Until we see each other again.

This afternoon I officially swore out and completed my 27 months of Peace Corps service, which makes me a "Returned" Peace Corps Volunteer, although I have yet to actually return to the United States. That will happen tomorrow/Sunday.

This will be my final post from Paraguay, the heart of South America. I find it true what others have told me today, that I will carry Paraguay and its beautiful people in my heart for always. Agueruhata jepi Paraguay ha igente chendive che corazonpe. Llevaré y siempre tendré Paraguay y su gente maraviollosas en mi corazón.

It has been an extremely difficult week emotionally, and I would like to express my gratitude to all of my friends and family at home, in the U.S., in Paraguay, and around the world for their constant support, understanding, shoulders to cry on, much-needed tough advice, and wise words, not only in this time but throughout my entire service. I love you all. It is so hard to say goodbyes, but I am also so deeply relieved and excited to be going "home."

Congratulations y Felicidades a G-31¡! We made it, and we surpassed it in so many ways. If there is one thing that I can say about my Peace Corps service, it is that I truly gave all of my self. I held nothing back, and I have no regrets.

Peace, Love, and Tranquilopa.

-Amanda

And here's my close-of-service questionaire for our Volunteer publication "The Kuat" (Kuatia Nee or the Paper that Speaks).

Name/Name in site: Amanda, Mamánda, “A-ma-nda-ba-ra-no-ki!” Site/Pueblo/Dept.: San José Boquerón, Ybycuí, Paraguarí What your site is know for: the cerro (big hill) behind my house What you’re know for in site: baking cakes, jogging, playing with the kids, the big backpack What you’re gonna use your Readjustment Allowance on: travel to Eastern Europe with my sister then a deposit on a sweet apartment in Chi-town First thing you’ll eat when you get “home”: Mom’s pork chops with applesauce. Or Taco Bell. Cool skill learned in the ‘Guay: climb through barbed wire fences in a skirt Fav PY’an phrase: Piko, Haikuepete, Suerte. How you beat the heat: Open everything in the morning, close everything in the afternoon, lots of tereré and watermelon (but not together!) What you’ll miss the most: the kids, chipa-making hapes, wise advice from señora friends, everyone knowing/yelling my name Never thought you’d: come to crave Paraguayan food, love chicarron(like bacon but with more fat and less meat), or buy sopa/chipa (homemade only) almost every chance I get Strangest thing you’ve eaten: Nothing seems too strange anymore, but then again I stopped trying to force down churra(organ meat) a while ago Most awkward moment: Just back from the states, 10am at neighbor’s house, her stumbling caña-drunk brother-in-law comes over to literally cry to me in incomprehensibly Guaraní about losing his onion crop to rot. And then the señora gets up and leaves me alone with him. Describe your language situation: Añe’ekuaa guaraníme porque heta la gente oñeecheve guaranime che comunidadpe. Che suertekatu. Best G-31 memory: Rockin’ kids camps with Teresa, and the “vanilla in the pasta salad” weekend 4th goal: read 100 books Your legacy in PY: neighbor girls knowing how to do cartwheels, play checkers, and read a book for fun. Also, 14 good-looking chicken coops with any luck. Oh and “Pato, pato,… lobo!” (Duck, duck, wolf!) Best & worst lunch crash: Best - chicarron and mandi’o family-style, worst - cow stomach soup Best purchase on a bus: all the ingredients for a killer fruit salad If you could change the Peace Corps motto: Redefining “work” since 1961. Advice for G-37: Say “yes” to every opportunity you get, at least the first time. Give people second chances because they will give them to you. Learn Guaraní. Speak Guaraní, no matter how terrible it is - many more doors will be opened to you. When frustrations get you down, plan something that you want to do, and it will be a success because of your enthusiasm for it. If you reach one person, you’ve made a difference. Most importantly - be yourself!

This morning, my 11 year old neighbor announced to me that I have 19 days left, living here in my community. Wow.

It was a wake-up call. I've been putting off starting to say my goodbyes because I didn't want my last month to be one long, sad, cry-fest. But now I'm beginning to realize that saying goodbye (in many forms) is the only real way that I'll be able to move on yet feel good about my service and my time here in Paraguay.

I've decided to do it bit by bit, but each day trying to accomplish a task I need to complete or visit a family I haven't seen in a while. I'm also starting to give away clothes, photos, and other gifts for people to remember me by. I think that doing it gradually will help it to seem more normal, more just a part of daily life and inevitable change as people's lives go different ways.

I'd like to do the same here on my blog, to share with you, my family and friends. I hope this doesn't seem like an unending farewell, but instead some further insight into what I've been doing these past 2 years and how it has changed me as a person. Also - I can't WAIT to see all of you in the good old U.S.A!!!

We'll start with the serious. Here's an official account of how I've spent my time as a PCV:

Assignment On December 11, 2009, Ms. Amanda Baranowski completed training and was sworn in as a Peace Corps Volunteer. She was assigned to San José Boquerón, a small community in the department of Paraguarí roughly 110 km south of Asunción. Guaraní is the language predominantly spoken there. Language Skills Ms. Amanda Baranowski has achieved Advanced Mid competency level in Spanish and Advanced Low competency level in Guaraní during her Service. She effectively used Spanish to communicate in her work at school, with her colleagues, and with Paraguayan community contacts. In addition, Ms. Baranowski was also able to learn Guaraní, which she used in her work with farmers, while traveling and to communicate with her neighbors. Primary Activities/Projects Women’s Committee During her service in San José Boquerón, Ms. Baranowski worked closely with the community’s women’s committee. The committee consisted of twenty women who met regularly in order to bring further development to the local community. Ms. Baranowski gave over twenty-five interactive trainings to the committee on a variety of topics including basic gardening, composting, family nutrition, contour planting, use of green manures, soil recuperation, beekeeping, and small animal husbandry. She also adapted these trainings to make them equally accessible for illiterate and/or deaf participants. Using a grassroots community participation model, Ms. Baranowski worked alongside women of the committee every week for 6 months to design and write a grant proposal for a chicken-raising project in order to improve food security in the community. The project is valued at USD $4,500 and is awaiting approval. Additionally, Ms. Baranowski helped the women to reassess and restructure the committee, in order to make both elected leaders and general members more accountable for the future of the organization. She supported the formation of a new committee as well, assisting with attaining formal recognition from the Municipality and the Governor. Over her two years of service, Ms. Baranowski facilitated a strong working relationship between the women’s committee and a local NGO, which resulted in an onion-growing project as an alternative income source and the construction of a community greenhouse. Soil Recuperation with Individual Farmers Ms. Baranowski also worked alongside individual farmers to recuperate their soil. Her efforts resulted in a total of 25 men and women learning about and planting green manures as an alternative way to improve the soil, and 5 farmers adapting contour planting in their fields. Peace Corps Training In June of 2011, Ms. Baranowski taught a soil conservation workshop for 37 Peace Corps Volunteers and Paraguayan counterparts at the Agriculture Sector’s In-Service Training. She also assisted with Pre-Service Training in 2010 and 2011, for a total of 32 Peace Corps Trainees. National Volunteer Action Committee Representative Ms. Baranowski served as her region’s representative to the National Volunteer Action Committee, addressing the concerns of Peace Corps Volunteers to Peace Corps Staff. Peace Corps Paraguay Seed Bank Treasurer Ms. Baranowski served as the treasurer for the Volunteer-run Seed Bank Committee, managing funds, buying seed, and keeping a running inventory of high-quality garden, tree, and green manure seeds available to Peace Corps Volunteers and their Paraguayan counterparts. SECONDARY ACTIVITIES/PROJECTS Family Finance Course Ms. Baranowski taught a seven-week series of 2 hour workshops on the topic of family finance to 20 women and youth, covering topics such as creating a savings plan, writing a budget, and taking out a loan. Youth Life Skills Development Ms. Baranowski mentored three teenage girls for a National Youth Leadership Camp and assisted them in conducting their own subsequent workshops on the topics of self-esteem, communication, and values, for 45 local teens from 5 surrounding communities. Children’s Literacy Group Ms. Baranowski established a weekly reading group to promote literacy, using read-aloud, partner-reading, and other techniques to reach over 45 children. “Literacy through Photography” Class for Children Ms. Baranowski taught a two-month “literacy through photography” class for the 10 6th grade students at the local elementary school. Students learned about perspective, lighting, framing, and the use of color in class and then took the cameras home to complete their homework each week. Through their own photographic experimentation, personal poems, and creative analyses, students learned creative new ways to express their ideas. The class culminated in a traveling exhibit of the students’ 25 best photos, which were displayed in the local community and in the nearby town. Summer Camps for Children Ms. Baranowski conducted a series of 3-day camps for children on topics of environmental education, dental hygiene, art, and creative expression, with an average of 30 children participating in each camp. English Tutoring Ms. Baranowski supported local English teachers by offering tutoring and in-class assistance. Ms. Amanda Baranowski completed her Peace Corps service in Paraguay on December 9, 2011.

See the big red flower? That's the beginning of "a whole bunch" of bananas!

And they are delicious, as Karen demonstrates.

You have to work a bit to get to them...

but the results are HUGE!Hello. I'm in a field of future Paraguayan cotton.

Karen and her grandfather, Don Julio. I just love this picture.

Yes, I now know how to milk a cow. Very slowly.

Here's the Estela the professional at work.

Pakova Kambyre (Banana Milk)

1 ripe banana1 cup milk (preferably whole)

Blend well. Enjoy the rich, nutritious goodness!

Celebration of a week's worth of hard labor with unbeatable Paraguayan music - live!

MBC Network crew filming the inaguaration of the community greenhouse.

Me and Miss Korea 1995 (now a television broadcaster). Behind us is the house that one group of the volunteers built for a family in my community whose house burned down 3 years ago.

