The One Where I Kinda Have Scabies, But Maybe Have Dengue

Monday, September 20-Thursday, September 23, 2010

This week has been nothing short of interesting. Actually, most of it has been spent waiting around on other people, but that is the life of a Peace Corps volunteer, so I might as well get used to it, right? Now that my life has turned from a trainee to a volunteer, my days are quite different and not as “action packed” as they once were, so I don’t want to bore you with the details about how I walk around searching out things to do b/c people don’t exactly know how to use me or don’t have time to use me, so instead for this blog entry I have decided to highlight the interesting things one by one.




Weighing babies Centro de Salud




Waiting Room Centro de Salud


 

Despedida style-fried fish from Southern Honduras

Work in Orocuina: So, this week I really didn’t do much work. The first few months not a whole lot is expected of newly sworn in volunteers, besides hitting the pavement (if they have it), or in my case dirt roads, and getting out, talking to people and kum-ba-yaing with the locals. Like I said last week, this would normally be something you’d do with your counterpart, but I have not seen him in nine days, so I have taken it upon myself to get out there and just walk into shops and hang out with the “peeps” of Orocuina. I also decided that I should go bearing food, b/c everyone loves a good snack. So, the first time I made oatmeal/apple/cinnamon cookies. I got the recipe from my H-17 resource DVD that not only came with information about how to solicit grant money, but also how to cook a mean fudge cake using tuna cans as heaters. I decided to start small with the oatmeal cookies, since I had all the ingredients and they came out pretty well, but it wasn’t until the very end when I realized I should make them thicker, like meatballs, so they didn’t fall apart in the pan. At any rate, I took them out to the alcadea, schools, pulperias, Mercado, etc and passed them out to everyone who has been really welcoming to me so far. I think they were a hit and decided to do a second round with chocolate chip cookies….see below. On Tuesday, I headed over to the jardin de ninos, also known in English as the kindergarten, where I worked out my World Wise School Program with the teacher to work with my mom’s kindergarten class in North Carolina and the classes here in Orocuina as part of a cross-cultural program. It’s a program that PC has to promote cross-cultural learning in schools and I was thrilled that the teacher was so excited to jump on board. Of course, so were the other two teachers at the school, too, so now my mom has her work cut out for her to work with three Honduran kinder classes! But, I know everyone will love it and I’m already planning a Halloween party here with the kids so we can all dress up and have a good time! Another day, I visited the Centro de Salud to get up to date on their needs and projects. It was quite interesting to watch the young (I mean young, like 14) mothers come in with their babies, when they are still babies themselves, and get help at the center. The Centro de Salud is quite run down and after talking with the doctors and other locals, it appears that that, too, is another project on the drawing boards for Orocuina in the next few years. (Boy, do I have a lot of work!) I also went to the colegio and watched a charla by my friend, Julia, and it was comforting to know that colegio kids are ill-mannered even for native Spanish speakers. I think that Julia and I will end up working on lots of projects together. I also went to a despedida for the outgoing volunteer here, Miguel, where I met lots of other wonderful people and we sang and ate the night away. They were awesome. And, I wish Miguel the best of luck back home in Texas (Go, ‘Horns!). I will watch over Orocuina for you!


Mixing the torta




Showing off our hard work




What later became my dinner

 Chocolate Chip Cookies: So, along with my recipe book it also said where you could search out your finest American cravings at the supermarkets here in Honduras. There is only one supermarket that sells chocolate chip cookies and it is the Maxi Bodega. Now, the Maxi Bodega is owned by Wal-Mart, so for those of you who don’t like to shop at Wal-Mart you would be SUC (figure it out), but me being a long way from home and liking the convenience of making homemade chocolate chip cookies, I went to the Maxi Bodega. It is not in my small town of Orocuina, I had to take a bus one hour away, then walk another 20 minutes to shop. The first day I went I didn’t see the chocolate chips, which meant that I went back to Orocuina, read the recipe book again…then set out in Orocuina to see what I could find. What I found was nothing. Not even a candy bar to substitute. Over the river and through the woods (literally, the Rio Chiquito) I found a small pulperia where she had five Snickers Bars for L20 each, but I decided that was too much, b/c who knew how many Snickers Bars I would need. So, I went back to my house and decided to wait until the weekend when I would go back to Choluteca…. Enter the dengue story here So now I am in Choluteca getting picked and prodded for dengue and I head back over to the Maxi Bodega to seek out chocolate chips. But, I get sidetracked by all of the glorious sites of yogurt and blenders and Special K and wow, what do I see?!? A Ranch dressing aisle, with olives?!?!? If only they weren’t L88, a girl can dream….so anyway, I go back to searching for the chocolate chips and of course they aren’t on the baking aisle. Why the hell would they be? I decide to give up and go with Snickers again, and begin to look on the kiosk on the end of the check out when what to my wondering eyes do appear? But, a bag of Hershey’s chocolate chips (and a Cosmo with Shakira, but that’s another story, too)! There they are, right next to the M&M’s, so I grab a bag of chocolate chips…L99.50, I can not believe I am paying this for chocolate chips, but whatever. I make a mad dash b/f I can buy anything else here and leave. When I get home I invite my new friend Leslie over to teach her how we do it in the States. She really likes my lesson and I send her home with seven cookies for her family. Then, instead of saving the rest of the cookies to pass out to the people of Orocuina, I eat them. All. Because now I have to fast for my dengue test tomorrow. And, I still have half a bag of chocolate chips to make another round. What a day…



