Feliz Navidad

Christmas in Paraguay is most definitely unlike any other Christmas I've ever experienced- and to be fair, this is not my first merry-go-round.

I headed back to my training site near Asuncion for a special Christmas with the host fam. I arrived on the 23rd and immediately was invited to a neighborhood party. After several hours of chat, music, and Brahma I went home feeling happy to be back 'home' for the holidays. Even more excited when I officially became a novia. :-) They say Christmas is the time of year for that sort of thing, and they would be right.

By the 24th, the day Christmas is celebrated in Paraguay, we were full of Christmas cheer. I helped construct a pesebre (manger... you know with all the animals and a little Jesus inside) out of tree limbs and freshly dug-up grass, which was my first of the Paraguayan traditions to learn. Then it was out to the back yard to kill some chickens and stoke up the brick oven. Round one of sopa paraguaya (cheesy corn bread) was out a little after noon. From there, it was off to visit several families around town. Five families through, I had so much sopa my stomach just couldn't take it, clorico (sangria with oj and tropical fruits) to the point of drowning, and new resolve in starting a New Year's diet. I had also been invited to several Christmas dinners at the stroke of mid-night. Nobody starves in Paraguay this night. Finally, I got into several close calls with an ungodly number of firework fights... why people let their children play with bombas I will never understand. Even after the mid-night city-sponsored firework show, the smoke of the city hung in the air for several hours. At about 10pm (although the tradition is typically withheld till mid-night), we opened presents at my family's house. Everyone got at least one, but certainly not the stockpile often exhibited during this season in the States. Mostly because the Day of Kings is in January and made for just such gift-giving to children. So, I received a lovely shirt from Argentina and a hair clip- yes! A big BBQ ensued directly after- the enormous meal to call in the festivities.

From mid-night on throughout the 25th, it was dancing and parties throughout Paraguay. My friends and I jumped from house to house, dancing, music, drinks, and of course more sopa. They even opened up a swimming pool at the local discoteca, so we could all experience another kind of sopa... the human soup that is beer, sweat, and lord knows what other disgusting liquids. I did NOT get in. Instead, I took refuge at nearby, hidden lake where I happily swam in the natural good ole' outdoors. The boys took the challenge of fishing, which did not work out as planned so us ladies had to make do with carne instead of pescado for dinner. Que lastima!

All in all, the best Christmas I could have ever asked for and a nice Skype chat with my family in the States to complete the package. Could you ask for more?

Pero... le gusta carne

We have all heard the fish analogy- give a man a fish, he'll eat for a day; teach a man to fish, he'll eat for a lifetime. Since I've joined the Peace Corps, I have heard that phrase time and time again. We are talking here about the sustainability of projects that are started by volunteers, and while I totally relate on the one hand... there is something missing to this lovely metaphor on the other. I live in Paraguay. It is a landlocked country. While we do have rivers, not all that many people actually eat fish. The truth is- Paraguayans like carne (meat), and no matter how many times I teach people to fish they'll never use the knowledge because at the end of the day what they really want is a charred steak straight off the asado (BBQ).

Silly as it may sound phrasing my situation as such, I feel deeply entrenched in a personal dilemma. Thus far in Paraguay, I've spent a lot of time focusing on Peace Corps' teaching how to fish- Construye tus Sueños, Juegos de Ingles, Hora de Cuento- but that is not at all what is going to last when I leave site in 2 years. No, not even remotely. I'll bet everyone will forget I ever even did any of that. Why? Because the people want carne, and that's what we need to be focusing on. It may not be on my list of indicators or take precedence in my PC project plan outlined by who knows who, who knows where, but that is what will last.

This week I finished up many of my first projects in site. Most prominently, I finished up pretty much all of my taught courses. And here's where I've decided to stop teaching these packaged capacitation programs. Indeed, they keep my mind busy, but they just don't go the distance for my community. From now on, I focus on the carne versus the fish. When the people want it, and we work together to get there... that's when we see the real results.

Watch out cows! We're taking this countryside by slaughter.

Che Roga

After weeks and months of searching, I've finally located and moved into my own house!!! The additional freedom and privacy are very much appreciated. I find I even sleep better knowing that nobody can watch me behind my closed doors. I know... sounds a bit odd that people might ever be watching me, but you'd be surprised. People here know what time I get up, what I ate for breakfast, and even the exact moment/where I get wobbly on my bike going around town. Yup, they say Peace Corps is a 24 hour job, and it is sooo true. I get daily reports on my actions from my neighbors and friends- "Who was that guy you were with (that one time when someone said hello)?" "I saw you wearing your helmet in front of the grocery store today (yes, I do need to eat and I do wear a helmet)." "Your pants looked a bit dirty the other day (after painting my table in the sun all day)." You get the idea, having a place to call my own and more importantly a place to hide from time to time is really really nice.

So- the details then! My PC crib has 4 primary rooms which I have turned into- bedroom, living room, kitchen, and dining room. It also has an semi-enclosed patio in back and a modern bathroom! Whoa- que chuchi, no? The whole place has been recently remodeled, so it's super lindo. For example, my walls have all been re-cemented (we don't really have plaster here, so cement is used to cover up the brick building materials, kinda like adobe but grey), I have a brand new concrete patio for a front yard, I've got a really nice locking front gate, new bars on my window, even a new roof. I'm pretty much living in new house! All the amenities are here too- running water from a well in my yard with motor, electricity, and a corner shop with NAFTA (natural gas) for my stove. Even my furniture situation is pretty stellar- I've got a stove, fridge, bed, and kitchen table all borrowed from neighbors and friends :-) All the basics taken care of in my simple life. The only thing that I lack is a tile floor- but concrete suits me just fine. In my backyard it gets even better- I have an enclosed veggie garden, a chicken coop, and fruit trees/plants ranging from papaya, orange, and lime, to avocado and grape. I'm definitely planting in my garden as well, to have a fresh range of veggies and spices. Yippee! I am very very please and super lucky to have found such a great deal- oh yes and all for around 75 USD/month. Gosh... wouldn't it be great if life was like this everywhere? Haha!

My spare time as of late has been all about getting settled in. I've got my dog and cat here now, still waiting on the chickens until they get a big bigger. So all's well- I've even got a new theme song: el Perro, el Gato, y Yo. Please enjoy a little soundbite from my South American life! (If you translate, it's actually not my life at all, but I like that at least the title is kinda my life here in Paraguay).