I haven't posted in almost two months here because honestly, I didn't know what to write. Most of the cultural norms here now just seem "normal" to me, my work is coming to an end, and with the chilly winter weather, not much of anything was going on. REALLY. But now that I've resorted to my normal "I don't know what to write so I'll just post some pictures" play, I see that actually quite a lot has happened. So thanks, guilt-trippers, for encouraging me to reflect and see that things are always what they seem... especially when you're the one they're happening to. I've been taking the Ahecha kids on fieldtrips to town to put up their photos for exhibition in different locations. Here we are in the National Bank (yes, my favorite place.)

In August, I took my last vacation days and went to Northeastern Argentina (never more than a swim across the river from Paraguay) with my friends Dan and Mike.

Iguazu Falls are spectacular. REALLY.

This was a beautiful year for Tajy (guarani), or Lapacho (spanish) trees. They flower pink or yellow, when nothing else is flowering in the middle of winter and really light up the landscape.

Here's another cool flowering tree we saw in Argentina, but I don't know what it's called.

"Crossing the border back into Paraguay for another 3 months of service after a solid week of good beer, pool, pizza, waterfalls, coffee, and good company in Argentina."

"Just 3 months to go!!"

Tajy. And the Bicentennial of Paraguay.

Imelda, Estela, me, and Carmen at a campo dance party.

Dedi and I in town.

On a visit (finally) to the Ybycui National Park, we found that it was the site of ironworks, some of the first in South America, for 3 years in the 1860s.

While the artifacts are so old, it's still amazing at how advanced the technology was/is!

National Park in my "backyard" - with real hiking trails and waterfalls you can swim in! Hope to make it back here a few more times before December...

We finished our "Ahecha Paraguay" program with an exhibit opening at the school and certificates for each student. (Certificates are VERY big in Paraguay.) I'm now looking to move the exhibit to the bank in town and then maybe to the hospital. I will also trade photos with a Volunteer from another part of the country to show my students another example of the "Ahecha" program.

I taught 7 Family Finance classes in total, covering topics of what we value, why do we save money, how to make a budget, how to use credit, the difference between loaned money and your own money, and how to open a bank account. Over 20 women came to at least 2 classes, and a solid group of 6 ladies came to almost every one. We celebrated the last class with a decorated cake that I bought in town and certificates for each participant.

Finally, in the middle of my second winter here in Paraguay, I've bought myself a small charcoal stove. It doesn't get super cold in Paraguay, but living in continuous 45 or 50 degree weather will still chill you to the bone. So now on cool nights I light some charcoal when it gets dark (around 5pm) and keep warm until I go to bed (around 9pm). Sometimes I cook my dinner over it in the cast iron pot my mom sent me.

This year's San Juan festival at the school finally happened in July, after a weather postponement. I braided hair for 4 girls, every grade did a great job with their traditional Paraguayan dance, and it was a fun time for all.

Here me and my neighbor Silvia pose after her dance performance.

After all of the students dance, there is a DJ and dance party for everyone to get in on the fun. In a surprise turn of events, my dance partner for most of the night was Isabel, my six year old neighbor. Man, she knows how to groove!! We had a blast and I must say that she is my new favorite dance partner, by a mile.

Last week two Volunteer friends came to help me with a Winter Kids Camp for three days. It was an "arts" camp, complete with songs, dancing, recycled arts & crafts, and a different Odyssey of the Mind challenge each day. The kids loved it and on our last day, almost 30 came! I was especially proud of their creativity with the Odyssey of the Mind games, because creative expression is generally discouraged here, so it can be hard for people to think outside of the box.

On the last day of camp, my friend Jose (in the white shirt) came to visit and brought some of his friends, Korean Volunteers from other parts of the country. They made lunch, I made banana bread, and we had a nice afternoon.

My friend Carmen (in yellow) celebrated her 35th birthday last weekend. I helped her make a HUGE birthday cake (4 lbs of flour!) and it was a small tranquilo dinner celebration with close family and friends, chicken, cake, and dancing until the power went out and cut the party a little short, haha. It's hard to dance in the dark and without pounding music!

Sometimes in Paraguay, one word can mean a whole heck of a lot. It's hard to explain, but I'm going to try because these are some of my favorite words to say, and hardest also to NOT include in conversations in English. Here I'll try to give some translations of what I might say in English versus what I'd say in the same situation in Guarani. And believe me, with the right expression and vocal inflection, the translation really is the same.

1. Question: So Amanda, how did your kids' camp go last week?

English Answer: It went really well! A lot of kids came and they seemed to love all of activities that we prepared for them. They also behaved well and we all had fun together.

Guarani Answer: Ose pora! Oporta pora ha'e'kuera ha rovy'ama oñondive.

(Oh-say poh-nah! Oh-port-ah poh-na hah-eh-coo-eh-rah hah roh-vuh*-ah-mah oh-neo-n-dee-veh) *the "y" sound in Guarani doesn't exist in English. It is a short guttural grunt. Try it out!

Ok...so this example isn't that drastic of a difference. But it is less than half the space, and 8 Guarani words vs. 32 in English. Not bad.

2. Question: Amanda, is there any more cake left?

English Answer: Oh no, I'm sorry there's not any left. It looks like it all got eaten.

Guarani Answer: Opama.

(Oh-pah-ma.)

Yes! Here is a better example. "Opa" means to end and "ma" is an adverb that conveys a sense of time in the present. "It has ended" might be a good translation, but of course, we wouldn't say that in English. Also, in saying simply "opama" I can convey my sympathy that there isn't any more cake left for you to eat but also not feel the need to implicate any wrongdoing in this state. The cake has ended, that's all.

3. Question: Amanda, how are you doing in general? Do you like living in San Jose Boqueron?

English Answer: I'm doing pretty well overall, and despite its challenges I do enjoy living in Paraguay and in San Jose Boqueron specifcally.

Guarani Answer: Avy'a.

(Ah-vuh*-ah).

Bam. This example might be the winner. "Avy'a" means to be happy but more than that...to be content. Not that that everything is perfect by a longshot, but that you're getting by and are generally happy where you are and what you are doing. For most Paraguayans, when I ask them this same question they laugh at me and say, "Amanda, how could I not be happy living here? This is where I'm from. This is where my family is." And that is that. Now for me, this is not to say that I don't have my very lonely days, that I don't miss my family and friends terribly, that I'm not feeling like I'm ready to complete my two years of service here pretty soon. Because all of those things are true.

But when a Paraguayan asks me if I "avy'a" still here in Paraguay, I say honestly and without a moment's hesitation, "Sí... avy'a." Because I do. And I think I've learned here how to be able to know that feeling and look for it wherever I may go.

With six months of Peace Corps service left to go, I find myself more and more often thinking about how I’ve changed, what I’ve learned, what habits I’ve acquired, and how I will adjust back to life in the United States. And also being amazed at how fast the time flies! The different habits part hit me the other morning when I woke up to an upset stomach. Here’s a few things that I do now, that I never much thought about when I first came to Paraguay.

1. “Don’t Ignore the Symptoms”

My “work-through-it” attitude has pretty much faded away. Whatever inkling of sickness I have, I usually start treating it right away, to try to prevent it from getting any worse (which can happen really fast, here especially). If I get an upset stomach, I stop my normal eating. I make myself ginger tea, eat toast or crackers, and make a broth with rice. I also drink a liter of electrolyte mixture to ward off dehydration. Basically, I pump the liquids. If I feel a cold coming on, I do the same, but minus the electrolytes and plus more maté and tereré. They keep you peeing like crazy, which is good for flushing out your system.

2. “What Do the Clouds Say”

I swear, more of my conversations here are about weather than anything else. But it’s not just small talk - The weather affects meeting plans, travel plans, planting plans, etc etc. I was supposed to travel to another Volunteer’s site yesterday to help with a green manures charla but it was lightning in two directions and threatening rain in three when I went to leave at 6am. So I cancelled the travel plans, not wanting to travel 6 hours (walking, bus, more walking) for nothing and especially not wanting to get stuck out at this Volunteer’s site, with such a busy week coming up (He lives 2 hours walking from the highway, which is also dirt, and the buses don’t run when it rains.) But then, OF COURSE, it cleared up and was beautifully warm and sunny all day. It can be very frustrating, but what’s a person to do.

3. “How Can I Use That?”

Just as a product of my lifestyle here, I create less waste than I ever have before. My food scraps go to the compost pile or to feed the animals, 2 liter pop bottles store water, old jelly jars store rice and popcorn, my “organizational spacing system” consists of old fruit crates and cardboard boxes, my wash basin is made from an old tire, and I plant in milk and fruit juice boxes. Even my crap is composting, and requires no flushing. I’m not tooting my own horn, of course this depends on where you are and what resources you have. But through campo living, I have realized that it is possible to live with less.

Once again, I’m not comparing this to our lifestyles in the U.S., just realizing for myself how my habits have changed due to my living situation and life here in Paraguay. Also, as my sister puts it, “Manda… you have a lot of time to brood.”

So true! So forgive my inner ramblings that I’ve outwardly expressed here, but just thought I’d share a little bit more into my daily Peace Corps life (and the results of having a lot of time to think and reflect…or brood. Haha).

See you in December!

As promised, here are some of my favorite pictures from the "I See Paraguay" literacy through photography project that I've been running with the local sixth grade class for the past 2 months. All of the pictures are the property of the Ahecha program, and were taken by boys and girls, ages 11-13. Our community exhibit will take place starting June 25, in conjunction with the Festival of San Juan.

The scene:

A place where the sea determines much of life.

A city of hills where neighbors are close and the nearest coconut water vendor is even closer.

A beach that locals and travelers share with gusto, and the covering is minimal.

A place where the green countryside is still close by.

Welcome to... Salvador da Bahia, Brazil! Salvador is the 3rd largest city in Brazil and is located on the Atlantic Coast, in the northeastern state of Bahia. It is also the current home of my friend Diego, who is studying for his masters' there in the State University. Here's a photo account of my week there, a fantastic time!

Here we're eating at Diego's usual lunch spot, in a makeshift restaurant below street level. The food was delicious and inexpensive. I had feijoada, a local dish of slowly stewed beans, with sausage and beef, with pasta, rice, and salad on the side.

