It's been awhile

I know it has been awhile.  I have been at my site for a couple weeks now.  I've lost count.  This is the first time I've been able to use my laptop.  There is one internet center in Santa Rosa and I couldn't connect my laptop so I didn't spend my 30 pesos to use the internet.  I'm in Baní today.  There is a volunteer, Jessica, that lives a 15 minute moto ride away.  We decided to go to a pool near the beach and then have pizza and use the internet here in Baní.

I had a rocky spot last week.  For six days my diet consisted of antidiarrheal meds, rehydration salts, and saltine crackers.  I'm not really sure what I had.  I will finish some antibiotics tomorrow for some sort of infection/virus, I'd really prefer not to know.  While I was sick everyone had their own 'remedy' for my sickness.  My host mom made me tea with garlic and oregano.  Another woman made me fried plantains and fried chicken stating that fried food doesn't have fat.  Needless to say I can't wait to get my own place and control my diet.

Speaking of, I've had my eye out for house in the community.  Some they have shown me had latrines/outhouses, which I'm not too keen on, and others were a bit out of my price range.  We'll see what I come up with in the next couple months.  My host mom would prefer that I just live with her the whole time.

I haven't been doing too much lately as far a 'work' goes.  You are suppose to take some time to integrate into your community.  So, I spend my time hanging out at my host family's house, the elementary school on our street, the banca (lottery place) with Fatima (one of the facilitators), Fatima's house.  I meet a lot of people, watch soap operas and American movies in Spanish.

I will hopefully be updating more often.  Within the next couple of months I look forward getting wireless internet for my computer, but like everything here it is a process.

I put up some pictures.