Week 3

The end of our time here is coming up fast now! I'm getting excited to see everyone at home again- I miss you all. I won't lie, air conditioning, less than 500% humidity, and ice water will be wonderful too.
This past week was fairly uneventful. Our schools went fairly well, and we went for an extended weekend in Copan. Copan is near the border of Guatamala. It's a big backpacking city and the site of some famous Mayan ruins. The ruins were so cool, I took a ton of pictures that I'll have to put up. It was so neat being in someplace with so much history. It was a pretty crazy weekend, though. There was a hurricane or something, so it poured the entire time. The sewer system was overwhelmed, so there was no water. We had to move out of the hostel we were saying in to a hotel that had water, which turned out to be kind of nice, because they had tv, including the Disney channel in Spanish! Our trip home was extended, too, because the bus system is on strike, and when they go on strike they do it by parking the buses in the middle of the road, so you have to find your way around.
It was good to get back to work today. Our class was huge, 50 kids, and I had to break up a fight in the middle, but other than that it was uneventful. Thursday we leave for a school about 2 hours away, so we're doing homestays for that time. It should be really interesting and I will definitely have to report back on that. Hope everything is going well there!!

Week 2

It's hard to believe that I've been here for two weeks already! Things went really well this week. I taught Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. On Wednesday after school we went to a Garifuna village called Triunfo de la Cruz to work in the nursery. The Garifuna are the descendants of shipwrecked slaves and Honduran natives. They have a lot of the looks of their African ancestors. They're a fairly poor and marginalized community, but really rich in culture and history. Working there was so much fun! We played some games and took the kids to the beach. Most of them spoke Spanish, but some of them spoke Garifuna.
Thursday and Friday I really got a chance to practice my Spanish as the team leader. We all take turns doing that, and I really lucked out on the school I got. Basically, the team leader grades all the quizzes, then walks around to make sure all the classes are going at the same pace. Usually there is someone there that speaks Spanish to talk to the school's directors, but the day I was doing it there wasn't so I got to do that too. The school we were at was way up in the mountains, very very rural. There were pigs and chickens and dogs all over the schoolyard. The director has a three year old son, Tony, who stays after school with a 1o year old boy that goes to school in the mornings, Sancho. Sancho told me he stayed at the school because someone was trying to adopt him. I would assume he means the director, because he and Tony seem very close. It was kind of sad, wondering what kind of home he has to go back to, if any. Anyways, they were my assistants, walking around to each class with me whenever I needed to and in between showing me around the school. I don't think there's much better language practice than hanging out with a 3 year old! One of Tony's favorite things to talk about was his girlfriend, Sofia, who he was going to marry tomorrow. I was lucky enough to meet her Friday, at which point the wedding was still going to be tomorrow. (I have a feeling it's been tomorrow for a long time) Friday two of Sancho's friends came with their younger brothers, Tony's age, and we all played together. It was really fun actually spending enough time with some kids to get to know them.
This weekend has been great. Saturday we had a tour of Punto Isopo, then went back to the Garifuna village and to its beach. We've seen the Garifuna before on the beach in Tela, selling pan de coco (coconut bread) and we got the chance to go see how they make it. It's quite a set up! I took pictures that I can put up when I get back. Today we did some beach cleaning at another Garifuna village called Miami. After we finished and had lunch, (for which I had a fish that came whole! Tail, fins, head, and all. Aren't you impressed?) we had some time to spend on the beach. It was absolutely beautiful there. The water was very cool and clear, you could see all the way to the bottom really far out. Once we finished swimming, there were hammocks hung under a palm shelter to lie in and watch the waves. It was a perfect way to spend an afternoon.
The next few weeks should go really quickly. Friday morning we leave for a long weekend at Copan, a city of Mayan ruins. The week after that, we're only home for two days before we leave for our homestays. I'm really excited to get to see some other parts of Honduras and get more of an authentic Honduran experience. I hope everything is going well at home and I look forward to seeing you all again!
Meredith

