Hace muchoooo tiempo

I can’t recall the last time I updated my blog, and for those who thought I might have died… well, I’m still kickin’. My life living on the ex-communicado circuit has been quite an experience. 

Time has passed quickly here in southeast Paraguay and I have enjoyed about 88% of it. The other twelve come from bouts of food poisoning, waiting for buses, biking in the rain, awkward silences in conversation, etc.

Though it may have been a rocky start to begin with, my community is now fully receptive of my work and me. My Guarani language skills have progressed considerably, but there are still times I that I have no idea what people are talking about.

I mix my time working in the primary school, agricultural high school, with community members, and by myself at my house.

The World Map project at the school is taking some time to complete, but when it is finished it will look really nice. The background ocean blue is painted and I am placing a grid system onto the wall. I wish I could work more in the school garden but very few of the students show interest in this topic. One of my favorite things about the school is being able to make kids laugh and smile. That itself is a good day.

I work two days a week in the agricultural high school down the road from my house. I’m still working with third-year students and their graduation projects, but I recently began working with first-year students on the implementation of a one-hectare agroecology field. Mba’epiko ha’e (what is) agroecology? Agroecology is the use of various conservation agriculture techniques to improve soil quality, control erosion, and conserve water in the fields. So far, I’ve given a lecture to the students about water conservation and soil erosion, and the field is ready to be planted. Paraguay is nearing the end of winter (we didn’t really have much of that) and I plan to plant the field in September. So far, we plan to plant corn, beans, sunflower, and green manure crops. The volunteers in my group participated in a training event in April in which we learned about marking contour lines in a field, and my group has begun to implement this practice. Contour lines are trenches in a field to help conserve and navigate rainfall water on a given slope. 

My house has come along way since I first started working on it. No more structural problems, and I now have a nice patio to sit outside and enjoy the day or eat a meal. I added a new little closet to store my books and tools. Last thing to do is paint, maybe a nice PSU theme? I really enjoy working in my garden, and here’s a picture of the result:

Finally, my work with members of the community has been mixed. Some are receptive to visits and working together, but others have little knowledge or misconceptions about my work and that has made it tough. For those who are responsive, I continue to assist in soil recuperation  efforts in the fields, mostly through green manures and cover crops. With summer approaching, I have been coordinating with farmers their interest in planting these crops and learning of proper ways to store these seeds for future use. I recently received a loan of one-half hectare to grow my own field crops and create a new demonstration plot for community members to view and learn. Around September I plan to get some chickens at my place so having a crop of corn and beans to feed the chickens will be nice.

Running water? Well… projects in developing countries, especially in rural areas, take a long time to complete. Nearly all the piping has been placed and workers have been throughout the community constructing black-water tanks at each house. In addition, each house will receive a shower and toilet stall to use. I believe a total of 20 kilometers (12 miles) of piping will be placed by the time everything is said and done. Maybe, just maybe, I will have running water by the time I finish my service next year.

Days can seem incredibly long and boring but the weeks and months fly by. No single day is the exact same, and that’s why I enjoy this job. Peace Corps Paraguay encourages volunteers to seek out work opportunities instead of handing out projects on a platter. I have come to realize the incredible amount of self-motivation needed from volunteers to complete this task. Peace Corps has been in the news a fair amount recently, not under the best circumstances, but I have also come to realize how great the staff is here in Paraguay and their willingness to assist you in any way needed for a project.

Here are some of my favorite recent photos for your viewing:

CNA, Running Water, project updates

Hey everyone, I just wanted to update you on some of the progress that is taking shape in my community.

First, I am FINALLY living alone in my house! It feels really great to finally be able to cook whatever I want, when I want. I will be quite honest, I am not a fan of Paraguayan food. I lost a decent amount of weight trying to survive on scraps of meat and empty carbohydrates everyday. Literally within an hour and a half, I would be hungry again from just eating lunch. Now that I can cook more protein and heavier foods, I no longer feel hungry between meals during the day. Gotta get ready for winter hibernation!

Update on community projects: We have started working on the running water for the project. It is a lot of work. We started last weekend and a backhoe came in to dig the trench for the waterline. The backhoe digs 2.5 feet deep and has dug for 2 kilometers. We (community members) are required to lay the line, and back fill the dirt with our hoes (for however long the line runs). It certainly has been tedious, mind-numbing work but it looks like we are going to have running water by the end of May! With this, I can have a running shower (as compared to bucket bathing), a functioning toilet, and a place to wash my dishes and clothes.

Community running water meeting

 Backhoe digging the water line trench

Agriculture Projects: A large part of my work in March was gathering information for my Community Needs Assessment (CNA). All Peace Corps volunteers in country conduct a CNA in their first six months at site, and is a great tool to understand the history, politics, and potential future of the community. The CNA required me to visit community families to conduct interviews about the crops they grow, what needs they see for the future, and how I might be able to tailor my work to fit these needs. It is a good way for volunteers to interact with community members to get to know each other and gain respect as a volunteer. Conducting the CNA was really a lot of work to compile the information of each family, analyze what projects could be done within the next year and nine months, and create a document to send to my Peace Corps Agriculture sector boss. I really never thought I would ever be creating a large document in a foreign language in my life. After spending a few hours every night, I shipped my CNA off today for review and approval. 

