Success

Greetings everyone !

4 Months after my Peace Corps service I am happy to say that I am doing well and can report to you a mission success regarding the Construction of the School. Unfortunately I was not able to see the final construction stages of the school as a result of my service in country ending in May, but I was able to receive pictures of the completed school from my PCV friends Jenna and Matt who are serving near my site and were able to take pictures of the school. Currently the classroom is being used to teach Kindergarten classes as well as Adult Education classes. This building is the newest and most modern public construction project in the community in the last 20 years. Thanks to your donations and the hard work of community members the project became a reality!

The past 4 months I have spent time in New York and as of recently have now moved to Zacatecas, Mexico. My time spent in New York was great as I was very happy to be finally home after my 2 + years serving in the Peace Corps. I was also able to resume teaching classes as a substitute teacher in New York City for a short period of time.

Now I am living in Zacatecas, Mexico which is located in the Northern Central part of Mexico. For the past 3 weeks I have been teaching at the Tecnologico de Monterrey Campus Zacatecas as an English Professor. As well I have begun my studies toward taking the Dental Admissions Test in November to hopefully gain admission to next years entering Dental Class in the Fall of 2010.

Thank you very much for reading my blog during the past 2 years. This blog was actually featured on someones dissertation on page 113 ( http://peacecorpswiki.org/images/C.Maugh_Dissertation.pdf). So it seems like this communication outlet has been a success in publishing my feelings during the past 2.5 years + as well as letting you know what has been going on in my life.

I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to serve as a Peace Corps Volunteer on behalf of myself, my family, my friends, and the Unites States. I could not have thought of a better way to serve my country, while truly enhancing the lives of my community members for generations to come. If anyone is interested in doing the Peace Corps at all, don't think twice, JUST DO IT ! This experience has truly changed my life profoundly and I have made lifelong connections with members of my community where I served as well as other fellow volunteers.

As for now, I am enjoying myself here in Mexico. Living in a small apartment near the center of Zacatecas with my girlfriend, Lisa, a fellow PCV whom I met during my service in Costa Rica. We are both training for the San Antonio Rock 'n' Roll Marathon on November 15. This will be my second marathon and Lisa's first! Classes at the University are going well, and I am spending every free moment I have studying for the DAT.

That is the latest and greatest from here. I will be posting blogs with less frequency as things will be similar from here on in till the end of the year. But nonetheless there will always be "Tuanis Times" in my life and will be sure to report the latest of them right here.

Adios amigos !

Scroll to the back of the album for the latest pictures : http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2545306&id=2206209&l=38f68130f3

Classrom Project Status Update 2

Greeting from extremely hot and sunny Costa Rica! I seemed to have chosen the hottest months of the year in Costa Rica to build a classroom, but at least we have been safe from the heavy rains and it would have otherwise been impossible to build. Overall things are going very well with the project. We have fully installed the Iron Beam Network with the Zinc Sheets for the roofing, installed the cement base, cemented the large cement slabs together to create uniform walls, and have begun the installation of the electric system.

Installing the Iron Beam Network to hold up the Zinc Sheets turned out to be a relatively easy task. It basically involved the Contractor and another skilled person in welding, essentially weld the large iron beams together, then we shingled the Zinc sheets and screwed each of them in. Most houses in my community, including my house, have a network of wooden beams to hold up the zinc sheets, we have used iron beams which are both sturdier and will last much longer.

Installing the cement base of the classroom required a lot of hauling of sand, rocks, and cements. We initially were planning to get a cement mixer for the job, but we couldn’t find one and ended up mixing about 30 bags of cement, 30 bags of sand, and a large amount of rocks by hand. One crucial step to making cement is water. At the school the water pump has been broken since the beginning of the year, and as well the well has dried up, so there is no water at all in the school. As well my community does not have a rural aqueduct where we can just turn on the tap and receive guaranteed water, every family and house has their own well or shared water well. Therefore we needed to haul by truck every morning 10 to 12 large Barrels of water from our water well at my host family’s house to the school. I don’t know if anyone has mixed lots of cement before by hand but it is pretty back breaking work and you also need to make sure you get the ratio of cement to rock to sand perfect. This whole process ended up taking only 3 days with the help of many community members.

Then the detailed work begins… Smearing on a cement layer to combine the large slabs of cement is very time consuming work. As well for the next week, every day we need to come to the school twice a day and poor water over the walls to make sure the cement doesn’t crack on the walls. We also need to use a sifter to sift through the sand we already have and make sure we have the finest sand which we will then mix with cement and water. This cement layer will further fortify the walls, which we can then paint.

The installation of the electrical system is pretty straight forward we just need to make sure we have our network of tubes through the ceiling which contain wire properly aligned and sent through the circuit breaker. We are installing about 4 power outlets, 2 Light Switches, and 8 sockets for energy saving light bulbs.

Next we need to create a network of wooden beams to then install our ceiling, install all 72 square meters of ceramic tile, weld onto the frame of the classroom two doors, install metals bars and fine netting for use as windows (Actual glass windows tend to break easily in classroom, are expensive, don’t give much security, and restrict airflow). Overall it seems like a lot but things are coming along very well. Next week is the Costa Rican Holy Week holiday and we will not be working on the classroom, but then the following week we hope to finish up all the necessary tasks for an inauguration of the classroom on April 17, 2009 !

All of the pictures will definitely give you a better idea of the process.Since we are building the new classroom near the old latrine, we have been in the process of digging a new 2 meter deep hole further away from the new classroom for the sanitary needs of the school. Pictures show some of that digging as well.

I am very thankful to be able to complete this project in my community. Again this project simply would not have been completed without your generous donations. Thank you very much for your support and I look forward to reporting more on the status of the classroom construction.

As for me personally, I am coming to grips with the reality that my Peace Corps experience here is ending. Of course it will be sad to leave my community and this life as a Peace Corps volunteer, but I have learned so much, met so many amazing people, had so many crazy adventures, learned Spanish fluently, and overall have had the time of my life. I could not have imagined a better experience to have after college. I am so grateful for having had the opportunity to be a part of Peace Corps and hopefully I will be able to use the skills and experience I have had here as a positive jump off point for future explorations and adventures in my life. Tuanis.

Link to Pics : http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=48019849&l=92dc0e5d10&id=2206209

Construction of the Classroom Begins !

We Made It !!! Thanks to all of your donations to my PCPP (Peace Corp Partnership Program) Project we have been able to raise over $4,700 for the classroom to be built in my community. I really appreciate all of the support which I have received and we are currently in the midst of making this project a reality.

In Mid February we were able to meet our PCPP donation goal, as well received another grant which we were applying for through CR-USA (Costa Rica United States) Foundation for another $3,500. We have thus raised over $8,200 dollars for the classroom for my community.

Construction is well on it its way and has begun in early March. We have been working for just about over a week on the project and things have been moving very fast.