Here, Diego's mom shows me her plants at their family home in Feira, about 1 hour from Salvador. She was a super fun and straightforward lady... She let me know when my Portuguese made no sense and simultaneously made me feel right at home.

Here we're checking out an old monastery/lighthouse. In the distance is the main downtown part of the city, across the bay. And this is my best imitation of a female Paraguayan photo pose. It's a work in progress.

It was a week of unexpected encounters with interesting people, made even more interesting with my poor Portuguese but everyone's insistence of speaking it with me. This is Nathalia from Rio de Janeiro. We met on the beach and hung out the next few days!

Here is Pelourinho, the "old" part of the city. It's well known for its steep streets and vibrantly painted buildings.

After a open air, live band dance party, we followed behind this drum team, who also attracted a crowd of impromptu samba dancers behind them. You couldn't help but bounce along to the rhythm.

So as you can see... we had a pretty darn fun group. Here, Diego, his older brother Ede, Nathalia, and I head to the street dance party. I don't think I've ever danced more in a single week in my entire life. And I LOVED IT! My advice... Get to know a little bit of Brazil. I think you'll love it too.

The alarm went off at 5:30am. I had positioned it next to my pillow, so there was no need to fight my way out of the mosquito net to hit the snooze. It was still dark, and one of those days that I really did not feel like getting out of bed, due more to emotional reasons than physical ones. But as I had a standing date for early morning maté with Ña Merarda,, I finally forced myself out of the net around 6am, needing to feed the chickens and pig before leaving and not wanting to arrive for maté at an embarrassingly late hour (sure sign of non-guapaness). As I locked up my house and headed down the muddy road, the sun was just starting to creep over the distant ridge. A neighbor´s son passed me on his bike, already returning from some early morning errand, and at the corner, some young people home for a visit to their parents greeted me with hugs, besos, and invitations for nail-painting and a party tomorrow night. Despite feeling slightly accosted by such well-intentioned intensity at 6:15am, I arrived to Ña Merarda’s house already with a slightly less dreary mood. I arrived in good time as Ña Merarda was just finishing starting to build her daily fire to heat up the maté water. Over boiling bitter tea sipped quickly in short swallows, Ña Merarda, Don Severiano and I discussed herbal remedies, their children, life under Stroessner`s dictatorship, and one of the more foreign questions that I had asked in yesterday´s introductory family finance class – If you had a day free of activities, work, and responsibilities, what would you do? This was nearly impossible for most of the women in the class to imagine. Not even noticing the time, and not being especially eager to return back to my house to be alone again, I stayed for a breakfast of fried tortillas and mandioca, followed by a mound of oranges picked at that moment from the small orchard behind the house, by Ña Merarda’s two grandchildren that live with her. As I walked back home feeling stuffed with Paraguyan goodness, it was nearly 10am… only about 3 hours later than expected. Back at my house, I sat down to listen to some music and shell some crotalaria seeds and soy beans, both from my demonstration plot. Soon thereafter, Isidora, the youngest girl that I took to the youth leadership camp earlier in the month, finally came by for a visit. I let her choose which photos of the trip she wanted to keep as souveniurs, and we talked about the upcoming charla series that she and the other two girls will be facilitating in the next month. All the while we were chatting and catching up, we were both shelling soy beans from the bowl in her lap. Meanwhile, my neighbor girls popped over to ask me if I’d like to go drink some tereré next door with their older sister Estela. I said sure, Isi headed back home, and I was off again for another visit. Estela was at her mother’s house taking advantage of the semi-automatic washing machine and the running water – neither of which she has at her own house in the next community over. We sat down for some icy tereré with mint and lemongrass and laughed over her 5 year old daughter’s impressive cartwheels and botched attempts at somersaults. Estela is a year older than me, and is now going back to school at night, in town, in order to get her high school diploma. She then wants to study nursing, but confides to me that four years is really just such a long time. The daughter, Karen, is learning English in her private school in town, and Estela wants me to teach her as well since she herself cannot help in this particular subject, which Karen for which likes to berate her, as only five year olds can. With my Ahecha photography class scheduled for 2pm, I excused myself from this noontime tereré session to quickly cook up some pasta for lunch. There was no time for the customary shower-before-meeting-time, but I put on dark jeans, redo my hair, trade my flipflops for real shoes, and call myself presentable. As I headed down the road again, I picked up four little girls along the way, two of whom are in my class. We arrived at school fifteen minutes early, with most of my students already there although mine is the only class they have today. Technically, it is vacation for Day of the Paraguayan Teacher. However, as 2:00 approaches we were still missing two students and one camera so I made the decision to turn this into a short field trip. We all take the hike down the road towards the fields and ended up taking a narrow path to find both girls getting ready for class, planning to come after all. Back in class, today’s session focused on the use of color and using our imaginations to create stories about a photograph. The cameras went to the other half of the class today, but I was impressed by what I saw so far in the few glances I got of pictures that were taken by the first group. So far, my most creative and imaginative student is also the one least likely to follow rules, complete her homework, or come prepared to class. Her family is also one of the poorest. On Monday I will collect the cameras to review the pictures and charge the batteries, and we ended on this note. As I passed one student’s house fifteen minutes later, I saw that she is already excitedly taking pictures of her various family members. I yelledl to her to keep up the good work, and she gave me a shy but cheeky grin. Half an hour later, as I was finishing up some dish-washing in buckets on my patio, Ña Merarda’s teenage son stopped by. His name is Gabi and as a first year computer science college student, he’s not around too much during the week but has come back for the weekend with his younger sister. Besides being an outstanding student, Gabi is also a great Paraguayan guitar and harp player and came today to practice with me on the steel string American guitar that my sister has lent me. He sang his classic American tune, Green Day’s “Time Of Your Life,” showed me the chord progressions, and helped me with some strumming. After telling him of my interest to learn some Paraguayan music, I now have a basic polka melody to practice for next week. As he left, it was dark and a storm had rolled in, bringing lightning and light rain with it. Another day, another week, and another month are nearly over. As I retire into my little house, I am struck by how much I needed every person that I encountered today, and how grateful I am to each of them for turning this potentially awful day into a truly enjoyable one.

For the next 6 weeks, I will be teaching a 'literacy through photography' class to the sixth graders in my community's school. Tomorrow is our first "real" photography class using the 5 cameras I have on loan from the Peace Corps Paraguay CoCuMu arts committee. The project is called "Ahecha Paraguay" and here's what it is:

- What is Ahecha Paraguay?In Guaraní (the native language of the Guaraní people of Paraguay) Ahecha Paraguay means ¨I see Paraguay¨. Ahecha Paraguay is a project of the CoCuMu Committee of Peace Corps Paraguay, designed to give Paraguayan youth in rural areas the opportunity to learn digital photography skills while developing their self-esteem and gain new world perspectives through the lense of a camera. New skills and personal development are facilitated through hands-on workshops taught by volunteers working in communities all over Paraguay.

I will be spending Wednesday and Friday afternoons with the 10 students, talking about perspective, light, framing, and motion. We'll do activities in class and incorporate in a lot of writing, both descriptive and critical, about the photos. I am confident that there will be some amazing and revealing photographs to come out of this group of 11 and 12 year olds. I am so excited to work with them. For the most part, they are respectful and eager in the classroom. I can't wait to see what they come up with!

P.s. Pig pictures coming soon.

My weeks lately seem to be comprised of catching buses and dealing with the lack of running water in site. Travelling is a pain, especially since I have to ask someone to take care of my animals, but it's usually an invigorating break from the day to day routine of just living in the countryside. The story with the running water is that apparently lightning struck the well pump and screwed up the motor. A lot of money is required to fix it, and no one wants to pay, so it could be this way for a good amount of time. I have a shallow well in my front yard. The water is not safe to drink straight out of the well but I have been boiling it and also my friend JoonWoo just lent me his water filter. My neighbors come two or three times a day to fill up buckets and carry them back up the hill to their house.

I'm feeling frustrated by wanting to do more project work here, but feeling constricted by logistical challenges. I don't want to spend multiple mornings or days in town each week; I like being in site. However, I need town for things - to buy materials, to print information, to make copies, to get groceries, to get animal feed. It's also getting dark by 5:30pm now. In some ways, I'd love to have a Monday-Friday, 9-5 schedule at this point. Then I could take time for myself without feeling guilty about it. But my life isn't conducive to that. I have to take advantage of the time that people make for me in their schedules, so it's mostly late afternoons and weekends. Don't get me wrong - I'm pretty constantly cooking, cleaning, or doing laundry during my "free time." But then I also try to do some reading, letter writing, guitar playing, and yoga each day. And now...I'm not sure. I just know that I want to do more, but every time I start planning something in my head, I immediately caught up in the complicated logistics of how and when and then get so overwhelmed that I defeat myself before I even start.

Maybe I'm afraid of failure. That if I don't plan something exactly right, that no one will come. And this is a definite possibility. But I think I need to start thinking less and start going for it more.

Also, I may need to start toning down my cooking desires. If only I didn't so appreciate good food and how much better I feel when I eat it!

This past weekend, Isidora, Esther, Cristina, and I travelled 12 hours away to the far east part of the country for a 4 day long youth leadership camp. We had spent the last month preparing, fundraising, and learning in order to make this opportunity a success, and it was! The girls had a great time, and in addition to working with peers from all over the country to learn about communication, values, HIV-AIDS, self-esteem, diversity, and volunteerism, they also got to visit a historical photographic museum, an ecological reserve on the Parana River, the Itaipu Dam (the largest in the world), and enjoy a theater production about the bloodless revolution of Paraguay. Here are some pictures...

Every city, town, or community in Paraguay has a patron saint to celebrate and call their own. My community´s saint is San Jose, or Saint Joseph, and his feast day is March 19. People of the church prepared a lot for this day, and spent a whole year fundraising in order to buy a cow to be slaughtered for the celebration. Here´s how the day went. It started off with a beautiful morning, cool but sunny, a good indication for the day´s weather.

Butchering began early.

Man, was there a lot of meat. And just about every part of the cow is used. In the pot on the right, you will notice mondongo, or stomach.