The back-maybe in two years it'll grow

 My new haircut: All I’m gonna say is this will be the first and last haircut in Honduras. You know, I’ve had my haircut abroad before and it didn’t go this bad. I should have known when she didn’t want to put down her tamales and pick up the scissors that her priorities were out of whack. Yolanda was her name and the next time you are in the Centro Mercado district of Choluteca, don’t go seeking her out. So, it started like this… I had to go into Choluteca to pick up my internet modem (the second time), and I drew a very high number and knew I had two hours to waste. I also needed a haircut that day, so why not kill two birds with one stone? I lingered on over a few blocks from the Claro store, where I found Salon


The front-when it's not fixed it is a bowl

 Bella (actually, they are all called that) and jingled the door on open. I asked how much a haircut was and was told L50 (when the haircut is cheaper than the chocolate chips, you know you are in trouble), so I plopped on down and whipped out a photo. After Yolanda finished smacking down her tamales, she threw me down in the chair and covered me in a drape. Then she didn’t wash my hair, just thrashed out my tangles with a comb and some water…to which point I almost cried b/c my hair hurt like hell after nothing but bucket baths for 10 weeks, accompanied by V05 Shampoo and Conditioner. Ah’…Good Times Honduras. Then, she looked at the photo for what appeared to be too long of a time and then cut my hair into an alter boy bowl cut. As she took the drape off I was like “Um, no, you aren’t finished. I need some layers there, Yolanda.” And she was like “Oh.” So, then she took out her straight razor and went to town, at which point every bit of my hair disappeared and she made it into a duck waddle thing in the back. I haven’t had that since I was 18 and let my hair grow long. The lady behind me said “Oh, very cute,” and I threw my L50 at her before I could start crying. I decided right away that I looked like a boy and after buying a pair of sunglasses from the first guy I saw on the street, I took off for the bus. I wanted to get home as fast as possible and hide. It was only moments later I realized I left my umbrella in the salon, but there was no way I could go back and get it. So, if anyone at home has an umbrella (the small portable kind) that they aren’t using and can pop in the mail, I would be forever grateful. Yours truly, If I were a boy (Jen)

Internet: Moving to Orocuina meant that I had to switch Internet providers. For the first two months I had been using Tigo, which wasn’t exactly “rapido,” but it worked where I was living at and was the only provider there. Now that I’m in Orocuina I had to switch to Claro, b/c they are the up and coming service provider in my area and have the faster service here. This also meant that I 1. Had to sign up for a service plan for 18 months in order to get a better deal 2. Prove to them that I had a job/was a resident of Honduras/had an address/had three references locally that could vouch for me and 3. Had to wait for my name and residency card to clear Seriously, it was harder than getting a phone in the states and way more difficult than when I bought the modem from Tigo. When I went into Tigo, all they did was take my money and write my name in a notebook. When I bought the modem from Claro, they made me take a number, wait for over an hour, I could only work with one girl in the store (there were only two employees working), I had to fill out an extensive form, show my residency card and then I was told to come back the following Monday. Fast forward, I came back this past Monday. I took a number again, waited another hour, and was told I hadn’t cleared yet. I was told I had to come back the next day. I didn’t. I came back on Wednesday, with a member from the alcaldea, who was going to co-sign for me to make them give it to me. We took the hour long bus ride there, then walked the 15 minutes to the store, then took a number and waited for two hours. Then, we had to be helped by the one girl (now if your number is called and that girl is helping someone else, you have to wait still), then I had to wait while they re-entered all my information in the computer, then I had to go to another window and have my receipt stamped “Pagado” and then she gave me the modem. Then, I had to walk 15 minutes back to the bus and wait 20 minutes for the bus and take the bus an hour back. Three trips, more than six hours on the bus, more than six hours waiting for customer service in the store, just for the Internet. I miss you all. Please read the blog.