Honduras

So I realized I've really only talked about the places we've been, not how Honduras is in general. The culture and pace of life here is so different. Everyone is very laid back and so friendly. If you're looking for something in a store and they don't have it, they'll direct you to another store that does. Some people will even walk with you or send their kids to take you! Kids are always out on the street playing, but many are working, also. There are always kids helping out at the roadside stands. When we were at the beach on Sunday, I talked to a boy named Hector who was walking up and down the beach selling pan de coco (coconut bread). He walks three hours every morning and night to the beach to sell his bread. That or he wanted to make he feel bad so I would buy more. But I believe it. I can't remember what we learned the average income of Honduras is, but it's extremely low, and most of the money actually comes from the United States. People go there, whether legally or illegally, to work and send money home to their families. So if you don't have someone in your family doing that, you really don't have much at all.
There are some cars, but a lot of people ride bikes, both in the city and in the countryside. They have such creative ways of getting around! Often, we've seen a man biking with a woman or a child sitting sort of sidesaddle on his lap. Or boys will ride around with another child standing on the back of the bike. I think the most creative way is when two men ride a single bike, one steering and the other pedaling. They really make the most of what little they have. Traffic laws are virtually nonexistant. I think we've seen two stoplights in all of Tela, a handful of stop signs, and there are tons of pedestrians and bikers. Considering how crazy it gets at home when the traffic lights go out, I can't even imagine what a disaster a system like that would be! Yet somehow everyone is so respectful. Cars never come even close to hitting anyone and you hardly ever hear anyone honking at you to get out of the way. When they do, it's a polite tap.
I love the way they live here. I think I was meant to live in a Honduran house. Many people live in really tiny shacks made of wood or sheet metal, but some live in real houses painted in bold reds, oranges, and blues. As some of you know, I love houses that, in the United States, look disgustinly colorful. Here, that's the norm. Plus, they have chickens running around the yard, and that's just awesome.
Tomorrow is another busy, and early, day. I'm acting as the team leader, which is going to mean that I'm in charge of communicating with the school about classes and timing and such. Usually they have one of the coordinators that speaks Spanish fluently do that, but tomorrow they'll all be busy, so I was elected! Hope you all are doing well!

Our first week of camp is done! The curriculum is designed to be taught over two days, we've now taught the first day three times and the second day once. It's gone pretty well! Friday we actually had two schools, which was really tiring. The first one we went to was really good, though, they were all really interested and willing to participate. The second school, my class was like pulling teeth, so we were glad we'd already had a good one that day! Monday we'll have both those schools again, but on the second day of camp we break them up into boys and girls groups, so it should be somewhat easier. It's been really interesting seeing how these kids go to school. They all go to school for part of the day, either in the morning, evening, or night. Some of them have to walk for miles to get to school. Then it's so hot in the schools and none of them have air conditioning, I really don't know how they stay focused enough to learn anything.
Today we got up really early and went to work at a park. That involved climbing 760 stairs up a mountain carrying 2x4's to replace steps twice, then finding out that the great view that was promised at the top was entirely blocked by trees. It was our job to cut down the branches blocking the view so that people would actually want to climb all those steps to the top! So that's the story of how I got to use a machete. Tomorrow I think we get to do some sightseeing and hiking, then it's back to schools Monday!
We've been getting to spend some more time out exploring the city, which has been nice. On days that we don't have to go to schools in the morning, we usually go out in the morning and get some fresh fruit or a balleada (beans and cheese in some sort of tortilla) to bring for lunch. A lot of the schools have snack bars for the student's breaks, so we can also get something there.
Thanks for your responses to my first email, it's great to hear from you! Let me know how things are going there. I love and miss you all and can't wait to see you again!

First few days in Tela

Hi everyone!! So it's my second full day in Tela, and first day of program orientation. First of all, I have to thank all of you that wrote me letters. They have been such a blessing already, and I know that I will probably have all of them memorized by the end of my time here. I would love to hear from anyone, either in comments here or email me at merevarner@gmail.com. 

Yesterday was the first full day I was here, and for most of the day we were allowed to do whatever. We went to the beach in the morning. The water was so warm! Today we went through all the curriculum a few times, we'll do it a few more times tomorrow and Wednesday is our first day teaching! I'm really excited to get in the schools. 

We've gotten to try authentic Honduran food a few times, and will get to have it a lot more once we start in schools, as we'll be buying our own lunch everyday. I love how fresh everything is. They don't eat much processed food here, which is awesome. 

I'm hoping that I'll get more chances to speak Spanish down here than I have so far. We're actually supposed to use the translators in class, even if you speak Spanish fluently. We can talk to the kids on our breaks, though, and hopefully I'll get to spend more time out in Tela. We might even get to do a homestay later, which would be really great. 

I miss you all, and I'd still really appreciate your thoughts and prayers. The heat definitely takes some getting used to, and the team as well, of course. I hope you're all doing well, and I'll keep you updated whenever I can!