Church benches are truly multipurpose.

Old school and New school.

I was put in charge of the children´s activities last minute, which was fine with me because I wanted to host Book Club anyway. It was just a bigger and crazier version with various games, coloring, reading, and singing for about 2 hours.

Here, some of the meat gets roasted over a pit of charcoal behind the church.

Ña Venancia dices up some liver. Que guapa!

Carmen, Cristina, and myself. Cristina is one of the youth that I am taking to leadership camp at the end of the month.

Aren´t little girls the best?

Esther, Carmen´s sister, washes the dishes. It´s a constant process, so that 200 people can be fed throughout the day. Esther is also coming to leadership camp with me!

Community ladies prepare food, eat, drink, and socialize.

This dad helps out his kids with cutting up their meat.

After the big lunch, soccer games ensued, as well as 4 year old´s birthday party, for which I was the photographer. Look at that moon!

Here´s another shot, with the barbed wire fence.

Here I am walking back from the party with my neighbors.

After a quick shower and some dinner, it´s back to the soccer field for the San Jose dance party. I went with my friend Carmen and my neighbor boys Richar and Blasito. Carmen and I had a BLAST, dancing the night away. Then we came back and she slept over at my house.

All in all, a very fun day, to celebrate Saint Joseph and the sense of community here in San Jose Boqueron. I´m so glad that I got to be a part of it.

It's March and Picture A Day (or Week) is back! (For now, at least.)

Today's picture comes from the dental health care class I taught today to the community kids. We had a great turnout, 5 girls who had been practicing their "Diosnel the Tooth" play for weeks now finally got to perform, and everyone walked away with a new toothbrush, a certificate/game, and toothpaste. It was a great time - Thanks again Mom for the dental schtuff!! :)

Now for some balance. I went to my friend Teresa´s site 2 weeks ago to help her put on a summer camp like I did in my site. She lives down south in the department of Ñeembucu. It was nine hours of bus travel to get to her site, but quite worth it. It was wonderful to see a new part of Paraguay, hang out with good people and good kids, and do some silly singing and dancing in the process!

Teresa and I with the masked kiddies.

Singing ¨Mami Loro¨ or Mama Parrot. At this point we are jumping, flapping, and singing with our tongues out. As you can see.

What is a carnivore?

We took a bike ride (just for fun, and man was it fun!) along the Río Paraguay in the city of Pilar, which is about 2 hours by sandy road from Teresa´s site.

The Río Paraguay. On the other side, it´s Argentina!

Landscape of Ñeembucu. It is wetlands like this for hours and hours. Incredible.

This morning I went to the bank in order to withdraw money because I had none left. I went to the bank at 7:50am, 10 minutes before it officially opened. I was the 25th person in line, and I know that because the military guard started handing us numbered raffle tickets. A little after 8am, the bank opened and the first 20 people were let into the bank. They told us that after 10 had been served, 10 more would be let in. Then we stood in the line for 45 minutes without moving. Eventually we found out it was because the computer system was down. Then it started working again. We waited another half hour. People were exiting the bank, but we were not being let in. Why? Because there were just as many people still inside the bank. The military guard was letting people in who didn´t have tickets. People in my line started getting upset, but after one lady talked to the guard and got nowhere, they just said, ¨We´re in Paraguay.¨That´s the reason, apparently, that the numbered tickets mean nothing, and the guard´s not doing his job, and we´re standing in this line for absolutely no reason.

Usually when I go to town, I try to stay as inconspicuous as possible. It´s not a concious decision really, just that I feel like so many people are already staring at me and watching me, I don´t want to draw more attention to myself. I try to blend in. But in this moment, I could not just wait longer and do nothing, hearing all of this defeatist talk around me. So I went inside, and asked the guard why other people were allowed into the bank. He told me the problem is just that there´s only one cashier. I told him, no, the problem is not that there`s only one cashier, the problem is that if you keep letting people into this line inside of the bank, all of us who are waiting patiently outside will never get in. Do the numbers he handed out mean nothing? Then he told me that when he waits to get his money in Asuncion, he waits in lines 5 and 6 blocks long. Sure, I said, but we´re not in Asuncion, and your line moves, doesn´t it? There´s only one cashier, he said, I don´t think you´re understanding me. I think that you´re the one not understanding me, I said. There´s only one cashier he said. I know, I replied. I too can see that.

Then I went back outside, told the people what the guard had told me, and waited another 20 minutes. Finally we were let in, mostly through pushing and shoving. After a few more minutes of waiting, now inside the bank, I noticed a guy that had definitely gotten to the bank at least an hour after I did, standing up ahead of me, sort of in the line. (Lines are more figments of your imagination in Paraguay anyway. Rarely do they mean anything to anyone except you.) Continuing with my perturbed attitude, I call him out on it. He didn´t say anything but then the man who was legitimately ahead of me in line took it up with this red shirted dude. We formed a tighter line, but this dude would not give up. He stood right over my shoulder (not that personal space really exists here anyway, but still) and would not look anyone in the eye, just ignored me and the gentleman infront. A uniformed policeman comes up to this dude and they started chatting amiably. Later the guy gives up on me but tries to cut in on a girl a bit behind me. She calls him out on it loud and clear, but he doesn´t react, just stands there stupidly. I make a comment that the police and military are here for no purpose. (They don´t control the lines, much less stop this guy from trying to cut or being disrespectful.) The man in front of me says sarcastically, oh, didn´t you know? That guy is police. Yeah, the ones who are supposed to keep the public peace. At this point, all we can do is laugh. The situation is just too... too much.

After 2 and a half hours of waiting in line, after I was technically the ¨25th¨person at the bank first thing in the morning, I finally got to make my withdrawal. I hope not to have to go back there for a while. This is just one small example of why I am fed up with this country as of late, but I hope it can help you to understand a little bit of my frustration.

¨We are in Paraguay¨is absolutely, positively the worst excuse for this kind of situation. And as long as people think this way, as long as people continue to act poorly on purpose, not because they don´t understand, but because they don´t want to understand, because they don´t want to do their jobs, nothing will change. Really.

All you need is corn, salt, anis, fat (lard or margarine), mandioca starch, some kneading skills and great company. Now that´s what I call a chipa date!

Here´s what´s up with me lately. I now have three laying hens, although they have decided to not lay any eggs for me since last week. I guess it´s a work stop, but I have no idea what they are protesting. They get lots of food, clean water, and generous shade from my flower bed. Can you spot the chicken in this picture?

José (JoonWoo), Gabi, and I are showing off what´s what in the Paraguayan campo. José (the Korean Overseas Volunteer that lives in Ybycui) and I have been working together a lot lately to try to work out this onion project so that it is better organized and more inclusive of small farmers in every step of the process, so as to further self-responsibility and knowledge transfer instead of perpetuating the paternalism that is still so ingrained in the people of this country. Anyway, this was a lighthearted moment right after Gabi and José both jammed for me on Marissa´s guitar. Ombopupukuaa ha'ekuera... They both really know how to play!

We´ve had a lot of rain recently. Great for the plants.... also for the weeds and mosquitos. This is a garden bed in front of my house. I made one border with recycled wine bottles.

So I gave my camera to my 8 year old neighbor Violeta, and here are some of her pictures. Dolly fashion show as you can see, baby ducks, and her baby brother´s memorial.

The other morning, I got up early at 5:30am to drink maté and then pick beans with my neighbor Ña Venancia. We picked for about 2 hours and although this is the coolest part of the day, we were both still dripping with sweat. But we did pick a LOT of beans, as you can see.

This past Sunday I went to visit a family that lives out near their fields, about a 30 minute walk from the school and the church. It was a great mix of work and fun. Na Angela and I cut down the green manure crop we had planted in her field in November so that the nitrogen it fixed can now be incorporated back into the soil. Then we proceeded to make chipa guazu, or fresh corn cornbread, starting by harvesting the corn in the field and ending by eating it hot, right out of the brick oven!

This is Liliana, age 11. I showed her how to use my camera and she become the photographer of the day. She's a smart girl. This year, she'll live with a family in town, taking care of a 3 year old grandchild. In repayment, the family will give her a place to live and pay for her to go to middle school.

Here's one of Liliana's pictures of her brothers, Herminio, age 9 and Claudio, age 4, in front of their bamboo house and corn field.

This is Na Angela, a sharp-witted and very guapa lady, cutting down the crotalaria between rows of mandioca.

Time to eat! What a great way to spend a Sunday.

One of the main plazas in downtown Asuncion is occupied by a group of indigenous people from the department of Caazapa who are continuously protesting (with their presence) how the Paraguayan government took away their land. Hence they have no where else to live at this point. As you can see, large families live in tents made up of black plastic. Where they get their water from or use the restroom, I have no idea... but they are one of the constants in the city, that is for sure.

Ok, so this is a relatively awful picture, but my summer camp was so full of activities and fun that there was little time for photography! Even with one day rained out, we had 35 kids altogether come over the course of 2 days. With the help of three other Volunteers, we learned about animal kingdoms, habitats, the water cycle, and photosynthesis. We sang, we danced, we made water cycle bracelets and popsicle sticks photo frames, plus ate CUPCAKES. Thanks Aunt Patti!

...but that doesn't mean I can't try and do "farm-y" things! Above is the baby pig that I just bought. The plan is eat him in 6-8 months, so I'm trying not to get too attached. We are getting along famously so far, however. Pigs are hilarious, very curious. The other pictures are from my demonstration plot. I am growing some green manure crops - sunflower, sun hemp, velvet bean, hyacinth bean- along with some corn, squash, soy, and melon. I have yet to eat anything but hopefully soon.

I got this very special note from Ashleigh today. It's a shrinky-dink. What that is...I don't know exactly, but I get the idea that she wrote me a normal sized note on a large piece of plastic, then shrunk it in the oven until it was this itty-bitty. Good thing too - it's envelope got somewhat destroyed on the way here. I don't know if a regular letter would have made it! Haha, I love it.