Pre-Ingredients for Oatmeal Apple Cookies




Halfway through; the batter was delicious




And we are done; really enjoyable for breakfast!

Could it be scabies or could it be dengue: Yeah, so I started itching a few weeks back at my host family’s house in Cantarannas. Sometimes at night the sheets would come off of the bed and I thought I had just gotten bed bugs, because I had all these bites down around my ankles. They went away and I brushed it off except that I kept itching at night every now and then. The last week my body has begun to itch a lot more. I figured I had gotten bed bugs again b/c similar circumstances here in Orocuina, plus there are a lot more bugs hanging out and sometimes I wake up at night and find them crawling on me (Yeah, I know…but it’s all part of living here). Sooooo…..a few days back I started feeling like stuff was crawling on me ALL THE TIME! All day long, but really a lot at night. Then, yesterday these red bumps started showing up on me…first on my butt, then on my stomach and sides and today on my forearms. Not one to be alarmed at every little bump, I went ahead and did some research online about bed bugs and scabies, then called the PCMO and told her “I think I have scabies.” She told me to get down to Choluteca ASAP so I floored it on the next bus this morning, even though I had no idea where the “hospital” there was. I use “hospital” loosely b/c for all of you in the States reading this, it is more like an urgent care with two doctors and the Emergency Room has one room for the emergencies and one room for people like me, who just needed a shot. Alright, so I got off the bus and into a taxi to the “hospital” where the guy tries to charge me L20 instead of L15 until I argue with him that I’m a local and I want my L5, so he gives me L4 and I decide “whatever.” It’s only five more cents. I head into the “hospital” and hope I am at the right place b/c Doctor Cleo told me to make sure I went to the privado clinica and not the publico, and this looks like something might be wrong, but they tell me I’m there, so check one for me. I’m swooped on in and given another shot I needed today anyway, so I guess if I was gonna get sick today is the day. Next, I wait along with three pharmaceutical rep girls pushing their products through Honduras. Not a bad gig to have here, if you ask me. They have their stilettos, Blackberries and Prada bags, just like in the States and seem pretty content to wait for the doctor all day long. I go in first (I love the PCMO, they are awesome and make everything happen so fast and efficiently) and tell the doctor what is going on. This visit goes so much smoother than my first visit when I could barely tell the other guy when my birthday was…now I am telling him that bugs crawl all over me at night and hatch their babies. After a little check up, he asks me if I have been having headaches recently. Yes, actually, everyday for the past four days. I’ve taken a migraine pill everyday. He asks if I’ve had a fever. No. He asks if I can eat. Um, yeah…happily. No need to ever worry about my appetite. He says to come back tomorrow for a blood test at 7:30 AM. It might be dengue. But for now he is calling it an allergic reaction to all the mosquito repellent I have been wearing. So, let me get this straight. I wear too much repellent, but I might have dengue for not wearing it? Okay. What is going on with my body? I also have to fast in the morning….no worries, I am going home to make chocolate chip cookies. Adios, doctor. He gives me three different medicines and tells me that the insectos will go away in the winter. But, can he tell me when winter is? Because it is nothing but hot in Orocuina.



Pimp my ride, baby!

Working off the tortillas: So, this week I started P90X.  I was very lucky to get a copy of all the P90X videos from another PCV and was just waiting to get to a house big enough where I had all the workout room to do it.  I have also started some awesome videos (high impact cardio, too) that my friend Ron sent me a while back, but I never had the room to practice.  This has been great for me...and I love practicing all of them.  I have started losing some of the weight I put on in FBT and my clothes are starting to fit a little bit right again.  Until I walk outside and they start sticking to me.  So, I still have a good 15 pounds to go, but I can do it!  (Just keep the chocolate chips away from me!)  Good thing I don't live near the Maxi Bodega and they are hard to find.  I have really enjoyed cooking for myself again...have found some great recipes on the PC cookbook and in my most recent women's health.  The P90X and high impact stuff makes me feel like I am in Learie's class at the gym again and also this week I received my PC issued bike.  PC requires us to wear helmets, so although I am the only person in town wearing a helmet, I'll be well protected when some guy driving the chicken  bus tries to kill me.  (J/K...accidentally vears off...)  Anyway, I took my bike in for a tune up since Miguel didn't look like he'd ridden it since he was sworn in two years ago and the guy fixed it up for L25, or about $1.25.  Air in the tires, moved the seat around, greased the chain, total new bike!  Cheque leque, I am ready to go riding!  

