entirely in Spanish, and it went so well! 

    We also had the opportunity to visit a Paraguayan cemetery. Instead of a traditional American cemetery where every person gets a headstone, for Paraguayan cemeteries, every loved one receives an above-ground structure, many of which have colorful tiles, giant crucifixes or images of the loved one, and other such decorations. In addition, we had the opportunity to visit one of the historic train museums and talk with a local artisan about her work. I purchased a key hook depicting a Tajy Poty - "poty" means flower in Guarani, and Tajy is the Guarani name for the official tree of Paraguay—finally, a trip to the oldest "Chiperia" in town. Paraguayan chipa is a form of fried bread, traditionally with some cheese. It's delicious and will be one of the recipes I bring back to the States. 

    Next, on Halloween, we carved watermelons! Although many people in Paraguay do not celebrate Halloween due to it being a Catholic country and the pagan/satanic undertones associated with the holiday, you will find many of the younger generations celebrating the holiday as we do in the States. We went out as a group on October 31 to watch the Festival del Takuare'e - a festival celebrating traditional Paraguayan music and dance - and were promptly greeted by crowds of younger people in costumes on their way to celebrate their way.

    On a more technical note, our vegetable gardens went well! Below is a picture of the radishes we harvested for taco night (you'll hear more about that later). We learned valuable skills, such as how to make mulch, the importance of weeding and watering, and which plants you should plant depending on the time of year. Unfortunately, our lettuce sprouts all fried immediately due to the heat - summer still hasn't officially started, but we're averaging a balmy 92-96℉, with some days getting even hotter. We also got to work with a local school a few weekends ago and plant trees! Our group planted over fifty tree saplings - many Tajy trees - and we even made a little friend (see below).

    Finally, we attended another cultural excursion! It was just a day trip this time, but we explored the mythological museum in Capiata. Remember my mention of the Pombero from the last post? In another one of the central Guarani myths, the original humans were called Rupave and Sypave. They had three sons, the second of which was Marangatú, with a daughter named Kerana. According to legend, Kerana was captured by the spirit of evil called Tau, and together, they had seven sons, all of whom were cursed by the high goddess Arasy and turned into the primary seven "monsters" of Guarani mythology. These include Luison, the god of death and everything related to it; Kurupi, the god of sexuality and fertility; and Tegu Jagua, the god of caverns and fruit. We met all the family members and saw other mythological and historic things in this museum. 

    Following the museum, we went on a beautiful hike. We were unaware of this hike in advance, hence why I'm wearing jeans in the photos below. It was also 92 degrees. Live love Peace Corps. So worth it. After these spectacular natural sites, we visited another local artisan, and I got to try my hand at making some pottery. The two ceramics classes I took in high school really paid off (if there's anyone from EGHS reading this, shoutout Mrs. Munzert)

    Our final stop on this fun day was the Lago de Areguá, a beautiful lake where Paraguayans love to come and watch the water. Unfortunately, you can no longer swim in the lake due to pollution from large companies, but that didn't stop us from enjoying the cool breeze of the water.

Family Bonding

    Although I am beyond excited to live and work in my new site, words cannot describe how sad I am to leave the family I've been with for the past 10 weeks. I spend my weekends hanging out and cooking pies, bread, and pizzas with Mama Clara. We drink tereré, talking about life, and if she notices I've had a long few days, she makes sure to make my favorite foods for lunch the next day - Paraguayan tortillas, another recipe I will adopt. 

    I feel blessed to have such a caring, supportive family during the crazy Pre-Service Training time. I had the fantastic opportunity to celebrate the birthdays of my host niece and nephew last weekend, Martina (5) and Martin (2). One of Martina's favorite pastimes is for us to draw together or take walks around the neighborhood while she picks every flower and tells me what color they are. Thankfully, my future site is only about two hours from my current house, so I'll be back to visit. Mama Clara even told me she'd keep my bed made for me if I ever wanted to spend the night.