In my limited travels within the Spanish-speaking world, I have found 3 different types of "tortillas". In Paraguay, a tortilla is a deep-fried fritter - flour, salt, milk or whey, cheese, and maybe some green onions if you're lucky, mixed to a soupy batter and dropped in a saucepan of oil until it's crispy. I find them delicious... in small quantities. In Spain, a tortilla is an inch-tall thick egg omelet with potatoes and sometimes meat, cooked in olive oil. Also - delicious! And then there's our good ol' Mexican American flour tortillas. To spice up my rice and bean dinner last night, I had the neighbor girls help me make some. They liked getting to make their own designs with the dough and upon tasting, also declared them..."Heterei!" or...Delicious!

One of the major "projects" in my community right now is an onion growing project that we began back in May. All the onions are harvested now, but lo and behold, the market is saturated. That means that as no one is buying onions right now, the onions are chilling out in whatever place each family can find to try and keep them clean and dry. In a stroke of luck, my next door neighbors got a small order for 20 bags to go to town tomorrow. Here they are, sorting and packing. This open air part of their house usually serves as a dining/living room. Talk about multi-purpose! Also, don't worry... I have helped to fill my share of bags as well.

I made it back safely to Paraguay, with some new perspective, new comforts, and new countdown. 11 months! As another new idea, I'm going to start A Picture A Day series, although I don't know if it'll really be quite that often, due to power outages and other technical difficulties. The idea comes from a few years back, when I remember my friend Rachael's day doing a photo blog like this as a way to stay in touch as she left for college. Thanks Mr. Button.

It was difficult coming back to Paraguay, but this afternoon marked a real high for the past few days. It's been about 100 degrees and 100% humidity here for the past couple of days, so my neighbor girls Vio, Silvia, and I hit up the nearby creek for some chill time. Let me tell you though - it took almost an hour of trudging up the rocky, holey creek bed and crawling through/over/under overhanging vines, tree branches, and bamboo to find a good spot. But it was worth it. Almost no one knows how to swim here, and Silvia really wants to learn, so we did some basic swim lesson practice for over an hour. I had the girls practice holding their breath and sticking their faces under water (pretty scary for them). There are two different words in Guarani for "swim" - one to swim on top of the water and one to dive under. Kids always ask me if I know how to do the former, and then the latter, which is even more impressive. We also practiced kicking, some basic arm strokes, and trying to float. They ate it up and are anxious to go back! (As am I, especially if this weather keeps up.)

Great weather, a diet of twice-a-day watermelon and fresh corn, and a bit of renewed perspective has brought me back to my overall happy Peace Corps Volunteer self. I am very much looking forward to going home, but am no longer seriously questioning my commitment here in Paraguay. Mbegue mbegue katu jahecha los resultados... Bit by bit we have see the consequences of my presence here in the community. A few things renewed my faith this week. One señora I stopped by to visit had made a compost pile next to her field that very day, remembering our talk about it from 9 months ago. Another's husband had planted the green manure seeds I had given them as a thank you for working with us so diligently during Long Field Practice. The new women's comite is lively and active, cheekily working their way towards earning money for the treasury. With the 2nd sale of beer, wine, pop, and chipa at this weekend's volleyball games, they'll have made over 200,000 Guaranis, or about $40.

Plus, one of my regular Book Club kids, Carolina, age 6, asked me when we would be starting to go read again.

Stuff is happening. I just need to have patience to see it out and push myself to help out in the best way possible, whenever I can. Really, I do love Paraguay.

So we're back to hot again, folks. I won't complain too much... I've really only had one night of sticky sleep so far this season, which is unheard of. It's been raining here for the past 3 days, so the humidity is killer, but the cool breeze at night keeps things bearable.

I have reached the one year mark of my Peace Corps service. One week from this Saturday, I will be swearing out and returning to the United States. With having recently said goodbye to the group of Ag Volunteers before me, G-28, and what with looking forward to my own upcoming visit to the U.S. to spend my birthday (!), Christmas (!), and New Years' (!) with my family and friends, I find myself thinking a lot about the meaning of one more year in Paraguay.

I now understand the importance of two years of service instead of just one. In some ways, it seems like just now am I really understanding the dynamics of my community and the pace of life based around agriculture in Paraguay. Right now is the first time I have seen corn, beans, onions, and watermelon in their entire life cycle in Paraguay, from seed to fruit. The green manure crops that I promote - I am just now myself becoming really familiar with the appearance, benefits, and necessities of each variety. So in many ways, I am JUST NOW becoming truly competent in my identified sector of service. I also speak much better Guarani now than I did a year ago, and understand better social and work customs, and so am able to be more appropriate in my requests and suggestions.

However, for as much as has happened in the past year.... It doesn't seem like much. I know, I know, that's probably not true in the scheme of things. And hey, I'm not out to save the world here. I'm here to work myself out of a job. It's just that I don't know how much more will be able to change in the next year either. The pace of life and of change is just so slow here. And people in general aren't very motivated to really implement new things and follow through on them. So what am I doing here? I have heard other Volunteers say that the one year mark is a tough time, and that your second year will pass so quickly you won't even believe it. But yes, that is hard to believe right now.

I have things to look forward to here in Paraguay. I really do. I'm planning a three day long kids' summer camp for the end of January, and will start up Book Club 2011 in February with more books and better ideas than ever before. (Thanks Nicole and Mom!!). A new womens' comite is forming and they seem more organized, so I may have more work opportunities with a part of the community I don't know too well yet. My house is finally a cooler, more comfortable place with flowers and veggies growing well and my fence keeping the cows out. I'm planning on taking advantage of this campo lifestyle for the remaining year I have here by getting 2 or 3 egg-laying chickens for fresh eggs and a piglet to fatten for my goodbye party. I may even get REALLY guapa and find myself a horse. Who knows. I also have grandeur ideas of training for a 10k and learning to play the guitar.

It is a doubting moment, but I think it also has a lot to do with being away from home and from my family for so long. I miss everyone so much. And living by yourself in another culture and spending so much time in your own head can really screw with you. These things I know. I guess that I all can do right now is recognize that this is a low moment and accept it. I'm trying to spend as much time visiting with neighbors and working in my garden & demo plot to pass the time. I know that these 2 weeks will pass before I know it - it's just that the hours themselves seem to pass so slowly.

USA here I come! Can't wait to see you all. LOVE LOVE LOVE.

I hosted 4 Peace Corps Crop Extension Trainees (me at this time last year) for a week at my site at the beginning of this month. Here, Kurt checks out what the littlest dudes are coloring this week at Book Club.

Gabi and Sam serenade us with Paraguayan and American tunes. This makes the terere even sweeter.

It was surprisingly chilly for the first part of the week. Here we all squish into my tiny house for language class for the guys and a break from milking the cows for us girls. Lucy grins from her post in the doorway.

One of the big things I too remember about training is missing American food, or more importantly, having control over what kind of food you put into your body. When I offered pancakes one day, the trainees were ALL for it. So I found them the ingredients, they QUADRUPLED the recipes, made a bajillion banana pancakes in my 2 little individual pancake pans, and finished them all off in one day. Now that's GUAPA!

To top off a week of planting green manures, milking cows, learning Guarani, marking contour curves, playing highly-competitive games of "Duck, Duck, Wolf!", and giving talks to the womens' comite, we climbed the mountain behind my house. It's supposed the 3rd highest point in Paraguay, and about a 2 hour climb. What a view!

As I said before, it's spring here in South America, and it has been a busy one at that. Here are a few of the highlights:

Although I live alone and am regularly out of the house, I get a surprising amount of visitors. I like to think it's my sparkling personality. ;) Here, Carmen, Ña Merarda and I share some tereré on my patio. I store my water in old glass wine bottles... and they get a kick out of it every time.

The crotchedy old grandmother neighbor had her 80th birthday party in September. Oh, and she`s not crotchety to me (She loves me because I´m guapa, so she says), but to all her kids and grandkids. Anyway, it was the first all-family party I`ve been to, and it was a fantastic time! Instead of waiting around awkwardly for hours for the party to begin, we all began dancing right away and continued the rest of the night, taking mini-breaks for barbeque, pasta, sopa, and delicious cake. Here I am with Carmen on the left and Silvia on the right, ready to go get our groove on.

I went to a nearby city to help a neighbor Environmental Education Volunteer with a Bird Festival for elementary school kids. We basically took them on a short field trip and played games to learn about migration, deforestation, bird species, etc. It was an exhausting day but rewarding as well. The kids had a great time getting out of the classroom and being active!

I travelled out to the eastern part of the country with 2 friends, Amelia and Emily, to help fellow Croppie John with a World Map project. John lives on a peninsula which is generally only accesible by boat. So here we are arriving at his site, a rowboat as our final form of transportation...

First, the wall is painted, the grid is marked out with plumbobs, and then the map is drawn out in pencil square by square.

After careful checking, it is ready to paint. We outlined the countries and then helped students from 1st through 6th grade to paint inside the lines and learn a little bit of geography. The teachers at this school were very excited about the map and already including it in their curriculum. Many Paraguayans, children and adults, can't pick out even the continent of South America on a world map. This kind of project is helping to change that, one school of children at a time.

John readying the boat to row us across for our departure... que guapo!

These are my neighbors with whom I have my garden and demo plot. Here I'm standing with Ña Rubia, Derlis, and Isa in front of the LARGE compost pile space we just created.

These are my closest neighbors, both geographically and emotionally. They are an awesome family, so very generous and open with me. I regularly go there multiple times a day, to tereré, maté, eat lunch, make chipa, borrow something, etc. Here I am beckoning 10 year old Silvia to get in the picture, with 16 year old Richard behind me, 19 year old Imelda showing off her very pregnant belly (it´s a boy!!), and Ña Venancia on the right.

The new group or "G" of Agriculture and Environment Peace Corps Trainees have arrived in Paraguay, meaning I am now an "oldie." Crazy how fast a year can pass! I hosted a Trainee named Lorena this past weekend to share with her what my life is like as a Crop PCV. Here we took a really long walk to a neighboring community to see some exemplary contour planting on the steep hills. This is what I'd like to get done for more people in my community as well. Left to right- Me, Lorena, Diana, Nora's brother, Carmen, Don Ceveriano. Talk about a "3 Hour Tour." Great views but we came back exhausted.