The first stage required us to clear the land where the classroom was to be built on. We executed this with the help of a local community member and his tractor. He came with the tractor leveled the land and created a path through the back of the school for the material trucks to come and drop off supplies for the school.

The second stage which we completed 2 days ago consisted of constructing the outer cement shell or walls of the classroom. This classroom is considered “pre fabricated” and thus is easier to build then lining up cement blocks one buy one to create a wall. This method uses posts where we then slide giant slabs of cement between them to create the wall. So the past couple days we have been digging the holes for all the posts, lining up the posts properly, making tons of measurement to ensure perfect alignment, and then sliding the very heavy cement slabs between the posts to create the outer wall of the classroom. This has been a particularly physical part of the construction phase as we have to dig very deep holes for the posts and also align the cement slabs perfectly between the posts.

Currently we are at the point where we are sitting up the metal beam framework for the roof. We are welding metal beams to the cement base and creating a network of beams which will support the Zinc sheets which will then be secured in place to create the roof.

After the roof is in place we need to lay cement all over the walls to create a smooth surface which will join the different cement slabs into one unified wall. After that is laying cement to create the floor, lay down ceramic tiles, install the ceiling panels so we don’t see the zinc sheets and metal framework, painting everything, and then installing the electrical system.

Overall I am very surprised with the rate at which the construction is going. We are receiving a lot of support from the community and all of the children and teachers are of course very excited to see where they will be learning and teaching in the coming years.

I cannot believe that my Peace Corps experience here in Costa Rica is coming to an end, as I have been living, breathing, eating, and speaking Peace Corps for the past 2 years straight but I am extremely happy that this necessary project will very soon be completed for the community. Many years down the line I look forward to coming back to my small rural community and seeing the fruits of my labor and your generous donations still benefiting the community, and improving their quality of life.

Thanks you again for all of your support, this is a true example of people coming together donating money and immediately seeing a positive impact in the lives of many different people. I thank you for believing in me and trusting in me to complete this project with your money.

Anyways that is the situation as of right now. Check out the pictures of the whole process for the past 2 weeks as these will surely give you a greater idea of how this project is coming together. I will be posting more info throughout the coming weeks to show you more of the process of the construction.

Thanks everyone! Tuanis.

Link for Pictures : http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2545306&id=2206209&l=38f68130f3

Close of Service Conference and Classroom Project Status

WE MADE IT!!!!! Tico 16 succesfully made it to our COS (Close of Service Conference). I was happy to attend the conference with 13 of the original 16 Tico 16 members still remaining in Costa Rica after 2 years of service. It was great to be able to spend time during our last official Peace Corps training with everyone from Tico 16. I am really proud of all the work which we have done thus far and will continue to do up until the official end of our service on May 18.

During the 3 day Conference we reflected upon our service, created a presentation outlining our service to Peace Corps Costa Rica staff, learned about all of the papers we need to fill out before leaving, an spoke about future job opportunities and graduate school options. Out of all the training events I attended during my service I enjoyed this Conference the most. It helped me channel all of my feelings and experiences which I have had during my service to preparing myself to enter the US strong and ready for anything.

On our final night we organized a fancy dinner to commemorate our service and talk about all the memories which we had during training and at our sites. I am extremely grateful to have had the support of all my Tico 16 members throughout my service. As we all know, we are the only ones who truly understand what we have gone through here in Costa Rica and to have them by my side has been invaluable. I have made many friends within my Tico group aswell as outside of them, and every one of them I look forward to continuing the relationship on in the states. As well it has been very motivating to know that I not only have support within country but outside of the country. I am so thankful for my family and friends back at home supporting me in my service here in Costa Rica. At times it is difficult to fully describe my experience here, but I appreciate you all lending an open ear and having a genuine interest in the work I am doing down here. Also I am particularly grateful to everyone who has supported me financially in donating to my PCPP project to build a rural classroom.

While at the service I couldn´t believe how fast the time had flew. It seems like only yesterday I was blogging at the Holiday Inn in Washington D.C. talking about how I was nervous but very excited to begin this adventure of Peace Corps in Costa Rica. 2 years later I am writing this blog at the internet cafe a 90 minute hike from the rural jungle community which I live in. Walking to the internet today I really decided to take a step back and realize, WOW I am in Peace Corps. Living with 12 people in one house, going to the bathroom in a latrine, having farm animals around me, eating rice and beans, speaking spanish, being immersed in the culture is what Peace Corps is all about. Those experiences are why I signed up to be in Peace Corps. Before coming into Peace Corps I had this vision that it would be me living in this rural community helping them out with different projects immersed in Costa Rican Nature and Wildlife, and that is EXACTLY what I am doing right now. So I am proud to have lived in Costa Rica for 2 years so far, I am proud of everything I have accomplished so far and I hope that the work and experiences which I have had in the community will be remembered for many years from now.

As of right now, unfortunately, we are still below the amount of money neccesary to build the much needed classroom in my community. As I have said before I am so grateful for all of your donations towards this project thus far. Again I am opening an invitation for those who have not had the opportunity to donate to my project to please consider sending a donation. I believe that more so than any charity you can donate to all of the money you donate will DIRECTLY go towards the materials neccesary to construct the classroom. For example if you donate 1 penny then that is 1 Nail for the classroom, If you donate 15 dollars that is worth one bag of cement, if you donate 30 that is one large sheet of zinc for the roof, or 50 dollars that could go towards the construction of 2 blackboards in the classroom. As you see all the money directly goes towards the classroom. As well for those who have already donated I am graciously asking you to consider donating again, either the same amount or maybe half of what you have originally donated. As well those who have donated can maybe present the opportunity to another friend, family member, sibling, or parent who may be interested in Donating towards an Education Service Project Abroad.

As time is running out in the project, this will be my final request for donations. I hope that we will be able to meet our fundraising goal by Feb 15. I can assure you that the Children and Parents of my community will be extremely grateful for your support. As I have said before I will outline the steps of the project on this blog so you can see where your money is going to. I hope that come April/May I will be able to put a picture of a brand new classroom full of students on the front page of this blog. As well everyone who donates will recieve a special token of appreciation directly from the students of my community sent to your home provided you supply an address when filling out the online donation form.

Thank you so much for your support and help and I look forward to recieve your support in helping us make our donation goal .

Tuanis !

Seasons Greetings and Classroom Update

( Me with the three teachers and school cook)

Seasons Greeting and Happy New Year from Costa Rica !

Currently I am reporting from my site here in the Southern part of Costa Rica. The turn of the seasons is getting more noticeable, as it is raining less and less and getting hotter and hotter as the days go by.

I recently came back from a trip to the United States to visit my family for Thanksgiving, as well as a trip to the midwest to visit my girlfriend for awhile. I even managed to visit my old stomping grounds in Ann Arbor, Michigan and visit my friends Brian and Jared. Overall it was an excellent trip to the states filled with lots of fun, relaxation, and amazing food.