Ag high school: I have started off my work in the agriculture high school by advising students on their "graduation projects." Once a week, I spend 4 hours in the school working with students on production projects. I supervise 27 students on projects that range from carrots, peppers, tomatoes, bees, chickens, soil recuperation, and yerba mate nurseries. Each group of students must produce at least two cycles of their respective project. This is a good way for me to start my work in the school. It doesn't require too much preparation and I enjoy this style of informal education with the students, as compared to given a weekly lecture in a classroom. It allows us to be out in the nurseries, gardens, or fields and we can discuss the progress, difficulties, and successes of the projects. 

 Laying chicken project at the high school

Primary school: In the primary school I currently work with 7th and 9th graders on the school garden. The past few weeks we have been prepared the beds by constructing, applying manure, hanging shade structures, and planting. So far we have planted carrots, onions, swiss chard, lettuce, beets, and turnips. We also have a compost pile that is in progress. We review the compost pile every week to see the rate of decomposition, and add to the materials so that we can have more organic matter to apply to the gardens in the future. I am also starting a world map project at the school, which I am really enthusiastic to do. World maps are painted onto walls of school structures so that students can literally view the world on a large scale. Many times rural schools lack infrastructure to view a map online, through a globe, and sometimes even through a textbook. The world map lets the students understand that other countries do exist outside of their own, and to see how far in relation other countries are from Paraguay. Though it may be a tedious project to complete, it will help me create one of my first tangible projects in site for many people to see. The primary school hosts a lot of various community meetings, so members of my site will be able to see the work I have done in the school. 

Example of world map project

Work on my casita!

Hey everyone! Finally there was a southern "cold" front that blew through this week and we are in much cooler, normal temperatures!

I have been really busy the past few weeks getting my house ready to live in. I don't really have much to say so I will just post some pictures on the progress of my house.

 When I first arrived at my house. Overgrown with weeds and in need of a lot of help!

 

After the weeds in my house were all cut down! Here in Paraguay "lawn mowing" doesn't exist. Well, it does but in a different way. They cut the whole yard with weed eaters. Mine was so overgrown the guy had to use cutting blades to mow it all down. These are banana trees. When I first arrived they were all clustered together (like on the left side). I decided to actually manage my trees and transplanted 16 trees in lines (on the right side). I also planted an abono verde plant kumanda yvy'rai in between the lines of transplants to fix nutrients in the soil for the trees to grow faster.

Beginnings of where my garden is located. And yes, I did end up burning trash and some of the organic material that was cut down.

 

 

Finally my garden is planted with three beds! Right now I have onions, lettuce, carrots, sunflower, marigold, zinnias, beets, sorghum, tomatoes, peppers, cabbage, and brussel sprouts. 

We added a front gate to my house! Hopefully the crazy cow won't try to get in anymore.

Changing the siding on my house. Much of it has rotted or been prone to termite damage. 

Hopefully by the time I write my next blog I can show you pictures of the finished product! Chau for now!

Nde rasore hakueterei!

In case you were wondering, it’s still blazing hot here. I envy those in America who got to experience the record breaking cold a few weeks ago. Here is a list of things I’ve done in Paraguay and literally broken a sweat doing. Anything that requires physical exertion above this level guarantees a sweat.

-Typing this blog post

-Sleeping

-Playing candy crush saga

-Eating hot soup for lunch (happens on a regular basis)

-Shelling peanuts

-Sitting under a shade tree thinking about snow

Okay, gotta quit talking about the heat. Resort to part two to learn a great way to beat the heat: drinking terere!

My first whole month as a volunteer at site has been… weird, to say the least. I was having some major struggles trying to introduce myself and meet different people in community because of some prior happenings that I don’t really want to discuss in detail. However, I received some help from Peace Corps staff and members from another community to make the transition easier with the members of Capitán Leguizamón. Next week my community is organizing a meeting to formally introduce me so that everyone knows about my work and what the heck I’m doing here. Previously, much of the community had no idea I was here, nor did they understand exactly what Peace Corps volunteers do for their service. Hence, it was particularly tricky for me to introduce myself to community members by walking up to their house and trying to explain to them that, no, I’m not an Argentinian, nor am I a Cuban, nor a German, nor a spy. And yes, I have had all those questions asked about me.

One thing that has been a major help to my community integration is Paraguayan curiosity. They ask me anything, and everything. They are so interested to know what it’s like to live in America. The foods we eat, the work we do, how cold it is, who is your girlfriend, do they eat mandioca there, do you have terere there, etc. etc. That is one of the great things I like about Peace Corps. We are a culture-sharing machine. Clearly there are things I do that Paraguayans think I’m crazy and gawk at me. However, these are the little things that keep me sane and realize I’m making a tiny bit of impact so little time into my service.

I don’t really have too much exciting stuff to share so far, so I’ll leave you with some photos.

My host cousin Alexi and I enjoying some funny moments on my laptop

Isn't this just about the ugliest chicken you've ever seen?

One of the many impassable sand pits in my community

It's gonna rain! Haha just kidding!

Okay, I finally have the low-down on my mailing address. If you send me something, please please please make sure it is written exactly as I have put down.

Letters/cards/envelope items:

Orry Pratt
Correo Paraguayo No. 6700
San Pedro del Parana
Calle Parana y Capitan Niconor
Capitan Leguizamon
0984656118
Itapua, Paraguay, South America

Packages:

Orry Pratt
Correo Central Encarnacion 6000
Tel: 0984656118
Paraguay
South America

Jajapo terere! Let's make terere!