That's all for now folks! I'd love to hear what you're up to, so drop me a letter or an email if you get a chance. My local post address is

Amanda Baranowski, PCV0983 548 543Ybycui 4390Paraguay

And you know my email. :)

Two months from today, I will be arriving in the USA to spend a few weeks for the holidays. Bwwaahhhh, CRAZY! Hope to see you then!

Happy Fall to you; Happy Spring to me. Here in Paraguay, flowers are blooming around my house and the cherry tomatoes I planted months ago are finally started to fruit. Heavy field burning, which is a common but unsustainable way to clear fields and sterilize the soil, along with the subsequent forest fires, has made for weeks of hazy days and blood red moons. The huge toads (kururu in Guaraní) are back in full force from their winter hibernation; their croaking sounds like a herd of very persistent, hungry cats. They like to squeeze under the doors and find dark corners and shoes to live in. Baby cows are being born it seems like everyday and so there is milk and cheese to be made and bought once again. Everyone is out clearing fields, planting staple crops like mandioca and corn, and enjoying the “haku porâ” (good hot) weather. We are starting to térere (the cold version of herb tea) again with refreshing ice, mint, and lemongrass instead of the constant soothing yet scalding maté (the hot version), designed to keep both our hands and our insides toasty warm. Back in Michigan, I imagine some remaining warm sunshine-y days combined with just a slight crispness in the air, maybe frost on the ground in the early morning. I especially love going down Lone Tree Road in mid-fall – the canopy of huge maples and other species turning to colors other than their normal leafy green. New school clothes, buses rumbling down the gravel road again, apple cider a plenty, and hot cinnamon sugar donuts if you’re lucky. The marching band music from the Friday night High School football games finds its way through the evergreen, crosses the marsh, and reverberates off of the aluminum-sided pole barn to give anyone sitting on the back porch a first-row-of-the-bleachers seat to the show. Fall is usually my favorite season of the year. But for right now, maybe I should revise that to just saying September through November. The weather may be getting hotter here, but when I think of what the next few months have in store, I must admit that it has a lot in common with what I like about fall. First off, it’s busy. I am anticipating a number of new and continuing projects including a demonstration plot, Book Club, World Map painting in another Volunteer’s site, green manure planting, onion harvest, my garden, and a possible weeklong trip to the Chaco region of Paraguay. Secondly, it’s the start of the “school year.” As of yesterday, September 24th, I have been living in Paraguay for one full year. Not only does that mean I feel old, it also means that soon I will be one of the “old” ones in terms of experience – the next group of Agriculture and Environment Volunteers come next week! This also adds to the “busy-ness.” I will be helping to train the new group and welcome them to campo life. One of the most exciting pieces of news is that I have been asked to host a Long Field Practice. This is 5 days of training when groups of 3-4 trainees and a language teacher go to a Volunteer’s site to live with host families, practice their Guaraní, learn some agricultural techniques, and basically get an insider’s look into a Peace Corps Volunteer’s life in the Paraguayan campo. I feel very honored to be asked and very excited to share my amazing community with new soon-to-be Croppies! It is also an excuse to push some projects that are difficult to get people to commit to otherwise, such as marking out contour barriers and planting green manures. Thirdly, Thanksgiving is coming up! While it is significantly different not to be with family for this holiday, I am looking forward to joining in, for the first time (last year I was still in Training), the Peace Corps Paraguay tradition of Thanksgiving in the southern city of Encarnación. I am on the cooking committee, there are rumors of a talent show and numerous fundraiser auctions, and just about all of my good friends here are going. It is also close to the famous Jesuit ruins, which are a UNESCO site, and I plan on going to check them out. And then, of course, Christmas. And going home to see all of you!! It will be here before we know it, I’m quite sure. Besitos a todos.

For your reading pleasure this evening, we have Blog in 4 parts. Read as you will, and take intermissions as necessary. Lights. Camera. Action! 1.Watermelon and Onions 2. My Huerta (Garden) 3. Over the River and through the Woods (or Fields) 4. Mbeju Delivery!

Watermelon and Onions I’m beginning to realize that my biggest agricultural focus in site, in accordance with the interests of the people here, is crop diversification. Of course, this has been made possible through assistance with seeds and early plantings by KOICA (Korean Overseas Assistance Organization) and technical advice by DEAG (Agricultural Extension Agency of Paraguay) but it also occupies a great deal of my own time and energy. I mostly fill the roles of: Cheerleader – “Great job! These looks great. Nde guapo.” Instigator – “When are we going to go get the plantitas?” Nag – “No, really, WHEN are WE going to get the PLANTITAS??” Sneak - “Ña Merarda, you don’t want Ña Venancia to come as well?” Rich American with saldo (credit to make phone calls) – “Ok, ok, I’LL call the DEAG agents, Ña Merarda, Nora, the comite, the truck guy, as long as we actually do this tomorrow.” Behind this façade of chit-chat, what I’m really doing is trying to promote self-confidence, scheduling and organization, implementation of plans, information and power-sharing, and communication. Does that make sense? I hope so. This is the work that most occupies me and frustrates me, and its behind-the-scenes nature makes it hard to explain or value, even for myself sometimes. Yet I know that it is the most important part of my job. Why diversify your crops? Until now, people in this community only had cotton as a cash crop, which fluctuates greatly in value from year to year. All other crops they grew were for family consumption – corn, beans, mandioca, sugar cane, watermelon, squash, melons, etc. But while providing enough food for your family is very important, more and more people are needing cash as well to buy those things that they can’t produce themselves like oil, salt, rice, pasta, clothes, shoes, televisions, motorcycles, and maybe even higher education. Additionally, onions and watermelons don’t rob the soil of its nutrients in the same way that cotton does. The onions that we planted back in May have all been transplanted and are growing well. Imagine growing blades of grass in 10 garden beds, each 20 meters long. Then imagine taking each of those individual blades of grass and replanting them in a field, each one 5 inches apart. Talk about a mind-blowing amount of work. Thank goodness there are so many children in each family – I worked alongside a 3 year old and a 5 year old, who surprisingly enough had enough interest to plant with my help for more than an hour. The onions should be ready for harvest by October. The next horticultural crop we are trying out is watermelon. Back in July, kids and/or adults from each interested family went to the KOICA farm to prepare masetas, or small plastic bags filled with a balanced soil/fertilizer mixture and planted with one seed. The masetas were left in the KOICA greenhouse to be looked after by the farmhands there until they were ready for some early planting… which is now! Yesterday I went with Ña Merarda, Comite President and my community contact, and Ña Venancia, Comite Treasurer and my next-door neighbor, to town to attend a meeting with an official from the Ministry of Agriculture and then to pick up the watermelon plantitas. Lest the term “pick up” sound too simple, let me elaborate. We got to town in the bed of a truck loaded with bags of charcoal, ran about town asking for fruit crates, found 20 of them, hired a guy with a big cargo truck, went to the farm, loaded up 2,000 of the 2,300 plants in the bed of the truck and in the crates, navigated the road back to site at about walking pace, exchanged dagnabbit! glances when the truck got stuck in the mud in front of Merarda’s house, gathered branches to stick under the wheels for traction, helped push the truck out of the mud, and finally unloaded all 2,000 out of the truck into Merarda’s front yard with the help of 9 very guapo/a kids. I taught them how to make an assembly line for passing the plants. It took a little while, but they caught on a lot faster than the adults! There’s another one of those concepts I just take for granted. It was a long but very productive and community-oriented day. Today we started counting out and distributing the plantitas to the families that already have their plots prepared. Kids and adults alike were passing up and down the road all day with watermelon plants in wheelbarrow, buckets, baskets on their heads. Thanks to the rain last night, planting has begun! My Huerta (Garden) Despite my relatively frequent absences and lack of proximity to it, my garden is rocking. I have lettuce (now bolting), swiss chard, green onions, and my personal favorite… broccoli!! I’ve been steaming it and it is just delicious. Even my 10 year old neighbor Silvia tried it and agreed. And Paraguayans hardly ever eat vegetables by themselves. Actually, I’m not sure I’ve ever seen it. Lettuce salads always have beans and hard-boiled eggs in them. I also have zucchini, tomatoes, carrots, spinach, bell peppers, and eggplant that I’m waiting on. Knock on wood, I haven’t had any pest invasions yet, though I did lose my cucumber and crazy gourd plants to frost. This gardening thing is fun! Over the River and through the Woods (or Fields) Due to a random decision to stop and visit my DEAG agents in town, who in turn offered me a ride out to my site, which led to an invitation to go with them to a comite meeting in the community across the river from me, I have now begun working with another comite in another nearby community. Although I have just attended one meeting and one fundraiser so far, it’s already a very interesting scenario. I feel like I’m walking into a potential work situation with so much more experience and knowledge, mostly cultural but technical too, than I did coming into my own community. Of course this only makes sense, but it’s like I get a chance to put into practice all that I’ve learned and have new start, a clean slate. It also has a much more professional feel to it. These people didn’t know me back in December when Guaraní was still so much of an effort, they didn’t witness me learning to peel mandioca or wash my clothes by hand. Because while these are the ways that people have gotten to know me and feel comfortable with me, it also leads my neighbors to see me in more of a “American girl next door” light than a “Peace Corps Volunteer with organizational and agricultural know-how” light. It makes for a less personal, but seemingly more professional atmosphere. I know that I come off more confidently. We will see how the work goes, but it is really great to have another opportunity to share my knowledge and another set of people to get to know. Some of the teenage girls from this other community, Isla Pa’u, came to visit me last Saturday, and brought with them my youngest visitor yet – a one month old baby girl! So adorable. Mbeju Delivery! For those of you who may worry about what or how frequently I eat down here, never fear. Not only have a developed a moderate obsession with cooking (not to mention baking - I have been known to bake and eat a whole pan of apple crisp in one day), but my neighbor has taken it upon herself to supplement just about all of my meals with some down-home Paraguayan cuisine. It is very sweet of her, and usually quite delicious, if not always very good for my health (there’s a reason that many Paraguayans suffer from high blood pressure). I’ve just been realizing lately how much she feeds me. Today for instance, I went over to her house in the morning to make mbeju, a flat cheesy cornmeal type of pancake. So I ate that for breakfast, then she brought me a cup of fresh arroz con leche (rice-milk dessert) around lunchtime, and now just 10 minutes ago this evening, her girls brought me another mbeju, hot off the fire, despite the fact that I didn’t go over there to drink maté like I commonly do on chilly nights. It’s common for her to send me a plate of lunch, or to insist I stay for light dinner after maté. I try to respond in kind, sending over pancakes, bringing her fresh produce from my garden, and baking cake with her girls. But it just doesn’t even out, no matter what. It is just one of those facets of Paraguayan hospitality I will just have to accept. Woe is me, I know. So who’s going to be bringing me hot plates of food when I move back to the States I want to know…A girl can get used to this.