It is great to be back in site, and working again in the community with the school and my English classes. I was able to report back to the local education commitee on the status of the classroom fundraising project, and they were very excited to learn that through the generosity of my friends and family I have so far raised around $ 1,700 towards the construction of the classroom. Although as of right now we are still in need of a little over $3,000 to make the project a reality. I have also been in talks with the Habitat for Humanity office in the capital, San Jose, to possibly bring in a brigade of volunteers to help with the construction of the classroom.

I really want to take the opportunity to thank everyone once again for donating. I realize that in these troubled time with the economy, everyone is struggling to make ends meet. Although if you happen to have anything you could share with us to complete this project it would be greatly appreciated. Living in a remote rural community in the middle of Costa Rica for the past 22 months I have truly experienced and learned to appreciate the extremely high quality of education which I have recieved growing up in Westchester, New York and hope that when my time to leave my community in Costa Rica, I can leave leave them with a valuable educational resource which will benefit everyone in the community for many years to come.

Anyways that is the latest news for now ! I hope that everyone will enjoy the holiday season coming up and I look forward to posting a picture of the newly built classroom in the Spring of 2009 as a result of your contribution!

Pictures, Pictures, and More Pictures!

Please enjoy the following pictures which will help give you a better idea of my experience down here in Costa Rica, and the work which I am doing here. Enjoy !

Photo Album : Centro Educativo Paraiso

• This Photo album includes pictures of me with the students in the school, and various pictures of the existing classroom and the future site where we will build the next classroom.

Photo Album : Host Family

• This Photo album includes pictures of my host family members.

Photo Album : My House in Costa Rica

• Pictures of the House which I am living in currently.

I look forward to posting my pictures soon ! I will be posting pictures throughout the whole construction process so you will be able to see the full benefits of your donation. Thanks for your support ! Please contact me if you have any other questions.

Rudy´s Peace Corps Project Needs YOUR Support !

The following is the complete Project Profile which I have sent to Peace Corps to put on the Peace Corps Partnership Program Website. If you would like to have sent to you a formal invitation to donate please email me your address, so I can have Peace Corps send that to you immediately. Or you can directly donate through this link : https://www.peacecorps.gov/index.cfm?shell=resources.donors.contribute.projDetail&projdesc=515-148 or by clicking on the ¨Donate Now !¨ link on the side bar of my blog. Thank you in advance for your generosity, without your support this project will not be possible. If you have any questions you can email me. As well I encourage you to send this blog and link to other friends and family. This donation is not only tax-deductible, but makes you feel GREAT!

From your hardworking Peace Corps Volunteer,

Rudy

P.S. Pictures coming VERY soon !!!!!

Here it goes …….. Enjoy !

PCPP Project Title: Increased Academic Opportunities for the Community of Paraiso de Buenos Aires

Community Organization: Paraiso Education Committee

Executive Summary:

The aim of this project is to build a classroom in a remote rural community located in Southern Costa Rica. The 200 residents of this community practice subsistence farming on small plots of land. In the town center, 11 months out of the year, 44 students attend a weathered one-room primary school which was first built in 1990. After school hours, over 50 adults attend several different classes taught both by the Costa Rican Learning Institute and a Peace Corps Volunteer. Most of the adult members of the community have only completed primary school education as there is no high school nearby.

In the primary school, grades 1 through 6 are taught together by two different teachers in one classroom that is well over capacity. With a new classroom, primary school students will be able to learn in a new and spacious environment, and more adults will be able to participate in adult-education classes. A portion of the materials will be donated by the community, as will the labor necessary for construction. If this project is not completed, the only educational center in town will remain overstrained and learning opportunities will continue to diminish. The education committee, composed of parents and community members, is very determined to see this project through to completion.

Background Information:

Paraiso de Buenos Aires, is a small rural community located 8 kilometers from the center of the city of Buenos Aires in the Southern part of Costa Rica. Its residents practice subsistence farming, along with working with the local electric company (ICE) and Pineapple Plantation (PINDECO). Paraiso has a growing population of over 240 residents. Among the many groups formed within the community, the local education committee (7 members) is motivated to complete construction of a new classroom to cater to the growing number of primary school students and adult students in the community.

Community Need:

In Paraiso Primary School there are 45 students including the kindergartners. There are two full time teachers, including the director and there is one part time teacher. The part time teacher teaches Kindergarten in the morning and literacy classes to adults in the community 3 times a week.

As well there is a growing population (40 +) of teenagers and adults participating in the Peace Corps Volunteers English classes after school hours and 20 more adults participating in daily classes taught by the Costa Rican National Institute of Learning.

Although Paraiso is a small community more than 50 percent of the community participates in some sort of learning activity taught at the school at least once a week. The residents of Paraiso have taken advantage of the learning opportunities brought to them, although in combination of the growing population and learning activities offered in town there is physically not enough space to accommodate a proper learning environment.

If this project is not implemented the children in the primary school will be faced to continue learning in a classroom well over capacity (35 + students in one classroom) which will affect their learning, and the adults will lose educational opportunities which could have otherwise been given to them (i.e. additional classes, night high school, and community meeting area).

Community Initiation and Direction:

The project of construction for the classroom is entirely a community initiative. The labor will be provided and completed by skilled and unskilled community members. The local education committees initiated the project and are completely involved and committed to seeing the project to a successful conclusion.

The president of the education committee has been working in collaboration with the director of the school in finding funding, creating design plans, and organizing the construction crews. The members of the education committee are working to inform the community about the project and delegate project responsibilities.

Community Contribution:

The community is fully involved in implementing this project. Planning, Construction, and post-maintenance of the new classroom will be under the continued responsibility of the local education committee. The local education committee is contributing approximately $2,250 dollars worth of labor costs. As well over $3,000 dollars in material towards the classroom will be donated. Overall, the financial community contribution will be approximately 50%.

Project Implementation:

There will be three phases of the project. 1) Organizing the education committee and community at large in preparation for the project. 2) Applying and acquiring funds to execute the project. 3) Building the Classroom.

In phase 1, the Education Committee will be responsible for project planning and organization of the community. Working alongside the education committee will be members of the community working to help execute the education committee’s goals. Specifically the President of the Education committee will be responsible for delegating responsibility during the pre project planning stage.

In phase 2, the President and Treasurer of the Education Committee as well as the school director will be working to solidify the donation by the committee and as well search for outside funds, i.e. through the Peace Corps Partnership Program.

In phase 3, under direction of the President of the Education Committee and Local building contractor the community members who have volunteered in the construction will work towards completing the new classroom.

Project Sustainability:

Constructing a new classroom requires a large amount of planning and preparation. From organizing construction plans, to acquiring the funds necessary to build, to the actual physical construction of the classroom, strong participation is needed among the education committee and members of the community.

The community and committee members will gain knowledge in project planning, project implementation, financial planning, financial management, working in groups, delegating responsibility, the importance of communication, and basic to advanced carpentry and electrical skills during construction of the classroom.

The community will be able to maintain the classroom in the long term, through monthly payments by the National Education Ministry as well as monthly mandatory donations from the students attending the school. The hired teachers and Education Committee will be responsible for seeing the maintenance through in the future.