Paraguay isn’t known for much. People only know the country exists and that’s about it, right? Well, if there is one thing I teach you through this blog, then it will be about the most important thing in Paraguay. Terere. It isn’t just a drink. It is an addiction. It is flavored water. It is cheap. It is the drink of choice for everyone in Paraguay, and they spend endless hours each day sharing this tradition. It’s pretty simple to make, so jaha!

To make terere, you’ll need:

A bombilla (metal straw with little holes in the bottom to act as a filter)

A guampa (wooden, metal, or horn cup)

A pitcher or thermos full of ice cold water. Yeah, that's the color of the water at my site. Haven't gotten sick from it, yet...

*Ain’t no ice cubes in Paraguay down here. They put it in bags and freeze it in log form.

Some yerba! No, not the cooking hierba or the Cheech & Chong hierba. Yerba mate. It’s a ground up plant that offers an acquired taste when mixed with water. Kurupi is one of the more expensive brands of yerba mate. It sells for $1.75 USD a box. The cheap yerba is non-flavored and runs for about $1.25.

Put your desired type of yerba in the guampa until half or three-fourths full. Then insert the bombilla into the guampa. Pour yourself some water into that guampa and you’ve got yourself some terere! The first “ha” (drink/sip/take) is called Santo Tomas and is undesirable and extremely strong. Lucky you if you have the first ha! 

Guampa filled with yerba and bombilla. Ready for some agua!

I don't normally take selfies drinking terere, but when I do, I make sure the thermometer reads at least 35 Celsius.

Instructions for drinking terere: Gather a group of your buddies and sit down in a circle like fashion. The designated server pours a participant their ha. Participant drinks ha, passes back to server. Server pours another ha for next participant. Next participant drinks ha and passes back to server. Repeat in same fashion in circle-like manner until you have had enough. After you finish your last ha of terere, you say gracias and leave the terere group.

FAQ:
“So you all share that same darn cup and drink out of that weird metal straw??”

            -Yes, yes we do.

“Why doesn’t each person just make their own terere and drink from that?”

            -Because that’s not how they do it in Paraguay. Sharing is caring.

“What if someone in the group is sick? Won’t that spread germs?”

-Sure.  But that’s the least of worries down here. Tranquilopa! Besides, the bombilla has little holes to filter all that stuff out!

“Well what happens if someone doesn’t want to drink….”

            -How rude of you!

“What happens if you drink terere and then eat watermelon?”

-According to Paraguayan thought process, you’ll die. But don’t worry! Peace Corps volunteers do it all the time and we’re still here!

“How much terere does one normally drink in a day?”

-Depends on how hot it is. Two liters at minimum. Some days can be 6,7, or 10 liters of water with terere. Keep that bathroom handy! Oh wait, I pee in the trees.

Blog Three Paraguay: A Scramble of Thoughts

It’s been a decent amount of time since my last blog post, and a lot of things have transpired since then.

First, I’m officially a Peace Corps Volunteer. Long time for that to finally happen! I’m at site now and will be here for the next 24 months. Three down, 24 to go.  Hopefully I can keep pace to have 27 blog posts by the time everything is said and done. It’ll be interesting to look back at how my life changes over this period of time. My advisor at Texas A&M, Gary Wingenbach, advised me that I take a photo of myself every month at the same time and place to see how I change over the years. It sounds like a crazy idea, and well, he is a bit crazy himself but he does have a valid point. I shared the idea with my other training mates and they seem pretty keen to it.

I’m at site now. My community is called Capitán Leguizámon in the district of San Pedro del Paraná, department Itapuá. You won’t be able to find my site on Google Maps, but the closest you’ll find is San Pedro del Paraná and that’ll give you a good idea of where I live. I’m about 10km from San Pedro, and I live way out in the sticks. It’s actually pretty nice and relaxing, except for the persistent blazing heat everyday. The hottest I’ve seen so far is 112, just a few days ago. It’s crazy how you perceive heat; when it gets down in the 80’s at night it feels a bit “cool” out. No paved roads here, no cell service, no running water. In fact, it’s not even dirt roads here, just sand. The “soil” quality is incredibly poor here and that is going to be one of my main missions for my Peace Corps work. Imagine trying to plant a field of corn or beans on a beach; that’s pretty much what it’s like here. My work is to teach farmers the benefits of using “abonos verdes,” green manures and cover crops to help recuperate the soil. Green manures are planted amongst other crops to provide nitrogen to the soil and to help break the hardpan that may exist further down the soil profile. Cover crops perform exactly how they sound; they provide cover to prevent soil erosion and organic matter to decompose when the field is not in production. I also have an agricultural high school at site, which is a rarity among the agriculture volunteers in Paraguay. They have a bunch of different projects going on so it will be interesting to see how that work pans out over two years. I’m so new and fresh here that it is really hard to speculate how my work will transpire. Flexibility is one of the main values of all Peace Corps Volunteers around the world; I gotta keep that in perspective.

