Life is Small Time

1)  Post-COS Plans --  my plans after I COS in a few months:  traveling, naturally, and looking forward to seeing some of my fellow agros from Cameroon:

2)  Stop Harming the Community -- a fellow volunteer sent me this list of 25 Tips for PCVs.  Its actually a few years old, but still a good list of suggestions on how best to do development work.  One more tip that could be added to the list:  "Just stop paying for things,"  courtesy of Jeff, RPCV Cameroon.

3)  Feliz Cumpleaños, Extraño -- someone was having a late night birthday party in Colombia and while it was a little annoying because I was trying to sleep, their rendition of Happy Birthday was nonetheless quite catchy. 

4)  Una Misión a la Montaña

 

offroading to a few schools in the mountains

5)  Channelling Greg LeMond -- fellow PCRV William and I biked for 3 straight days when he visited my post. 

 

Getting chased by a dog in the process

A bit scary biking these roads since they're often winding and there aren't exactly any bike lanes. 

Heading North to Go to South America

Highlights of my trip to Cartagena, Colombia:

1)  Sightseeing

 

Castillo de San Felipe

"And if I've built this fortress around your heart…"

2)  A Tale of Two Hostals -- stayed at two hostals in Cartagena.  The first hostal was more popular and kind of a party hostal.  The second hostal was cheaper and, well, kind of run-down, but more relaxing and the people were friendlier. 

3)  The Starbucks of Colombia

Juan Valdez Cafe

4)  Watching Chess in the Park

5)  Watching dolphins from the ferry...

Took the ferry from Panama to Colombia and caught sight of dolphins

A great trip.  Wish I could go back and travel to other parts of Colombia, including Bogota, Cali and Barranquilla, the birthplace of Shakira.  Viva Colombia!

La Resurrección …

...of my blog, in honor of Holy Week.

1)  Boquete De Nuevo -- My sister was kind enough to visit me recently.  Aside from Panama City and visiting my post, we also did a hike in Boquete:

The Three Waterfalls hike in Boquete

2)  In Work-Related News …

 

PCV Kelsey and I helping out our counterparts with a reforestation project.  

Where the biodegradable polypots at?

 

What's being planted - guayacan, cedro amargo, cocobolo

Teaching Kelsey's youth group how to make a cellphone case from potato chip bags

3)   Remember those Silly Superlatives? -- I don't remember who got 'Most Likely to Become Director of Programming and Training' back in training or COS Conference, but there's an opening. 

4)  99 Little Victories -- Found a supermarket in Santiago that sells bulk items and that also doesn't require me to accept their supposedly biodegradable plastic bag.  *cough* Schmachetazo! 

5)  I Think That Was an Earthquake, Therefore it Happened --  according to a report from NPR, student-athletes at the Univ. of North Carolina were steered to take so-called 'bogus' classes like geology and philosophy in order to be eligible to play.  What?!  Those are hard classes!  I'm now on the side of the athletes on this discussion. 

The Bad Man Punted Baxter!

Fellow PCRV from Guatemala:  Panamanians tell me I don't speak Spanish.
Me:  Yeah, they tell me that, too.  But as they tell me that, I'm thinking, "I'm not speaking Spanish?  You're not speaking Spanish either.  I don't know what you're speaking."
Fellow PCRV:  We're all pretty much speaking garbage Spanish. 

1)  Conversin' with the Locals -- trying to get into the flow of Panamanian Spanish:

Talking about law schools

Talking about religion

Know your numbers

2)  They Do Eat Bush Meat -- wild iguanas are protected, but I found out that there's a demand for them.  Professionals like lawyers, politicians, the local Chinese population are just some of the people who buy wild iguanas in order to eat them.  Iguanas that aren't wild or "domesticated" meanwhile are ok to eat and a Panamanian told me they're quite delicious.

3)  Queso! -- In Cameroon, people don't smile in photos.  In Panama, its half and half:

4)  Environmental Dilemmas -- a) A fellow PCRV gave me some cheese, but it was the cheese where each slice was individually wrapped, b)  after an environmental meeting, the host gave us all lunch in polystyrene containers.   Sometimes, its hard not to look a gift horse in the mouth. 

5)  Old Movies I'm Appreciating Right Now --   Malcolm X, Anchorman, Gattaca,  Galaxy Quest. 

Esa es Vieja Noticia

1)  You Like Cameroon or Panama better? -- RPCV Mac recently asked me that question and with 3-4 months left in Panama, I think its a good time to reflect on my brief time in Panama.  The first thing that comes to mind is how similar Panama is to the US.  I sometimes feel like I'm doing AmeriCorps when I'm in Panama b/c, well, it IS part of America and its pretty developed in ways like the US.  Panama seems like its just 2-3 motivated counterparts away from not needing any outside help, if they're not there already.  Cameroon, meanwhile, seems like it has a long way to go with so many challenges in its way.  I can go on, but I think this topic is better discussed over a cold beer (warm if you're in Cameroon). 

2)  Todos Estan Pasando … Finalmente.  Parece. -- the megafight between Pacquiao and Mayweather is apparently finally happening:

Front page news in Panama

The topic of Pacquiao always comes up when I tell the locals that I'm Pinoy.  They may have no idea where the Philippines is, but they know who Pacquiao is:

Cross-cultural exchange: discussing the fight with community members

3)  Mountain Fiesta -- I was recently invited to a counterpart's fiesta out in the mountains:

Yup, its pretty deforested, mainly due to cattle ranching and agriculture

A cow was slaughtered and its meat dried in what is called a talanquera

Giants pots for sancocho (a type of soup) and also for yucca, aka cassava

Dancing and music

With my counterparts

Large pots, a big meal, music, hard liquor and dancing.  Reminds me of the mountain fiestas in the Philippines, minus the accordion. 

4)  In Hot Pepper News … -- the eatery nearby finally had some real hot sauce, locally-made:

And my habanero seeds in the backyard are showing signs of life despite the heat:

5)  Everything Causes Cancer -- a guy at the nearby eatery was preparing a charcoal grill and he put some plastic in the grill and burned it.  Not really sure why he did that, but it made me wonder:  if burning plastic is bad and if grilling is also bad,  then the combination must be incredibly lethal.