Here are pictures from Ashleigh and Rachel's visit to Paraguay, and our mini-Amerireunion and friends trip to Buenos Aires, Argentina. Talk about some continuous fun... :)

Best Cargo Ever!

I have creative friends. Look at this awesome Book Club sign! :)

It was cold?

Uphill of the Hammock Coaster Ride.

Westward View.

I drew this map of the community 2 months ago...(and it halted there due to school politics.)

and then came some luck and resolution. We got to paint it into a reality, with a lot of help from the kids!

I've got my own mate bar in Buenos Aires.

The food was phenomenal, but couldn't beat the company.

As I was saying...

Biggest flower I'VE ever seen.

Botanical gardens... So cool.

July has been a month of joyous reunions, exciting beginnings, unexpected adventures, tearful farewells, and general self-reflection. That being said, it has also been one of the fastest 31 days I've experienced as a Peace Corps Volunteer, and that's saying a lot.

After spending the first few weeks of the month with my sister, I got to see Nicole's glowing face as she got off the bus last Thursday right here in Ybycui! She and her friend and coworker Tori stopped for a week here in Paraguay to see me and spend time out in my site.

It has been great getting to show them around my community and introducing them to lots of people, including...the kids!

One of the really exciting beginnings of this month is a "Story Hour" or Book Club that I've started for the elementary school-aged kids here. I checked out a mobile library from the Peace Corps Office, which is a set of 15 books in Spanish. There are a variety of books, including Where The Wild Things Are, Clifford, Curious George, and Madeline. So far we've met 3 times, and each time somewhere between 10 and 20 kids have come. We usually begin by me reading a story aloud for everyone, and then we have free time where everyone can read on their own. I usually ask one of the older girls to read aloud for the younger kids who are reading yet.

It was especially wonderful to have Nicole and Tori here for this week's Story Hour. Nicole is an elementary school teacher in Washington D.C. in a 1st grade Special Education classroom. Tori is one of her teaching assistants and is going back to school this fall for her Masters in Bilingual Education. At Story Hour, Tori, who speaks Spanish, read aloud for the younger crowd, who couldn't get enough and kept bringing her another and another book to read them. Nicole noticed right off that most of the kids reading on their own (ranging in age from 8 to 13) were semi-proficient readers, as they generally read aloud to themselves in order to understand what it is they're reading. She offered me some great strategies and advice to help these kids, in the limited capacity that I can, to get more practice and to improve their reading skills.

Still, the most important goal of Story Hour is just to get kids excited and interested in reading, whether they know their ABCs yet or are already in middle school. None of the families around here have books at home, nor are the kids exposed to anything except for textbooks at school, so they are thrilled each time I take my pile of books out of the bag. What a great feeling it is to be able to share one of my own personal joys with some little guys that I really care about. Yay!!

Story Hour with Nicole and Tori

Tori reading to the little ones.

Karina, age 10, and Isidora, age 13 enjoying their stories.

One major change of this month is that my friend Namho, a KOICA (Korea Overseas Volunteer) completed his own two years of service in Paraguay and left to go back to Korea. Namho has been a constant friend since I first got to my site (He lived in my town, Ybycui) and we especially worked closely the past few months because his organization offered my womens' comite the chance to learn how to plant and manage some new horticultural crops. The onion planting project, and winter green manures planting got us started off,

Namho and I on his last day in Ybycuiand now the cooperation is continuing with early tomato and watermelon seeds sprouting up in the greenhouse of the KOICA farm, giving farmers hope for an early and financially prosperous harvest. A lot of us here in Paraguay, and especially the Peace Corps Ybycui VAC, will miss Namho something fierce, especially for his great sense of humor and his overwhelmingly generous spirit. He's left his mark on us though, and I can't wait to see and share with him how his interest in the welfare of my own particular community will grow and fruit within the context of onions, tomatoes, watermelons, along with hopefully some increased confidence, initiative, and open thinking. Thank you Namho!

1440 watermelon plants, prepared by the womens' comite

She made it!Long story short, Marissa came down to Paraguay for 2 weeks this Julyand we had a phenomenal time. I think she will return home more exhausted and sick of buses/airports/Spanish than ever before, but hopefully it was all worth it. :)Here are some short summary photos of our first week in Paraguay, mostly spent at my site in the countryside. I attempted to introduce Ris to the finer points of Paraguayan culture and cuisine, and I think it was a success. Check it out...

2:30am arrival after a 24 hour layover in Lima, Peru. Que guapa!And doesn't she look fantastic, Ladies and Gentlemen.

We terere-ed and washed our clothes by hand.That's idodine pill water, NOT my well water, no worries.

Tranquilo time in the hammock.

Nothing beats some hot mandi'o right out of the pot.

At first, Marissa was very reluctant to believe that digging with a machete actually was much easier than digging with the shovel.She soon learned.

And we planted and transplanted some flowers and trees. This is a sunflower.

We ate hot chipa at the neighbors'. She "knows how to eat it!"(Direct translation from Guarani)

We spent July 4th at the American Embassy. Look how festive our cupcakes are.

We took long walks down dirt roads.

Marissa learned some key Guarani phrases and the all-too-important "al Pelo!" or Thumbs Up.This can rectify any awkward situation.

One thing Marissa told me was, "Amanda, if Mom met the people here in the community, and saw how much they care about you, she wouldn't worry half as much as she does."

That was an amazing statement to hear, especially considering how apparent this fact was to Marissa after only a few days, and after meeting just 4 or 5 neighboring families. I know that I am surrounded here by a lot of amazingly warm and hardworking people, but it struck me that already I am starting to take that for granted. And I don't want to.

It was incredible to be able to share some of my day-to-day life here in Paraguay with my sister. She adapted much more quickly than I had ever imagined to the "rustic" realities of my site, and it was truly a pleasure just to hang, catch up, cook, laugh, and reminisce - just as it always is. As the saying goes, life is in the details, and it can be difficult for me to share these details that make each day here worthwhile, because to fully explain their significance, I usually have to explain vocabulary words and cultural situations and basically give a lot of uninteresting backstory that bores the person I'm speaking to even before I get to the heart of the subject. So sometimes I just try to keep it short. Simple. Uncomplicated. Individual. But that's not life here at all. It's about the interactions between people and across boundaries of culture, language, age, gender, etc. Like how my 12 year old neighbor now shouts "Bara-no-ki!" as a greeting to me across the field, how Na Venancia always winks at me to let me in on the joke as we're mate-ing around her fire, or how I now know and can join in on the constant gossip about the weather, the foot traffic on the road, and the price of cheese. And just by being here, Ris got to take that in for herself, and I could never really explain in spoken or written word. Hopefully she can share a taste of that with you back home as well.

What a blessing to have my sister here with me. Che avy'a!!!

Oh, and as to the title of this post, yes that is a direct quote from one of the señores as we walked up to his house. Contrast that with Argentina, where fellow hostel dwellers couldn't even tell we were sisters!?! Weird, eh.

So the U.S. has made it to the next round, and Paraguay plays today. FUERZA PARAGUAY!

I haven´t been able to watch too many of the games. The channel that they´re on comes in really fuzzy and black and white on my neighbor´s tv. Plus... people in my community don´t really care THAT much. Sure, they want Paraguay to do well and to win, but everyday work takes precedence. There´s still work to be done in the field... and so they go.

This weekend is the festival of San Juan (Saint John). It´s a big fundraiser for the school, and I´m looking forward to seeing the kids doing some Paraguayan dance, eating lots of chipa and sopa, and getting my own groove on at the nighttime party. Should be fun!

One week from tomorrow, my sister will be HERE. With me. I still can´t quite believe. And I´m SO EXCITED!!!! We are planning on celebrating the 4th of July at the Embassy in Asuncion, coming back and visiting my site for a few days, and then travelling across the border to Argentina and exploring around the city of Salta in the North.