We haven’t had rain in about a month. It’s getting dry and I’m looking forward for the rains to come. I planted a few crops right away when I got to site but hadn’t expected for such dry conditions. Only half of it came up and it’s looking pretty dismal. I have a ton of different seeds but don’t want to take any more chances on planting until I know there will be adequate water for the plants to grow. The weather is pretty wild here. Everyday in the afternoons the clouds get really dark and you can hear thunder but it always passes over. But it does provide for some amazing sunsets at night. I’m looking forward to receiving my camera from long-term storage so that I can capture some of these amazing moments. My iPhone just can’t do it justice, and I’m not even sure if a DSLR camera can do the trick either.

A list of happenings so far.

Best food: So’o apu’a (meat/corn balls in a creamy sauce)

Not-so best food: Kidney soup

Funny moment: Joking with my host mom that she might have worms because she was going for fourths on her favorite meal.

Strange moment: “This is my granddaughter, and this one is my daughter” (said X woman introducing me to two little girls of the same age. Not a lie.)

Sad moment: Attending the ninth and final day of mourning for the loss of a community member

Humbling moment: Shaking the hand of a 103-year old grandfather of a community contact. Imagine the things he has seen in his lifetime…

Kinda scary moment: A dog trying to attack me while riding my bike.  A German shepherd-mix with some big teeth. I carry rocks in my backpack now.

Not-so scary moment: Waking up and seeing a softball-sized spider/tarantula in my room and not freaking out.

Sweaty moment: Everyday. Story of my life.

Surprising moment: Watching a hedgehog climb up our gate and onto the roof. I didn’t know they exist in Paraguay!?

Uncertainties: I feel like I don’t know what I’m doing. Am I “working” enough? Am I gaining the respect of my community? Am I advancing my language skills?

Accomplishment(s): I started a compost pile with my family. I got a bike. I went to town in the blazing sun and purchased my family a Christmas gift. And they appreciated it. And I cooked a “heterei” pasta dish for family. They loved it.

Learn some Guaraní:

Heterei – very delicious

Haku – hot (temperature)(said every five minutes in this country, no joke)

Ndaipori oky/y – there’s no rain/water

So’o – meat

Ryguasu – chicken

My address has changed (not that I’ve received anything except cards and packages from my parents! *Insert sarcasm here*)

Orry Pratt

Correo Central Encarnación 6000

Tel: 0984656118

Paraguay

South America

Training, Site Visit, and DENGUE!!!

Hey what’s up y’all! It has been over a month since I created a new blog post so I figured I would update on how everything is going in Paraguay. Everything has been great so far!

Training: Training keeps us very busy in which we are now easily putting in 10-12 hours a day five days a week plus a half-day on Saturdays. Not a lot of free time so I am looking forward to that whenever we move to site in just over a month from now. We train in a lot of different areas. More or less we have language-training everyday in Guarani. We recently had a proficiency interview to determine whether or not we need to study more to pass the final language exam at the beginning of December. Most of us placed in the Intermediate Low range, including me. We need to advance to the Intermediate Mid range in order to pass the language component to become a Peace Corps Volunteer. Other areas of training include our sector work in agriculture. We have learned about agroforestry, small animal husbandry, extension principles, green manure and cover cropping, gardening, and working with schools. Other areas of our training have consisted of health, safety and security, Peace Corps approach to development, and cultural interactions.

Site Visit: In the middle of October all the trainees had the opportunity to spend three days visiting a current PCV in their respective sector. I headed three hours south to San Juan Misiones, a department that is very close to the Argentina border. I stayed with a female volunteer so I had to sleep at a different family’s house. The PCV that I visited is a first time volunteer, meaning that no volunteers have ever worked in the community that she is working. She is almost a year into her site and is trying to get her work sorted out for the community. During the visit we had the opportunity to attend a high school class in which an agriculture teacher spoke about the importance of fencing animals to keep them out of gardens and into pastures to graze. Overall, the site visit was a really good learning experience for me as to what things I desire or do not want with my site and future work.

Dengue: The last day of site visit I woke up and was extremely sick. I had aches through my entire body and I was extremely dehydrated. I didn’t eat much and had no desire to eat or drink anything. The next four days were probably the worst I have experienced in this country so far; I barely ate anything and still had no desire to drink. I had two different fevers, extremely painful headaches behind the eyes, and painful stomach aches. I was first taken to Asuncion on a Friday but was brought home because I was feeling better. The next morning the doctor called me and said that I tested positive for dengue fever; the South American version of West Nile virus. I slept all weekend long and did not improve my situation. I was taken back to Asuncion on a Monday and was placed in the hospital until Wednesday. I had never been hospitalized in my life until I came to Paraguay! I was placed on an IV to replenish fluids and had multiple tests which showed that some of my organs had leaked fluid into my stomach cavity. They kept me in the hospital until this cleared up. I was finally cleared to leave the hospital and was just told it would take another week to recuperate my energy to feel better again. Now I can say I am all better and experiencing none of the symptoms of dengue. It was a pretty crappy week or so but hopefully I won’t have to experience this again!!!

In sum, I just want to say that I am enjoying Paraguay a lot and am pleased with how training is going. I am looking forward to these final few weeks of training in which we will learn where we will be living for the next two years. Thanks for all your support and I will try and mail some messages soon! Chau! 

Blog 1: Paraguay

Mba’eichapa? (Ba-ey-sha-pa) How are you?

