Settling In

Has it really only been a week? I feel like I've been here for months, but I've been far from disappointed. Belize is an amazing country!  Following my last post, I began my Pre-departure Training and met the rest of my cohort – BH2.  This just indicates that we are the second group to come into Belize focusing strictly on health (Belize Health).  The rest of the people in the group are all amazing!! We have all gotten really close during the past week.  I feel like I've known them for much longer than a week.

Pre-departure Training consisted of some basic safety training, but was mostly icebreakers to force all of us to speak to each other.  The next morning we were up and on our way to the airport.  Landing in Belize City was such a rush.  There was no turning back.  We were in it for real.  We were greeted by the staff and on our way to Belmopan, the capital city.  As soon as we got there, we began the introductions from the staff and to the site.  Belize is unlike any Latin American country I've ever been to.  For instance, in most other countries, the capital and other large cities are full of towering buildings and crowded streets; however, in Belize, the “urban hubs” are far more rural than these other countries.  To further this point, the tallest building in the country is a Mayan ruin, not a skyscraper.  In Belmopan, there are only 10,000 people.  If this is a big city, I can’t wait to see what a village is like.

This past week of training has been a lot of classes.  We've been learning mostly about staying safe and ways to mitigate dangerous situations.  Aside from that, we've had classes on our homestays and how the Peace Corps works toward development.  One of the classes that we've had is essentially a type of group therapy.  During these sessions, we are forced to remember why we came here and how to deal with the trying times. In one of these sessions, we were asked why we decided to join the Peace Corps.  I went with the usual "I like to help people" answer, but that wasn't enough for me this time.  I wanted to consider why I like to help people.  I came to the realization that I am very fortunate.  I've been given a lot in my life and had a lot of opportunities, but others aren't as fortunate as me.  They don't have the access to the amenities that I've had access to my whole life.  Because of this disparity, I believe that it's my duty as a person to help those that are less fortunate.

Outside of the classroom, the group went to a Mayan village on Saturday.  We walked around a cacao farm and saw how they turned it into chocolate.  Then we walked through a hut that was the Mayan museum.  It just had the usually setup of a Mayan home/kitchen.  We made some tortillas out of flour and water and learned a traditional Mayan dance.  We then went and visited a Mayan healer.  It was really cool!  The connection that the Maya have with nature is awesome!

Later today, we will be going to live with a host family for our Community Based Training (CBT) in the village of Armenia, only about 30 minutes outside of Belmopan down the Hummingbird Highway.  During this time, we will continue to take classes, but these will be more technical than the ones up to this point.  We will be learning more about how to lead a community health project as well as taking language classes.  We will be in Armenia until early September, when we will have our swearing in.  This is also an important time because the host family that we are placed with will determine the community we will be in for the next two years.

To determine our placement, we had an interview with the staff.  Before leaving the states, I was beginning to get in tuned with my Native American ancestry.  For this reason, I wanted to get placed in a Mayan community; however, during the first week, I was torn between wanting to learn Spanish or Q'eqchi (Ketchi).  To me, there are positives to both.  Spanish is a language that could be used back in the US.  That plus the fact that I already know a fair amount of Spanish made it a very appealing language to learn.  With the Maya, however, I would be living the Peace Corps experience.  I wouldn't have electricity or internet.  It would just be a very cool (and at times difficult) way to spend the next two years.  My mindset was that when I signed up for PC I was willing to go anywhere, not necessarily guaranteeing me Spanish.  I decided that I would continue with this idea and told the interviewers that I wanted Q'eqchi, and yesterday, I officially found out that I will in fact be living in a Mayan community for the next two years speaking Q'eqchi!! I couldn't be more excited to get started and learn some of the language!

That's about it for now! Gotta get back to class.  Thanks to everyone for all the support.  I lose instant access to internet later today, so if you don't hear from me as frequently, that's why.  And here's a pudgy baby just because.