Changes, adjustment, changes

I wrote this June 6th, and am just now posting it. Sorry.

June 6, 2010

Hello All!

I’m finally settling into my new home of Bribri. My host family and counterparts are great. I live in a town surrounded by mountains, banana trees as far as the eye can see, and a river that serves as the border between Costa Rica and Panama. The center of town has everything I need: my bank, stores, the municipalidad, community agencies, and the elementary school and high school. I spent the first week meeting people, introducing myself as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and adjusting to the immense heat. The first few days here I got bitten by Costa Rican chiggars... or coloradillas. They are AWFUL!!!! I’ve never itched like that in my life --- and to top it off they bit me (27 bites) around my entire bikini line!!!!! AGGGGGHHHHHH! I didn’t leave the house one of those days because the people in town would have thought I was a crazy, sweating, miserable woman scratching herself in public. LOL.

Getting used to not having a packed schedule like we did in training, not knowing anyone, and being here alone without friends and family have all been challenges I’ve had and that every volunteer goes through. I’ve had days when I sit and think: “What the hell am I doing here?!?!?!? This is crazy!” But I’ve snapped out of the funks pretty quickly. I just text a fellow volunteer, email a friend, or talk to someone back home. (I’m lucky I have a cell, access to internet, and a landline in my house!)

Sometimes it’s draining to introduce myself over and over, explain what Peace Corps is over and over, and explain that yes, I am American although I am not blonde and blue-eyed over and over. But overall, people here are open, loving, giving, and kind. I met quite a few people in the community just in the two weeks I’ve been here. I stop by and talk to them and learn so much about their lives, their stories, their history. It’s quite humbling that people are so open to share (their lives, their home, and their food). It reminds me to be more open and not take myself so seriously.

My job for the next 3 months is to complete the CAT (in Spanish), which is a community assessment tool. It’s going to cover everything about the community-- strengths, weaknesses, needs, history, resources, and so on. From there, I will form a plan of action on what projects the community would like to work on. I’m still getting used to the idea of getting up every morning and doing whatever I want... Drinking coffee with a neighbor, eating lunch at a community member’s house, getting to know my host family, walking around town and getting to know people is all part of my job description. :)

And since I’ve moved to Bribri, I have had a bat fly into my room, a big toad hop in the living room, chickens walk into my room, along with numerous insects I’ve never seen buzz and crawl on me. I take a cold, refreshing shower every morning then, pat myself down with powder, sunscreen, and bug repellent. When I walk around town, I use my umbrella - rain and shine - to protect me from the elements. I’ve gone fishing in my host family’s tilapia pond (and caught fish!). We also went and saw the waterfalls about 10min away from where I live. Beautiful.
I miss everyone A LOT and think of you always. I’ll have a new address soon. In the meantime, you can send packages or letters to the Peace Corps office address on my blog. Feel free to send me a book or a DVD. :) I’ve read three books so far and on my fourth. (Just got done with Three Cups of Tea)