Fun Stuff

After long weeks of training, especially with all that we squeeze into those days, it should be no surprise that my fellow trainees and I quickly take advantage of an opportunity to relax and blow off some steam. These have materialized in the form of :

• Girls night - complete with nail painting, hair braiding, volleyball, and a lot of dancing and laughter
• Taco night - another big family dinner successfully executed thanks to our cohort's talented chefs  (including but not limited to William, Ben, Aakriti, Rhayne, and more) and with a special guest: the radishes from our garden!
• Karaoke nights - Imagine 15-30 Americans taking over a Paraguayan karaoke bar. It's exactly what it sounds like. Although we attempt to do some Spanish songs, sometimes you have a just belt Pink Pony Club by Chappell Roan for the cultural exchange. My go-to karaoke song is now Brandy (You're a Fine Girl) by Looking Glass (if you're reading this - Hi Dad, I miss you a little extra every time I sing it)
• Pool day - when we had only a half day of training, we decided to all pile onto the Peace Corps bus and spend the afternoon at a local park with a pool. The hours passed in a blur of swimming, dancing, and all three Paraguayan unofficial national sports - futbol, volleyball, and piki volley. For the last, imagine a two versus two volleyball game, except you can't use your hands or arms to get the soccer ball over. I greatly respect anyone who can get it over the net, myself not included.

I can't quite illustrate how crucial these 44 other volunteers have been in keeping me sane and grounded over this hectic time. To any of you reading this, I love each and every one of you so much. PCPY C.8 forever.

Future Site!!

    And now, the moment you've all been waiting for... I finally received my assignment for the next two years! Starting December 6, 2024, I'll be living in a small rural community about 2 hours East of the capital city of Asunción. I will be the first-ever Peace Corps volunteer in my community, which is simultaneously so exciting and the slightest bit terrifying. In the packet of information I initially received, the community - and specifically the school I will be working with -  had the following requests of me:

• Teaching English
• Teaching arts
• Building a school garden
• Implementing "Basura Cero" (a program for waste management)

    My counterparts are the elementary and high school principals, who were very welcoming and kind during my visit. I had the opportunity to spend five days on my site, meeting my new host family and showing my face around the community before returning to finish my training. 

    My site is about 700 families, primarily farmers, who own lots of livestock. Anything from cows, chickens, turkeys, pigs, you name it, one of my neighbors has them. It was also sandia (watermelon) season when I visited, which was a delicious afternoon snack. My house has two mango trees, which I am beyond excited about as mango season is just beginning when I return to site. In addition to the beautiful trees and flowers, the family has two parrots and two dogs, one of which just had six adorable puppies. I have a host mom, Leticia, and two host sisters, Susana (12) and Samira (15). Susana, Samira, and their cousin Kevin all attend the school where I'll work! The family was so sweet and welcoming; I can't wait to go back and live with them. For those curious, I live with my host family for the first two months to help me integrate, and then I can move out on my own.

    My site has some beautiful natural places; during my visit, I got to explore the arroyo (stream) and the Cerro (literally "hill" but think small hiking area). The views are spectacular, and I will be making many visits here. I only climbed one of the Cerros, but if the others are even half as beautiful, I will have a wonderful time for the next two years. Especially in the summer, it's very popular to go swimming in the river. "Swimming" may be a bit of an overstatement...it's more like sitting because the river is only around 2 feet deep. However, it's so refreshing and beautiful that I can't wait to return!

    The highlight of my visit had to have been the dance competition. My school put on an "exhibition" for their physical education classes, which included every grade dancing - even the pre-schoolers dancing with hula hoops - and a competition between 4 of the clubs in the school. The morning of the competition, I watched my sisters rehearse with them and stopped to talk to one of the directoras. She then asked if I wanted to be a judge for the event! Of course, I said yes, and that was how I found myself in front of hundreds of Paraguayans, introducing myself in Spanish (and Guaraní, as most of the people in my town speak both) to the whole community. While that aspect was nerve-wracking, the rest of the night was so much fun. My fellow judges were other profes (teachers) at the school, so I met people I could work with. 

Overall, I had such a wonderful experience visiting my future site! While it is a bit bittersweet to see my ten weeks of training come to an end - and the little family I've formed in such a short time be scattered to different areas of the country, I am immensely looking forward to the work I will be doing and the new relationships I will form in my site. The following week will be a bit crazy for me as I finish my training and move into my site next Thursday, but after that, the next part of my adventure starts!

I hope you all enjoy my monthly updates. Check back after Christmas for more! :)