Luckily a lot is going on here in site as I am getting so excited to leave for a vacation home to the US that I can barely concentrate! I can't believe by the time I get home I will have been in country for almost a year! Time has flown by and it has been a complete rollercoaster of a ride - but it feels really good to have this much time under my belt. In January the new group of Eco Tourism volunteers will be coming in and hopefully maybe I can help train them. Even now, I like to read the blogs of the other trainees - as they are experiencing their first few weeks in country, then field based training, then swearing in, reconnect...it feels good to be that much further along and to be making time.
Right now, I am working with a good friend of mine, Pasquala, and we are organizing a baking class this week for the women in the community. We went around on Saturday night, going door to door telling them what we are offering (making cakes, donuts, carrot cake etc. in artesenal ovens) and trying to get people to sign up (offering the promise of diplomas in the end - a big motivation factor here...). So, we started this afternoon with a meeting discussing what the costs will be to each woman and discussed which recipes they have an interest in). It is important for the women to take on some of this cost as I am learning more and more - if people invest in their learning or training - even a little bit - it will mean so much more to then than if they get it all for free. We only had 5 women show up out of the 15 who said yes - but this is pretty typical here - and 5 is better than nothing. We're hoping to make economical treats so that maybe the women can replicate it in their house and sell their goods for a little extra income. Tomorrow we are making pineapple cake - YUM!
The other huge deal that is going on at the end of the week is the big QUINCE of one of the daughters of one of the most important families here in the village. It is going to be the biggest party in the history of the community - over 500 people are invited - 300 lbs. of chicken have been bought - a marimba is coming in - and we start with the serenade at 3 a.m. (again - early mornings...sigh...) Anyway, I went dress shopping with the family last Friday and am pleased to say I have found my dress - an awesome black number with a little sparkle (I'll show you pics in December). Everyone is getting so excited - it is all anyone can talk about. I am in charge of the decorations with 2 other people from the community and we are starting in on Thursday - so with the decorations and two more days of the cake classes - my days are going to be jam packed. This is good though - time is flying!
Other than that - walked over to another finca yesterday for a soccer game - got to see some more terrain which is always nice and I walked over with my favorite family - so it is always nice to spend Sundays with them. Plus they invited me over for tamales de elote - which are sweet corn tamalitos - really good! They take such good care of me and tonight when I brought them over a papaya from one of the trees here at the hotel, when I entered - I always say "permiso" as it is the polite thing to do here when you enter another person's house but they told me tonight that I don't have to say that because it is my second house - so it is the small things like that that really mean a lot to me here.
Other than that - life as normal here - we're getting a lot more group business right now, there is not so much rain so my clothes dry, my skin has gotten used to the bug bites and now they don't even itch anymore, am psyched because Dona Pancha in the community bought a gas refrig and now I can buy a cold Pepsi every now and then and man is it good.
That's about it - counting down the days to my trip home! Can't wait to see you all and place for order for a Starbucks soy latte when I step off the plane in America.
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