What’s up followers! I’m here safe and sound in the outskirts of Asuncion, Paraguay. We landed safely Friday morning in the capital city and took an hour bus ride to our training site in Guarambare. This is the place where 45 Peace Corps Trainees (not volunteers yet!) and I meet to learn about the specific jobs we will have for the next two years. There are two groups here; Agriculture and Environment. Within these two sectors, we are split in half again into color groups. There are nine of us total in the Blue Ag group, also known as “The Winners.” Each group lives in a smaller community outside of Guarambare at a host family’s house. The Blue Ag lives in a small town called Las Piedras, about 8km from the training site. Alternating days are spent between Guarambare and host-town education centers. In Guarambare, all the Ag trainees will meet to discuss current issues, technical training, and whatever else may occur. In Las Piedras, the nine of us will take language and cultural classes. My Blue Ag group is split into even smaller classes for language training. This morning we had an interview in Spanish to determine our placement within language class. Those who are proficient in Spanish are placed into the Guarani section. Guarani is the second official language of Paraguay, and is indigenous to the country. Guarani is nothing at all like Spanish. Luckily, I placed into the Guarani section, which means I will begin to learn a new language Tuesday! My host family has already been teaching me bits of Guarani, and it is quite tough. I told them today about my troubles pronouncing some of the letters and words. They told me that learning Guarani is difficult, but not impossible! Keep your hopes up for me being able to learn the language. I am super eager to learn and my host family is great with sharing as much knowledge as they possibly can before my brain goes into overload.

Host family: We had interviews with a Peace Corps staff member about living conditions in Las Piedras. I wasn’t asked anything in particular except: “Do you like to walk?” Haha! After we arrived in Las Piedras, I was introduced to my host family. There are only two members, Mr. Miguel and Mrs. Tomasa. They are in their late 50’s and do not speak a word of English. Miguel is a lettuce farmer and Tomasa keeps the house and cooks the food. I was a bit nervous at first moving in, but the transition has been super easy after getting a good night’s sleep and having good prospects about my language class. In addition, the nieces and nephew live next door and are over at my house all the time. The kids are teenagers and love to chat. This has been a major help with the transition of speaking solely Spanish. I have my own room and bathroom in my house. My room is quite large and has a bed, a few armchairs, a desk, a dresser, a ceiling fan and a few end tables. I will be sure to post some pictures when I get the chance. The walls are oddly decorated with hats (witch, Dr. Seuss, bonnet, etc.), a Santa Claus figurine, and a painting of horses! I think it adds a lot of character to the room. It’s way better than nothing at all, right!? Most activity is performed outside because of the climate. We have two dogs, a cow, a lot of chickens, and a volleyball net. All the random townboys stop by to play when they have free time.

Tomorrow is Miguel’s birthday. We are having a big party and have invited all his family to attend. In addition, Tomasa told me that I am allowed to invite the rest of my Blue Ag group as well. Looking forward to what tomorrow will bring! Right now the temperature hangs in the lower to mid 60’s at night and in the upper 70’s to mid 80’s during the day. This afternoon it got pretty humid and we started sweating just walking around the town. At 5:30 this morning it poured for about five minutes and stopped. We have a metal roof, so a downpour can pretty much wake anyone up.

I’ll say by far the internet access is going to be intermittent at best. And to be honest, I am quite fine with that. We have internet at Guarambare but only lets 15 people or so on at a given time. So we need to create a system where people can get on without the server crashing. That will come in time. Feel free to send me a message via electronico but please expect a delayed return. Also, here is my snail mail address. I would love it if you send me letters! I promise to write back. Mail takes 2-3 weeks. Please no packages right now. It is too slow and costly and often gets held in customs with an import fee.

Orry Pratt, PCT

Cuerpo de Paz/CECP

162 Chaco Boreal c/Mcal. Lopez

Asuncion 1580, Paraguay (South America)

Official Invitation to Paraguay!

Wow, I can't believe how fast the past six months have gone by. In the time span of 173 days, I submitted my application, interviewed, gained pre-medical and legal clearance, and received an invitation. This is one of the fastest application processes I have ever heard of with the Peace Corps. Other Returned Peace Corps Volunteers (RPCV's) have told me it took them over a year just to find out where they were going! I will admit PC has totally revamped the application process and moved to an online system, so maybe the length of my application process is the new norm.

It was Friday afternoon at 4:15 when I checked my email for the 200th time that day, and noticed one titled "Invitation to serve as a Peace Corps volunteer." Deep breath. As I opened the email my eyes instantly scanned the opening lines until the bolded Paraguay appeared. Paraguay? Paraguay... Paraguay! PARAGUAY! I'm going to Paraguay! Within two minutes of skimming through the initial email I texted my best friend to share the news. My mind was racing at 90 mph thinking about all the different things associated with my service. Deep breath. Time to get focused and read the actual details of my service without racing through it. Deep breath. Side note: Leading up to my invitation I really did think I was likely going to receive an invitation in Africa, as most of the PC Agriculture programs are located on that continent, and I have experience from my volunteer work in Kenya last summer. I wasn't "disappointed" about my invitation, I was more or less surprised that it was somewhere other than Africa.