Increased Academic Opportunties for the Community of Paraiso de Buenos Aires

Thank you for all of you arriving at this blog for the first time, or to the rest who have followed my Peace Corps service through this blog. After being in my site for over 17 months and working closely with all community member through different capacities, i.e. English classes, work at the school, children’s groups, women’s groups, Development association meetings, etc., I have learned a lot about the community and its strengths, difficulties, and visions for the future. For 5 months I worked hard on writing a Community Analysis Tool or “CAT”. The CAT is an extensive report based on the community. Within the CAT consists of a basic history of the town, resources within the town, strengths, difficulties, potential future projects, and much more.

Through my 30 + interviews within the town and with governmental agencies which support the town, the reoccurring theme of the necessity of another classroom kept on coming up. Every year for the past 18 years since the primary schools construction the population of the students has risen. In academic year 2008 there are approximately 44 students attending the one room school, 12 of which attend the kindergarten in a small wooden structure apart from the main school building. In the primary school classroom grades one through sixth are all taught in the same area by two teachers in a 54 meters squared classroom area. The learning environment is far from ideal, as it is difficult to walk from one end of the classroom to the next, the noise levels are high, it is very cramped, the communication between student and teacher is hindered, and it is very during the Costa Rican summer months. These are of course only a few of the side effects of an overcrowded classroom.

Now this classroom is not only used for the primary school children. As well after school hours there is a thriving adult education community. The Costa Rican Learning Institute has sent a full time teacher to live within the community and teach classes, based on microenterprise management, accounting, nutrition, literacy, and agriculture to name a few. As well I am teaching English Classes at night 8 hours a week. This growing population of over 50 adult and teenage students is new to Paraiso. A majority of community members have not completed primary school let alone high school. Thus the community is taking full advantage of these new academic opportunities offered to them. Approximately 50% of the community population is participating in an academic opportunity within the one room school.

The school and the church are the only public buildings within the community. The one room school acts not only as an academic center but as a meeting place for community groups and community functions. The children’s group, women’s group, and other community groups have used the classroom as a place for various meetings and social activities.

Clearly the combined use of the one classroom by the primary school students, adult education students, and community as a whole has put great strain on the 18 year old classroom. The construction of a new classroom is vital to the academic future of the community of Paraiso. The community is able to donate resources and labor to the project, although there still remains some vital resources needed and for this we turn to the Peace Corps Partnership Program.

I have been working in collaboration with the local education committee, primary school teachers, director of the primary school, and president of the development association to make this project a reality. I look forward to using this blog to show the status and progression of the project. Once you donate you will be able to see how your money is being put to work, and hopefully we will see a picture of a completed classroom thanks to your donation. As always you can email me regarding specific questions to the project. Thank you very much for your consideration, and thank you for supporting my work abroad. The impact of this completed project will benefit the growing community for many years to come.

The Past Eight Months

The past eight months in Costa Rica have been filled with fun, adventure, hard work, and new experiences. I have been continuing working hard in my community on a lot of the same projects and as well making some headway on a couple new projects. My time here in Costa Rica has been an amazing experience, with new challenges and new friends both being made in my community and amongst the community of volunteers near me. I am very thankful for my time here and the opportunity to work together with the community members of Paraiso de Buenos Aires.

My biggest project by far has been my work on my English Classes within the community both for the adults and children of the school. Currently I am teaching around 40 adults in the community as well as over 40 children in the one room primary school. Throughout my time here I have been questioning the validity of my work here teaching English. Is it necessary that rural community members learn English? How will they really utilize English in their futures? But week after week my students return to my English classes with a strong interest in learning not only English but coming together as community members and working together to learn something new. Recently the Costa Rican Learning Institute has introduced new classes within the community, and thus some of my students have switched over and exclusively attend those classes, as those are slightly more relevant to rural life, i.e. starting a micro-enterprise, nutrition and agriculture classes. But nonetheless I am proud of my work as an English teacher. I feel that through attending my classes I have helped them earn confidence to learn new things and as well hopefully in the future the confidence to seek new opportunities within and outside of the community. As well the classes are not only a class strictly relating to learning English but an opportunity for cultural exchange as I tell stories about my life in the states and share my views and opinions and in return I can learn more about them. This has been extended into my classes within the primary school where I have been working together with the students both inside and outside of the school.

I have been able to work outside of the school with the children to organize recreational activities and games to play with them. Teaching 30 or more children to play a new game can be challenging but more or less they understand the idea. For example, teaching 30 first through sixth grade students to play American Football was an endeavor but entertaining. As well I have worked after school hours to form a Children’s Group. As of right now we are working on a fundraiser to organize a movie night at the school, as well we are working on selling Choco-Bananos (Chocolate Bananas) at the next Soccer Tournament in town. Working with the Children in the community has been a very rewarding experience, but I have especially cherished the relationship and support I have received from my 4 host sisters and nieces who have attended the majority of my children’s events and meetings.

Besides my English classes and work with the children in the community, I have had the opportunity to really enjoy the slow pace of rural life and integrate within the community. With a community of slightly over 200 people I have really had the opportunity to work with many of the community members and get to know many of them. I am particularly good friends with two of the guys who work at the wood mill in town owned by a “gringo” aka foreigner. German, Javier and I have gotten to know each other well as both attend my English classes, and as well every other weekend make the trek into Buenos Aires to grab a cold Imperial or two and listen to the latest Latin music hits. I have also formed a great bond with my two host brothers, one who works at PINDECO (Del Monte Pineapple Factory) and the other currently attending an Electrician course in Buenos Aires. Although my community is very rural, I have the advantage of being only 8 kilometers away (or an hour and a half walk) from the center of Buenos Aires, a city which has internet, supermarkets, and cold beer.

Being in-country for 19 months has been quite an experience so far. I am very grateful that I have had this opportunity in my life to live in Costa Rica and have had the experiences I have had. For anyone remotely thinking about doing Peace Corps, I HIGHLY recommend it. I am particularly happy with my decision to participate in Peace Corps directly after college. If one is not 100% sure with what they want to do with their lives Peace Corps offers you the ability to experience something completely unique and once in a lifetime. In a way it is the most difficult job you could possibly have after college, and yet the most rewarding. Being completely immersed in a culture and society entirely different from the United States and thriving and working with the people of the country to complete something together is quite amazing. My commute is a five minute walk down a muddy dirt road to the school (no traffic), my coworkers are the people I live, eat, and work with, and my boss is myself. Peace Corps definitely has not been easy and the struggles of loneliness, living in the “campo”, and simply being your own boss and designing your own work schedule has been hard but overall I am very happy with how everything has been going so far.

As of right now I am proud to present the newest and biggest project which I will be working on during the rest of my Peace Corps service. That project is entitled: Increased Academic Opportunities for the Community of Paraiso de Buenos Aires. The core of this project involves building a brand new classroom to accommodate the academic needs and increased academic interests in educational opportunities in Paraiso. Please review the project profile which I have submitted to the Peace Corps Partnership Program to raise funds for this worthy project.

