Chuleta!!!

Ahh… sitting down to my computer just out of a cold refreshing shower has never felt better. Add to that the tranquil sound of rain falling on my zinc roof, and the power being out, I somehow feel inspired. I now understand why my señora said the last volunteer she hosted enjoyed when the electricity went out. It’s wonderfully quiet right now without the novellas blaring from our TV, or the neighbor’s radios blasting reggaeton. (Please note: I LOVE reggaeton, just not 24/7.) Anyway, the rain hitting our tin roof acts as a natural white noise maker that’s just as soothing as the ones you can buy from Sharper Image for a hundred dollars… and it means it’s getting cooler. It’s a gentle hum I thoroughly enjoy.

For those who have traveled in underdeveloped countries some of these observations may seem quaint or slightly naïve. Since however, this is my first time in such a place please bear with me. I just received a package from my mom. It arrived to the post office in Panama City and was picked up by Peace Corps staff. This got me to thinking about the mail system in general. Outside of Panama City and maybe the provincial capitals there really aren’t street names in this country, let alone addresses on the houses. So for the next two years, like most Panamanians I will travel once a month to the nearest big city with a post office, present my cedula, (social security ID card type thing) and hope mail has arrived. (Hint Hint). Also, in case anyone was wondering Panamanians eat all meals using only a tablespoon. Knives and forks are reserved for restaurants. I’m not really sure why but I’m guessing it has to do with the fact that Panamanians eat proportionally more rice than any other Latin American country. I saw a statistic that said the average panameño eats about 13lbs of rice a month. I'm approaching that number, and I bought my machete today so I think I'm assimilating well.

I’ve recently discovered that our training town is extra hot and humid compared to most other parts of the country. We just returned from a two week adventure that took us across Panama
and back (albeit the country is not that big). We began with a “Technical Training Week” at a volunteer’s site to get more hands on experience working with coops. The people in her town were intimidated by the thought of a horde of gringos invading their homes so we got to stay in a hotel for a full week. Swimming pool, AC, and cable TV made for a great time. We also managed to party hard and get yelled at by hotel management, but what can you expect when you put a bunch of pent up Americans in a hotel? We did actually get some work done including giving a charla (presentation) in Spanish on HIV/AIDS to a group of 9^th graders. We met an amazing guy who was basically the cooperativa king in this particular region. He only had a 6^th grade education like many older people here in Panama, but was an incredible speaker and a great inspiration. After tech week we traveled up into the mountains of Chiriqui for a CED sector conference. It was legitimately cold enough up there to wear a long sleeve shirt which was a wonderful feeling. We also got to meet the other business volunteers and learn about their projects. This area is where most of the volunteers will go for Thanksgiving and it sounds like a great time. We rent out a very cozy lodge complete with fireplaces and take over the kitchen to prepare dinner. Hopefully someone will make me an apple pie, but I’m guessing it won’t compete with Aunt Sue’s.

For the 3^rd leg of the trip we headed to the respective regions where our sites will be for a “Culture Week”. This town was also in the mountains so it was nice and cool. I shat in a latrine and took an outdoor shower for the 1^st time since I’ve been in Panama. It wasn’t that bad actually, but certainly not something I want to have to get used to. We took some hikes, planted rice, shoveled cow shit to make fertilizer, and generally got a little dirtier than usual. The last night the town threw a little party for us where we learned how to dance the “tipica” and ate guess what? More arroz con pollo! Good times.

PS: chuleta means porkchop, but is usually said in place of a swear word that refers to female anatomy starting with the "chu" sound. Kind of like how we say "fudge". Hence, when something noteworthy happens you can expect to hear "chuuuuuuuuuleta" accompanied by a finger snapping noise. Its may favorite. Below is a picture of one of the "Diablos Rojos" I mentioned before.