Aguacero!

Aguacero means thunderstorm, which seems to be the main motif of my experience thus far in Panama. We are currently in the middle of one right now.

So I am back from survey! I actually got back two days ago but I have had so much paperwork that I haven't had much time for the computer until now (and maybe I have watched a few world cup games as well...). Anyway, everything went really well and I am now even more excited for this summer now that I have a concrete vision in my head of what things look like. The week was pretty long so I will give a few highlights:

-Edwin, the man from the Ministerio de Salud (Ministry of Health) that took me to my communities every day. We bonded over a mutual love of the Yankees - I am going to send him a t-shirt when they win the World Series this fall. Many Panamanians love the Yankees because Mariono Rivera is from Panama. People in Coclé are very quick to mention that Carlos Lee, of the Houston Astros, is from Coclé. Anyway, Edwin and I got along swimmingly and shared a few experiences involving broken steering columns and windy mountainous roads.

-The mountains! 3 out of 4 of my communities are located high in the mountains and have breathtaking views. It's one of those things where I literally have to pause for a second to just take everything in because the scenery is so incredible. The bad news about the mountains is that they are steep! I have some difficult uphill climbs in order to reach my communities, which can get pretty tiring. I sweat more in one day than any normal person would sweat in a month. The most frustrating thing is that 70-year-old Panamanian men can walk up these hills while carrying on a deep conversation and I am huffing and puffing and wiping away my sweat after 5 minutes. Hopefully this will change in the coming weeks.

-The people: I met so many incredible people this week, who opened their homes and made me feel really welcome and comfortable in their houses. This sounds a bit cliche, but it's true so I don't really mind. I would have loved to have had more time in each community in order to get to know people better, but I started a few really great relationships that I am sure will grow throughout the summer.

-Sombreros: I work in the area of La Pintada (a municipality within Coclé), which is famous for it's painted sombreros. (Painted..La Pintada... get it?). Anyway, ALL of the women here make sombreros that are sold in the community or to intermediaries who take them to tourist markets, and I have been able to observe the process a bit. It takes about 3 days to make one hat! Many of the women also make tiny hats that are used for keychains and things. Felicita, one of the host moms I found, said that she would make me a little hat for the next time that I saw her!

Survey was also pretty hard at times, but it was a very rewarding experience overall. Right now we are in the process of planning briefing, which is the volunteers' orientation to the country. The volunteers arrive in two days, so we have a LOT of work to do! I will try to update again in the next few days before the volunteers come.

hasta luego

Rachel