Alright, gotta run for my VAC meeting with other PCVs in my area. We are, apparently, making hamburgers and watching the soccer game. Go Albiroja!! (the Paraguayan colors)

Rain is to rural Paraguay as... A) fuzzy : slipper B) peanut butter : jelly C) blizzard : Michigan Answer: C. While rain in rural Paraguay can make things interesting (like fuzz to a slipper) and is integral for good eats (like peanut butter to jelly), the most obviously fact is that rain here shuts everything down, just like a Michigan blizzard. School is cancelled, no one leaves to go work, public transportation doesn't run, and only the "crazies" brave those kind of elements. This kind of massive halt shocked me at first. After all, in the U.S. we just throw on a raincoat, run out to the car, and try not to park in a puddle when we get to whereever we're going. No one would ever imagine saying, "Oh...it's raining outside. Guess I won't be going to work today!" But the longer I live here, the more it makes sense to me. Poorly drained dirt roads turn into mudpits and rivers with a bit of precipitation, and the constant lakes turn into oceans. Those clothes you just got soaked in? That is one of 2 pairs of pants you have. And when it rains here, the rain is usually here to stay for at least 3 days. That means no laundry, because nothing will dry anyway with no sun and all of the humidity in the air. Hot shower? Your showering area probably doesn't have a roof, so even if you do heat up a pot of water over the fire for a warm bucket bath, it'll just mix with the cold rain and wind coming up from the South, whipping at your exposed body, leaving you just as chilled as you started. So while this may be a little dramatic, you can see that there are plenty of understandable reasons why Paraguayans do not usually leave their houses when it rains. And so maybe with this preface you can better understand my amazement, bewilderment, and great pride in regard to the following story. Last Friday, June 4, 2010, despite drizzly conditions, a late start to the morning, and no prior plan involved, 13 adults (including myself) and a whole mess of kids walked an hour through rocks and mud to the womens' comité's newly designated community plot up on the hill. We planted 3 different winter "green manure" or "abono verde" crops - Avena Negra (Black Oats), Lupino (Lupine), and Nabo Forrajero (Forage Turnip).* All in all, we planted almost 80 pounds of seed, and because it was too muddy to use the simple planting machine, we did it all by hand. Señoras left their kitchens and hence their responsibility of feeding lunch to their families, señores left their work in other fields and around the house, and the kids... well they gave up their free "rain day" of no class to come work in the field. There were no tereré or lunch breaks. We left at 9am and got back at 3pm. Can you say GUAPO/A!?! And oh man, did people have fun as well, joking around and hassling each other. It doesn't hurt that almost everybody in the community is related in some way or another. I swear it was like a neighborhood block party... but in the cottonfield! And it was amazing to see people so dedicated to the idea of working together that they would work on a day like this, against so many odds. I still don't really understand how it worked out, but I am very impressed nontheless. It will be fun to watch how the field comes up, and of course see what people think about it. The oats and turnips are already sprouting, as of yesterday! *Green manures are crops that you plant for the purpose of recuperating or protecting your soil. They fix nitrogen, break up hardpan, and provide essential cover to keep soil and nutrients in place. Promotion of green manures are one of the key areas of the Agriculture sector of Peace Corps Paraguay. However, it is difficult to convince farmers to plant green manures for a number of reasons. It is a something "new" and strange, seeds can be hard to find, seeds cost money and don't provide a quick turnaround profit, etc. My community's seeds were loaned to them by KOICA (Korean Overseas Volunteer Association) on the conditions that they prepare a plot ahead of time, attend a daylong workshop about green manures hosted by KOICA, and return twice the amount of seed borrowed (half of the quantities mentioned above are planted for seed for next year, and half for demonstration of the benefits of green manures.) If everything goes well, each family in the comite will have the opportunity to plant abono verdes next winter, at no cost, from a source within their own community. Sounds like a start to… sustainability. YES!! When I woke up that Friday morning, I had no idea what the day would bring. I thought to myself, “Ok it’s not great weather, but we really need to get these seeds in the ground.” So I texted my community contact Ña Merarda and went next door to talk to my neighbor Ña Venancia. Both were giving me the “Ikatu / Puede ser / Maybe…” and asking what the other thought, until I got a little huffy, called my contact, put her on speaker phone, and BAM. Before I knew it, we had an ox cart coming to pick up the seeds from my house and were soon on the road, walking barefoot through the mud, picking up people at just about every house we passed. I still can’t get over how amazing it was. I guess it’s a good lesson for me to remember as well. Just because I want to work with Paraguayans, respecting their social and work culture, this doesn’t mean I shouldn’t push a little, ask the questions no one else is, suggest an idea even when I suspect it won’t be popular. After all, look what can happen. J Rain day success!

Here's my big news of the month: I am building a composting latrine. I knew the water level was relatively high in my site and around my house when I moved in, but I didn't know quite how high. Also, we have had significant rain in the past month. Technically, the idea of a normal latrine is that the "solids" stay in the hole, and the "liquids" filter out through the sand and dirt. However, my latrine is currently filled with watery poop mixture up until about 1 foot beneath the cement floor. To give you some reference to what I'm speaking of, Cape Cod is notorious for its high water table and hence easily contaminated aquifer. The water table at the Bourne House ranges from 3-4ft. on average. My water table is comparable to Scraggy Neck or Wings Neck, one of those little peninsulas jutting out into the bay. I will spare you the really gory details, but can you say...backsplash?

The new plan, currently under construction, is a composting latrine. Instead of digging a hole into the ground, it is constructed by building 2 brick deposits above the ground. You defecate (no urine) into one of the deposits for 6 months, or until it is relatively full, adding a small amount of dry organic material like sawdust or leaves every time you use it. Then you leave it securely topped and use the other deposit for the next 6 months. By the time that side is full, the previously used deposit will have composted and can be removed from the brick box by a small door in the side. After being spread out in the sun for a few days to kill any potentially remaining bugs or viruses, the remaining material can be used as very rich compost for trees or flowers.

I know it sounds gross, but doesn't it sound a lot better than contaminating your acquifer or trying to use a soupy "toilet"? It sure does to me! Maybe if it goes well, other people in my community will be interested in building similar ones as well. Right now, the people who do have latrines dig them very shallowly and then move them often when they fill up. However, they are not very sanitary because they lack a top for the hole, and hence can attract a lot of insects that can spread disease. Also, they don't smell so pretty. Other people have modern bathrooms, with a rudimentary septic tank called a "poso ciego". However, this can contaminate the acquifer as well because the waste just sits in the cement well and can leach out as well.

Maybe this isn't the blog post you wanted to read today. But think of how many times you use a bathrom in just 1 day. Where does your waste go? In the States, most of us are fortunately enough to know that wherever we use the restroom, our waste is securely flushed and transported to a place where it is treated. Yes, we have responsibility to get our septic tanks pumped and protect our acquifers from other sources of contamination. But we also have the infrastructure to be able to get clean water every time we open the tap and to be able to hook up septic systems to our houses.

I am just getting a little bit more of an intimate view of what to do with waste, a question that involves all of us, no matter what kind of bathroom you are using.

...and here are some pictures. Pictures not uploading but I will try again later.

Last weekend, my friends and fellow Crop PCVs Amelia and Rachel (Raquel) came to visit. It was SO much fun. We mostly just hung out, chatted, made really good food, did some stargazing, met some neighbors, hoed some for the garden, watched some soccer, and chatted some more. Thanks to our Moms for making the pumpkin pie possible! (Cream of tartar for the meringue from my mom, canned pumpkin from Rachel's.) Happy Mother's Day!

It was wonderful to be able to share my daily life and my site with some of my good friends. "Rustic," "beautiful," "tranquilo," and "cool arquitecture" were key phrases mentioned in describing my house/site. I hope to return the visits in the near future.

I have officially broken out the long underwear to sleep in. ...Cheers!

I will write more soon, but the internet is super slow tonight and it's late. 9:35pm. Dear me. Too cold to stay out of the sleeping bag any longer. Tomorrow I've got shucking a huge bag of beans that I helped harvest so that I can store them for the winter. I'm feeling a little Little Home on the Prairie. If only I had some sassafrass and salted pork. (f.y.i. That is not a real wish list.)

Buenas noches. Hi'ante nde eketa pora. G'night!

Sautéed Veggie Sandwich on Garlic Herb Bread Garlic Herb Bread ½ cup warm water 3 T yeast 1 cup milk dash of salt 2 T Italian spices 3 cloves garlic, minced ¼ cup oil ¼ cup flax seed (optional) 3-4 cups flour Add yeast to warm water, mix well, and set aside for 10 minutes. In a large bowl, combine the rest of the ingredients except for the flour. Add yeast mixture to large bowl mixture and stir. Slowly add the flour until you get a good dough consistency. Then, knead the dough for 10 minutes. Cover the bowl with a towel, and set in a warm place for 1 hour (pre-heated oven works well for cooler days). After 1 hour, knead the dough again for 1 minute. Form into loaf shape and place, well-floured, into bread pan. Cover and set in a warm place for 1 more hour. Then bake in moderately hot oven for 30 minutes or until knife comes out clean. Sautéed Veggie Sandwich 2 thick slices of Garlic Herb Bread Mayonnaise Carrot Onion Green Pepper Tomato Olive Oil Garlic Powder (or 1 clove, minced) Parmesean cheese Chop onion, carrot, and green pepper and sauté lightly in olive oil, with a dash of garlic powder. Slice the tomato and place in pan with sautéed veggies. Sauté for 20 seconds, just enough to warm the tomato slices. Spread mayonnaise lightly on both pieces of bread. Place tomato slices and veggies on the bread. Top with a generous amount of parmesean cheese. Enjoy!

Fall has come finally to Paraguay. Or has it? On Tuesday, I was sweating through shirts in 95 degree heat, and today, Saturday, I am wearing a sweatshirt, hiking boots, and a scarf thinking that truck ride home is going to be pretty chilly.

I am happy for the fall weather, yet it makes me quite homesick. I miss all yáll, A LOT.

Yesterday was a dark cloudy day, and upon rising late out of bed at 7am, I resolved to give myself a day to be a bum around my house. And it was a great day. I made chili and hot chocolate. I took a nap. I did some reading. But upon reflection you may see that to be happy here in Paraguay, I generally need to be working on something. For yesterday I also made myself a front gate out of bamboo, wire, and rope, sewed 2 curtains for my shower and baño (no more street shows for me! J/K), and went to a birthday party for my little friend Jorgito.

Ok, so the birthday party wasn´t actually work, but on the way there talking with my neighbor, I managed to make plans to go make sopa on Monday, go to a memorial service across the road on Tuesday, and work for her garden on Thursday. This is in addition to my next school visit on Monday, my VAC group (all the PCVs who live close to my same town) coming out to hang on Tuesday, comite meeting on Tuesday, and leaving for a meeting with my Peace Corps boss on Friday. Whew! I am exhausted just thinking about it.

You all know me. I just function better when I´m busy. And clearly, that has not changed. I love how here I can walk out of my door with absolutely no idea of what lies ahead of me for the day, but knowing that I will probably be amazed that evening, with all that has happened within just one day. Such is life.

All my love.