One of the pdf's attached to the invitation email was the Description of Service, a thirty pager with the main objectives of my service. During my 27 months of service, I will hold the title "Agriculture Extensionist," and I will depart for Asuncíon, Paraguay on September 25. My service detail is particularly broad compared to other PC programs. The main objectives are capacity building among smallholder farmers to increase standards of living and food security within the region that I will be working (my "site" is yet to be determined. I won't know that information until at least December 2013). I will also assist farmers in understanding and implementing comprehensive sustainable food production systems for increased production and income generation. In order to meet these main "objectives" of my service, I will be tasked with training these farmers in cover cropping (green manure), crop rotation, no-till farming, contour plowing, soil diversification, improved nutrition, sustainable permaculture, beekeeping, and animal husbandry. Wow. Broad spectrum of agriculture? I would say so! 

As I finished reading the Description of Service, I couldn't help but notice the smile that was left on my face. This is exactly what I want to do for a career. When people ask about what I want to do, I usually reply back with the title "International Agriculture Extension Agent." I think it's pretty freakin' awesome that my PC service is a introductory phase to what should make for a continued path toward my dream job. So, looking back now, I am certainly not disappointed that I didn't get Africa as my continent of invitation. I think PC really examined the skills I have to offer and placed me in a program that I think will be exponentially rewarding.

Now I can't just create this post and think that I am going to live in a country with golden roads, butterflies, and puppies. It is the Peace Corps. I have signed up to volunteer two years of my life living in a developing country. Paraguay is one of the poorest countries in South America. As a country that is about the size of California, it has a total population (6 million) that is considerably less than the Los Angeles metropolitan population (12 million). So I think it is easy to say that I'm going to be living in a very rural country. With this being said, I think volunteers in Paraguay often have feelings of isolation because of the scarce population in the regions they serve. Another problem that I expect to encounter is language incompatibility. Even though I am pretty versed in Spanish, many of the rural inhabitants only speak Guaraní, so the initial three months of in-country training will help me with these skills. 

Overall, I am ecstatic to end the waiting game and to be placed in such a rewarding program. My friends (both PC and non-PC) have told me they are jealous to hear about the details of my program. I look forward to see what the next 32 months have to bring! Hasta luego!

Agriculture work continues

My volunteer work here at the Centre is ever-evolving, and I have been very busy for the past two weeks focusing on agriculture development. Last week, I spent two days in Nairobi, searching for various items for the rabbits here. I was mostly in search of an ear notcher and waterers. I was successful in finding an ear notcher, which we will now be able to create an identification system for the rabbits here, so that production records can be kept. I searched all over the city for rabbit waterers, but was unsuccessful in that search. I'm hoping that I can show the welding teacher at the Centre a design of a waterer, so that maybe he can fabricate some more. Before coming to Kenya, I was able to find water bottle converters to use for the rabbits; but even in the largest city in the country, I wasn't able to find any here. I went to Nairobi with a gentleman from the Centre who is working to get his motivational book published, so we had to visit the national government in order to file publishing papers for the book. After, we visited a former volunteer of the Centre who is attending college now in Nairobi. He is the chairman of the Red Cross club at his university, so he invited me to speak to the club about the concepts of leadership and volunteering, in hopes to motivate the members to become more involved with the club.

On Friday I arranged for an agro-technician to visit from the Jomo Kenyatta University for Agricultural Technology (JKUAT). He came to visit our gardens, and will be coming on a regular basis in the future to advise the CBO members about their crops, and how to improve what the grow. I was really glad he was able to come visit, because it seems that our "shamba" is starting to go downhill, pretty rapidly. The CBO has a terrible problem that it doesn't have much money to help fund the ongoing projects within the group, and sometimes can't hand out necessary money for seeds, health supplies, maintenance equipment, etc. and haven't been able to afford pesticides, insecticides, and other sprays for the crops. The agro-technician pointed out that over 50% of the shamba is ridden with pests, which much of it will have to be dug out and replanted. I hope that in the future the CBO will make the investment of spraying crops so that they don't waste money on planting seeds and having a failed crop.

The weekend was a nice time spent to relax and enjoy with the kids from the Centre. We took them to a local river to swim, and they had such a wonderful time with the opportunity. Many of them don't get the chance to leave the Centre except for school, so when there is news about a mini-trip to leave, everyone tends to get a bit excited. On Sunday we met up with some Canadians who were having a party at their house to celebrate Canada Day, so I thought it was pretty cool to say that we (Americans) got to attend a Canada party in Kenya! I met a fellow there who does similar work in Nairobi at a children's home who will often times go into the slums to pick up children. Here in Kenya, the Kibera slum in Nairobi is one of the largest slums in the world, with nearly one million squatters living there. On my last trip into Nairobi, I have arranged for this gentleman to show me around and get a feel for what it's like within the slums. Trust me, I wouldn't be doing it without him.

Yesterday I got to meet with several officials from the Ministry of Agriculture to visit a farm about an hour away from Nyeri, to view it and also give some recommendations on how the farm can improve. They have rabbits, cows, a garden, and also a lot of land for animal food production. Everything seemed to be going well except for the dairy cattle. We observed that the nutrition of the cattle can be improved a bit, but most of the discouraging qualities of the cows came from poor genetics. Hopefully the farm will invest in good AI bulls to start making progress in the future generations. 

Two rabbits have finally given birth! I was becoming a bit discouraged about the progress of the rabbit keeping, in which the Probation Office donated 5 rabbits to increase the herd. When received them 3 weeks ago, we were told they were pregnant and due within a matter of days. I patiently waited and nothing seemed to happen, but finally, just two days ago, they both gave birth on the same day. Now we have 15 babies to take care of. I hope that we can get a few more litters before I leave, and that also one or two of the goats will give birth as well.