I saw this in a store and had to take a photo

The ants go marching one by one:
(JUST A NOTE, THIS IS REALLY GROSS, SO IF YOU DON’T LIKE READING ABOUT BODILY FLUIDS AND INSECTS, JUST SKIP IT)
Okay, so back to the insects. There are a lot of insects in Orocuina. A lot. You know, some PCV around the world get sent to beautiful, beautiful places. I live in Orocuina. Orocuina is in the middle of some beautiful mountains, but you must walk to get there. Several hours. You can also drive an hour and a half and be right on the beautiful Southern beaches. I’m not complaining, I am in this town for great development reasons…to work with the people on exceptional development opportunities and assist them with some wonderful sustainable projects. But, I would just like to take a moment and tell you about the insects here with me.

At night the ants come marching one by one into my room. I think they come from the kitchen where they have been marching all day long, up and down the walls and around the food. I try not to go in there too often (also b/c the rat is still on the loose). I have all of my food in Ziploc bags and now all of my medicine. About four nights ago I opened my vitamins to find numerous baby ants had made their way into the lid of my vitamins. After killing them all and rinsing out my vitamins, I stowed my pills in a gallon Ziploc bag, along with all my other meds, toothpaste/face wash/deodorant/anything else that might find a home in an ant farm, and went to bed. Then, I woke up to go to the bathroom. Now, our bathroom is way on the other side of the house. There is only one bathroom here and it doesn’t have a door. It only has a curtain and my two host brothers sleep right in front of that door, on the floor and in a hammock. So, as a woman, I don’t feel comfortable walking outside, past the chickens (maybe the rat), and stepping over my host brothers (19 and 20) to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. Therefore, I go in a bucket in my room during the night. I woke up to do this the other night and when I looked down with my flashlight I saw HUGE, LARGE, RED ants in the bucket scouring in and out. What were they doing I ask you? Are the ants so desperate for liquid that now they are drinking my urine? I was so scared and startled that I knocked the bucket over (yes, in the middle of the night), so now there is pee all over the place on my floor, it is dark (only my flashlight), I still have to go to the bathroom, and there are ants everywhere. Can someone send me some Pampers? Thanks.

Finally, I totally stole this idea from my friend Shelly’s blog. I hope you enjoy it!

Did you know that Honduras is roughly the size of Virginia, at just over 43,000 square miles? My department, Choluteca, is 4,211 kilometers. Johnston County, NC is 2,062 kilometers and San Diego, California is 4,526 kilometers.

The population of just fewer than eight million of all of Honduras is also about the same as the population of Virginia, and a little smaller than all five boroughs of NYC. I live in Orocuina, Choluteca which has nine aldeas comprised of 17,500 people. This would be like living in Santee and having to take a chicken bus to downtown San Diego or living in Clayton and having to take a chicken bus to Raleigh. Orocuina is 23 kilometers, or 16 miles, from Choluteca, Choluteca. It takes one hour to get there by bus and cost L16 or about 85 cents.

Honduras’ population density is about 166 people per square mile, making it fall somewhere in between Georgia and Indiana. Virtually all Hondurans speak Spanish; to around 95% of the country, Spanish is their first and primary language. In the US, somewhere between 10-15% of the country speaks better Spanish than English. This means that the Spanish-speaking population of the US is more than five times as large as the entire population of Honduras. In NC 5.6% of the population speaks Spanish. There are more Spanish-speakers in California than there are people in Honduras.

Final (not so) fun fact: The Honduran GDP per capita is $1,122. That of the US is $46,381. Both of those numbers were updated in April of this year.

I now have the computer 24/7 365 for the next 18 months (I think…let’s hope Claro has got it straight). Anyway, please keep your fun emails coming and thanks to Ron for all the football updates. If you are looking to send me something, I’m getting ready to move into my new place and don’t have anything, so fun items like pot holders, a potato peeler (they don’t have those ANYWHERE here), magnets for the fridge (and a picture of YOU), are all good things to toss in! And baby wipes! Love and kisses to all. Maybe not kisses, who knows what I have! LOL