Que chivo.

Buenas! Que emocionado comunicar con vos por la primera vez con el miraculo mundo de la red!

Hello everyone back home en los Estados Unidos! I’m sorry it has taken me so long to update my blog. It is amazing to think that I have been here for just over a week! I have seen so much, met so many people, tried lots of new things, and already experienced an abundance of growth. All that to say, I have had limited access to internet, as my parents can attest to (I’ve skyped with them twice now!), and my ‘binge’ facebook and email activity probably implies. However, that has changed in the last two days. I will now have consistent wifi access on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, because those are the days I have class at the Universidad CentroAmericana Jose Simeon Canas, which is about a 15 minute walk from Casa Silvia, where I live.

Well…where to start?

The Casa de la Solidaridad (solidarity) program has been wonderful so far. Kevin and Trena, the codirectors have really taken the time to allow us as a group to slowly get accustomed to El Salvador. Our first week we had an orientation of sorts…we played typical get-to-know-you games, shared meals together, and most importantly we traveled all over the country to the different praxis sites where each of us will be working two days per week. But, of course we have yet to see mine, which is actually happening tomorrow! I’m very excited about this because of all the amazing people we have met at the other sites. All of the sites are very different, some rural and others urban. Many of them have opportunities for working with children, and one specifically is for Salvadorans with special needs. I, along with two boys, both from Santa Clara, will be working in Canton El Cedro! I’ll know more about what we’re doing after tomorrow.

Besides the praxis site visits, we have just been spending time as a community. Already I feel very close to my roommate Michelle (Loyola Maryland), my 6 other housemates, and 18 other students in the Casa program. We’ve had lots of reflection as to why we are each here, and discussion of our hopes and dreams for the program. We’ve eaten lots of pupusas (corn tortilla stuffed with beans and cheese), journaled, prayed, hiked and many other things together. We are definitely becoming a close-knit and intimate community very quickly.


Some of the things I have learned in El Salvador thus far:

1. Cold showers are now something I look forward to every night.
2. Less is more in El Salvador…I have yet to wear makeup or fix my hair.
3. There are so many varieties of pupusas(cheese, bean, chicarron, revuelta, loroco)…I hope to never get sick of them.
4. Pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way here…though my blonde-ish hair helps stop traffic.
5. “Bicho” is not a curseword, but actually means “dude” in Salvadoran slang. I still feel weird saying it.
6. There are so many fruits that I never knew existed...jocotes are my new favorite.
7. The range in income here is ridiculous…some people live off of less than $1 per day, others have what feels like infinite amounts and don’t share.
8. Although the Catholic Church definitely still has a strong presence here, Jehova’s Witnesses, Pentacostals, and Evangelist communities are growing. Very few “simply Christian” communities exist.
9. When it rains here…people worry for their lives and the lives of their children. I have already witnessed a mudslide and flood that destroyed three houses!
10. Salvadorans are so welcoming. They use their best ingredients to make the best meals for us when we visit. They also think I don’t eat enough. I need to be “more round for when you want to have babies someday” many of the women have said to me!
11. Bowel movements and “toilet talk” is typical for Casa students. Thankfully no one has yet to be sick!
12. Machismo is something Salvador men struggle with on a daily basis
13. The bus system does not have any sort of route or map…it runs on word of mouth.
14. Comfortable walking/hiking shoes are a must for Gringos, but Salvadorans seem to get by with flipflops.
15. Solidarity is an extremely common word here. I wonder why…?

Love and miss you all!!! More updates soon.
Katy

My schedule:
Monday 730am-5pm Praxis Site- Canton El Cedro

Tuesday 7am-10am Political Science, 2pm-5pm Sociology, 7pm Cleaning Party, 8pm Spirituality Night

Wednesday 730am-5pm Praxis Site- Canton El Cedro

Thursday 10am Avisos, 11am Seminar, 230pm-530pm Salvadoran Literature, 630pm Community dinner, 8pm Community night

Friday 8am-11am Theology, 1230pm Community lunch


“If you have come here to help me, you are wasting your time…but if you have come because your liberation is bound up with mine, then let us work together.”
Lilla Watson