New Year

Greetings Everyone ! This is my first post for the new year and I am excited to get alot of new projects and have a lot more adventures here in Costa Rica.



I ended up going home for the Christmas holidays, which ended up being a blast. It ended up being exactly how I expected it to be. Spending quality time with a lot of good friends and family, as well as relaxing to be back in the US and enjoy the ammenties of modern suburban life like hot water and bathrooms. I ended up recieving a new camera for Christmas which I will hopefully be able to take full advantage of and post some cool new pictures up on the blog to show you more of what I have been doing and what is going on down here in Costa Rica.



For new years I ended up heading to Panama City, Panama with a large group of other Peace Corps Volunteers from Costa Rica. We had an awesome time partying it up on Calle Uruguay in Panama city, a spot where alot of clubs and restaurants are, as well I got a chance to see much of Panama city which is very metropolitan, you could call it the ¨New York City¨of Central America. Towards the end of the trip in Panama I ended up heading to Bocas del Toro, Panama which is a slew of small island off the Atlantic Coast of Panama. In order to get to the beaches we had to take small boats across to different island and hike a while to discover pristine yellow sand beaches. Overall it was an amazing trip which I really enjoyed.



These days of vacation have definately allowed me to recharge my batteries and get back to the not neccesarily stressful, but intense and interesting rural life which I lead in my site in the Southern part of Costa Rica. Things in my site are overall going well. There is still a break right now in the school year for the children so things are going particularly slow, but I am still continuing my english classes with the adults. They are close to arriving at their first midterm exam which I will be testing them on in the next couple of weeks.



Overall things have been going well. I am working well with the various committees in my site and we are little by little getting things done to completing bigger projects in my site. Right now we are in the works of doing a major overhaul of the soccer field, re roofing the church, fixing the 5 kilometer road to my site, and potentially building a community center in our town. All of these have projects have their little intricacies and loopeholes to them but little by little we are accomplishing things.



After coming back from the hustle and bustle of my vacations as well as my brief stint in New York I need to re accustom myself to the slow rural life. As well naturally as a Peace Corps Volunteer much of the time you are alone. Not alone in the sense physically since I live with 10 other people but in terms of mentally, in finding someone you can relate to and share your feelings with. In the US I had my real family and friends which I could either see of call up easily on the phone. I would normally see my good friends and family at home at the least 4 or 5 times a week. But as a volunteer living in a rural village of less than 150 people it can at times get hard not seeing anyone else for several weeks on end. Alot of the times the things you least expect tend to be the hardest challenges.



Anyways that is the latest for now. I want to give a shout out to my brother, Andrew, it his 21st birthday today and I hope he is living it up at Duke University in North Carolina! Happy Birthday !!!

End of the year

Overall things have been great down here in Costa Rica. Just came back off of a relaxing break in the states for Thanksgiving and I am also ready for another break back home for Christmas time.
Things in my site have been going well, just continuing on with my English classes for the children and adults. As well my marathon training has continued strong. I just got back from a 10 mile training run in the peak heat and I feel great. Now I just need to walk back home 5 miles.

Things in my house are going along well. A chicken and her 4 baby chicks decided to move into our latrine. So everytime I use the bathroom I have the wonderfull company of a 5 lives animals chirping and pecking at me. As well recently I woke up to the sound of a pig getting slaughtered at 5 am with the background beats of the latest reggeaton hits. The pig was killed for a mini fiesta held in my town to benefit the Comite de Deportes. The fiesta was held over two days, 2 weekends ago. It was an overall fun time which included alot of tamales, roast pork, Imperial and Soccer.

This past weekend I went to my friend Bill´s site about an hour down south of me. I had an awesome time chilling with him . We ended up playing poker with his host dad and as well chess on his host dads computer. While we were playing poker the host mom was near the front door and reacted in a startled man. She said there was a large snake at the door. Bills host dad ran to get a large 4 foot rusty machete while Bill went to get a large stick so his host dad could bash it over the head. It turned out to be a Tercia Pelo, one of the most poisonous snakes in Costa Rica.
The snake put up quite a fight, and even after we all thought it was dead it tried to attack us. Just a normal night here in Costa Rica surrounded by poisonous snakes.

The next day I went further down South with Bill and met up with a couple of other volunteers in the town of San Vito. We ended up going to fiestas in Sabalito which were really fun. It is always great to meet up with other volunteers and party it up. There was a rodeo, several dance locations, and many bars up, as well as street vendors. It was a really fun time.

Soon enough I will be back home for Christmas vacation which I am really excited about. I wish everyone well, especially my two brothers whose birthday it is today ! Happy Birthday Carl and Lucas!!!

Tuanis,

Rudy

Back in Costa Rica

After a much enjoyed break from the campo life of Costa Rica I was able to make it back to New York for some rest and relaxation. The transition from Costa Rica to New York was more intense then I thought it would be. Primarily because I havent seen alot of my family and friends for well over 9 months. But overall it was amazing to see everyone and as I am here now in Costa Rica, my time in New York served as a great refresher and as well gave me a new perspective between my life in New York and my life in Costa Rica.

Thanksgiving was a great time spent with my family. Of course we had all the mandatory foods and fixins on the table and it was really a special time to spend with my family. The next night was my five year High School Reunion which was definately a blast and as well served as a great opportunity to catch up with people I havent spoken to in a while and as well party with my good friends from back home.

Overall my experience in New York was positive. But it was definately very hard to say goodbye as I didnt spend as much time with certain people as I wanted to, and as well the feeling of comfort from my family and friends at home was very difficult to leave. I could easily see myself sliding back to my ¨normal¨ life as a member of US society, but then again I would be missing out on the amazing opportunity which I have here in Costa Rica. As well I feel connected to my site and the people which I am living with and helping here in Costa Rica and I could not let them down.

So far I have been back in Costa Rica for about 3 days and I am happy to have at least escaped the fierce cold of New York as I went on a 5 mile run in the blistering 90 degrees Fahrenheit mid day heat of Southern Costa Rica. My marathon training is working out well as of right now, but the heat will definately be a huge issue as the training progresses.

Things in my site are going well. I have continued my English Classes and am working to finish things up before I roll out to NY again to celebrate Christmas with my family.

Overall thinga are great and for all of you who I saw in New York over the break it was great to see you and I miss you all everyday.

Much love amd Tuanis,

Rudy

Training is Fun

About a week ago I went with my friends Bill and Lindsay to go visit our training host families. As usual it was an amazing time. Very relaxing and quite a change from my regular site. I remember initially thinking that my living situation was rough but now whenever I go and visit my training host family in a way it seems like the Beverly Hills of San Jose. Overall it was a really great time.

