Rosie's Adventures: September 2011

So it has been awhile since my last blog and this is mainly due to the fact that I have actually been quite busy….in a Tica sense. Smile The 15th of this month marks my 4th month of being at site, almost 7 months being in Costa Rica and about a year of being in Peace Corps in general, so looking back I can say time has been flying by. Last week I finished my 2 week training called IST, which is given to all volunteers after their 3 months in site. I have to say it was an emotional, exciting, boring, and educational experience all in one but I am very proud of myself to have reached this point in my service. Before I go into IST, I want to talk about what’s been going on in Matina for the last 3 months.

Since my last blog I was preparing to teach my first English class for adults and kids, and after about 2 months of teaching I can honestly say it has been quite an experience… for me. My adult class I consider to be successful and still going strong with about 15 students who attend regularly. Attendance has dwindled since the first class when about 30 students came but I think it has worked out for the best since a class of 15 is much easier to handle than a class of 30. I usually make up my own lesson plans using various ESL workbooks, and a other resources that I have gotten from Peace Corps. So far I see great progress although its difficult to get them talking a lot they are generally excited about the class and learning. My youth class on the other hand, let’s just say I am learning about patience and wondering if I have enough to work with kids. My class started out with about 20-25 students and the last class I had about 4 students came (although that was one of the best classes I had). I will say that this is partially my fault since I told the students that if they will not do work, and continue to come unprepared I would cancel the class which translated to the class is canceled. I have come to terms with this and realize that this may be for the best. There are many programs I would like to do in the future with the youth and I think by building individual relationships and learning about the things they would like to do will be better in terms of implementing long term successful programs.

Other than my my classes I have been working with the social worker and psychologist (Interdisciplinario) in the elementary school doing different “tallers” or seminars. I mostly work with the kids doing different educational games as an icebreaker before the sessions start. The sessions are usually based on healthy living and lifestyles, topics such as hygiene, drug prevention, teamwork, and respecting others. I also co-facilitate sessions with the Interdisciplinario aimed at parents of the students on different social topics such as domestic violence, child abuse and drug prevention.

So I feel like I have been productive but at my own pace. It’s a very different not having a set schedule and pretty much having to make up your work. This experience is really what you make it, and I hope to make it real successful. Going to IST has inspired me and now I am all pumped to plan projects with my community, start looking for grants,writing proposals and really get started on my work here. IST is pretty much a Project Management and Design workshop that provides you with training and resources to begin different projects in your community. And there are lots of things that you can do from environmental to social development. It’s also a time where volunteers can all get together and hang out since everyone is located in different parts of the country there are rare occasions when we can all get together as a group. Plus you can vent about your community and the hardships you may be going thru and for some there are serious problems. For example some people live in very rural communities; My friend has 50 ppl in her community and has to walk and hour to get to the local bus. I also used this time for a little vacation and visited one of my friend’s site in Puntarenas, where we spent time at the beach and slept in a tree house Winking smile . As a volunteer I cant afford the type of typical vacations most people consider when coming to Costa Rica so my trips include staying at hostels,going to less touristy beaches, taking hikes to waterfalls, and swimming in rivers. Pretty much the backpacker lifestyle, but I enjoy it nonetheless.

I feel like this blog was a bit boring and long but I just wanted to catch you up on my life as I know it. So feel free to email, write or comment. I posted some picks below of my town, my host mom’s grandkids, the local school and some the workshops I have been facilitating. Till next time…..Tchau