Visiting Peace Corps Volunteers

It's been a little while since I've updated you with things, so I figured I'd send an email out to let you know how things are progressing. 

My work at the Centre has been very interchangeable between very slow, and very fast! There was a period of time where I wasn't doing much during a given day, mostly just sitting around and reading. During this time, I kind of felt that I was in a slump, a little bit home sick, a bit depressed about people leaving in the future, and a bit frustrated with the work I've been doing. A lot of the frustration in general has come from the lack of ownership amongst the youth with their CBO projects. They all know that they are in charge of their specific project, but don't seem to own up to the various responsibilities associated with them. It can be very challenging to have to explain simple responsibilities that we often take for granted in America.

Within the past week and a half, my work has gotten very busy, and I'm now at the point where I am backlogged with work, which actually feels refreshing for a change! This past week, the Department of Probation brought five new doe rabbits to the Centre, all of which have been bred and are due in the near future. There are two does who are due in the next day or so, so last week, one of the CBO youth and I went to the lumber yard to purchase some timbers to build nesting boxes. He doesn't have a lot of carpentry skills, so I offered to build the boxes for him, so that they would be sturdy, durable, and in the shape of a box. We purchased 75 board feet of 6x1 timbers. When we got back to the Centre, I quickly got to work, but was set back in my project for a few reasons: many of the timbers were 6" wide on one side, and 7" wide on the other, so I had to rip the boards in order to measure properly (The joys of working in a developing country.) I went to the teacher of the carpentry workshop to ask to use power tools to cut and rip the boards, but he told me that the power saws were all in disrepair, meaning I would have to create the boxes with manual labor (the joys of working in a developing country!) It took me about 1.5 hours to make each box, a total of three boxes, but I really felt accomplished once I had finished making them. It certainly is the small accomplishments that you celebrate here!

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to visit some Peace Corps Volunteers about an hour north of where I am staying, which is located right along the equator. Visiting them was a real opportunity for me, as I have been seriously contemplating applying to the Peace Corps when I return to America. Overall in the visit, I felt that it was more of a reinforcement that I actually want to join, rather than it being a make-or-break decision. There are three volunteers in that area, and spoke quite extensively about what it's like to be a volunteer, and the successes and challenges of working on their projects. Throughout the conversation, I realized that we shared many of the same beliefs and points about the work we are doing in Kenya. The volunteers told me that with my Spanish-speaking background, I should really focus on applying to Latin America, because I will be more competitive in applying for that area. I really enjoyed having the opportunity to meet and stay with the volunteers for a weekend. 

Overall, I think everything is going well here, and it has already been a wonderful learning experience. There are so many invaluable lessons I've learned that are just indescribable unless you come to experience it yourself. I look forward to the rest of my time here, especially at the end of July, when I'll be heading out west to the Masai Mara to go on safari! I met a gentleman in Amsterdam who does balloon safaris, and told me to contact him when I'm out there; hopefully I can get in touch and have the opportunity to see the Great Migration from the air.

I want you all to know that we are very safe here in the Central province of Kenya. There have been recent embassy warnings from Nairobi about "imminent" attacks in the Eastern coast town of Mombasa. We are 10 hours away from there, and I get many updates via the State Department about the situation going on. Safe and sound here!

Buying shoes, saving puppies

On Tuesday, the majority of the Penn State group went back to America. It was sad to see them leave, but I'm looking forward to the rest of my time here, as I can now keep a sharp focus on the projects I am working on. Up until the PSU group left, I was more of a "floater" of the group, helping out where ever I was needed. I felt bad because I hadn't been able to devote much time to the boys who are working with the dairy goats and rabbits. However, now I will be able to work with them one-on-one, lending my expertise to their livestock fields. Coming into it, I only had background knowledge about each species, but through research on the internet and talking to local people, I've been able to learn a lot about goats and rabbits, and transfer that knowledge on to the CBO youth. My main focus for each species this summer is to accurately create nutritious rations for each of the animals, improve reproductive efficiency, maintain a system of keeping good records, and to ensure that each animal is getting proper health care.

A few days ago some of the children of the Centre ran into a big problem that created a stir amongst the Westerners here. Approximately 25 kids were sent home from school because they didn't have black shoes. The administrators of the school told them they could not return unless they had black shoes. A few of us felt terrible about the situation, especially since the CYEC functions to provide street children and at-risk youth a place to call home, and an education. We felt it was a major priority to get shoes for the kids so they could go back to school. Another group of students from another institution felt it wasn't appropriate to constantly be "handing out" things to the children, but we stood up for what we felt was right, and three of us went into town and ordered 30 pairs of shoes. In my opinion, it was more of a necessity to get the children shoes rather than "hand out" material things like toys, books, etc. In the end, the kids were very happy to receive their shoes and have the ability to go back to school. It really put a smile on my face to be able to do such a simple thing for these kids, and have a wonderful reception for their shoes.