The next day the three of us left on the bus to make it into San Jose in order to celebrate the birthday of a fellow Tico 16er. Ever since the rates at the usual hotel we stay at where jacked up we decided to try out a newer hotel. At this newer hotel we decided that we would need 2 2 bedroom suites with Balconies , Jet tubs, Bedais? ( the things next to the toilets to wash your rear ends), and King Size beds. It was definately a huge step up from the Hole in the all we normally stay at. As well the security guard named Elvis at our old hotel switched jobs and now works at our new favorite hotel, which is awesome. Elvis is the man. We went out that night and partied it up in some Italian restaurant and then of course brought back the party to the Suites and danced the night away.

The next day we needed to wake up early, like around 11 am, and get ready to board the buses for AVC. AVC stands for All Volunteer Conference. It is actually a mandatory event for all Peace Corps Costa Rica volunteers to go to. This year as in past years it was held at an Old Boyscott Camp high in the mountains of San Jose. It was soo high up in the mountais half the time it felt like we were in the clouds, as well it was extremely steep wherever we walked and freezing. Tico 16 of course grabbed the ¨Night Owl¨bunk as opposed to the ¨Early Bird¨Bunk, meaning at what times we would eventually go to sleep. Our room basically consisted of one GIGANTIC steel bunk bed with wrestling mats as the mattresses. Each bed or platform basically fit 12 people squished together. Overall the accomodations were meager along with the ICE cold showers but nonetheless some serious bonding went on at night. It is a good thing that TICO 16 were all Rural Community Development volunteers use the grundge and rough conditions.

Anyways at AVC there were alot of different¨Charlas¨or talks about potential projects and also meetings within the three different programs, RCD, CYF (Children Youth and Family), and CED ( Community Economic Development). As well there were alot of different entertainment things to such as play football in the mud, there was a talent show at the end of one of the nights (Which TICO 16 represented strong), and then another night we had a casino night with both Euchre and Poker. I ended up entering the Texas Holdem No Limit 24 person poker tournement and came out winning the WHOLE thing. I was the last man standing with 4,000 Brachs Pepperming Starbrite Candies as chips. It was a really fun event and I am definately glad that I came out on top. Normally I am not that good at poker but I have been honing my card skills at the casinos in San Jose every once in a while. Overall AVC was definately a really good time and I also had the opportunity to meet alot of new people in Peace Corps I have not met before.

After AVC about 1/2 of the volunteers who came to AVC decided to stay the night in San Jose. Which turned out to be a really fun time. We partied it up in the hotel then hit up the local duplex casino on the bottom floor Discoteque on the second floor joint and danced the night away. After waking up the next day I felt that I needed to get a haircut to trip my monstrous head of hair I had not cut for 9 months as well as beard I hadnt cut for 3 months. I went to the nearest haircut place and got be haircut done by this Colombian guy named Hubert. Good times all around.

Finally the next day I was able to trek back to my site in the Zona Sur of Costa Rica. Things in my site are going very well. I have begun my 2 adults classes on a twice a week 2 hours a day schedule. As well we have implimented the use of the new Centro Cultural Oxford Press books, which are very high quality and an overall very good English program in my classes. They are learning alot and seem to be having a great time. Teaching English is definately an amazing way to integrate into the community and as well a perfect opportunity to get to know people in my community on a more one on one basis. Overall there is nothing but success relating to my English classes.

I will be continuing work on my remaining interviews and as well hopefully finish up my Community Analysis Tool aka Report of my community by the end of December or January. As well the school year will be winding down in December so I am thinking up some ideas of what I can do with the children when they are out of school and have nothing to do.

At my house 2 near little calfs were born and as well one of my 5 dogs is very pregnant up to the point where she can barely walk. Last time she gave birth to 11 puppies. Ever since day one when I arrived my house as been under construction. So poco a poco things have been getting renovated which is great. We have new ceramic flooring as well they are currently installing windows. Right now my room does not have windows because the window guy comes to install the windows once every bloom moon. So I have been pleasantly startled with Chickens, Random Birds, and Stinging Insects randomly flying into my room as I read the newspaper on my bed. But overall it is going to be a good thing, because in the past the only window I had was boarded up by two wooden planks. The house which I live in now is definately one of the better quality houses in my site although I still need to venture to my latrine where last night there was a chicken sleeping in that startled the heck out of me.

Ever since I have arrived here in Costa Rica I have been meaning to start running again but never really had the motivation. So I decided to begin training for the Jungle Man Marathon on February 23, 2007 in Puerto Viejo. The marathon like all marathons will be 26.1 miles, where 2/3 will be running on the unforgiving beach and 1/3 literally in the Jungle all during the hottest time of the year. It will be an insane physicaly feet but I have dedicated myself to completing it and will definately give you the updates on my progress during training. Today I went on one of my first training runs and sweated up a storm in the 90 degree sun. It will be intense but hey Go Hard or Go Home as the say.

Other news I am extremely excited to head back the the US for a week for thanksgiving. I have my 5 year high school reunion to look forward to and as well spending time with family and friends I have not seen for over 9 months. It will definately be an amazing experience but mentally it will be hard in terms of culture shock to extract my self from the jungles of costa rica to the suburbs of New York. Things like driving a car, having a cell phone, eating whatever food you want whenever you want, flush toilets, and hot showers will be quite an experience.

Also I would like to personally thank The Gleason family for sending me such a wonderful care package to me here in the Zona Sur. It was piled high with American Candy and an amazing Dora the Exploradora educational game I know my Kindergarten class will LOVE. I really appreciate the effort.

I look forward to seeing everyone back home soon. Feel free to send me emails or packages whenever you want. I hope you enjoyed reading this novel of a blog entry.

Everything Irie.

Tuanis,

Rudy

The Dirty South Adventures

The Dirty South is the name us volunteers use to refer to the Southern part of Costa Rica. I dont really know why we use the name, but we definately get dirty down here. For example, yesterday I was recruited by two of my host sisters to get coconuts down from a palm tree near our house. Originally I thought that it wouldnt be too difficult of a task so I agreed to follow them to one of the palm trees near our house. They gave me this very long bamboo stick to poke the coconuts with. Keep in mind these coconuts are about 30 feet in the air, so this is a 30 foot bamboo stick I am carrying around, no wonder they recruited me, I couldnt see 10 year old picking this stick up. Anyways I tried wacking the coconuts a couple times with no success. All the while spiders, ants, and, palm bark are flying at my while I am hitting these coconuts, getting in my eyes and ants crawling all over me. I then proceed to break the bamboo stick. Disappointed my host sisters coax me to find another stick to get the coconuts from. I then go walking in the jungle and find this gigantic tree that fell down awhile ago. I decide that is is our only option so I carry these 30 foot beast of a tree to the coconut tree and with an unbelievable amount of strength, sweat, and ant bites I manage to get 6 coconuts down. This whole fiasco took about an hour but boy was it worth it. I had the girls chop open the coconuts for me with 2 foot machettes and we all enjoyed the sweet coconut milk aka pipa in spanish. As well as the coconut ¨meat¨ or whatever you might call it. Then as usual it started to rain and we had a huge water fight which was fun. Its crazy but my best friends here in my site are my 2 hosts sisters ages 9 and 11, and 2 host nieces ages 8 and 9. Me and these 4 girls play alot together and go on crazy adventures. We use to play alot of Jacks, but then those got lost no we throw the football around and play 500. To that outside eye it my seem weird that this 23 year old bearded man is playing childrens games with 4 girls under 12 but these are my best friends here and they are great.

