Crazy Bus Ride

I am very interested in creating a library in my site and it just so happens that another volunteer, who lives about 40 minutes away, has just finished the process of building a library. So, I decide to take the afternoon to travel to her site, check out her library, and get some insider hints on the application process. (It generally takes about 2 years to go through the whole application process before any construction starts) In order to get the Dulce Nombre (the other volunteer's site) from San Juan de Opoa (my site), I have to take two buses. One bus pick me up about 1K from my town and drops me off in Santa Rosa, which is where the main bus terminal is located. Once arriving in Santa Rosa, I waited about 30 minutes for the bus leaving for Dulce Nombre. I have gotten into this state of mind, where buses in Honduras: will always be crowed, there will always be at least one person with a chicken, and more than one person riding has forgotten to wear deodorant that day, but all and all you get to where you need to go with no big problems. Back to the story, I board the bus for Dulce Nombre, and this old guy sits next to me and this young guy sits behind be. The old guy seems harmless enough, so I chat with him a bit. During the conversation I keep feeling breath on my neck. I look up and see the guy behind me leaning his chin on the back of my seat and he is just staring at me. Now, normally I would not be soo bothered, but he keeps doing it through most of the trip. And the thing that really really bugged me, was the fact that his hands kept moving in his lap. I couldn't excatly see what he was doing, but if I could guess, I would say he was playing with himself. I know I am not unattractive, but geez!!!!! I was totally grossed out, but things like this are not uncommon here in Honduras. All and all it was an OK trip, I got the information I needed and thank God the no one found me attractive on the bus ride back to Santa Rosa.

Swearing in Ceremony

So, we went to the United States Embassy to be sworn in as official peace corps volunteers. It was a very interesting experience. The whole ceremony was overseen by the director of peace corps Honduras and the American ambassador in Honduras. It was an outside ceremony, so half way through the ordeal, everyone was sweating and ready to go. Afterwards we went back to the Ambassadors house and went swimming for the rest of the day. It was super boring because the the whole day was dry!

Site Announcement

I was so disappointed that I did not get a site near the north coast, that on the day of site announcement I cried. I was even more devastated to learn that I would have to travel 10hours on a bus to get to a town that I didn't even want to go to. After the initial shock (and a 1/2 bottle of Flor de Cana rum), I relaxed and told myself that San Juan de Opoa was not a bad site. I would make the best of the situation and work my hardest at fulfilling the needs of the community. Now that I had myslef all excited and in super volunteer mode, I packed my 5 large bags and headed WEST!

Good Bye Santa Lucia!!!

My life thus for as a peace corps volunteer has been anything but your standard peace corps experience. We have been bogged down with training and language classes, with little to no hands on experience. The only shining light within these first 4 weeks was the site in which the training was held...a little town called Santa Lucia. It is a quaint little town right outside of the capital of Honduras. Apparently it is the go to weekend place for all the white collar working people in the capital. The living conditions are quite nice. The town is nestled in the mountains and the views are spectacular. But it all is coming to and end...tomorrow we move all the health volunteers to the south in the department of La Paz. As much as I enjoy Santa Lucia, I can´t wait to get some hands on experience.