After the PSU group left, I moved into a new house/apartment that has three girls and myself, yippee! There is quite a bit of estrogen, but two of the girls will be moving out in two weeks, and our house will only have the two of us left, kinda lonely. We are on our own for cooking now, and we use a "jiko" which we place coals from a fire inside it and put our pots/pans on top to cook. We can only cook one thing at a time, so we have to specially plan for what we are going to eat. It also has to be pretty simple, as we can't control the heat and takes a long amount of time to cook, usually 1.5 to 2 hours for dinner. It really makes you appreciate the amenities we have in the US, and the variety of foods that we can create! 

The other night a friend and I were walking back into the Centre and I thought I heard a puppy crying. I asked my friend if she heard the same thing, and she said it was probably children playing. As we got into the Centre we realized it was definitely a puppy, and we went searching to find it. We found it behind a building in the Centre locked up in a cage. It was wet, crying and shivering, so we took it into our house for the night. Little did we know it would be quite the experience with this mutt pup. We gave it a bath, as it was covered in mud and tons of fleas. It was extremely malnourished, to the point where it was losing its' senses of sight and hearing. I honestly don't think I've ever seen an animal in such rough shape. If it had been left in the cage over night, I'm almost certain it would have died. We kept it in our house over night, and we were up all night trying to take care of it. It was crying and convulsing from the extreme malnutrition. We tried everything we could but it would not settle down. We took it to the veterinary yesterday, and when we walked in, I recommended that it should be euthanised. They kept it overnight and they called me today and said it was doing much better. I was a bit skeptical, but went back to the veterinary to look at it and reassess the situation. To my surprise, it regained all of it's senses, and was walking around like a champ! Flea-less, nourished, and happy! I was very happy to see it better, so I brought it back to the Centre today and gave it to the lady who had received it the day before. I went over the proper ways to feed and take care of a puppy, and she was happy that we took it to get good care. It was the original breeder who shamelessly neglected the puppies, and weaned them from the mother at only three weeks. In Kenya, there are no such things as "pets", animals are treated more like "things" and are used for protecting a house. They would much rather use their money better on something else like food or other things, rather than take care of an animal. However, the vet was very understanding of the US culture and was appreciative of the things we did to save the puppy. Hopefully the owner now understands the principles of taking care of a puppy, and I can hope that it will have a prosperous life!

Arriving at CYEC and safari

We reached the Children, Youth Empowerment Centre almost two weeks ago, and time has been flying by ever since we arrived. The CYEC was founded about 5 or 6 years ago, and it has been a slow move to make progress here. In Kenya (or Africa in general), things take time. A lot more time than things progress in the US. Every kid that comes to the Centre is picked up from the Kenyan government who are either street children (literally have no home to live), or are from home situations that put the childrens' well being in jeopardy. Ages of the children range from about 5 or 6 up to 18 or 19 years old. They really don't have much; a lot of the kids run around playing with tires, sticks, and sometimes hit ping pong balls off the side of the building with nothing more than a piece of cardboard. Clothing and shoes are quite an issue. Many walk around with torn rags, and many do not have a pair of shoes/sandals without holes or are broken. I've truly received a good perspective of how lucky and fortunate we are in the United States. It's incredible to think that many of the childrens' lives are determined solely on where they were born or what family they come from. 

Eating here isn't too bad. For breakfast I usually have a fried egg on a piece of bread with butter along with some instant NesCafe. Lunch and dinners consist of a lot of starches (potato, maize, grains) along with leafy greens, usually fried spinach or kales. There is always meat served with meals, which is either chicken, goat, or beef, but it is chopped into pieces along with the bones, skin, fat, and cartilage. It's often more of a hassle to eat meat rather than to enjoy it; I usually only eat meat about two or three times a week. No, I'm not going vegetarian, but for the time being it is a little bit more efficient and convenient.

The living arrangements aren't too bad. I live in a long concrete building complex that is split up into three different "apartments." Our apartment has a front room with a sink and a table, three bedrooms, and separate rooms for the toilet and the shower. I may move into a different place after the Penn State group leaves, as this place has a sort of living room with a table and some chairs to get work done.  

My projects are going pretty well working with the dairy goats, rabbits, and in the gardens (the "shamba"). Out of the eight goats, there is currently only one lactating, but there is good news! The rest are all pregnant and should be due around the time I come back to the states. There are about ten rabbits, and many are due for the beginning of June. The shamba is about 4 acres, and is split into smaller plots for the CBO youth to work and raise money from the crops they produce. 

This past Sunday, we went on safari to the Solio Game Reserve and the Aberdare National Park. The safari was INCREDIBLE! It was the experience of a lifetime. We got to see all kinds of game; lions, rhinos, elephants, buffalo, antelope, ostriches, giraffes, zebra, impala, the list goes on. There is wildlife everywhere here! Our guide did tell us we were pretty lucky to see as much as we did. There is a fellow here who is into photography, I got to borrow his lens to take some amazing shots! I don't mean to brag, but some of the photos I took are good enough quality to make it into National Geographic magazine. There were six of us who went, along with a CBO volunteer named Issa, who helps the youth in the art department at the Centre. He is an incredible painter, and we made a deal that I will print my photos and give to him, and in return he will create a painting of my favorite photo taken from our safari. I am so glad he was able to come with us, because he creates such wonderful paintings, but has never been on a safari to see the wildlife. Here are two of my favorite shots, I hope you enjoy them. 

Keep checking in with our CYEC/CED blog for more class updates.www.cyecresources.blogspot.com