After our water fight my host brother was in the Corral with a veterinarean of sorts seeing if any of our cows were pregnant. We have about 20 head of cattle and all of them were in the Corrall at one time. So you need to be careful that you dont get trampled or gored by a 700 lb cow or bull while walking around in there. I helped guide a couple of the cows into a holding area were the veterinarean (not really a vet, but someone who know something about pregnant cows) was waiting with a glove that went up to his shoulders. He then commenced by sticking his whole arm in the anus of the cow until he was shoulder deep into the cow, feeling around for a potential calf. Apparantely only one of our cows turned out to be pregnant. He found that out after going shoulder deep into 7 of our cows.

The above all happened yesterday. This goes to show that every day when I wake up here in Costa Rice, is a new day and a new adventure. The things that go on here I cant even forcast.

Anyways, my Dirty South VAC meeting turned out to be alright. We were again partying it up on the beach, as well as discussing relevant issue in terms of Peace Corps. Peace Corps is probably one of the only organizations I will work for that holds business meetings literally on the beach. It was great to meet the new Tico 17ers. They are a chill group of people who I am sure I will get to know alot better in the future. Right now the Southern VAC region has more volunteers than any other region in Costa Rica, so it is good to know that the South is rising. Aswell this is good considering that the Southern region of Costa Rica is also the poorest, so they are clearly recieving the most help in terms of Peace Corps assistance.

My travels with Tamar turned out to be an amazing time. We hit up Montezuma for a while, which is in the southern part of the Nicoya Peninsula as well as San Jose. In San Jose we lived it up in the luxurious restaurant Hotel Restaurante Grano de Oro. If anyone is going to San Jose and wants amazing food this is the place to eat at. Right now she is on her way to Grenada, Nicaragua to commence with Spanish Classes and other crazy travels. You can check her blog out under my links. She will be doing great things for the people of Nicaragua.

Right now I am just continuing life at my site. Things are going well. The rain is slowing down slightly. Looks like we have one more month of rain then comes the dry season which will be HOTTTT. I will be coming back to New York in late December for 8 days. It would be crazy if I could go sledding in the frigid snow and then lay out on the scorching beaches of Costa Rica all in the same week.

My English Classes are going well. We are going to start up an official program soon run by Centro Cultural Costa Rica. It is a very good English program that will be very beneficial to my students. My interviews as well in my site are going well, I am just about finished with them and then need to continue work on my report about the community. Once completed depending on security concerns I may or may not be able to post it on my blog. We will see.

In regards to the US I am extremely excited to be returning for a week for thanksgiving as well as attending my 5 year High School Reunion. It is going to be a blast. When I talk to alot of other volunteers and tell them I am going to my high school reunion they cringe and say that they would never go to theirs. But for me I had a blast in High School and loved everyminute of it, and I am eager to see everyone very soon.

Anwyays thats is all for now. I hope things are going well for everyone. Muchas gracias to Mac Bowen for his letter I just recieved, I will be getting back to you shortly via snail mail and everyone else keep those correspondences coming. Aswell I want to send a special shout out to my boy Jon Gleason, without him I wouldnt know where I would be.

Thank you all for reading my blog and I hope to see you soon when I return to New York in November.

Tuanis. Rudy.

Living the Dream

Disclaimer: Graphic imagery ahead.

Life has continued on here in Costa Rica at a leisurely pace. As of right now it is the rainy season and it is basically raining all day everyday. I finally made it to the internet place after a 90 minute walk in the rain, completely soaked but at least I finally made it. Alot of things have been going on since I last posted so I will try and update you on everything I can remember.

A couple weeks ago everyone in my town was getting ready for the ¨Fiestas Patronales¨which is basically a 2 day party at my site in order to benefit the church. The church in my town was repainted and the party began 2 Saturdays ago with cooking of Tamales, which is a type of food made of corn meal, rica, pork and wrapped in banana leaves. They take a while to make so everyone was helping with the preparation of the tamales for the larger party the next day. There were raffles for various different items as well as as a lot of eating and drinking going on. The next day was the larger party were soccer teams from neighboring communities came to my town in order to participate in a 7 team soccer tournament, which my town ended up winning. As of right now my soccer skills aren´t up to par in comparison to the players in my town but I look forward to playing on the team in the future. Overall the fiestas were a great success and the church earned a decent amount of money.

One interesting experience before parties was the preparation of the pig which was to be killed in order to supply the meat for the fiestas. Typically for a big party or during christmas time families kill the pigs which they have been fattening for around a year in order to celebrate. This time around it was the pig that lived down the road at my host sisters house, time to be sacrificed. I was reading my book one day when a family friend of my host family came by in his car and asked me If I wanted to go see him kill the pig. As I had nothing else to do, and felt that this was an experience I must have I decided to go with him. We arrived at the house to a boiling vat of water and the sounds of the pigs screaming in the distance, I feel that one of them already knew their destiny. My host sisters husband, My host sister, my host brother, my host nephew 3 years old, and 2 family friends were there for the execution. Before hand everyone brought there own knives and compared which one would deal the final blow to the throat. We took a rope to the 4 foot by 4 foot area the pig had been living in for a year put a noose around the neck and walked it over to the corral. This 100 kilo pig almost trampled me as I was watching it exit the pen. One person lay some corn feed on the ground to distract the pig, then WHAM!!!!!!!! with the back side of a very large axe one of the men crushed the skull of the pig. This resulted in large screaming and disorientation of the pig where then another person swooped in and stabbed the pig in the throat resulting in a river of blood exiting the pigs body at the whole in the throat. Immediately the dogs of the house that were watching this started to lap up the blood exiting the pigs throat while one of the man continuously bashed the back end of an axe into the pigs skull fracturing the skul in several places. After 5 minutes the pig was then propped up on a table and doused with the boiling water to remove the hair. It was then decapitated and hung upside down to drain the blood. Then commenced the pealing of the skin for the chicharones, fried pig skin, and then the slow carving away of all the meat and the careful removal of the internal organs. If certain parts of the internal organs are pierced during the extraction it can ruin the meat, i.e. stomach acids or contents of the intestines.

Anyways what to make of this, why did I write about this in such detail ? For me this was a very interesting and eye opening experience. One might consider this disturbing, but in reality there is no ¨humane¨way to kill a pig. At first I thought it was gross, but it further solidified my feelings of living close to the land which I live on. In my house we eat many of the fruits and vegetables we grow i.e. plaintains and mangos. We eat the meat of the animals we tend to pigs, cows, and chickens. Seeing them carve away at the ribs of the pig made me truly see where my favorite meal of Barbecue Ribs actually comes from. And for the people that I live with to have the skills and will to raise and kill this pigs says alot. They dont just walk down the aisle and pick up freshly sliced pork chops resting on styrofoam trays wrapped in plastic, they see the life of the pig from birth to death and obtain the meat with their own hands.

