My Top Ten List

Here are my top six reasons why it really feels like I´ve adjusted to life here (I wish I could think of ten. Top Ten sounds way cooler, but I can´t think of ten):

1) I find myself hissing and making clicking sounds at any animal that comes within five feet of me. It doesn´t matter that they aren´t dangerous at all - it´s just a way to pass time.

2) I eat all food with a tortilla in my left hand and rip a small piece off for every bite - making a taco is only for weekends.

3) Jackets and blankets. I never understood why people here wore jackets in reasonably normal-to-cool temperatures and used thick blankets at night. I now use both regularly.

4) I feel the constant urge to show up everywhere about 20-30 minutes late.

5) It´s perfectly natural for me to say "¡Buenos días!" and "¡Buenas tardes!" to all people over the age of 30 that walk by me. But it`s never full phrase either - something more like "buenaas" or "bueo dias."

6) As you noticed earlier in this post of me repeating the fact I can´t think of ten things, I am perfectly comfortable with saying one thing in as many ways possible using as many different clauses, tenses, subject/preposition shifts, etc. as necessary. This is the way people talk to you here. Here that´s the way people talk. You see, talking here is done in that way.

P.S. Sheila, if you read this, what´s your e-mail address? I´ve been wanting to respond to your comments but I don´t have your address on my webmail here! Thanks!

Technology classes...for real!

Today marks another important moment in AMIGOS/Suchilquitongo history because we finally held some successful and interactive computer classes for kids! Sure, we had started earlier this week, but today all 6 of our computers were filled and we started seeing real progress!

Some of the kids probably had never touched a computer more than once or twice in their life. Two of them had never seen the internet nor typed anything in Microsoft Word. And there, 30 minutes later, they´re searching Google for pictures, copying and pasting into Word, and even arguing about the best way to format WordArt.

They still need help typing and most of them probably missed the day of class when they learned about punctuation. But progress is progress and they are still very young - 8 to 12 years old. Who knows what a little bit of practice making greeting cards in Word will do for the future of a kid.

I believe it and will continue to believe it: technology makes things move forward and changes the world - for the better I hope. Hope you enjoy the very "AMIGOS-style" picture of me working with the students.

Until next time, best wishes,

Apoorva

Life as a TECHNO Volunteer

Have you ever wondered what life is like at an AMIGOS project where high speed internet is available at your house and you say the word "blog" to kids multiple times during the week? It`s certainly not the typical experience, and I`m sure there are some who think we`re missing out on the "real deal." But I don`t think so.

First, let me tell you about all the unique things about being here in Oaxaca on Project TECHNO. Then, I`ll try to prove that even though we are so different, in many ways, we`re still doing AMIGOS:

Section I (If you were an AMIGOS Vol in the 60s, 70s, or 80s, this stuff might make you check the settings on your monitor, twice)

1) High-speed internet - Yes, I am able to blog at 10 in the evening, read the newspaper from home, and even delete spam from my e-mail account!

2) Food - Sorry guys, there`s no mandioca or bland rice and beans everyday. We eat mole, drink fresh chocolate, and pretty much enjoy food I`d pay for at home.

3) Size - Having a community meeting or making an announcement isn`t the same here. If you remember one of my previous posts, there`s nothing three güeros can do on their own - especially when there are 8,000 people in our town.

4) Modernity in all its shapes and sizes - People here watch Desperate Housewives, see the pirated version of Superman even before Americans do, and have access to all types of technologies and products that we have at home. Here, being an American in Latin America isn`t that big of a deal, and people aren`t that amazed or curious about us.

5) The Volunteer - We are no longer 16 year olds. Most of us are majoring in crazy things like international development or public health. For most, leaving the US is something we`ve done many a time before. Culture shock for us most likely will come when we return home, not when we are here.

Section II (Don`t you worry, this stuff will make any AMIGO reminisce about "that summer")

1) Kids - Kids are always kids, no matter where you are. They can get on your nerves and you just want to slap them with a keyboard, and then all of a sudden they are lovable and friendly. They learn quickly and lose attention quickly. Even if they`re learning how to use a digital camera instead of how to brush their teeth, they`re still kids.

2) Culture and being away - No matter how much you stay in contact through e-mail or phone, you are obviously still miles away from familiarity. This is a different place than back home. Things move way slower, people say "¡Buenos dìas!" and "¡Buenas tardes!" where ever you go, and the smell - it still smells like Latin America (you know exactly what I mean).

3) The meals - People here want to be as hospitable as possible. And that means they want to feed you until you keel over. In the community, there`s still really no such thing here as fast food.

4) The AMIGOS Experience - Still tons of down time. Still classes that never go the way you want them to. Still wondering if what you`re doing is really making any difference or not. Still knowing that this will never be like USA and hoping it never becomes so.

FIN

I`m sure there`s more that I`ve forgotten to put in. But in the end, this is an exciting experience. I will never forget it. There`s one more month left in Santiago Suchilquitongo...stay tuned!

Love,
Apoorva

Yes, that´s a trash truck!

So remember the post about the meeting in which there was a throng of 300 women and a drunken Regidor de Salud in our faces for almost an hour? I guess it turned out ok:

Yes, that´s a trash truck - driving through the main street in Santiago Suchilquitongo. There has been no trash service here for 1.5 years! Now all we need is the slogan. I´ve been suggested "Suchilquitongo, limpia y linda!" Sounds good to me.


The AMIGOS have done something successful...for the time being!

The Images of Suchilquitongo

Here are some pictures from my recent adventures:

World`s first soccer game on Zapotec Ruins

Maestros and their little photographers standing on top of the world One of the ruins at Cerro de la Campana Breakfast in Suchilquitongo: Chocolate and Enfrijoladas