After seeing this experience I did not expect to be eating pork for quite a while as you can imagine. But actually I ended up nibbling away at freshly boiled chicharones, pig skin, with fresh lemons and a cold imperial 3 hours after the fact the pig was living and breathing. Overall it was a great experience, that same night another neighbor came over who killed one of his cows and left the full rib cage of the cow he slaughtered on our kitchen table. A small child could have fit inside of the giant bloody ribcage that was left on our table. That morning I had no idea I was going to experience that. Just like everymorning I wake up here in Costa Rica it is a new adventure.

English Classes. So far I have had 4 English Classes for the adults. 2 classes each week 2 hours each. I am averaging around 35 people per class which is insane considering that I am using the same classroom where 25 small primary school students completely fill up the space. It is an awesome experience teaching people from ages 18 to 65 in my class. People all have various different skill levels but for the most part are all beginning learners. We have begun to learn basic introductions, alphabet, and numbers. I am looking to start up an official program with accompanying books and other materials in November. Right now I am making the class up by myself entirely, just like how I am with my kindergarten and primary school classes. Everyone seems to really be enjoying the classes, It is definately a handful with so many students, but I look forward to working more with all of them.

Interviews. I have continued along the with the interviews in my town and at this point I am approximately 85 percent complete with all of my interviews. It has been really eye opening to see everyone houses in my community and talk to them about the issues facing them. I will be using all of this information in the future for my report about the community.

This past weekend I went to San Jose to visit my traning host family as well to celebrate two volunteers birthdays, Bill and Julia. Visiting my training host family was alot of fun and very relaxing. It was awesome to meet up with them, It kind of felt like coming back home, but to my home in Costa Rica. They are all doing well and we caught up on what we all were doing and I explained to them the latest in my life. The next day I woke up to 10 women in the house painting pictures on canvases. Apparently for the past 3 months every friday my host mom and her friends get together and paint all afternoon and have a leisurely lunch together. It was fascinating to see, my friend Bill also came over to my family. It was not just the fact that they were painting which struck me. It was that that my host family had their whole family as well as extended family and friends at the beautiful mountain top house with 360 degree mountain views doing art together. It was a very tranquil afternoon with art, food, and fun. The guys were fixing the cars, while the women were painiting, while all the children playing on the deck. This is a regular weeky occurance. To me this solidifies the feeling of family, and importance of family within their lives. While others around the world are staring at the clock to hit 5 on a friday they are spending time together relaxing and enjoying life. Sure that they live a more basic life then many in the US. But what is really important to drive that new car back home to a house late friday night, or drive back home early in a less fancy car to spend time with family and friends. Clearly people have different economic situation and what not, but for me and being here in Costa Rica I have noticed the central importance of family here. I remember coming home in Middle School and Highschool and going to my friends houses immediately after school or participating in other activites away from home. Here people come home after school and play with their siblings and extended family down the road well past High school. Clearly it is a different look from the more individualistic way of life, which is predominantely lived in America.
Later that weekend I partied it up with all the members of my Tico group in San Jose. We had an awesome time from dancing in the clubs to heading over to the Regal Mall Escazu to watch movies and play Playstation 3 on the largest widescreen HDTV in the world. Crazyness.

Overall my time here in Costa Rica has been great and I look forward to more crazy advenures and experiences. Soon I will have another meeting with all the volunteers in the south at the beach and then my girlfriend Tamar is coming which I am highly anticipating.

Shout out to Russell P. and Jen S. for hooking it up big time with an amazing care package for me. I am extremely grateful to recieve anything from the US. Thanks for your generosity. For the rest of you out there I patiently await for your packages. If you send me something, I can arrange to send you a howler monkey or toucan or something, haha we´ll see.

Much love for all. Tuanis.

Rudy

Living in Costa Rica = Amazing Times

So far soo good here in Costa Rica. My dad had the opportunity to visit early this month which was an absolute blast. We had the opportunity to do alot of different things together, while still having the ability to spend time at my site in the beautiful southern part of Costa Rica. It was really amazing to have someone from home, especially my dad, come visit me out here in the Jungle.

After my Dads visit I made my way over to San Jose for the bi annual VAC Dinner were we celebrated the new ¨Tico¨groups arrival and the oldest group departure. Tico 16 represented again strong, with everyone showing up to the event. As well we ran the party as evident of the after dinner ¨fiesta¨in my hotel room which had a large attendance to say the least. Then the next to a large amount of us went to the illustrious Terramall to watch movies. Andrew, Bill and I managed to watch the terrible movie entitled ¨Edison¨starring LL Cool J and Justin Timberlake. At least we were sitting in an air conditioned room with comfortable chairs, that is really all that matters.

Monday late afternoon I made it back to my site in one piece. I have continued working with the children in my town at the school regarding English classes. They are going well and I am incorporating more fun learning games into my curriculum which makes it fun for me and them. This Thursday I held a meeting at the town church regarding adult english classes. I had a very large attendance at the meeting of alittle over 35 people. I was very excited that people showed alot of enthusiasm regarding these future classes. I have now setup to new adult classes on tuesdays and wednesdays during the late afternoon and night. This coming week will be the first round of classes for the adults and I am eager to start working with them. The classes will serve as a great opportunity for learning within the community as well serve as a social opportunity for members of the community to get to know each other better.

This week I am looking to wrap up all my individuals interviews in my town . I have already written the first draft of my CAT (Community Analysis Tool) but in order for everything to be up to date and accurate I need to finish all my interviews. For the most part the interviews house to house have been a great experience. It is great to step foot into every house in my village and really talk face to face with the individuals about their happinesses, concerns, and lives overall.

I am looking to continue working with the newly formed committee de deportes (sports commitee) regarding fixing the soccer field and getting new uniforms for the sports teams. As well I look forward to my continued work with the development association regarding the water situation in my town.

Overall things are good in Costa Rica. Life is very good. I feel fully comfortable in my site and generally getting to and being anywhere in Costa Rica. I am excited to work with a couple new volunteers who have recently arrived in the southern part of Costa Rica, and as well continue work with my community members. What I love most about my life is the freedom which I have. The freedom to wake up everyday and say : Hey, What do I want to do today? I feel like never again in my life will I have the freedoms which I have now to simply do whatever I want, while still having the ultimate goal of helping people help themselves at the same time. Before coming here I told my self that this opportunity will allow me to do some soul searching and really discover what I want to do with my life. Well I have done a little bit of both, I still look forward to the future time I have here.

Anyways that is the latest from me. I look forward to seeing you all down here ASAP. Special thanks to Tamar and my family for sending me packages out here in the Jungle.

One Love. Respect.